There are two places in the world I have come to truly despise with a dread passion worthy of the Nameless Fate itself. The sitting room of my mother-in-law… and those dark valleys in the shadow of Yin Eclipse. At least where my mother-in-law is concerned I can be certain that the fates might answer my prayers, because they are certainly blind before the path to that accursed mountain.

~Anonymous Hunter Bureau Official.

~ Ha Yun – Singing Lotus Teahouse ~

“—Hey, hey, little sister, come sit here!”

“Ohh… let big sister handle that for you…”

“BROTHER MAO, ANOTHER DRINK!”

“Little sister Miaomiao, won’t you also have another?”

“Oh… big brother… I couldn’t! How ever will I keep you company later?”

“Drink! DRINK! DRINK!”

“Hey… Yun!”

Ha Yun groaned and rubbed his temples. The ‘party’, hosted by Din Kongfei, Ha Caolun and a few others from Blue Water City, was still in full swing, though he had not really been engaged with it for a good while now.

“Hey! Yun, where are you?”

“What time is it, Ding?” he asked his friend, Ha Fei Ding, who was sitting around the table from him, staring at a young woman dancing quite evocatively down below.

“DING!” he poked Ha Ding, drawing his attention away from the woman’s very eye-catching assets.

“Ah… whu? What is it?” Ha Ding, who was somehow more drunk than he was, asked.

“What time is it?” he repeated, patting himself down as he looked for his talisman.

“No… idea… after midnight?” Ha Ding sighed. “Do you think she will dance for us, if we ask?”

“Who… her?” he glanced again at the beauty swaying below, frankly not that interested in dancing beauties, not today anyway, even ones as well-proportioned and easy on the eyes as the young woman with flowing dark-brown hair dancing below. “—Maybe? Is she new? I can’t say I recognise her.”

“Think so, she is very athletic,” Ha Ding chuckled, wiggling his eyebrows. “Just imagine if it was Kun Juni… Can you see the similarities?”

Ha Ding, however, considered himself a bit of a connoisseur, and also had something of a fancy for the Kun Clan Lord’s daughter, at least in terms of her physical beauty.

“I suppose the resemblance is there,” he conceded, mostly to humour Ding, pouring them both more wine.

“Look at how she twists and…” Ha Ding grinned, claiming the cup and toasting the woman below.

“—HA YUN!”

Realising someone was calling his name, he turned in his chair and found his friend of many years, Ha Erlang Leng, standing nearby looking about with a slightly annoyed expression as he scanned the various tables.

“Heeeere!” Ha Ding called over, waving his wine cup in the air enthusiastically. “Brother Leeng! Oooover Here!”

Ha Leng made his way over, avoiding bumping anyone and sat down, looking a bit harried.

“What— What…is it?” he asked, having to focus a bit too hard on that.

-Am I that drunk? he grimaced, taking the bottle and sniffing it. It was sweet and alluring, but there was certainly a kick in there.

-Ah… strong. Maybe I am, he sighed, pouring wine into three cups and pushing one towards Ha Leng.

“Your father is looking for you,” Ha Leng answered, accepting the cup and sniffing it, then putting it aside with a sigh. “And Lord Feiyuan… and your mother…”

“…”

“Oh… uh… Is it urgent?” he asked, sipping his own and sighing again, wondering why his mother of all people wanted to see him, today.

“I guess, given they sent me out to find you. You left your talisman at home…” Ha Leng pointed out, rather accusingly, he felt. “Is there any food, by the way?”

He patted his pockets down and plonked his head, theatrically, on the table. “So I did… What is the issue?”

“Food?” Ha Ding laughed, and pushed over a plate of fried meat.

“They didn’t say, just that we are both to go back to the clan,” Ha Leng replied, taking a bit and nibbling it, before putting it aside with a grimace.

“Heeeeey Yun! Yun! Yun!” All three of them turned to see Ha Caolun making his way over, a half-naked young woman in a sheer red gown draped over his arm, nuzzling his neck.

“This is Fairy Fire Blossom!” Ha Caolun declared, sitting down opposite them on a broader couch and giving the voluptuous, tanned woman with reddish-gold hair a lingering pat on the thigh as she sat down almost in his lap.

“Young Master Yun,” the girl smiled, eyeing him with interest. “I had not realised you were here… You were very impressive at the Patriarch’s tournament…”

“Ha Caolun, I thought you were over with the Din bunch, with Din Jian Fuhao and Din… Kongfei?” he remarked, quickly moving the wine away from Caolun and diplomatically ignoring her advance.

“I was… but they have all gone to play with Fairy Gentle Breath… I could have gone… but Fire Blossom here is just… delightful…” Ha Caolun said drolly, running a hand across her shoulder. “Aren’t you?”

‘Fairy Fire Blossom’ gave Ha Caolun a kiss on the cheek, but there was no real ‘interest’ in her eyes, for all that she was very ‘into’ Caolun in terms of her physical manner. Her gaze again lingered on him instead, in a way that made him flush slightly as a subtle, lingering intent pushed against his own qi…

-She is a physical cultivator, he realised.

Quite a few of the brothel girls and ‘entertainers’ in the Red Blossom district were. As a method, it was well suited to that, apparently. Girls didn’t have to worry about their purity, or getting pregnant to the same degree, recovered quickly and had excellent stamina, leading to the joke that the term ‘physical cultivation’ originated as a description of its benefits in that regard.

He coughed politely and gave a half shrug of refusal, rebuffing her subtle advance with his own qi. It wasn’t that he wasn’t interested – it was hard not to be, in the circumstances – but mostly he knew it would cause a problem with Ha Caolun, who was a very inconsistent drunk, he had observed, over the years.

“…”

“We are gunna make-a team…” Ha Caolun added, waving his hand a bit dramatically. “With-a-trial!”While

“I… see,” he replied, glad he was too drunk suddenly, to sound anything other than… well slightly inebriated. “Well, this is all very good, Brother Caolun, but I… I have been summoned, apparently, by my family’s supreme elder…”

“Awww… well, Young Lord Brother Kongfei… wants to make a team…” Caolun went on, seemingly ignoring him. “He says we can join… Sovereignty Hall. They gonna go to the trial and what not… gotta get a head start…”

He glanced sideways at Ha Leng, who shrugged slightly awkwardly.

“Here,” he passed Fairy Fire Blossom several spirit stones, and the rest of the strong spirit fruit wine. “Make sure he doesn’t wake up in the gutter? Please?”

“Of course, Young Master Ha,” she purred, swiping them away and pouring some wine for Ha Caolun. “You are a very generous friend…”

“I’ll see you later, Brother Caolun!” he said, reaching over and clapping Caolun on the shoulder.

“Ah yesss, you gotta go see elder,” Caolun said with a laugh. “Don’t worry, I have lots of fun with her…”

“…”

Slipping out, he was followed by Ha Leng.

“You coming Ding?” he asked.

“Nah… I’ma wait for her to finish her dance!” Ha Ding laughed.

“Right… fine,” he sighed, giving himself another shake.

“Lead on, Leng!” he declared, slapping his friend on the shoulder. “Let’s see what my stupid uncle wants at this hour.”

“—HEY BRO, LEAVING SO SOON?” he grimaced as another Ha clan scion from Blue Water City, who had come for Patriarch Dongfei’s banquet and was now getting drunk here – probably because he had stayed and thus missed being there for the Imperial Dragonship – called over from a nearby table.

“Yes, Brother Ji,” he called back. “Elders and all that!”

“Jusssst tell whichever old fogy it is… to get a maid and lighten up!” Ha Ji Bofan cackled. “Brother Din here wants to hear all about your exploits in this rural little Bureau! Starting with how you learned to fight like a dog!”

The rest of the table burst out laughing again, slapping each other on the backs and stamping on the ground.

Hiding a grimace, he quickly hurried off, followed by Ha Leng, before it registered on the drunken bunch that neither of them had stuck around.

“If there is a bright side to this, people will never claim we were riotous again,” Ha Leng muttered as they headed down the stairs to the ground floor.

Shaking his head, he could only agree. The Singing Lotus was a high class establishment, as far as they went, but the guards on the door, usually two jovial old men, were all former war-veterans tonight, and most of the newer girls and entertainers had retreated in the face of the hard partying and fairly uncompromising attitudes of many of the young masters here to enjoy themselves. Nobody had died yet, but three people had been beaten up and tossed out for annoying the wrong person.

