Chapter Text
Changyu fills her waterskin at the stream, looking up at the night sky worriedly. She should stop and rest—for her horse's sake, if not for hers—but the thought of Changning looking at the same sky, alone and scared and possibly hurt keeps her from wanting to linger any longer than necessary. She is only a few miles out from Baxia, and once she arrives at the city it will be work to find the refugee camp to check for her sister. That's if this refugee camp even exists.
The horse makes gentle splashes at it drinks, then wanders from the rocks over to the grass for a meal. Changyu does some quick calculations in her head. If she leaves in an hour, she can travel all night and make it to Baxia before dawn. At least she won't be scouring the city for her sister in the dark. The city gates should be open with the sunrise as well.
An hour is all she is willing to wait.
Making up her mind, she walks to the horse to take some food out of the rucksack on its side. Best to have something to eat while letting the animal rest. She needs to keep her strength up, especially going on such little sleep.
It takes no time at all to start a little fire, and soon she is enjoying the bit of warmth as she eats dried pork. Mr. Li had allowed her to restock her belongings, so she also has a thick piece of bread to finish the meal. She thinks of how her mother would drizzle honey on the bread after warming it on the stove; a lovely little treat on a chilly evening. Tears threaten at the memory but Changyu scolds herself. "Keep it together," she says harshly, taking a deep breath.
The sound of horses startles her. Quickly Changyu jumps up to douse the fire, but before she can stamp it out a group of soldiers ride up, weapons pointed. "You there!" the leader calls. "State your name and business."
"My name?" Changyu swallows thickly. "My name is Fan Changyu. I'm on my way to Baxia."
"Baxia? Then you are a Changzou spy."
"No! I'm not a spy!" Quickly she reaches into her robes and pulls out some parchment. "I have registration documents. I swear!"
The closest soldier snatches them away and hands them to the leader. He gives them a cursory glance but turns his glare back to Changyu. "The only ones who have business in Baxia are supporters of the traitor prince."
Changyu frowns. She knows a little about the conflicts in Chongzou, but none of that helps now. "Please sir," she says carefully. "The truth is, I'm looking for my sister."
He glances at the documents again. "This says you're from Jizhou."
"Yes, sir."
"That's a long way from here."
Changyu lifts her chin. "I've been searching for weeks."
He looks her over before jerking his chin. "Take her into custody."
The soldiers move on his command but Changyu holds up her hands in protest. "No, please! I need to find my sister!"
"Your documents will be checked and if you say who you are, we'll let you go," the soldier explains. "Until we can verify you are not a spy you will need to come with us."
Changyu looks around. Her horse is nearby, and if she could just get to it… but there are four spears pointed at her, and the likelihood of getting away, especially as tired as she is now, is very small. In desperation she pleads a final time, "Please, sir! You don't need to do this, I'm not a spy!"
Two of the men grab her and wrestle her to the ground. A rope ties her hands behind her back, and Changyu struggles fruitlessly against them. They pull her to her feet and push her forward. The leader turns his horse and they follow on foot towards the trees.
It is about a half hour's walk back to the soldiers' camp. Despite the late hour it is fairly active, and when they arrive they are greeted by the guards. The leader dismounts and begins to give orders. "Take this one into custody and tie her somewhere out of the way."
"I thought you were going to let me go if I cooperated," Changyu protests.
He turns to look at her. "We have to check your documents, and we haven't done that yet, have we?"
Before she can argue further a scout hurries over with a message. "Sir, this just arrived minutes ago."
The leader opens it and tilts it to read by some nearby firelight. "Nevermind that," he says. "We're going."
"Sir?" the messenger asks.
"General He has ordered us to go and rendezvous with the Marquis of Wu'an's troops." He looks Changyu over. "Take her with us. The Marquis can decide if she's a spy or not."
There is some murmuring but most of the soldiers head to follow orders. Only Changyu's two guards remain, and she asks, "The Marquis of Wu'an?" He looks over as she blinks in surprise. "He's alive?"
"Apparently." He frowns at the two guards. "Now take her before she hears any other secrets to bring back to Changzou, hm?"
They grab her by the arms and haul her away, but this time Changyu doesn't protest. She is tethered to a post while the camp begins breaking down and forming ranks, yet all she can think about is the Marquis. If she can appeal to him, certainly they'd let her go. She just needs to convince him, somehow.
Xie Zheng is only half-listening to the report from Xie Wu. Three out of five of General He's squads had arrived, meaning they would be ready to face Sui Yuanqing as early as the day after tomorrow.
