A modest ox-cart rumbled along into the bustling morning market of Yutou County, the old man perched on it calling out in a loud voice the name of his next stop.

Ding Sanniang of the Ding Family Pastry Shop had not survived last year’s famine. This year, the one kneading the snow-white dough in front of the shop was her only daughter, whom the neighbors all called Little Ding Niang. Little Ding Niang had inherited her mother’s craft, and the front of the Ding Family Pastry Shop was, just as it had been in her mother’s day, always the most crowded spot in the morning market.

The proprietor of Heliu Hall lingered in front of the pastry shop for a long while, examining his options from every angle with meticulous care before finally carrying off the thickest taro cake. Someone teased him for being stingy, and he retorted without a trace of shame: “I’m being stingy with my own money — what’s it to you?”

Back in the day, when Li the Skinner was still in town, his wife had added considerable business to the proprietor’s accounts.

He wondered if they would ever return.

Without Li Niang’s patronage, when on earth would he ever sell through all the toilet paper he’d stockpiled?

The proprietor of Heliu Hall sighed, munched his taro cake, and walked away with a worried frown.

There was one other person who missed the Li family just as much.

Du Yanlong, the one-eyed proprietor of the pawnshop, sat idle behind his counter, the treasures displayed on the curio shelves behind him reduced to a sparse scattering.

When Li Wu had still been around, those shelves had never once been empty. Li Wu always had a way of procuring fine things, and during the years of their partnership, both men had profited handsomely.

Du Yanlong watched the crowds streaming through the busy market and couldn’t help the sigh that escaped his throat.

When would Li Wu come back and make him rich again?

Or — wherever Li Wu was, could he go and join him?

Across the street, the Sui Family Chicken Shop had moved back to Yutou County after the war in Xiangzhou, and business was as good as ever. Aside from the Ding Family Pastry Shop, it had the longest queue in the entire morning market.

Rows of plump, round roasted chickens turned slowly on glowing red hooks above the fire, their deep crimson skin glistening with fat, shimmering in and out of sight in the morning sunlight.

A young flower-seller girl passed by the door with a bamboo basket on her arm, leaving a trail of delicate osmanthus fragrance in her wake.

“When our osmanthus tree blooms next year, I’ll bring the flowers to Jiu Niang and we’ll brew osmanthus wine — one jar each for all three of us!”

The bright, carefree voice rang in her ears, and Sui Rui gazed in the direction the girl had gone, momentarily lost in thought.

Next year’s osmanthus had already bloomed. Where was the person from last year?

In this vast world, would they ever meet again?

“What are you daydreaming about — aren’t you going to tend to the chickens?”

Jiu Niang walked into the shop and called out to pull Sui Rui’s thoughts back.

Sui Rui looked down and saw the roasting chicken was nearly overdone. She quickly turned the iron hook to rotate it.

Though it was already the golden season of autumn, the chicken shop was still thick with steam and heat. Sui Rui wiped the sweat from her brow with her sleeve and asked, “What brings you here?”

“I caught a bit of a chill yesterday. Today, this young lady does not feel like opening for business, nor does she feel like cooking. Give this young lady one of your roast chickens.”

Perhaps because she was unwell, Jiu Niang was dressed today in a plain, conventional robe, but her waist was slender, her figure striking, and even the most modest cut of robe couldn’t conceal the sway of her walk, which lent her a touch of allure. The moment Jiu Niang stepped into the Sui Family Chicken Shop, every man — buyer and seller alike — turned to look without exception.

Jiu Niang was long accustomed to those gazes and paid them not the slightest mind.

She leaned against the counter, idly flicking the abacus beads before her, and said in a languid tone: “These wretched men… when they haven’t gotten what they want, they stare and stare, and their vows of devotion sound more heartfelt than anyone’s. Ask them to actually marry me, and they scatter like rabbits.”

Sui Rui picked the plumpest roast chicken from the rack and said as she reached for it:

“It’s not as if no one is willing to marry you.”

“A penniless scholar who can’t even feed himself? A widower with a brood of grandchildren? A bald blacksmith who beat his last wife to death?” Jiu Niang sighed. “…I’d sooner grow old alone.”

She propped her chin in her hand and flicked the abacus beads, murmuring wistfully:

“Are there any unattached men in this world like Li Wu?”

“You still have Li Wu on your mind?” Sui Rui paused in wrapping the chicken and looked up in surprise.

