Chapter 25: Song Lan

Registrar Han took the iron key down from its hook before she had finished asking. He asked for no petition and no reason. He sat behind his towers of ledgers in his cramped office with the cold teapot at his elbow, and he held the key out to her across the desk, and when she reached for it, this time, he let go at once. "I'm not going to write this down," he said. "Registrar..." "I wrote it down last time. In triplicate. And somebody read it who shouldn't have." He looked at her, and then past her, at Nine in the doorway. "I heard what Zhou said at your desk this morning. Everyone did. The whole hall's whispering." He folded his long hands. "Go on. Go and look. And Ming. Whatever you find, this time, come and tell me first." "You said that last time." "I did," said Han.…