Honestly speaking, seeing Ning Yi again today made Yu Hezhong quite happy.

The last time, when he’d gone with Shishi to find this childhood friend, he’d felt a slight edge of resentment — mostly because he knew Shishi was kind-hearted enough that she’d treat any stranger with the same warmth she showed him, and he couldn’t help feeling a bit put out by that. But once he’d come to understand Ning Yi’s present standing and Shishi’s attitude toward him, that small worry naturally faded, and his view of “little Ning” shifted into something else entirely.

This time, having come down from Bianjing to Jiangning, he naturally didn’t let on that he was following Shishi — he simply presented it as revisiting the place where he’d grown up. Truth be told, though, Jiangning wasn’t really his hometown either; his father had held official posts that took the family all over, and he hadn’t lived here for terribly long even as a child. He didn’t really have any close friends left in the city. This time, aside from accompanying Shishi to reminisce and search out the old lanes they used to live in, there wasn’t much else for him to do — he could only pass it off as a solitary trip to see the sights of Jiangning. After all, Shishi’s situation these days left her with little freedom of her own; even if she was warm toward him, she could hardly spare much time to spend by his side. In the capital, even the occasional such moment with her was an honor plenty of high officials and nobles couldn’t buy for themselves.

Traveling south this time along with the Fan Tower’s party, besides himself, there were also several other young men with nothing better to do. Foremost among them, of course, was Zhou Bangyan, the talented scholar who pursued Shishi most ardently of all, along with three or four others such as Tang Weiyan and Xu Dongmo — men who were either quite accomplished in letters or came from wealthy families with officials among their relations, and so were free to trail along in the manner of idle young lords of privilege. All of them had recently found themselves with time on their hands, and reasoned that with Shishi out of Bianjing, there’d be fewer rivals vying for her attention. If one of them could seize the chance to win over the capital’s foremost beauty, it would make quite a name for himself once he returned.

Yu Hezhong thoroughly looked down on the lot of them. Zhou Bangyan’s name was known throughout the capital, but the man was already in his thirties, nearly forty, and still clung to Shishi shamelessly — an old lecher, in Yu Hezhong’s eyes. He already held official rank, having served a few years back as Registrar of the Directorate of Education, though he’d gotten into some trouble last year and been dismissed from the post. It wasn’t said to be serious, though, and those in the know claimed he’d likely be promoted back up eventually — that was just how it went with officialdom in the capital, rising and falling by turns. Now that he had some free time, he too had claimed he was visiting friends in Jiangning — bald-faced lying with his eyes wide open, utterly shameless.

As for the rest, Tang Weiyan was a nephew of Tang Ke, the current Vice Minister of Revenue, while Xu Dongmo’s family was likewise a well-known clan in Bianjing. These men either had power and connections or genuine literary talent — in either poetry or wealth, Yu Hezhong couldn’t compete with them. But his own relationship with Shishi went back to their childhood together — no need for spending money, close as family. That set him apart, or so he told himself, thinking that the rest of them were like dogs drooling shamelessly over a bone called Shishi. Disgraceful.

Grumble as he might inwardly, there was little he could actually do about most of it. Shishi still had to play along with all of them, feigning warmth she didn’t feel — given the reputation and status she now held, it was simply unavoidable that she’d have to entertain this man and that. Yu Hezhong knew Shishi didn’t want things this way either, because there were times, just the two of them together, when he’d seen her smile fade into a sigh: “What can be done about it, though? Brother Yu, as things stand for me now, some might call it glorious — plenty of courtesans would envy a position like mine, unreachable as it is for them. But looking ahead, even if I came to care for someone, the freedom to buy back my name and marry him is probably already gone. Better, honestly, to have stayed as I was in earlier years, before anyone paid me much mind — that was a freer sort of life.”

