The Messenger's Return
It took Seo Bok about a fortnight to meet Sun Uk and come back.
"How'd it go?"
"Yes...."
Seo Bok was surprisingly meek—far more than expected. She was polite and courteous, like someone returning from a grueling military drill.
Was she always like this underneath?
People fill up with malice when hardship and exhaustion grind them down. Humans only find leisure in full granaries; abundance breeds generosity toward others.
When she first arrived here, Seo Bok had been coiled tight with the spite of the destitute. But after her trip to Jinryu, maybe she'd gained a bit of breathing room.
"Uh, did you want to say something...?"
Her excessive courtesy was a touch disconcerting, but it wasn't a bad thing. If she was going to work here, treating me with respect would let her treat the other disciples fairly too. If one got cocky, I'd catch flak for favoritism.
But then...
"......."
Something was off with the bamboo slip. The knot and tying method were completely different from Sun Uk's usual style.
It wasn't like we'd made any pact or anything, but there was no reason for her mood to shift just because I'd sent Seo Bok—enough to change her knotting habit.
Sun Uk was sharp. A changed knot meant one of two things: someone had untied it to peek inside, or it wasn't written by her.
...Or maybe she wrote it but wanted to signal something to me. Or maybe the knot was her way of saying the contents were out of the ordinary.
Beats me.
Reading it would clear things up anyway.
"Anything happen while you were there?"
"Pardon? Oh, nothing at all! Lady Sun Uk welcomed me warmly. It just took a bit to get her reply."
"Really? She's not the type to drag her feet."
Travel time aside, Sun Uk usually penned and sent replies in a single day. I'd do the same upon receiving hers, and she'd respond right away to mine.
With verbal instructions tacked on for Seo Bok, a fortnight was highly irregular. Even more so if it meant Sun Uk had hesitated over her letter.
"What on earth... Hmph."
I took the bamboo slip from Seo Bok.
"The handwriting's hers, but the writing style? Not even close."
"Pardon?"
"Any idea what went down?"
"No clue. I delivered the letter, stayed three days, saw my mother briefly, got the reply, and came straight back."
"Hmm...."
She didn't seem to be lying. But she wasn't spilling everything either.
Got to be more careful from now on.
No more sending her to Sun Uk. Luckily, there were other ways to stay in touch—I'd plan those out separately.
Sun Uk doesn't write like this sentimental mush.
Anyone comparing it to one of the letters I'd stashed in the warehouse would spot the difference immediately. Everyone has their own handwriting and literary style.
On a drizzly night as I took up my brush to write, I gazed through the paper window and saw the full moon hanging round in the night sky. Seeing it brought your face vividly to mind.
Sun Uk doesn't say stuff like that.
She's not the type to play cute in writing. Not even in conversation.
Her brand of flirtation only came out when she downed a shot and acted on impulse—
"......."
No, don't think about it. That night's memory didn't exist. Mutual mistake. No good for either of us.
"...Sorry, got caught up reading the letter. Anyway, Yuanjik."
"Yes."
"Follow me."
I folded the bamboo slip, tucked it into my robe, and led Seo Bok to the pavilion.
There, Sima Hui waited in pristine scholar's robes, her fan and a white porcelain piece arranged on a small desk.
"Lady Sukyeong, I've brought Seo Bok."
"Mm. Seo Bok, come here."
Seo Bok knelt quietly before Sima Hui.
Sima Hui spread a sheet of white silk on the desk and dipped her brush in ink.
Swish.
Masterful calligraphy. People offered fortunes just for her to bestow their name and courtesy name—it was a clan honor.
(Seo). Seo Bok's surname.
Next, the name character (Bok).
But she wrote (Seo) instead.
Seo Bok tilted her head in confusion, and Sima Hui pulled out prepared paper from under the desk.
Gasp.
Seo Bok startled at the bloodstained 'Bok'.
"You understand the meaning of this act, don't you?"
Whoosh.
Sima Hui burned the paper in the lamp flame. The precious sheet with 'Bok' went up in smoke, its ashes scattering skyward on a sudden breeze.
"Your bloodied name, Bok, no longer exists in this world. The only one in Sukyeong Academy is Seo Seo, courtesy name Yuanjik."
