The envoy returned before noon with a written shipment schedule. Han escorted him into the harbor council room. The fleet remained outside the chain line, its ships still covering the main channel.
Daro stood beside the table and read the terms aloud. Medicine and grain would arrive within two weeks if the council signed an agreement to maintain the inherited contracts and surrender copied registry pages. The document said nothing about a right for descendants to appeal their inclusion.
Yao looked at the paper. “I would consider the trade if my adult share remains voluntary and the ward is maintained.”
Jian wanted the medicine delivered, but he feared losing protection before the local relay had survived a storm. “Keep the old contracts in force until the replacement works.”
Sato placed her clinic folder on the table. “I will not sign anything that restores my daughter to the roster.”
The envoy said the form applied to all households under the patriarch. “The Registry recognizes the established terms. Individual complaints can be heard after the ward is secure.”
“Meili’s removal is not a complaint waiting for your permission,” Sato said. “It is already in the hall record.”
The envoy did not respond to that. He pointed to the clause requiring the copied registry pages. The Registry would review which extracts could be returned to families after it had the originals.
