Upon seeing Prince Linzi and Prince Baling, Prince Wei’s smile did not reach his eyes, and he asked: “I was just looking for the two princes. You rarely leave the palace — how is it that instead of attending the banquet, you have come to the back here?”

This was the man most trusted by the Empress. He had repeatedly claimed before the Empress that the heir apparent harbored disloyal intentions, wishing to abolish the Zhou and restore the Tang — and had it not been for the senior ministers led by the Elder Di who had vouched adamantly for the heir apparent, the heir apparent and his sons would likely have already lost their lives.

The heir apparent spent every day treading on eggshells, uncertain whether he would survive from one morning to the next. Seeing Prince Wei, Prince Baling was instinctively afraid. It was rather Prince Linzi who remained comparatively steady, and replied with measured justification: “My fourth younger brother and I received Her Imperial Grandmother’s command to leave the palace and dare not be remiss in our filial duties. Aunt Taiping and our father are deeply bonded as siblings — we came to pay our respects to our aunt and dare not be negligent.”

Prince Linzi’s words appeared humble on the surface, but every sentence contained a veiled rebuke. First he invoked the Empress, warning Prince Wei not to act rashly; then he brought up Princess Taiping, implying that the heir apparent, Princess Taiping, and the Empress were blood relatives — unlike Prince Wei, who was a nephew of a different branch.

Prince Wei’s gaze bore down on Prince Linzi with a particularly ominous expression. Prince Ding glanced left and right, and suddenly fixed his attention on Ming Huazhang and Ming Huashang, asking: “And who are these?”

Ming Huashang had been listening with pounding heart to the confrontation between the Li family and the Wu family, and was completely caught off guard when attention suddenly turned to her. Fortunately Ming Huazhang had been standing in front of her the whole time. The young man’s back was long and straight, shielding her from those measuring gazes of uncertain intent. He cupped his hands: “Your subject is Ming Huazhang of Duke Zhenguo’s household. This is my younger sister.”

Hearing Duke Zhenguo’s household, Prince Ding had some recollection and asked with curiosity: “Could it be you two are the twins?”

Ming Huazhang gave a slight nod: “Indeed.”

Prince Ding had been famous for his looks in his youth; now in middle age his face and figure were still well maintained, and instead had acquired an ease and refinement that youth could not hold.

His gaze passed over Ming Huazhang. Having been absent from gatherings for a long time, he had not known that Luoyang had produced such a clear and refined young gentleman.

In truth, people of the Wu clan, whether male or female, all had fine features; the Empress in her youth had even merited a specific mention in the official history for her “beautiful bearing and fine appearance.” But this young man was different — his handsomeness was of a noble, cool, and innately superior kind, utterly unlike the soft and delicate features of the Wu clan, as though he had been born to be revered by others.

Such a bearing reminded him of someone from his past — Princess Taiping’s first husband, the consort Xue Shao, now long dead.

Prince Ding noticed that the young man had been half-shielding the young woman behind him throughout, and gave a soft smile: “A pair of twins is a fine thing. The princess likes this sort of auspicious omen the most. Have you been to see the princess yet?”

“In reply to Prince Ding: your subject has already paid his respects to the princess.”

Having heard that Prince Wei and Prince Linzi and Prince Baling had run into each other, Princess Taiping had already come out from the inner hall. She had a large crimson silk sash over her arm and seemed not to notice at all that the atmosphere on Prince Wei’s side was clearly off. She smiled and said: “Prince Wei, Consort — you have come; why not come inside? The wind is picking up outside and it looks likely to snow again tonight — it is quite cold. Come in — you can keep me company for a round of backgammon.”

Once Princess Taiping appeared, Prince Linzi quietly relaxed his shoulders, knowing they were temporarily safe. Sure enough, with Taiping present, Prince Wei could not press further — and said, half in jest, half probing: “With so many brilliant young talents here, are you not going to the poetry competition to watch? Instead you sit alone in the back hall playing backgammon?”

Princess Taiping gave a coquettish little laugh: “Is it not because Prince Wei has come? Consort — today you must not take sides. I mean to have a proper game with Prince Wei.”

Prince Wei laughed: “That does not follow — as for taking sides, who knows who Youji is actually rooting for? Youji, tell me — is your heart on my side or the princess’s?”

Prince Ding Wu Youji simply smiled with gentle composure. Surrounded by a host of attendants and maids, he walked into the inner hall, which breathed of spring even in winter.

The curtain fell, and the laughter and chatter from within the hall could no longer be heard. Only then did Ming Huashang finally dare to lift her head. She noticed that Ming Huazhang was gazing in the direction of the hall’s doors, his eyes dark as lacquered jade — cool and focused all at once.

Ming Huashang called softly: “Second Elder Brother?”

Ming Huazhang came back to himself, drew his gaze away impassively, and said: “Let us go.”

Ming Huashang nodded silently. Prince Linzi and Prince Baling also wore the look of men who had narrowly escaped a calamity. Ming Huazhang stepped forward to greet them; the two princes, at this time, dared not offend anyone, so they responded politely — but they had no real energy left for small talk. The four walked together for a stretch and then went their separate ways at the fork in the road.