His thoughts drift to Fan Changning. Fear is now his near constant companion since becoming part of the Fan family. He had never been afraid on the battlefield; death was as meaningless as any of the titles he had earned. He lives because he must, he fulfills his duties because that is what is expected. Xie Zheng had never cared about anything before.
But now, he is afraid for the girl. Her sweet disposition was a cover for a very intelligent personality, and he worries that she is suffering. She is certainly alive; the presumption that she is Xie Zheng's daughter is surely enough to keep the worst at bay. Yet he can't help but wonder, is she okay? Is she hurt? She must be frightened, and homesick, and…
"Your Grace?"
He shakes himself from his thoughts. "Sorry. Continue."
"I've concluded, my lord. Do you have any orders?"
Xie Zheng doesn't want to admit he wasn't listening, so he glances at Gongsun Yin. Luckily his friend catches his unspoken question and steps in to say, "Nothing at this time. Please, go back to your work."
The soldiers in attendance all bow in respect before taking their leave. Gongsun Yin watches, fanning himself for a moment before spinning on Xie Zheng. "Did you catch any of that?"
Xie Zheng doesn't answer, reaching forward to pour himself some tea. Anything to help shake off the lingering taste of unease on his tongue. "I trust that everything is going according to plan."
"Seems so."
A comfortable silence falls, and Xie Zheng takes the moment to review the papers on the table in front of him. But a certain parchment catches his attention, and he moves the others out of the way so he can stare at the family portrait his friend had painted.
Gongun Yin takes a seat opposite, watching him closely. "You know that you have to keep your emotions out of this."
Xie Zheng's face snaps up. "Are you truly warning me?"
Gongsun Yin shrugs. "I know that you are usually focused on victory. But this is different, isn't it? I wouldn't blame you for thinking with your heart instead of your head."
"You don't need to remind me."
"Don't I?" Gongsun Yin leans in closer. "Surely you're worried for the girl. Sui Yuanqing is a dangerous man. His actions in Lin'an show how unforgiving he is."
Heat rises on Xie Zheng's neck. "He will pay for that as well."
"No doubt." Gongsun Yin sighs as he eases back. "Do you want to… talk about it?"
Xie Zheng gives him a single look and Gongsun Yin holds up his hands. "Fine. I just thought I'd ask."
"There's nothing to discuss."
"What do you suppose Fan Changyu is up to?"
The question isn't fair, and it makes Xie Zheng scowl. That's the question that has been on his mind the most. Surely she knows that Changning is missing, and possibly who has her. He had been waiting for word of a woman breaking into the Sui residence and going on a killing spree, but there had been nothing. No one could trace her after she left Lin'an, and his scouts only brought back rumors of a woman who was saving children from traffickers. He wouldn't be surprised that it turned out to be Changyu, but what does it mean?
Where is she?
As soon as they had Sui Yuanqing contained and Changning safe, his plan is to personally lead the search for her.
Xie Zheng realizes it's been at least a minute since the question had been posed. But before he can think of a response the tent flap opens and a messenger enters and bows. "My lord, the next garrison from General He has arrived."
On his heels are three men wearing the armor of the He army. They step up and bow respectfully, the leader introducing himself as General Gong. "We are here in your service, sir."
Xie Zheng nods. "You are welcome. Please have your men settle into camp. We are expecting the last to arrive by this afternoon."
The others press palm to fist in acknowledgment of the order, but Gong hesitates. "My men came across a spy just before we were deployed," he says.
"A spy?"
Gongsun Yin and Xie Zheng exchange a glance. "What sort of spy is it?" Gongsun Yin asks.
"We don't know. There was no time for interrogation before we had to go."
Xie Zheng huffs impatiently. "I trust your men can handle such a task?"
"We can, but…" Gong clears his throat. "She is insisting on seeing you, sir."
"She?" Xie Zheng frowns. The prince does not use women in his army, and definitely would not use one as a spy.
"It's a woman, sir."
"And you're sure she's a spy?"
Gong looks uncomfortable. "As I said, we had yet to question her, so—"
"Send her here."
His order is final, and they head out to obey. Gongsun Yin moves to stand next to Xie Zheng. "A female spy? How unusual."
"I doubt it's that simple."
The He soldiers return, one hurrying forward to hand him a parchment with a bow. "These are the papers she had. We have not verified them yet."
The prisoner is arguing as she is led inside the tent, and for a moment Xie Zheng looks down. His eyes go wide when he begins reading—Jinzhou—Lin'an—
"Kneel for the Marquis!"
He looks up just as the prisoner is pressed to her knees. She gives the offending officer a cold look before turning to face him. At once there is a rushing in his ears, his mouth going dry as their eyes connect.