She nodded to acknowledge Hong Fei’s bow, but didn’t immediately call him over. He was left on his own until the meeting started, which waited upon Chen Wenbin’s and Yu Yong’s arrival.
For the entire time that Hong Fei had resided at the estate, the formal dining room had yet to be used for its stated purpose. Usually, it sat empty, with the family preferring to take their meals in the pavilion adjacent to their courtyards, weather allowing. Now that that pavilion had been demolished, they’d all retreated to their residences for meals, which was a shame since the dining room was so tastefully furnished.
Large paintings depicted the animals native to Wild Green Island, with one wall dedicated to landscapes featuring birds of all kinds. The pillars and beams supporting the ceiling had been carved with images of trees and vines. They gave the impression of being within a forest, though admittedly a refined one.
A raised dais lay at one end for the duchess and her guests of honor to sit, and a mixture of round and rectangular tables occupied the rest of the room. Hong Fei estimated that approximately fifty guests could be seated comfortably.
The benefit of being unused was that the formal dining room had been entirely untouched by the recent fighting. Hong Fei wandered among the pillars to appreciate the carvings; he gave space to the duchess and the steward to continue their private conversation.
His eyes picked out the ribbon he’d used to hold his report together. It lay on the ground by the table, indicating that the report had at least been opened. Knowing the conscientiousness of the duchess, it’d also likely been read and digested.
Hong Fei nodded to himself. His palms itched, ready to hold a sword again. The duel with the staff-wielding guard the night prior had been interesting, and he wondered if the Rock Knives had any other competent fighters. And numbers too, of course, as well as fresh intelligence on the Tiger Masks and anything else that might help illuminate the nature of curses.
He placed a hand on one of the pillars—underneath his palm was the image of a cloud leopard hiding among a tree’s branches—and he wondered how it would feel to wield Fortune’s Favor again, the true sword and not just the scabbard.
The gift from the emperor had never been simple, and yet the Hongs had accepted it. They’d made the sword their own, their honor bound with it. Could Hong Fei also make the sword his own, knowing the empire, or at least some of the people serving it, had betrayed him?
The sword was innocent of that crime. Its only purpose was to cut.
Hong Fei’s fist tightened, and he lightly tapped the cloud leopard underneath it. With a wry smile, he realized that he’d let the discussion with Sun Han about the scholar’s past trouble his own heart.
He set aside those thoughts and brought to his mind the arguments he might need to convince the duchess and the other senior leaders to continue the assault on the Rock Knives. If need be, the dūtóu could do it alone, working only with his own people, but the Yus would be better served by a series of coordinated strikes.
From above, he heard the patter of rain hitting the roof’s tiles. The light shower from earlier had apparently transitioned to something stronger. Yu Ning went to a shutter near her to open it and peer outside. From the entrance came the sound of the doors opening and people arriving.
Chen Wenbin came through the entrance to the dining room. The xiàowèi had chosen to wear a robe with long sleeves, his attire hiding the loss of his right forearm. He walked tall with his head high, as if nothing would impede him.
With him was Cai Shi. It seemed that the shízhǎng was his new favorite after Ma Zhi’s betrayal.
A good choice and a steadying presence, Hong Fei thought.
Following those two was another pair: Yu Yong and Mei Hua. They entered with her hand on his arm, which was interesting given the rumors of recent strife between them. She also seemed in better spirits than of late, and while Yu Yong’s eyes were still shadowed, they at least appeared thoughtful.
Had something happened to reconcile the two? Had Yu Yong forgiven Mei Hua for sneaking a Life’s Bounty pill into his food? Hong Fei would have to ask Kang Lian about it later. She would hopefully have an update on the state of relations between them.
Yu Yong looked down at his arm, and Hong Fei saw that it was actually Mei Hua gripping it and not letting him go. She smiled sweetly while she did it, however, and only someone looking closely would realize it.
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So perhaps not so cozy, Hong Fei thought, but he’s not making a fuss, so there’s that.
The young woman had ambitions, that much was clear. What exactly they were and how she planned to achieve them was less so. Hong Fei felt confident the black 2 above Mei Hua’s head meant that she was cursed rather than one casting a curse, but that was all. Even after all the time she’d spent in his company, he couldn’t say he knew the young woman’s heart.
Mei Hua left Yu Yong to go clasp hands with Yu Ning. They exchanged a few light words, then the duchess called the meeting to order. Everyone else bowed, then saluted, including notably Yu Yong. There’d been a moment of hesitation, yet he’d then followed the others’ example.
Yu Ning traded looks with her brother. He ducked his head, while her throat visibly moved to swallow. A moment later, she let go of Mei Hua’s hand and asked her to join the rest of us on the other side of the table, which the young woman did, but not before giving the duchess’s hand a squeeze.
