Chapter 7

 

She was ascending to Heaven! All thanks to her husband. Kui Yu was amazingly capable at helping her create the small yin circle. She had not thought him so experienced in the sexual arts. Indeed, her ignorance of him disturbed her, but she had no time to examine it carefully; the yin tide engulfed her and her focus became riding the wave to Heaven.

Thankfully, she had forced Kui Yu's yang into the appropriate large circle despite his resistance. It mixed with her female yin, and now provided enough energy to take her to Heaven. And without the addition of poison to her blood! Which meant... Was she...? Could she...? Would she become an Immortal now?

Shi Po tamped down the elation that surged through her, focusing all her attention on riding the yin-yang tigress to her destination. The Heavenly portal was just ahead; she was sure of it. Indeed, she had already arrived at the antechamber: the Room of a Thousand Swinging Lanterns.

She had attained this level before, though many years ago. Indeed, the peace and joy of the space was tainted for her, the beauty of the swinging lights dimmed from her first experience. And yet, she still found great joy in the feeling of absolute lightness that pervaded the antechamber. Only here could she stand tall. Only here did she breathe without restriction and dance without pain.

She'd forgotten how much she loved this place. If only she could remain here forever, spinning in circles of delight. Indeed, she would have if Kui Yu had allowed her to use the dagger. If she could have poisoned herself, she would even now be settling here—or someplace even better, someplace beyond this antechamber.

But she had not. Because Kui Yu had stopped her.

The darkness shifted, and the lights folded back. Shi Po strained forward, anxious to see what came next. What would be her future? What might ensure her status on Earth as an Immortal? What...

Kui Yu?

Kui Yu! Her husband was there, standing on the steps to Heaven. He was talking with a celestial creature, a woman of great ethereal beauty and power. Was it Kwan Yin, Goddess of Hope?

He was here! He had come with her, joined Shi Po as she entered Heaven. They'd entered together. Except, it hadn't been together she now realized. He'd been here before her. And he was in conversation with a goddess without her.

Emotions tumbled through Shi Po. Confusion warred with envy and anger. But awe and joy held equal parts. It made no sense. She was thrilled that gentle Kui Yu had joined her. And yet, how could a novice precede her? Especially on his first night of practice? And what was he saying to that heavenly woman?

She strained toward him, but at the same time wanted to turn her back. He had already usurped her in everything else; how could he take Heaven from her as well? And yet, how could she not be gloriously happy for his success?

She wasn't! And yet, she was. One could not be in the antechamber to Heaven and not feel a generosity of spirit. But how had this happened?

Her emotions would not resolve themselves; her thoughts would not remain clear. And with her confusion, she lost her focus. She fell off the tigress.

The plummet was horrifying. But then again, it always was. And after three times now at the antechamber, she recognized the experience. It was cold, and dark, and worst of all, she felt heavy. After the lightness of immortality, even experienced for a single moment, the return to Earth was ugly. In the space of one heartbeat, she went from glorious to mundane, from stunning to coarse, from all that was most holy to all that was unimportant. Shi Po's chest and back folded in on one another until she could barely breathe. The cold dulled her thoughts, and the darkness made her long for death.

Yet, this time was even worse than usual. This time she knew she was leaving Kui Yu behind. This time, he would walk into Heaven while she—once again—fell into despair.

She wished she had it in her to be happy for him. He had attained perfection of spirit. But her goodness was not so pure. She was not happy; she was abandoned. And the pain of that made her think of her dagger even without the promise of Heaven to come. Just so long as she found an end, she would be content.

Or so she thought as the last of her spirit plummeted into her body, gasping and angry.

Air filled her lungs and her heart lurched, then steadied in her chest. If Kui Yu's body had not restrained her wrist, she might have immediately plunged the dagger into her heart. But she could not move, and in time, life and strength returned to her. No matter how cold or dark the Earth was, she was alive, and with life came possibilities.

Perhaps she would try again later. After all, she had made it farther tonight than she had in a very long time.

Moaning slightly, Shi Po tried to move, though her eyes remained closed. She was naked, lying on the silk banner, Kui Yu's body heavy on her lower body. Little aches seeped into her consciousness. Her thighs felt open too wide. Her ankles ached where they were pinned beneath her husband. And Kui Yu still gripped her wrist with surprising strength.

"Kui Yu," she croaked, her voice thick and heavy. She meant to push him off of her, forgetting that he would be as still as the dead until he returned from Heaven. Assuming, of course, that he did return.

