Su Li poked his head out of the woodshed, his face dusted with iron powder. "How many?"
"One hundred thirty-seven."
"Eleven more than last month." Su Li ducked back inside and resumed hammering iron.
Elena's charcoal pencil paused over the ledger of favors. Barlow had delivered scrap iron three times last month, each shipment mixed with two or three chunks of low-grade ore slag that never appeared on the manifest.
She marked the ore slag entry and added a note: "Seventh covert insertion. Fourteen pieces in total, valued at roughly three Gold Coins. Outstanding favors continue to accumulate."
The ledger of favors that could not be accepted was thinner. It contained only two entries: one was an embroidered silk screen sent by a silk merchant, which Su Li returned because it took up too much space; the other was a maid sent by some minor noble. Su Li sent her back on the spot, while Saina chased after the noble and berated him for half a street.
Soft, cautious wheels sounded outside the door.
Saina glanced toward the mouth of the alley. Two goblin porters pushed a flatbed cart in through the side gate, moving more quietly than cats. Even when they set the scrap iron crates by the courtyard gate, they did not make a sound.
"Supervisor Barlow asked whether Master Su has any need for refined coal lately." The short one in front rubbed his hands together, his face crinkling with smiles.
"We do." Saina walked over and rummaged through the crate of iron materials. From the very bottom, she fished out a darker-colored chunk of ore slag and held it up to inspect. "This one isn't as good as the last one."
The short man's smile froze for half a beat.
Saina tossed the slag back into