If she could talk to Xiulan, then surely she could manage to talk with Meizhen, and restore…… something of what they had.

  In the end, she had to sit up in the front room of the house for most of the evening, doing her best to calmly meditate as she waited for Meizhen to come home. Zhengui was resting, dematerialized for the moment. They were still practicing with it; he got antsy if she kept him that way while he was awake.

  It was difficult to keep herself calm, but she somehow managed, practicing the breathing exercises of her cultivation art and breathing in the miniscule filaments of stellar energy that could reach her here. She couldn’t be upset, distracted, confused, or any of the other emotions that wanted to surge out of control when she talked with Meizhen.

  She just wanted her friend back.

  She hated what Meizhen had done without her permission

  She didn’t know if they could go on as they had before.

  Was that all the other girl had wanted of her?

  It was a chore to clear her thoughts at the best of times, and right now, it seemed truly futile. She drummed her fingers on the tabletop, glancing at the door. Meizhen should be home soon. She usually came back in the evenings, going to her room and then sweeping right back out again. Knowing that much didn’t count as stalking, right?

  Ling Qi twitched as the door swung open and her friend stepped in, clad in the snow white gown she had received from Cai Renxiang. It had a near invisible scale pattern with pale blue serpentine coils and waves embroidered about the lower hems. The pale girl paused on seeing Ling Qi but began to immediately walk toward the bedrooms with only a slight nod of acknowledgement.

  “Meizhen, can you stay a moment?” Ling Qi asked, breaking the tense silence between them for the first time this week.

  The other girl paused again, not fully turning around. “I have a number of tasks that need to be seen to. Perhaps later.”


  “Meizhen, please.” Ling Qi’s voice cracked. “We haven’t said a word to each other in days. Please talk to me.”


  Meizhen turned around, shoulders tense and pale face set in an expressionless mask. “I am hardly your nursemaid,” Bai Meizhen said coldly. “We lead busy lives.”


  Ling Qi clamped down on the angry retort that wanted to come forth, settling for letting out a breath. “Not that busy,” she replied evenly. “You’ve been avoiding me. I can even understand why. The things I wanted to say…… They didn’t come out right last time,” she said, her voice dropping with every word.

  “I see,” Bai Meizhen said, seemingly unmoved, but Ling Qi caught a flicker of emotion in her golden eyes. “What did you mean to say?”


  Ling Qi hated hearing her friend so closed and cold again, speaking to her as if she were a stranger. “I can’t give you what you want. Was that your only reason for treating me like a friend?” she asked quietly. She could feel Zhengui stirring in her dantian, awakening at her distress.

  Her question finally had an effect. A flush of shame rose on Meizhen’s cheeks, caught off guard. “No! Of course not! I am not so debased as that,” she said, a touch of anger in her voice.

  “Then why?” Ling Qi asked plaintively. “I have said foolish things before. I probably will again. Why does this mean I have to lose my best friend? I don’t want that. Do you?”


  “Of course I do not!” the serpentine girl snapped, eyes flashing. Ling Qi met her gaze with barely a flinch, the effects of her training. “Do you understand how difficult it is to…… to see your revulsion?” Her voice wavered toward the end, and she broke eye contact. “Clearly, we are both better off without one another’s company.”


  Ling Qi could admit that there was some part of her that was uncomfortable around Meizhen now. Oh, sure, girls and women could be just as vicious physically as any of the thugs on the streets, but she had always felt safe that she wouldn’t be assaulted in the way her mother and mother’s …… coworkers had been. She disliked the loss of that illusion.

  “I may not be able to respond the way you want, but I don’t feel revulsion at all,” she said firmly. “What you did made me uncomfortable, but what kind of garbage person abandons a friend because of a little discomfort?” A person like her, a thought whispered in the back of her head. Ling Qi quashed it; she wasn’t like that anymore.

  Meizhen stared up at her, her expression openly hurt in a way that seemed completely alien on the stoic girl’s face. “I should simply leave this instant,” she said quietly. “Whatever you say, the fact remains that my eyes do not lie. I have seen the way you shyaway whenever I grew close. Do you truly mean to lie to me and say that you feel no disgust whatsoever?”


  Had she done that in the immediate aftermath? Ling Qi thought back, thinking hard, and…… yes, she could recall moments when she had jerked her hand away when they were in danger of touching again or stepping back without thinking. It had never been conscious though. As she met the other girl’s eyes, she could see Meizhen’s resignation. She wouldn’t give up. She willed the other girl to see her sincerity.