“—Going already?” a tall, voluptuous beauty simply known as ‘Xiomei’, who was the deputy manager of the establishment – and one of its main ‘allures’ – remarked as they passed by the desk.

“Clan calls,” he said apologetically.

“Ah… to be young and valorous,” she sighed, twirling a tassel on her veil, which was currently draped across her arms. “Just to warn you though, a few folks have been saying this party is hosted in your name…”

“…”

Ha Leng face-palmed.

Grimacing, he pulled out a spirit jade and put it on the counter. “I’ll probably be going by the Cherry Wine Pagoda… later,” he added, more quietly.

-Let’s hope she takes that hint and I don’t get landed with some mendaciously huge bill for spirit alcohol and whores, he thought with a grimace, glancing back up at the upper level of the teahouse.

“Don’t worry, Young Master, she smirked. “This servant knows what is what.”

“…”

Nodding quickly, he headed out into the humid night air.

“Did you actually do it with her?” Ha Leng asked him sceptically.

“I wish,” he sighed. “She is part of the Cherry Wine Pagoda.”

Ha Leng turned to look behind them, then at him, then shook his head. “I always thought the Cherry Wine Pagoda is a respectable, if reclusive, influence?”

“They look after the waifs and strays,” he muttered, aware that he couldn’t actually go into a lot of detail about that place. It had ways of finding out who had spread tales, and the Shi family was not very happy with the wider clan right now, anyway.

“Do you want to offend the Shi family this week?” he added.

“Point,” Ha Leng conceded, with a sigh.

“So, what is this actually about?” he asked as they walked up the street towards the Market Quarter.

“Really, I don’t know,” Ha Leng answered, scuffing a puddle as they walked through it. “I was actually hauled off gardening duty and told I was not based in the Ha family estate. Then your uncle sent me to get you…”

Walking past one of the stalls, he absently snagged two fried meat spirit fruit kebabs off it.

“Hey! Are you…?! Oh… thank you for your patronage, Young Lord Ha,” the stall vendor recognised him and bowed hurriedly, letting them walk on.

Nodding, he passed one to Ha Leng, who gave him a sideways look but said nothing, and started to nibble it.

“What?” he grumbled, taking a large bite out of it and wondering what had gotten into Leng today, really. “It’s thanks to my father they can make so much. The least they can do is give us some perks…”

“Hey… Young Lord Yun, you gonna come by later?”

He glanced up a blonde beauty leaning over a second floor balcony of a teahouse they did frequent quite a bit, The Felicitous Fairy, waving down at him.

“Sorry, Fairy Tana! Fairy Mei!” he called back to her and the other red-haired beauty next to her. “Clan business!”

“Awwwww…” she pouted, while Fairy Mei just rolled her eyes.

Ha Leng, walking beside him, just sighed again.

“I can introduce you, if you like,” he chuckled. “She is very good company.”

“I am aware,” Ha Leng replied drily. “We drink regularly there, remember? I am your friend and am well aware of the beauties who fling themselves at a Ha clan young master’s style.”

He gave Ha Leng a light shove. “What’s got into you today? You’re a total grouch.”

“I dunno. Maybe it’s just that none of this feels right?” Ha Leng muttered. “We live in this town. Your family runs it. Are we just going to watch it roll over and choke to death?”

“…”

“Also, you’re still drunk,” Ha Leng muttered. “And you know the stories about the Din clan. Caolun and his lot are utter bastards, and I say that knowing that we have, over the years, had our share of scrapes.”

He wanted to refute that, but he was still drunk, he had to concede, though it was wearing off fast.

Grimacing, he took a purification pill from a small jar in his belt pouch and chewed the bitter thing up with some of the fried spirit fruit, swallowing it down.

-Probably not a smart idea to meet father, mother, or Uncle Feiyuan half-drunk…

The effect was almost immediate as the medicine started to break down the spirit alcohol still in his system, turning it into qi in his meridians that flowed slowly towards his dantian.

“I know they are bastards,” he remarked, kicking a puddle as he stepped over it. “And shameless, but what can we do? Do you want to refuse to go out with them? We can at least drink at the same table as them…”

“—and be told we fight like dogs because you beat Ha Cao Wenfei, who is Caolun’s cousin, by the way, with your bare hands?” Leng muttered.

He did spit into the gutter at that. Ha Cao Wenfei had tried to get two seniors to ‘challenge’ him since then, he had since learned. That both had been beaten to whimpering messes in an accidental encounter with a pissed off Ha Shi Lian from the Green Fang Pagoda was not something he wanted to think about. All that had done was lead to rumours that he got ‘big sisters’ to fight for him.

“I don’t suppose you have any idea why Ha Shi Lian beat those two up?” he asked as they turned across the canal, where several young women were calling down suggestively to a group of Deng clan youths on a boat.

An Immortal lowering themselves to beat up two Nascent Soul disciples was not common, and generally viewed as a bit shameful. For someone as prideful as Ha Shi Lian, to bother…

“Ah… that. I understand they said something uncomplimentary about her late brother,” Leng replied with a shrug.

“Oh…”

-Prideful, right, he thought with a sigh.

His impressions of Ha Shi Shimo had been rather slight really. He had not been someone who cared for much other than cultivation and had rarely socialized in the same circles they had. That he had died in the Red Pit of all places, though, was a bit shocking. It certainly reinforced in his mind his own views, which were that he didn’t want anything to do with that kind of thing.

“Yuanbei died like that as well,” he muttered.

“…”

Yuanbei had always seemed like such a dashing figure when he was younger, going into dangerous places and finding remarkable riches…

His Uncle Yuanfei’s son had died when he was… seven. Even now, over a decade later, he could easily recall the broken expression on his aunt’s face. Later, he had learned that Yuanbei had been made to join the Hunter Pavilion, because high-rank Hunters were useful to the clan’s wider agendas in the province. He had already been enlisted in the Hunter Bureau himself at that point, by those same clan elders, seeking to capitalize on his father’s position as town governor and his mother’s links to the Ling clan.

Somehow, that just made him feel like the wider clan was taking the piss, really.

Ha Leng stared at him for a moment, then sighed.

“Sometimes… I really hate this town,” he grumbled, watching groups of people walking up and down the street.

“Are you still drunk?” Ha Leng frowned, starting at him in a way that made him feel somewhat aggrieved. “Or did that medicine pill send you too far the other way?”

“…”

“You are saying only others can take but we cannot?” he muttered, watching another group, from the Kun clan, laughing at a street performer. “Our Ha family has given the others here everything… and yet all they do is take, and blame us when they cannot take more.”

“I don’t think it works like that,” Ha Leng murmured.

“…”

“Oh shut up,” he retorted, a bit annoyed that Ha Leng wasn’t following his logic and not really feeling like trying to explain it anyway.

They walked on in silence after that, through the main market plaza, then up the grand boulevard into the Ha Quarter. Everywhere parties were going on, as people celebrated the Emperor’s official birthday, or just the opportunity to be out and about without being drenched.

The scenes of revelry just cemented his annoyed mood. It had probably started with the stupid parties and the revelry, with Caolun and the others, with the Din clan scions like Kongfei lording it over everyone, and built a bit with Xiomei telling him they were trying to get him, who was the ‘disciple of the hour’, to pay for it all. Being reminded of Yuanbei had been the final straw really. Ha Leng was right, and they both knew it. It ‘didn’t’ work like that, but the idiots drinking wine and playing with beauties back in the Singing Lotus teahouse also proved that it did, or it could, if your surname was Din, or you were born with a spirit root naturally attuned to being a shameless bastard, somehow.

“You know, that Din Kongfei has a twenty-seven rotation core?” Ha Leng muttered at last. “He was bragging about it like it made him something amazing.”

“Really?” he turned to look at Ha Leng, raising both eyebrows.

“Yep, this was when we went to Jade Willow village last week,” Ha Leng chuckled. “Ha Caolun practically had his face in his ass, praising him for it, saying that young lords from the Central Continent sure are something.”

“—And he is actually a full disciple in the Jade Gate Court…” Ha Leng added, shaking his head in mock awe. “I have a better fate-thrashed core than him.”

“That’s about as depressing as seeing a monkey running out of my bedroom,” he muttered, staring up at the lanterns lighting the upper stories of buildings along the street.

