As the caravan broke apart after reaching the cultivator camp, Min lost sight of Chang-li. They had barely spoken for the last day and a half as they traveled back from Fail-lan City. When they began the climb up the mountain this morning, he had told her abruptly that he would need to speak to the cultivation officials immediately. Now a man in official garb descended on them, and Chang-li hurried away with him without a word to Min.

Min didn't even think about where she was going until she and Jai-lin reached the gates of the Court of Gems at the cultivation camp. The gates were shut, and a pair of guards stood on duty outside.

One of the guards stepped forward. "Lady Min, the Dowager's congratulations on your recent marriage. She says to tell you she has had your belongings sent down to the sect of Morning Mist. You have no need to enter these gates until the next social event. She will be sure to send your sect an invitation." He turned to Jai-lin. "Lord Jai-lin, you may enter."

Min's brother squeezed her hand. "Do you want me to come with you?"

She shook her head. "No, it's fine. I should have known.”

Min turned away from the gates before she lost control of her features. She wandered back down through the camp, her mind distracted. Before she knew it, she was standing in front of the Brotherhood's headquarters. She could smell lunch cooking inside. Even at this time of day, there would be people taking their ease. She pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The doorkeeper bowed to her. "Elder Sister Min, felicitations on your wedding."

"Thank you," she said, the words catching in her throat. Of course, even they knew. She mounted the stair, and there were about a dozen people in the upper room, eating their lunch in little groups with mugs of ale beside them. As she emerged, everyone turned and looked at her. A hush fell over the place as they stared. Min took everything she had not to turn and flee back down.

Brother Stone came to her rescue. He was seated alone at a table near the back. Now he rose, pushing forward to her. "Everyone, get back to your own business," he ordered, and the other diners turned to their meals. She could still feel their eyes on her. As she went to meet Brother Stone, he took her arm and guided her into the back room, shouting a quick instruction to the woman tending the counter to bring food and drink.

There were a couple of Brotherhood members there, their heads together as they conducted private business. "Out," Brother Stone said brusquely. "Out, now." One of them started to protest, then shut up as he saw Brother Stone's face. They cleared the room.

Min sat down. A moment later, the serving woman came in with a bowl of hot stew, a loaf of bread, and a bottle of rice wine for Min. Brother Stone had snagged up his own mug from the table before entering the back room.

"Eat," Brother Stone urged. "You look as though you haven't eaten in days."

That was not quite true, but she'd had little appetite since she and Chang-li got caught. She picked up a spoon and began spooning the stew into her mouth. It was hot and meaty, large chunks of chicken and vegetables floating in the savory broth.

"What happened?" Brother Stone asked. "We have had garbled messages, but it didn't make any sense. You married? You found someone in Fai-Lan City and decided to marry that quickly?"

She shook her head. “I.” The words didn't want to come out. "I am married to Cultivator Wu Chang-li."

It was like pronouncing her own death sentence, having to face the reality that she and Chang-li were bound together, and he clearly resented her for it.

Brother Stone’s eyes widened. After a moment he poured a cup of the rice wine for her. She picked it up and sipped. It was far smoother than the wine she and Chang-li had shared at the inn the night they'd been caught, slipping down her throat, warming her body, but not lifting the intense numbing sensation that filled her.

"How did that happen? He's not even a cultivator, is he? Just a scribe?"

"He is a cultivator now," she said stiffly. “Accepted to be of the Morning Mist Sect."

"The Morning Mist Sect," Brother Stone said flatly. "The one you've been crafting out of a bunch of false papers and some brothers with a talent for lux like me." He sat back, a look of wonder on his face. "So it's another scheme. What is it, Elder Sister? How can I help?"

She shook her head. "No scheme," she said, finishing the cup of rice wine with another sip. "It was my fault," she said in a rush. She picked up the wine and poured herself another tiny cup. "I was helping Cultivator Wu with, yes, a scheme," she admitted. "And then afterward we were, well, discussing matters and things got a little out of hand. My — the Court of Gems had an investigator watching me. All the times I slipped out recently to meet with the Brotherhood or to help establish the Morning Mist Sect, they thought I was having an assignation with Cultivator Wu. When we were caught together, I couldn't deny it because, well…" She shook her head.

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Brother Stone squeezed her hand. "It's all right, girl. So they forced a marriage on you?" His face was darkening. "Well, we can handle that. The Brotherhood has plenty of ways to arrange a…"

"You will not touch Chang-li," she said sharply, raising her gaze to his and holding it. "Do you understand? Word is to go out throughout all the Brotherhood. No harm will befall Chang-li. He is my husband now. He saved me from a worse fate. My family owes him a debt, and more than that, I have made him vows."

Brother Stones look was hard, but he nodded.

