ache inside her took over as the mansion disappeared from view. She stared down at her lap, her own hands feeling like they weren’t a part of her anymore.
They were going to a remote village. Cook’s family would take them in and they could disappear amongst the fields of rice and yams. Li Tao believed they would be safer there than walled inside one of the fortress cities under military control.
Now that the journey was underway, the silence became unbearable. Suyin needed some distraction. At least until they were far enough away that she knew Li Tao couldn’t come after them. Until then, she harboured a desperate hope. She kept looking behind them, imagining the sound of hoof-beats in the distance.
Auntie gripped Suyin’s hand tight and she laid her head against the old woman’s shoulder. Auntie never spoke of any children. Certainly her protectiveness toward Li Tao was much like a mother’s love.
‘Sleep,’ Auntie cooed. ‘You look tired.’
Suyin had barely closed her eyes all night. She and Li Tao had been greedy for every last moment together.
‘Maybe a week from here,’ Cook said from the driver’s seat. ‘I’ll make the Lady some special yam noodles when we get there.’
They were trying so valiantly to cheer her. She realised then that she wasn’t alone this time. Li Tao had sent more than his bodyguards. He’d sent the only family he had while he stayed behind.
The day ebbed away in stretches of silence. Cook and Auntie begged her to tell stories about the imperial palace. She described the lake and the plum blossoms in the spring, the great halls that towered over gleaming stone courtyards, making it sound like a faraway place among the clouds. There were thousands of these stories in her head about emperors and concubines and crafty servants.
‘Not these fables.’ Jun’s protest surprised her. ‘Tell us one of your stories, Lady Ling. About something exciting that happened to you.’
He leaned over from the front of the wagon eagerly, gripping the wooden plank for balance.
‘My life was very ordinary, young Jun. I walked about the palace and looked pretty. The Emperor’s caged bird.’
‘What of the insurrection? The palace was under siege for days.’
There was a gleam in Jun’s eye she had never seen before. Auntie shushed him for prying.
‘There is nothing exciting about rebellion.’ Suyin met the youth’s gaze. ‘I was very frightened. The August Emperor was dead and armed men took the inner palace by force. I thought I would be killed.’
‘For the secrets you kept.’
Jun didn’t wait for her response. Satisfied, he turned around to take the reins from Cook.
Where had this morbid curiosity come from? Jun had changed since they’d left. He seemed to stand taller with a newfound brashness. She dismissed it as a boyhood fascination with danger, but a sense of wariness remained with her.
Two travellers approached them, requesting water midway through the next day. They didn’t appear to be beggars, just worn and dusty from the journey. As soft-hearted as she was, Auntie couldn’t refuse. She rummaged through their stores for wrapped dumplings and sat them down in the shade of the wagon.
The men stared at the retinue of armed soldiers as they ate. One of them had a beard that had grown scraggly around the edges. The younger one’s face had a touch of gauntness, his skin pulled back over a pronounced forehead and sharp nose.
‘Rioting has broken out in the south,’ the bearded one said.
Suyin pulled Wang aside. A whisper would be too easy to detect so she spoke quietly and calmly. ‘Do not trust these men,’ she said, before retreating to the other side of the caravan.
Their manner was a touch too forward for peasants. If they were merchants, they carried nothing. When they finally departed, the bearded one raked his gaze over her with such lurid contemplation that Jun edged closer to her. She was touched by the fierce protectiveness that vibrated through the youth.
Was the rest of the empire becoming like this? The roads so unsafe that every stranger was cause for fear?
Wang and the bodyguards discussed the news of rebellion as they continued on the next leg of the journey. Their loyalty was first and foremost to Li Tao and they wanted to send a message to him. Once again, she heard Ru Shan’s name.
Li Tao was fighting a rebellion from within while he also prepared to defend the territory against invaders. The mood grew sullen the further they ventured. The first, feeble attempts at conversation had fallen