No matter how much turmoil raged beyond the walls, Hua Zhi paid it no mind. After returning from the Lu Family, she made a brief round of visits to the branch families and then stepped outside no more. She moved a few things from the study into Yanxi’s room, and spent the greater part of her days there.

She also summoned Xiao Liu. Since she had formally accepted him as a disciple with proper ceremony, she naturally had to teach him with more dedication than before.

And so the days passed until the fifteenth.

In the Great Qing dynasty, the year was not considered truly over until after the Lantern Festival. On this day there was no curfew, and lantern fairs could be enjoyed — yet the sisters of the Hua Family, with no older brother to escort them, were unable to go out this year.

Having once traveled across nearly every corner of the country, and having journeyed south and north within the past year, Hua Zhi always felt a peculiar pity for the women of this era. Seeing that the young ladies of the Hua Family could not even venture out on one of the rare days when they had every legitimate reason to do so, she simply decided to hold a lantern fair within their own home.

Of course, she only provided the idea. The one who came forward to manage it was still Wu Shi. Yingchun and Baoxia were also dispatched to busy themselves with the preparations.

“Young miss, the three branch families have all arrived.”

Hua Zhi set down her brush and blew lightly on the ink. “These riddles should be more than enough. Liu Xiang — how are the lanterns coming along?”

“The mistresses have each made some, and the young ladies from the branch families have brought some as well. With what the sisters have made, there should be plenty.”

“Then there ought to be quite a number. Xiao Liu, help write out a few more — consider it joining in the fun.”

Xiao Liu agreed with a cheerful smile.

Hua Zhi rose and looked over at the man who was no longer willing to lie in bed, draped in an outer robe and wearing his hair loosely — an easy, at-home figure. “I am going to tend to things. Dinner can be a little later tonight — wait for me and we will eat together.”

Gu Yanxi gave a slight smile and nodded. They both knew that such a leisurely day as this was unlikely to come again soon. Every extra moment they could spend together was one to be cherished.

Quite a few of the branch family members had come, and the Hua Family, which had been quiet for so long, suddenly filled with a lively, bustling energy. Hua Zhi greeted the three elder aunts-in-law of the branch families, directed the older women to Fourth Aunt, handed the young ladies off to Hua Xin and her sisters, and had the boys led away by Baiyu. In a matter of moments, everyone had been given their place.

The wife of the Fourth Uncle laughed. “So efficient — why did it never occur to me to do it this way?”

“Because there is only one eldest young miss of the Hua Family like this.” The wife of the Second Uncle covered her mouth as she teased, then turned to look at Hua Zhi with a small frown. “Everyone else has put on weight over the winter. Zhi’er, there hasn’t been a bit of change in you.”

“I store it well — whatever I gain doesn’t show on my face.” Hua Zhi deflected with a smile. She had long known that small talk and family gossip were not her forte, and she had come prepared. She produced a pack of playing cards. “I have a new novelty here. The three of you can play for a while — only please don’t speak of it outside. It isn’t sold anywhere yet, and when things are more convenient in a few days I will send each of you a set.”

The game Hua Zhi taught them was a three-player card game called Guan Pai — easy to pick up, and more importantly, it required no participation from her.

She was not worried they would gossip about it either. Since the cards were not yet sold anywhere, even if they tried to make their own from paper they would not succeed — paper cards would be floppy, and after a handful of rounds the fun would be lost. Besides, after nearly a year of careful handling, these women were now quite obedient to her: when she said not to speak of it outside, they would not.

The three women quickly got the hang of it and settled in with full concentration.

This was exactly the effect Hua Zhi wanted. She excused herself and stepped out of the courtyard, following the sounds of laughter until she found the young ladies of the Hua Family along the covered walkway, bundled up warmly, hanging all manner of lanterns alongside their maidservants.

“Elder Sister.”

Hua Rong spotted her first, and at her call the others all looked over too, one after another calling out “Elder Sister.” Even the girl perched on a chair to hang a lantern clambered down.

