"I can handle the Golden Fields," Ling Qi replied after a moment's thought. Even in her own head, her concerns regarding the matter really did seem petty and ill founded. If she couldn't even deal with a somewhat awkward meeting, she should probably just give up now.
Her liege nodded once, but to Ling Qi's eye she seemed satisfied with the answer. Leaving her with only two meetings would give her a moment to recenter herself before the tournament, Ling Qi suspected. That was another reason not to increase the other girls burden.
"I wish you both good fortune then, and will see you at the opening ceremonies of the tournament," Cai Renxiang said, meeting Ling Qi's gaze and then turning her head to do the same to Guangli. "Remember the things I have taught you of the province politics well."
Once the two of them gave their affirmative responses, the three of them split apart. They had gone over the locations and the best order of visitation before ever coming to the campgrounds, so Ling Qi already knew where to go. Her first destination was the Bao, who were both the larger clan and the one better connected with the court in the capital. In addition, the man they had sent was their clans young master, the eldest son of the current head, whereas the Luo had sent an older cousin from a branch family.
Their space was placed on the west side, only a short walk from the grand pavilion of white silk being erected for the Duchess. The Bao, it seemed had elected for an expensive temporary structure, a small guest house that was nonetheless larger than the two story home she had provided her mother in town, surrounded by a low curtain wall and a built in garden. It's roof was tiled with green jade, and the walls were carved from a dark, nearly black wood, polished to a gleaming shine.
A man and a woman stood guard at the gates, dressed in light lacquered armor over fine padded gear, in colors similar to the house behind them. Their stances, already alert and at attention, straightened up further as she approached.
LIng Qi stopped at a respectful distance, just off the main path, where she would not be impeding traffic, and gave a very small bow, appropriate to greeting the subordinates of one who outranked you. "Baroness Ling, presenting herself to offer greetings and well wishes to the representative of the Bao in the name of the Cai clan," she said smoothly, remembering the line by rote.
The woman, who looked to be the older of the two, bowed in return. "This humble sentry will be honored to carry word of your presence to the Young Master, Baroness Ling," the reply had the same air of practised ease as her own line, though it was perhaps delivered a bit more smoothly. "I must humbly ask your patience in the interim."
Ling Qi reviewed her lessons in her head, that was a bit more respectful than was strictly necessary, given the difference in ranks involved here, even if the one speaking was a simple second realm guard. Knowing that she adjusted her response accordingly. "Do not trouble yourself with undue haste," she replied politely. "Please give your Master my personal regards for his courtesy." Talking like this all the time was going to be tiring, Ling Qi thought.
"The moon does not have any one face, and neither should you," Sixiang whispered, amused at her internal grumbling.
Which didn't square easily with the lessons of Argent Mirror, Ling Qi mused as the guard bowed again and went inside, leaving her under the watch of the male one. Then again… that was likely only her inexperience speaking. Sect Head Yuan, the inventor of the techniques, surely had experience dealing with courtly matters after all, she doubted that his techniques would conflict with such an essential part of cultivator life.
She was not kept waiting long, as the guard returned to escort her inside, letting her pass through the gates and into the garden. It was quite lovely she noted, and filled with all sorts of plants which she did not recognize, and which made Zhengui forget his woes regarding the earlier meeting in favor of mentally drooling over the array of treats.
The decor of the Bao's guest home was one of understated luxury, which was why she was almost brought up short as she left the entrance hall, and caught sight of what could only be the the man she had come here to meet.
Bao Quan was a man of middling height with a heavyset build and cheerful features. He was also more extravagantly dressed than any male cultivator she had seen before, not counting the abominable robes that Elder Jiao favored. Threads of precious metals she only recognized from books were woven into his robes, and jade rings adorned his fingers. Even his luxurious, chest length beard was kept in place by clips carved whole from valuable gemstones. Even the black scholars cap he wore had a diamond the size of a child's fist embedded in the cloth, set right above and between his eyes.
This flashy guy was the older brother of Li Suyin's dour and reclusive teacher?
Despite her surprise, she remembered to keep her manners as the guard who had lead her into the room where the Bao heir was seated bowed low to her master. "My lord, may I introduce Baroness Ling, as requested."
Ling Qi bowed in turn, bringing her hands together respectfully as she did so. "Sir Bao Quan, you honor me with a direct meeting," she recited. "This humble retainer of the Cai would like to convey her liege's thanks and well wishes toward your personage, and your clan."
The older man was only silent for a beat before he rose from his seat, a jovial smile on his thick features. "I hear and accept them, young Baroness," he replied cheerfully, flicking a hand in dismissal toward his guard. And why not? He was in the fourth realm of cultivation. His aura a glittering, gleaming thing that spoke of the untold wealth of the earth. "I suppose the Lady herself is entertaining the Bai and Xuan delegations?"
