Lanyun’s face paled and he felt the alcohol in his system instantly evaporate once he realized what Renwu was examining. It was the page on the ghost flower that Granny Tao had given him. 

Noticing him enter, Renwu’s golden eyes slowly turned to look at him. His finger tapped impatiently on the table. “Where have you been? I’ve been waiting for you all night.”

“I wasn’t planning on running away.” The words quickly flowed out of Lanyun’s mouth as he recalled Renwu’s threat from last night. “I was planning on leaving a detailed note explaining what I was doing and where my first destination was tomorrow. It’s technically not running away if I tell you where I’m going…right?” 

“Calm down, you’re blubbering like a buffoon,” Renwu said, furrowing his brows in growing irritation. “Lianbing already informed me of your innocence in regards to her lotus pond. I’m here for another matter.” He gestured towards the empty chair across from him. “Have a seat.” 

Recognizing that Renwu’s words weren’t an offer but a threat, Lanyun obediently sat down. 

“What is this?” Renwu asked, holding up the paper. 

“Just a sheet of pa—” Lanyun began to say before wisely choosing to change his words under Renwu’s glare. “I mean, a sheet of paper that details the origin story of the ghost flower and the environment in which it grows.”

“Where did you get this from?” Renwu continued his interrogation. 

“From Granny Tao.”

“Who is that?”

“She’s the gardener I work with at the Imperial Gardens,” Lanyun said, worried that Renwu would think he was making up a name. “I think her full name is Taofu, but she said I can call her Granny Tao.”

Renwu nodded in understanding. “Right, her. Doesn’t she oversee vegetables and fruits?” He gave the page a doubtful glance. “I’m surprised she knows anything about the ghost flower.”

“Well she didn’t originally,” Lanyun explained. “She had asked her gardening friends about it for me, and apparently one of them had a book with a page on it. That’s what she copied down on that paper for me.” He warily looked at Renwu holding the paper precariously close to the candle’s flame. Though Lanyun had already memorized the contents, he still didn’t want to lose it. “Could I have that back now?”

Ignoring Lanyun’s question, Renwu asked, “So do you plan on finding this flower first then?”

“Yes, unless you are here to offer me the zijin gourd that Yingliu wants or water from the Ningshi spring,” Lanyun said sharply. He was beginning to feel exasperated by Renwu's string of questions. 

Renwu smiled slightly at Lanyun’s words, seemingly amused by his annoyance. “It’s true that I don’t possess those two things, but I am here to make you an offer of assistance in your quest.” 

“Why would you do that?” Lanyun was suspicious of Renwu’s intentions, but he was also interested in the potential help of a celestial. 

“Because I need you to find something for me,” Renwu said.

Lanyun sighed and slumped back in his chair, uninterested in hearing any more. He gazed despondently at the wall.  “Well get in line. In case you already forgot, I have three other things to find first.”

“I’m not asking you to find something different,” Renwu said. “I also want a ghost flower.”

Lanyun turned his head back to look at Renwu. Shadows danced around the edges of the celestial’s face in the flickering candle light. Lanyun couldn’t help but wonder if the corruption also made celestials more beautiful. 

“What’s so special about this flower that everyone seems to be asking me for it?” Lanyun asked, playing nonchalance. He casually looked at his hands, picking at the dirt under his nails. 

Renwu grit his teeth at Lanyun’s indifferent attitude. “I can’t tell you that until you agree to my offer.”

“Then forget it,” Lanyun scoffed, crossing his arms. The flower was obviously rare, and he would rather not risk the trouble of going out of his way to find another one. According to the contract rules, he had less than a month left to fulfill the first one of the requests. Time was of the essence.

“You’re missing some information here,” Renwu said, putting the paper down before Lanyun. “I’ll tell you one of them now as a gesture of goodwill. Ghost flowers always grow in pairs. They complement each other like light and darkness.”

“What’s to stop me from picking both and then selling the other one to the highest bidder?” Lanyun shrugged. “Since it’s apparently in such high demand, I’m sure I could find a better offer.” 

Renwu narrowed his eyes. “And what makes you so naive to believe that you would even survive long enough to find it without the help of a celestial?”

“I’m not weak and helpless,” Lanyun said, offended. “I may not be a soldier, but gardening builds and strengthens muscles too.”

Renwu silently looked him up and down, causing Lanyun to shuffle uncomfortably in his seat. Even though he felt warmer than usual, Lanyun suddenly wanted to cover himself in more clothes under the celestial’s judgemental stare.

“You don’t look very strong,” Renwu stated.

“Neither do you,” Lanyun retorted. “I climbed Mount Tiankou in three days. I may not have supernatural powers, but I can do any physical activity that celestials can do.”

“Celestials can leap over Mount Tiankou,” Renwu said. 

“So maybe I can’t do that exactly,” Lanyun mumbled, clearing his throat awkwardly. “However, the end result is what matters.”

“Will the end result even matter if you can’t fulfill the contract within the required time?” Renwu questioned. “Maybe you will find a ghost flower someday, but what’s the point if you can’t do it within a month? You’ll never save your sister at this rate.”

“Are you suggesting that I can definitely find it within a month with your help?” Lanyun snapped, irritated by Renwu’s mention of his sister. Although he acted confident on the surface, he was naturally still worried about how he would accomplish such a feat. 

“No, I’m not suggesting that,” Renwu said, leaning forward with a cocky smile. “I’m promising that with my help, you’ll be able to bring one back to Baili within a week.”

