Yu Yuan didn’t return to the inn until dusk. He carried several lotus leaf packages in his left hand and a glass bottle in his right. When he saw Yu Wen playing chess in the hall, he headed straight over, smiling as he lifted what he was carrying and said, “Uncle, look what I brought back!”

When he got close, Yu Wen smelled the aroma of braised meat. He took a deep sniff and said, “It’s braised pig’s head from the Zhenbei City shop.”

Yu Yuan laughed heartily and said, “Uncle, your nose is really sharp.”

“Of course!” Yu Wen said with a smile. “Just think about who brought you braised pig’s head from Hangzhou Prefecture the first time you ate it? If I couldn’t even smell their braised pig’s head, what kind of gourmand would I be?” As he spoke, he pointed at the glass bottle in Yu Yuan’s hand: “What’s this? Even using a glass bottle—this bottle alone is worth several taels of silver. Where did you get it?”

Yu Yuan greeted the innkeeper, then sat somewhat proudly on a spring bench nearby and said, “You’d never guess this one! This is called grape wine, and Yao San’er gave it to me.”

“Grape wine?” Yu Wen frowned. “Yao San’er?”

“The third son of the Yao family who lives in the north of the city. We grew up together, and later he became a traveling merchant following his young uncle.” Yu Yuan said excitedly, “I was wandering around the north of the city at noon today, and unexpectedly ran into him. He’s opened a general store near the Wulin Gate now and become a boss. Knowing I came with you, he originally wanted to come pay his respects to you, but goods arrived at his shop and he couldn’t get away, so he gave me this bottle of grape wine. He said it came from the Arabs, and nowadays wealthy families in Hangzhou all send this as gifts. He said it’s for you, to let you try something new. This braised pig’s head from Zhenbei City was also bought by him. He’s also planning to come visit you tomorrow.”

Yu Wen remembered now and smiled, “So it’s him! Back when both his parents died, you often helped him out with food. I didn’t expect he’d still remember you—this is fate indeed.”

Yu Yuan nodded repeatedly, smiling, “He’s really doing well now. He even bought a small house at Qingchun Gate, married a wife from Hangzhou city, and settled down in Hangzhou.”

Yu Wen nodded and invited the innkeeper to drink with him: “It’s rare that we get along so well—don’t be polite. Let’s taste this grape wine together and see what it’s like.”

The innkeeper had dealt with Yu Wen several times and knew he was quite an open-minded person. Plus, lately everyone had been very curious about this grape wine, so he didn’t stand on ceremony. He had the innkeeper’s wife add a few dishes, then moved with Yu Wen and Yu Yuan to the courtyard, plated the braised pig’s head meat, and started drinking.

Yu Yuan held the wine pot.

As soon as the wine was poured into the cups, Yu Wen smelled a fruity aroma, completely different from the wines he usually drank. He took a deep breath, then looked down to see the wine in the white porcelain cup was deep red like blood. He was startled and said, “Why this color?”

Yu Yuan quickly said, “It’s supposed to be this color. Yao San’er specifically reminded me earlier—if it’s not this color, then it’s fake wine.”

Yu Wen nodded and reluctantly took a sip.

The innkeeper quickly asked, “How is it? Does it taste good?”

Yu Wen was noncommittal, saying faintly, “This wine is like tea—it depends on personal taste. What I think is good, you might not think is good. You have to taste it yourself to know.”

The innkeeper found this reasoning sound and raised his cup to drink a mouthful… Then he froze completely.

Yu Yuan saw something was wrong and said urgently, “What happened? Is something wrong with it?”

The innkeeper glanced at Yu Wen, swallowed the wine in his mouth, then slowly said to Yu Yuan, “You’ll know once you taste it.”

Yu Yuan looked at them both suspiciously, then tentatively drank some wine. But before the wine even reached his throat, he spat it out with a “ptui” sound.

“What kind of taste is this?” He frowned. “Wasn’t it supposed to be very precious?”

Yu Wen and the innkeeper both burst into laughter. Only then did Yu Wen speak frankly: “What fine wine? How can it compare to our Jinhua wine? Still, it’s worth trying something new. Go, take a cup upstairs for your sister to taste too. Since we’ve come all the way to Hangzhou Prefecture, we should experience some strange and unusual things to make the trip worthwhile!”

Yu Yuan went upstairs with a cup of wine, grinning mischievously, to give it to Yu Tang.

Yu Tang looked at Yu Yuan suspiciously: “Didn’t they say I should fast?”

“This wine is very precious. Just taste a sip, smell it. You think I’d let you drink a whole cup?” Yu Yuan said.

Yu Tang didn’t suspect anything and drank a mouthful.

Astringent, sour, and bitter—what kind of wine was this!

Yu Tang got up to hit Yu Yuan.

Yu Yuan circled around the round table with her, saying, “It was Uncle who told me to bring it up for you to taste.”

“Even so, you shouldn’t have done this!”

As the siblings were making a commotion, a waiter knocked on the door outside and said, “Young Master Yu, someone is looking for you!”

Yu Tang couldn’t continue making a fuss. Yu Yuan straightened his collar while asking, “Who is it?”

The waiter said, “It’s a boy about twelve or thirteen years old. He only says he’s looking for you but won’t say who he is.”

Yu Yuan said confusedly, “Who could that be?” Then he said to Yu Tang, “I’ll go take a look and be right back.”

Yu Tang nodded and saw Yu Yuan out.

Before long, Yu Yuan returned. He whispered in Yu Tang’s ear: “Master Qian sent someone to find me and ask me to go over. When Uncle comes back later, tell him for me.”

