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墨書 Inktalez
It was a piece of jade, broken in two, and he held only one half in his hand.
The jade was smooth and warm to the touch, etched with ancient patterns I had never seen before.
"This thing, you should be familiar with," he said, pushing the fragment closer to my eyes.
The cold jade felt like it was burning my nerves.
I felt as if thunder had exploded in my chest, shaking my insides apart.
"Twenty years ago, the Salt Transport Commissioner, Su Che, was your father." Prince Jing's voice was low, but each word struck my heart like a hammer.
Su Che? My father? Not the ordinary merchant I had been told since childhood who died at the hands of bandits?
I clenched my fists, my nails nearly digging into my flesh.
"Twenty years ago, he investigated corruption in the salt trade and touched upon dragon scales. He was framed and exiled with his entire family, silenced along the way," Prince Jing said calmly, as if recounting a story that had nothing to do with him.
Silenced... the whole family... Wasn't I the only survivor?
Those vague and painful fragments of childhood surged back—tastes of blood, flames, screams, and a woman desperately shoving something into my hands...
It was me! Am I the forgotten "remnant"?
I felt as if someone had choked me by the throat, unable to utter a single sound.
Prince Jing paid no attention to my outburst. He gestured to his attendant, who placed a heavy bundle on the table.
As the bundle was opened, thick ledgers were revealed inside.
It was the hidden accounts of the Liu Family!
Evidence of their illegal arms trading, collusion with officials, and embezzlement of disaster relief funds!
Next to it lay two documents: one was a land deed, and the other a travel permit.
Prince Jing spoke slowly, "With these ledgers, you can exchange for the safety of you and your family. One land deed can help you establish a home, and several travel permits can allow you to escape to the borders."
"As for Su Che's matter, I can choose not to pursue it. You can pretend that the Liu Family's affairs never happened."
He was offering me a choice—using the blood of my father and brothers to barter for the survival of my family.
Trading twenty years of injustice for my current "peace."
My fingertips brushed against the cold ledgers as I glanced at the broken piece of jade.
The restless souls of my father and countless innocent citizens who had perished at the hands of the Liu Family and their powerful backers silently accused me.
If I were to use these ledgers to save lives, how could I face myself and continue living?
I trembled all over, not from fear, but from anger and despair.
I grabbed the ledger from the table and stumbled to the center of the private room, where a charcoal fire pit burned.
The flames danced, casting flickering shadows on my distorted face.
Prince Jing did not stop me; he merely watched with cold eyes.
I closed my eyes and threw the thick ledger into the fire pit.
With a loud "boom," the flames surged as if doused in oil.
The acrid smell of burning paper filled the air, making me cough.
The firelight reddened my eye sockets and scorched my palms.
A spark leaped onto the hem of my clothing, quickly burning a hole and leaving behind a blackened scar.
I staggered out of the teahouse, still carrying the scent of charred paper.
The burn on my palm throbbed faintly, a mere fraction of the pain in my heart.
At that moment, a strange shade of bluish-purple stained the horizon.
It was not the glow of the evening sky, but the light of fire.
I looked up, and the flames shot into the sky from the direction of the town's salt warehouse.
There was more than one source; it was a continuous stream of fire, as if it aimed to consume the entire night.
All seventy-two salt warehouses were ablaze.
The acrid scent of smoke wrapped around us, carrying a wave of panic that swept through the entire town in an instant.
There was no time to ponder what this inferno meant; all I wanted was to return to the small courtyard quickly.
Xiao Yuan was already waiting downstairs. When he saw me come out, he silently supported my arm.
His grip was steady, yet I could sense a hint of tension.
We hurried back, and chaos had already begun to erupt in the streets, with cries and the sound of hooves intertwining.
Upon returning to the secluded courtyard, Xiao Yan was sitting on the steps at the entrance.
He tilted his face up, gazing at the strange firelight on the horizon.
He hummed an odd tune under his breath.
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