Читать книгу A Dance with Danger - Jeannie Lin, Jeannie Lin - Страница 10

Chapter Three

Fate was a funny thing. Five days ago, he had been hiding from the city guards. Today Yang was getting married to the magistrate’s daughter. Such was fate. If it wasn’t such an important occasion, he would have laughed aloud when he arrived by sedan chair at Magistrate Tan’s residence.

It was late in the evening, during the hour of the Dog, which had been deemed auspicious for them by the fortune-teller. More importantly, the sky was dark and the streets relatively empty due to the curfew.

The wedding was to be a quiet one with the festivities to take place far outside of Minzhou at the magistrate’s villa. Though the city’s constables didn’t have his name or face to attach to the earlier attack on the warlord, neither he nor Tan wanted to risk too much attention. It was enough that any rumours of impropriety surrounding Lady Tan would be immediately banished by news of her marriage.

The porters carried an empty sedan chair alongside him for his intended bride while lantern bearers illuminated the way. Attendants bearing wedding gifts lined up at the head of the procession.

Tan Li Kuo had negotiated a long list of demands on behalf of his daughter. There would be a proper bridal procession to the guest villa where Yang was staying. The bridal suite had been laid out there as well as preparations for a respectably sized banquet. His dear daughter would receive the lavish wedding she deserved.

Who would have thought the crafty official would turn out to be so sentimental?

Two red lanterns hung on either side of the gate. Tan emerged just as Yang stepped down from the sedan. The magistrate’s expression was so serious, exaggerated by the shadows of the flickering light.

Yang bowed formally. As he straightened, doubt crept in. The magistrate’s black eyes fixed on to him; judging Yang as if he were kneeling before the tribunal.

‘Honourable sir,’ Yang began, returning the magistrate’s hard gaze without flinching. ‘I have come on this auspicious day to take your daughter as my most precious bride.’

Perhaps the cold stare meant that Tan had reconsidered this hasty marriage, but that was nonsense. The entire procession wedding procession was gathered in the street.

Tan regarded him with the iron look for another heartbeat, then his stern expression cracked into a grin. ‘Why so formal?’ He chuckled, patting Yang heartily on the back. ‘We’re soon to be family.’

The show of cheerfulness was more in line with Tan’s usual demeanour, but something felt out of place about the whole situation. Perhaps that was inevitable given the nature of the arrangement. He and Tan might have been long-time allies, but they were far from friends.

Yang let out a breath as the magistrate escorted him into the courtyard. The entire house was lit gaily with lanterns. All the servants were dressed in their best, their faces bright as they looked upon his ceremonial red robe. A romantic melody played on the pipa.

In the parlour, they shared tea and sweet cakes while speaking of inconsequential things. Tan’s wife was present, a charming and cultured woman with eyes that smiled. The bride herself was nowhere to be seen.

‘I think I know why you’re looking around so eagerly,’ taunted the magistrate.

‘You old goat!’ Lady Yi swatted her husband’s arm. Then she said to him, more politely. ‘I’ll bring Jin-mei out to join us.’

Yang grinned. This was just like a real wedding.

Well, of course it was a real wedding. Jin-mei was to be his wife. He had no particular objections to being married, though it would be difficult to raise a family under the current circumstances. Yang was still a fugitive and one of the most powerful men in the province wanted him dead.

Navigating this situation would take every connection and asset he had at his fingertips. But Yang was nothing if not resourceful. He prided himself on it.

Jin-mei emerged wearing a green-silk robe accented with gold embroidery. Their gazes met and he suddenly forgot all of the schemes and ploys that had brought him to this moment.

He hadn’t had much opportunity to look closely at her before now. Her lips were painted red and her cheeks flushed. The elaborate wedding costume overwhelmed her, making her appear small, but there was a womanly shape to her bosom and a generous curve to her hips. Her look was nervous as she regarded him, but far from timid. Maybe Tan was right. Yang was eager to know her better, this pretty girl who was to be his wife.

He could do worse. Much, much worse.

He gave Jin-mei a smile because she looked as though she might need some reassurance. When she returned it, he felt a hitch in his chest. He’d had lovers and companions in the past, but never anyone who had belonged to him. Never anyone he was bound to care for and protect. Yang found that he was the one looking away, averting his eyes, willing his heartbeat to steady.

When he turned, he saw Tan watching him carefully. Magistrate Tan was a shrewd, calculating man—the most dangerous man he’d ever encountered, aside from General Wang. Aside from himself. Now was not the time to show weakness.

Jin-mei approached in small steps that were mismatched with the bold way she’d first approached him. Her spine was fixed and straight and she looked as if she’d forgotten how to breathe. He was no better when he stood rigidly to bow to her. They were like a pair of wooden marionettes on strings.

It was all the ritual and formality. Once they were alone, they would know how to be with one another, he assured himself. There had been no fear in her when he’d lured her beneath the bridge, after all.

