Yin-Yang Lotus, Yamamoto Loutai (Third Update)

Dinner was served in a side hall of the Ye Residence.

It was a victory feast, but there was none of the expected clinking of cups or drunken revelry.

On the table sat a Tianfuhao braised pork knuckle, sliced evenly thin, two roast ducks crisp outside and tender within, and several plates of delicate cold dishes.

The wine was aged Huadiao, warmed through. It glowed amber in their cups.

Ye Lanzen sat at the head of the table. He took only a few bites and drank two small cups of wine, offered a few words about "guarding against arrogance and impatience," then left his apprentices to eat and retired early.

Once their master had gone, the mood loosened a little, though no one dared let himself go completely.

What had happened that day was too momentous. Magic Artifacts, Foreigners, people from the Eastern Isles, the Dragon Vein—each matter hung over their heads like a blade, leaving them uneasy.

They finished their meal hastily and dispersed.

The night was black as ink. Tianjin's wind carried the tang of the sea and the lingering smell of gunpowder.

Lu Xingmin stood by the door in a gray cloth gown. He tapped his long-stemmed pipe against the doorframe and jerked his chin at Qin Geng.

"Fifth, come on. Sit with me a while."

Qin Geng understood. He pulled his gown tighter around himself and followed his seventh senior brother.

Osmanthus Fragrance Studio.

By day, the place looked like a shop selling paper offerings. By night, it had an eerie air that was hard to describe.

No lamps burned in the main hall. Moonlight slipped through the window lattice and fell across the painted faces of the paper figures.

Their cheeks bore two circles of highland red, and smiles curled at the corners of their