A signal lantern blinked twice from the outer harbor, paused, then flashed once more. Han Yue compared it with the code on her old chart. The pattern was close enough to catch her eye and wrong enough to make her raise a hand.
“Hold the course,” she called to Mei Qiao. “Do not enter yet.”
Mei eased the sail and let the vessel drift outside the harbor mouth. “That code was used ten years ago.”
“It’s on the chart.”
“The islands change the signal whenever a patrol learns the old one.” Mei watched the lantern. “We’ll wait for a guide.”
The harbor remained still behind the reef. Han lowered her chart and looked for movement on the water. A narrow skiff came out from behind a line of pilings. Its single passenger raised a hand, not a weapon. Mei kept the ship outside the entrance until the skiff drew close enough to hail them.
“I’m Lian,” the woman called. She wore a gray wool scarf despite the mild air and held one oar across her knees. “Who sent you?”
Han answered from the rail. “A coastal trader named Jori. He gave us the phrase ‘three knots before a storm.’” She repeated Bai’s contact phrase exactly.
