Although Shen Jiujiu desperately wanted to sleep under Pei Du’s inner robe like he used to, now that his age had reverted to normal, his cheeks burned with unaccustomed embarrassment.
The little black bird hesitated at the edge of Pei Du’s pillow, taking a couple of tentative steps before finally pawing out a nest in the soft cushion and curling up inside.
Pei Du: “…”
Raising a little black bird was an entirely different experience.
Especially when Shen Jiujiu tucked his beak beneath his wing and balled up to sleep. With his eyes closed, the pillow’s depression looked like it had caved in for no reason at all, the bird completely vanishing from sight.
Pei Du draped a handkerchief over Shen Jiujiu, adjusting it several times to make sure the little bird’s head poked out, before lying back flat and shutting his eyes.
But sleep wouldn’t come.
Shen Jiujiu cracked open one eye.
A slender tail feather lifted, its fan-like tip swaying before brushing against Pei Du’s ear and sliding down to rest against his cheek.
Pei Du didn’t stir, silently permitting the bird’s approach.
Shen Jiujiu closed his peeking eye, and the entire bird began inching toward Pei Du’s cheek.
Pei Du kept his eyes shut.
The fluffy little bird pressed against Pei Du’s cheek. Then, with a flick of its tail, the black feathered ball dropped precisely into the perfect hollow of Pei Du’s neck—a spot molded just right for the bird’s sleeping form.
Shen Jiujiu, who had sworn before arriving that he’d bring his own bedding and take no liberties, nestled contentedly into Pei Du’s neck and drifted off to sleep in moments.
In the darkness of the bed curtains, Pei Du opened his eyes. He reached for the edge of the quilt and gently drew it around the little bird.
Shen Jiujiu never liked being covered by blankets when he slept—at most, he’d tolerate a handkerchief.
Perhaps the little bird himself had no idea.
Shen Jiujiu slept quietly. The few times Pei Du had been roused in the night by flapping wings, it was either from a nightmare or because something had pinned the bird’s wings, prompting an instinctive flurry of tiny bird martial arts.
Unbeknownst to him, Pei Du’s own sleep patterns had been thoroughly reshaped to match Shen Jiujiu’s.
Feeling the substantial weight and warmth nestled so insistently in the crook of his neck, rising and falling with the bird’s soft breaths mere inches away, Pei Du finally let his mind ease and slipped into slumber.
~~~
He awoke refreshed, having slept soundly through the night without dreams.
Shen Jiujiu’s eyes were still closed, but his wings had already stretched wide in a lazy yawn before slapping down onto the bed with a soft thwack.
From beyond the bed curtains came the sounds of maids attending to Pei Du’s morning ablutions and dressing. Shen Jiujiu worked his beak, and the little black bird’s head poked ghostlike through a gap in the curtains.
A maid, turning to fetch Pei Du’s court robe, caught sight of the black fuzzball out of the corner of her eye. Her eyes widened in surprise.
Shen Jiujiu tilted his head and peered up at her.
The maid was well accustomed to the little bird that frequented her master’s chambers. Butler Zhong Bo had always instructed them to address it as Little Young Master Shen.
Had it… been swapped out for a new one?
Shen Jiujiu recognized the maid and blinked.
She pressed her lips together, fighting back a smile.
Oh dear, the little bird hadn’t changed.
It had simply been dyed into a perfect black fluffball.
It looked even cuter this way.
Though it was awfully dark.
Even the little blush on its cheeks had turned black.
These thoughts raced through the maid’s mind, but her hands didn’t falter. She lowered her head, cradling the court robe, and approached her master.
Pei Du had already spotted the sneaky little head peeking out. He took the outer robe and waved the maids away.
With the room clear of outsiders, Shen Jiujiu’s black head ducked back inside the curtains. Moments later, an arm emerged, groping blindly along the bedside.
Pei Du picked up an inner robe from the nearby tray and placed it within reach of Shen Xinian’s hand.
Shen Xinian clutched the pristine white garment and drew it slowly into the bed curtains.
This inner robe fit him perfectly—it had clearly been tailored in haste.
Shen Xinian slipped into the inner robe and undergarments, then threw back the curtains and hopped down. He strode boldly to the folding screen.
Nothing in the household escaped Zhong Bo’s notice, least of all Shen Xinian’s brazen infiltration of the Inner Courtyard the night before. He hadn’t emerged all evening.
Come morning, Shen Xinian’s clothes had been delivered straight to Pei Du’s room.
Unlike yesterday’s pale elegance, today’s outer robe was a vibrant treasure blue, embroidered with golden threads. Anyone who saw him striding out would know at a glance he was a cherished young master of a great house.
As he dressed, Shen Xinian asked Pei Du, “Benefactor, did you put away my necklace?”
Pei Du straightened his collar. “Mm. Don’t wear it anymore. It’s not safe.”
Shen Xinian’s current form was still unstable; they hadn’t yet unraveled all its secrets.
The little bird’s body was far too small compared to a human’s, and its neck was a vulnerable spot. The necklace posed a real danger to Shen Jiujiu.
“I know. I was just wondering if we could modify it or something to wear.” In just two days back in human form, Shen Xinian’s movements were already deft and assured. “I really like that Little Bird Pendant, though.”
“You carved it yourself.”
Pei Du sidestepped the comment and selected a pouch and jade pendant from the tray, fastening them to Shen Xinian’s waist.
A youth like this, simply standing there, drew the eye wherever he went.
Pei Du quelled the shadow in his gaze, his tone even. “Heading out today?”
Perhaps influenced by the little bird’s instincts, Shen Xinian found himself even more drawn to glittering gold and jade than before. He admired himself happily in the mirror.