The next time they would be alone would be in their wedding bed. As they performed the rest of the ceremony before the Tan family altar, Yang occupied himself by mentally pulling the pins from Jin-mei’s hair and kissing away the vermilion that painted her lips until she was once again that wild and fearless creature he’d met by the river.

It was their wedding night. He was allowed such erotic thoughts.

Jin-mei met his gaze with a question in her eyes, a question he looked forward to answering later. She still looked so anxious, but there were too many people about for him to reach out to her and reassure her with just a touch against her wrist or a hand on her back.

Ours may be an arranged marriage, he wanted to tell her. But it is the best arrangement I have ever made.

Whether or not that was true was left to be seen, but it was true enough in that moment. Magistrate Tan could have just as easily had him castrated as punishment for ruining Jin-mei’s reputation. Despite the failed assassination plot and the warrants out for him, fortune had smiled upon Yang once again. He had the luck of dragons.

* * *

With the tea ceremony complete, they had more formalities to look forward to. The long parade back to the villa, the wedding banquet, a lot of greetings and well-wishers.

Jin-mei struggled with her robe as she climbed on to the empty sedan chair, and Yang reached out to steady her.

‘Your fingers are like ice.’ He squeezed her hand in both of his before letting go to seat himself in the adjoining sedan. ‘You’re not afraid of me, are you?’

It was meant as a jest, but Jin-mei did appear pale as the procession started towards the gates. A line of attendants trailed behind them along with Jin-mei’s family transported in several litters. The setting was far from private, with both of them hefted over the shoulders of the carriers, but at least they could finally speak.

‘This isn’t what you wanted, is it?’ Jin-mei asked beneath her breath.

Attendants flanked either side of the sedan chairs carrying poles with lanterns attached. A hazy glow formed around the entourage, but it left half of Jin-mei’s face in shadow and impossible for him to read. She stared directly ahead, as if afraid of his answer. There was a proud tilt to her chin.

‘There is no one else I would rather be wedded to,’ he replied without hesitation.

Jin-mei whipped around to face him, causing the pearls in her ears to swing dramatically. ‘You’re trying to be clever with your words. You could very well mean that you have no desire to be married at all, to anyone.’

It was hard not to smile. ‘I think you and I will suit each other quite well, Jin-mei.’

Jin-mei. The sound of her name slid smoothly over his tongue, as if he’d been calling her that for years. It warmed him to be able to use it. Jin-mei.

‘It’s a compliment,’ he said, seeing her perplexed expression.

Running a hand nervously over her throat, she turned her attention back to the road. They were at the gates now where carriages and horses awaited to take the procession out to the magistrate’s villa.

There was only brief conversation on the short carriage ride to the villa.

‘Do you spend much time away from home?’ she asked.

‘Our trade routes take me all over the province.’

‘It must be quite dangerous to travel on the open road.’

‘Not if one is prepared,’ he assured her.

Jin-mei looked out into the night. ‘I think I would worry about you all the time.’

Once again, a heavy, sinking feeling weighed down his chest. Jin-mei had a claim to him when no one else had in a long time.

‘What...?’ Yang paused with the question lingering on his tongue. ‘What has your father told you about my family?’

‘He told me you’ve made your fortune on the transport of salt and grain.’

Perhaps now wasn’t a good time to reveal his secrets, but he was beginning to wonder if Jin-mei already suspected what sort of shady underworld activities he was also involved in. Magistrate Tan certainly knew enough to destroy him, but he seemed content to remain quiet. With this wedding, their futures were now intertwined.

The best arrangement Yang had ever made. He had the magistrate’s protection, his silence, his daughter... Surely it couldn’t be this easy?

‘When will we go back north to your home—I mean, to our home?’ Jin-mei blushed a little as she fidgeted in the sedan chair.

He found it irresistibly charming, which made the next part more difficult. ‘I’ve arranged with your father for you to remain here after the wedding.’

She frowned at him. ‘I won’t be coming to live with you?’

‘Of course you will, Wife.’ He used the endearment to assuage her doubts, but the word felt awkward on his lips. ‘There’s some business I must attend to. Afterwards, I’ll return and we’ll travel north together.’

She nodded, but didn’t look entirely satisfied. He had been accountable to no one but himself for a long time, which made it easy to engage in questionable activities without being exposed. That would all change now with Jin-mei at his side. She had a keen eye. She was clever. And from what little he knew of her, she didn’t seem to bite her tongue very often.

Maybe there would be no more reason to hide by the time he returned. Wang Shizhen would be lying cold in his grave and Yang could leave his days of plotting behind. Or the outcome could be the exact opposite with him being the one left dead. Yang had been fully prepared to accept failure—until now.

‘I won’t be away long,’ he promised, which was a lie. The slight curl in Jin-mei’s lip told him it wasn’t a good lie either.

They arrived at the guest villa which had been decorated with red banners. Once again, they were swept up in the festivities. They lit incense and bowed to an altar set up for his ancestors this time. Then they drank honeyed wine from two cups joined by a red ribbon before Jin-mei was ushered away by her female attendants. Meanwhile Yang was surrounded by wedding guests intent on pouring more wine down his throat.

