Li Zhong woke to the hustle and bustle emanating from the restaurant area across the courtyard. He could hear the sound of pottery clanking, bowls against tables, and the low hum of voices. He had drunk into the early morning that day and slept until— what hour was it? The fact that the voices were not just isolated ones here and there suggested it must have been at least the eleventh hour, when a fresh wave of travelers had arrived. His leave would be over soon. It would be better to start partying now. He pulled on his undergarments and then sat for a moment. A month into autumn and the air was growing crisper and colder. Li picked out a thicker robe with a fur lining, then pulled on his socks and shoes and headed out the door.
On his way out he passed the quarters of his lieutenants, who had doubled up two to a room. He leaned his face close to a panel on a rice paper door. “Lieutenant Zhang! Lieutenant Yu!”
But there was no reply. Either of them would have responded immediately if they were present, so they must have been in the restaurant or out to town. Li continued on his way down the stone path to the multi story lou restaurant which also served as a tavern.
“Captain Li!” the host welcomed him as he entered. “Right this way.” The man led Li to the third floor as was befitting his rank.
There were not many open seats anymore despite the early hour. The host spotted a smaller table with no occupants and led him over to it. Li sat down.
“What will it be?” asked the host.
“Small jar please,” Li replied, placing a string of copper coins into the man’s hands.
The man received it eagerly and went on his way. Li lowered his head to the table, trying to ease his headache from the previous day. The wood was cut from some sort of evergreen tree, and it had a fresh smell to it that unexpectedly calmed the throbbing in his head. Whenever the first bowl of wine came his way though, he knew his headache would be over.
The conversation in the entire area suddenly ended. Li Zhong lifted his head, noticing that everyone was looking toward the tavern entrance. He peered over the banister to spot a cloaked youth step over the threshold. The man ascended the stairs to the third floor hastily. At the top of the steps he scanned the area, locked on to where Li was sitting, and then stalked over, sitting on the only other stool at Li’s table. Though the newcomer was wrapped in multiple layers, it was obvious from her facial features and the unease in which she moved that the traveler was actually a woman. Upon arriving at the table, she slammed her one span long dagger onto the surface. The host, who had slowly followed her on her path toward Li, stopped behind her.
“Ma’am...perhaps there are some seats on the lower floors—.”
“It’s quite fine,” Li held up a hand. “I will have somebody to talk to now. Just take her order.”
The host nodded slowly. “I must confess that we do not have any bl—”
“Tea will do just fine,” she interjected.
The bartender nodded slowly. “Yes of course. Would you like a—”
“Black dragon tea.”
“Coming right up.”
When the woman turned her head, Li Zhong felt a sudden shiver crawling down his spine. She was a Reo: snowy pale skin, silver hair, red pupils, with the ethereally beautiful features that her people were always rumored to possess. With Reo so poor at navigating the sea, and unable to move much during the day, those who showed up in Xian were generally assumed to be employed as mercenaries — or assassins — of Xian lords, perhaps the emperor himself.
“Sir?”
Li Zhong realized too late that he was staring at the Reo woman. “Forgive me.”
The tea arrived shortly after along with Li’s jar of rice wine. The woman took the cup and downed its contents instantly, without the usual sipping involved to cool it down. When she finished it she cradled the cup in her hands, her head bowed toward it.
“Where you headed?” Li Zhong found himself asking.
“None of your concern,” she replied without turning.
“Huh.” He glanced from the dagger to her. “Your words and posture suggest you don’t want attention and yet your actions speak otherwise.”
The woman only choked once in response. Li Zhong looked through the gap of her hood, where a continuous trickle of blood was flowing from her shoulder toward her chest.
At that moment, the door to the lou tavern burst open, with over a dozen armored men in yellow sashes and heavy dao filing in, taking their places along the walls. Someone dropped a bowl, the shattering of porcelain as if a signal for all those present to stop talking. The man at the head of the group raised a bronze seal, the words “Imperial Investigation Bureau” etched into the metal.
“We have reports of kaishu in this area. If anyone has relevant information, please step forward now.”
The owner of the tavern stepped forward from where he stood at the base of the stairs. “Sir there are no kaishu here! I’ve followed all protocols—”
The leader of the group raised his hand as if to silence the owner. He looked around the first floor, then ascended the steps to the second while his men blocked the entrance. Upon reaching the central level, he turned and looked up to where Li was seated. The leader then waved his hand forward and four of his men left their positions at the front door. They climbed up the stairs, dao swaying in their sheaths as they moved. When they reached the top, all five of the investigators then ascended together to the third floor, making their way toward Li until they formed an arc around his table.