“At least the monkey pissing on your pillow would be funny,” Ha Leng added. “You could swap it with someone else and not tell them.

“They are saying you fight like a dog, and yet you—!”

He put a hand on Ha Leng’s arm and stopped him from continuing, because the fact that he, Ha Yun, had a twenty-nine rotation core was a secret.

“Oh, yeah, right, we can’t talk about that,” Ha Leng sighed. “Sorry, it’s been that kind of day.”

“I know,” he agreed as they walked through the gate into the Ha district proper, ignoring the salutes from the guards. “Sorry for telling you to shut up, earlier.”

“Hah… a young master does not apologize,” Ha Leng remarked, adopting a mocking, supercilious tone. “He merely looks the other way and others understand his situation.”

“Who the fates wrote that?” he asked, shaking his head.

“A drunk Ha Caolun, yesterday,” Ha Leng sighed, kicking a half-eaten spirit fruit into a wall and watching it splatter. “They laughed for a full minute and agreed he was as insightful as the Sagacious Scholar of Qin.”

“Unironically?” he asked, then sighed again, as Ha Leng nodded. “Well, that’s truer than they realise. Fates, so…”

“—depressing?” Ha Leng prompted.

“And you ask why I hate this town sometimes?” he muttered.

“…”

“I kinda walked into that one, didn’t I?” Ha Leng agreed, tossing some talismans to a stall vendor and snagging two bags of fried spirit fruit slices in return.

“—Thank you for your patronage, young masters!” the stall owner called after them.

“Yes, yes you did,” he agreed, accepting a bag of crispy mango slices.

“That said… have they ever read anything by Qin Qiu?” he mused, nibbling on one.

“Have you?” Ha Leng asked, rolling his eyes.

“Yes, actually,” he replied archly, kicking some water from a puddle at Ha Leng, who skipped away. “And I will never get that afternoon of my life back.”

It took another twenty minutes to arrive back at the Ha family estate. The main clan compound was nearly dead centre in the district, but his own family home, on the southern side of the Ha district, was actually just across the small gardens at the side of the Cherry Wine Pagoda, so they cut through the gardens, and entered there. They had barely gotten across the rear courtyard though, when a voice cut through the air.

“—Young Master Yun!”

Turning, he found that one of his mother’s maids, Qing, who had just been leaving the kitchens, had spotted him.

“Your father and the Supreme Elder are waiting for you in the western library,” she said, giving him a polite bow.

“Ah well, let’s go,” he sighed.

“Uh, just you, Young Master Yun,” the maid added, glancing at Ha Leng.

“…”

“Eh, I ran my errand, I’ll catch you later,” Ha Leng said, giving him a pat on the shoulder. “I’d maybe change your robe first, though. You smell of liquor and women’s perfume.”

The maid eyed them both and wrinkled her nose. “That might be best, Young Master. A smart robe, perhaps.”

Sighing, he let her escort him to his rooms, where she waited while he quickly freshened up. When he came back out, two maids were waiting with a fresh, formal robe, which they then quickly dressed him in, before he was escorted, now properly wondering what the fates was actually going on, to the western library.

That curiosity turned to mild concern, when he found his mother, Ha Chang Mei, pacing up and down in the reception hall outside.

“Ah, there you are, dear,” she said, as he was led into it by the maid.

“Mother,” he murmured, saluting her politely. “What is the problem?”

“…”

His mother just stared at him, then sighed deeply.

“Yun, you know your mother has always looked out for you…” she said after a moment. “If you don’t want to do what they are going to ask you, you can always refuse. No one will think badly of you, especially not your mother…”

“Umm…” he opened his mouth, then found he had no idea what to say, especially when she then came over and gave him a hug.

“What… is going on?” he managed to ask, after she stepped away again.

“This…” his mother started to speak, but before she could say anything much, the door opened and his uncle Feiyuan appeared.

“Good, you are here at last, Yun,” his uncle said, fixing him with a pensive look. “Follow me.”

“Remember what I said…” his mother said softly.

“…”

His uncle shot his mother a sideways look, which she returned almost challengingly, which was also unusual, as his mother took next to no active interest in the day-to-day running of the wider Ha clan, focusing all her efforts on the estate household itself.

Still confused, he followed Ha Feiyuan into the library, the doors closing behind them.

“Your mother doesn’t want you to do this…” Ha Feiyuan said softly, stopping suddenly. “I understand very clearly her concerns, but this… is also a great opportunity for you… and for our Ha Family, do not forget that either.”

“Is this related to this ‘trial of exploration’ in some way?” he asked, because at this point, that was all he could think of that this might be regarding. “I… heard talk earlier from Ha Caolun about a team being set up…?”

“Did you now…?” his uncle stared at him for a long moment, then starting walking again, towards the middle of the library, with a pensive expression.

“…”

Left with no other option, he followed after, mulling over that non-answer.

“I suppose this is also somewhat related to this trial, although reliable details on that are scant,” his uncle mused.

Still not sure what to make of that, he just nodded politely.

The central area of the library had been cleared to make way for a large table, around which he found not only his father but three others he didn’t recognise, poring over a projected map.

“Who else are we waiting for?” the old man with a wispy beard was saying. “Is she going to come in person?”

“That was the plan,” his father said, with a further grimace. “I understand, though, that matters are not simple in Blue Water City and the Ling clan has been put in a somewhat awkward position in regards to this ‘trial of exploration’. We will push on, anyway.”

“Please tell me she is actually on board with this?” the old man muttered. “If not, we are going to burn all the good will we have with them… and in recent times that currency is a rarefied thing.”

“She is,” his uncle confirmed as they walked over. “But I suspect she will not be happy in any case, especially if we have to sell this to the other lords. In that regard, having Yun here as the person standing at the front will be useful in many ways.”

“Yun, you are here. Excellent, excellent,” his father said, glancing up at them.

“Father,” he saluted his old man politely.

“This is Elder Lan, of the Cherry Wine Pagoda,” his father gestured to the martial-looking, middle aged man standing to his left. “And this is Old Erlang, who I think you have met once before, when you formed your core…” his father added, indicating the wispy bearded old man who had just been speaking.

The two elders both looked at him for a moment, their brows furrowing slightly.

“—And this is Sir Huang, the expert who will be travelling with you, if you agree to this,” his father concluded, introducing the last of the men, who was a lot younger-looking, with curly dark brown hair, a close-cut beard and a martial bearing.

Sir Huang nodded politely to him.

“Ha Yun is not particularly experienced in this regard,” Old Erlang said at last, giving him a rather calculating look. “There are others, no?”

“He is not, but there is more to consider here than simple experience,” Elder Lan remarked.

-Uh… thanks? he thought a bit glumly, still standing there and feeling rather scrutinized now.

“You are, presumably, wondering what the fates is going on,” his father said, coming around the table and sitting on the edge, considering him with a rather vexed expression.

“Er… yes, father,” he replied, trying hard not to grimace.

“It seems that rumours of a ‘team’ to take part in this ‘trial of exploration’ are already being discussed openly among the other scions,” his uncle added. “Yun has already heard about that.”

“Oh, that makes things easier then,” his father mused, staring at him. “What do you know already?”

“Uh…”

He frowned, trying to recall those conversations from the teahouse, earlier.

“Ha Caolun said something about a team, with Din Kongfei. He said that the Sovereignty Hall… was going to get a head start and that our Ha clan could be part of it?” he said after a moment’s rather vexed recollection, as he had been drunker than he realised, it seemed.

“…”

The elders all looked at him pensively, for long enough that he started to feel decidedly uneasy.

“So, not much,” Old Erlang said at last.

“Basically, there is a group being set up, and I suppose it is related to the trial, but our concern is not that,” his father said.

“The crux of the matter is, that our various family lords saw an opportunity in this ‘gift’ being demanded by Shan Lai to make significant gains there. They appropriated a lot of leverage off the back of this auction in Blue Water City… and also have been courting the Din clan as a further insurance…

“There is some ancient history in this that need not concern you overly, but in short, local politics here has been kept, if not peaceable, stable, for the last two decades or more, by some careful collaboration between Ha clan, the Ling clan and elements of the Kun clan.

