Autumn Memory Pavilion fell into an unnatural silence after Wang Ding’s body departed under escort while ten armed Wang fighters remained behind. The guqin rooms stayed quiet, singers stopped practicing, and doors once opened for wealthy patrons were now watched by clan retainers. Several guests who had not departed looked increasingly uneasy because even wealth and status no longer automatically overruled Wang Clan orders. One wealthy patron approached a guard and asked, “Surely customers uninvolved with last night may return to their households.” The guard answered, “My orders require everyone to remain until the clan decides who may safely leave.” The patron frowned and accused the Wang Clan of treating innocent customers like suspects before any investigation had even finished. “I am following one instruction, and argui

Flames continued climbing the wooden galleries of Autumn Memory Pavilion while Wang Clan soldiers maintained their formation around every accessible entrance.The workers trapped inside had retreated toward the front courtyard, where smoke followed them from the burning corridors and surrounding rooms.Ahead stood Wang Clan soldiers holding shields and spears, while the passages on either side were already blocked by armed retainers.A young woman covered her mouth with a sleeve and cried, “Please let us through, because we had nothing to do with Young Master Wang’s death.”Another worker knelt near the front steps, begging the soldiers to remember that most of them earned only enough money to survive.The nearest soldier tightened his grip on his spear, but he kept his eyes fixed on the officer commanding their formation.“We have orders to hold this entrance,” he replied, although his voice lacked the contempt displayed by several men standing beside him.A second soldier glanced to