"You pushed me!" Kali's voice snapped across the cliff like someone throwing a stone.
"You planted the letter," I said. "You put the pill out where everyone could see it."
"She pushed me!" Kali repeated, louder this time, smiling like she'd arranged the whole theater.
"Stop that," one of the An-Yang matrons ordered. "Stop shouting."
"Let the Ninth Miss speak," a young cousin called, but his tone had no courage.
"Hugo," Kali said, and she bowed her head with perfect innocence. "Prince Hugo, look."
Hugo stepped forward. He stood straighter than anyone in the crowd. He wore the crown prince's colors and a look that declared verdicts before questions. People quieted like they'd been paid.
"Read it," Kali told him, and she spread the letter like a fan.
"The Huoluo Pill," someone breathed.
"It's real," another voice said. "It was stolen."
Kali read in a soft, practiced voice. "To the Crown Prince: The Ninth Miss has been practicing with the Huoluo Pill. She intends to use it to steal your birthright."
"She intends," Hugo repeated. His eyes passed over me like cold judgment.
"I never—" I started.
"You forged my handwriting," Kali said, lifting her chin. "You put the pill in your sleeve. You tried to plant it at my lap during the banquet."
"You're an idiot if you think that would work," I said. "The pill is for cultivation. You know I don't have a true spirit root."
A murmur ran
