The day began with a minor anomaly in the patrol pattern.
I noticed it during my morning walk to the pavilion. Two new guards stood at the main intersection, both with relaxed postures but attentive eyes. They were looking outward, as if their job was to prevent something from entering.
Interesting. A change in the security protocol.
It was not my problem, so I continued. Liling was already in the kitchen when I arrived, humming something while she chopped vegetables. She wore her hair differently, with a single jade hairpin instead of two.
"Good morning, Kenji. Did you sleep well?" Liling asked.
"Enough. Is the Lady awake yet?" I replied.
"She is still meditating. She says the adjustment you suggested is helping her with more than just the transition problem," Liling looked at me sideways. "What exactly did you tell her?"
"Only that Qi probably prefers curves instead of right angles. Basic physics applied to internal energy."
"Basic physics," Liling shook her head with a smile. "Sure, that is what all servants understand."
We worked in silence for a few minutes. Xiao Yue's breakfast had evolved subtly over the last few weeks with more protein and fewer refined carbohydrates. Liling had implemented the changes so gradually that Xiao Yue probably had not noticed them consciously.
"Hey," Liling broke the silence, her tone casual but with an edge of curiosity, "have you seen more guards lately? Around the pavilion, I mean."
So she had noticed it too.
"Two at the main intersection. Different from the usual ones."
"Mmm," Liling frowned slightly. "Matriarch Feng came by yesterday evening. She spoke with the Lady for almost an hour."
Feng visited personally. That is unusual.
"What did they talk about?"
"I do not know. The Lady asked me to leave them alone," Liling lowered her voice. "But when Feng left, the Lady was... I do not know how to describe it. Not exactly happy, but not upset either. Thoughtful, perhaps."
Before I could answer, Xiao Yue entered the kitchen. It was the first time she had done so. Usually, she waited in her private dining room.
"Good morning," she said. Her tone was neutral, but there was something different in her posture. Less rigid.
"Good morning, Lady," Liling and I responded in unison.
Xiao Yue leaned against the doorframe, watching us work. It was an informal gesture that did not fit her usual formality.
"Kenji, Matriarch Feng wants to see you this afternoon. After lunch."
My stomach tightened slightly. A summons from the Matriarch was always significant.
"Did she mention the reason?"
"No. She only said she has questions about your... unique perspective," Xiao Yue studied me with her golden eyes. "About systems, specifically."
Feng wants to talk about systems. Did she find out what I did with Xiao Yue?
"Understood, Lady."
"You do not have to worry," Xiao Yue added, and there was something almost reassuring in her voice. "The Matriarch is... satisfied with your work here. This is not a reprimand."
Liling looked at me with curiosity. Xiao Yue rarely offered explanations or reassured anyone without being asked.
The rest of the morning passed normally. I served breakfast, Xiao Yue trained, and I watched from my usual position near the window. Her form had improved notably. The transition problem had practically disappeared.
During lunch, Xiao Yue spoke more than usual.
"I have been thinking," she began, delicately poking a piece of fish, "about what you said regarding systems. About identifying the problem before trying to fix it."
"It is just a basic process of elimination."
"Maybe. But most people do not do it. They simply... push harder when something does not work," she paused. "I used to do that."
It was the most personal admission I had heard her make.
"And now you do not," I observed.
"Now I ask different questions," she looked directly at me. "Thanks to you."
Liling was practically glowing with satisfaction from her position by the door.
After lunch, I walked toward the main administrative building. The guard at the entrance recognized me and let me pass without comment.
Feng was sitting behind her desk, reviewing an account book. She gestured for me to sit.
"Kenji," her voice was as dry as ever. "Several weeks have passed since I assigned you to the Young Lady."
"Yes, Matriarch."
Feng closed the account book and folded her hands on the desk.
"The reports are... interesting. The Young Lady is eating better and sleeping better. Her mood has improved notably," she paused. "And yesterday, during her morning training, she executed a technique that had been failing for months. Perfectly."
I said nothing. In negotiations, silence was a tool.
"Did you have something to do with that?"
"I made an observation, Matriarch. The Lady did the work."
Feng studied me with those hawk eyes that missed no detail.
"An observation about Qi flow and movement transitions," she pulled a paper from a drawer. "I have also heard that you have been... consulting on cultivation texts, explaining concepts in ways that the masters of the clan do not use."
Someone has been reporting. It is not Liling. Maybe one of the servants who cleans the pavilion.
"I only help when asked, Matriarch. I do not pretend to know more than the clan masters."
"No, you do not," Feng leaned back in her chair. "But you see things they do not see."
Another pause. A longer one this time.
"Tell me, Kenji. If you had to evaluate the current state of the Silver Cloud Clan as an... organization, what would your diagnosis be? Give me an answer in your merchant language."
It was a dangerous question, a potential trap. But Matriarch Feng had not called me to ask trap questions. She had called me because she wanted an honest perspective.
I decided to give it to her.
"Structural dysfunction at the managerial level," I said, keeping my tone neutral. "The nominal leader is absent. Real power is fragmented between the Council and the successors. There is internal competition but without clear metrics for success. Resources are allocated by lineage instead of competence. And valuable assets remain undeveloped because they do not fit the traditional evaluation model."
Feng did not move, but something changed in her expression. It was more like... confirmation.
"Valuable assets left undeveloped," she repeated. "Like the Young Lady?"
"Like the Young Lady," I confirmed.
Silence. Feng stood up and walked toward the window overlooking the inner garden.
"You are dangerous, do you know that?" she said without turning around. "Making others see is the most subversive act that exists in a structure that depends on everyone looking in the same direction."