She frowned and forced that thought from her mind. He would return to her; he would come back from Heaven. He was not poisoned, so the cord that bound him to his Earthly body remained strong. She would simply have to wait for him. She would remain still no matter how long it took, no matter how painful her position. She would not disturb his ascent. She would not rob him of that.

So she sighed, willing her body to relax, trying to regain a Tigress's discipline of mind. She brought her attention to her breath. Steady. In. Out. She became aware of the ache in her feet, pressed awkwardly against his belly. She acknowledged the pain, then moved her awareness on. Her lower back. Her shoulders, her arms, then her face. Her cheeks were cold and wet.

Tears? She was crying? She hadn't even realized it, and yet her sadness had been flowing out of her in a steady stream. She felt herself frown as she lifted her free hand and wiped away the yin that saturated a woman's tears.

A giggle sounded, and then a rustle of movement. All about her came the noises.

Shi Po opened her eyes, narrowing them immediately as they were stabbed with light from at least three different lanterns.

Men!

She blinked, focused, then gasped in horror.

Imperial soldiers! General Kang's men! Surrounding her! The youngest of whom stood on the blade of her dagger while he struggled to contain his embarrassed giggles. While she lay naked, trapped beneath her unconscious husband.

Shi Po bit her lip, fighting the urgent need to cover herself, to throw these crass intruders out of her home. But she couldn't. Kui Yu could not be disturbed. Even though jealousy still seethed within her, she would not take away his time in Heaven. Which meant she needed to deal with this herself, quietly, without changing her position or jostling her husband.

She swallowed, pitching her voice as low as possible and yet still trying to maintain authority. "How dare you enter our bedchamber?" she hissed. "Get out!"

The oldest of the soldiers stepped forward. A boy in his twenties, he smirked, his bow mocking.

"My apologies," he said, and she winced at the grating noise of his voice. "But this is not a bedchamber."

She glared at him, wishing she could reach the slightest covering. At least her feet were hidden by Kui Yu, but the rest of her was hideously exposed. "This is my home," she said, keeping her voice as low as possible. "Get out before you disturb my husband!"

More titters came from the other soldiers as again their leader spoke. "Mister Tan appears—"

"He's dead!" interrupted the titterer. The others openly guffawed.

"Stop it!" Shi Po cried, her voice rising in panic. Kui Yu was not dead. He couldn't be. Still, she twisted slowly to a sitting position, bringing what she could of the silk hanging with her. Kui Yu would not release his grip on her dagger arm, so she could only move partway, but it was enough to wave her free hand before his face.

The soldiers fell thankfully silent, and Shi Po could guess their thoughts. Was Mr. Tan truly dead? Had they just mocked a man while his ghost was nearby? Such an action could curse a man and his family for generations.

Her own worries were mounting, despite the warmth she felt beneath her husband. But she could not calm herself enough to feel his breath. To know...

A hot caress of air crossed her fingertips. Kui Yu had exhaled. He was still alive. And his slow, shallow breath told her better than anything that he remained in Heaven. That at all costs, he must not be disturbed.

"You must leave," she said hoarsely to the soldiers. "My husband is..." What to say? They would laugh if she said he was becoming an Immortal. Most believed that such a thing could be done only through ascetic meditation, not from a position between a woman's thighs. "He is ill," she finally managed.

"I'm ill, too," joked a soldier. His friends' laughter echoed in the large chamber.

Shi Po didn't know if it was their laughter or the way she flinched away, but either way, Kui Yu woke. His first reaction was to gasp, and his grip on her wrist tightened painfully. For an Immortal, the descent from Heaven was a slow, gentle process; but when interrupted like this, the result could be violent.

"Kui Yu," she said. She tried to keep her voice soothing, though her wrist throbbed. "Kui Yu, you are on Earth. You have returned."

All around her, the soldiers made crass comments, but Shi Po ignored them. Her entire focus was on her husband, on gentling his descent. Legend spoke of interrupted Immortals returning insane, and fear made her hands tremble as she stroked his brow.

"Kui Yu," she said again. "Try to breathe normally. Think of nothing else."

She didn't know if he heard or not, but eventually, his harsh gasps settled to a steadier rhythm. Soon after, his grip on her arm eased and she felt his other hand stir against her inner thigh.

"Don't try to speak," she said. "You've been ill."

"No..." He mumbled against her thigh. "No—"

Naturally he would protest. He hadn't been ill; he'd been in Heaven. But she couldn't risk him saying so aloud before these soldiers. Who knew how they would react or what they would say to General Kang?

