“Everyone’s here? Wonderful.”
It was already a season full of trouble; the stage had been set, and just as the ghosts and spectres were about to show themselves, Miss White Grape Wine’s words made Hu Ma’s spirit lift.
He hurried, “So where are they now?”
Before the words finished, a somewhat lazy voice rang out, laughing low: “What? Missing your sister?”
The voice sounded female, but it was not Miss White Grape Wine.
Hu Ma lowered his head and saw another thread of incense scent extending from the dark red mist and linking to the life-incense in his own censer.
His heart eased at once.
He smiled, “Miss Red Grape Wine, since parting at An Prefecture, we finally speak again…”
It was Miss Red Grape Wine who had connected in.
She sounded in good spirits and laughed, “Why do you sound a little guilty?”
“You remember when I led you to cut down Ji Tang of the Beggar Gang, and on our way back I had you pass a word to Little White — you didn’t pass it, did you?”
“…”
“Eh?”
Hu Ma was taken aback and answered cautiously, “I did pass it on…”
“Oh?”
Miss Red Grape Wine said, “Then when I asked Little White, why did she say with a straight face that she hadn’t?”
“?”
That put Hu Ma in an awkward spot.