Page 68 of The Scholar's Improper Wife

As a moving cloud in the sky

Ting-zhi’s breath caught.

His father turned back to him, eyes sharp. “You realize, of course, that this will not be easy. The Chancellor is not a man who brooks refusal lightly.” He raised a finger. “You will have to convince him.”

Ting-zhi’s lips curved. “I’ve been convincing people my whole life.”

Master Gu studied him for another long moment. Then, slowly, he reached for a blank sheet of paper and a brush. “Write your counter-proposal,” he said. “I will look it over before you present it.”

Ting-zhi raised surprised eyes to his father.

“You think I do not know how to play this game?” Master Gu’s lips quirked. “I may not be a minister, but I have spent a lifetime watching men like Shen Xu-ming maneuver. If you are to refuse his offer, you must do so in a way that saves his faceandsecures your future.” He slid the paper across the desk. “Write. And make it good.”

THE CHANCELLOR’S STUDYwas astonishingly simple for a man who wielded such power. There were only a dark wooden desk and a single shelf of books, peppered with the scent of pine soot ink in the air. There were no curiosities on display, nor any decorative vases with flowers. The only concession was a very old landscape painting of mist-shrouded mountains on the wall. So old, that the silk had already begun to yellow and fray at the edges.

Chancellor Shen sat behind his desk, his hands steepled, his expression unreadable. The memorandum lay between them, its edges aligned precisely with the corner of the desk in the way that suggested it had been read thoroughly and set down.

Ting-zhi had prepared for this meeting as meticulously as he had prepared for imperial examinations, leaving nothing to chance. He was a Flower Scholar. He had spoken before the Emperor without his voice shaking. Chancellor Shen looked at him and said nothing, and Ting-zhi felt, very briefly, approximately ten years old.

Ting-zhi stood with his hands by his side, trying to keep his posture easy and his voice measured. “I am honored by your offer, Chancellor. The Ministry of Finance is a prestigious posting, and I am grateful for your confidence in my abilities.”

Chancellor Shen’s eyes flickered toward the document. “And yet?”

Ting-zhi inhaled. “And yet, I believe my skills would be better suited to another role.”

The Chancellor leaned back slowly. “Oh?”

“I would like to be considered for the traveling inspector position.”

The air in the room stilled. The Chancellor’s gaze sharpened, dissecting. Ting-zhi did not flinch.

“And why,” he asked, “do you believe you are qualified for such a role?”

Ting-zhi met his gaze. “I know the empire beyond the capital. I speak the dialects of the provinces. I understand trade routes, local customs, the unspoken rules of the regions. I can move between worlds—scholar and commoner, official and traveler—and I can do so without drawing undue attention.” He paused. “I am observant. I am adaptable. And I am not afraid of hardship.”

The Chancellor studied him for a long, silent moment. “You are also,” he said, “the son of a man who has spent his life avoiding the very politics you now wish to navigate.”

Ting-zhi did not react. “My father taught me to value integrity over ambition. That does not mean I cannot serve.”

The Chancellor’s voice whipped out. “And you would ask a delicate flower of Shangjing to face such hardship?”

A faint smile touched Ting-zhi’s lips as he bowed. “Perhaps the flower is not as fragile as it seems.”

The Chancellor rose without another word and walked to the window. Hands clasped behind his back, he gazed out in silence.

Outside, the wind stirred the bamboo, their leaves whispering against one another.

Gu Ting-zhi waited with bated breath.

“Storms are coming,” he finally said. “Perhaps it is just as well you both leave the capital for a while.”

Ting-zhi’s eyes flicked to him in astonishment.

But he did not ask.

Instead, he bowed respectfully and said, “I will take care of her.”

Chapter 31