She had gone to sleep late the night before, so she woke up a little later than usual. Shao Yao, who had already eaten one breakfast, shamelessly sat down and ate another alongside her — and ate even more than Hua Zhi did.

Though Bao Xia’s culinary skills were not quite on par with Fu Dong’s, she had been trained alongside Fu Dong since childhood, and was far superior to any ordinary cook. To be able to eat food this much to her liking while away from home left Shao Yao thoroughly satisfied.

“Huahua, are you going to that place again today?”

“I promised Wang Yu, so of course I have to go. It’s fine if you don’t want to come.”

“Of course I’m going.” Shao Yao fished out a small porcelain vial and handed it to Huahua. “The slow-acting poison Yu Weiwi was given can be neutralized, but if it drags on too long, even after the antidote is administered her body will be in ruins. Give this to Yu Weiwi and have her find an opportunity to slip it into her father’s drink. It will alleviate some of the toxicity, so that by the time the full antidote is given, his body won’t have deteriorated quite so severely.”

Hua Zhi nodded. “These past few days I’ve been going there every day to play for half the day. She should be able to find a chance to slip out.”

Gu Yanxi looked over. “You have to go every day?”

“If you’re going to put on an act, do it properly. It’s actually quite useful to let them think I have a gambling addiction. A single reason of coming to inspect a business venture isn’t convincing enough for a prolonged stay.”

Gu Yanxi still wished deep down that A’Zhi could return to the capital sooner. Even there, there were people who harbored ill intentions toward her — the Emperor’s hostility among them — yet there were also allies: the Zhu family, the Sun family, the Lu family, and others. And even when there were internal quarrels among them, they were still the same people.

But the Chaoli people were different. He feared he would not be able to protect her.

Yet no matter how worried he was, he would never forcibly send her away. His worry for A’Zhi was the same as her worry for him. She wanted to stay, just as he wanted her to leave. Even in the face of danger, she hoped to stand shoulder to shoulder with him and drive back their enemies. If he thought of it from her perspective, he could not refuse that wish.

Gu Yanxi looked at A’Zhi. Where his A’Zhi lacked in martial ability, she more than compensated with her mind. Had she not come, even if he had grown suspicious of Qi Qiu, he would have only been able to watch and wait for fear of spooking their quarry. Yet she had managed to make contact with Yu Weiwi in such a clever and natural way. His A’Zhi was truly capable.

“This place is not like others. Keep your wits about you when you go out.” Gu Yanxi picked up a map that had been set aside and unfolded it. “This is a map of Jinyang City drawn by my men. Study it carefully and get familiar with it, so that if something happens you won’t lose your head and run blindly.”

Hua Zhi looked at the impressively detailed map with surprise. Yanxi truly had no shortage of talented people under his command.

Shao Yao scooted over and leaned in beside Huahua to look. She usually seemed impatient, but when patience was truly called for, she had more of it than anyone.

After a short while, Hua Zhi had already mapped out the terrain of Jinyang City in her mind. She slid the map toward Shao Yao, looked up, and asked, “Have arrangements been made outside the city?”

Gu Yanxi nodded. “A contingent has been stationed for support, and contact has been established with General Lu of the Qingliu Camp garrisoned at Yuzhou. If anything goes wrong in Jinyang, he will ride to our aid at once.”

That’s right — Hua Zhi recalled that each of the nine provinces had its own garrison, all stationed near the prefectural cities. Now that word had been sent ahead, they had considerably more to stand on.

The morning was still young. Hua Zhi made her way unhurriedly through the city, familiarized herself with the layout, and then headed toward the residence. She was a familiar face there by now — no need for a local to escort her, and no one would stop her.

Three carriages were parked in the stable. Clearly, some guests had arrived before her.

In other gambling establishments, card games were more popular, offering a greater variety of play. But in this particular residence, mahjong had proven more beloved than cards. So although three guests had already arrived, no card game was started; they sat chatting idly, waiting for more to come. When they saw it was Hua Ling — the generous one — arriving, they broke into wide smiles immediately. She had lost nearly two thousand taels the other day. As newcomers went, winning a good sum from her today should be no difficulty at all.

