When Wang Youan woke for the second time, daylight had fully broken.
Fang Mo sat on a low stool in the corner of the Stone Chamber, two Copper Fragments resting on his knees. Their dark golden patterns glowed faintly in response to the prison suppressor law in his palm.
Wang Youan moved his neck. A dull pain came from his collarbone, and he grimaced, sucked in a breath, and propped himself up on his elbows.
"Water."
Fang Mo did not move. He tipped his chin toward the doorway.
Iron Bull passed a bowl of cold water through the doorway. Wang Youan took it and gulped down half, then splashed the rest over his face. Blood and cold water mingled and ran down his chin into his collar.
"Brat, how long have you been keeping watch here?"
"All night."
Wang Youan narrowed his eyes and looked him over twice. His gaze fell on the two Copper Fragments on Fang Mo's knees, then shifted to the gray pattern in Fang Mo's right palm. The knife scar at the corner of his mouth twitched.
"You devoured Spiritual Terrace Burial Cosmos's split spirit and killed the Old Emperor while you were at it."
"Word travels fast."
"Old Huang came in to change my dressing once. His mouth leaks worse than a sieve."
Fang Mo did not correct him about Old Yan's name. He gathered the two Copper Fragments together and held them up toward the Oil Lamp.
"Uncle Wang, finish what you were saying yesterday."
Wang Youan leaned back against the stone wall and adjusted his breathing. His eyes grew heavy in the lamplight, making him seem like an entirely different man from the Warden Wang whose mouth was usually full of dirty jokes.
"What do you want to know?"
"Why did my father