His hand closed around her wrist. Ling Yan froze. Before she could speak, he had already half-pulled her into his arms and led her out of the inn.
She didn't dare struggle. She kept her head down, unable to meet his gaze or bear his nearness.
They walked until the south gate was visible. He stopped and let her go. She immediately took a step back, a blush spreading across her face.
"We'll rest here, then leave the city," he said, his smile gone. He turned and sat at a roadside tea stall. The steam rose thin and white in the chill morning air, blurring the cracked tiles of the roof.
She was still in a daze. When she looked up, he was gone. A flicker of panic. She scanned the area until she saw him sitting calmly. She relaxed and walked to his side.
But in that single, unguarded moment, he had seen it all.
"Sit," he said, gesturing to the bench. "Dressed as you are, standing beside me like a guard looks… strange."
She looked down at herself. The elegant dress of a high-born lady. Standing beside a man dressed as a young master, it was indeed strange.
"Next time, I'll be more careful with my disguise," she said in a low voice.
"Oh? Careful of what?" he asked, a teasing glint in his eye. Her discomfort was exactly as it had been years ago. Maybe it's not too late.
She pressed her lips together. "To not overstep my station, my lord."
"Haha, and are you saying I was careless? Ling Yan, I chose this dress for you." He was enjoying this.
"That wasn't my meaning." She flinched, about to stand, but his hand closed over hers.
"In this disguise, how should an assassin act?"
"According to her role," she answered crisply.
"And so?"
She hesitated, then lowered her head. "This subordinate wouldn't dare."
He smiled, satisfied. He released her hand. "Since you're in costume, don't forget my lessons."
He nodded to the stall owner, who scurried over.
"What can I get for you, sir?"
"My lady, what do you think?" Xue Feiyan asked, his gaze soft as he looked at Ling Yan.
She looked up, startled, then remembered her role. She forced a smile. "I'll have whatever my lord is having."
Though it was an act, the word 'lord' was spoken with a genuine tenderness.
He nodded, pleased. "What good tea do you have?"
"The finest Bi Luo Chun, sir?"
"Perfect." He paused. "I heard the Wei River flooded, but the city seems remarkably orderly. No refugees."
"Ah, that's thanks to our Prefect! He opened the granaries right away. All the refugees have been properly settled," the man said, beaming.
Ling Yan's brow twitched. She looked at the man, then quickly lowered her head.
Xue Feiyan just smiled. "A blessing for the people."
"It is! A clean and benevolent official—a true blessing." The man bowed and went to prepare their tea.
Xue Feiyan's fingers traced the rim of his cup, his gaze drifting toward the south gate.
The guards on the walls were on high alert, patrols passing every quarter-hour. But the gate itself stood wide open. Stranger still, the road was nearly empty. In the half-hour they had sat there, only a handful of people had passed through.
"Ling Yan, what do you think?" he asked, lifting his cup and sniffing it. A cold sneer touched his lips.
She looked at the lukewarm tea and shook her head.
"Then we'll discuss it when we get back," he said, rising and leaving a piece of silver on the table.
They walked back. The streets were filled with merchants, women with baskets, vendors with wares. Ling Yan stopped at a vegetable stall.
A woman was picking through the greens.
"They're wilted," Ling Yan said suddenly, stopping the woman's hand. She put the vegetables back and chose a few fresh ones for her.
"Thank you," the woman said, giving her a strange look before hurrying away.
"She didn't pay," Ling Yan said to the vendor, her voice cold.
The old man, startled, was about to call out, but Ling Yan was already reaching into her sleeve for money.
She froze. The silver was in her other clothes.
"Here." Xue Feiyan placed a coin on the stall and took her hand. "Playing the hero, only to find your purse empty."
"I'll pay you back," she said woodenly. A normal life was so far from her now.
His heart clenched. He smiled and turned to hide the pain in his eyes. Eight years. She has hidden herself in the shadows for so long, she has forgotten who she is.
Back at the inn, they were alone. Ling Yan had changed back into her black gear.
"What did you think of our walk?" he asked.
"It all seems like a performance. As if the Prefect has built a city within a city, with this inn at its center, all for your benefit."
"How so?"
"A roadside stall wouldn't have Bi Luo Chun. And that woman—her hands were soft. She couldn't even tell fresh from wilted. She was no commoner." Her mind drifted to the feeling of his hand on hers.
"Is that all?" he asked, seeing the blush on her cheeks.
She looked away. "That is all I noticed."
"Oh?" He rose and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Good. Your years with me have not been wasted."
"Thank you, my lord."
"Tonight, we leave this city within a city. Since the disaster is worst at Yan Town, that is where we will go."
"Yan Town?" She hesitated. "My lord, please, reconsider. If you're right, the area will be swarming with bandits and rioters. It isn't safe."
"I know."
"Then let me go. You can remain here."
He looked at her. "And you think it would be safe for you?"
She was speechless.
He patted her head. "Two is better than one. I taught you half of what you know. Is the student now afraid for the master?"
"That's not my meaning! You are of noble birth. If any harm came to you, I could not bear it." If something happened to him, my heart could not bear it.
He sighed. "Sometimes," he murmured, "it is better to face the danger than to live in fear of it."
"What?"
"Nothing." He composed himself. "Go, prepare. We leave from the south gate at the second watch."
If I cannot keep him from the danger, then I will walk into it with him.
She pressed herself into the shadow of the city wall, Xue Feiyan at her side. It was nearing the second watch.
The patrols still passed every quarter-hour.
He saw her eyes fixed on a point near the top of the wall.
"What is it?"
"Something's not right. I think I see something." The light was too dim.
"What?"
She thought for a moment, then drew a plum blossom dart. With a flick of her wrist, it flew toward the wall.
A single, clear chime rang out, followed by a cascade of ringing, a chain of tiny bells all along the length of the wall.
And somewhere beyond the wall, whispers began to rise.