By the time the Emperor finally released him, the palace curfew had long since passed. Gu Yanxi had no plans to leave the palace — he went directly to the Seven Lodges Bureau.
Only then did Chenqing have the chance to report. “Shizi, Haoyue has come to the capital.”
Gu Yanxi came to an abrupt halt and turned. “How did this happen? Wasn’t someone keeping watch on her?”
“It was this subordinate who brought her here.”
Gu Yanxi was not the kind of man to get there through blundering — he didn’t press for answers immediately. He led them inside the Seven Lodges Bureau before speaking. “Tell me.”
“Yes.” Chenqing knew better than anyone how great a threat Haoyue posed, and dared not hide a single detail. “Following your instructions, this subordinate traveled to Yuzhou. The intention was to draw out more information from her. But this time she would not cooperate. She stated outright that she wished to come to the capital, and that if this subordinate tried to stop her, all consequences would fall on this subordinate’s head. This subordinate didn’t know whether she was bluffing or not. But since she dared claim to be a prophet, she must have something to back it up. This subordinate feared causing a setback, and so had no choice but to bring her here. She has been placed in a residence belonging to this subordinate.”
Gu Yanxi nodded. “We cannot kill her yet — so we must keep her under our eyes. What is her disposition?”
“Agreeable, so far. She has not made any demands.”
“Your contact with her should not be too frequent. The head of the Seven Lodges Bureau doesn’t have the leisure to be hovering around her constantly. If you’re at her door every day, you’ll give something away — don’t underestimate Haoyue. She dared set her sights on me; she is not someone to take lightly.”
“Yes, this subordinate understands.”
“What is the situation in the south? Heavy casualties?”
Chenqing went to the high table, retrieved an already-opened sealed letter, and brought it to him, then went to pour tea. “This subordinate has already sent men to verify. If the situation is as described, the great merit belongs undeniably to the eldest young miss.”
Gu Yanxi read through the letter at a glance, and his eyes grew soft. Just as they had planned — the several waterways already cleared providing relief from the flood pressure, with Lingzhou County as the sacrifice — and a flood the likes of which hadn’t been seen in decades had been navigated through with something approaching ease. Even with disaster victims still short of food and clothing, even with farmland destroyed — the number who had truly died was no more than a few hundred. Fewer losses than last year’s less severe flood. That, in itself, was an extraordinary mercy.
If one were to speak of merit — A’Zhi deserved the most.
Yet now was not the right time to bring that merit forward. Elder Master Hua had already drawn attention with his performance at the Yinshan Pass, and then there was the matter of the second prince sending people to assassinate the Hua Family — a failed attempt at that. In the Emperor’s eyes, that failure reflected poorly on the Hua Family in its own strange way. Had the family been wiped out, the second prince would have faced the consequences regardless; but since the family survived unharmed, the second prince still bore punishment — and somehow the Emperor had found in this a reason to be unreasonably protective of the second prince’s dignity. Gu Yanxi had found it baffling when he first saw through it, yet there was nothing to be done.
He had assumed the Hua Family, as the wronged party, would stir the Emperor’s old affections. Instead it had only made the Emperor like them less. If he were to now place A’Zhi’s merit before the Emperor, the reward she might visibly receive could be a prize or a noose — and there was no telling which.
Gu Yanxi set down the letter and looked up. “Have the full account recorded — in detail. See how you think it should be worded, and show me the draft when it’s ready.”
“Yes.” Chenqing smiled in acknowledgment. He knew — the moment anything touched on the eldest young miss, Shizi became utterly absorbed. Whatever schemes Haoyue might be weaving, they would come to nothing. Though she and the eldest young miss were both women of rare capability, the direction of their ambitions was entirely different. Someone like Haoyue — Shizi probably wanted her silenced permanently, never to threaten the Great Qing again.
Thinking of Haoyue, Chenqing considered a moment, then said, “Shizi — do you intend to meet with Haoyue yourself?”
“In a few days. Once A’Zhi has rested, I’ll bring her along.”
