Wuchen didn't go back to his mat alcove after Lan's study.
He went straight to Gu Yan.
Not because he wanted to be loyal.
Because delays created stories, and stories were what killed runners.
Wei was at the courtyard gate again, like a shadow that didn't need sleep. His eyes flicked over Wuchen's robe and paused at the slight stiff way Wuchen held his right wrist.
Wei noticed the Nine Knot habit without being told.
"You went," Wei said.
Wuchen bowed. "Yes."
Wei's voice stayed flat. "You came back."
Wuchen didn't answer. He stepped inside and knelt at the pavilion threshold.
Gu Yan wasn't feeding fish tonight.
He was seated at the table with the ruin slate laid out under lamp light, brush beside it, as if he were copying the world into something he could own. His face was calm, but his eyes were sharp in a way that meant he was already counting what Wuchen carried.
"Fourth night," Gu Yan said softly. "So she let you return."
Wuchen bowed lower. "Yes."
Gu Yan didn't ask if Lan gave a method.
He asked the more dangerous thing. "What did she take?" he said.
Wuchen's throat tightened.
Lan had taken nothing physical this time. Not from his sleeve.
She had taken a sliver of truth.
Wuchen answered carefully. "She took the booklet back," he said. "She offered a one-use seal strip in trade."
Gu Yan's eyes brightened faintly. "And what did she buy with it?"
Wuchen swallowed. He couldn't lie cleanly. Gu Yan would smell it on his breath the way Lan smelled wax.
So he told the truth, but narrow and controlled, the way a runner survived.
"She asked what you're doing in Beast Tide Season," Wuchen said quietly.
Gu Yan's smile thinned. "And you answered."
Wuchen bowed deeper. "Yes."
Wei's posture tightened a fraction behind him.
Gu Yan's voice stayed gentle. "What did you tell her?"
Wuchen kept his gaze down. "I said you're collecting records," he said. "Not treasures. That you want to know who enters ruins and who comes out with more than they should."
Silence settled.
The lamp flame sounded loud for a breath.
Then Gu Yan laughed quietly.
Not amused.
Pleased.
"Good," Gu Yan murmured.
Wuchen's stomach tightened. "Senior Brother isn't angry?"
Gu Yan tilted his head slightly. "Angry?" he repeated. "No. You paid her with a coin I was willing to spend."
He tapped the ruin slate lightly. "Lan already knew I was collecting something," he said. "She just wanted to hear it from your mouth so she could tie it to my hand."
Wuchen's throat went dry. "Then… why let her?"
Gu Yan's eyes brightened. "Because if Lan thinks she caught a truth," he said softly, "she stops looking for the better one."
Wuchen felt cold slide into his chest.
Gu Yan continued, "She will now try to steal the records themselves," he murmured. "She'll send Luo Ping or another dog to sniff where the slate went, where the copies went, who delivered them."
He looked at Wuchen. "And when her dog moves," he said, "I learn exactly which corridors she can reach."
Wei spoke quietly, "And which people she can buy."
Gu Yan nodded once. "Exactly."
He leaned forward and tapped Wuchen's wrist point with one finger. Not hard. Just enough to make Wuchen feel seen.
"You're sealing better," Gu Yan said.
Wuchen's throat tightened. "Senior Sister Lan taught a knot method."
Gu Yan smiled faintly. "I expected that," he said. "Did you accept anything that stays?"
Wuchen hesitated, then pulled the one-use seal strip from his robe and held it out with both hands.
Gu Yan didn't take it. He only looked at it and nodded once.
"One use," Gu Yan said. "A leash that feels small."
He lifted his eyes to Wuchen. "Keep it," he said softly. "Don't use it unless you're about to die. If you use it too early, you'll start believing you need it."
Wuchen bowed. "Yes."
Gu Yan leaned back slightly, calm returning. "Now," he said, "we do the next step."
Wuchen's stomach tightened.
Gu Yan slid a thin paper across the table. "Tomorrow," he said gently, "you will go back to the side archive."
Wuchen's throat went dry. "Lan's?"
Gu Yan nodded. "Yes," he said. "You will ask to borrow a box."
Wuchen blinked. "A box?"
Gu Yan smiled faintly. "A box of old ruin tags," he said. "Lan keeps them. She thinks they're hers."
He tapped the paper. "You'll say Gu Yan wants to compare handwriting, so he can punish thieves. You'll make it sound like you're asking to help her."
Wuchen's fingers curled inside his sleeves.
Gu Yan added softly, "And when you carry the box out, you will let someone see."
Wuchen's stomach tightened.
Bait again.
Gu Yan's eyes stayed bright. "Lan likes comfort," he murmured. "So we'll give her something warm to chase."
Wuchen bowed. "Understood."
He backed out of the pavilion, heart steady by force.
Outside, Wei walked him to the gate and spoke without emotion. "Don't think you're clever," Wei said.
Wuchen kept his gaze down. "This one doesn't."
Wei's eyes stayed flat. "Good," he said. "Because clever tools get stolen."
Wuchen left Gu Yan's courtyard with the next errand already sitting on his shoulders.
He had told Gu Yan.
Gu Yan had smiled.
Which meant he had not confessed.
He had delivered another piece of poison to another mouth.
And now both mouths were planning to bite.