"She is, Sir Bao," Ling Qi replied, straightening up after an appropriate interval, she couldn't let her guard down just because he seemed friendly. "I sincerely hope that you do not take my presence as a slight."
"Of course not," the man scoffed. "I am aware enough of my own position. The Xuan are our greatest external customers, and opening up those reclusive Bai's to further relations would be quite a coup, this turmoil between provinces has been terrible for business," he grumbled good naturedly. "But, I am being a rude host, be seated, be seated," he continued gesturing at the other seat in the room, a richly upholstered chair that probably cost more than a house.
Sitting in it felt like sinking into a cloud though, she could admit, waiting only a beat for her host to take his seat first before doing as he instructed. "You are too kind, Sir Bao," the constant refrains of humility were a little irritating, but she could put up with something small like that easily enough. "My Lady Cai would like to express her gratitude at your arrival here, to witness her graduation."
"I look forward to seeing the Young Miss' triumph," the man now seated comfortably. "The Bao could hardly offer the insult of ignoring such an occasion," he added with a small chortle. "Besides, it does after all, give me a chance to visit my adorable little sister."
Ling Qi paused a moment, picturing Bao Qingling's unhealthy pallor, dark ringed eyes, and expression of bland disinterest. She wasn't sure of any definition of the word adorable which that girl fit. Thankfully, she kept any of that dubiousness from reaching her expression. "Miss Bao is doing well," she said instead. "I am sure she will be pleased to see you."
The older man looked at her with a bit of interest, folding his hands over his stomach. "Ah yes, I do believe she mentioned you once in her letters, a friend of her little project, was it?"
"Just so," Ling Qi replied, feeling a little put out at the mildly demeaning description of her friend. "I have visited her workshop once or twice, it is very impressive."
"Such an industrious girl, my sister," Bao Quan said, looking pleased. "So shy though, I shall have to pay her a visit," he shook his head slightly. "So, Miss Ling before we grow too distracted, was there any other business the young Lady Cai had to convey?"
"Only a few small matters," Ling Qi demurred, producing a small bundle of letters from her sleeve with a flick of her wrist. A slight flexing of the air around her carried the letters into the older cultivators hands. "Lady Cai has asked me to convey to you these recommendations for production disciples which might be worth some small attention..."
Her talk with the Bao representative went on for a bit longer, reviewing the small matters Cai had asked her to convey, and engaging in polite small talk. For what it was worth, Bao Quan did seem like a genuinely cheerful and mostly pleasant man, so Ling Qi thought the meeting went well.
It was a good thing too, because it left her unstressed for the next meeting.
The Luo representative was housed in more modest accommodations than the Bao. Rather than a house, they had merely set up a number of tents surrounding a larger pavillion, not made of the more common silk, but rather a thicker sort of cloth. If she remembered her lessons right, the Luo controlled a fair amount of pasture land, and they and their subordinates bred a few particular types of livestock with special properties, so she supposed it would make sense for them to use their own products.
The guards at it's entrance had been dressed more like woodsman than city guards, and had been less polite in their greetings, though still within the bounds of propriety, and she had been lead to one of the side tents to wait on the arrival of their representative. The inside of the tent was comfortable enough, the bare ground covered by thick rugs and colorful cushions, lit by soft light of floating paper lantern suspended in midair.
'I hope you intend to be a bit more helpful for this one, Sixiang,' Ling Qi thought as she settled in to wait, politely seating herself among one of the smaller nests of cloth and cushion arrayed around the small table in the center of the tent.
'You had the last one handled', her spirit sent back. 'I would have given you a nudge if you drifted off course. It looks like you can manage if you focus though.'
Ling Qi restrained herself from snorting at that half compliment. She couldn't gainsay the spirit though. It was still difficult not to slip back into more casual modes of speech by accident. She turned her attention instead to Zhengui, who had been quiet since their meeting with the Duchess, and prodded him with a feeling of concern.
'Big Sister shouldn't worry,' he replied in her thoughts, still sounding a little distracted. 'Zhengui will not distract Big Sister from important things.'
He was on edge about the sheer number of powerful people she was surrounded by, she could tell, but there was little she could do to really reassure him on the matter, not when she would be lying if she said that it didn't bother her at least a little as well.
At that moment, she as distracted from her thoughts as the tent flap opened, revealing one of the lightly armored guards, holding it open for a much older man. He was a spindly sort to her eye, with long limbs and a thin build, partially concealed by the ankle length cloak of soft leather worn over his shoulders, concealing the rest of his attire.
