The rain had just stopped.
Outside Yangxin Hall, the stone steps gleamed, freshly washed by the storm. Lantern light shimmered across the thin trails of water, like a silent river flowing through the heart of the palace.
Qing Tian stood beneath the corridor eaves, holding a simple food box.
It had been a long time since she had been summoned alone.
Not because she had fallen out of favor.
But because she no longer needed to "appear" to prove her worth.
"Director Qing."
Gao Dequan lifted the curtain and stepped out, his tone lower than usual.
"His Majesty requests your presence."
Inside, the hall was quiet.
Only one lamp burned upon the imperial desk.
The Emperor leaned forward over a stack of memorials, brows slightly furrowed. He had clearly been sitting there for hours.
Qing Tian did not speak immediately.
She placed the food box down gently.
One bowl of porridge.
One cup of tea.
No extravagance.
The porridge was made from newly harvested rice, simmered until each grain bloomed open.
The tea—this year's first rain-harvested Longjing. Clean. Fragrant. Not bitter.
The Emperor looked up.
"You remember."
Qing Tian lowered her gaze.
"Your Majesty is reviewing transport and frontier grain reports. Those consume the mind."
A soft hum in acknowledgment.
He tasted the porridge.
Then slowly set the spoon down.
"You handled the Buddhist Hall well."
Not praise.
A verdict.
Qing Tian bowed her head.
"I only fulfilled my duty."
"Duty?"
He gave a faint smile that did not reach his eyes.
"Daring to speak of hunger in front of the Buddhist Hall is not duty."
His gaze sharpened.
"That was a blade."
"You placed it in Our hand."
Silence settled between them.
Qing Tian did not deny it.
She spoke softly instead.
"If Your Majesty had not taken it, the blade would have cut many more."
The Emperor studied her.
Long enough for the candle wick to sputter faintly.
"Stay," he said at last.
Not an order.
Almost casual.
Qing Tian paused.
"From this day forward, all Shangshi Bureau allocations, grain ledgers, and procurement reviews will report directly to Us."
"No longer through the Ministry of Internal Affairs."
The weight of that sentence was heavier than any title.
It was not promotion.
It was trust.
It was power over lifeblood.
Qing Tian knelt slowly.
"Your servant will remember."
"Do not kneel."
His voice was quiet.
"You did not reach this place by kneeling."
Her fingers tightened, almost imperceptibly.
She rose.
The Emperor continued watching her, as if confirming something only he could see.
"Do you know how many eyes will turn toward you after tonight?"
"Yes."
"And you still dare accept?"
She lifted her gaze.
Clear.
Steady.
"Because grain should not be a weapon."
For the first time that night—
He smiled.
Truly.
"We did not misjudge you."
When Qing Tian left Yangxin Hall, the night had deepened.
The palace road lay empty.
The wind was colder than before.
Chuntao followed behind her, voice lowered.
"My Lady… something feels wrong tonight."
Qing Tian did not slow her pace.
"What feels wrong?"
"It's too quiet."
Yes.
Too quiet.
The kind of quiet that waits.
They turned a corner along the palace wall—
And heard it.
Soft crying.
Broken.
Suppressed.
Chuntao stiffened. "Who's there?"
Qing Tian raised a hand, signaling silence.
She stepped closer.
In the moonlight, a young eunuch knelt against the wall, face pale, collar torn as if someone had grabbed him.
"D-Director Qing…"
The moment he saw her, he crawled forward desperately.
"Save me…"
"What happened?"
His voice shook violently.
"They told me… told me to add one false entry to your Shangshi Bureau grain ledger."
"Just one line. They said no one would trace it back to me…"
"But I—I can't… I can't…"
In that instant—
Qing Tian understood everything.
The Buddhist Hall had fallen.
The open blade was gone.
Now the hidden threads had begun.
She crouched down until she was level with him.
Her voice steady.
"Tell me his name."
"Who ordered you?"
The eunuch shook his head frantically, sobbing.
"I can't say… If I say it… I won't live…"
Qing Tian exhaled softly.
Then stood.
"Chuntao. Take him to the Shangshi Bureau."
"Starting tonight, all grain ledgers will undergo double verification."
"Triple sealing."
The wind passed through the corridor.
The crying faded.
Qing Tian stared into the dark stretch of palace beyond.
The first probe had arrived.
And this time—
She could not afford to rely on compassion alone.
The wind had changed direction.
And it was blowing straight toward her.