“We have three proposals before us,” Yu Ning said, “each worthy of consideration.”
She gestured for her people to come closer to the table, and Hong Fei saw that the map had been marked liberally with the locations of known and suspected Rock Knife operations, as well as several estates belonging to rival noble families.
“From our xiàowèi, we have a plan to infiltrate a building in the middle city known to coordinate the Rock Knives’ activities. Our dūtóu recommends going beyond that to also sweep through all of their businesses. And finally, our steward put forward the idea of enlisting our allies in the Department of Crime and Punishment in the investigation of the list found at the Dreaming Ox. He would have us use that list as the pretext for undermining our enemies among the noble families, creating suspicion that some of their members might be Tiger Masks.”
The duchess stepped back from the table before continuing her address. “Clerk Beitang helped find the chamber hidden in the Ma estate that contained the… paraphernalia of Ma Zhi’s twisted rituals. He is just as disgusted as we are and will likely help us.”
Her voice softened. “I welcome your thoughts on these three plans.”
Chen Wenbin immediately stepped forward. The traditional salute of cupped hands was incomplete, but that did not deter him. “I wonder if a ‘sweep’ is too ambitious. Doing so would leave the estate undefended, and the results may be inadequate, since our efforts to uncover any spies remaining among our staff are ongoing.”
The duchess nodded. “Anything else?”
Hong Fei took a step and saluted. “Nearly every member of our staff is a veteran soldier. There is no such thing as leaving the estate undefended. During the recent attack, the servants fought on behalf of the family just as vigorously as the guards. As for any spies remaining, there are ways to minimize the risk of our plans being discovered.”
Zhang Dehua turned toward Hong Fei. “How so?”
The dūtóu nodded to show he’d heard the steward and win himself some time to think. He’d expected the question, but not from Zhang Dehua since the steward had likely read Hong Fei’s report. That meant he wanted the others to hear the reasoning too. The meeting was being orchestrated, Hong Fei thought, yet when he glanced between the participants, he couldn’t determine the one doing the orchestration.
Hong Fei gestured as if to encompass the entire estate and said, “Announce to the staff that there will be a drill held and that everyone will be participating. Then, when the time comes, give the shízhǎngs their real orders. Their squads would then set off for their target locations. It would give a spy or spies no opportunity to alert the Rock Knives to our plans. If they have access to a way to communicate immediately across distances, then at least the window of time in which they can respond is diminished.”
“The servants can fight,” Mei Hua said without preamble, “but most are Dustborn. What will happen to our duchess if the estate is attacked and all our most powerful fighters are away?”
“I have an answer for that,” Yu Ning said, “which is that I won’t be at the estate either.” Everyone stepped forward upon hearing those words. She stopped them all from interrupting with a hand raised. “This is not… recklessness. My thought is to accompany Steward Zhang to the Department of Crime and Punishment. Our enemies wouldn’t expect it, and I would be honoring Clerk Beitang by doing so. Our house may be fallen, but our name still carries weight. From what we know of the man, he will use it to good effect. And we will benefit from his help investigating the list of names found at the Dreaming Ox.”
“Can we trust him?” Hong Fei asked.
The duchess looked to her steward, and Zhang Dehua’s lips turned up at the corners. “We can if we give him half of what we take from the Rock Knives.”
Several of the attendees gasped, and Chen Wenbin exclaimed, “Half!”
Zhang Dehua nodded. “If we want to be assured of his loyalty, then we need to buy him outright.”
“If, in the considered opinion of our retainers, Zhang Dehua alone is not enough protection for me, then the Xiàowèi Chen can also join us. I should be safe in the company of two Qi Blossoming cultivators. However…” Yu Ning paused to look at Chen Wenbin. “My thought is that he would be of better use leading the assault on the Rock Knives. It occurs to me that our plans are slightly out of order.” She gestured to the gang’s headquarters in the middle city. “Our dūtóu attacks their heart…” And then she swept her hand across the map. “While our xiàowèi disables them.”
“You really would empty the estate of its soldiers?” Chen Wenbin asked.
“Our enemies expect us to cower. A defensive stance is reasonable given all that we’ve been through, and yet that would signal our weakness. These people…” Yu Ning made a fist and slammed the table. “These people must not know how shallow our strength has become. We will use them to regrow that strength. We have taken the first steps toward our revenge and will continue on its path. The money and the goods we raid will be used to support our people’s cultivation. The House of Yu will rise again.”
Hong Fei grinned, the expression he unconsciously wore before an anticipated fight. He so very much liked the words she’d used, and he repeated them to himself, The House of Yu will rise again.