The man, who she recognized from Cai's description as Luo Jie, had narrow, severe features, marked by a surprising amount of wrinkles for a cultivator, mostly around his mouth and at the corners of his eyes. His head was clean shaven and bare, but a long thin gray mustache framed his frowning lips.
Ling Qi rose to her feet and offered a bow as the elderly cultivator, trying to ignore the man's unsettling aura. It felt like being alone and unarmed in the woods at night, while predatory eyes gleamed from within every shadow, his realm of power unreadable. "Eight Maiden's blessing on you Sir Luo," she said calmly, Sixiang's murmurs feeding her the right words. I offer my gratitude for this meeting, and the chance to offer my Lady's regards and well wishes."
The old man's head tilted slightly, his already half lidded eyes narrowing further as he examined her. "May the Dreamers attentions remain benign, child," he grunted, offering only a perfunctory nod in response to her bow as the guard allowed the flap of the tent to close behind. "You are Baroness Ling then?"
Sixiang felt a little huffy at his response, but Ling Qi forged on regardless. "I am, Sir Luo. I hope that my presence is satisfactory."
The old man waved a gnarled hand dismissively, picking his way across the thick carpet. "I accept your Lady's intentions, the question is, do you know them?" He asked, fixing her with a look that told her that he was not yet impressed.
Ling Qi hesitated a moment before straightening up and meeting his eyes. In a more normal situation, it would have been rude, but the families that followed the older ways had their own traditions. "Lady Cai believes I can more easily relate to you and yours, given my own affiliation with the moon."
Luo Jie smiled thinly in response. "You have a maiden with you, true, hiding in your thoughts, and the scent of moonlight on your skin. Do you imagine that privileges you, Baroness Ling?"
She hesitated for a moment, listening to Sixiang's whispers as she considered her answers. "Sir Luo, I am not of any of the old families, but I do regard the spirit we both revere as a patron," she replied quietly. "I cannot say I understand all of the differences between your ways and others… I have only just begun to learn the imperial ways after all," she began emphasizing that at the moment, she didn't really have a side. "I am of course, willing to receive instruction on these matters."
The older man crossed his arms under his cloak, studying her again. "Mmph, good enough," he grunted, seating himself cross legged atop one of the larger cushions. "Any voice not entirely bound by that rigid mindset is a boon. See that you retain your flexibility going forward."
"You can see which moons smile upon me, honored elder," she replied mildly, at Sixiang's prompting. "I will not lose sight of the value of an open mind," she finished, seating herself across from him.
Once again, he gave her a thin smile. "Under blinding light, there is little room for shadows, sleep, and secrets," he replied cryptically. "Be careful in your doings."
"Of course, Sir Luo," she said quietly. "I thank you for your advice."
"Hmph," the old man grunted in reply. "Regardless, I accept your Lady's gratitude and regards. Where there other matters you had to speak of?"
"Only a few," Ling Qi said. "First I have a proposal from the Wang clan regarding new livestock populations captured in recent action against the Cloud tribes. She believes this may serve to improve provincial unity, so she asks that you will give the matter some thought..."
The rest of her meeting went by quickly enough, with the taciturn Luo representative agreeing to consider the matters Cai Renxiang had asked her to bring up, and soon enough she was on her way, being dismissed from the Luo compound and it's slightly unsettling inhabitants.
Which just left her final task, and frankly, her most difficult one, how she approached this would likely serve to bias future interactions with Golden Fields outside of her immediate peers. There were going to be people from the Gu, Han, and Fan families after all as well as one of the grandsons of the current Guo Duke, surprisingly, which was why Cai was eager to have someone go speak with them.
Her relationship with the Gu family was the most familiar, she was close friends with Xiulan and Gu Tai had parted with her on good terms. The representative was Xiulan's Mother too, which gave her another connection, it would be easier to get audience with the Guo if she was introduced.
On the other hand, the Gu were vassals of the Han, and while representing the Cai, bypassing them like that could be considered slightly rude, though it would be giving the Gu face. She could go to the Han of course, but she wasn't as close with Han Jian, so she wasn't sure if they would be willing to introduce her to the Guo, the Gu might also feel a little slighted…
This was why she hadn't wanted to do this, Ling Qi thought with a frown. In the end, she was probably going to make someone unhappy. Of course, she could just go straight to the Guo, but frankly that was more than a little audacious, given her own rank, even if she was representing Cai.
[] Meet the Gu first
[] Meet the Han first
[] Go straight to the Guo
[] ...You could try going to the Fan first?
An: alright, guys, one more bit of politics before the prelims. I probably should have structured this better but here we are. I apologize for the delays by the way, and I hope it will be better in the future, but... well going to leave that to the next post.