* * *

The next hour was a blur. Though the guests were all strangers to him, apparently Magistrate Tan had many friends. The official was the happiest man at the banquet, refilling Yang’s cup time and time again and drinking to his health, his happiness and many grandchildren.

Repeatedly, Yang tried to escape to the bridal chamber between the ribald taunting and innuendo that was required of any wedding. Each time he was dragged back and plied with more wine until he was in a state that he rarely allowed himself to be in. Yang was drunk.

‘Get him to his wife while he can still perform his husbandly duties!’

Yang had no idea who said that, but he raised his cup in thanks and drank. A firm hand clamped over his shoulder, startling him. It was Tan, now his father-in-law, who regarded him with an intense look. The magistrate’s face was flushed red from the wine, but his gaze was still sharp.

The grip tightened on Yang’s shoulder. ‘Jin-mei is my daughter,’ Tan said, serious once more. ‘My treasure.’

‘I’ll take care of her,’ Yang vowed.

The magistrate nodded, unsmiling.

A swarm of young men grabbed hold of Yang then, laughing as they escorted him down the hallway to the wedding chamber. Tossing him inside, they shut the door behind him before retreating.

He expected to see his bride there waiting, but the room was empty. The bed was a magnificent one, fashioned out of dark wood with a large canopy overhead. The servants had taken the care to drape the bed in red silk and scatter flower petals and seeds upon it. For fertility.

‘Jin-mei?’ he called softly.

He crouched to search beneath the bed, in case she was hiding coyly there. That was when he realised how drunk he must be. He fought a wave of dizziness as he straightened.

Perhaps she was away for some womanly preparation he wasn’t aware of. He’d certainly never been married before to know.

There was a flask of wine set up on the table beside the bed. He filled both cups and waited beside the bed, thinking of, among other things, performing his ‘duties.’ When his bride had still not arrived in the next few minutes, he started getting impatient.

Though the event had been unplanned, it was still his wedding. The banquet had lightened the weight from his shoulders for a few hours, and Jin-mei had looked rather tempting while she scolded him in the sedan chair. She also had looked quite charming the first time he’d seen her that evening; so nervous.

He’d never been with a virgin before. He needed to take things slowly. Kiss her hair, her mouth, her throat. Lead her into desire step by step—where was she? Had she become frightened? Maybe her amah and stepmother were providing some final instruction on matters of yin and yang. Funny, Jin-mei didn’t seem the shy sort.

By now, Yang was getting very impatient. Watching the door, he picked up the wine cup and took a sip, rolling the wine on his tongue out of habit. The drink had been sweetened with honey and steeped in spices. A faint trace of bitterness only came in right as he was about to swallow.

He spat it out, staring at the wine flask and the remaining cup. Poison?

The fog of drunkenness lifted from his mind as his survival instinct came alive. Opening the front of his robe, he closed his hand around the knife he’d hidden beneath his clothes. With the sort of illegal and insurgent activities he was involved with, it was wise to always be armed. It was always wise to taste anything he wasn’t sure of very carefully for poison.

His first thought was to find Jin-mei. Someone had taken her.

Yang was nearly to the door when he stopped himself, his head swimming in circles, but still able to function. He recalled how Tan Li Kuo had refilled his wine cup over and over at the banquet. This was the magistrate’s private villa. His servants had set up the chamber and all of the guests were his friends.

That two-headed snake.

The wily magistrate had found a way to both preserve his daughter’s reputation and exact revenge on Yang all at once. After all, being widowed was a perfectly honourable state for his daughter to be in.

But if Tan wanted him dead, drugging his wine in the wedding chamber was a clumsy way to go about it. There were no guarantees with poison. The magistrate had to have something else planned as well. Someone tasked with making sure the job was completed.

A scraping sound came from the wall. No, it came from behind the wall. With one hand, he felt along the wooden panels. His other hand gripped his knife. It wasn’t hard to find the edge of the hidden door and he swung it open, preparing to strike.

A man dressed in a red wedding robe stared out at him from a small compartment.

‘That scheming bastard!’ Yang seethed.

His mirror image attempted to step out from the hiding space, but Yang stopped him with a menacing shake of his knife. ‘What were you going to do? Strangle me? Stab me?’

‘No, of course not!’ the man cried, staring at the blade. He had gone pale. ‘I was just supposed to run from this room screaming.’

‘That’s nonsense.’

‘It’s true. I was paid to do it.’

‘And that’s it?’

The impostor nodded, shaking.

Yang struggled to clear his head enough to piece the magistrate’s plan together. It was possible Tan had been planning his death all along. They were accomplices in a failed assassination plot, after all. He alone could implicate Tan in the conspiracy.

He’d been swindled. If this man wasn’t the one hired to cut his throat, then an assassin was certainly nearby, closing in for the kill as they spoke.

Yang grabbed the impostor by the robe to drag him out of the compartment. ‘It’s time to do what you were hired for, my friend. Start running.’