Free Dragon Bones by Lisa See Page A

intrusion into his private life. Still….
    “Hulan may not appreciate what you have done—”
    Zai’s laughter faded. “This is not just for Hulan. You have suffered too. She needs to understand that.”
    David didn’t know how to respond.
    After a moment, Zai said, “She loves you. She’s just forgotten how to show it.”

THE ENFEOFFED DOMAIN
    (Hou Fu)

The domain of nobles extends 500 li from the Imperial Domain. This is home to high ministers, great officers, barons, and princes.

ALTHOUGH HULAN KNEW SHE WAS BEING MANIPULATED FOR reasons she didn’t fully understand, she could rationalize Zai’s motives for sending her and David to Bashan. David was perfect for the job. No one in China knew how to handle a situation like this more discreetly than he did. He’d be able to find the missing artifacts and protect the national and international reputation of the Cultural Relics Bureau if charges of corruption, theft, or bad labor practices came up. And Hulan had experience in dealing with both murder and foreigners. But why had Zai sent her deliberately out of the room to speak with David alone? When David got back to Hulan’s office, she asked what that conversation had been about, suspecting there was another political thread running through this situation that Zai hadn’t wanted to discuss with her.
    A bemused look came over David’s face. He rubbed his forehead as he searched for an answer. She assumed it had to be bad. He tried to smile reassuringly, but it came across as an embarrassed grimace. “I’m not going to lie to you. Zai sees this as a romantic interlude for us,” he admitted at last. “A kind of second honeymoon.”
    Hulan felt herself blush, and she suddenly didn’t know where to look. “I—”
    “Don’t worry, Hulan.” David laughed, and she knew he was trying to defuse the awkwardness of the situation. She joined in his laughter, shaking her head. But when he added, “Nothing will happen unless you want it to,” she colored again.
    The next several hours were crazy. She gathered some things from her office and made a few calls to wrap up her other cases, then Investigator Lo drove her and David back to the compound. While David threw some clothes in a bag, Hulan visited her mother and wrote out instructions for the nurse. When it came time for Hulan to pack, she found herself thinking again of Zai’s plan. There was such unease between her and David now, but the possibilities of this trip kindled the first sexual thoughts she’d had in a long time. She was embarrassed that Zai had even discussed her marriage with David and unsure whether David would be at all interested in her anymore, but there was something about the whole situation that made her feel…. She struggled to find the right definition for her state of mind. Finally, she told herself that she didn’t want anything to happen—how could it after everything that had passed between her and David?—but she owed it to Zai to try. When it didn’t work out, she would be able to tell him she’d done her best out of respect for him.
    At 9:00 P.M. , Investigator Lo picked up David and Hulan to take them to the airport. On the way, Hulan asked Lo to tell Pathologist Fong to go ahead and do further tests on the notebook paper found in Brian McCarthy’s pocket. Lo should also begin gathering data on all the foreigners and Chinese officials at the site. It wouldn’t hurt if he took a look at Director Ho’s dangan too, for he seemed overly concerned about his own position. Once Hulan got to Bashan, she would obtain a copy of the police report on Brian’s death from the local Public Security Bureau.
    When she concluded, Lo glanced at her in the rearview mirror and said, “I still don’t understand why Vice Minister Zai has ordered me to stay behind. I should go with you.”
    She sensed rather than saw David’s amused smile.
    “It’s not our place to question the vice minister’s orders,” Hulan answered