The silence weighed on Wu Hao like a stone, and more than once he fought not to fidget and to prevent himself from speaking up and offering further justification. How long they sat there, he couldn't have said, but it felt like hours. The clicking eventually stopped its regular rhythm and instead began to tick erratically, shifting into a patternless ticking.

  With Lady Jin refusing to break the silence and with Wu Hao ready to sit here as long as her patience lasted, it shouldn't have been surprising that it was Jin Qilong who spoke first, and yet it somehow was. His hands had clenched into something approaching fists.

  "Mother," he said. "This is -"

  "Jin Qilong," she said, cutting through his words easily. A flash of annoyance radiated through her qi. His voice fell away through what had to be a long-held habit of not speaking if she looked like she might. "Shush."

  But for once he defied Wu Hao's expectations, because he didn't sit back down and he didn't shut up.

  "Let me speak," he insisted. "I don't know what you're intending on doing, but I think it sort of makes sense. He took resources, sure, and that's bad, but -" he paused to purse his lips, take a breath, be shocked to realize that he was backtalking his mother - "but he's just trying to defend himself from Shan Kong. I wouldn't have done the same, but I get why he did so."

  Lady Jin sighed.

  "Thank you, Jin Qilong," she said. "What do you think should be done with him, then?"

  "Er," Jin Qilong said. "Me?"

  "Yes, you," she said. "You, future leader of the Jin clan. You, son of Jin Murong, current Patriarch of the Jin clan, and son of Jin Qinghe, who is me. You, who'll take over command of the Red Saber Battalion one day. You, the master of this thieving vassal, or so I'm told. Tell me, what would your decision be?"

  "Er," Jin Qilong said again. To his credit he did seem to be thinking about it, but his eyes glanced at Wu Hao a few times and then back to his mother.

  "I would," he began, only to fall quiet again. "I'd..."

  "Don't dawdle," she ordered. "Decide. Don't speak again if you're not ready to stand behind your decision."

  His mouth shut, his jaw worked, and finally he nodded and spoke: "I'd order him to surrender all of the stolen resources to the clan. And, er, I'd caution him against doing it again. I... probably would order him not to tell anyone? I know it doesn't undo the theft itself, but I think it's worth investigating how much Librarian Zhu has skimmed, and why? Right?"

  His voice had started trying to sound calm, but it was a futile attempt. By the end of his decision it'd returned to his usual doubtful, questioning tone.

  For his part, Wu Hao would've accepted that decision, he'd have retreated to his room to seemingly brood, and afterwards he'd have killed himself afterwards to get the resources back. He'd stolen them fair and square, after all. But he didn't think that Lady Jin agreed.

  Lady Jin sighed again. "Oh, Jin Qilong."

  Jin Qilong trembled, and his gaze dipped. He stood there, defeated by that single sigh.

  "I'll need to remind your tutors to test you more rigorously," she said lightly. "I don't think they're doing their jobs, if that's your answer."

  "Yes, Mother," he said in a small voice.

  "No one needs a leader who simply pushes his problems into the future," she stated.

  "Then what should I have said?" he asked, with the last embers of rebellion in his voice.

  But instead of answering him, she turned to Wu Hao.

  "You're brave and stupid enough that you think reporting him to me will see you forgiven for your crime, or at least reduce your punishment. You're attempting to give me this as a bribe, to make me think you're useful as a thief in my employ rather than working against me, and to prove your level of talent. Is that all correct?"

  "Yes, Lady Jin."

  Though he hadn't thought about it in those terms, that was immaterial. And he'd hoped to keep the White Tiger Core himself.

  "Do you think this will work?"

  Wu Hao said nothing, and that was answer enough, he thought. In all honesty, this was a gamble.

  Finally, though, she seemed to have made her decision. Or, more likely, she'd long since made her decision, and she was simply going through this entire act to try and teach them a lesson.

  "There are things I abhor in this world," she said, and Wu Hao's heart dropped. "I abhor incompetence, loud incompetence most of all. I abhor those who expect others to do their work for them. And I also abhor waste."

  Wu Hao's heart skipped a beat. Was she going where he thought she was?

  "Killing you, if your tale is true, would be a waste. After all, your level of talent is worthy of some note, and your mentality is worthy of note also. Bravery without competence to match is mere foolishness and competence without bravery is a mentality fit for servants, but it appears you have both enough to steal your way into the library, at least."

  "Thank you, Lady Jin," Wu Hao murmured.

  "Moreover," she said, giving him a piercing look. "You're smart enough to realize the consequences of your actions and to know whose legs to cling to, it seems. Perhaps you'll even live to grow smart enough to think before you act, at some point."

  It was a compliment, and yet somehow it chafed at Wu Hao to be described that way. Like a particularly intelligent dog, perhaps, or some other type of pet.

  "I questioned my son's wisdom in letting you live," she said lightly, as if she hadn't just said she'd nearly decided to kill him in his sleep. "It makes sense to me now, though. My son is quick to think but slow to act; you're quick to act, slower to think. Perhaps together you might achieve a proper balance."

  Jin Qilong winced, and so did Wu Hao, but then what she'd actually said became clearer in his mind.

  "You've decided I'm to survive, then," he said. "Is that correct, Lady Jin?"

  She waved a hand. "For now."

  He bowed, more because it seemed proper than because he really felt grateful. A flood of emotions was supposed to run through him at the mere announcement, he was sure, but mostly he just felt a vague disappointment. If all he'd gotten for his effort was a reprieve from his own actions, then why bother with reporting this?