After Prince Linzi and Prince Baling had gone, Ming Huashang hugged her incense-holding warmer and quietly sidled up to Ming Huazhang: “Second Elder Brother, did you notice — Prince Wei was being overly aggressive today, as though nursing some specific grievance?”

Ming Huazhang was taken aback for a moment, clearly not having expected Ming Huashang to say this. He paused, then asked: “How did you know?”

Ming Huashang tilted her head slightly and pouted: “I cannot quite put it into words — it was just a feeling.”

Ming Huazhang did not take Ming Huashang’s words to heart, and said: “Prince Wei has always harbored resentment toward the heir apparent. You need not be frightened — no matter how they struggle against each other, it will not reach you. The warm pavilion where the women are gathering is just ahead. Let me take you there first.”

Ming Huashang had no real interest in caring about the fate of the princes standing at the very pinnacle of the dynasty. Who would be the next emperor, whether the dynastic name would be Wu or Li, whether the country would be called Zhou or Tang — what did any of that have to do with her?

She was nothing more than a false daughter — without wealth, power, or anyone to rely on. In another year she would return to her original station among the common people. Whoever sat on the throne above, did the common people below not all live the same way scraping by?

Without a moment’s hesitation Ming Huashang tossed everything she had just heard and seen to the back of her mind. The warm pavilion arrived quickly. It was filled with unmarried young ladies; it would not be appropriate for Ming Huazhang to linger long, so he watched Ming Huashang go in and then turned and walked away.

The moment Ming Huazhang had come near, the warm pavilion had gone quiet. The young ladies appeared to be absorbed in their own activities, yet every pair of eyes was trailing Ming Huazhang from the corners of their vision. The moment he turned his back, the warm pavilion erupted in a burst of noise.

“Is that Ming Second Brother? He truly is extraordinary.”

“Who is the young woman beside him? To have Second Brother escort her personally…”

People immediately swarmed around Ming Huashang. She was long accustomed to this sort of treatment and explained with practiced composure: “That is my elder brother — yes, I am his twin sister.”

The gazes that had been sizing her up as a romantic rival immediately transformed into fawning ones. They looked her up and down, clearly very satisfied with this potential sister-in-law, and surrounded Ming Huashang with questions about this and that — though the topic always circled back to Ming Huazhang in the end.

Ming Huashang might be lazy about socializing and scheming, but that did not mean she was oblivious. Whom Ming Huazhang married was Ming Huazhang’s own affair — at the very least it was the business of Duke Zhenguo’s household — and it had nothing to do with her.

Ming Huashang had no desire to become a tool for these young ladies, nor to act out the performance of a harmonious sister-and-sister-in-law relationship. She glanced around, did not see Ren Yao, and changed the subject: “Where is Miss Ren of Marquis Pingnan’s household?”

When the women nearby heard that name, one of them pursed her lips and slowly waved her fan: “She is a very busy person — quite unlike ordinary mortals like us. She is probably out forging connections, I would imagine.”

The young ladies not far away heard this and tittered: “What connections can a mere woman forge? Everyone puts up with her out of respect for the Elder Madam Ren and the late Marquis Pingnan — and she actually thinks herself a figure of importance?”

“Indeed.” The refined young ladies joined in: “The court retained Marquis Pingnan’s household title out of consideration for the Elder Madam Ren — but once the Elder Madam passes and Marquis Pingnan’s household has no heir, the title will surely be revoked. I hear the Elder Madam has already summoned the illegitimate branch relatives who split off long ago to come back. If you ask me, if Ren Yao had any real sense, she ought to cultivate a good relationship with her illegitimate uncles and half-cousins. If it truly falls to the illegitimate branch to inherit the marquisate, staying on good terms with the new marquis would at least mean someone to provide her a dowry — and she would have her family to turn to if she were mistreated in her husband’s household. Otherwise, if she were wronged there, no one would even come to her aid.”

The first woman who had spoken covered her lips with a laugh: “With a personality like hers, who would dare marry her?”

“True.” The noble young ladies laughed together. Ming Huashang listened from beside them, deeply uncomfortable.

Ming Huashang could not stand to hear any more of it. She suddenly stood up and said: “It is a little stifling in here. I am going for a walk outside. Please, all of you remain seated — I beg to be excused.”

The other women all urged her to stay, but Ming Huashang paid them no heed and walked out quickly, disappearing into the dark, deep, snowy night.

During the day the sky had been clear, but now a west wind had picked up, and tiny fragments of snow were sifting down from above — it looked like it might snow again. Ming Huashang wrapped herself tightly in her heavy cloak, gripping her gilded incense hand warmer, and without lighting a lantern walked slowly along the deep, dim covered walkway.

Those young ladies speaking ill of Ren Yao always made Ming Huashang think of herself one year hence. Right now they were all hugs and warmth toward her, very affectionate — but Ming Huashang knew they were not genuinely trying to be her friends; they were only using her as a means to get closer to Ming Huazhang.