“Mm, going with Ziming to meet those people he mentioned.”
“That group of wounded soldiers?” Pei Du clearly knew of it.
Even with the Sui Family’s declining numbers, their businesses endured. Yet Sui Ziming never seemed flush with funds, mostly because he’d diverted the household silver—part to subsidize the Canlang Army’s pay, part to aid the injured veterans.
“Right. Supporting them outright, or finding them work with a bit of looking after—it’s not hard for merchants. But as the saying goes, a peck of rice earns grace, a bushel breeds enmity. It won’t hold up long-term.”
Shen Xinian raised his arms to the mirror, combing out his hair.
He’d always favored a high ponytail; he loved the way the strands swayed behind him as he walked.
“For merchants who roam far and wide, money can buy trifles. But protecting goods and personal safety—that’s the real gamble, more often than not.”
“Hired guards are either useless or in league with the bandits. Even Mother ran into trouble with that early on, before she built up a reliable caravan of her own.”
“Some smaller merchants would rather give up one or two percent of their profits just to tag along with a big caravan, all for a measure of safety.”
“But those large caravans…” Shen Xinian met Pei Du’s gaze in the mirror and gave a helpless little smile. “They buy their peace by paying off the bandits and rogues they pass on the road.”
“Better to lose a little money than invite disaster.”
“That’s why goods traveling between north and south cost so much, and hardly any merchants dare set foot in the borderlands.”
“You want to start an escort agency?” Though Pei Du wasn’t deeply versed in commerce, he had a keen eye for such matters.
The Great Zhou Dynasty already had the rough outlines of escort agencies, but they hadn’t caught on widely. In this era, both scholarly pursuits and martial training came with steep barriers to entry.
Even a commoner with great strength could scarcely land a major contract from a caravan—merchants were bold yet profoundly cautious creatures, unwilling to stake their wares on unknowns.
“Yes.”
Shen Xinian nodded and laid out the plan they had hashed out the day before.
“Ziming mentioned there are a few hunters in the capital suburbs village who retired from the battlefield as tun chiefs and squad leaders. They’re officers who’ve led men, respected by all, with solid experience and insight—ideal as heads for the escort agency.”
“Mother has a trustworthy accountant we can pull aside to handle the books separately. That way, finances stay distinct from the escorts and heads—who’ll naturally be familiar with each other—for mutual oversight.”
“Mules and horses are crucial at the start, but Mother plans to bring in a batch of prime breeds from the Western Regions to establish a horse ranch in Taiyuan. I’ve already reserved her first batch for us.”
“And most importantly, if we’re to run routes through the borderlands, these men know the paths like the backs of their hands and fear no outsiders. They’d make perfect guides…”
Pei Du listened quietly as Shen Xinian finished, his mind turning over the deeper implications.
On the surface, it was just an escort agency. But from Xinian’s words, their ambitions stretched beyond north-south hauls to the borderlands themselves.
Should the court face upheaval, those escorts could be mustered into a crack force of emergency troops.
It was simply too conspicuous, though.
What Pei Du could foresee, others could as well. There would always be those who didn’t want Sui Ziming pulling this off.
So…
Pei Du arched a brow lightly, meeting Shen Xinian’s smiling gaze.
“Benefactor, we’ve talked it over! Setting up the escort agency right in the capital draws too much attention—we could shift it elsewhere. But we’d need connections and guarantees for the business license and weapon permit…”
The business license was akin to the Great Zhou’s operating permit, while the weapon permit allowed civilians to carry arms. With both in hand, an escort agency could operate above board.
Without them, it would be indistinguishable from bandits and brigands.
Pei Du said, “The warehouse keys and ledgers are in your hands. Do as you like. As for guarantees…”
Shen Xinian pressed his palms together, wiggling his fingers in an adorably pleading gesture—the very picture of Shen Jiujiu’s earnest wishing from before.
Pei Du knew full well that if Shen Xinian truly wanted this, he could find ways around it.
After all, Xie Jingtang had secured permits for horse trading and breeding; greasing the right palms for an escort agency wouldn’t faze her.
Yet Shen Xinian had come to him—the one who could resolve it at the root and ensure the agency’s steady growth.
Pei Du’s lips curved upward. “Very well.”
Shen Xinian could sense that Pei Du, who had been faintly out of sorts since waking that morning, was now thoroughly soothed.
He had no idea what had soured Benefactor’s mood, but as long as it was fixed!
Pei Du’s gaze drifted downward to the boots on Shen Xinian’s feet, and he frowned faintly. “Hunters dwell deep in the mountains, and the paths around the capital suburbs are rough. Change into sturdier shoes before you head out.”
“Got it!”
Shen Xinian snatched two pastries from the dish on the table, popped them into his mouth, and swallowed. Then, like a joyful little bird, he darted out the door, his figure vanishing beyond the courtyard wall.
Pei Du turned to the bronze mirror and straightened his robes and hat with a lift of his hand.
Crimson court robes. A black gauze hat inlaid with shell.
This was the minister perched at the pinnacle of power—one who might plunge into eternal ruin the very next moment.
Pei Du stared at his reflection for a long while. The pink jade little bird tucked against his wrist in his sleeve gradually warmed to his body heat.
He had never been a good man.
It was simply that all his softness had poured into that one little bird.
He thought on it and thought on it, and in the end, he could not bear to cage it so.
The little bird had already been confined for far too long—eighteen years of light without ever truly beholding the breadth of heaven and earth.
He would have to wait a little longer.
Wait until the little bird had gazed upon clouds and moon, scented flowers and grass, witnessed all the world’s beauties… and still chose to alight upon his windowsill.
Awww