For Yao Meifeng, life in the Bamboo Silk House had come to resemble an idyllic version of the life she'd been living since fleeing from her parents and their insistence that she marry the juvenile young master of the Xiao family.
Initially, she'd planned to take missions from the Light half of the sect to maintain her contribution points and pay her share of the rent for the suite she shared with Su Yao. She'd learned very quickly, however, that while missions in the Light half of the sect were very easy, the competition for them was also very fierce.
While there were some sect missions that were posted as soon as they came in, the mission hall of the Light half of the sect preferred to make arrangements with clients enough in advance that it was able to plan and organize when things would become available to disciples. As such, every morning at first light, a deacon from the mission hall would begin filling the various boards with the requests of the day, making them available to disciples on a first come, first served basis. When disputes arose between disciples, a deacon would often select the disciple most qualified to meet the client's request.
As a new disciple, contending for opportunities to entertain wealthy young lords or powerful and influential individuals was beyond her reach. The deacons favored established disciples, some of whom had become well-known enough that clients requested them directly.
The missions that remained for Yao Meifeng often demanded much more of her time and further, offered lower rewards because she was required to bring along one of the eunuchs serving as bodyguards for disciples entertaining outside of the sect.
One of the first missions she took on required her to spend an entire day playing zither and serving tea to a group of wool merchants while they negotiated with the weaver's guild over this year's spring shearing. For the mortal merchants, it was extravagant to be entertained by a cultivator at all and Yao Meifeng felt that the weaver's guild who hired her did so in an attempt to overawe and intimidate the wool merchants from outside the city.
The gazes of the men varied from awe-filled respect of 'Fairy Yao' to open ogling from some men who approached her guard asking if she could be hired for 'additional services.' At the end of the day, she was awarded a single contribution point and a handful of spirit crystals.
The mission noted that if she heard any news of value while entertaining, she would be awarded additional contribution points, but what kind of news would she bring the sect from a gathering of wool merchants?
Yao Meifeng wasn't bothered by the leering stares of a few old mortals. With a heart encased in ice, such minor concerns hardly reached her. What she was bothered by, however, was the amount of time she spent away from the sect and cultivation for such small rewards. After her third such mission, she turned to the mission hall in the Dark half of the sect to see if it really was true that she could gain contribution points faster and have more time available for cultivation.
The first thing that struck her about the mission hall was that it was occupied by far fewer disciples. It seemed like competition for missions was very different than it was in the Light half of the sect. The second thing she learned was that, while many disciples visited first thing in the morning, it wasn't a chaotic affair where missions were posted by a deacon with a cluster of young women following eagerly behind them hoping for a choice mission.
Rather, each morning, disciples of the Dark half wandered through the mission hall, looking over things that were new from the previous day and deciding whether any of the missions suited them.
"Things really sit on the boards for more than a few days here?" Yao Meifeng said quietly when she noticed the dates on some of the missions.
"You're still fairly new to the sect aren't you?" the deacon observed, giving Yao Meifeng an evaluating look. "If you've seen the missions that make it to the Light half, then many of the missions you're seeing are ones that the Dark half of the sect has already rejected. Let me show you an example."
The mission the deacon showed her was very similar to the ones she'd undertaken in the Light half of the sect. Play zither and serve tea for a gathering of spice traders. This mission, however, carried additional details that would never appear in the Light half of the sect.
"Bi Chen is believed to transport spirit herbs and dubious medicines along with his shipments of spices," Yao Meifeng read. "Five contribution points for verifying the information about his hidden business activities, ten contribution points if I'm able to secure an opportunity to purchase his illicit goods? Why would we want to purchase dubious medicines from a shady merchant?"
"Because we've undertaken a separate request to kill the person responsible for distributing dubious medicines said to improve the chances of awakening and purge the body of the sequelae of failed attempts," the deacon explained.
"If it turns out to be Bi Chen, then negotiating an opportunity to purchase those medicines will create an opportunity to claim his life," the deacon said bluntly. "For this mission, however, you don't need to concern yourself with killing him. Even if you go on to set up a meeting with him, we can match you with a Senior Sister who will complete the other mission. For you, it's sufficient to gather information and arrange a meeting if possible."
"I see," she said softly. "You mentioned that the missions in the Light half of the sect were ones the Dark half had rejected. What would happen if no one accepted this mission?"
"If no one accepts this," the deacon explained. "Than the day of the meeting, we'll post this mission in the Light half. It will simply read 'Entertain at the meeting and bring back any news that may be interesting.' We do not ask the Light half to guide the conversations to topics that may be dangerous. After all, if Bi Chen or any of his partners in this business believe that someone is hunting them, things will become dangerous very quickly."
"The Light Half doesn't need to know what we're looking for," the deacon added. "Our success may be less in gathering information, but the sect maintains its reputation for always providing excellent entertainers."
"I see," Su Yao said, thinking carefully. "This meeting is in two days, how long has this mission been posted?"
"Six days ago," the deacon answered. "Has it caught your eye? There's no penalty for failure on this mission. If you're not able to gather the information we're looking for and you cannot set up a meeting, you'll still be awarded a single contribution point, just like you would receive in the Light half."
"Mmm, I think I can do this," Yao Meifeng said, with a voice as calm as still water. Like Wu Ling, she'd attended a number of classes at the Pure Virtue Musician's Hall on the art of conversation. While her teachers had stressed guiding conversation to topics of interest to potential partners or ways to bolster someone's reputation by creating opportunities to mention their achievements, steering a conversation to something like a younger sibling's struggles to awaken or some other related topic shouldn't be too difficult.
Missions like this became the norm for the young musician. She'd set herself a goal of fifty contribution points a month, twice her portion of the monthly rent for the suite she shared with Su Yao. While she still had hundreds of contribution points from the amount she was granted when she joined the sect, it wasn't in her nature to coast along, not after the year she'd spent running from her family.
Now that she'd found work she could do that met her needs, she only needed to complete five to ten missions a month to meet her goal. The rest of the time, she spent learning the songs of her Frozen Heart Requiem and practicing her cultivation.
It was on an overcast day plagued by brief showers of rain that Yao Meifeng received a surprise visitor. The woman who had sought her out wore a jade token among her dangling earrings that marked her not only as a Warden of the Dark half of the sect, but one who reported directly to the Hall Master!
"Disciple Yao Meifeng welcomes the Warden," she said, bowing deeply. "How may this disciple be of service," she asked without raising her eyes from the warden's soft silk shoes as she continued to bow.
"You may rise," the stern-looking woman said. "My name is Mu Shien, I serve as one of Hall Master Bian's aids. I'd like to speak to you about a matter," she said, striding in and taking a seat in the common room of the small suite.
"Of course," Yao Meifeng answered nervously, fetching a tea set and preparing tea for both the Warden and herself. "What does Warden Mu wish to discuss?"