“Don’t talk nonsense — it’s not him this young lady has on her mind.” Jiu Niang shot Sui Rui a sidelong glance. “What this young lady has on her mind is an unattached man with prospects, like Li Wu. No capital to speak of? That’s fine — this young lady has capital. This young lady would be willing to help him along… but…”

She couldn’t help sighing again.

“This young lady has the silver, but can’t find the right man.”

“What’s the rush? Li Qingman hasn’t married either,” Sui Rui said, tying off the twine and handing Jiu Niang the lotus-leaf-wrapped roast chicken.

“If she were already married, what would I have to rush about…” Jiu Niang rolled her eyes.

“What do you mean?” Sui Rui stared at her, baffled.

“…Talking to someone as oblivious as you is a complete waste of breath.”

Jiu Niang picked up the lotus-leaf package, left the payment for the roast chicken, and walked out of the chicken shop with the resigned expression of someone who had been casting pearls before swine.

From the long queue outside, several pairs of eyes followed the graceful sway of Jiu Niang’s retreating figure without blinking.

“What are you all gawking at?! Are you going to tend to the chickens or not?!” Sui Rui brought her palm down on one of the male assistants who had gone blank-eyed, startling him so badly he nearly dropped the iron chicken hook onto his own foot.

The onlookers burst into laughter.

No matter what turmoil and bloodshed raged beyond its borders, Yutou County, tucked away in its quiet corner, was like a world apart — its peaceful rhythms carrying on as they always had. The calls of merchants hawking their wares, the haggling of passersby, the endless stream of footsteps and conversation, mingled with the all-pervasive fragrance of porridge, pastries, and sizzling fried things — together, they drew back the curtain on another ordinary, warm day in the life of Yutou County.

A thunderous boom from the direction of the city gate shattered the lively normalcy of Yutou County.

Every assistant in the shop tending to the chickens stopped working at once.

The customers queued outside the Sui Family Chicken Shop craned their necks and joined the bystanders who had already stopped in the street to look.

Sui Rui was just about to turn the chickens when a second boom rang out.

“What’s that sound?” Her father pulled back the door curtain and came out from the kitchen, drenched in sweat.

“I don’t know…”

Before Sui Rui could finish, a third boom sounded.

Something seemed to have collapsed in the distance — the sound shook the heavens, and the floor of the Sui Family Chicken Shop trembled underfoot.

The street erupted into chaos. A young girl fled past the doorway, her face white with terror; the osmanthus branches in her bamboo basket scattered across the ground, and the delicate blossoms had barely fallen before a man running behind her crushed them underfoot —

“Run! The rebel army has broken through!”

Cries of anguish and sounds of slaughter seemed to burst from the air all at once. A scream from somewhere unknown sent the Sui Family Chicken Shop into complete disarray.

Customers and assistants alike surged toward the doorway in a single mass.

Rows of red roast chickens hung untended on the racks.

Sui Rui had barely reached for the nearest rack when her father grabbed her by the arm, his voice pitched higher than usual with urgency: “Of all the times — forget the chickens!”

He hauled Sui Rui into the kitchen, dug out the private savings he had hidden away, and stuffed them into his clothes. He turned around to find Sui Rui carefully selecting the sharpest and lightest chopping knives.

Her father nearly choked with rage. He snatched the knife from her hand and threw it aside, snapping: “What are you thinking, taking the field yourself? Come with me right now — I knew this day would come sooner or later, and I prepared a cart in advance! Hurry, there’s no time —”

“Are we going to collect Mother and the Concubine first?”

“Collect who — the cart can’t hold that many people. Just you and me — come on!”

Sui Rui stopped dead, shaking his hand off.

“You’re going to abandon them?!”

“Of course I’d bring them if I could, but I can’t manage it!” Her father stamped his foot in frustration. “You’re not moving — do you want to fall into those soldiers’ hands? Do you know what they’ll do to you?”

“I know exactly what they’ll do — that’s why I can’t run away and leave them behind!” Sui Rui glared at him furiously. “I won’t save my own skin alone. You go if you want — go by yourself!”

“You —” Her father was nearly beside himself with anger.

Seeing Sui Rui turn and walk back toward the Sui family residence, he knew she meant it. His voice rose in fury: “Get back here!”

Sui Rui walked on as if she had heard nothing.