  “I feel nothing of the sort,” she said clearly and slowly. “I feel sad and pissed off and a dozen other things, but disgust isn’t one of them.”


  Meizhen’s shoulders slumped and she looked away. “.…… Damn you.” The vulgarity was bizarre coming from the normally unfailingly proper girl. “Why are you so persistent?”


  “Too dumb to know when to quit.” Ling Qi managed a weak smile. “Can we please try at least?”


  “Fine,” Meizhen replied, not looking up. “I will cease going out of my way to avoid you. Will that be enough to satisfy you?”


  Ling Qi’s shoulders slumped. Even if she had headed off the worst case scenario, she knew she had a long way to go to rebuild the trust the other girl had for her before. “Yeah, that’ll be enough. I’m sorry for upsetting you so badly, Meizhen.” It was the only thing she could really apologize for.

  With Ling Qi’s ascension to Late Yellow last week, she had fully reached the top of the second realm. By the reactions of those around her, it was a prodigious accomplishment given that she was a match for most of the Outer Sect disciples, even those a few years her senior. It seemed obvious to her that there must be something else which was holding back those who wished to take the next step into the third realm. She wasn’t doing anything unusual after all; surely talent didn’t make

  much of a difference.

  It wasn’t like she spent all of her time cultivating either. She had been incredibly busy over the last few months, but she had more time than ever to act too since she could get by on a single night of sleep every few weeks. Even then, she had been spending a lot of time on her friends and other matters.

  She was going to cut down on her extracurriculars this week though so she made her rounds, informing the people who might care to know that she would be focusing on her cultivation this week. Suyin and Su Ling’s cave was empty, but undisturbed, so she left a letter. Similarly, tracking down Han Jian or Han Fang proved fruitless; she left a message with Gu Xiulan when she stopped by the girl’s home to chat about their plans for a little get together on the weekend. Meizhen was going to train with her again so she didn’t need to be informed. That just left one thing to wrap up before she started her cultivation.

  She went back to the tea house to meet with Fu Xiang again. Access to another trial site and the potential rewards within was simply too good to pass up. Ling Qi had wondered why Fu Xiang would offer such a thing, but a little investigation into the matter had revealed the likely reason. Namely, trials open to first year disciples were closed to the older ones. The same went for a number of other things, including the Argent Vents and other major sites on the Outer Sect mountain. She supposed that was one more reason that the older disciples could stagnate, even though supposedly, there were still a few trials and other opportunities hidden away for them.

  She would worry about the implications of this later. For now, she had to concentrate on the conversation with the cheerfully smug boy sitting across from her.

  “Miss Ling, you have no idea how pleased I am to see you again,” Fu Xiang said lightly as the door to the booth closed with a click. “Have you considered my offer then?”


  “I will do it,” she replied, then added, “provided you haven’t been hiding something dealbreaking in the details.”


  “Understandable,” Fu Xiang acknowledged, idly pushing his eyeglasses a bit further up his nose. “I assure you, I do not intend to hide anything that could decrease your chances of success. However, understand that the target will not be one of my less motivated peers like the unfortunate individuals who rose to Miss Gu’s baiting.”


  “I didn’t think they would be,” Ling Qi shot back. “I wouldn’t expect that kind of person to be worth this kind of effort.” She was aware that the target would almost certainly be formidable in some way; this effort to gain leverage on them wouldn’t make sense otherwise.

  “Then we remain on the same page,” he said, spreading his hands. Ling Qi could not help but notice the lack of tea on the table between them this time. Was he in a hurry? “The target is a young lady by the name of Wen Ai of the Ebon Rivers’ Wen family, if that means anything to you.”


  Ling Qi debated on playing it off like she usually did, but the lack of information would really only hinder her. “I’m afraid it doesn’t,” she replied, leaning back in her seat. “I’m still learning the biggest names.” Her effort to learn the basics of the political scene really only extended to the most important or immediately relevant families.

  “They are a fairly new, if wealthy, family,” Fu Xiang explained without missing a beat. “They hold a count title. Nothing that should be too troubling for one of your obvious talent.”


  “Why don’t I feel happy at all about being praised like that by you?” she asked dryly before she could catch herself. This guy just reminded her too much of the sort of shady guys who hung out in the corners of bars, ready to figuratively skin a client down to the bone.