"It is not my intention to be subversive, Matriarch."
"I know. That is precisely why you are even more dangerous," she turned to look at me. "You are simply efficient. And efficiency, in an inefficient system, is an existential threat."
I did not know what to say to that, so I said nothing.
Feng returned to her desk and sat down.
"I have made some adjustments," she said, her tone returning to a professional one. "Security around the Silent Bamboo Pavilion has been discreetly reinforced."
She is protecting Xiao Yue.
"Spies, Matriarch?"
"Young Master Zian will be curious about why his sister is suddenly training with renewed vigor. Curiosity is natural. But in this case, it is a distraction we cannot afford," she looked directly at me. "Your new job is to help the Young Lady develop her potential. My job is to ensure you have the space to do so. Is that clear?"
"Completely clear, Matriarch."
"Good," Feng opened another drawer and pulled out a small cloth bag. She pushed it toward me. "Your salary has been adjusted. Sixty copper coins per week, effective immediately."
An increase. This was completely unexpected.
"Matriarch, I..."
"It is not generosity," she interrupted. "The Young Lady is progressing. That has value for the clan. Your compensation should reflect it."
I took the bag. It was heavier than I expected.
"Is there anything else I need to know, Matriarch?"
Feng considered the question.
"Yes. The Young Lady requested access to the clan library of techniques. Specifically, to the manuals on fire element cultivation," a significant pause. "That request was denied by the Council three years ago. This morning, I personally approved it."
Feng is moving pieces. She is positioning her as a political threat.
"Will the Council not object?"
"The Council," Feng said with a tone that could freeze water, "has no jurisdiction over my administrative decisions regarding the educational access of the Clan Master's family members. If they object, I will remind them of that fact."
I stood up and made an appropriate bow.
"I understand, Matriarch. I will continue my work."
"Kenji," she stopped me before I reached the door. I turned back. "The Young Lady trusts you. That is rare for her. Do not waste that trust."
"I will not."
"Good. You may leave."
I left the office with many more questions than answers. I had concluded that Matriarch Feng was not just an efficient administrator. She was a high level cultivation strategist. And I, apparently, was one of her pieces in a much larger game.
The question is: exactly what game?
When I returned to the pavilion, Liling practically ambushed me at the entrance.
"Well? What did she want?"
"To talk about my work with the Lady."
"Is that all?"
"And to give me a raise."
Liling blinked. "A raise? How much?"
"Fifteen more coins per week."
"That is... Kenji, that is almost a guard's salary."
"Apparently, helping the Lady has value for the clan."
"Apparently," Liling repeated, but there was something thoughtful in her expression. "Did she tell you anything else?"
"That security around the pavilion has been reinforced. And that the Lady now has access to the clan library of techniques."
Liling let out a muffled sound. "The library of techniques? Kenji, the Lady has been asking for access to that for years. They always told her no."
"Not anymore."
"This is... this is big," Liling grabbed my arm. "Do you know what it means?"
"That Matriarch Feng is investing in the Lady's development."
"Not just that. It means someone in power is finally betting on her," Liling's eyes watered slightly. "After all these years, someone finally sees her."
That night, during dinner, I casually mentioned to Xiao Yue that the Matriarch had informed me about the library access.
She set her chopsticks down carefully.
"Did she tell you?"
"Yes, Lady."
"And what do you think about it?"
It was a strange question. As if my opinion mattered.
"I think it is an appropriate recognition of your potential. And a resource you should use."
Xiao Yue looked at me for a long moment.
"Feng also told me something else," she finally said. "She told me you have been helping me in ways that go beyond your duties as an assistant. That your observations have been... valuable."
"I am just doing my job, Lady."
"No," Xiao Yue said softly. "You are doing much more than that. And I... appreciate it."
Liling, standing by the wall, was smiling so widely it looked like her face would break.
"She also told me," Xiao Yue continued, "that I should... appreciate the relationships that demonstrate real value," she looked directly at me. "I believe you are one of those relationships, Kenji."
I did not know what to say. Fortunately, Xiao Yue continued before I had to respond.
"Tomorrow, I want you to accompany Liling and me to the clan library. Officially, as my assistant. I want your opinion on which techniques might be most suitable for my... specific constitution."
"Would I be qualified to give an opinion on that, Lady?"
"Probably not," Xiao Yue admitted, and there was the slightest trace of humor in her voice. "But your unqualified observations have been more useful than the qualified advice I have received in years. So yes, I want your opinion."
"Then you shall have it, Lady."
Later, in my room, I sat on my bed looking at the bag of coins. Sixty per week. In about two months, I had gone from a dying beggar to a well paid personal assistant of the Clan Master's daughter. I had gained the trust of two dangerously capable women. And now, apparently, I had the discreet backing of the most powerful person in the clan's administration.
But I had also learned something new today. Feng was not just managing the clan. She was playing a power game. And for some reason, she had decided I was a useful piece in that game.
The question was whether I was okay with that. In my previous life, I had been the player, not the piece.
But in my previous life, I was also dead.
Here, at least, I was alive and building something. Perhaps not the corporate empire I had imagined, but something. A relationship with Xiao Yue that felt... genuine. A friendship with Liling that I had not anticipated but valued. A purpose that went beyond simple survival.
I lay down, looking at the wooden ceiling.
Tomorrow I would go to the clan library. I would help Xiao Yue find suitable techniques.
And maybe, just maybe, in the process of helping her reach her potential, I would find something I had lost in my previous life.
I did not know what it was yet. But for the first time in two lives, I was curious to find out.