Fleeing crowds swept in between them. Her father hesitated, torn — but in the end, he could not bring himself to abandon his only flesh and blood. He surged forward and caught her firmly by the arm.

“Fine! I’ll go! I’ll go get them — are you satisfied?!” he said, his exasperation complete. “I’ll go home and collect your mother and the concubines. You go wait at Wendao Lane — the cart is parked there. Don’t wander anywhere. I’ll come as soon as I’ve got them!”

He said it without waiting for Sui Rui’s agreement, then turned and ran toward home at full speed.

The streets were swarming with people fleeing in blind panic. Shopkeepers abandoned their stalls and ran alongside the crowds with no thought of direction. Overturned cauldrons, scattered flour, and trampled vegetables lay everywhere underfoot.

The ground was trembling. Hoofbeats drew closer and closer, and the cries and screams drew closer and closer.

Every face in sight was as white as paper.

Sui Rui had barely taken a step toward Wendao Lane when she suddenly thought of Jiu Niang, who lived alone. Her face changed. Without a second thought, she turned and ran toward Jiu Niang’s tavern.

Against the surge of the crowd, Sui Rui was the only one running the wrong way.

Jiu Niang’s establishment was closer to the city gate — which meant it was one of the first places at risk. A woman as striking as Jiu Niang, falling into the hands of rogue soldiers — there was no need to imagine the rest.

Sui Rui ran at full sprint, passing the proprietor of Heliu Hall and his family, who were fleeing with every bundle they could carry, each one clutching a bulging pack, and at last caught sight of the banner of the Chen Family Wine Shop.

Sui Rui took the steps two at a time and rushed through the door of the tavern, where tables and chairs had been knocked over. “Jiu Niang? Jiu Niang?!”

“This young lady is here…”

A faint call came from the back courtyard. Sui Rui shot inside in one bound.

Wine jars stood broken or toppled all across the courtyard. Jiu Niang was in the process of climbing out of one that had survived intact. She had already been sick to begin with, and now was soaked through — her face drained of all color.

Sui Rui rushed forward to support her swaying body.

“The Liao army broke — broke in…” Jiu Niang gripped Sui Rui’s arm, her lips trembling. “I hid inside a wine jar and barely escaped… We have to run… run…”

“All right, we have a cart at home. Don’t bother collecting anything — come with me now —”

Sui Rui grabbed the unsteady Jiu Niang and headed for the door.

They had just reached the main hall of the tavern when two rogue soldiers blocking the doorway, each gripping a broadsword, stepped into their path.

Blood still dripped slowly from the blades. The soldiers looked over Jiu Niang — whose soaked clothes clung to her figure — and Shen Zhuxi, whose face was grave and watchful. Identical leering grins spread across their faces.

“Where were you two little ladies hiding just now? So heartless of you — you’ve really wounded your brothers’ feelings.”

“Don’t come any closer!”

Sui Rui’s eyes flashed with fierce warning as she stepped forward, putting herself between the soldiers and Jiu Niang.

“And what if we do?”

The two rogue soldiers advanced without a trace of fear, their lecherous grins spreading wider.

“Come somewhere else with us. As long as you keep us company for a bit of fun, we’ll let you walk out alive…”

Jiu Niang trembled as she pulled the hairpin from her hair.

Inspired by the gesture, Sui Rui also took the silver hairpin from her own hair and gripped it tightly, her voice low and fierce: “Anyone who lays a finger on me, I swear I’ll drag him down with me when I die!”

“A feisty woman — I’d be happy to die, as long as it’s in your bed…”

One of the soldiers licked his lips and lunged toward Sui Rui first.

Jiu Niang screamed behind her. Sui Rui kept her eyes fixed on the charging soldier, the hairpin gripped like a blade in her fist.

Thud!

Whir!

Two strange sounds rang out almost simultaneously, and both Sui Rui and Jiu Niang’s eyes went wide without thinking.

A broadsword had been driven straight through the chest of the soldier lunging at Sui Rui — the tip protruding from his back, a red stain spreading rapidly across his clothing.

He stared with wide eyes, still wearing the expression of a man who hadn’t yet understood what was happening, glanced down at the sword tip jutting from his chest, and slowly crumpled to the ground.

And the other soldier — had seen nothing at all before a wine jug flew out of nowhere and knocked him cold.

“Xiao Rui! Jiu Niang!”

Shen Zhuxi came running into the hall, with Li Kun — nine feet tall and radiating menace — right behind her.