“This ‘gift’, the trial announcement and the rather unfortunately timed plotting of the other Ha lords puts the position of the Ha clan, and particularly the Ha Family at its heart, in the province in jeopardy in some unexpected—”

“—And deeply problematic,” Old Elder Erlang muttered, interjecting.

“—ways,” his father finished, giving Old Elder Erlang a sideways look before continuing: “Well, returning to this ‘gift’ which you have heard so much about, the Ling clan, the Kun clan and the regional pavilions have already stolen a march on this, in the eyes of the various other Clan Lords at least.”

“The result of this is that the Ling clan has basically thrown its full weight behind our regional pavilion, determined that it will not be dragged under by the plotting of the various clans. To this end, they have sent two substantial expeditions into Yin Eclipse with the express purpose of getting an awful lot of herbs very fast.”

“Spirit stones are no object for them,” Elder Lan added drily. “Nobody in this province has any clue, in these last few generations, just how deep their pockets really are.”

“Yes… indeed,” his father sighed. “It is fortunate, though, that our Ha family has a link to this exploitation.”

“We… do?” he managed to ask, surprised at that.

“—Which the wider clan now wants to leverage to the hilt, in light of this trial, to gain more benefits without working for them,” his uncle added, with a grimace, ignoring his question.

“Yes, that is something of a running theme of late,” his father agreed.

“Parallel to this, the other lords of the Ha clan have agreed to ‘help’ the Provincial Hunter Bureau out, for significant concessions, some at our expense,” his uncle added, taking up the thread.

“Oh…” he managed, still grappling with the previous revelation.

“Read this,” his father told him, tossing him an ornate scroll with a jade insignia on it for the Provincial Hunter Bureau.

He caught it, opened it and stared.

“A… promotion directly to eight-star rank?” he exclaimed dully, reading it a second time, just to be sure.

“The Ha clan Old Elders in the Hunter Bureau secured these, as a concession for ‘helping out’,” his uncle said. “As you know, the Bureau has been rejecting promotions for Ha and Deng hunters with increasing prejudice since the Three Schools Conflict. Most of those above six stars are those who did not jump ship then, or people who have full Elders on the council in Blue Water City and promoted their scions through sideways means.”

That he did know. It was yet another source of frustration he had, in its own way, especially when you saw others passing by so easily. Even Lin Ling, whose family were basically full-blown Imperial Court loyalists, had gotten consecutive promotions, while he and others were ignored or side-lined.

“The promotions were originally going to go only to the Cao, Ji and a few of their allies,” his father added, focusing his gaze on him again. “The clan elders originally wanted to give that to Weng Aoji’s son—”

“—But then they realised they needed our links to this endeavour, because Lady Ling Tao basically told them to suck rabid monkey balls,” Old Erlang finished drily.

“Indeed. That was quite funny; I wish I could have heard it,” his uncle agreed with a sigh, helping himself to more wine.

“Lady Tao has a real way with words when she is angry,” Sir Huang agreed, speaking for the first time, he realised.

“Anyway,” his father added, waving the other two to silence, “after they realised that we cannot be sidelined in this, I put this as my price, because if they want to use us, we will certainly use them. At that rank, for example, you can be registered as a junior official and become our Ha family’s junior Envoy to the Hunter Bureau, a post similar to what Kun Juni has.” Absently he put the scroll back on the table, still feeling rather adrift.

“So… what am I actually doing?” he asked, because that had not yet, really come up.

“Hah… asking the important questions,” Elder Lan chuckled, taking out a second scroll and passing it over to him.

He took that and almost coughed as he read the list of herbs, and then the people involved.

“This… is nearly every unaffiliated herb hunter above seven-stars in the region?” he muttered. “Kun Juni… Jun Arai, Han Shu, Mu Shi, Duan Mu… even Lin Ling?”

“Yep, they grabbed them all, using that mission,” Elder Lan chuckled.

He read to the bottom. “Sheng Feihuang? Someone from the Azure Astral Authority?”

“Crown Prince Sheng Tian Feihuang, the Sovereign Scion of the Azure Court on Shan Lai,” Elder Lan said blandly. “These ingredients are for him.”

“…”

“Yes, quite,” his father said. “Messing with this mission is like playing with heavens blaze pinecones.”

“This is why you don’t annoy the Ling clan. Their means are a bit exceptional when they try,” Elder Lan added, his expression turning complex. “Anyway, to get to the point, there is a golden opportunity in this, for us, and especially for you, Young Yun. The Ha clan is going to send a group from this region to ‘aid’ in this mission, and you will head up a part of it.”

“As was said before,” his uncle mused, “We have no interest in this failing, and it will burn much of our good will with the Ling clan if it does so. That scroll also means we can achieve everything we need.”

“This is also why we have asked Ha Huang here to come with you,” his father added.

“Indeed,” Ha Huang nodded.

“Sir Huang is a clan expert who has worked quietly with the Cherry Wine Pagoda for many years; he is one of our family’s experts on Yin Eclipse, and will take you – and the small contingent you will head – under his wing for the next few weeks.”

“…”

“So… if I go, I get this promotion for two or three… weeks’ work, we get to contribute to the trial, we get plaudits from this… and the Ha family’s position is shored up in relation to the local politics and you can even install me as… a family envoy?” he asked, seeing where this was going, but still feeling slightly like something was escaping him.

“So… why me?” he asked at last, sort of suspecting he knew the answer, but also wanting to at least hear them say it. “Why not Ha Leng, or… Ha Yufan?”

Leng and Ha Shi Yufan were both much more dedicated hunters than he was for starters, and while this seemed very important, his mother’s warning was also rattling around in his head now.

“You are my son, that is why,” his father said simply. “In truth, we will probably send Yufan and Leng as well, and others of your little ‘group’. But if you do not go, in the eyes of the others, it will look like we are holding something back. Their impression is that I am willing to put the Ha clan over my connection to the Ling clan, and provide them this opportunity, for that promotion.”

“If you accept this and are promoted, it will consolidate much of this recent unrest and our Ha family will be in a much more secure position,” his father added. “Your status in the pavilion will be close to that of Kun Juni.”

He stared up at the ceiling for a long moment.

A straightforward promotion to that rank, an envoy’s post, a job like Kun Juni had, would bring a lot of opportunities for him, and the family. It was what had originally been envisaged when he became a Herb Hunter, but never materialized because of the factional shifts in the bureau elders.

However, in his mind, it just kept coming back to ‘why me’. It wasn’t that he was… afraid to go, but Yin Eclipse was a place where there were no rules, and this sounded like an awfully good way for him to end up in a wooden casket like Cousin Yuanbei, or simply to never come home again, like Shi Shimo.

-I suppose that is why they have asked this Ha Huang to go with me…

“That also, rather neatly, brings us to the second matter,” his father said.

“The… second matter?” he asked.

“Yes. You will be joining the Cherry Wine Pagoda, as will your younger sister,” his father replied.

“I… wait… what?” he blinked. “I thought I was to join the Blue Gate School?”

“Pagoda Lord Tai made the offer personally,” his father added. “He was impressed with your core, and also your sister’s spirit root. I know that, originally, you would have joined the Blue Gate School, once you perceived your Soul Foundation. But now it has been taken over by the Imperial Court, so things there will be turbulent for a while.”

“You think our Cherry Wine Pagoda is without means?” Elder Lan chuckled. “It is one of the core pillars of our Ha clan.”

“Erm…” he gulped, and shook his head quickly. “I… was just surprised, because the Blue Gate School is this big place… and the Cherry Wine Pagoda…”

“…”

“Ahahaaha!” Elder Lan threw back his head and laughed hysterically, actually banging the table.

“S-sorry,” he stammered, shoving his hands behind his back to hide how they were now shaking. “I didn’t mean to say that… about the Cherry…”

Clenching his teeth, he tried not to look like his legs were shaking. Both Elder Lan and Sir Huang just shook their heads; however, the strange tension bleeding away into nothing.

“So… what is your decision?” his father asked, after a moment.

“Either way… I am joining the Cherry Wine Pagoda, I assume?” he asked, still not sure how he felt about that.

“That is not negotiable, I am afraid,” his father nodded. “You will be a sworn disciple before you leave this room, actually. Your sister was already inducted earlier, so you will have to bow and call her senior sister.”

“…”

He tried not to make a face, hoping that was just a terrible joke. Having to call your own younger sister ‘senior sister’ was like something out of a cheap tale.

