"Five years." Yuze sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"It wasn't my idea," Eirian muttered, mulish.
Stuck between them, Chenzhou curled in on himself. "I was trying to get rid of them."
"Well, to that end, Lady Yang would never have allowed the commander of those archers to be punished." Yuze leaned back in his chair. The table had been set for dinner, and they were just waiting for Lord Zhao to arrive. "Taking any action against him would have cost you her support."
"My father wouldn't care about that," Eirian said. "He doesn't pay attention to the minor nobility."
"Which is rather foolish," Chenzhou muttered. "Given that most revolutions in Sorrow's history were started by lower houses or people who weren't noble at all."
Eirian glared at him. "All you did was delay the inevitable. My father's not going to accept the replacement of his son."
"That's a bridge we can cross, then. It won't matter at all if we can't find out who was behind the miasma and stop them." Chenzhou argued. "You were right, we need to start investigating the Court."
"That will take months." Yuze calculated. "Maybe even a year. If people are forthcoming. And I would have to pull half of my agents back from the borderlands."
"Can you afford to do that?" Eirian asked, eyes thoughtful.
Yuze shook his head. "Not now. I think the fighting season is going to start early." Chenzhou groaned. "There's evidence the tribes are moving for a conclave."
"Already?" Chenzhou looked confused. "That's almost two months early."
Yuze nodded. "Something triggered it, but I don't know what yet."
"That's not good." Eirian pointed out. "If the tribes are gathering to move against us, we'll be fighting them on one front and my father on the other."
"So maybe five years isn't so bad," Chenzhou muttered and managed not to cower under Eirian's glare this time.
"He's right." Yuze stepped in to play peacekeeper. "We need the time to come up with a plan and deal with everything here."
Eirian subsided, but stated bluntly. "I can't have children. You're going to have to get Anna or someone else pregnant."
Chenzhou winced. "I know." For some reason, the idea sat like a rock in his belly.
"You could just adopt," Yuze pointed out. "The Camelia's inheritance laws are not written about blood, but legally recognized family."
Surprised, Eirian straightened. "Really?" She glanced at Chenzhou. "Would that be easier?"
"If we happen to find a child somewhere." Chenzhou cautioned. "I'm not just going to take someone's child."
"Of course not," Eirian scowled. "That's a crime."
They both seemed relieved to realize the other thought the same and it made Yuze smile as much as it was a relief to him too. So far, despite a few hiccups, Eirian and Chenzhou seemed to actually agree on many things. And they worked well together when they were side-by-side. There was more promise there than Yuze had originally expected when Chenzhou had first come to him with his plan to find a wife.
A knock on the door had all three of them turning as a butler announced Lord Zhao and let him in.
Mngzhe had changed into his regalia for dinner. Glittering robes and jewels that he was rarely seen in.
Yuze's eyebrows crept to his hairline as Chenzhou and Eirian both stood to welcome him. Watching the three of them greet each other was like watching an awkward dance with initial steps of confidence shuffling into an odd shyness and insecurity that seemed out of character for all three of them individually, but not so much when they were all together.
If Yuze hadn't been so confused, he'd have laughed.
As it was, he just watched all three of them find their seats as the kitchenmaids appeared with serving trays and the table lapsed into an awkward silence.
Mingzhe was glancing at Eirian and then away. Eirian was rather pointedly watching him in return and giving Chenzhou encouraging looks in between, and Chenzhou kept glancing at Eirian and then Mingzhe like he wanted to say something but immediately lost the courage to do so.
They made it all the way through filling their plates like that. Yuze waited to see who'd break the silence first and wasn't surprised when it was Chenzhou.
"I'm sorry." The rest of the table looked at Lord Ye in surprise. "For this afternoon. I didn't…react well." In a fit of nerves, he picked up his fork and then put it back down. I will endeavor to do better in the future." Chenzhou always looked so small when he apologized. It wasn't something people in his position did often, too afraid of the weakness it represented, but Chenzhou, to his credit, had always been willing to admit to his own failings.
A bit too willing, in Yuze's opinion. In some twisted way, he was trying to make up for being ill, but in this case, his words seemed to relax Lord Zhao.
"Thank you. I-, you are not the only one who did not handle it well, Lord Ye. Please accept my apology as well."
Yuze couldn't tell if Eirian was annoyed by all the apologizing or the eyes Chenzhou and Mingzhe were making at each other while they did, but she was definitely annoyed by something.
"Great, now that's over with." Eirian beamed. "You should try the pork and melon." She waved a kitchenmaid forward and had her put a serving on Mingzhe's plate.
"Do you like spice?" Chenzhou asked. "Eirian does. I had the kitchen make hot and sour glass noodles for you to try."
Mingzhe perked up. "That was my favorite dish as a child. My siblings used to complain when I had the kitchen make it every day for weeks."
"You have siblings?" Eirian accepted a bowl of the fragrant red noodles and took a deep breath. "This smells amazing.'
"A younger brother and sister." Mentioning them made Mingzhe smile.
"They're twins, aren't they?" Chenzhou asked. "I think I met them years ago."
What was Yuze watching? Mingzhe seemed to blossom as he talked about his younger siblings, and Eirian praised the spicy glass noodles. Between them, Chenzhou looked ridiculously pleased when either of them gave him their attention for a few seconds-
Oh.
For Rock's sake. Awkward mating rituals of the noble and the powerful in the flesh.
Yuze sighed and stood. "I can't tell who's trying to woo who, so I'm leaving." He waved off their attempts to stop him. "I'm not mad. Just, please, for my sanity, figure it out fast. I can't deal with this on top of everything else."
~ tbc