In truth, Shishi had rarely gone unnoticed in the capital — she’d been crowned the top courtesan of the Fan Tower at just fourteen, and her fame had only climbed since. But Yu Hezhong understood the helplessness behind her words. At her level of renown, watched by every faction in the capital, though a courtesan’s status was inherently one of helplessness to begin with, so much scheming and jealousy swirled around her specifically. Men pursued her for reputation, for face, until eventually it became an obsession — one young lord of the Rong princely household had even declared, “Li Shishi — I will have her.” Plenty of others said similar things, some reasonable, some not. If she simply stayed a courtesan and let everyone bask in her presence, that was one thing, but if she truly fell for someone and tried to buy her freedom to be with him, a man without status or power could well lose his life over it.

She’d said this to him only the once, but she’d looked at him as she said it, and Yu Hezhong felt he understood the bitterness in it — that in his mind this was a kind of understanding shared uniquely between the two of them. A woman as delicate as Shishi, carrying so many burdens in her heart, forced to put on a brave smile every day, and yet even when alone with him she only ever spoke of cheerful things.

She was the capital’s foremost beauty, of a noble and refined spirit that longed for freedom yet remained trapped by circumstance; he was merely a scholar in his early twenties, sharing with this old acquaintance a pure, untainted affection, yet utterly powerless for now to help her escape her plight. Look at that — how much it resembled the sort of story you’d find in a romantic tale. They were both, quietly, striving away — surely there’d be a happy ending someday.

Shishi’s burdens weighed far heavier than his own, he reflected, and the more he thought of it, the more he felt: Shishi truly was a fine girl.

These thoughts he could only keep locked away inside, with no one to confide in. This time he’d come back with no one to visit, no one who knew of the intimacy between himself and Shishi, and this left his mood gradually shifting. Today he’d come early to the gathering, with no one to greet, only watching wave after wave of scholars hurrying this way, many without even an invitation, and he thought them all rather dog-like — until the moment he spotted little Ning, and suddenly felt a warmth rise in his chest.

He’d come too — wonderful! Seeing him standing there alone, he must be one of the uninvited crowd trying to crash the party. No matter — they were old friends after all; he’d bring him in himself. How could he let a good friend be turned away? And so, brimming with excitement, he hurried over to greet him.

“Haven’t seen you in a few days — didn’t expect to run into you out here for the flower-viewing, Brother Ning. Ah, did you not bring your family along?”

Yu Hezhong’s manner was warm and eager, glancing about with a smile. Ning Yi, whose attention was still on the argument happening under the tree nearby, cupped his hands and smiled. “No family with me, just came along with two friends. Small world, running into you here too, Brother Yu.” Jin’er, from the look of things over there, wore an unhappy expression, though it didn’t seem she was losing the exchange — rather, it was the courtesan beside Liu Qingdi whose brows had knit tight, as if she’d been the one to pick the fight in the first place and found she’d bitten off more than she could chew. Yun Zhu simply stood there, watching the three men and one woman before her with a cold expression.

Since it was his own people being provoked, Ning Yi was prepared to go over and lend a hand in the argument, tossing out a few cutting remarks to needle Liu Qingdi, paying little attention to Yu Hezhong beside him. Yu Hezhong, however, glanced over that way with sudden interest. “Ah, is that… someone named Liu Qingdi?”

“Brother Yu knows him?”

“Ha, someone introduced him to me a few days back — apparently he’s considered the top young literary talent in Jiangning these days. You know him too, Brother Ning?” As someone freshly arrived from the capital, Yu Hezhong wasn’t especially impressed by Liu Qingdi’s status as Jiangning’s foremost young talent. But it occurred to him that Liu Qingdi had most likely received an invitation from Chen Luoyuan — and if little Ning beside him had some arrangement with Liu Qingdi, then perhaps he too had an invitation. Yu Hezhong couldn’t help glancing at Ning Yi again with fresh interest.

Ning Yi shook his head. “Not especially close.”

