Shen Gong began to draw his sword, but a high-pitched voice suddenly rang out from the shadows.

  “No need for bdes. I e bearing a message from the Prince.”

  From the darkness emerged a pale-faced pace eunuch, his every movement deliberate. He held an envelope extended in both hands, presenting it toward Jin Shu.

  Shen Gong pleted his motion, pointing the tip of his bde toward the eunuch. “Stop there.”

  “I mean no harm,” the eunuch replied, his voice eerily gentle. “Young Prince, if I may?”

  “Toss it over,” Jin Shu ordered, his voice firm.

  The eunuhaled sharply, his thin lips curling slightly. “I wouldn’t dare toss a letter personally penned by the Prince.”

  Jin Shu’s eyelid twitched in irritatioed pretentious rules—in both his lives. Sn in annoyance, he relented. “Fine, hand it over. But try anything, and you’ll die.”

  As his earring fshed with a faint light, Jin Shu’s M17 materialized in his hands. He raised the on, aiming it squarely at the eunuch’s head.

  The eunuch spared the pistol a curious g showed no fear. Maintaining his calm demeanor, he stepped forward and delivered the letter, thereated bato the shadows with an unhurried gait.

  Breaking the wax seal stamped with the Prince’s insignia, Jin Shu unfolded the letter. Tilting it toward the moonlight, he read aloud:

  “Dear Cousin,

  I would be most honored if you were to meet me at the Raising Dragon Pavilion at the Hour of the Tiger, just before the pace opens at the Hour of the Rabbit.

  Sincerely, your elder cousin, Sun Ming.”

  Jin Shu frowned, his mind parsing the unfamiliar term. Hour of the Tiger…? Is that 5 a.m.?

  “It is 3 to 5 a.m,” Nano answered, breaking into his thoughts.

  Jin Shu turoward Shen Gong, folding the letter. “What you tell me about my cousin?”

  “Unlike you,” Shen Gong replied, sheathing his sword with deliberate precision, “he’s a ing man. A genius politi.”

  Jin Shu arched a skeptical brow at the rge man. “And how do you know I’m not?”

  Shen Gong’s lips curled into a faint smile as his steady gaze locked onto Jin Shu. “Sihe moment I id eyes on you, I could feel it. The st of your blood, the ash and steel that runs through your veins—you’re no politi. You’re a soldier, through and through.”

  Jin Shu offered him a silent nod, his expression unreadable.

  ***

  Dinner was a modest affair at Shen Gong’s residehe small mansion was quiet, devoid of the usual bustle of servants. The only staff present were an elderly steward and a young chef, who prepared the simple yet satisfying meal.

  “You don’t keep many servants uards,” Jin Shu observed as they sat down at the table.

  “With my demotion came a signifit pay cut,” Shen Gong expined, his tone calm but tinged with bitterness. “And there’s a stigma attached t for me now. Few are willing to risk offending the Empress.”

  Jin Shu houghtfully, filing the information away for ter sideration. As the meal progressed, he turned his attention to Li Xue.

  “I don’t think I ever caught your name,” he said.

  She blinked, startled by the suddeion, before replying, “Li Xue.”

  “Hmm,” Jin Shu murmured, giving her an appraising look.

  Li Xue shifted nervously under his gaze, a tentative smile as she wondered what he was thinking.

  From the er of the table, a loud voice broke the silence. “More meat!” Yin’er demanded, her pte already messy with untouched vegetables scattered around the edges.

  Jin Shu raised an eyebrow. “Finish yetables first,” he ordered. “Then we’ll see about more meat.”

  Yin’er gred at the offending greens and sched up her nose. “Yin’er will just go hungry, then.”

  “How are you already in your rebellious phase? You’re only a month old,” Jin Shu muttered, exasperated.

  Shen Gong chuckled softly, a rare smile grag his face as he g Li Xue. “Girls—they’re always rebellious.”

  “What? I’m not rebellious!” Li Xue excimed, her cheeks puffing in a pout.

  Jin Shu let out a quiet sigh, shaking his head as the lighthearted banter tinued.

