Wuchen took the witness chair under guard. The guards stayed behind him, far enough not to crowd the table. His counsel laid out records of two earlier storms when the central system had kept the capital wall lit.
“The old network saved districts,” Wuchen said. “The central system kept stations operating when local crews lacked parts.”
Qinghe agreed. “It did protect people.” She placed the test records beside his examples. “These show where safer local releases were available and where revisions were delayed.”
The papers included Wuchen’s orders to reconnect stations with split housings and overheated plates. The storm had damaged towns where the grid was unfinished. The records also showed that his command targeted nodes whose engineers had reported current risks.
Wuchen looked at the chart. “I believed the central feed could stabilize the north wall.”
“The report did not include a current inspection,” Qinghe said.
“The old wall had held before.”
“Not with that frame.”