And after another year, when the true daughter returned to Duke Zhenguo’s household, how would they speak of her in private? She would die lonely in the night in some out-of-the-way courtyard — in the eyes of Luoyang’s aristocrats, would that not be dismissed with simply a word of “serves her right”?

Ming Huashang breathed out a long clouded breath. The path turned just then, and as she looked up, she saw directly before her a ghastly pale face clad in red — and was badly startled.

The red-clad woman on the other side stumbled back too, and screamed: “A ghost!”

Ming Huashang recognized it was only a serving maid — her face happened to be lit sharply by the lamplight, which made her look unusually eerie. Ming Huashang let out a long breath of relief: “I am no ghost. I am Ming Second Lady of Duke Zhenguo’s household.”

The woman across from her held up her lantern and carefully checked Ming Huashang’s shadow, then finally composed herself: “Ah, it is Miss Ming. Your pardon, miss. Miss Ming, it is so dark — why do you not carry a lantern?”

Ming Huashang had deliberately slipped away from the maids who were guiding her because she wanted some peace, so she said: “I rarely get to see such large snowflakes — I wanted to look at the light of the snow, so I did not light a lantern. By the way, do you know where Miss Ren of Marquis Pingnan’s household is?”

The maid in red furrowed her brow and thought a moment: “She was over that way, I think. When I came past, I saw Miss Ren standing at the foot of the garden rockery, perfectly still — it was rather unnerving.”

Ming Huashang thanked her and lifted her hem to walk in the direction the maid had pointed.

Outside the covered walkway lay snow; the accumulated whiteness cast a faint, luminous glow, so that even without a lantern walking was not difficult. Ming Huashang followed the path the maid had come from and sure enough, at the bend she saw a dark figure leaning against a rock, staring vacantly up at the falling snow.

Ming Huashang strained to hold up her wide, heavy skirts and called out: “Elder Sister Ren!”

Ren Yao turned around, squinted for a long while before recognizing Ming Huashang: “Why is it you?”

Ming Huashang pattered over and said with a smile: “I was enjoying the snow on this side, and a maid mentioned you were here, so I came to find you for a chat. Why are you standing in the snow? Are you cold? My warmer was just refilled with charcoal — it is still warm. Here — take it!”

Ren Yao glanced at the hand warmer that was radiating warmth, then looked at Ming Huashang’s bright, luminous eyes, and for some reason felt even more low-spirited: “No need. I am used to training in all weather — a little cold is nothing. You look delicate and frail — keep it for yourself.”

Ming Huashang said “Oh” and quietly took back her hand warmer, yet remained standing beside Ren Yao and chatted with her in a casual, easy way: “I heard what happened at the banquet. People who begrudge others’ happiness always outnumber those who sincerely wish them well — do not take it too much to heart.”

Ren Yao gave a cold snort: “A bunch of pampered young ladies who depend on others for their every need — why would I stoop to argue with them? I am just hurt. I did not want to become like them. I have trained relentlessly in martial arts for years, all in hopes of one day being able to rely on myself — but I have come to realize that this world simply offers women no path to self-reliance.”

Ming Huashang listened in silence. If it had been someone else making snide remarks, Ming Huashang could still have said something to comfort her; but what Ren Yao was grieving was the invisible weight of this world pressing down on her, and Ming Huashang could not find a single word to say.

Ren Yao forgot that the person before her was someone she had known for only a single day; the voice pent up inside her for so many years came flooding out: “My father’s and brothers’ old friends and acquaintances, when they heard of my situation, were all very sympathetic and said they would definitely look after me going forward. But the moment I mentioned wanting to inherit the marquisate, they all looked at me as though they had heard something from a fantasy — as though they could not understand how I had come up with such a strange idea. Everyone agrees that my illegitimate uncle eats, drinks, whores, and gambles his way through life and is good for nothing — yet they all take it equally for granted that the marquisate should be handed to a man. If not the illegitimate uncle, then a young half-brother should be adopted and raised by me from childhood. Marquis Pingnan’s household must always have a man — could it really be passed to a woman like me?”

“But that is clearly my home! Why has even living in my own home and keeping my parents’ possessions become something that others bestow on me as a favor?”

Ming Huashang was silent for a long while. She walked down from the stone steps and quietly took hold of Ren Yao’s hand. Sure enough — it was ice cold; she did not know how long Ren Yao had been standing in the snow.

Ren Yao had not cried when practicing through scorching summers and bitter winters; she had not cried when her grandmother made her kneel before the ancestral hall as punishment; she had not cried when she was turned away again and again at the banquet. Now someone took her hand with warmth — and she suddenly fell apart entirely. Ren Yao lowered her head; tears fell with a splat as she said in a choked voice: “Women can even be Empress — so why can they not inherit a marquisate?”

Ming Huashang understood completely the bitterness in Ren Yao’s heart, yet she had no choice but to remind her: “Elder Sister Ren — be careful what you say.”

Ming Huashang’s voice was low and soft. Even as she spoke, a piercing scream split the night sky, completely drowning out her words: “Ahh — a ghost!”