Page 49 of Markets & Mooncakes

Veronica looks at me with a curious expression on her face. "Why would I leave?"

"If you don't want to face Lady Sun Jinglan."

"I never said that. It's fine, I can deal with tea and biscuits."

"Mooncakes," I correct.

"Tea and mooncakes." She takes a deep breath.

I give her a strange look. This is very unlike Veronica, and I'm not sure what to make of it.

Before I can ask her about it, the door opens and the ambassador's daughter drifts into the room looking more elegant than I can ever manage, followed by her attendant, who goes to stand with the maids who usually tend to the mountain solar.

Lady Sun Jinglan puts her hands together and bows from the waist. "Your Highnesses." When she rises, she catches Veronica's eyes, and my sister starts to cough.

"My Lady," I say loudly, trying to cover it up. "I hope you don't mind, but I asked the man who runs Chaguan Tea Shop if he could lend us a table for today." I gesture to where it's set up by the window. I hope that I haven't overstepped in doing so, but she said that the mooncakes were traditional for a festival that she missed, and so this seemed like it would be a good idea.

"I do not know what to say, Your Highness. This is not what I expected."

"If it's a problem, then I can have the servants set our usual table..."

"No, it is wonderful," she says with a smile.

"Then we should sit." I head over to the other side of the table and sit down, arranging my skirts so that they don't annoy me.

Veronica manages to regain her composure, but almost trips over the hem of her dress as she takes a seat, which isn't what I expect from her at all.

Lady Sun Jinglan has fewer issues and simply kneels in front of the table, placing her hands on her lap and looking very serene. She's good at that.

"Thank you for having tea with me today, Your Highnesses," she says, looking between us. "I understand that this is a lot of time out of your day."

"I normally take tea now," I say. Though in truth, I don't mind too much. Mama might be the one who wanted us to entertain Lady Sun Jinglan to begin with, but I like that I'm able to talk to her about the mooncakes.

"Ah. And you, Your Highness?" the other woman asks as she looks at my sister.

Veronica clears her throat. "Sometimes. It depends what I'm doing with my day. It is a pleasure to be here with you now."

Lady Sun Jinglan smiles at her. "That means much to me." She holds gazes with Veronica for longer than I think is normal, though what do I know? I don't like making eye contact with anyone other than Nate.

Veronica pulls her eyes away and looks at the table. "Oh, this dragon is very sweet," she says, gesturing to the clay sculpture sitting on the table.

"The owner of the Chaguan tea shop sent it," I tell my sister. "He used one when we were there too."

"You do not need to say Chaguan and tea shop, Your Highness, Chaguan means tea shop."

"Oh." I frown. "Why would he call it tea shop tea shop?" I ask.

Veronica reaches out and touches my arm. "I think he called it that to tell the Shengdanese people living in the castle and village that it's the kind of tea shop they have in Shengda."

"Oh. Well, I don't know about that, never having been to one before, but it was a wonderful place to go. He has very good food." Even the salty plums, which have grown on me since we had the bread and butter pudding, though I won't be eating them alone. "That's where Chef Matthews got the lotus seeds for the mooncakes."

"I think that I will visit myself," Lady Sun Jinglan says. "You said that he had a tea pet?"

"A tea pet?" I ask curiously.

She smiles and gestures to the clay dragon. "This is a tea pet, Your Highnesses."

"Veronica," my sister blurts out.