“Yes, Doctor,” Lian said. “More than willing.” Then bit her lip at those last words. Had she sounded too eager? Did she really want their lives more closely entangled with his?

When the doctor left, her mother lingered at the door and didn’t shut it until he had descended the staircase.

“He’s here for dinner so often, Mother,” Lian said.

“We need to build our connections,” her mother said, looking flustered. “It’s how the world works.”

A loud pounding interrupted what Lian was going to say. Shao’s voice called her name and when she opened the door he almost fell inside. He looked disheveled and frantic, as though he hadn’t slept all night.

“Is she here? Have you seen Sparrow?” he asked. His eyes darted in all directions about the room as though Sparrow might be hiding from him.

“Not recently,” she said. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s been days and she’s still missing,” Shao said, collapsing into a chair. “She’s been very quiet, maybe even troubled. I hoped she had come to see you. That she might be here.”

Sparrow’s room in the servants’ quarters was tidy, the bed neatly made. He’d searched the drawers, the trunk at the foot of her bed, but not knowing what she owned, he couldn’t tell what was missing. Neither could anyone else.

“But I found this.” He pulled a letter from his jacket, gave it to Lian. “It’s to Sparrow from Professor Kang, of all people. I think it must’ve arrived the same time as the letter from Shorty, both mailed from Chengtu.”

I agree with your assessment. Each advancement brings us closer to enlightenment and with enlightenment comes the possibility of immortality. A man who lives a passive existence without purpose cannot advance to a better state in the next life. Perhaps the best choice is to let go and wait. Trust in the Wheel of Rebirth, whose purpose is to bring worthy souls closer to enlightenment with each reincarnation. The advantage of immortality is that one can wait.

“It sounds as though they were carrying on a discussion about spiritual beliefs,” he said. “It couldn’t possibly be anything to do with her disappearance.”

The advantage of immortality is that one can wait. Lian handed back the letter. “What will you do next?”

“My father has called the police.” He put his head in his hands. “Tomorrow there’ll be a missing persons notice in the newspaper. I knew she wasn’t happy about an arranged marriage, but she should’ve said something. No one was going to force her.”

“Will you stay for something to eat?” Lian’s mother asked.