Yan had barely returned the brass token to Luo when Steward Ma stepped between him and the candidates waiting at the practice board.
“Show me the three bursts,” Ma said. “A short demonstration. The younger candidates can learn it before the next examination.”
Yan looked past him. The repaired palm under his wrap had begun to throb where the cloth rubbed it. The plinth course stood behind them, quiet now, with the replaced stone set square. Sun sat on the low wall, one knee wrapped in white. She kept flexing her good leg as if she could make the other recover faster by watching it.
“I can show the sequence,” Yan said. “The warning is part of it.”
“Then show the warning too.” Ma smiled toward the crowd. “They will see you do it safely.”
Qinghe came up beside Yan, carrying her small medical case. “His legs are sound now. That does not make the method sound for everyone.”
Ma turned to her. “You examined him after the run?”
“I examined his palm. He has not asked me to examine his legs.”
