The Golden Palace Gambit: E Qing

The last thing Tong Da’e remembered was the bolt of purple lightning that split the night sky in the auction house’s warehouse. She was crouched among a pile of antiques waiting to be appraised, searching for a famille rose porcelain vase from the Qianlong era. In her hand was the appraisal report she had just printed. As the auction house’s HR manager and a temporary appraisal assistant, she was always getting hit with sudden assignments that made her wear several hats at once. Water had collected in a corner where the warehouse roof leaked, reflecting the unsteady fluorescent light overhead. Suddenly, a deafening crash sounded outside the window. The bulb burst with a sharp crackle, and then a strangely violet bolt of lightning shot through the window and struck the dusty bronze incense burner at her feet.