“It’s what you get for going out drinking,” his father added, giving him a faint smirk.

“…”

Pushing that disturbing idea away, he found himself staring absently at the table, with its maps. The sad reality of it, as far as he could see, was that if joining the pavilion was… non-negotiable, then there was not much else to consider really.

In a strange way, the deciding factor in his head was the conversation with Leng earlier, and the feeling of… disconnect, at the teahouse with the attitudes of Ha Caolun and the others, both in their shamelessness and also… the pointlessness of their actions. In contrast to that, this was actually something that served the Ha family, and while he was not that enthused with the idea of spending weeks in Yin Eclipse, if it got him the promotion…

“Okay,” he said, a bit more decisively than he felt, really. “I’ll do it.”

His father just nodded, although he thought he caught a hint of… relief… in his expression. His uncle also just nodded, as if this was somehow expected.

“Excellent, lad,” Elder Lan grinned, coming around the table and clapping him companionably on the shoulder. “Now, let’s deal with the matter of you joining the Cherry Wine Pagoda, shall we?”

…

The actual investiture into the Cherry Wine Pagoda was… depressingly anticlimactic, in the end. He was asked to drink a cup of disgusting sweet wine and sign his name in blood on a rather ragged-looking scroll, then bow to a portrait of a youthful-looking man wearing a dragon robe embroidered with foxes and dragons. Once that was done, Elder Lan escorted him back out to his mother, handed him a storage ring and some talismans and left him standing there, still a bit dazed.

“…”

“You agreed then,” his mother said softly, her gaze falling on the ring and the talismans.

“I… sorry,” he sighed, sitting down on a handy chair, suddenly feeling drained.

“Oh… don’t apologize,” she murmured, sitting down next to him, and taking his hand. “I know I have always told you not to take those missions, to do as you wanted and not give too much thought to the views of those elders, but this… this is not some silly request to get someone else’s son a rare ginseng they will probably waste anyway.

“I know you are my son, so you can also do this…”

He nodded absently.

“Is it true I will have to call Sungmei ‘senior sister’?” he asked at last.

“…”

His mother stared at him blankly, then actually burst out laughing. “Oh you…”

It was a very stupid question to ask, really, but a part of his mind was still not really connecting with the events.

“It’s just… surreal?” he said eventually. “And a lot to take in…”

“Yeah, they have made a real mess of things,” his mother agreed, giving his hand another squeeze. “A real fate-trashed mess of things.”

They both sat there in silence for some time, until his father also came out of the library, looking rather tired.

“I’ll go check on Sungmei,” his mother said, standing up.

Before his father could really say anything, she had left, with a further polite smile.

“…”

His father stared after her with a complex expression, then just sighed deeply.

“Yun, we will need to bind those talismans to you,” his father said. “And that ring, come with me.”

Nodding, he stood and followed his father down the hall, through a few different rooms, to end up, rather to his surprise, in the family shrine.

…

The process of binding them took a surprisingly long time. He had thought the various old talismans fairly simple things, but apparently they were not, because it was almost dawn before the last of them, and the storage ring, which doubled as a defensive treasure, were properly attuned to him.

The instruction took a bit longer still, especially for the ‘Heaven Shifting talisman’, which need to be set up in advance, as it turned out.

“Where is it anchored?” he asked staring at the shimmering symbol in the middle which was like an ever-spiralling wheel of clouds.

“You have to ask Elder Lan that,” his father, sighed sitting back and looking tired.

“Lord Ha,” an old family servant knocked on the door respectfully.

“What is it?” his father said, turning.

“A message, from Lady Ling Tao…” the old man murmured.

Sighing wearily, his father walked over and took the talisman, then shook his head.

“There is also another announcement… from the Azure Astral Authority…” the old man added, looking a bit uneasy.

“Regarding the ‘gift’?” his father mused.

“Yes, My Lord,” the old servant replied. “The burden will fall on the bureau and the clans. Towns and sects have been formally exempted… acknowledged for their good service to the people by the Emperor of Shan Lai.”

“…”

His father stood there for a long moment, his hand covering his face, his shoulders shaking.

“My Lord?” the old servant asked, looking nervous now.

He also stood, wondering what was…

“Oh, that is too good,” his father said, giving himself a shake. “Thank you for the message.”

The servant bowed again and departed.

“Do you see the pit that those scheming old men up there dug?” his father chuckled, turning back to him.

“Uh…” he frowned.

“Basically, the clans have been plundering everywhere to get their herbs to pay for this gift,” his father mused, waving for him to follow, “and Shan Lai, in its announcement, has said the common folk and sects are exempt… and even praises them?”

“Aren’t most of the sects aligned to the Imperial Court?” he noted as they went outside into the courtyard that was just catching the first rays of a rather unseasonable sun, visible in a clear blue sky.

“The big ones, yes,” his father nodded, standing and looking out at the distant mountains and their surging clouds, over the rooftops of the Ha District. “And they still praised them.”

“Oh… and now everyone has seen the clans shaking up everyone else and suddenly wonders ‘did they know this already?’,” he guessed.

“Pretty much,” his father agreed, looking at the second talisman.

“In any case, it seems we have some time still. Teleportation up there is impossible apparently, courtesy of the weather suppression that the Imperial party used to get us this joyfully unnatural day.”

“Oh… so what do we do then?” he asked, staring up at the distant, swirling clouds that obscured the mountain peaks.

“Determine who else goes with you,” his father said.

~ Huang JiLao – Dragonship, Blue Water City ~

Watching the sun rise over the ocean, through the windows of the reception room of Huang Leng’s quarters on the Dragonship, Huang JiLao found himself once again left alone with his thoughts as he waited for someone to come get him an escort him to see his ‘uncle’ and the other two Huang clan elders along for the trip.

Lian Jing had come with him, but because this meeting was private, she had gone to entertain herself. Given he had also told her, at last, about the ‘senses’, his worries about Lady Xiao… Dun Jian and Envoy Qiao… and also how he was concerned for her, he supposed she was drinking wine somewhere and staring at the distant storm in the same moody silence that he had left her in.

Ran Hao, Tan Fang and a few of the others who had come on the Dragonship were also catching up with Huang Shi Yuimei and Huang Changmei.

“Young Lord, please come with me…”

He glanced up as an immaculately dressed young woman in a white and gold gown entered the room and bowed formally to him.

With a sigh, he stood up and followed her out of the room.

She led him in silence through two more rooms, both deserted and down a short corridor, into a room whose screen doors had been opened to the outside.

“Lord Huang, Young Lord JiLao is here,” the woman declared, then stepped to the side, waving for him to go through.

Stepping inside, he found… Huang Leng and Huang Jinfang sitting sipping tea and enjoying breakfast… studiously doing their best to ignore a beauty with coppery golden locks, who was lounging on the largest couch, wearing a blue, gold and white, light gown which he could only describe as ‘exceptionally flattering’, reading a book.

-Ju Shan…? It took effort, but he pulled his gaze away from her and back to Huang Leng and Huang Jinfang.

“Uncle, Elder Jinfang, Lady… Shan,” he barely stumbled on that, saluting them.

-Why is she here? he wondered nervously.

“Ah, you are here. Honestly I didn’t expect you to be here so early,” Huang Leng said drily. “I assumed you would at least catch up with the others before bothering with me.”

“…”

Rather than say anything, he just stood respectfully in silence.

“You need not worry about prying eyes here,” Huang Leng said drily. “Isn’t that right… Lady Shan?”

“Quite… Anyone who wants to peek on me, can be peeked right back at,” Lady Shan murmured, not even looking in their direction. “As to why I am here, I am here because I feel like it. I was not aware I had to justify my existence to lost goslings…”

“…”

-Shit…

He fought hard to avoid closing his eyes and grimacing, having actually forgotten that around her, even thoughts were not sacred, and she was…

“I am what?” Ju Shan smirked.

“Radiant, this morning, Lady Shan,” he murmured, saluting her.

“Stop playing with the poor lad,” Huang Leng said, waving for him to come sit.

Lady Shan sighed and went back to reading her book.

Giving himself a shake, he walked over and sat down, at the table, accepting a cup of tea from Elder Jinfang.

“I understand matters here have not quite… been going according to Dun Jian’s plan,” his father said after a moment.

