Yan returned to the guest quarters and took another long bath. He had spent the day in a hospital, a Registry garden, and a public ward tour. Hot water felt like the only appointment he wanted now.
Bai knocked on the screen. “Has the visitor pass improved your access to plumbing more than to people?”
“Plumbing is an important public good.”
“Can it open the locked cabinet where the towels are?”
“No. I have to ask the innkeeper.”
“Then it has not improved your access enough.”
Yan leaned back until the water reached his shoulders. The bath was deeper than Ashfall’s wash trough and smelled faintly of cedar. He let his legs float and enjoyed how little effort it took to stay warm.
Gu laid the Ashfall copies on a clean table. He compared their seals with Wuchen’s notes. One mark matched a branch office; a second stamp was too worn to identify.
