Page 31 of Song of the Crimson Flower

“How do you feel about marrying him?” Lan asked curiously.

“Empress Jade asked me the same question. She was the only one who cared to know if the match pleased me.” Yen’s eyes were far away, and a bit sad. “I told her I liked Lord Nguyen, so the marriage moved forward. That was two years ago. I keep thinking how we sometimes seal our destinies earlier than we should, before we know what we want.”

Lan looked ahead at Commander Wei. He had started out riding at the front of the group, but as they traveled, she noticed that he made a point to pull back and ride alongside each of his men. He was now speaking to a pair of soldiers who were just ahead of the women.

Yen cleared her throat. “But this marriage is better than I could hope for. I’m well into my thirties, and my parents had given me up as an old maid when Lord Nguyen came along. And I’m looking forward to a quieter life in the Grasslands, away from the court of the Great Forest.”

“But I’m sure you’ll miss court. And some of the people, too,” Wren added slyly.

She flushed. “Don’t speak of that, please. That life was only ever a dream, and we mustn’t shock poor Lan.”

“You’re talking about Commander Wei,” Lan said, without missing a beat.

Wren burst out laughing. “There’s no hiding this from anyone. Lan hasn’t known you for a full day, and she already understands your heart better than you do.”

“How did you meet?” Lan asked. “Don’t soldiers and noble ladies live apart at court?”

“Far, far apart,” Yen said. “But the Commander is Her Majesty’s friend and attends all of her functions. We met at a banquet last year, when my little nephew fell into the decorative pond and the Commander rescued him. He had always seemed so grim to me, but I’ll never forgetthe way he comforted the child. It was a side of him I don’t think he shows to many.”

Lan envisioned the romantic scene: Commander Wei wrapping his cloak around a shivering boy and gazing up at Yen, luminously beautiful in her festival silks. “And you saw more of him after that? Did you make plans to meet?”

“You’re as bad as Wren!” Lady Yen scolded her, though by now she was laughing, too. “I only ever saw him and spoke to him at events. It would have been inappropriate to meet alone. I am, after all,” she added, the light in her eyes fading, “betrothed to wed another.”

“But it’s not too late,” Wren began, and Yen whirled on her.

“Are you suggesting that I go against the word of my Empress? That is treason.”

“You said yourself that Her Majesty cares about your happiness.”

Yen shook her head. “I’m not listening to this. Empress Jade agreed to this match because of what’s happening in the Gray City. My marriage will strengthen two kingdoms and give both more power in the event of an uprising. Don’t you see? I can’t... Icouldn’t...”

She looked so distressed that Lan felt a stab of pity. “I knew next to nothing about the Gray City before I came,” she said, changing the subject. “But I can see now why they want to become an independent kingdom, if black spice has made them so rich. And if it reallycantreat bloodpox, they’ll have even more power to hold over everyone else.” She glanced again at Bao. He had seemed upset after learning about his potential link to Mistress Vy, but there had been longing there, too, the hunger of a boy who had gone all his life without a mother.

“We won’t let that happen,” Wren promised. “Not Commander Wei and the army of the Great Forest, nor the kings of Dagovad and theGrasslands, nor the Crimson Army. We won’t let the Gray City take land or power or anything that doesn’t belong to them.”

“The Crimson Army? Will they be coming as well?” Lan asked.

Wren nodded. “All forces will converge outside the Gray City, to await the result of negotiations. Mistress Vy doesn’t seem to be one for diplomacy.”

“Lord Koichi said that she might use black spice as a weapon, just like Xifeng did in the Great War,” Lan recalled. “That’s why all of the cloth masks were made to protect the soldiers.”

“We have to be prepared for every circumstance.”

“I know that the Crimson Army paints their lips red before a battle,” Lady Yen said. “How will enemies see their fearsome smiles beneath those cloth masks?”

The warrior grinned. “We haven’t thought of that yet. Perhaps we’ll paint some lips on the outside of the cloth masks, though I don’t know how Wei would feel about that.”

They looked up to see that both Commander Wei and Bao had pulled their horses to one side, waiting for the women to catch up. “Are you all right back here?” the Commander asked, moving his horse to the other side of Wren. Bao was forced to take the spot next to Lan, and she tried not to look at him to gauge his reaction.

Wren made a face at the Commander. “As you know, I killed an evil eunuch eight years ago, when I was barely twenty. Of course I’m all right.”

The corner of the man’s mouth lifted, and then he glanced at Yen. “And you? And Lan?”

“Fine,” Lady Yen said. “Having a light-hearted conversation about the Gray City.”

The Commander’s mouth thinned. “I’ll be glad when we destroywhatever supply of black spice and flowers that woman has been harboring inside the city walls.”

“You’ll do that if negotiations go poorly?” Bao asked, looking a bit disturbed.

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