“Ma’am, could you turn and face me?” the leader asked the Reo woman.
“I will not.”
In a flash, the Investigative Bureau leader unsheathed his dao and flicked the tip of it at the edge of the Reo woman’s hood. The woman grabbed her dagger and deflected the dao, denying him full visibility of her face. All four of the bureau officers then unsheathed their dao.
“Ma’am, you will come with us to the station to ascertain your purpose here, and that it is not to teach or utilize any kai techniques, particularly the evil and twisted ones of your people,” the leader declared.
Li Zhong found himself standing to his feet, stepping forward to place himself between the investigator and the woman. “She is my guest.” He reached behind himself and grabbed the jar of rice wine, draining half its contents before slamming it onto the table. Li then slid his right foot forward and raised his fists in a line in front of his chest. “And by our nation’s customs regarding guests, I cannot allow any harm to befall her.”
The investigator’s eyes narrowed. “Be careful sir...you are protecting an enemy of the state”, his hand reaching over to his sword.
Li Zhong felt a gentle touch on his forearm.
“I can handle myself,” the woman said softly, pushing herself to her feet.
Before he could protest, she removed her own bronze seal, holding it up to the bureau leader. “I’m here on official business,” she said with a smile barely masking her irritation. Li glanced at the seal; in the center was etched the characters “Embroidered Uniform Guard”, or as some people called them, the Imperial Secret Police.
The bureau leader quickly signaled for his men to sheath their blades. “Ma’am,” the bureau leader bowed slightly, clasping his fist. “My apologies. If you see or hear anything about the abominations, inform the nearest station who will relay the information to us. That is all,” he said. He stepped backward and then pivoted on one foot to about-face. Then, much more silently than they had entered, the investigators descended the stairs and disappeared out through the door.
“Back to your drinks!” the woman shouted in heavily accented Xian. Though an air of nervousness still hung over the restaurant, its patrons did slowly return to their conversations, and soon the din of activity returned to its original level.
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Li sat back down in his seat, and so did the woman. If her wound bothered her at all, she didn’t show it. Li knew next to nothing about medical affairs, particularly concerning the anatomy of Reo. But he was sure despite their differences the woman would bleed out just like any jin would; this woman needed medical attention.
“You need to see somebody. I can cover it,” said Li.
“There’s no need for that” The woman winced. “And you will address me as ma’am. Show some decorum as befitting your status.”
Li’s eyes narrowed. “Ma’am, you’ve established your credentials, would you kindly state your business?”
Instead of answering, she started to keel over backwards. Li reached a hand out and pressed on her back to stabilize her. “I’m taking you to the apothecary,” he whispered. The Reo woman only nodded in response. Li could see the sweat pouring over her brow. Her eyelids were fluttering, as if she was going in and out of consciousness.
“Can you walk?” he asked.
She nodded. The woman mustered enough strength to push herself back onto her feet once more. She held a neutral expression as the two of them descended the steps. After exiting the restaurant, the two of them walked slowly through the inn courtyard and out the main gate, following the horse carts and sedans that flowed lazily through the night toward the east end of the city. When they reached the Sky Ferry Bridge, the woman suddenly collapsed against a bridge post, wrapping her arm around the top of it. Li made to support her elbow, only to have her shake him off.
“I just need a minute,” she insisted.
Li noticed her breathing growing heavier. He looked around at the other travelers on the road and bit his lip. “Ma’am if you’ll forgive me, I think I need to carry you the rest of the way. And fast.”
She nodded lightly in acknowledgment. Li wrapped his right arm behind her back and his left under her thighs, lifting her up. She was surprisingly light, which allowed him to quickly move across the bridge. About halfway through, a single horse sedan stopped next to Li. He looked up to see a hand brush aside the cloth window flap. A middle aged woman’s face appeared in the opening. “Do you need help, traveler?”
Li hesitated for a moment, but made a split second decision to trust the sedan’s occupant. “I would be very grateful.” The driver alighted from his seat and opened the sedan door. Li stepped once into the entryway and pushed himself with the Reo woman into the carriage. Inside, a servant girl was seated next to the lady, but the bench across from them was empty. Li laid the Reo woman against the end of the empty bench, then sat down right across from the lady. “Apothecary Zhong, in Yong’an District”, said Li.