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  It seemed this wasn't the path, either. He'd have to return to his rooms and reset the day until he found a way to keep the White Tiger Core for himself, or failing that something of equal value.

  "The mistake my son made," she continued, "was trying to simply ignore the theft. Not just the theft from the library, but the embezzlement also. Leaving all else aside, one must not forget that Librarian Zhu was taking resources from the clan. Any resource the clan provides come from us; hence he was stealing from us."

  Jin Qilong winced again at the obvious rebuke.

  Wu Hao blinked a few times. She didn't sound all that upset at the thought of being stolen from, and she didn't even seem all that surprised.

  "You knew of the embezzlement," Wu Hao said. He didn't mean for it to be an accusation, but it was. She might not have known the exact mechanism, but she knew that something was off.

  "Of course I knew," she said dmissively. "Do you think I'm a fool, boy? There is a saying: friendships are not eternal, but benefits are."

  Wu Hao stared at her. Did she have a saying for everything? A spike of irritation ran through him.

  "It'd be a fool who, given the control of the library, didn't institute some scheme to profit off it. Without such benefits, who would bother to accept a position such as the one he holds? I've ignored the fool, the same way I ignore at least five such schemes that I know of, as long as I receive a cut of the profit."

  Five? Was it really that common? Wu Hao felt that his horizons had been broadened significantly. What did that make sects, then, except giant markets where everyone was attempting to scam benefits out of everyone else?

  Her eyes bored into Wu Hao's.

  "As a matter of fact," she told him, "I find myself having to tolerate the company of thieves more often, as of late."

  He took the jab, feeding it to the nest of anger that still remained in his chest. Just because it'd cooled didn't mean it'd gone entirely. He'd still find a way to get free, the way he'd sworn to. Lady Jin must have seen the anger in his eyes and a very thin current of amusement ran through her qi before it vanished again.

  "Then why?" he asked. "Why expose Librarian Zhu?"

  She shook her head. "First because he didn't give me any of the benefits. Hence whatever friendship we have is over. Secondly, how quickly you forget. What did I just say that I abhor?"

  "Incompetence," Wu Hao said quickly. "Relying on others, waste - oh."

  "Yes," Lady Jin said. "That his scheme can be undone by a particularly clever child - that doesn't speak of incompetence, it shouts it from the rooftops. Why do we need someone so stupid as that? The clan would be better off without him."

  "What will you do, Lady Jin?" he asked.

  "He's outlived his usefulness to me," she said casually. "He will be cast away."

  Jin Qilong nearly said something but, in the face of his mother's warning gaze, refrained.

  "Punishment has only as much meaning as there is an intent to carry it out," Lady Jin said. "I suppose it's been a while since I've acted, so I'll be personally killing the chicken to scare the monkeys."

  "Lady Jin?" Wu Hao asked, unclear as to what she meant.

  "The first wife of my lord husband has been acting more heavy-handed, as of late," she told him. "I had hoped that tales of Jin Qilong's talent would scare her into compliance again, but it appears that those tales have yet to reach her ears."

  Jin Qilong winced again. If words were knives, Lady Jin knew exactly how to always go for the jugular and had no hesitation in doing so. Still, compared to Father destroying your entire self, what was being scolded, once in a while?

  This was an oppportunity, though.

  "Lady Jin," Wu Hao said, and bowed again. "Might we -"

  "Yes," she said, cutting him off and waving a hand. "I'll require Librarian Zhu's presence in the morning. Be there or don't, but know that if you come you'll be responsible for your own protection. Do not attempt to intervene. I've had enough of begging for someone's life for the next year or so, children."

  That was a threat directed more at Jin Qilong than Wu Hao, and he nodded stiffly.

  "Thank you, Lady Jin," Wu Hao said. He rose from his bow, which he'd kept while Lady Jin talked. He'd heard that some martial artists made an effort to raise up the people who were bowing to show their grace and humility, but he didn't think Lady Jin would ever bother.

  Finally, she laid one hand on top of the box that contained the White Tiger Core, clicked the lid closed, and sent it skidding back to the side of the table, stopping just in time. One corner of the box poked over the edge slightly, and Wu Hao's grasping hands closed over it protectively. He stared up at Lady Jin.

  "Keep it," she ordered. "And that book, and whatever other trinkets you've stolen."

  "Thank you, Lady Jin," Wu Hao said. Next to him, Jin Qilong gave a baffled smile, like he still couldn't believe the entire conversation had actually gone the way it did. There was a slight accusation in his gaze, too, at the mention of possible further thefts.

  "Remember, though," she said. "This is not a gift - it is another extension on your loan."

  She gave a small, cold smile. It was the first time that Wu Hao had seen her give a smile at all, at least without going through the act of hiding it behind her folding fan first.

  "You're the first person I've seen who's so eager to take on new debts when the old ones haven't been paid off yet."

  Wu Hao felt a deep flicker of annoyance at that, but compared to the relief he was feeling that his plan had actually worked, he shoved it away easily. He bowed his head to hide the massive grin that broke out on his face. A deal had been struck. He'd given her proof of his talent and she'd given tacit permission to keep going as he'd done until now.

  But all that said he still had to watch as they finally ate. Jin Qilong gave him several aside glances but in the end gave him nothing. Wu Hao went to his room hungrier than he'd ever felt, but who had the time to care about hunger? He had a treasure that was all his.