At least one of them was enjoying this ridiculous trip to the Nie house in the Ring City.It was just as crowded as it had appeared when Leander flew over.Two- and three-story walls lined either side of the stone road.Every block or so, the wall ended, and there was a three- or four-inch gap before a wall with a different decorative edge began.No windows.No signs.Just gray and beige and white walls topped by tiled roofs with elaborate trim, and every once in a while, a door.
“See anything yet?”Xi asked.
“Walls,” Leander said before he settled back into his seat.
“I feel like a rat in a maze,” Xi whispered.Leander would have warned him to avoid offending anyone who was listening, but he didn’t want to nag Xi when he was still recovering.The litter stopped in front of a deep red door.A pair of white stone fu lions stood on either side, guarding the stone steps, and green pillars stood on either side.Above the door was elaborate scrollwork and bands of blue and red and teal, all carved from wood.It was one of the more elaborate doors they’d passed.Two middle-aged women put out a red carpet trimmed in gold, and Leander realized they had reached their destination.
He stared at the carpet in horror.Why would servants put out a carpet for them...and on the street?It was an excessive gesture, and it made Leander deeply uncomfortable.He focused on Xi and took a deep breath to center himself.“We’re here,” he said.
Xi’s eyes opened, and he seemed more alert than Leander expected.“Okay.Let’s get the show on the road,” he said, clapping his hands.
Leander glared at him before stepping out of the carriage.He tried to use Shanlin as an excuse to leave the stupid carpet, but a servant blocked his way.The last thing Leander wanted was to get in a pushing match with the Nie servants on their front door, so he smiled and moved back to the center of the ridiculous thing before turning to help Xi off.
“Oh no.Not proper.We help.You go.You go,” the older woman said, shooing Leander toward the door.Leander looked up into the litter, and Xi shrugged.He was following Leander’s lead.Since Leander didn’t have any choices that didn’t make him rude, he smiled at the servant and walked up the carpet toward the double doors.Two more servants pulled them open, showing a wide courtyard with a pair of trees flanking an inner gate.Given how crowded the street was, this outer courtyard was spacious and peaceful.
A round woman with salt and pepper hair and deep lines around her eyes greeted him.“Welcome!”she said warmly before shouting, “Xiaobo, you are late again!”Shanlin darted in and joined Leander, his arm going around Leander’s waist, no doubt seeking comfort.Leander glanced back to make sure Xi was still upright, and he found him watching with amusement as the servants rolled the carpet, not allowing Xi to step on it.
“I am coming.”A tall man with gray at his temples and wire-rim glasses hurried across the courtyard.“Welcome, qidi of my second son.I am Nie Xiaobo, father of your qixiong.”
Putting aside the carpet, which might be either a compliment to Leander or an insult to Xi, he bowed deeply.“I am Boon Lian.I greet the father of my qixiong and introduce Boon Shanlin, my son.”Leander put a hand on Shanlin’s shoulder.The boy became shy, pressing himself to Leander’s side.
“Welcome, young Shanlin.This house has lacked a little cicada for many years.This is Nie Huiling, mother to your qixiong,” Nie Xiaobo said as he gestured to his wife.She smiled so brightly that wrinkles enveloped her eyes.
Leander bowed.
“Welcome to the qidi of my second son and his son.We have prepared your rooms.Come.Come.”Nie Huiling ushered them inside, and as soon as Leander stepped over the threshold, the servants removed the red carpeting behind him, and the men who had carried the litter from the school marched away, the army of children who had been part of the train following.
“Thank you, mother of my qidi.I introduce Hu Xi, my qidi, who stands with me against significant enemies.”Leander did not know what led him to add the last part, but these people deserved to know the truth.They might be safe inside this magical space, but Leander could bring danger to their door if they ever visited the outer village.With an amused smile for the servants who rushed the carpet away as if Xi might contaminate it, Xi stepped into the outer courtyard and stood next to Leander.
“Welcome, Hu Xi,” Xiaobo said.“We are happy to have more life inside these walls.It is inauspicious that we have rooms with no occupants when there is so little space in the City of Ringed Beauty.Your presence will improve our numbers and luck.”He stepped back, inviting them in.A large gate led into the inner courtyard and family space, and narrow buildings stood on either side.The garden was too manicured for Leander, who preferred the wild and sharp spirits found in nature, but the plants still soothed his soul.
Xiaobo moved, not toward a public reception room, which Leander had expected, but toward the gate leading to the inner courtyard.Leander kept his hand on Shanlin’s shoulder as they followed.
“Tell me, little Shanlin,” Huiling said, “what do you like to do?”she asked in English.While she had a deep accent, she had no trouble speaking.
Leander did not expect her to address a child first, but perhaps the social forms were less rigid in the family.
“I helped Teacher Luo Zheng as he taught English for a few days.I liked that,” Shanlin said, his voice soft.He looked around at the ornate home and elaborate gate.This inner gate was red and green with deep reddish-brown pillars.Above, the scrollwork was yellow and gold.The inner courtyard was even larger than the outer one, with trees and a large koi pond.
“Maybe you could help me practice my English.I watch soap operas, but I do not have anyone to speak to.”
“What are soap operas?”Shanlin asked, curiosity coaxing him from Leander’s side.
“They are stories.Good ones.I will tell you everything about Geo and Emma and Dante and the others.You will like it.”Nie Huiling smiled again, and this time Shanlin grinned back at her.
“This is the home of my second son, Heng, when he visits,” Xiaobo said as he gestured to a house standing to one side.“You all have rooms within.The house opposite is for my first son, Zhiyuan .He has several friends living with him.I know it is traditional to remain with one’s parents, but some young men move if they can find space so that their older siblings have room to start families.It is quite filial,” he explained.
No doubt he worried Leander would disapprove of them housing men who left their families.From a Chinese point of view, that would make sense, but everyone Leander knew got transition paperwork and a small stipend so they could move out of the group home on their eighteenth birthday or the day they graduated high school, whichever came later.One of the older girls intentionally failed her senior year so she would have additional time before having to get an apartment.He had no problem with adults finding their own living arrangements.He was more uncomfortable sharing a courtyard and compound with Nie Zhiyuan.
“You are quite kind to host them,” Leander said with another bow.He prayed Xi was doing a lot of bowing.A lot.These people had much more status than Leander had assumed.
Xiaobo led them up three steps into the main house.Dark wood furniture contrasted with the light bamboo of the walls.Pots held graceful ferns and, more surprisingly, a ruscus tree.They were durable plants that always felt calm, and they could hold his eavesdropping magic for a ridiculously long time.He’d once held the spell for three days before the leaf had crumbled to dust.Someone had hung exquisite scrolls with graceful artwork and wise sayings, and light danced across crystal sculptures.
“Welcome,” Huiling said again, and with a wave of her hand, all the lanterns in the room lit brightly, transforming the space from a shadowed haven to a cheerful reception room.
“Cool!”Shanlin said.
Huiling laughed.“That is easy magic.I will teach you.”
