She arrived at the council building with her parents and looked exactly like what she was.
Fifteen. Nervous. Wearing a school uniform that was slightly too formal for the weather. She had clearly been told to dress carefully and had done her best.
Chen Wei met them in the corridor before the session.
The father was first-generation. Shanghai center. He bowed. "Sovereign Emperor. I apologize for my daughter's—"
"No apology needed." Chen Wei crouched slightly so he was level with the girl. "Zhao Ling. I read the incident report. You were trying to help."
She met his eyes. She had the particular look of a person who had spent three weeks being treated like a problem and was very tired of it.
"The boy was going to hit the floor hard," she said. "I did not think. I just moved."
"What did
