The Player

The study door was ajar, spilling out a dim yellow light.

Li Tui stopped outside, tucked the tea caddy in his arms closer to his chest, then freed a hand to knock. His knuckles rapped against the wood, making several muffled thuds.

"Come in."

It was Zhao Mingsheng's voice.

Li Tui pushed open the door and entered. Two oil lamps burned in the study, their dim yellow glow illuminating one side of Zhao Mingsheng's face and leaving the other in shadow. He sat behind the desk, holding a yellowed book. When Li Tui came in, he looked up, then lowered his gaze to the page again.

"The Third Young Master asked me to bring you some tea." Li Tui bowed and set the black-lacquered wooden caddy on an empty spot beside the desk.

"What else did he say?" Zhao Mingsheng asked suddenly.

Li Tui lowered his eyes and replied, "The Third Young Master also said he read Annotations on the Treatise of Nourishing Qi today. There were a few parts he didn't understand, and he hoped you could explain them."

Zhao Mingsheng's brows twitched almost imperceptibly.

He reached out, slowly rolled up the sheet of calligraphy he had just finished, and set it aside. His movements were unhurried, as if he were weighing something.

"Annotations on the Treatise of Nourishing Qi..." He repeated the title, his gaze settling on Li Tui's face. "What made him think of reading that all of a sudden?"

Li Tui answered evenly, "I don't know."

Zhao Mingsheng stared at him for two breaths, then suddenly smiled. The smile was faint and never reached his eyes. "He's certainly grown."

The creases at the corners of his lips lingered for a moment, then faded. Zhao Mingsheng didn't look at the tea caddy again or press further. He merely leaned back, lightly tapping the open book with his fingertips.

The lamplight wavered, blurring half his face.

"Sit."

His voice was even, giving nothing away.

Li Tui didn't sit. He stood with his hands at his sides, two paces from the desk.

Zhao Mingsheng didn't insist. He closed the book and looked up at him. "By my reckoning, you've been in the residence nearly half a year."

Li Tui lowered his head, his manner deferential. "Yes. It's all thanks to you taking me in, sir, that I've been able to earn a steady meal here."

Zhao Mingsheng shook his head slightly, the gesture barely perceptible. "That's nothing. The residence has its rules. If someone is found to have a spiritual root and meets the requirements, of course we take them in." He leaned back against his chair.

Li Tui said nothing.

Zhao Mingsheng nodded to himself, his gaze lingering on Li Tui's face for a moment. "You've become much steadier than when you first arrived."

He rose and paced to the window. Outside, the night was thick and dark; Li Tui couldn't see a thing.

"Cultivation is about letting things take their natural course." Zhao Mingsheng stood with his back to Li Tui, his voice drifting over slowly. "You can't rush it, and you can't... let it throw you into chaos."

Li Tui looked up at his back. His indigo robe caught the lamplight with a dark sheen, the fabric over his chest rising and falling faintly with each breath.

"There's a lot going on in the residence lately." Zhao Mingsheng turned around, his gaze returning to Li Tui. "The Third Young Master is a restless sort. Since you're serving at his side, you'll need to be especially attentive."

"I understand."

"Good." Zhao Mingsheng walked back behind the desk and sat down. He lifted a teacup and raised its lid, but didn't drink, merely watching the tea leaves drift and settle inside.

Silence fell over the study, broken only by the faint crackling of the lamp wicks.

After a long while, Zhao Mingsheng set down the teacup and looked at Li Tui. "You're a clever one."

"A clever person should know what to do and what not to do," Zhao Mingsheng said slowly. "Some excitement looks tempting, but get too close and you'll burn your hands."

He paused, then added, "Keep your head down and do your job. That's the only way to make it in the long run."

Li Tui's heart sank a little.

The words sounded like an ordinary warning, but his tone, his gaze... he was clearly drawing a line.

"I'll remember that." Li Tui bowed in response.

Zhao Mingsheng watched him for a moment, then suddenly waved a hand. "Go."

Li Tui stepped back twice, turned, and left the study. The door closed behind him, shutting away the dim yellow light.

Inside the study, Zhao Mingsheng didn't move.

He stared at the closed door for a long while before finally speaking in a low voice, as if addressing someone. "That boy... the thing in his chest is rather interesting."

A faint scoff came from the shadows.

"Blood Fiend Qi that gathers without dissipating. It is rather interesting," the hoarse voice replied, as if seeping out from the deepest darkness in a corner. "But he's only a Qi Refining trifle. He won't stir up any waves."

Zhao Mingsheng didn't respond. He simply lifted the teacup and took a sip. The tea had long since gone cold; it tasted bitter and astringent.

He fell silent for a moment, then lightly tapped the desk twice with his fingertips.

Suddenly, he asked, "Do you think he could be an unpredictable factor?"

The shadows were silent for a moment.

"An unpredictable factor?" The voice chuckled softly, its dry laughter like dead leaves scraping together. "A chess piece with a little strange flesh growing on it—how much can it really change? The board is only so big, and there are only so many hands moving the pieces."

The words went unfinished, but their meaning was clear.

"True." Zhao Mingsheng slowly let out a breath and leaned back in his chair. "Then... we'll keep watching."