The narrator tells us that he's been thinking about killing Lu for two days now, and he doesn't want to tell Ming for now. He's going to go for a walk around the countryside. He asks Ming what's up, and Ming says that he has nothing to say. The narrator says that shengguan and ze guan are both in the area, and that they're disgusting. He says that it's rotten luck that they are in such a bad place, because he came to the area to protect his father's business, but he didn't think he'd see them there. Ming asks Ming if he can tell him anything, and the narrator says he can't. Ming says he has something on his mind. He tells Ming that he used to ally with the lin and ou families, but now that ze snang has taken over, Ming is no longer able to do so. Ming reminds Ming that old Lu's death was premeditated. Ming tells Ming to stay safe, and they'll both be safe together.