Fox and Phoenix (Lóng City 1)

There was the briefest flicker of pain in Quan’s normally impassive eyes. “I do not ask her for money.”

Okay. Note to self: Get money anyway. Don’t tell Hero Boy.

A sensible person would have kept his mouth shut. A sensible person would listen to Quan’s plans and trot back to the palace to report to his princess. But as my mother said too many times, I was not the most sensible person in the world.

Which is why I blurted, “Why did you ask Lian for money?”

Quan stopped abruptly and stared at me. His face turned dark with anger. No, shame. Then he blew out a shaky breath. “I suppose that’s a fair question.”

Maybe-so-or-not, but I wasn’t going to object.

“It was for a hospital,” Quan said.

“A what?”

“A hospital,” he said patiently. “For the Beggars’ Quarter. I’d raised enough money to rent an old warehouse that nobody was using. Some of my friends at the medical school offered their time, and we had others who donated equipment. We had opened a few rooms for a day clinic, but we hoped to do more. Surgery. A druggist. Then, a month ago, the landlord came to me demanding a higher rent or he’d cancel our lease.”

“Cancel? Isn’t that illegal?”

He made a dismissive gesture. “There were loopholes. I’m not a lawyer. I can’t afford one.”

The story made so much sense. And yet it didn’t.

“Why didn’t you tell Lian it was for a hospital?” I said suspiciously. “What about that woman at court who gave you money?”

Now Quan looked truly embarrassed. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and stared at his feet. “I tried to tell her,” he said. “I thought I did. But I was so distracted that I did not express myself as well as I hoped. And. And there were other circumstances. You see, I chose a particularly unfortunate day to ask her for such a great favor. Afterward, she would not hear me, nor would her fox spirit listen to my companion.”

I swallowed, thinking of a hundred reasons why Lian would misunderstand a good friend.

(A lover. A very new lover.)

(Yeah, Lian said almost that much herself.)

“If she asks,” Quan said softly. “Tell her that the other woman is a friend of my family, nothing more. I asked her for money, yes, but only to help with the hospital.”

After a few more moments of us not looking at each other, we circled back to the alley way behind the Scarlet Lotus Noodle House, talking over fall-back plans and other details. Quan took off to find his smuggler friends. I returned to the caravan offices, then zipped back to the palace on the next tram. My magical medallion got me past the guards without any questions. One of them even told me the best shortcuts between the entrance and Lian’s rooms. If only we didn’t have to worry about kings dying and emperors trying to take over the world (or at least the Seventy Kingdoms), the palace could be a pretty sweet set of digs.

And if wishes were crickets, we’d never get any sleep, I thought as I rounded the last corner onto the wing where Lian had her quarters.

Right away, I scurried back.

The emperor. Here in the same wing as Lian’s suite. Maybe I had imagined it, I told myself.

Cautiously, I peered around the corner and ducked back even faster this time. It was the emperor, striding down the gallery with at least a hundred minions trailing after him. A young nobleman dressed in silks and jewels strode next to the emperor. One of the emperor’s sons—had to be. Even this far away, I could see the resemblance between them.

/> (Any bets which one?)

(The youngest, of course.)

Brisk sharp tones echoed from the approaching entourage. Old man. Young man. Neither of them happy. Oh, the words they spoke were all polite, slipping off their tongues like thrice-filtered oil, but I could hear the discord underneath. Something about marriage, obedience, duty toward the empire. Definitely the youngest son. Were they talking about Lian? Curious, I leaned forward, thinking I could overhear them better as they walked past.

Emperor and son rounded the corner and stopped.

Hurriedly, I dropped to my knees. My forehead touched the marble tiles as the emperor swept past in a whisper of voluminous robes. Invisible, I was just one of ten thousand invisible servants in this palace. No one noticed me. I was safe. I was—

Two slippered feet stopped in front of me. The scent of musk and sandalwood floated down from above.

Damn.