Li Chi’s party had no intimidating insignia on their carriages. The carriages looked unremarkable — quite ordinary.

The few fake Daoists who staffed the mountain path entrance year-round were not exactly men of standing within the Fengming Temple either.

Would men of standing stand here in the wind and sun, extracting a few small coins from poor people?

These people were obsequious to a fault when they saw important figures, so naturally they could never extract serious money from them. Not merely couldn’t — they wouldn’t even dare try.

What these men were best at was knowing by heart the insignia of every great household in Jizhou City.

In their minds, they naturally had a ranking — first-tier houses, second-tier houses — which was also the usual fodder for their conversations.

In idle moments, the few of them would sit here appraising the great houses, pointing out this family’s strengths and that family’s weaknesses.

Quite as though they were grand commentators surveying the realm.

The Fengming Temple Daoists had Daoist names and also their own personal names.

The one at their head was called Wang Changxing — a nominal disciple of a Daoist master inside the temple, one Wang Dang.

Now, this Wang Dang had once been an official. But he was genuinely incompetent — not merely a fool, but a thoroughgoing idiot.

After Pan Nuo became Military Governor of Jizhou, not daring to freely employ people from the Yuzhou army, he could only use men of local standing from Jizhou. Li Yaozhi was Wang Dang’s brother-in-law, and when Li Yaozhi became Vice Magistrate of the Jizhou Prefecture, his social standing rose by a full notch.

His wife had said to him: if you want to use someone, why not use family? Have my brother come and help you, so the benefits don’t all go to outsiders.

Li Yaozhi knew perfectly well what category of idiot his brother-in-law was. But he couldn’t stand his wife’s nagging, and he didn’t want this person near him where he’d irritate him daily, so in a moment of desperation he had a word with Magistrate Qu Cheng.

Qu Cheng, not wanting to snub Li Yaozhi, arranged for Wang Dang to take up a post at the prefectural yamen as Deputy Constable Chief.

The duties of this post required doing nothing whatsoever — just collecting tribute money each month. A comfortable little life.

But Wang Dang felt this wasn’t right. He felt he needed to be doing things.

He went to various commercial establishments demanding money, threatening to seal up shops that refused. But these shops often had forces backing them. One incident after another, and Qu Cheng finally couldn’t bear it anymore — he delicately raised Wang Dang’s blunders with Li Yaozhi.

Li Yaozhi too was at his wit’s end. After thinking it over, he decided that the Fengming Temple was a fine place for money to flow through, and let it be known that Wang Dang was devoted to the pursuit of the Dao and wished to become a man apart from the world.

He had Wang Dang resign from his Deputy Constable Chief position. Wang Dang was actually unwilling to go, and ended up on the receiving end of a hard slap from Li Yaozhi that left his nose bleeding.

After his beating, Wang Dang had no choice but to come to the Fengming Temple. The money flowing through this temple was genuinely considerable.

Wealthy people praying not to be caught up in the chaos of the era came to burn incense and seek blessings. People with no money had nowhere else to turn — their only hope they had given over to the gods in the sky, and they too came to offer small donations.

Wang Dang going from Deputy Constable Chief to Daoist Master Wang — this kind of absurdity was actually a perfectly ordinary affair in Great Chu’s current official circles.

Once Wang Dang arrived at the Fengming Temple, his nephew Wang Changxing came running to him with a request, and Wang Dang kept Wang Changxing at the temple to work as a greeter at the mountain entrance.

Called a greeter, but the position had its perks.

Wang Changxing, leveraging this not-quite-significant connection, was rather domineering among the other greeters, and within just a few months had become their head.

Now he saw Li Chi’s party stop their carriage — no insignia, so he judged them to be an ordinary wealthy household from the city, coming to burn incense and pray.

Wang Changxing’s eyes brightened. This sort of person — they were the most lucrative to deal with.

Wang Changxing led a few greeters over, performed a polite and proper bow first, then arranged a look of regret on his face.

He said to Li Chi: “Are you here to offer incense?”

Li Chi nodded. “Yes.”

Wang Changxing said: “What terrible timing — our Fengming Temple has a rule, only fifty visitors per day. The person who just went up was exactly the fiftieth. Please come back another time.”

