"Don't touch me."
I jerk against the ropes and taste copper on my tongue.
"Quiet, girl," the fat official snapped. He smelled of wine and lacquer. "Leave the noise for the yard. We have work to finish."
"You bought a woman," the man behind him said. His breath hit my face. "You paid for her silence, not her honor."
"Shut up," the fat official said. "Speak again and you'll be the one with no honor."
"Let her go," I hissed instead. My hands were numb where the rope bit. "You won't get away with this."
A servant laughed in the dark. "Lady Lou made sure the seals were in order. An official divorce, signed by the county. Her seal. The magistrate's clerk said it was clean."
"You're all liars," I said. "Mu Zheng will know."
The laugh turned sharp. "Mu Zheng is far. Your father's old man won't move a finger for a woman stripped of her rank on paper. Lady Lou paid the right hands."
"Stop talking like you're proud," I spat.
The man behind me smirked and pinched my ear. "You are stubborn. That's what makes it fun."
I bit his hand.
He cursed and slapped my face until stars bloomed. He dragged me to my knees and forced himself forward.
"Say something," he ordered. "Tell me you're the obedient kind."
"LeLing Lou," I hissed between clenched teeth. "You will rot for this."
That name made a shadow
