The next gathering at the granary began with a question from a farmer in the east valley.
“You’re stronger than everyone in this room,” he said to Yan. “If the Registry’s soldiers come through the pass, do you believe that gives you the right to decide where we go?”
The room quieted. Wei stopped writing on the slate. Ning held a stack of route sheets against her chest. Pei sat beside Liao Ren, who had brought his approved statement but left it folded in his coat.
Yan answered without looking to Wei. “It gives me the ability to act quickly. It doesn’t give me the right to choose a cost for you.”
“You can break a road open. You can carry people. You can heal them.” The farmer tapped the map. “That sounds like deciding.”
“Sometimes I have to act before I have all the information,” Yan said. “I can still tell people what I know, listen to the guide, and leave a choice where there is time to choose.”
“And if there isn’t time?”
“Then I may have to move. But I’ll answer for what I chose.”