Li Chi said: “That unlucky? We’ve come from quite a distance. Can’t an exception be made?”

Wang Changxing put on a deeply conflicted expression: “It’s not that exceptions can never be made — it’s simply that I dare not break the temple’s rules.”

Li Chi lowered his voice: “I know a few people in Jizhou City. I’m on good terms with the Magistrate.”

Wang Changxing blinked at that, then looked Li Chi over, thinking to himself: this fellow is laying it on rather thick.

“The Magistrate?”

Wang Changxing gave a mild laugh: “If you are a friend or relative of the Magistrate, I will naturally take care of you. But taking care of you is one thing — the rules still cannot be broken.”

Li Chi asked: “Is there really no other way?”

Wang Changxing said: “There is a way — at the main temple gate, my senior fellow disciples are greeting guests. Even if I make an exception and let you through, you still won’t be able to get in at the main gate.”

His tone shifted: “However…”

Li Chi affected the eagerness of a man who has spotted hope: “However what?”

Wang Changxing said: “If you’re willing to form a good karmic bond, and I can see your sincerity, I’ll take the risk of bringing you in through the back gate.”

Li Chi asked: “Even having a relative like the Magistrate doesn’t help?”

Wang Changxing said: “You claim to be the Magistrate’s relative? I’m the Vice Magistrate’s relative myself — and look, I’m still here minding the gate.”

He glanced at Li Chi, thinking he might as well stop wasting words on this sort of person and just send him on his way.

Li Chi didn’t look like a man of money. Plain cotton clothing — clean, yes, but not a fine fabric.

Li Chi said: “I really am the Magistrate’s relative.”

Wang Changxing said: “And I really am the Vice Magistrate’s relative. Let’s just be direct about it — if you can produce ten taels of silver, I’ll arrange for someone to bring you in through the back gate. If you can’t, then please be on your way.”

Li Chi said: “Ten taels is too expensive. Can I negotiate?”

Wang Changxing said: “Not even the Magistrate himself could negotiate.”

Li Chi said: “I don’t believe that.”

Wang Changxing: “Then try it — if you have the ability to bring the Magistrate here, see whether I’ll negotiate with him or not.”

Li Chi said: “Very well.”

He turned and looked at Peng Shiqi: “Go back for a moment — quickly, we’re in a hurry or it’ll be dark before they arrive. Have them come at a run.”

Peng Shiqi immediately grinned: “Right away!”

Watching Li Chi carry on this way, Wang Changxing couldn’t help cursing him inwardly. Just then he noticed a carriage coming up from behind bearing the insignia of Magistrate Qu Cheng’s household.

Wang Changxing shoved Li Chi aside and hurried toward the carriage with a beaming smile.

The man jogged up to the carriage side, bent at the waist, and said: “Is that the Madam? I spotted the Madam’s carriage from far away — was just clearing the road for you.”

Li Chi didn’t recognize the Qu household’s carriages, so he asked one of the other greeter Daoists: “Whose carriage is this?”

The Daoist shot him a withering glare and said: “Didn’t you just boast that you’re the Magistrate’s relative? That’s the Magistrate’s carriage, and inside is the Magistrate’s wife. What sort of relative are you — you don’t know a thing?”

Li Chi said: “A distant cousin. Very distant.”

The greeter Daoist cursed at him: “Get out of the way. Don’t block the road — make way for the Madam.”

Li Chi said: “I don’t believe that’s actually the Magistrate’s wife. I may have only just arrived, but I’m not entirely ignorant — don’t try to fool a country person like me.”

The greeter Daoist snarled: “If you don’t move, don’t blame me for using my hands.”

Li Chi sighed: “You city people really have no manners. Back in our village, everything goes by reason and proper seniority. By seniority — though we’re only cousins, with a few removes — I am the Magistrate’s great-uncle by marriage. He would have to bow to me when we met.”

The Daoist stared at him as if looking at something deranged: “Are you out of your mind?”

Li Chi said: “Let me through, I need to have a word with my great-nephew’s wife.”

“How dare you cause trouble at the Fengming Temple — do you want to die?”