  After the meal, he retired to the guest room Shen Gong had offered him. As he y on the simple bed, his thoughts drifted to the letter from his cousin and the upiing with his uhe weight of what awaited him in the pace settled heavily on his mind.

  ***

  Waking early in the m, Jin Shu decided to iigate his cousin for himself. With time to spare before the pace opened, he figured it rudent use of his time.

  After gathering his things, he bid Li Xue and Shen Gong farewell. Now that he was certain the pace guards reized his seal, he no longer heir assistance.

  “You’re leaving?” Shen Gong asked.

  “I’ll meet my cousin first,” Jin Shu replied. “Thank you for your hospitality.”

  However, as he stepped out the door, Li Xue stopped him. “Do you know where yoing?” she asked, tilting her head.

  Jin Shu blinked and pulled the letter from the eunuch from his pocket. Unfolding it, he revealed a small map enclosed within.

  “Oh… w-well, I could still lead you there…?” Li Xue offered hesitantly, g her hands.

  Jin Shu paused, weighing her words. She had proven helpful so far, even if she had nearly thrown him into a dungeon. After a moment, he gave a small nod.

  “Hold o me ge!” she said suddenly, her voice bright with urgency.

  “What’s wrong with what you’re wearing now?” Jin Shu asked, his brow furrowing slightly in irritation.

  “I ’t meet the Prin this!”

  “But it’s okay for me to see?”

  Li Xue’s face turned crimson as she shyly nodded. “It’s okay… I’ll let you see me in whatever you’d like,” she muttered, before scampering off to ge.

  Jin Shu stood there for a moment, puzzled. “What is she even talking about?”

  “She seems to want to bee your life partner,” Nano chimed in, their voice dry, if not slightly amused.

  “My what?” Jin Shu shot back, ially speaking aloud in surprise.

  “The voi Daddy’s head is right,” Yin’er added cheerfully. “Yin’er smell her desire!”

  Jin Shu froze. “Okay, hold on. Since when you hear Nano? And where did you even learn that word?—Actually, no. Never mind. I already know. You ’t listen to my mother anymore.”

  “Blee! Daddy ’t decide that. Also, Yin’er could always hear the voice!”

  Before Jin Shu could respond, Li Xue returned. She was now dressed in a sleek, dazzling dress the color of bck jade, its shimmering fabric catg the light beautifully.

  Jin Shu was momentarily taken aback. “What’s with yetup? Are you going to a ball or something?”

  Li Xue’s eyes widened, her hands fidgeting nervously. “Y-you don’t like it…? Should I ge?”

  Jin Shu sighed, already stepping toward the gates. “We don’t have time. We’re nearly te as it is.”

  He pressed a hand to his temple. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” He asked Yin’er o the gate.

  “Daddy never asked,” Yin’er replied ily.

  Jin Shu muttered something under his breath, earning a fused gnce from Li Xue. He quickly waved her off a walking.

  ***

  The Rising Dragon Pavilion loomed above the surrounding buildings, its golden roof catg the m sun and gleaming like a bea of opulence.

  “This is the most famous restaurant in the capital,” Li Xue expined as they approached its grarahere’s a year-long waiting list just to eat on the ground floor. The upper floors are reserved for the highest nobility. They say only cultivators at the Spirit Realm or above are allowed oop floor.”

  “Sounds excessive,” Jin Shu remarked, his tone indifferent.

  An attendant greeted them at the entrand led them up a grand staircase to the third floor. The opulence of the pavilion only grew more apparent as they asded. Upoering the room, Jin Shu he vish decor—silk drapes casg from the ceiling, jade carvings ad the walls, and golden ats on every surface.

  At the ter of the room sat a man in his mid-twenties, dressed in an exquisite brocade robe of blue and gold. His sharp features and calg eyes gave him an air of authority, ohat matched the aura of a prince.

  The man rose as they entered, a practiced smile on his lips. “Jin Shu,” he greeted, his voice smooth. “It’s been far too long.”

  Jin Shu gave a curt nod. “Cousin.”

  The Prince’s smile didn’t waver, but his gaze ierg, as if he were already sizing Jin Shu up. “Shall we talk over breakfast?”