Everything the woman said proved true.
Inside the dim study of Official Han Duqing's residence, Jin Yue sifted through the documents with calm, precise movements. His shadow stretched long across the lacquered floor as he flipped through piles of papers, each one darker than the last.
Forged land deeds.
Two certificates for the same plot…one with the original owner's name, one overwritten with Han Duqing's bold strokes.
A ledger filled with bribes disguised as "processing fees."
And tucked deeper, beneath a stack of monthly reports
A falsified crime statement.
Her husband's name was written at the top.
Below it, accusations of theft, trespassing, and resisting arrest…
none of which matched the sealed testimonies Jin Yue found hidden in the desk drawer, where witnesses had originally declared the man innocent.
Jin Yue's jaw tightened.
The execution order bore a signature at the bottom:
Official Han Duqing.
His grip firmed slightly, the paper bending under his hand, but his face remained unreadable.
He murdered a man to steal land.
And the empire looked the other way.
No wonder the widow had knelt in the dirt, begging the dead for justice no living person would give her.
The room felt colder.
Moonlight filtered through the window lattice, landing on Jin Yue's fishing rod…where the Flowstone pulsed faintly, a soft heartbeat of light.
As if acknowledging his anger.
As if urging him to act.
Jin Yue exhaled slowly.
The sound was quiet, but it carried the weight of a decision made.
This man…
He deserves to face the truth he tried to bury.
Just as the thought settled, a faint noise pricked at his senses…
the soft thud of footsteps approaching from outside the study.
Not hurried.
Not panicked.
But close.
Very close.
Jin Yue's eyes sharpened.
Someone's coming.
I've stayed too long.
Without hesitation, he slipped the incriminating documents into his sleeve, his movements swift yet silent. The room remained exactly as he found it…papers aligned, drawers closed, floor undisturbed.
He ghosted toward the rear corridor, the softest whisper of his robes barely brushing against the lacquered wood. The footsteps grew louder, echoing through the polished hallway… steady, confident, belonging to someone who believed they owned the place.
Jin Yue's hand tightened around his fishing rod.
If they see me… it will get messy.
I can't expose myself here.
He reached the open window at the back of the study just as a shadow appeared beneath the door. The latch rattled.
No time left.
In one fluid motion, Jin Yue slipped through the window, landing soundlessly in the courtyard behind the residence. Cool morning air brushed against his cheek. He flattened himself against the wall just as the study door slid open behind him.
A voice muttered inside, annoyed.
Drawers opened.
Wood creaked.
But Jin Yue was already moving
darting through a narrow gap between two decorative stone lions,
slipping past the garden fence,
vanishing into the alley beyond like a ripple of moonlight swallowed by shadow.
Tomorrow night…justice would find him.