2

Ten minutes later, Han Chen came back with a woman in her seventies.

He bent slightly as he led her in.

"Attorney Xu, this is Madam Lin, Guo Mingrui's grandmother."

He gave me a warning look and closed the door.

I looked up.

She wore a dark blue qipao. Her white hair was pinned neatly in place, and gold-rimmed glasses rested on her nose. Her face was smooth for a woman her age, her posture polished by decades of comfort.

She sat down as if the chair had been placed there for her.

"Attorney Xu," she said, "my grandson wants an internship at your firm. Please arrange it."

A thick red envelope slid across my desk.

I looked at her hand. Pale. Plump. A jade ring on the fourth finger.

That hand had never done a day of hard work.

The real Lin Wanyu's hands had not looked like that. My grandmother spent her life sewing soles under a kerosene lamp. Her knuckles swelled until they looked like knots in old wood. She wrapped cloth around her fingers because the skin split too often to heal.

Even in death, those fingers never straightened.

I lifted my eyes. "My interview is over. Your grandson didn't pass."

Her face sank.

Behind the glasses, she narrowed her eyes and studied me.

"Mingrui is a national moot court champion. He has six papers in major journals and the best grades in his year. You shut him out and call that reasonable?"

"The candidates have been chosen," I said, pushing the envelope back. "There are better fits."

She glanced at the returned envelope. "What, not enough? Name your price."

I looked at her for a long moment.

"I choose people by my own principles. As a senior artist, you should understand rules better than I do. Unless, in your eyes, principles are something to buy."

Her face went dark.

She folded her arms and gave a small laugh.

"Young man, you think far too highly of yourself. I've seen plenty like you. So young and already a partner. Who knows which leader you flattered, or what you traded, to climb this high? Now you want to use my grandson to build yourself a clean name? Look at yourself first."

She leaned forward.

"Mingrui lost his parents early. Zhenghua and I poured half our lives into him. You will process his offer today. Otherwise, remember this: our family has roots in this circle. The connections we built over decades are not something you can match by clinging to a few patrons. Don't mistake politeness for weakness."

I watched her calmly.

Under that well-kept face, the thing hidden for fifty years finally showed itself.

She was not Lin Wanyu.

My grandmother was Lin Wanyu.

At the end, my grandmother died with her eyes open, whispering her husband's name over and over.

I kept my hand clenched beneath the desk.

"Are you finished?"

She stared at me.

"Mrs. Guo," I said, "the result will not change. Please leave."

Her brows twisted.

She stood, snatched the red envelope back, and shoved it into her bag.

"You'll regret refusing the easy way."

The door slammed.

Her heels faded down the hall.

Han Chen rushed in almost at once.

"Xu Yan, are you trying to start a rebellion? I will say this one more time. Arrange Guo Mingrui's offer immediately."

I didn't move. "He didn't pass my interview. He doesn't meet my standard."

I pointed at the computer on my desk. "The publication system is under my authority. I'm the only one with the password."

Han Chen's face changed.

"Do you understand what refusing him will bring? His grandfather is Guo Zhenghua. One sentence from that man can ruin this firm. Fix it now, or wait to be fired."

The office went quiet.

After three seconds, I nodded.

"All right. I'll call Professor Guo myself."

Han Chen stared at me, surprised by how easily I agreed. When he left, he slammed the door hard enough to shake the glass.

Sunlight shifted across the desk and landed on Mingrui's file.

Guo Zhenghua.

Lin Wanyu.

Two names neatly printed in the family section.

One was my grandfather, the man who abandoned his wife and child.

The other was the woman who stole my grandmother's life.

I looked at those names for a long time.

Then I dialed the number.

"Professor Guo, this is Xu Yan from Mingde Law Firm. I'd like to speak with you in person about Guo Mingrui."