At this moment, Yu Wen was drinking with the innkeeper.

Yu Tang asked worriedly, “Didn’t they say what it was about?”

Yu Yuan shook his head and said, “Don’t worry. If anything happens, I’ll immediately send someone to bring you news.”

Though Yu Tang was still uneasy, she could only let him go.

When the second watch drum sounded, Yu Wen’s drinking party ended and he came to check on Yu Tang: “Are you feeling better?”

“Much better!” Yu Tang helped her father sit down at the table and poured him a cup of hot tea.

Yu Wen saw the half-finished needlework Yu Tang had left on the table and couldn’t help picking it up to examine it by the oil lamp: “Oh my, I didn’t expect you could actually make this. This little insect is made so realistically—even the positions of the seven black spots on its back are correct. Very good!”

Yu Tang was very skilled at making insects. Besides ladybugs, she could also make dragonflies, praying mantises, bees… all very lifelike.

Yu Wen then said, “This flower is also well made. It looks like a pulsatilla to me. When you get back, make one for your mother to wear too.”

This was her father’s praise and approval.

Yu Tang was very happy and said with a smile, “I’m planning to make Mother a peony or a herbaceous peony.”

But Yu Wen said, “I think your mother would look better wearing begonia or lilac.”

So in Father’s heart, Mother was more like begonia or lilac flowers?

Yu Tang nodded with a smile and told Yu Wen where Yu Yuan had gone.

Yu Wen was very worried, but didn’t want to show it in front of Yu Tang. He said faintly, “I understand,” then instructed Yu Tang: “Go to bed early. Tomorrow remember to make a hair ornament for your mother. We’ll say we bought it in Hangzhou city and see if your mother can tell the difference.”

Yu Tang agreed with a smile.

That night, however, she tossed and turned, unable to sleep much.

Before dawn, Yu Yuan returned.

When he entered the room, he also woke Yu Tang next door who had been anxiously waiting. She quietly got dressed and went to her father’s room.

Yu Yuan opened the door.

Yu Wen stood at the desk wearing his outer garment, his expression grave. Seeing Yu Tang enter, he said nothing.

Only when Yu Tang came closer did she discover three unmounted paintings spread on the desk. Two of them could be recognized as “Fishing in Seclusion by Pine Stream,” and another one looked like mountains or perhaps sea, with many various incomprehensible symbols on it.

Yu Wen said in a heavy voice, “A’Tang, you really guessed right. There’s something suspicious about this painting!”

Yu Tang could see this without her father saying so. She looked toward Yu Yuan.

Yu Yuan’s expression wasn’t good either. He lowered his voice and said, “These are the three paintings Master Qian peeled apart. ‘Fishing in Seclusion by Pine Stream’ is in the upper and lower layers. The middle layer is this thing we don’t know what it is. Master Qian let us bring them back without even mounting them.”

Clearly Master Qian had also seen there was a problem.

Yu Tang pointed at the unknown painting and said, “What is this?”

Yu Yuan shook his head: “I don’t know either.”

Yu Wen stared at the nameless diagram, his face dark as he uttered two words: “Map!”

“What?!” Yu Tang and Yu Yuan asked in unison.

Yu Wen explained: “It’s a topographical map of mountains and rivers. In the past for warfare or flood control, they needed such maps to know whether the surroundings were mountains or water, forests or plains.”

Yu Tang thought about how she didn’t even know which way to go to Zhaoming Temple without someone leading her, and immediately felt great admiration for whoever could draw such a map. Moreover, it must have taken considerable manpower and resources—very precious. She said, “Could this be what they’re looking for?”

Yu Wen and Yu Yuan didn’t say anything, tacitly agreeing with her words. Yu Wen added further: “Maps are very rare and valuable. They’re all controlled by the Ministry of War or Ministry of Works. Ordinary people have never even seen them. In the past when generals went to war, only high officials of the third rank or above like commander-in-chief could collect them from the Ministry of Works with documents from the Ministry of War. After the battle, the maps had to be returned intact. Even I only heard about this by chance from Lu Xin.”

Yu Yuan couldn’t help but feel somewhat alarmed, saying, “Where did this painting come from originally? Who exactly is looking for this painting? How did they know this thing was hidden in the painting? Why didn’t they openly ask to buy it from our family?”

No one could answer these questions.

Both Yu Wen and Yu Tang had never been so clearly aware as at this moment that their family had gotten into big trouble.

Yu Yuan said, “Then, then what do we do?”

Yu Wen slumped into the armchair behind the desk and said, “Let me think, let me think… Although I recognized this as a map, I have no idea what area’s topography it depicts or what purpose it serves… If we want to know, we can only find someone who has seen maps, or is even very familiar with and knowledgeable about various maps…” As he spoke, he pointed to the wavy lines representing water on the map: “Nothing is labeled—we don’t even know if it’s river water or river water. Us holding this map is like a child wielding an eighty-pound sword—not only can’t we intimidate others, we’ll hurt ourselves.”

Someone who has seen maps, someone very familiar with and knowledgeable about maps… Pei Yan’s face suddenly floated into Yu Tang’s mind.

“Father!” She said haltingly, “How about, we go find Third Master Pei?!”

Yu Wen looked sharply at her.

Yu Tang suddenly felt inexplicably guilty, as uncomfortable as if someone had stripped off her outer garment. She said, “Or, or we could find Top Scholar Zhou too… They’re both knowledgeable people, they surely would recognize what’s drawn on this…”