“These events have certainly not been smooth… uncle,” he replied, cognizant that even if ‘thoughts’ were largely the sole domain of Lady Shan, that was no reason to be stupid.

“…”

Both his father and Elder Jinfang considered him silently, sipping their tea.

“Here…” he passed over the pair of amulets. “The one you gave me… may provide some answers, I hope.”

“Ha Tai Kai,” Ju Shan said absently, from the couch. “Lu Xiao as well. Most of the others are all toads, not worth considering.”

“Lu… Xiao,” he gulped. “Shit…”

“You managed to annoy Lady Xiao?” Ju Shan sat up, looking amused. “It seems that even you are capable of ‘Huang Clan Style’ diplomacy?”

He sat there and stared into the distance for a moment, composing his thoughts.

“Who is Ha Tai Kai?” Elder Jinfang asked.

“Hah…” Ju Shan laughed, shaking her head. “That’s as much as I’ll give you, I’m just here to look out for the family interest, remember?”

“…”

“Ha Tai Kai is… an old ancestor of the Ha clan, someone who has been around a good while…” his father trailed off as Ju Shan gave him an oddly pointed look over her book.

Elder Jinfang, who was also looking at the talisman, frowned… “These other two…?”

“I’ve said it before, I’ll surely say it again. Unwanted prying can provoke odd reactions,” she said, giving both of them a ‘look’.

His father sighed and nodded, though Elder Jinfang looked somewhat unhappy as he put the talismans down again.

“Anyway,” his father said, sipping his tea, “this trial complicates things. It looks like our Huang clan is tied up, in various ways.”

“Is that why you are here?” he asked. “For this ‘trial of exploration’?”

“Officially? Yes,” Huang Leng nodded. “Us ‘Advisors’ are here to provide guidance for Prince Fanshu in overseeing matters, which is to say, we will do the actual work while that spoilt brat does what he does.”

“What even is it?” he asked, because despite having looked up the last time one occurred, the information was not that clear. “Is the idea that people… just go into Yin Eclipse and whoever gets the best thing after a month of looking… wins?”

“Basically? Yes,” his father said. “Though, that said, I do not think they have realistic expectations on Yin Eclipse itself.”

“I should hope not,” Elder Jinfang agreed.

“Indeed,” His father sighed. “That was tried before the war between us and the Mo clan, with far more determination than posterity would have you believe…”

“They… don’t?” he blinked. “Ah, the disaster 30,000 years ago? Headmaster Lu Ji talked about that… though he didn’t go into any great detail,” he added.

“Yes,” his father nodded, before sipping his tea and sighing deeply. “That said, the Imperial Astrology Bureau has apparently divined that a great ‘opportunity’ will appear, in regards to Yin Eclipse, in this province, within the next month. Apparently the auspice to explore it is also about as auspicious as it has been in the living memory of the Court itself.”

“—Which is to say, death is not inevitable, just really, really, really, really, really, likely,” Ju Shan said, laughing.

-That’s not at all ominous, he thought grimly.

“Certainly, the Azure Astral Authority has also gained some knowledge, given how elements within it are also manoeuvring under the cover of this ‘gift’ that has been demanded,” Elder Jinfang supplied.

“—So, they have called this trial,” his father concluded, sitting back and swirling the tea in his teacup pensively. “Although there will not be ‘one’ winner, by any means. For all that this is basically an opportunity for the clans and influences to impress the Imperial Court, the real goal here, in the eyes of those organizing, is to put strings on anything worthwhile in the province.”

“In terms of the prizes put forth, they are quite appealing as well,” Elder Jinfang added. “Each Advisor has agreed to select between one and three suitable candidates who stand out in the trial from within the province, who will join their core influences as a full disciple. That means there are core disciple spots for the Jade Gate Court, Wisdom Court, Four Peacocks Court and the Imperial School up for grabs for those who stand out.”

“Oh…”

He had to admit that that was indeed quite a prize to draw in the local influences.

“As for the overseas disciples, Dun Jian has already stated he will also select some of the most auspicious the ‘young talents’ and invite them back to the Dun Imperial City to join the Azure Chrysanthemum Hall,” his father added.

“…”

“Wait what?” he asked dully, because that kind of reward was… almost ludicrously good.

“The Huang and the Kong are likely to provide a similar reward, as will the Shu,” Elder Jinfang continued.

“Uh… the Shu are also taking part?” he asked, blinking, barely able to keep up with the procession of rather shocking revelations.

“Yes, Shu Tian, the Third Generation Headmaster of the Shu Pavilion, has been personally invited,” Elder Jinfang nodded. “He has agreed to attend, in person.”

“…”

He wasn’t sure what to say to that. Shu Tian was a legendary figure in many respects. An expert who had lived during the previous aeonspan, he was only the third ever Pavilion Master of the Shu Pavilion, an influence which had existed during three different ‘heavenly’ eras and even counted a genuine Divine Sage among its ancient ancestors, just as the Dun clan did.

“So, what does that mean for why I am here, with Lian Jing?” he asked at last, because that was all he could really think of at this point.

“Hmmmmm…”

His father steepled his fingers and stared at him for a long moment.

“The clan still wishes you to keep the princess company, to be their official in matters relating to Dun Jian’s endeavour. I, unfortunately, have little sway over those old men.”

“The White Storm Sect certainly sent some ‘interesting’ helpers,” he muttered.

“Yes, The Yan and the Hong… both are moving closer to the Gan branch as well,” his father grimaced. “With that in mind, I have convinced Ju Shan to give you a treasure, to further safeguard you.”

“You… uh? Oh…”

Ju Shan sighed, then twirled her fingers through her hair and pulled out a long, coppery-gold strand, which she breathed on—

The strand of her hair swirled, turning into a feather of the most brilliant hues of grey-blue and gold, shrinking down until it fit comfortably in her hand. The feather drifted over and settled on the table before him. Nervously, he picked it up and stared at it.

“Swallow that. Tell nobody you have it,” Ju Shan said simply.

“What—?”

“—Does it do?” Ju Shan asked, cutting him off. “It does what it needs to…”

“…”

“Thank you,” his father murmured, saluting Ju Shan. “This means a lot to me.”

“As I said, don’t tell anyone you have that,” Ju Shan said drily, looking at each of them in turn, before adding: “If you use it frivolously, I will ensure you regret it. Keenly.”

“Of… course not,” he mumbled, still staring at the feather. “I… uh… will not use it frivolously.”

“Good,” Ju Shan murmured. “Now swallow it down.”

Almost without thinking he picked up the feather and put it in his mouth—

He had expected it to dissolve, or merge with his body, but nothing happened.

“Am I going to have to come over there and hold your nose?” Ju Shan asked, putting her book down at staring at him in a slightly judgemental manner. “I said swallow it, not lick it!”

“…”

With an embarrassed grimace, he swallowed the feather, trying not to cough as he did so. It was a strange experience, because even though he knew the feather was there, could see it, even feel it in his throat, as far as his qi was concerned it might as well not have existed. After washing it down with a gulp of tea, he saluted Ju Shan again, who just nodded and picked her book up again.

“In terms of other items to safeguard you…”—his father pushed a storage ring across the table—“Bind that. It will provide much of what you need.”

“T-thanks,” he stumbled on the word, because the strange after-effects of the feather made him feel like he had an itch in the back of his throat.

Idly, he skimmed it and nearly dropped it, because there was almost two million spirit stones, several dozen Dao grade talismans, a full set of treasure swords and a treasure armour in it. It also had a few jade scrolls that contained maps and a substantial compendium of herbs and dangerous beasts.

“This…”

“I have little to no interest in what Dun Jian is after, but if you are going into Yin Eclipse, you need resources,” his father sighed. “It is not a place you can deal with lightly, as my predecessor in this post learned back during the Huang-Mo wars. I had hoped Dun Jian would be more forthcoming, but since he has not been, I can do at least this much. How you use this is up to you, but I suggest prudence in who you inform though.”

“Of course,” he replied. “By the way, do you know anything about what the Din clan is up to?”

“The Din clan… hmmm,” his father frowned. “Not really. Why, have they also been getting involved in Dun Jian’s business?”

“I… don’t know,” he frowned. “The Di family’s other son, Di Yao, has been in the province though, and the Din clan seem to be going around making deals with the various clans, especially the various lords of the Ha clan.”