Wang Yu had been thinking about her arrangement with Hua Ling and was one of the three who had come early. Seeing Hua Zhi keep her word like this, Wang Yu’s regard for her grew a little warmer. She rose and said, “Finally, one more! Without a fourth we can’t even play properly.”

“Exactly — we’ve just been drawing tiles to pass the time.” A young woman with her hair pinned up smiled warmly and greeted Hua Zhi.

Hua Zhi sat down at the open seat without ceremony, grabbed the dice, and tossed them. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s play a few rounds first and talk later.”

“Ha, I do love Hua Miss’s spirit! Unlike some people who drag everything out endlessly.”

Hua Zhi continued playing the novice — her pace of play was slow, but she paid up without fuss. Before anyone knew it, the hours had slipped by to midday, leaving Shao Yao utterly worn down. She had no interest in the game but had to feign enthusiasm all along, and had pinched her own thighs black and blue just to keep from dozing off.

The residence had a cook who prepared the midday meal, and the other guests naturally intended to stay. Hua Zhi cast an imperceptible glance at Wang Yu, then rose to her feet. “My stomach is delicate — I’d better not eat out. I’d only suffer for it.”

The young woman who had won nearly a thousand taels from her looked at her with the eyes of someone gazing at a gold ingot. “Will you be back this afternoon?”

“Perhaps not until tomorrow afternoon.”

The young woman was a little crestfallen. Even if Hua Ling did come back tomorrow, she might not necessarily get a seat at her table again — there were plenty of others waiting for the chance.

Wang Yu also rose. “I slipped away without telling anyone — I really should be heading back too. We’ll meet again another day.”

The two of them departed together without any fuss. Walking side by side along the covered walkway, Hua Zhi lowered her voice and said, “Miss Wang, you might want to keep an eye on things around here. Weiwi should come by within a few days.”

Wang Yu glanced around. “You went? How is Weiwi doing?”

“Miss Wang, sometimes doing nothing is the best thing you can do for someone else. After all, even if you knew the full picture, there is very little you could actually do.” Hua Zhi gave her a slight curtsy and stepped ahead of her to leave first.

Wang Yu had never expected Hua Ling to say something like that. Her mind went blank for a moment. But when she thought it through carefully, she found she could not deny that Hua Ling’s words were true. Even if something truly had befallen Weiwi — even if her new husband was not a good man — what could she do?

Just as Hua Ling said, she could do nothing. She was merely a daughter of the family, awaiting marriage. The only leverage she had was her family’s power and influence — but would her family extend their hand to help the Yu household for her sake? Such a naive thought had never even entered her mind. Her worry, in the end, was nothing more than worry. It served no purpose whatsoever.

Inside the carriage, Shao Yao asked in a low voice, “Huahua, is there something off about that Wang Yu?”

“Whether the Wang family behind her has any problems, I can’t say. But the person herself should be fine. She genuinely cares about Yu Weiwi — that’s why she used her words to goad me into visiting the Yu household. I’m an outsider with no ties to the local powers here. Even if I learned something about the Yu family’s situation, it wouldn’t have any bearing on the family itself. She was thinking of Yu Weiwi’s wellbeing.”

“Then you…”

“It’s exactly what I said to her. Her concern for Yu Weiwi may be genuine, but that concern cannot accomplish anything. Given the Yu family’s current situation, an ill-timed word from her could even bring unintended trouble to Yu Weiwi. If she’s wise, she’ll know what she ought to do.”

Shao Yao understood now. No wonder Huahua had spoken so bluntly.

Hua Zhi lifted the corner of the carriage curtain and looked out. If Yu Weiwi could take firm hold of the Yu household, then as a husband who had married into the family, Qi Qiu would have very little room to maneuver — which was precisely why he had resorted to poison within days of their wedding, to keep Yu Weiwi immobilized.

What puzzled her was their purpose. Had the Yu family obstructed them somehow, or was there something they needed from the Yu family?