When the wine flowed freely, the sound of strings and flutes drifted melodiously through the air.

Most of those at the table had drunk themselves red-faced. Tian Wei rose from his seat and made his way discreetly to Li Wu’s side. “Commissioner Li,” he said quietly, “might I have a word in private?”

Li Wu had anticipated this. He exchanged a glance with Fang Tingzhi, who had accompanied him to the banquet, then followed Tian Wei out of the hall.

Tian Wei walked to the far end of the corridor and pushed open a closed door, stepping inside first.

Li Wu entered the room and watched as the man a few paces away turned to face him, his gaze no longer submissive.

Li Wu shut the door behind him with one hand, stepped forward, and clasped his fists in salute.

“Your junior, Li Wu, pays his respects to Grand Uncle.”

Tian Wei made no move to deflect the courtesy, standing still as he received the bow. He looked Li Wu in the eye and said without expression, “How did you know it was me?”

“The trick of altering one’s appearance and changing one’s name — your son already played that game once,” Li Wu said. “Cousin, are you going to stay hidden behind that screen?”

Bai Anji cast a glance toward Bai Rongling, who was standing behind the folding screen. The latter stepped out with a sheepish expression.

“Commissioner Li is too courteous.” Bai Anji returned the salute with clasped fists and said, “My son lingered in Xiangzhou for several months. I must thank the Commissioner for the trouble of looking after him.”

The sort of “looking after” that left a man ten-odd pounds lighter and bleeding heavily was not the kind most people could hear about without at least a flicker of embarrassment.

Li Wu, however, was entirely untroubled. “Grand Uncle needn’t stand on ceremony,” he said. “We’re family — why say such things?”

Li Wu’s shamelessness left Bai Rongling momentarily speechless, yet it failed to disturb so much as a ripple on Bai Anji’s still-water expression.

“Commissioner Li, please sit.” Bai Anji spread five fingers and gestured toward the table, where a tea set had already been laid out.

Li Wu sat down across from him. Bai Rongling, like a cautious and careful attendant, lowered his eyes and took his place standing behind his father.

Bai Anji had barely lifted the teapot when Bai Rongling shot forward in a single stride, took the teapot from his father’s hand, and filled both cups on the table.

“Is Her Highness well of late?” Bai Anji said unhurriedly.

“Well. Very well indeed,” Li Wu said. “Just tonight she gnawed through half a large chicken leg.”

“And how are things between Her Highness and the Commissioner?”

“It’s a match of willing hearts — harmony and happiness, husband leads and wife follows. In a word,” Li Wu put on an air of gravity, “she is utterly devoted to me.”

“And how does the Commissioner feel toward Her Highness in return?”

“Utterly devoted to her, of course.” Li Wu eyed Bai Anji across the table with wariness. “As the saying goes: sooner tear down a temple than break apart a marriage. Grand Uncle has come all this way — surely not to stand in the way of our happy union?”

“The family head, Bai Yugeng, learned that Her Highness had been living outside the palace and has been deeply worried. He sent me to visit and inquire after her well-being. If Her Highness is living happily and contentedly outside the palace, then there is no objection to her remaining there. However, words alone are no proof — the Commissioner ought to let me see Her Highness in person.”

Bai Anji clasped his fists and spoke with neither deference nor arrogance.

“Grand Uncle wishing to see Shen Zhuxi is entirely possible,” Li Wu said. “When do you plan to call on us?”

“Her Highness will likely need time to prepare herself, and we have no wish to call unannounced and in haste,” Bai Anji said. “The morning after tomorrow, I will bring my son to pay a visit. Would that be convenient for the Commissioner?”

“Fine. The morning after tomorrow, I’ll be waiting at the Li residence.” Li Wu said it plainly. “As for gifts — banknotes, treasures, that sort of thing — there’s really no need to bring any! Please, don’t stand on ceremony with me! Commissioner Li is not the sort of man who looks at people differently based on what they bring!”

Bai Rongling glared at the shameless man before him and fumed inwardly: You don’t look at people based on what they bring — you look at dishes based on how much you can take!

From the moment Shen Zhuxi learned that her uncle Bai Anji would be calling in two days’ time, she had been in a state of constant unease.