  “You may take it as you will,” he said with a laugh, seemingly not offended. “The point is, she is well liked among my peers and has many friends.”


  “So influencing her means influencing them,” Ling Qi concluded. “You sure blackmail is the way to go about this though? Seems like it could backfire.”


  “Perhaps,” Fu Xiang admitted, tapping his fingers on the tabletop. That was another thing she noticed with more observation. The dark haired boy was rarely still, always moving in some small way or another. “However, our Lady is not so crude. She only intends to ask that Miss Wen counsel patience and non-interference to her friends. Such sticks do not make for reliable allies after all.”


  Ling Qi hummed noncommittally. Ultimately, she only cared about this faction war insofar as Cai’s regime failing could harm her and her friends. “So what is the target? Just a bundle of letters?” She was curious about what might be in them, but it was probably just love letters or something else socially scandalous. She figured the Elders wouldn’t tolerate anything actually illegal.

  “A small jade lockbox full of them,” Fu Xiang replied, his smile growing as he gestured. An ornate jade box about three handspans wide appeared on the table. “Do give Miss Wen some credit. She is not so careless as to leave letters lying about. This is an exact copy of the lockbox, and I expect you to replace the original with it. It should provide a bit of ambiguity as to when her bedroom was broken into, assuming you avoid raising a fuss.”


  Ling Qi eyed the box warily. “So you spy on girls’ bedrooms? I’m not feeling my trust growing.”


  “My intentions are pure,” he protested, smile unwavering. “Besides, you can hardly complain when it is my voyeurism that will give you the full details of her home’s security to break into at your leisure.”


  “That is a good point,” Ling Qi agreed grudgingly. It was a little unsettling though. Su Ling and Li Suyin’s idea of hiding out in a cave seemed better all the time. “Well, tell me those details. I want to get this done.”


  “Of course, Miss Ling,” Fu Xiang said easily, a flick of his wrist bringing a sheaf of well folded documents to his hands. “Shall we begin with the alarm line laid at the outer edge of the grounds?”


  Ling Qi sighed and leaned forward, glancing over the meticulously copied formation filling the page. She was going to be here for awhile yet going by the number of documents he had just placed on the table. Maybe she should order some tea herself.

  Threads 86-Household 2

  It was not a matter of figuring out what exercises her mother could physically handle, Ling Qi thought, but in figuring out what they could do that mother could repeat on her own and not end up getting discouraged.

  It made her look back on her time training under Elder Zhou with new eyes. How much thought had he given to their lessons? Although some had dropped out, quite a few even, she didn’t think he was quite as callous toward that result as he had appeared. His lessons seemed to have been carefully calibrated from the beginning to instill good habits in both health and cultivation. Elder Zhou’s lessons were still the bedrock of her physical regime, even now.

  Unfortunately, she was not nearly as good a teacher as the late elder.

  Sixiang whispered.

  Ling Qi looked over at her mother out of the corner of her eye and held back a grimace. Mother was red-faced, her breath coming hard as she recovered from the exertion of the last hour. Sixiang was right though. Ling Qi had found a lot of inefficiencies in her mother’s breathing and qi condensation routines. Ling Qingge was still losing a great deal of the qi she attempted to cultivate, but Ling Qi had a feeling that this was unavoidable given the state of her mother’s dantian.

  “It gets easier as you go on,” Ling Qi said encouragingly, reaching over to pat her mother on the back. It was only a little awkward. “You did well.”


  “Did I?” Ling Qingge asked, her usual composure lost. Her mother’s hair was in disarray, and her forehead was marked by sweat. “I cannot see it.”


  “The exercises will strengthen your limbs and more importantly, your heart and lungs. Even if you never awaken to gold physique, these exercises will leave you in better health,” Ling Qi parroted from a lesson long past. “With cultivation, it will do much more.”


  Sixiang muttered.

  Ling Qi sighed, thinking back to the misery that had followed her lessons the first week she was here. Would she really have been able to push through that without the desperation driving her?

  “I know it doesn’t feel like it now, but I promise, you’ll feel better if you keep at it. You’ve already made some progress. If you just do a little more each day, I think you’ll break through by the end of the year.” Having observed her mother’s rate of progress and the improvements she had made through some better practices, she was sure Ling Qingge could do it. So Ling Qi spoke with confidence, willing her mother to take belief from her.

