The council met before the midday turning of the bitterleaf racks. If the growers kept every disputed bundle sealed until the district office answered, some of the harvest would lose its value. If the council released everything, it could not preserve a claim that might be valid. Wei recommended dividing each crop by the contract that applied to it, leaving only the disputed portion in the shed.
Ke stood before the elders with his folder open. “The guild claims the harvest under its provincial filing. Releasing any part risks making the later ruling meaningless.”
An elder tapped the table. “Which contract supports the entire harvest?”
Ke named Mera’s seed agreement, Eda’s boundary map, and Tovin’s fixed-basket contract. Ning laid the three documents apart. Each carried a different limit. The seed agreement named a third share while the debt remained; Eda’s map included the disputed southern row; Tovin’s contract listed a number of baskets.
“Those are not one claim,” Ning said. “The council needs to hear which amount applies to each family.”
Ke argued that the guild’s office had treated all the bitterleaf as collateral. Wei asked him to show the clause that did so. Ke searched the contract packet and found no language extending the seed debt to Eda’s field or Tovin’s fixed-basket sale. He said the district filing might contain a broader notice, but he did not have it.