“…”

“Are they now…” Elder Jinfang mused. “Do you want me to make some quiet enquiries, Lord Leng?”

“That might not be a bad idea, if you can do so discreetly,” his father mused. “What with Din Bao and the Kong Di Huang here, it is entirely plausible that there is something else going on.”

“…”

He stared out at the harbour for a long moment, then sighed and took out the broken slate from his belt pouch and put it on the table.

“This… is what Dun Jian has us looking into, for all the good it seems to be doing,” he said simply.

His father took the broken grey slab with its ancient Easten words and looked at it pensively, then handed it to Elder Jinfang who also just stared at it.

“Beyond what is written on it, it is aggressively mundane, or so it seems,” Elder Jinfang said at last. “And the writing… Krista Tonnitrue… Perhaps it is a map, or a schematic of some kind?”

“He has you looking for others like this?” his father mused.

“Its origins, others, where it came from, who found it…” he sighed. “Basically we were told next to nothing. I’d almost believe that this whole thing was just a ruse so he could annex the Blue Gate School using an Imperial Acknowledgement.”

“He did that… huh,” Jinfang mused. “I guess that explains why Fanshu rushed over here like a scalded cat. Princess Miao’s base of operations out east is a thing she jealously guards, and Dun Jian and she have a good relationship. Despite outward appearances, Fanshu got only burnt fingers from the Lin School debacle, and now Dun Jian has claimed the other major influence…”

“—He hasn’t done something stupid like install you or Dun Lian Jing as a caretaker?” his father interjected abruptly, frowning.

“No, the school is still being run by its elders. However…” he trailed off, not quite sure how to start off explaining the rather problematic series of events that seemed to have attracted the attention of Lady Xiao.

“However…?” Elder Jinfang prompted.

“There have been some complications…” he muttered, still deeply uneasy about that confirmed link with Lady Xiao.

“I suppose you should start at the beginning,” his father murmured, pouring three fresh cups of tea. “It will take a while for that feather to refine in any case…”

~ Dun Lian Jing – Dragonship, Blue Water City ~

“—Sister Lian!”

“—Sister Lian!”

Lian Jing stirred from staring blankly at the surging waves of the ocean in the early morning light and turned to find Tan Fang walking across the top deck of the Dragonship, where she had come to wait for JiLao to finish his meeting, grinning broadly.

“Tan Fang…” she replied blandly.

“Would it kill you to at least smile?” Tan Fang muttered, leaning on the rail beside him.

“I have a title, you know…” she pointed out.

“This humble servant is most sorry for the offence caused, Princess Lian,” Tan Fang replied, bowing deeply, and entirely non-seriously. “This servant, having been cooped up with a certain Imperial Prince for a week, is no longer able to understand the world as he knew it…”

“…”

She sighed and nodded, turning back to watching the ocean.

Tan Fang was someone she had… largely come to tolerate. Unless someone slapped him in the face with a title, he rarely cared about them in informal circumstances, which was partly why she was sure Huang JiLao got on so well with him. It also helped Tan Fang’s case that he was a mortal realm ascender, and a very talented one at that: Affiliated with the Wuli branch directly, even before the Four Peacocks Court, or the White Storm Sect. Being a person ‘worth cultivating’, who was easily able to move beyond the confines of this great world, got you a lot of latitude as it turned out.

“Did any more from the White Storm Sect or the Four Peacocks Court come with you?” she asked, changing the topic.

“Err…” Tan Fang had the grace to look awkward. “The bunch from the White Storm Sect mostly went with Yan Ju… to play around.”

It was a good thing she was wearing her veil, because the temptation to curse was high. “So, that confirms that the White Storm Sect is… diverting opportunities away from your Wuli branch?”

“Yep,” Tan Fang nodded. “That is it, basically. The original missive by Supreme Elder White Storm commanded Yan Ju to lead out an expedition at the behest of the ‘Honoured Imperial Teacher’. The old elders don’t like that Lord Huang Leng is both Advisor and Orthodox Official for the Huang clan on Eastern Azure, or that he is much closer to the Four Peacocks Court. I am only here… because JiLao asked personally. I have no official standing in this.”

“I wonder if we could get someone reliable from the Four Peacocks Court involved…” she murmured.

Tan Fang winced, which was his right, she supposed, given she was basically – if rightly – slandering most of those sent, then added: “Brother Ran is also here…”

“He is?” she looked around. “I have not seen him…”

“Ah, he had some messages to deliver to the Ling clan and the Master of the Feng Fang Pavilion, or so he said,” Tan Fang added.

“Feng Fang Pavilion?” she frowned, not having heard of that influence.

“I have no idea, sorry,” Tan Fang shrugged. “I didn’t ask in any great detail and he was in a hurry. In any case, he said he would be back by mid-morning and he would be very happy to see you.”

“…”

-I am sure, she mused.

As another of Huang JiLao’s sworn brothers, Ran Hao was almost the complete opposite of Tan Fang. Where Tan Fang was fairly flighty and Lu Seong was a bit of an alchemy obsessive, Ran Hao was… well, studious, respectful, diligent and honourable. A martial cultivator who took his responsibilities to his friends seriously. He also liked to consider himself the ‘older brother’ of the trio, as Tan Fang was about the same age as her and JiLao, while Ran Hao was close to three hundred and at the very peak of Golden Immortal.

“Perhaps it has to do with his preparation for breaking through to Ancient Immortal?” she suggested.

“It could be,” Tan Fang nodded. “Could be.”

“…”

She turned to find a maid had approached to stand respectfully nearby.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Would the Princess and Young Master Tan like refreshments?”

“Yes, please,” Tan Fang said, immediately. “Wine, whatever passes for breakfast…”

“Just some wine and light snacks,” she added.

“Of course, Princess, Young Master,” the maid murmured. “Also… I have a message?”

She held out her hand for it without comment.

The maid passed it over then, with another salute, left quickly.

Opening the scroll, she stared at it for a long moment, then dropped it over the side of the boat.

“Uh….” Tan Fang watched the scroll with its gilded jade seal vanish beneath the water.

“It’s just from Yan Fu, telling us that we are to meet them, at the Golden Dragon Teahouse at lunch.”

“…”

“Oh…” Tan Fang stared down at it.

“I take it we are… not?”

“Nope, they can come to us,” she said blandly. “That trash is just a servant after all, sent by his elders to act as manual labour for this task.”

“Hah!” Tan Fang grinned. “Well said.”

“You are just manual labour as well,” she pointed out with aplomb.

“Yes, but I am competent manual labour,” Tan Fang retorted, though she noted he looked slightly… nonplussed.

-Ah, I suppose before, I would not have conversed with him like this, she mused.

“Is there a problem?” she asked.

“…”

Tan Fang looked sideways at her.

“Did… something happen?” he asked at last.

“Happen?” she replied, curious now as to where this conversation would go.

“You… are more…” Tan Fang trailed off, looking awkward suddenly.

“…”

She met his gaze until he actually flushed slightly.

“Usually you just stare at us and sit there all aloof… This is the longest conversation I think I have ever had with you, Princess…”

-Now he bothers with the honorific? she thought wryly.

“I suppose so,” she conceded.

She would not have thought on it at all, really, had JiLao not made a big thing of it earlier, before they got on the boat.

Maybe it’s just got to the point where I don’t care anymore? she mused to herself. The politicking of it, and the plotting and the ‘mystery’ is just…

In truth, she knew she should feel really quite stressed at the moment.

Her uncle Dun Jian was here, Fanshu had shown up, the Huang clan was doing political things, the Din clan were slithering around, this place was a miserable backwater obsessed with the worst trappings of imperial power in its every dealing with her… and she had been framed by that Servant Qiao in various ways…

In a weird way, she supposed the turning point in her mood, at least, had been the day spent doing the temple ritual. Or maybe the auction. Both of those events had sort of crystallized in in her mind, in an odd way she couldn’t quite articulate.

“Maybe the problem isn’t me, but you,” she replied drily. “You say I am aloof, but maybe it was just that at those times I didn’t feel like talking to you?”

“…”

Tan Fang stared at her, then sighed.

“You and JiLao and Ran always just talk about this and that… I am just the princess that sits around at the side and is… a princess. History, politics, trials, martial cultivation… have you ever asked what I have as a hobby, an interest?”