The driver nodded, closed the door, and soon they were off again. Though they started off at a trot, the driver’s pace increased steadily until the rumble of the stones grew deafening
“How bad is it?” the lady asked.
Li glanced at the Reo woman’s collar.
The lady waved her handkerchief toward the Reo woman. “Chun’er, take a look.”
The servant girl hesitated.
“Did you not hear me?” the lady snapped.
Chun’er bowed her head in acknowledgment and leaned forward, pulling the hood back from the Reo woman. When she did so the fabric peeled off like dragon fruit skin, the continuous flow of blood forming an adhesive against the Reo woman’s shoulder. It was a lot worse than Li had thought. Chun’er then reached two fingers out toward the woman’s Central Treasury and Shoulder Bone points, striking them so hard the Reo woman bounced twice in her seat. She seemed too weak to notice, only wincing and muttering in response. Chun’er reached into a pouch and pulled out a few glass jars of herbs. She extracted a pinch from each of them and then popped the mixture in her mouth, chewing it. She then spat out the wet mixture carefully into her hand and shoved it into the Reo woman’s wounds. The woman groaned.
Li stared at Chun’er. Kai techniques were strictly forbidden under the standing Imperial Decree. Of course there would be practitioners still alive who hid their techniques, but he was at a loss as to how someone with such strong technique could exist so freely in a major city.
“I’m sure we can both agree on the need for discretion to assist your companion here,” the lady interrupted Li’s thoughts. Her voice carried with it a thinly veiled threat.
Li held his fist in his hand and bowed. “This one below is unaware of any abnormalities her ladyship refers to.”
The lady nodded in satisfaction. “That’s what I like to hear. Chun’er, check that the bleeding has stopped.”
Before she could do so, the window behind the driver’s seat opened up. “Madam, trouble behind us.”
The lady’s eyes narrowed. “You will listen to me very carefully. Your companion is going into the bench you are seated on. You will—”
“I will speak to whomever will come as I must move around the city a little longer yet.”
“Then what is your name?” asked the lady.
“Li,” said Li. “Captain Li.”
“Best be ready, Captain.”
Li rose from his seat and hooked his arms under the Reo woman’s. He then kicked up the bench seat, revealing the spacious compartment beneath it. Li placed the woman inside, readjusted the seat, and sat back down.
Soon after the driver slowed to a halt. The sound of multiple pursuing horses could be heard slowing down as well. One mounted horseman approached the sedan. A few seconds later, the Investigative Bureau leader from earlier appeared in the window, looking inside. He clasped his fist and bowed deeply. “Lady Feng, terribly sorry for this. I’ve heard reports of the Reo woman coming this way. One person claimed she entered a sedan matching your description.”
“How dare you!” she shouted, waving her handkerchief so swiftly Li was expecting it to crack against the man’s helmet. “Captain Li is a soldier in my husband’s army. I happened to meet the captain in town while running some errands, and he is riding with us back to our estate. You, sir investigator, are souring the mood.”
“I’m sorry Lady Feng but it is something I must check. Captain Li, where is your companion from earlier?”
“We were talking about details involving a secret case. We walked together to the Sky Ferry Bridge and parted ways. I do not know where she went. Perhaps you can check the Embroidered Uniform Guard station?”
“We just came from there, and the garrison commander does not know of such a woman in his unit.”
“Perhaps she came from a different unit.”
The investigator frowned. “I do not think so.”
“The details of the case appeared legitimate, investigator,” Li insisted. “Though I can’t tell you about them, of course. This is all I have for you.”
The investigator looked from Lady Feng to Li, and then back to Lady Feng. “Lady Feng, will you please send a runner to the station if you come across such a woman? We need to confirm her credentials once more.”
Lady Feng tsked. “You know I would.”
The man bowed deeply again. Lady Feng closed the window flap, and soon they were off once more, reaching the end of the bridge and continuing into the eastern part of the city. When Lady Feng seemed satisfied they were far enough away, she relaxed her shoulders and leaned back into her seat.
“Captain Li, there are no Imperial Assassins this far south. And I am certain no Reo is part of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, based on my sources.” She glanced at the bench seat. “Your companion has some explaining to do.”