"You've been ill," she said firmly, though she could see the bright glow of glory surrounding him. It brightened his skin and illuminated his eyes when they finally opened.

"I am not ill," he croaked, his voice steadying as he returned to her. "I—"

"There are people here," she interrupted. "Soldiers. From General Kang."

She did not glance at the men around them, but was excruciatingly aware of their presence. Fortunately, Kui Yu was quick to reorient himself. A blink. Then another. Then his eyes shot wide as he took it all in: his position on his wife's spread thighs, their nakedness, and the men surrounding them.

He stood. Or at least he tried. She knew his body was stiff; hers was painfully so. Still, he got upright quickly enough, taking the low edge of the tapestry with him to cover Shi Po even as he stood. He made no attempt to shield himself. He gained his feet with no apparent embarrassment, though he was naked and still wet where he had expended his seed.

"Why do you disturb us?" he demanded, doing his best to shield her from view. The soldiers turned to face him. Though they probably could not see the vestiges of Heaven that clung to him, they certainly responded to his tone of authority.

"General Kang wishes to speak with you," responded the lead soldier.

Shi Po did not flinch. She had guessed as much.

Still, her hands trembled where she was working beneath the banner, quickly cleaning herself and re-binding her feet. Unfortunately, her clothes were far out of reach.

"Have you no manners?" snapped Kui Yu. "To barge in on a husband and wife? Out! Wait in the reception hall. We will attend you in due time."

There was an abrupt rustle of movement from the entire circle of military men, but not because they departed. If anything, they closed in tighter, their hands on their swords, their manner threatening.

"With respect," the lead soldier sneered, "I understand you are ill. We will remain here to assist you."

They would remain to keep watch, was what he meant.

Shi Po quickly wrapped the last of her bindings around her feet, wondering what the General could possibly want. He had searched the grounds. If this was revenge, then she and Kui Yu would have been slaughtered as they lay vulnerable on the ground. Clearly the men had orders to capture them, but why? What could General Kang possibly gain from such a thing? She didn't know. But when dragons played, the crops were destroyed.

"My wife has no need of assistance. Turn your heads so that she may leave."

Shi Po glanced at her husband, touched that he would try to take her place. He surely knew that whatever ills fell on them came from her hand. He was all that was moral and upright in China, whereas the Shanghai Tigress was liable to all sorts of punishments. So she stood, using the silk to cover herself even as she passed her husband his pants.

"All I require is a moment to dress," she said smoothly to the soldiers. "Then I will accompany you. My husband must tend to our son," she lied. "He has been traveling, and the boy misses him."

Kui Yu jerked his head up at her lie, but he did not delay in drawing on his pants.

Meanwhile, the lead soldier curled his lip. "Leave the boy to the servants. General Kang requires both of you."

"Not until—," Kui Yu began.

"We must—," Shi Po tried.

"Now!" the soldier exploded, and his face purpled with vehemence.

Kui Yu was not cowed. His pants rode low on his hips, his belt still lost somewhere on the floor. He looked like the lowest coolie laborer, and yet he squared off with the soldiers as if he were the Son of Heaven himself.

"You will not parade Viceroy Tseng's granddaughter naked through the streets," he snapped. "You will give her the courtesy appropriate to one of China's most beautiful flowers!"

Her grandfather was long dead, her family far from its former glory, but such was the force with which Kui Yu spoke that many of the men drew back a half step. Their hands even slipped away from their swords.

Not so their leader, whose gaze slid long and slow down her wrapped body. "The Manchu Qing rule China, Mr. Tan," he drawled. "We have no need for dead viceroys or their granddaughters." And as he turned his head back to Kui Yu, she saw the Manchurian cast to his features.

Kui Yu, apparently, did not. Or he did not care, for faster than she could see, he had his hand upon the man's swordarm. The muscles of his forearm rippled as he held the Manchurian lieutenant still. "No one gains from parading Shanghai's leading women naked through the streets. Especially where foreign eyes watch everything. Manchu or Han, we are all Chinese. Such a thing weakens us before the barbarians." He paused, leaning forward for emphasis. "Only a fool ignores such things, and General Kang has no love of fools."

The implied threat hung in the air, and all awaited the outcome. Especially as General Kang was famous for his loathing of foreign things. Still, the lieutenant was young enough to be nervous, and so with a quick flick of his eyes, he dispatched the giggling soldier to retrieve her clothes.

The giggler did so quickly, handing them to her as if they were soiled.

"Turn your backs," ordered Kui Yu.

