no one seemed to know what to do or how to find Fei Long. It wasn’t the way of servants to question their master’s activities. Yan Ling considered the city guards, but they had no real cause to issue a report. It wasn’t late at all for the North Hamlet and the surrounding areas.
She told Dao to fetch Huibin while she coaxed an address from Old Man Liang.
By the time Dao met her back in her chamber, she knew exactly who could help.
‘Huibin is gone for the night,’ Dao replied, irritated. ‘Some new sweetheart.’
‘Perhaps it’s better if we go alone,’ Yan Ling said. ‘Less people to account for to the guardsmen.’
‘Guardsmen?’
The two of them hurried to Fei Long’s study. Dread had crept into her bones. Something awful had happened to keep Fei Long away, she was sure of it, but she had to stay calm.
‘You need to write a special pass,’ she told Dao.
Yan Ling set the lamp onto the desk and opened the drawers. Her hands shook as she rifled through the contents. The official seal had to be in here somewhere. She’d seen Fei Long use it countless times on documents and letters.
‘But it’s illegal to forge a pass,’ Dao protested.
‘The guards at the gate barely paid attention when I went through last time.’
Fei Long had been with her then and he had been the one to present the pass. The guards might be suspicious of two women travelling alone at night, but she couldn’t worry about that now. They would need to be convincing.
‘Write that we’re in urgent need of a physician,’ Yan Ling directed.
She encountered a stack of papers with some writing on it. There was something odd about the characters, but she didn’t have time to investigate. She swept them aside and found a small wooden case nestled at the bottom of the drawer.
Dao prepared the ink and started writing. She slid the paper over once she was done. ‘When have you been out at night?’
‘It was only once.’
She had never ended up telling Dao about the evening at the theatre. It was too precious a memory for idle gossip.
Yan Ling lifted the jade chop from its holder and pressed the carved end into the dish of red ink. She pressed it firmly on the bottom of the letter, leaving a red impression of the Chang family seal.
‘Does that look official enough?’
Dao frowned. ‘I suppose.’
‘Let’s go then.’
They took a lantern with them and headed out of the mansion. Yan Ling hoped she could remember the way. Her palms started sweating as the ward gate appeared before them. The arch towered ominously overhead. The sight of it made her heart thump.
She wiped her hands over her skirt. ‘Look natural,’ she told Dao.
The younger woman nodded silently. It was acceptable for them to be nervous. They were in a frantic search for a physician.
Yan Ling handed over the pass to the guard and kept her posture straight, meeting his eyes without wavering. She was a high-born lady. There was no reason for him to question her. After an interminable pause, during which he must have read the pass a hundred times, the guard finally returned the paper and waved them through.
She let out a great sigh once they were clear of the checkpoint. ‘We need to find the Pear Blossom Gardens.’
* * *
The North Hamlet was easy to locate as everyone seemed to be heading there. The two of them huddled close through the crowded avenue of taverns and gilded pavilions.
‘I never realized what scandalous outings you were having,’ Dao accused.
‘It was hardly scandalous. Lord Chang took me to see one of Li Bai Shen’s plays.’
Dao snorted. ‘Entirely scandalous.’ She sounded more than a little bit jealous.
There was no show at the gardens, but the park was full of people enjoying a night-time stroll or milling by the lake. Yan Ling cut through the wooded area to the entrance at the far end. Thankfully the alleyways at the back looked familiar to her. She found the gate marked with the theatre troupe’s plaque and pulled Dao into the courtyard, towards the room in the corner.
Bai Shen would know what to do. He was knowledgeable about these parts and the district Old Man Liang had mentioned was supposedly only a short distance from there. Not a week had passed since his dispute with Fei Long. Even if Bai Shen was still angry, the two men were good friends. He had to help them.