  Ling Qingge’s breathing was easing up, and the older woman soon straightened her shoulders. “I suppose I should work to be a good example,” she said.

  “Do it for yourself, too,” Ling Qi said. “Mother, I really can’t put into words how even the most meagre cultivation improves your life.”


  “Very well,” her mother said with a huff of quiet laughter. “I will see how my schedule might be rearranged. But first, a bath, I think.”


  Ling Qi wrinkled her nose and glanced at the patches of sweat on her mother’s exercising gown. That was another problem cultivation would take care of. “Fair enough. Why don’t I go see Biyu while you do that?”


  “Please do,” her mother said, standing and grimacing. “She behaves much better at meals with family about.”


  Ling Qi laughed, resting a steadying hand on her mother’s shoulder. She could do that much.

  ***

  To their credit, their household did their best, but Biyu was a very restless young girl. It was also probably at least a little bit Ling Qi’s fault, she admitted to herself. Her domain, even in its dormant state, spread all around. It had been helpful for getting Mother through her exercises, but it was also contributing to Biyu’s energy.

  “Listen to the nanny, and eat your breakfast. Then you can go play,” Ling Qi explained, calmly crouching in the doorway Biyu had been making an escape for when she had entered.

  “Already did,” Biyu huffed unhappily, scuffing her foot against the floor. “Not hungry.”


  Ling Qi glanced up at the frustrated older woman standing by the table and the bowl of rice porridge still sitting mostly untouched on the table. “You didn’t eat it all. You’ll just complain about being hungry later if you don’t finish now.” Biyu’s nanny was doing a good job of concealing her frustration and tension, but Ling Qi had a feeling that Biyu had woken up buzzing with energy.

  “Sis-y doesn’t eat,” Biyu retorted.

  “That’s because Sis-y is magic,” Ling Qi replied, poking her little sister playfully. “Biyu has to eat and grow up before she can be magic too.”


  The little girl giggled and swatted her hand away. However, there was still a mutinous gleam in her eyes. So Ling Qi played her trump card.

  “If you go back and eat, I’ll stay and eat too.” She was going to do the first part anyway, but she didn’t need to say that.

  Biyu’s resistance crumbled. “Kay!” she said brightly, toddling back to the table.

  She stood up, and Biyu’s nanny bowed her head. “Thank you, Lady Ling. What should I get you from the kitchens?”


  “Just some sliced fruit,” Ling Qi said. She didn’t actually need it since she had eaten a good meal last week, but it was nice to eat just for the flavor. “And thank you for your work. I know Biyu can be a handful.”


  The older woman bowed even lower. “Lady Ling’s praise is unnecessary, but I am honored all the same.” She was better at hiding her nerves than the younger girls. She seemed a little more trained in etiquette than they did, too. Briefly, Ling Qi wondered what her story was, but she could ask Mother later when she got the names.

  Gliding over to the table, she took a seat beside Biyu with a smile and listened to the young girl babble happily about what she had been up to for the past few days. It was a little melancholic, she had to admit. Biyu was three years old and would be four this winter, and she was just…… carefree and happy. Perhaps even more than Mother’s recovering health, it reminded Ling Qi that she had accomplished something beside her own empowerment.

  As Biyu described to her with childish awe a big fuzzy dog she had seen at the market the other day, Ling Qi let her senses expand a little. She sensed Biyu’s nanny emerging from the kitchen with a plate of freshly cut apple slices and the girl in the kitchen doing the dishes. She sensed her mother upstairs in the bath, letting the hot water soak away the pain of sore muscles. She sensed the girl sweeping the front path and the girls now filtering out to care for the garden, and the ones upstairs, seeing to the cleaning.

  Some were stressed or tired. Some were bored and lost in thought. None of them were starving though, and none of them were miserable or afraid. She couldn’t take all the credit of course, but this was something that was only possible because of her growth and cultivation. It was only possible thanks to the path she had chosen to walk.

  “Sis-y?” her attention snapped back fully to Biyu, and she reviewed the last thing her little sister had said.

  “Some of the disciples do have dogs. I’ve even seen one big enough for a grown-up to ride. He was really fluffy too,” Ling Qi explained with a smile. While Zhengui was infinitely better, she could understand the appeal.

  Biyu’s eyes were wide, and she didn’t seem to notice the smear of rice porridge on cheek where the spoon had missed. “I wanna see!”