The soldiers ignored him until the leader nodded in agreement. Then, one by one, all but Kui Yu and the lieutenant presented her their backs. She dropped the silk banner, all too aware that they had seen this much and more of her already. Speed, not embarrassment, would serve her now. Especially as she watched her husband tense.

His gaze flickered over the soldiers. He measured the distance between himself and each of the six. He had little hope of overpowering them all, but still, he was clearly considering it. His fists bunched and his weight pushed to the balls of his feet. But then he glanced at her, his gaze hopping between herself and the two who stood closest. He could not kill them all. Not before at least one got to her. And so Shi Po watched his shoulders slump in defeat. He would not fight them now.

She was wrapping her silk skirt about her, tying the ribbons as quickly as she could. But she murmured to him, letting him know with words that she agreed with his choice. "More would come," she said, and saw him nod in acknowledgment.

These six would not be the only men here. Likely another half dozen waited just outside the door. So she continued to dress while he watched the men around her.

Try as she might, she could think of no escape. It was the middle of the night. What servants they had were probably already subdued. If some had escaped, where would they go for help? No authority in Shanghai would challenge General Kang. So they were doomed to arrest. Or at least she was. And Kui Yu too, she supposed, for he would not leave her now; she saw that in his tense muscles while he glared at the lieutenant. For good or ill, he would remain at her side. She could only pray that it did not cost him.

If they both died, who then would care for their sons?

She finished dressing. There was little she could do about the terrible mess in her hair, so she concentrated on grabbing Kui Yu's clothes. She was near enough to his shirt, which she lifted in a single smooth motion. Unfortunately, the lieutenant was watching her. While he had allowed her to dress, he was not so nice to Kui Yu. The moment she reached for his jacket, the man began barking orders.

The soldiers all spun, tightening their circle before heading outside. Shi Po was only able to toss Kui Yu his shirt before they were both grabbed and herded away.

"But he has no shoes!" Shi Po exclaimed. She was close to them. If only they let her reach... But they didn't. And soon she and her husband were marching through the garden, and then the outer courtyard, where more men on horses waited.

There was no opportunity to struggle. None even to call for help, for she saw only General Kang's men. Someone lifted her roughly, and she was deposited in front of another man on a horse. To her shame, she squeaked in alarm. As the granddaughter of a viceroy, she had been carried in palanquins or sedan chairs, but she'd never ridden a horse. The soldier wrapped a thick, smelly arm across her middle, then roughly ordered her to remain still or fall off and die.

She thought he was exaggerating the danger. After all, didn't children ride these beasts? But as soon as Kui Yu was secured—his hands tied and his body tossed across a saddle—they all rushed off like the wind. Or at least half of them did, since half remained at her home. She had no time to figure out why as the narrow streets of Shanghai flew past. The noise was deafening, and she shrank back in terror. If only she could find the courage to jump. She was bouncing all over the saddle. How much harder would it be to add a twist or a push? She would neatly escape her captor, then fall in a heap on the ground because of her bound feet.

Then she would surely be trampled to death by the other horses. She clenched her teeth, forced to accept the truth: There would be no escape.

In time, they made it to their destination—a dark, gray stone building that was part of the wall that surrounded old Shanghai. Other men came up to meet them, and she wondered how so many men and beasts could be in such a tight space with no injuries. She was roughly prodded off her perch. Fortunately, someone was waiting to catch her as she tumbled forward.

She caught a glimpse of Kui Yu, hauled off his horse like a sack of rice. He collapsed on the ground in an ungainly heap. She was prodded from behind and stumbled, but a soldier held her up, his grip bruising but at least stable. No one helped her husband. He struggled to his feet and then was shoved toward a door. She would have gone to him then, if only to stand beside him as a wife should. But she had no choice. She was dragged away to a different door, a different hallway. And finally, she was shoved inside a small, dark cell with a hard, iron-reinforced door.

No one spoke to her. No one answered her questions. And in the end, she could do nothing but sit and regret.

* * *

Kui Yu struggled. Not physically; it would be better if his captors thought him docile and accepting of the situation. At the moment, he had little hope of escape, especially as he had no idea where they had taken Shi Po. So he sat quietly in the small room, staring at the empty table and chair across from him while trying to get a mental hold on what was happening.

The plummet from Heaven to Earth had been hideous. Ripped from that place of glory by his own indecision, he had felt the plummet as a donning of a heavy, dulling cloak. It had weighed down his body, his spirit, and worst of all, his thoughts. Indeed, though he knew logically what had happened, he still struggled to believe that this nightmare was real and Heaven had been only a fantasy.

