Her vehemence was shocking enough; the fact that Wang-mu was speaking against Starways Congress was unbelievable.
"Do you know who it was that launched the fleet?" asked Qing-jao.
"Of course. It was the selfish politicians in Starways Congress, trying to destroy any hope that a colony world could win its independence."
So Wang-mu knew she was speaking tr
easonously. Qing-jao remembered her own similar words, long ago, with loathing; to have them said again in her presence--and by her own secret maid--was outrageous. "What do you know of these things? These are matters for Congress, and here you are speaking of independence and colonies and--"
Wang-mu was on her knees, head bowed to the floor. Qing-jao was at once ashamed for speaking so harshly.
"Oh, get up, Wang-mu."
"You're angry with me."
"I'm shocked to hear you talk like that, that's all. Where did you hear such nonsense?"
"Everybody says it," said Wang-mu.
"Not everybody," said Qing-jao. "Father never says it. On the other hand, Demosthenes says that sort of thing all the time." Qing-jao remembered how she had felt when she first read the words of Demosthenes--how logical and right and fair he had sounded. Only later, after Father had explained to her that Demosthenes was the enemy of the rulers and therefore the enemy of the gods, only then did she realize how oily and deceptive the traitor's words had been, which had almost seduced her into believing that the Lusitania Fleet was evil. If Demosthenes had been able to come so close to fooling an educated godspoken girl like Qing-jao, no wonder that she was hearing his words repeated like truth in the mouth of a common girl.
"Who is Demosthenes?" asked Wang-mu.
"A traitor who is apparently succeeding better than anyone thought." Did Starways Congress realize that Demosthenes' ideas were being repeated by people who had never heard of him? Did anyone understand what this meant? Demosthenes' ideas were now the common wisdom of the common people. Things had reached a more dangerous turn than Qing-jao had imagined. Father was wiser; he must know already. "Never mind," said Qing-jao. "Tell me about the Lusitania Fleet."
"How can I, when it will make you angry?"
Qing-jao waited patiently.
"All right then," said Wang-mu, but she still looked wary. "Father says--and so does Pan Ku-wei, his very wise friend who once took the examination for the civil service and came very very close to passing--"
"What do they say?"
"That it's a very bad thing for Congress to send a huge fleet--and so huge--all to attack the tiniest colony simply because they refused to send away two of their citizens for trial on another world. They say that justice is completely on the side of Lusitania, because to send people from one planet to another against their will is to take them away from family and friends forever. That's like sentencing them before the trial."
"What if they're guilty?"
"That's for the courts to decide on their own world, where people know them and can measure their crime fairly, not for Congress to decide from far away where they know nothing and understand less." Wang-mu ducked her head. "That's what Pan Ku-wei says."
Qing-jao stilled her own revulsion at Wang-mu's traitorous words; it was important to know what the common people thought, even if the very hearing of it made Qing-jao sure the gods would be angry with her for such disloyalty. "So you think that the Lusitania Fleet should never have been sent?"
"If they can send a fleet against Lusitania for no good reason, what's to stop them from sending a fleet against Path? We're also a colony, not one of the Hundred Worlds, not a member of Starways Congress. What's to stop them from declaring that Han Fei-tzu is a traitor and making him travel to some faraway planet and never come back for sixty years?"
The thought was a terrible one, and it was presumptuous of Wang-mu to bring her father into the discussion, not because she was a servant, but because it would be presumptuous of anyone to imagine the great Han Fei-tzu being convicted of a crime. Qing-jao's composure failed her for a moment, and she spoke her outrage: "Starways Congress would never treat my father like a criminal!"
"Forgive me, Qing-jao. You told me to repeat what my father said."
"You mean your father spoke of Han Fei-tzu?"
"All the people of Jonlei know that Han Fei-tzu is the most honorable man of Path. It's our greatest pride, that the House of Han is part of our city."
So, thought Qing-jao, you knew exactly how ambitious you were being when you set out to become his daughter's maid.
"I meant no disrespect, nor did they. But isn't it true that if Starways Congress wanted to, they could order Path to send your father to another world to stand trial?"
"They would never--"
"But could they?" insisted Wang-mu.