  “Maybe someday,” Ling Qi hedged. She wasn’t intending to bring her sister to a Luo gathering anytime soon. “Do you really like dogs, Biyu?”


  “Mmhmm,” her little sister confirmed through a mouthful of porridge. “Puppies are nice!”


  That wasn’t exactly Ling Qi’s experience with dogs considering their prevalence as house guards, but Biyu obviously had a different experience. There was the seed of an idea there. The Luo bred dogs aside from their family line. Perhaps a puppy would make a nice present for a future birthday. She’d have to run it by her mother first.

  Absently, she accepted the plate of fruit slices from Biyu’s nanny and took a bite, enjoying the crisp flavor. She nodded a thanks to the woman, who returned it with a bow and retreated to the wall of the room, leaving Biyu to her.

  On the matter of birthdays, Biyu’s was coming up soon. While four wasn’t an important birthday, it still warranted a present. It was too soon for a puppy, but surely, there was something she could give.

  She thought about it.

  She thought about it more.

  It turned out, Ling Qi thought, that she was terrible at thinking of presents.

  Sixiang thought to her.

  So something simple and fit for an energetic young girl then……

  Sixiang laughed.

  Dance instruction would probably go a long way toward tiring Biyu out, Ling Qi thought. She had seen dancers performing at the noble parties she had attended last year, so something like that wouldn’t even raise too many eyebrows. Besides, Biyu was a much more normal girl than her, and little girls appreciated pretty things, right? A pair of dance shoes would make a nice present. She could even invest a stone or two to make them adjustable, so Biyu wouldn’t outgrow them right away.

  Biyu had continued chattering away while she had been thinking, not noticing her distraction. Not that Ling Qi had shown it. It was surprisingly easy to split her attention and answer her little sister’s endless stream of questions about birds and flowers and garden fish while simultaneously debating with Sixiang on the pros and cons of gifts.

  It was even possible to do both and still keep track of everyone in the house. So, Ling Qi was not surprised when Ling Qingge entered the dining room, her hair still faintly damp from the bath.

  “Momma! Morning! Sis-y is here!” Biyu announced happily, seeing their mother.

  “She is,” Ling Qingge agreed, taking in Biyu’s empty bowl, the nanny standing quietly by the wall, and Ling Qi’s own plate with one slice of apple left at a glance. “Good morning, Biyu.”


  Ling Qi dipped her head toward her mother, savoring the crisp flavor of the last slice of fruit. “Feeling better, Mother?”


  “I am,” Ling Qingge agreed, taking a seat at the table. She gave Biyu’s nanny a thankful nod, and the other woman offered a bow and quietly sidled out of the room. “My recovery was surprisingly quick.”


  “And just think, you’re only getting started,” Ling Qi said with a smile. “Ah, what are your plans for today? I have some extra time, but I also don’t want to be a bother.”


  Her mother gave her a curious look as she reached out to begin carefully cleaning Biyu up. The little girl squirmed under her attention but didn’t complain aloud. “It is a market day. I had intended to show my face there, along with Biyu.”


  “Candy!” Biyu agreed.

  “If you behave yourself,” Ling Qingge chided.

  Ling Qi nodded in understanding. Becoming a part of the community was important for her mother, who obviously didn’t want to isolate herself in the house. “Why don’t I go along today then?”


  Ling Qingge gave her a surprised look. She seemed hesitant but didn’t look like she wanted to voice her concerns. For a moment, Ling Qi didn’t understand.

  Sixiang chuckled.

  Ling Qi winced. She really did…… stand out. “Don’t worry, Mother. I like to relax at home, but I can restrain myself.”


  “No, I did not mean to imply—” her mother began, but Ling Qi waved her off.

  Ling Qi took a single deep breath and took hold of herself, dispersing the thick, invisible manifestation of her aura. The room immediately grew a touch brighter and a touch warmer. The faint twinkling light in her hair went out, and the music that followed her at the edge of hearing went silent.

  Biyu was the first to respond, staring at Ling Qi with wide eyes. “Sis-y is different. Why?”


  Ling Qingge merely looked at her in surprise. “Well, if it doesn’t trouble you, that is fine. Just allow me to get a bite to eat before we set out.”


  It was uncomfortable, but she could manage. Honestly, having thought about it, she was curious to see her mother interact with the other people of the town.