The death of Chen Ji quickly spread throughout the Imperial Capital, becoming a widely discussed topic in just half a day.
Civilians rushed to share the news; the sound of the waking wood echoed in teahouses. That young man who fought fiercely outside Chongli Pass, that madman who squandered a fortune at the Imperial Music Bureau, that man cursed as an Eunuch Party member, Li Changge, perished in a fire raging in the Qi family's mourning hall.
In front of the City God Temple at Chongnan Fang, hundreds of women spontaneously gathered, though no one knew who started it.
They cut paper flowers, placing them one by one at the foot of the stone steps, and lit paper money. The curling blue smoke mixed with the sound of weeping as they recited the name of Li Changge.
Zhang Li listened to the weeping, sitting on the stone steps, with the Wordless Heavenly Scripture spread across his knees, watching as the text slowly emerged.