She stared down into her half-empty stew bowl, warring with half a dozen different emotions she had been repressing for the last two days because she didn't like any of them. Anger at being caught and forced into something she didn't want. Guilt for having forced Chang-li into a situation that was surely at least as awful for him as it was for her. Despair because her future was no longer her own but wrapped up with someone else, someone who didn't seem to like her very much right now. And how could she blame him? Yet at the same time, she couldn't help thinking about the other night. Their hands on each other's bodies, Chang-li's lips on hers, how it had felt to be held in his arms.

"You're in a pickle," Brother Stone observed. "So what's your plan?”

"I don't have a plan,” she said, and the weight of everything broke through her reserves. "For once in my life, I don't have a scheme. It's why I'm here now. It's because I screwed up so badly. I didn't listen when Grandfather’s messenger warned me. I didn't listen to my brother's warnings either. I thought I knew what I was doing, and look what's happened now." Tears were pouring down her face.

Brother Stone stared at her. He patted her awkwardly on the shoulder as she wept into his chest. "There, there," he said. The awkwardness in his voice brought her back to herself and she pulled away with an mumbled apology.

"It's not so bad. Chang-li's a good sort. I liked him. He's got a good head on his shoulders, and for all that he started as a scribe, I think he could go far as a cultivator. That's what you're after, isn't it? Cultivators?”

“I’m supposed to marry someone who had enough connections to reach at least Peak of Spiritual Refinement. What good does it do the Brotherhood to have a low-ranked cultivator with no sect beholden to us?" she demanded.

"Well, you're the one who had the idea of making your own sect," Brother Stone said.

"And it was a stupid idea."

"But why?" he asked reasonably. "I think it's a good one. Why should these sects be the only ones to have cultivators? Your grandfather agreed when you said that having a cultivator or two connected to us would help the Brotherhood advance. What's the difference between a sect and a Brotherhood, anyway?"

"The sects know what they're doing," she said.

"So, we buy their secrets off them, or find them another way. Hire one away as a teacher."

"I don't have any more money," she said. "The messenger from my grandfather made it clear that he's not going to be giving me anything more for this until I can show some actual results."

"Then let's take stock of what you do have," Brother Stone said.

Min straightened up. She had allowed herself far too much weakness, even if it was only Brother Stone here to witness. She took a deep breath. "I will have to consider," she said. "It's Cultivator Wu’s business as well."

Brother Stone nodded slowly. He was out of his depth and she felt guilty for breaking down in front of him.

Chang-li had brought away plenty of secrets from the library. If some of them gave the techniques of reaching Peak of Mental Refinement or perhaps even Peak of Spiritual Refinement, then maybe they could raise cultivators up themselves. What she needed to do now was back Chang-li to the hilt. He was the only one with a chance of reading those documents.

She was tied to him now. If she wished to have a future, she needed him to advance. Well, why not? Not a scheme this time, but a real advancement.

The door to the back room opened. Min looked up in surprise as her brother, Jai-lin, entered, panting. She rose, shocked. She had never seen Jai-lin in the Brotherhood before. Brother Stone was there.

"What do you need?" he asked, looking at Jai-lin in surprise.

Jai-lin shook his head, catching his breath. Then he panted, "Min, the dowager, she's planning to bring the court to the Sect of Morning Mists this evening for a visit in honor of you and Chang-li."

Min's mind went blank for an instant. Of course, formal recognition of a cultivator marriage by the Court of Gems and the other cultivators was normal, but generally, a sect sent out their own invitations. The dowager was clearly forcing her hand here, hoping to see her embarrassed and point out to the other nobles what a foolish alliance Min had made due to not listening to the dowager's warnings.

"You know this for sure?" she said.

"I overheard her. She doesn’t know that I've slipped out, and I need to get back before I'm caught."

"Yes," Min agreed. She hurried over and embraced her brother. He tensed in surprise, then relaxed and patted her back. "Thank you," she told him. "Now go, quickly."

Jai-lin was gone again in seconds. She turned to Brother Stone. He was looking at her intently, clearly wondering what she would do. Min hesitated.

Who was she? She was a noble of the Gem Court, now married to a cultivator of a sect that she knew to be false, perched on the edge of utter disgrace. That was who the dowager thought she was.

Min was the granddaughter of the governor of Riceflower Province, the granddaughter of the Eldest Brother of the Oaken Band Brotherhood, the strongest fraternal organization in this province. She had been raised for just this sort of affair.

"I need Brotherhood people dressed and ready to serve, those who've had experience waiting on cultivators and nobles at a preference. Whatever you do, do not bring Sister Lishan,” she said crisply. "We'll need food. Coordinate and have Riona here take the lead. Drink, plenty of it. Cultivators always drink three times as much as ordinary people. It's that damn lux giving them an extra tolerance. I need decorations. We'll want the sect colors plus red. And quickly. I am going to Morning Mists and informing the cultivators there that we're going to expect company."

Brother Stone bowed his head toward her. "Yes, my lady," he said.