Would her uncle reproach her for the irresponsibility of abandoning her identity as Princess of Yue?

What did her uncle like? How should the meal be prepared? If she invited her uncle to stay for a while, would he accept?

And her maternal grandparents — were they still in good health? Were they deeply disappointed in her?

Shen Zhuxi endured her anxious heart through all of this, until at last the day of Bai Anji’s visit arrived.

“The two of you are far too generous! Coming to call is one thing, but why bring several carriages full of gifts!” Li Wu greeted Bai Anji and his son with a beaming face, ushering them inside.

Bai Rongling struggled to contain himself, his expression making it plain he was on the verge of an outburst. His father, having seen far more of the world, still managed to maintain composure and clasped his fists toward Li Wu. “A small token of goodwill — I hope the Commissioner will not find it wanting.”

“Not at all, not at all! It’s the thought behind a gift that matters, not its value!”

Nonsense! Bai Rongling cursed inwardly.

Shen Zhuxi stood nervously in the main hall, where a table had been set with an abundant spread of fine dishes. When Li Wu brought their guests in, the tears she had long been holding back finally spilled over at the sight of her uncle’s face — a face that bore seven parts resemblance to her mother’s.

“Zhuxi greets Uncle, and Cousin…”

Shen Zhuxi had barely begun to bend her knees when Bai Anji stepped forward in a single stride and helped her up.

“Your Highness must not do this — it is this commoner who should pay respects to Your Highness.” The moment the words left his mouth, his gentle expression turned stern. “Rongling! What are you standing there staring for?”

“Oh — right…”

Bai Rongling snapped out of his daze and walked to Bai Anji’s side. Together, they swept back their robes and knelt.

“This commoner pays respects to the Princess of Yue…” they said in unison.

“Uncle, please don’t — rise quickly, no need for such formality!”

Shen Zhuxi was startled. She stretched out both arms at once and hastened to help them to their feet.

When Bai Anji rose, his eyes glistened with unshed tears. He looked at Shen Zhuxi without a word, his gaze holding both relief and sorrow in equal measure.

“She resembles you… you and your mother, truly you do…”

At those words, Bai Rongling also stared at Shen Zhuxi for a moment, then nodded. “The resemblance is there, certainly, but the temperament is entirely different.”

Shen Zhuxi sniffled and wiped the tears from her eyes with her sleeve, doing her best to summon a smile. “Uncle, please sit. Cousin, please sit. It is a humble spread — I hope you will forgive any shortcomings in the hospitality—”

Li Wu glanced over the table full of excellent dishes and caught the fragrance of tea drifting through the air. He could not help but mutter under his breath, “If this is humble fare, then what in blazes have I been eating every day — husks?”

Over the meal, Bai Anji spoke of many things concerning the Bai family — the state of his parents’ health, amusing stories from before Shen Zhuxi’s mother had left for the palace, the rumors that had circulated after the palace upheaval. Shen Zhuxi was a little reserved at first, saying little because she cared so much about what impression she was making on Bai Anji. But his warm and considerate manner reminded her of a palace banquet from years long past — of a grandfather who had reached out as if to pat her on the head, then quietly withdrawn his hand.

In certain ways, they were so alike.

This was family.

The family she had so little of left.

Shen Zhuxi felt this truth settle deep within her once more.

When the midday meal was finished and the maids had cleared away the remnants, a brief silence fell over the round table.

“Cousin hasn’t had a chance to tour the residence yet, has he? Come, come, let me show you the back garden—” Li Wu rose to his feet and, with practiced ease, hooked his arm around Bai Rongling’s neck and steered him toward the door.

A familiar restraint descended upon Bai Rongling once again.

He struggled and said in exasperation, “Haven’t seen it? I know your back courtyard like the back of my hand!”

“All the more reason to revisit it for old times’ sake, isn’t it? Cousin, no need to be modest with me — come on, I’ll take you to the kitchen for braised pork…”

“Ugh—”

Their voices faded gradually into the distance.

Bai Anji paused, then spoke. “After Your Highness left the palace, how have you fared? How did you and Li Wu come to know each other? Is this man’s heart toward Your Highness sincere?”