“I only came to have a look. Carry on having fun — enjoy yourselves however you like. There are not so many rules today.”

“Yes!” The young ladies answered in bright, sweet voices, exchanged glances, and broke into cheerful laughter once more.

Hua Rong came running over with a lantern and held it out to her. “Elder Sister, this is for you.”

It was a lotus flower lantern, and it even had a painting on it. Hua Zhi looked at her half-sister’s expression, clearly fishing for praise, and understood at once. “You made it yourself?”

“Mm-hmm! I made several, and this one turned out the best.”

“It is very beautiful. Then I shall accept this finest one.”

Hua Rong burst into an even wider smile and ran back to keep hanging her lanterns.

Hua Zhi found a spot sheltered from the wind and sat down, leaning against a pillar of the walkway, watching them laugh and play. In both her past life and this one, such a scene had never happened before. Even when the Hua Family’s relationships had been harmonious, it was only by comparison with other families — in private, everyone still had their own calculations, and competing against each other was perfectly ordinary. Like Hua Xin and Hua Ling — they had quarreled more than once in the past. This warm, harmonious picture was something that had never existed before.

Just watching it made her feel that it was unbearably beautiful.

She must be a person starved of love, Hua Zhi thought with self-deprecating amusement, and rose, lifting her lotus lantern as she departed.

She did not see how, the moment her back was turned, the young ladies who had been laughing just moments before fell silent, each of them watching the retreating figure.

Hua Rong murmured, “I wanted to call Elder Sister to come play with us, but I could not find the words.”

“Neither could I.” Hua Xin casually wiped at the corner of her eye. “She is not that much older than us, yet it feels like a generation apart.”

Hua Xin still remembered what their elder sister used to be like — she never joined them, never composed poetry with them, never went out. Even among the sisters, they could not see her every day. Yet whenever she was supposed to appear, she was always there. Never overstepping, never crossing a line, always keeping to the rules. To say it plainly, she had been rather rigid. Such an elder sister had posed no threat at all, and so Hua Xin had only ever seen Hua Ling as a rival.

She had once looked down a little on this elder sister who held the title of legitimate firstborn yet was as sealed as a stoppered gourd and without a trace of temper. How foolish of her, she now realized. A person of true ability never shows off their capabilities. When the moment came that she needed to step forward, she was more reliable than anyone.

What did it mean for an elder sister to be like a mother? In the Hua Family as it stood today, the eldest young miss of the Hua Family was exactly that.

Hua Zhi carried her lantern, wandered a loop around the rear courtyard, and returned to the front all the same. It seemed that only here did she lack that feeling of being out of place. She was truly getting old — a weariness that no amount of youth could conceal.

There was only Yanxi inside. She carefully set the lantern down and went to sit beside him, leaning her head against his shoulder without a word.

Gu Yanxi set down his book and drew her close. “Not happy?”

Hua Zhi shook her head, not knowing how to put the feeling into words.

Gu Yanxi kissed her on the forehead and asked nothing further. “A game of weiqi?”

She would have preferred a round of tactical battle-planning, but on reflection she let that idea go. Yanxi’s ease and leisure existed only within this room. Once he stepped outside he would have to put on his bearing again, and just watching that was exhausting.

The board was arranged. Hua Zhi took the black stones and moved first. Whether it was because something was pent up inside her, her playing style was considerably more aggressive than usual. Yet Gu Yanxi met her with cunning moves of his own, one trap laid after another — a true match of equals.

Whatever lingering mood had settled in Hua Zhi’s heart was long forgotten. Her entire mind was on the board, and she and Yanxi were locked in a contest of perfectly matched strength.

Seeing that she was no longer brooding, Gu Yanxi dared not allow his own attention to wander. Given Ah Zhi’s level of skill, giving his full effort was no guarantee of victory — he had no intention of losing to her in too ugly a fashion.