As they talked, the two of them had already made their way over. The argument beneath the tree seemed to be winding down. Liu Qingdi appeared to have spotted the approaching Ning Yi as well; his face darkened, and after exchanging a few words he turned and left with his companions. Jin’er and Yun Zhu, under the tree, exchanged a couple more words before turning to walk the other way. Then Jin’er turned her head back, spotted Ning Yi, and tilted her head, blinking a few times.

Ning Yi was just about to call out a greeting when Jin’er puffed out her cheeks, pressed both hands to her face, and stuck her tongue out at him in a face, before turning back to Yun Zhu, laughing, and pulling her along as they left.

In the woods on the other side, Liu Qingdi must have turned back and seen Jin’er’s antics; though too far off to make out his expression clearly, one could still sense his displeasure from a distance. He stopped, turned to look toward Ning Yi, then raised his head and cupped his hands in a distant salute. Though it was a gesture of courtesy on its surface, the arrogance and provocation in it were unmistakable — essentially it said, plain as day, “I know you’re not happy with me.” Having offered the gesture, he turned and walked off.

Ning Yi found this sort of childish behavior more than a little tiresome — Jin’er’s side and Liu Qingdi’s side, both about the same. He walked over to the now-empty spot beneath the tree, gave a bored shrug, and let out a breath. Yu Hezhong followed along beside him, somewhat confused about what exactly had just happened. His attention had been fixed on Liu Qingdi; he’d seen Liu Qingdi’s gesture but missed Jin’er’s face entirely. Seeing Ning Yi’s expression, one of “well, everyone’s cleared off then,” he thought he’d more or less pieced together what must have happened.

Little Ning had married into a merchant family — a matrilocal son-in-law — and even with some learning, that sort of person wasn’t given much regard by most. He must have said he had an arrangement with Liu Qingdi more out of one-sided wishful thinking, or perhaps to save face — and now, well, the man had simply walked off without giving him any face at all. Still, this didn’t lead Yu Hezhong to look down on him — not at this moment, anyway. A merchant household, and a matrilocal son-in-law on top of that — already a rather pitiable position. Wanting to climb higher was understandable, and not being accepted was worthy of sympathy too. As an old friend, he wouldn’t look down on him.

Yu Hezhong laughed. “Ha, honestly, if you ask me, that Liu Qingdi’s nothing special. Little Ning, once you make it to Bianjing someday, you’ll see what it really means to say the whole realm’s talent gathers in the capital. He looked awfully full of himself just now, but you can tell from his manner and his bearing that there’s not much to him really… Oh, right — little Ning, are you here today for Chen Luoyuan’s gathering as well?”

Off in the distance, Yun Zhu, having been pushed along by Jin’er into view, spotted him too and waved, before apparently being dragged off again by Jin’er. She made a few helpless gestures with a smile before being pulled out of sight. Ning Yi laughed. “Are you here for that too, Brother Yu?”

“That’s right. Do you have an invitation, little Ning?”

“I do.”

Ning Yi nodded. Yu Hezhong looked rather taken aback — he’d assumed little Ning wouldn’t have an invitation. He laughed after a moment. “These invitations aren’t easy to come by. You’ve got connections after all, Brother Ning.”

“Ha, I know a fellow named Puyang Yi — got one from him.”

“Not the Puyang family, said to be the richest in Jiangning?”

Ning Yi nodded. Yu Hezhong made an “oh” of acknowledgment, glancing at him with a somewhat odd expression, though in the end he said nothing further. In truth, he was thinking to himself that little Ning, having married into a merchant family, could only have gotten his invitation through that sort of channel — merchant dealings weren’t exactly the most respectable business after all, and there was no need to say so aloud; no sense hurting the man’s feelings.

And so Yu Hezhong laughed considerately. “As for me, though, I don’t actually have an invitation.”

“Oh?”

“No invitation, and yet you and I can still get in today all the same. Come along with me, little Ning — I’ll have a little surprise for you later, hah…”

He waved a hand and turned to walk ahead, smiling with an air of mystery and warmth.