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“I never lied to you, Hulan You should know that But I did os I told you that I loved puzzles as a boy and that I liked Yu’s ot hooked on the o When I ca in ht, I wasn’t going to fit in with organizations back home, not even the Committee of 100 I am a very rich man, yet I will always be seen as an outsider in America because of my race” He leaned forward and confided, “You understand that Being an outsider in your hos that binds us” Then he relaxed and resuan following Yu’s land speeches as Xiao Da”

“You began to believe your own propaganda”

“Xiao Da has been an invigorating experience He brought me closer to Da Yu”

Quon spoke now of the transition fro much more focused “The most successful eing the past to the present I could consolidate the people, but ould our symbol be?”

He realized that the key to his grip on thehad understood this very hen he’d said, “Make the past serve the present” When Catherine Miller began talking about thethe right course, because even the conniving Lily had been caught up in its h all historical evidence said it couldn’t possibly be in the Yangzi But Brian had tired of the ga

“He invited , because I’m, well, I’m Michael Quon— inventor of VYRUSCAN The first ti back to the mother You smell it, don’t you, how this place is alive?”

To Hulan these caves had always reeked of so Now she watched as Quon reached up, sank his fingers into the roof of the cave, and cay mass, which he handed to Su The officer took the blob, dipped it into one of the blood-filled buckets, then began coating Hom’s body with his own drained fluids

“Last su had

happened, “Brian and I explored a lot of caves I showed hily “I told him who I was He became a convert, and I have to say he was very helpful He did extra research on Da Yu, which I incorporated into Xiao Da Brian gaveto use inthey would speak to the people on an atavistic level He came up with some of our better chants ‘You can’t stop the river fros us life’ were his Then the kid falls in love I granted hiious power and he turned it down for a piece of ass”

Hulan wished Xiao Da’s followers could hear him now

“Maybe he had doubts about what you were doing”

Quon shrugged off the idea “I caht rove’s, because I knew Brian had hit pay dirt, so to speak But Brian would no longer talk to me He had a secret and he wouldn’t reveal it no matter what I offered hi I found the tunnel into the guesthouse and the life of this cave While these things have servedfor Meanwhile, Lily continued to put up for auction soh Cathay Antiquities I bought discreetly Only I could see what the others didn’t—these pieces had all come from the same source, and her primary source within China was Brian”

After Lily had gotten Wu Huadong to jued Which was a shame, because Quon had spent a lot of ti him with spiritual and financial riches if he’d reveal the secrets of the earth “He was ready to help me”

“‘From the fist of the past to ’s promise to his father

But Lily had meddled and was fully responsible for what happened next Two days after Wu’s drowning, Brian went to her with more of the chimes, the ruyi, and sorove’s catalog Throughout it all, Quon kept an eye on Brian’s website The photo addressed specifically to Angela—a et back here