Wang Changxing, catching Li Chi’s words from behind, turned immediately, his expression shifting, and called out loudly: “If you don’t clear off, I’ll have you killed on this spot.”

Li Chi said: “You — how can you obstruct a family reunion between uncle and great-niece-in-law?”

Wang Changxing stepped forward and swung a fist directly at Li Chi’s face.

With a sharp crack, Li Chi caught the fist. He looked at Wang Changxing: “If you throw a punch, I’ll have grounds for a lawsuit.”

Wang Changxing’s expression changed. Seeing that this person’s martial ability was no small thing, he felt a twinge of fear — afraid that if it actually came to blows, he might come off worse.

So he shouted: “Quick, go to the temple and call for people — say there’s someone causing trouble at the foot of the mountain and he’s struck me!”

One of the greeter Daoists immediately turned and ran up the mountain.

Li Chi sighed: “I haven’t even pressed my claim yet, and you’re already trying to press a claim against me. That won’t do.”

From the mountain foot to the summit was no short distance — there were, after all, those long stone steps symbolizing boundless merit.

Li Chi was not in a hurry. He was blocking the path in any case — no one could get through.

As it happened, just as a large group of Daoists came rushing down from the mountain and surrounded Li Chi’s party, Peng Shiqi returned with his men.

When they had first set out, there had been no urgency — they had ambled along, Gao Xining and her companions stopping to browse the market stalls — so the whole outing had taken a full hour.

But in truth, if they’d needed to make haste, galloping on horseback, an hour would never have been necessary.

Hoofbeats thundered, and the group arrived at the mountain foot. Magistrate Qu Cheng took one look at the scene and knew things had gone badly.

Then he spotted his own carriage — his wife inside, the carriage window open, her expression at its absolute worst.

And the moment his wife saw her husband arrive, Qu Madam could no longer hold herself back. She climbed down from the carriage and blocked her husband with a flood of tearful grievances.

She pointed at Li Chi and said: “Lord knows where this muddy-boots lout came from — not a shred of manners. People like this should be thrown in prison. My lord, you’ve brought men, come at just the right moment — quickly have someone arrest him.”

Qu Cheng thought to himself: I haven’t brought men — I’ve been brought here by men.

His wife, seeing his strange expression, thought he was furious on her behalf. With her husband to back her up, she drew herself up and shouted at the soldiers standing behind Qu Cheng: “Why haven’t you arrested that little wretch yet?!”

Qu Cheng clapped a hand over his wife’s mouth: “Stop shouting.”

Wang Changxing was sharp-minded — he immediately grasped the Magistrate’s meaning. Presumably the Magistrate didn’t want this blown out of proportion; if it became a scene, the officials would be embarrassed as well.

So he demonstrated his cleverness: “The Magistrate is absolutely right — no shouting. Arrest them first and sort it out later.”

Qu Cheng’s face went white.

Li Chi smiled and said: “I originally came here to offer incense and pray for the health of the gentlemen. They said I had to pay ten taels of silver to be let in, and I didn’t have ten taels on me.”

Qu Cheng said: “These ruffians — they should have been… should have been dealt with long ago. They are… truly insufferable.”

Hearing the Magistrate say this, all the Fengming Temple Daoists were baffled, and Qu Madam was baffled as well.

Li Chi said: “Just now I told him — let me negotiate the price — and he said even if the Magistrate came, he couldn’t negotiate. Even having a connection to you wasn’t worth anything.”

Li Chi walked up to Qu Cheng and smiled: “He said I couldn’t negotiate. Help me negotiate.”

Qu Cheng mopped sweat from his brow: “The General may simply walk in — no need to deal with these crude people.”

Li Chi shook his head: “That won’t do. The man named a price — you can negotiate, but you can’t simply not pay. Magistrate Qu, help me negotiate.”

Qu Cheng, seeing how things stood, had no idea what to do. He hesitated at length and then tentatively offered: “This money — might I pay it on the General’s behalf?”

Li Chi said: “Have you got money on you right now?”

Qu Cheng never brought money when he went out. A Magistrate of his standing — he never needed to carry his own money.

Li Chi read his expression and sighed: “If you haven’t got money on you, I’m afraid it’s rather difficult… I have a vague sense that your household may be out of money entirely.”

—