It was a cruel jab, largely because he would not have. It was not exactly something you could ask an imperial princess in an informal manner. JiLao had known her when she was younger and more… carefree, but Tan Fang and the others had become friends with JiLao while she was being educated in the Imperial Court as a teenager, taught by Dun Jian and others how to be a ‘proper’ princess.

To most, a princess was a symbol, a thing representing a facet of the Imperial Court. Even more so than a prince, though there were precious few of those outside the core echelon of the children of the actual empresses. She existed, in that role, as a living, breathing Imperial Seal, a beautiful, smiling one, yes… but still just that. It was lonely and, unless you cared to live by the regulations and make the status your hobby, unfulfilling. The politics of the imperial ranking as other powers played all the princesses off against each other… was cruel and petty as well.

“That… is fair,” Tan Fang muttered, looking out at the horizon as well.

-And now he looked embarrassed, she shook her head.

It was not a thing even JiLao could understand, really. Let alone someone carefree and easy like Tan Fang. He was someone who had been at the crest of the wave ever since he stumbled into a peerless opportunity in his mortal world, aged six, and caught the eye of a reclusive old Immortal from a subsidiary of the Huang clan, becoming his adopted son and escaping the confines of that world at the age of thirty six, to wind up in Easten Azure.

“Is this more in keeping with your expectations of conversing with me?” she asked after they had stood there in silence for almost a minute.

“…”

“Sorry, I did not mean to pry,” Tan Fang sighed.

“To answer your question, though,” she added. “Many things have happened. Most of them obstructionist… and Dun Jian’s ‘task’ is about as clear as a muddy puddle on a dark night.”

“—is it now, my dear niece?”

-Oh shit… she groaned, dropping her head slightly, before turning.

“…”

“Imperial Uncle,” she turned and saluted him politely.

“Imperial Teacher of the Right,” Tan Fang murmured, also saluting properly, for once. “I will leave you to talk to Princess Lian…”

Currently, Dun Jian, her Imperial Uncle, the younger brother of Emperor Blue Morality just looked… like a youthful scholar in his late thirties. His long dark hair was tied back in the traditional style of the Dun clan, affixed in a scholars knot on his head, that held the only nod to his status as it had the imperial seal emblazoned on the band holding it in place. For a robe, he wore a dark blue and white one, adorned with ghostly silver dragons holding chrysanthemums, his beard cropped close and neat.

“Sorry, I merely spoke out of frustration,” she replied demurely as Tan Fang quickly retreated to give them privacy.

As much as it galled her to have to apologise for the frustrations, Dun Jian was still the brother of the emperor. As such, talking ill of the task he had set her was one thing, but doing it in his presence…

In spite of the difficulties of recent weeks, her uncle Dun Jian was still the closest thing she had to a genuine benefactor in the Imperial Court.

“No, rather it is I who should apologise,” her Uncle said, giving her an apologetic grimace as he made his way over to stand beside her. “Matters have not gone quite as I anticipated, especially with this accursed trial.”

“You … did not have a hand in that? Imperial Uncle?” she asked, keen to move the conversation on from her earlier mistake.

“No, niece, I did not,” he sighed, looking pensive. “That is entirely the doing of others. I will also say this though: In regards to how Envoy Qiao has behaved, I do intend to invite him to tea to discuss matters… Even if he is someone with backing, an envoy should remember their place. Even as a noble, his title is still in service to the Imperial Seat.”

Rather than say anything, she just nodded politely.

“We would have spoken sooner, but this trial, and keeping an eye on Fanshu and all the others who have come with him, is not exactly a low maintenance matter,” her uncle continued. “What I did want to ask, though, is whether you had those things on you?”

She didn’t quite glance at Tan Fang, who was now sitting at a table a good distance away, accepting the wine and food from the maid.

“They are not exactly easy to carry around,” she pointed out. “I have mostly been fulfilling my duties as a Princess. Huang JiLao has taken up the matter of investigating. They are securely stored in the Blue Gate School, currently, given it is now our influence.”

“It seems I will have to speak to young JiLao then,” Dun Jian mused. “In any case, you did well, bringing the Blue Gate School to our side. That alone will surely see a rise in your status on return to the court.”

“Thank you,” she replied, bowing politely again.

“The other matter is your… talisman?” Dun Jian added.

“Ah… that,” she replied, hiding a grimace. “Yes, it suffered an inexplicable mishap.”

“How peculiar,” Dun Jian mused. “Do you have it with you?”

“No, but if you wish to see it, I can bring it,” she said, not quite sure why she felt she was glad she had left it in a box in her rooms. “It won’t even store in a ring anymore. The enchantments manifested some error and it broke, I think during the time I was performing the Queen Mothers Ritual.”

“Most odd,” Dun Jian frowned. “Most odd indeed. I should very much like to look at it.”

“Of course,” she murmured. “Was there anything else, Imperial Uncle?”

“Hmm…” Dun Jian stared out pensively at the distant clouds. “Perhaps later we can go look at this auction together? I heard there are many interesting things that Envoy Qiao and the others unearthed… and there is also this matter of the blood ling contamination.”

“I suppose you will also be speaking to Envoy Qiao about that?” she asked.

“Oh, I am sure he will be most eager,” Dun Jian agreed. “I understand that the Fairy Ling Tao and Young Alchemist Quan Dingxiang were instrumental in foiling it.”

“They were,” she nodded. “The Ha clan also made some meritorious action apparently, but I know little about that beyond they happened to eradicate come bandits who had links to it. It was enough for Qiao to give them an Imperial Acknowledgement anyway.”

“—Lord Dun!”

A youth dressed in the robes of the Azure Chrysanthemum Hall walked over and saluted her uncle then her.

“What is it, Xingxiang?” Dun Jian said a touch curtly. “I am busy conversing with my niece, who I have not seen in some time…”

The disciple looked at her for a moment, then back to her uncle and passed him a scroll.

“Apologies for disturbing you. I will take my leave,” Xingxiang murmured, stepping back.

Dun Jian sighed and opened it, frowned and then put the scroll away.

“It seems I must go engage in official duties, my dear.”

“Of course, Imperial Uncle,” she replied. “What… are your instructions?”

“Regarding… oh, your task,” Dun Jian frowned. “Continue as you have been, both of you. The matters of the trial are a bit of a nuisance, but we can work with that. Now that you have the Blue Gate School onside, things become much simpler. We will discuss it more when we look around the auction, perhaps?”

“Of course, Imperial Uncle,” she murmured, saluting again.

“Please, you do not need to be so formal with me,” he sighed, giving her a pat on the cheek. “Just Uncle Jian is enough.”

“Very well, Uncle Jian,” she replied.

He gave her a further look, then sighed and smiled in an almost fatherly way before turning and walking after the retreating Xingxiang.

Only when she was sure he had left, did she properly relax.

-Maybe it is all just circumstantial? She mused.

She wanted to think it was just paranoia on JiLao's part that her uncle had put them in a pit, especially after that exchange…

Dun Jian had always been the one who stood up for her and helped her when she was at her lowest in the Imperial Court. Even though he had a bit of a dubious reputation in some quarters, he was, over the years, still the one who had looked out for her most, provided her with opportunities to rise as she had done. Without him, as much as it galled, she would barely have made it into the upper half of the Imperial Rankings, never mind her current status.

Sighing, she gave herself a shake and headed over to Tan Fang, who had now been joined by Huang Changmei.

Both of them started to stand as she approached, but she just wave for them to sit again and slumped down herself.

“What did the Imperial Teacher want?” Huang Changmei asked. “If you’re allowed to say.”

“Just to talk,” she replied, shrugging. “He apologised that we had had so many difficulties and agreed to speak to Envoy Qiao about how things have gone…”

“…”

Huang Changmei stared at her for a long moment, then nodded.

“I take it we are still waiting on JiLao?” she asked Changmei.

“They will be a while,” Changmei murmured. “Apparently the Huang Elders seem to want to hear about events in detail. Probably they are also unhappy about what happened to Huang Fuan and the various other difficulties.”

“Brother Ran said he will be here in thirty minutes though,” Tan Fang added.

Nodding, she took a sip of the tea that had been poured for her and then grimaced faintly, because it was somewhat bitter. Setting it aside, she crossed her legs on the couch and buried another sigh, wondering why she felt so… nervous all of a sudden.