Even the aches in his body did little to ground him. Only Shi Po seemed real. He saw her in his mind's eye, standing pale but resolute before their captors. He held on to that image and used it to ground himself in the world. She was his anchor here, and the goal. Her safety was paramount. So he aimed steadily for that end, despite the confusion that still reigned in his mind.

The door opened behind him. Kui Yu didn't move. In time, he saw General Kang step into his field of vision. The man was shorter than expected. Or perhaps it was the armor that thickened and broadened the General's form, which made him appear so stout. His face was unremarkable in the way of many older men. Facial hair, thick bones, wide nose—all were Manchurian features. But this man was no courtier. Even the muscles in his face were hardened, and worry was etched in every sun-roughened crease.

"Tan Kui Yu!" the man boomed with hearty good cheer. "What? They bound your hands? Stupid, stupid boys," he muttered as he pulled a dagger from his boot and quickly sliced the rope. "They are so anxious to please, they do too much."

Kui Yu didn't respond, recognizing the man's friendship as a ruse. He kept silent and used the time to rub feeling back into his hands. Meanwhile, General Kang settled heavily into the other chair, his dark eyes keen despite his genial attitude.

"Bah, it's late," he said, then smacked his lips. "Are you thirsty? I'm thirsty. Ling! Some burnt wine for our guest." The General frowned at the bloody marks left by the rope. "And some hanshisan for his injuries."

Kui Yu shook his head, recognizing the drug from discussions with Shi Po. The General's "cold-eating powder" would fuzz his mind. "I have a weak stomach," he lied. "Any opium, and I am ill for days." He sighed in mock regret. "It has made some of my negotiations most difficult."

The General frowned at him. "How unfortunate for you." He glanced up at the soldier who brought wine, the drug, and two cups. "Are you quite sure you wouldn't like to try a little? Our herbalist swears it is most effective."

Kui Yu shrugged. "I would not insult your honor by becoming ill in your presence."

The General nodded and ignored the small vial of powder in favor of pouring the wine. Then he pressed a metal cup into Kui Yu's hands.

"Drink. Drink. Then we will talk."

The General took a long pull at his wine. Kui Yu pretended to do the same, but did not even wet his lips. He had no wish for even mild alcohol, so strong burnt wine did not appeal at all.

Meanwhile, the General leaned back and smiled, stretching his short legs out in front of him. "You have a beautiful wife, Mr. Tan," he commented in a casual voice. "Most beautiful indeed. All of my men noticed."

Kui Yu nodded. To deny the obvious would be stupid.

"It must be quite a challenge keeping control of your wife. Beautiful women know their power over us men. They take advantage when they should not."

The General paused, staring hard at Kui Yu, obviously hoping he would expound on Shi Po's eccentricities. But Kui Yu only shrugged and quoted a proverb: " 'Beauty is a quality much to be desired.'"

The General nodded. "To be sure. To be sure. But sometimes these women—ah, such a plague sometimes—these women do things we know nothing about. They have their secrets, their little lies."

Kui Yu did his best to remain impassive, but his thoughts struggled through a fog. "I am most pleased with my wife, General. And her secrets are only those of all women: lotions for ageless skin, exercises to keep the body young, paints to appear respectable."

"And what of men?" the General snapped, clearly growing tired of the friendly approach. "What of the men she brings into your home? What does she do with them?"

Kui Yu adopted the facade of an idiot husband, besotted and ignorant of all that went on before him. "My wife has occasionally taken in lost people, confused or hurt spirits. She has skills with herbs and tea. They heal and move on." He straightened, blinking stupidly at his captor. "Charity is a great virtue among women."

The General's hand slammed down on the table. The cups clattered in their tray, sloshing the wine and filling the room with the acrid stench of strong liquor.

"A monk!" he bellowed. "An acolyte of her brother. He stayed in your home under guard. Him and a white barbarian woman." He spat on the floor in disgust. "Where is he?" He pushed to his feet to tower over Kui Yu. "I could kill you now for imprisoning him."

Kui Yu let his pretend stupidity fall. The General had not been fooled, so Kui Yu lifted his gaze and spoke as calmly as possible. "You could kill us now for no reason at all. You need no excuse beyond your name, so let us speak plainly as we are both weary. What is it that you wish to know about this monk?"

"So... he was at your home?" the General demanded, a sudden urgency in his tone.

Kui Yu shrugged. "I have no idea," he lied. "Men do occasionally come to my home. My wife aids them and lets them go on their way."

