Morning bells rang through the palace, solemn and resonant, as court convened once more. Yun Xi, robe immaculate though her heart quaked, carried a bundle of scrolls bound in red silk. Today would determine her fate.
The officials had gathered in prickly silence, eager to see the young scholar humbled—or perhaps executed. The Emperor's throne glowed beneath shafts of sunlight, his expression unreadable.
"Scholar Yun," His Majesty said, his tone deceptively mild. "You claimed evidence of theft. Present it."
Yun Xi bowed deeply, stepping into the center of the hall. She unrolled the first scroll, her voice steady though her pulse roared in her ears. "This servant examined records of grain distribution over the past three years. Here—shipments from the southern granaries, intended for the northern garrisons. But the volumes never matched arrival tallies. Each year, nearly a tenth vanished en route."
Gasps echoed. Ministers craned their necks, whispering furiously.
Another scroll unfurled. "This servant compared these discrepancies with land deeds filed in the Capital. The same names appear—minor officials whose households suddenly acquired vast estates, beyond their salaries."
The chamber erupted in shouts. Some demanded proof, others called for silence. Yun Xi pressed on, revealing column after column, her words sharp as blades.
Finally, she lifted the last scroll. "But the trail leads higher still. These minor officials are tied by kinship or patronage to…" Her throat tightened. To speak was to hurl herself from a precipice. "…to Lord Kang of the Ministry of Revenue."
The hall froze. Lord Kang, a powerful, heavyset man, surged to his feet, face mottled red. "Slander!" he bellowed. "This boy dares spit venom! Fabrications, all of it!"
But his outburst was his undoing. The Emperor's gaze had already sharpened, calculating.
"Lord Kang," the Emperor drawled, "are you so eager to shout before the evidence is examined? Eunuch Chen, summon auditors. Seize the ledgers of the Ministry."
Lord Kang's knees buckled, his protest dissolving into incoherent rage. Guards moved swiftly, dragging him from the chamber as he screamed. The officials bowed low, terror thick in the air.
The Emperor's laughter broke the silence. "Excellent! Scholar Yun, your ink indeed cuts deeper than swords. You have served your sovereign well."
Relief washed over Yun Xi like a tide. She bowed until her forehead touched the cold floor. Yet as the Emperor dismissed court, she caught the Empress's gaze behind her pearl curtain—a gaze that neither smiled nor frowned, but glimmered with dangerous thought.
Later, in her quarters, Yun Xi collapsed to her knees, trembling. She had survived. She had triumphed. But triumph in the palace was never free. Already rumors slithered through corridors, whispering of the young scholar who toppled giants.
And in Concubine Mei's chamber, laughter tinkled like bells.
"So clever," Mei purred, reclining on silken cushions. "But cleverness paints a target on one's back. Let us see how long our little fox can dance before the arrows fly."