“Yes.” Chenqing felt the footing beneath him grow more solid. Shizi had kept Haoyue under the Seven Lodges Bureau’s control all this time, precisely because he feared someone in the imperial household might make a move on her. While a few within the Bureau now knew of her existence, none knew her background. The fact that Shizi wanted the eldest young miss to meet her — that spoke plainly of the trust he placed in her.
The next morning, the reliably early riser that she was, Hua Zhi woke at her usual hour.
Being in her own home always invited a bit of indulgence. With her body still lacking strength, she lay where she was without moving.
Yingchun drew back the bed curtains and spoke in a soft, unhurried voice. “Last night, Fourth Madam came by. You were asleep, so she didn’t wake you.”
“Hmm?” Hua Zhi’s mind was running a half-beat slower than usual. “Was something the matter?”
“This servant isn’t certain. Only — Fourth Madam’s expression seemed rather displeased when she left.”
The inner household’s little power plays weren’t lost on Hua Zhi — she simply couldn’t be bothered to pick them apart. Having her deal with those matters every day, she would honestly rather be out in the world showing her face in public. She also understood clearly that the present obedience of the Hua household wasn’t born of any genuine compliance. Had she not arrived at precisely the right moment and established her authority in one stroke, backed afterward by her grandmother’s support, and had she not in the meantime gotten a firm grip on the household’s finances — a family this size would never be without a few voices singing a different tune.
So someone, now that she’d gathered the whole of the Hua Family into her hands, had decided to stir up trouble?
“I’ll go join Mother for breakfast. Send someone to let Fourth Aunt know I’ll come find her afterward. And you — don’t follow me today. Go compile a summary of how the seafood trade has been doing. I’ll want to go over it when I get back.”
“Yes, miss.”
Hua Zhi was not, at heart, a lazy person. She lay a little longer, then got up, made herself presentable, and went to Madam’s courtyard.
Madam’s eyes filled with tears of joy at the sight of her daughter. With both children far from home, her heart had been adrift with worry all these weeks. But looking at her daughter’s undeniable exhaustion, she had no room left for her own feelings — everything else could wait. She immediately had Yingchun support the girl back to her room to rest.
“Knowing you’d come, I had some of your favorites prepared.”
Hua Zhi looked her mother over — this gentle, clinging vine of a woman. “You’re looking very pleased with yourself. What sweet things did Father write in his letter to make you so happy?”
Madam gave her a reproving look. “The things you say.”
“It’s written all over your face!” Cheeks flushed, eyes still soft with sentiment — she’d probably slept the whole night clutching Father’s letter. Hua Zhi found it almost funny to imagine. These two were simply made for each other. Her father had barely a word for his children, maintained his scholarly reserve with everyone outside the family — yet the love poems he had written for Mother were no small number. Bolin had been naughty enough to steal them and show her once. Whether they were good poetry, she wasn’t qualified to judge — but excessive sweetness, she could confirm wholeheartedly.
In her own presence, Mother was all fragile tears and easy timidity. Around outsiders, she seemed soft and easily taken advantage of. But in Father’s company, she was imperious and thoroughly adored — Hua Zhi had caught glimpses of it, soft and coquettish as anything.
Madam couldn’t outargue her daughter and simply pinched her cheek before retreating to the kitchen to direct the maids in serving the meal. She came back carrying a pot of soup and set it down before her daughter. “Whatever your mother can’t manage out there, here you do as I say. Drink all of it.”
Hua Zhi summoned the composure she reserved for swallowing medicine and drained the whole thing in one go. Madam clicked her tongue and fussed beside her. “You child — who drinks soup like that?”
“It all goes down anyway.” Hua Zhi shrugged it off and pulled her mother down to sit with her. “I’m perfectly fine, you know. Didn’t you notice I’ve filled out a little from this trip? The north is less finicky about food — fewer delicacies, but plenty of good things. Grandfather and the others just kept stuffing me.”
“As they should.” Madam quietly reddened at the eyes — proud and heartbroken at once. How much had her daughter sacrificed for this family? If those people dared to still be without conscience, she, for one, would not stand for it.