"There was a guard at his door!" the General barked. "One of your own servants told the tale: a monk and a white woman, guarded and forced together in perversion."

Kui Yu released a snort of disdain. "No man would be forced by us into perversion with a white barbarian. That would be suicide here in Shanghai, with the ghost people so protective of their virgins. As for a guard, would you not protect your family as well when strangers ask for hospitality?"

"I do not open my home to the cursed ghost people."

Kui Yu nodded. He appreciated the man's attitude. The white foreigners brought a great many evils with them. Still, that hardly mattered. The white foreigners had not dragged him from his home in the dark of night. "If my wife brought a monk and a white woman into our home, then she would have done so with an open heart and a chaste manner—"

The General snorted. "Your wife—"

"Is as chaste as yours," snapped Kui Yu. "And if she is not, then I shall deal with her in my own time and manner."

The General narrowed his eyes, staring at Kui Yu as a mongoose would a snake. He said nothing, but merely stared. His expression hardened with every second of silence.

In the end, Kui Yu sighed, appearing to give in to the General's intimidation. "What is it that you wish to know?"

"Where is the monk now?"

"Is he at my house?" Kui Yu asked.

"He is not."

Kui Yu remembered the soldiers that remained at his home. It was likely being torn apart brick by brick in a search for the missing monk. "Then, if he even was at my home, he is long gone. Neither I nor my wife will know any more than that."

The General's eyebrows drew together and down. His eyes lost some of their keen focus, but only for a moment. He abruptly stared at Kui Yu. "A beautiful wife is a nuisance," he said with forced casualness. "You married well with her. The connection to her family must have helped you build your fortune."

Kui Yu didn't answer. They both knew it was true.

"But your fortune is made," continued the man. "Perhaps you would prefer to find another wife. A younger one. One who would not be harassed by a spoiled first wife."

Kui Yu pressed his lips together. He was well aware that most people assumed he had only one wife because Shi Po would plague any younger woman brought into his home.

"I could rid you of the nuisance," the General offered. "Shi Po would simply disappear. Arrested. Discredited. You may pick the crime." He leaned forward and dropped his voice to a low whisper. "I tell you the truth—as one man to another—I have been watching your wife. She is not as chaste as you believe."

Kui Yu swallowed, hating that such words had the power to hurt, to make him doubt. He shook his head. "I shall handle my wife alone."

The General growled, low and in the back of his throat. "You do not see what I do. Other men laugh behind your back. Your wife takes lovers, and you do not see. Can you honestly claim you know everything your wife does? How she occupies her time while you work?"

Kui Yu swallowed, knowing his mask slipped despite his best efforts. Truthfully, he had often asked himself those very same questions. What did Shi Po do every day with such dedication? Exactly how far had she gone in pursuit of immortality? And what had she done with the monk and the white woman?

The General must have seen the doubt flitting through Kui Yu's mind. He must have known, because he sighed and leaned back, folding his arms with an expression of deep sadness. "Those women's secrets you spoke of earlier? One of them is how to fake virginity on a wedding night."

Kui Yu shot out of his chair, furious. But also, fear darkened his thoughts. How much did the man know about Shi Po? What had he learned?

He swallowed his questions, and also put away his hot defense of his wife, which would be half lies. Instead, he forced himself to speak in a cold, calculating manner. As if he had just come to a dark and merciless conclusion, as if he intended to beat Shi Po senseless.

"Release me, General Kang. Give me the time and freedom to see to my wife." He nearly spat the last word.

But the General was not convinced. "You accept your wife's perfidy?"

Kui Yu did not answer. He did not trust his acting skills.

"You suspect, at least, because that is the nature of beautiful women." The General narrowed his eyes. "But I think you are easily bewitched by her beauty. I think your hand would be too light in this matter." He stood and headed for the door. "I will handle her for you. This will be my gift to you."

* * *

May 5,1880

 

Lun Po—

I am afraid I cannot assist you with your studies. I know the Imperial examination looms before you. I understand that your future rests upon the outcome. I discount the rumors that your family coffers are empty, for I know such a distinguished name has unlimited money despite disdaining commerce. So do not lie: only your family's honor—not their survival—rests upon your performance.

Unfortunately, my mind is completely filled with languishing thoughts of your sister. Who will she marry if not me? Who will clothe her, feed her, see to her health if not a man of wealth and means?

I must stop writing now. It seems my ghost boss is pleased with my work. He wishes to gift me with more gold.

In great sorrow,

Kui Yu