"An Imperial Edict means a matter of supreme national importance. The entire household must be present."
Five minutes later, the Lin family stood in a rigid, perfect line in the center of the massive, torch-lit main courtyard.
The night air was cool, but the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.
The heavy iron gates of the estate groaned open, admitting a procession that practically screamed imperial wealth.
A dozen palace guards clad in gleaming gold armor marched in perfect synchronization.
Behind them came an ornate, open-air palanquin carried by eight servants.
And stepping down from the palanquin was the Chief Imperial Eunuch, a tall, gaunt man wearing bright crimson robes, holding a glowing, cylindrical scroll case forged from pure gold.
The Eunuch didn't walk; he glided across the cobblestones, stopping ten paces from General Lin.