Lanyun had to admit that Renwu’s offer was tempting. Even if he disliked the celestial’s haughty personality, not to mention the death threats last night, he couldn’t refuse any guarantees regarding his sister’s return. “There’s still one thing I don’t understand. If you’re allegedly so powerful, why do you even need me to find it for you?”

“There is a tree on the edge of Mount Shanfeng,” Renwu began to say. “As it grows, its branches continue to stretch out, wild and unruly, seeking sunlight, but the leaves continue to brown. The problem lies not in the amount of sunlight it absorbs, but in its roots, tethering over the cliff. Despite the nutritious terrain of soil behind it, half of the roots continue to grow in the air, searching for a solution in the wrong direction. No gardener can correct this tree as its obstinate trunk cannot understand the words of others. You are like this tree, blind to the correct path for yourself and unable to hear any advice that one may shout your way.”

“That’s obviously a story you just made up. Trees are actually quite intelligent and can communicate with other trees via an underground network,” Lanyun grumbled bitterly. 

“It’s a shame you’re not a tree then,” Renwu said with thinly veiled disgust.

“What do I have to do to accept your help?” Lanyun asked, changing the topic before Renwu could launch into another long-winded insult.

“You just need to sign this contract.” Renwu reached into his sleeve and placed a scroll and brush onto the table.

“Not another contract,” Lanyun groaned at the familiar sight. 

“You’re in the celestial realm now, so you should do things according to the local customs,” Renwu lectured, but there was a faint glimmer of amusement in his eyes. He unfurled the scroll and pointed to the large empty space at the bottom. “Just sign here.”

Reading through the contents of the contract, Lanyun frowned. “I think there’s been a mistake. This just says I have to do whatever you say until I give you the ghost flower.” 

Renwu tsked. “So you really do know your characters.” 

Lanyun resisted the urge to pick up the scroll and smack Renwu in the face with it. Remembering his grandmother’s frequent admonishments regarding his quick-temper, Lanyun took in a deep breath. The last time he let his emotions get the better of him, he was thrown into the celestials’ prison. He couldn’t afford to risk the punishment for attacking a celestial lawyer, even if Renwu deserved it. 

“Since you’re going to act like this, I want to add my own clauses down,” Lanyun huffed, picking up the brush. “Where’s the inkstone?”

“You don’t need one,” Renwu said with an elbow on the table, resting his cheek on his hand. He was quietly observing Lanyun’s actions, seemingly intrigued by what was to come next. “It’s a celestial item, made from the hairs of a moqu. When you touch the brush’s tip to the scroll, the ink will naturally flow out.”

Lanyun silently wrote down his own requirements and pushed the scroll back towards Renwu. “Here, confirm it.” 

Looking at the contract, Renwu chuckled. “Your handwriting is still awful.”

“Not that,” Lanyun snapped.

“So you were referring to the fact that you added that during the search, I agree to ensure your safety and assist you to the best of my abilities.” Renwu shook his head in disappointment. “Honestly, I can’t believe that this is the best you could come up with. It’s not very interesting at all.”

“I’m not trying to interest you,” Lanyun said. “I just need you to be a reliable teammate. I also edited what you wrote before.”

Renwu looked at the contract with a bored expression. “Yes, I see that. You’ll only obey what I say so long as it doesn’t negatively impact you. But that’s such a broad term. What if it was in your best interest that I have you jump off a cliff?” 

“Then I’ll be the sole judge of that,” Lanyun said, exasperated. “Do you want the ghost flower or not?”

“I suppose this will suffice,” Renwu agreed reluctantly. Taking out his personal seal, he stamped it onto the bottom of the contract. After Lanyun finished writing down his name as well, Renwu collected the scroll and brush. 

“The contract is now complete,” Renwu stated.

“So why do you need me to find the ghost flower?” Lanyun asked, not allowing Renwu to leave before answering his questions. 

“Because the flower will not reveal itself if not in the presence of a human,” Renwu said. “Only human hands can pick it.”

“Well then couldn’t you or Baili or any other celestial just hire a human to find one for you?” Lanyun asked.

“Lawyers cannot accept human sacrifices as payment,” Renwu explained. “And Baili has tried sending many of her humans to retrieve the flower before you arrived here.”

Lanyun frowned. “Why does she need so many ghost flowers?”

“You misunderstand,” Renwu said with a patronizing smile. “None of the humans ever returned alive.” 

Lanyun’s face instantly paled.

Chuckling to himself at Lanyun’s frightened expression, Renwu stood up and made his way to the door. Before he left, the celestial turned back to remind Lanyun. “You should get some rest now. I’ll meet you at the Winter Palace’s front gate tomorrow morning.” 

Remaining seated at the table, Lanyun stared blankly at the wall as a thousand worries raced through his mind. Finally, he was snapped out of his thoughts by a noise outside. It was a group of servants, talking as they passed by his room. Lanyun hadn’t given it much of a thought during his walk back from the lotus garden, but he noticed the silence now that the usual chatter and noise had returned. 

Lanyun frowned, mulling over the unusual situation. He couldn’t believe that he had missed it. Throughout the conversation with Renwu, he hadn’t heard a single sound outside in the courtyard despite his room’s door having been ajar the entire time. It had been completely silent. And only after Renwu left, did the servants return again. Lanyun didn’t know exactly why that was, but he couldn’t afford any regrets now that he had already signed a contract with the celestial. 

Resigning himself to his fate, Lanyun stood up and walked towards the bathhouse. After washing up, he returned to his room and laid down on the stiff bed. He fell into a fitful sleep, dreaming about a pair of golden eyes.