"Ah...."
"From now on, Sukyeong Academy will be your father, granting the teachings you seek. We can't turn away a seeker of knowledge. But if you commit evil..."
"I'll work hard!"
Thud.
Seo Bok—no, Seo Seo—prostrated herself flat on the floor, bowing her head.
"Thank you for accepting me!"
"Good. I've cleared a room in that warehouse for you. You'll live there from now on, handling your meals and sleep. Follow me."
Sima Hui rose and led Seo Seo and me to the warehouse room.
It was, predictably, stacked with crates. Seo Seo's face fell briefly.
"...Heh."
Sima Hui smirked and headed to the back.
I followed, and she opened an inner door.
"This way."
"...Pardon?"
"Warehouse annex room. Lady Sukyeong's little joke."
Beyond the inner door lay rooms for visiting scholars, arrayed left and right. At the far end were sleeping quarters for Sima Hui, Sima Yi, and Xun You, in order.
"Your room's here."
"Ah...."
Seo Seo pursed her lips at her quarters. Like the others for long-term guests, it was perfectly livable.
"Later, you'll work here for Sukyeong Academy with your mother. Understood?"
"M-My mother?"
"Yes. Why leave her alone far away? Bring her here."
"Ah, th-that's..."
Seo Seo glanced at me in panic.
"...Lady Sun Uk pitied my situation and helped. Mother refuses to leave Father's grave."
"Mm, I see. Can't be helped then."
"......."
I closed my eyes quietly.
Grave. Grave.
"No relatives to tend the grave?"
"No. That's right."
"......No helping it then. Lady Sukyeong."
People only grasp the fire on their instep as a crisis.
"......Mind if I take Seo Seo to the kitchen for a bit?"
One more mouth to feed.
And.
"Seo Seo! Give your all to kitchen duties! Got it?!"
"You took me as a disciple to make me a kitchen drudge?"
"As if!"
One more pair of hands for chores.
* * *
After briefing Seo Seo on life here.
"Seo Seo, courtesy Yuanjik."
I'd told Lady Sukyeong about Seo Bok, and she'd agreed to bestow the name 'Seo Seo' upon her return.
I came up with it, but having Sima Hui formally grant it carried weight—better than some Golden Sun dubbing her. It symbolized breaking from her past, good for her and us.
In exchange, we hid her criminal history. Contingent on succeeding at my task, but she'd done it.
She'd delivered the bamboo slip to Sun Uk without issue.
Luckily, Sun Uk handled internal affairs in Cao Cao's army, so Seo Seo met her smoothly and passed on my news and the slip.
And the reply matched what I wanted: Black Mountain Bandits, relations with Yuan Shao, Chang'an's status, Jingzhou's moves, chaos in Hebei—I had the full picture.
Then the postscript revealed her judgment of Seo Seo.
Someday when I take leave to visit, I'll bring Seo Bok's mother down with me.
"As expected."
Seo Seo was remarkably talented. Untrained, sure, but with proper education, she could rise to high office.
So of course Sun Uk offered to use her precious leave to fetch the old lady all the way to Jingzhou.
First time she's mentioned coming down.
She'd always just hoped we'd meet again someday—never brought up leave until now.
"...Sweet as honey."
What changed her? The Black Mountain Bandits shift her mindset? Or more female friends softening her?
Would Sun Uk really abandon Cao Cao's crises for even a day?
The last Sun Uk I'd seen wasn't like that.
Yet her willingness to burn leave meant something had shifted for her.
She'll handle it fine and come.
She'd manage politics; the rest hinged on resolving the bamboo slip issue.
"Someone else peeked at this."
Undeniably, she'd gotten advice from someone nearby.
Whether she sought it or not, a leak happened.
Which meant...
Time for a consult.
I pocketed the slip and stepped out of my room.
Or tried to.
"You there?"
"Lady Xun You?"
Xun You stood outside in nightclothes, fist raised to knock.
"Perfect timing. Was just about to consult you on Sun Uk."
"Oh? Is that so?"
Xun You smiled languidly and pushed me back inside.
"Let's talk here."