Shen Zhuxi answered his questions honestly, giving a brief account of what she had experienced since her escape from the palace. Watching Bai Anji’s brow crease ever deeper, she forced a light tone and said with a smile:

“All of that is in the past now. There were many dangers, it’s true, but I came through them all. I am doing very well now. Li Wu may be of humble birth, but he treats me extremely well. The Princess of Yue perished during the palace calamity. The one standing here today is nothing more than Shen Zhuxi.”

Bai Anji looked at the married woman’s hair coil pinned at her head. After a long silence, he let out a slow sigh.

“Your Highness does not wish to return to the palace — but does Your Highness not even wish to return to the Bai family?”

Shen Zhuxi was taken aback.

Bai Anji said, “Since Your Highness no longer wishes to be the Princess of Yue — only to be Shen Zhuxi — then the Bai family is Your Highness’s sole support. Li Wu operates under an alias, Li Zhuzong, while serving under the Fu family, and that arrangement is inherently precarious. The Fu family’s power reaches everywhere. Who is to say they will not learn the truth one day, and then have you all caught in a single sweep?”

Shen Zhuxi’s expression clouded with worry. This, in truth, had been a concern of hers for some time.

Though Li Wu had spoken of withdrawing to a quiet life in the mountains once the realm was at peace, who could say when the realm would ever truly be called “settled?”

“Your Highness might consider returning with this commoner to the Bai family,” Bai Anji said. “The Bai family can arrange a new identity for you within a branch of the clan. After that, where you go and whom you marry will be entirely your choice. It would be far safer than the paper-thin identity you carry now.”

Shen Zhuxi was somewhat swayed. Bai Anji continued his earnest persuasion:

“Xiangzhou sits close to the capital region. Whether one looks at its history or its terrain, it has always been a place that armies contend for. In this commoner’s view, Xiangzhou will become the center of upheaval again in the days to come. If Your Highness were to accompany this commoner to Yangzhou, where the waters are calm, it would reduce the risk of exposure. For Your Highness, for Li Wu, for the people of Xiangzhou — it would be a benefit all around.”

Shen Zhuxi could not make up her mind. After a long moment of hesitation, she said:

“…I must consult Li Wu before I can give you an answer.”

Bai Anji cupped his hands in a respectful bow. “As it should be. This commoner will wait for Your Highness’s reply.”

After the Bai father and son departed, Shen Zhuxi relayed what Bai Anji had said to Li Wu.

Li Wu did not give his own opinion directly. Instead, he asked, “What do you think?”

Shen Zhuxi hesitated. “I think there is some sense in what he said… If I continue to stay under Fu Xuanmiao’s nose, it may be too great a risk. Besides, I also want to go back to the Bai family to see my maternal grandparents…”

“Then go back.” Li Wu said. “Only, I won’t let you go alone. I’ll come with you, to see whether this Bai family is worth trusting.”

“You’re willing to come with me?” Shen Zhuxi asked, brightening with surprise.

If she had to return to the Bai family by herself, it would be dishonest to say she felt no worry. If Li Wu could accompany her, she would feel considerably more at ease. But she had kept quiet about it until now, not wanting to be a burden to him.

“Think of it as accompanying you home to meet the family.” Li Wu brushed a strand of hair at her temple. “Making up for the time we missed.”

“But what reason will you give for leaving Xiangzhou?” Shen Zhuxi asked, concerned.

“Leave that for your uncle to worry about. If he can’t even manage something this simple, he has no business hoping he can keep your identity concealed.”

Li Wu’s trust was not unfounded.

The Bai family’s wealth spanned the realm, their fortune accumulated over generations to an almost incomprehensible sum.

Bai family money houses operated in every corner of the land, their holdings too many to count, with connections across all walks of life — from the respectable to the shadowed.

Though the Bai family were merchants, they had been designated as the appointed household to receive the late Emperor during his southern tours, which spoke plainly enough to the fact that they were no ordinary merchants.

Three days later, Shen Zhuxi and Li Wu had settled all affairs in Xiangzhou. He left Bai Rongling behind under Niuwang’s watch, assembled an elite force of three thousand, and boarded a river tower-boat bound for Yangzhou.