By the time Li Chi returned to the estate, dusk had already crept in, and the day had slipped by in an instant.

He stepped down from the carriage at the gate. Yu Jiuling, in his nominal role as head manager of the Anyang branch, had accompanied him throughout the day and climbed down alongside him.

It was only after both men had alighted that they noticed Shen Ruzhan standing at the gate, holding an oiled-paper umbrella, waiting for him.

Li Chi panicked. Li Chi panicked again. Li Chi panicked, and then Yu Jiuling panicked too.

Though Yu Jiuling had no idea why he was panicking, he genuinely was.

Li Chi was about to quicken his pace when Shen Ruzhan murmured softly, “Walk slowly. Who knows how many eyes might be watching.”

Li Chi adjusted his stride and, with studied nonchalance, walked to Shen Ruzhan’s side. The two of them shared the umbrella and made their way into the courtyard together.

Yu Jiuling watched them disappear inside and tilted his head back toward the sky. The sky was a smudged grey, and a fine rain fell in a whispering drizzle.

After their riverside fishing earlier in the day, they had gone in the afternoon to visit the Xingshengde branch belonging to the Cao family. It was only on leaving that they realized the sky had clouded over, and the rain had begun somewhere along the way back.

Following in the wake of those two, getting sprinkled on by the light rain, Yu Jiuling had the strangest illusion.

He felt like a sun — radiant and burning, right there beside those two people.

Back in the sitting room, Li Chi waited until Yu Jiuling had come through the door, then paused. Yu Jiuling was already giving him a look of quiet grievance.

Li Chi sighed. “It seems there were still some oversights. Let the men know — when in public, they should show Ninth Sister more respect. He is, after all, the head manager of the branch.”

Yu Jiuling thought to himself: *At least the boss has some conscience.*

Having said that, Li Chi turned to Shen Ruzhan. “We went to see the Cao family’s Xingshengde today.”

Shen Ruzhan poured tea as she asked, “How was it?”

Li Chi replied, “Not a patch on your Shen Medical Hall. I’d say it falls short by roughly a hundred thousand li.”

The corner of Shen Ruzhan’s mouth curved ever so slightly.

She handed Li Chi a cup of hot tea and asked, “Where did you find it lacking?”

“In every way,” Li Chi said. “Xingshengde is there purely to make money. It has no physician’s spirit.”

Shen Medical Hall was different. It too made money — and indeed, in the apothecary trade, no establishment could match Shen Medical Hall for profit. Yet what filled Shen Medical Hall most was the spirit of medicine.

The resident physicians there would not give a patient a cursory examination simply because the patient came without means.

In truth, a portion of what Shen Medical Hall earned from wealthy merchants and high officials was quietly channeled back to the poor.

Xingshengde was not the same. If you had money, you were treated. If not, you were shown the door.

Above the front hall of Xingshengde hung two vertical plaques — on the left: *Do not open your mouth to ask for favors*; on the right: *No credit extended under any circumstances*.

Above the front hall of Shen Medical Hall hung two vertical plaques as well — on the left: *Medicine is born of poison*; on the right: *Saving lives is the highest calling*.

Li Chi settled into his seat and said, “If I ever have the means, I’ll open medical halls across the land, every one of them run by the standards of your Shen Medical Hall.”

He said it as if in passing, yet Shen Ruzhan turned the thought over carefully.

A dynasty that established government-run medical halls for its people in every region — that would genuinely be a great undertaking.

When this occurred to her, she smiled and said, “Then when you undertake that, what is to become of Shen Medical Hall?”

Li Chi was startled and hastily said, “I was only speaking offhandedly.”

At that moment, a phrase surfaced in Shen Ruzhan’s mind — but she did not say it aloud.

The phrase was: *A ruler’s words are not spoken in jest.*

She felt that if she uttered those four words just then, the scoundrel would probably be frightened out of his wits.

“You were away all day.”

Shen Ruzhan said, “But the guests arrived earlier than you anticipated. This afternoon, the wife of Prefect Liu of the府治 paid a visit.”

Li Chi had expected this — just not so soon.

But on reflection, Liu Yao was desperate to see the money come in. His eagerness for Shen Medical Hall to prosper was even more pressing than Li Chi’s own.

If the prefect himself had made a move, naturally his wife would too.

With husband and wife both putting in such effort, it would be difficult for things not to succeed.

In theory, the garrison troops did not interfere in local affairs — which meant that within Anyang city, Liu Yao was, in theory, the highest-ranking official.

Once he had set the example, the rest would follow in droves.

Seeing that Li Chi had gone quiet, Shen Ruzhan understood he was thinking through the logistics. With the wife of the prefect having come first, others would arrive in an endless stream — and Li Chi was considering whether it would tire Shen Ruzhan.

“If I don’t wish to deal with them, I’ll tell you.”

Shen Ruzhan’s tone was calm and even. “Until I say so, you needn’t concern yourself.”

Li Chi nodded reflexively — and then noticed, belatedly, that the way Shen Ruzhan smiled when she was amused was genuinely lovely.

Yet even as their eyes met across the moment, there was no tender longing between them.

Shen Ruzhan could even detect, in the way Li Chi was looking at her, the vague shape of a thought drifting through the rascal’s mind: *I wonder if this woman would ever agree to become my sister-in-law.*

So Shen Ruzhan gave Li Chi a look laden with some private meaning, turned, and left.

She had not glared at him — and yet Li Chi felt exactly as though he had just been soundly berated, the kind that leaves your ears ringing.

Seven days later, the Anyang branch of Shen Medical Hall opened seven or eight days ahead of schedule, its speed of completion beyond all expectation.

The official approvals had gone through without a single obstacle. The craftsmen had worked in rotating shifts day and night. The timeline had been cut by more than half.

On the day of the opening, to build momentum for Shen Medical Hall, Liu Yao — Prefect of Anyang — arrived in person to offer his congratulations.

The local officials had been wavering about whether to attend. Given their particular positions, coming in person seemed somewhat excessive.

But if even the prefect had gone, how could they remain seated?

And so, the entrance of Shen Medical Hall became a stream of carriages and horses, flowing without cease.

The prefect had barely arrived when Young Lord Cao Lie also appeared, followed shortly by Ding Shengjia as a representative of Meng Kedi.

In an instant, both the local government and the military were present.

The occasion took on a certain gravity — and once again made plain just how different Shen Medical Hall was.

To speak plainly: for an outside merchant to gain a foothold in a new city was no simple matter. Setting aside all else, in the apothecary trade alone, Xingshengde was enough to crush every outside newcomer underfoot. Anyone wishing to do apothecary business where Xingshengde operated had exactly two choices: fall in line, or get out.

The splendor of that opening day was visible even to the common people, who could all see that Shen Medical Hall had powerful backing. Even the petty thieves who had been itching to cause trouble in the commotion did not dare make their move.

Ten days after that, the three new ships Li Chi had purchased arrived — bought directly from the Cao family’s fleet.

From Cao Lie’s perspective, giving them to Li Chi as a gift would have been nothing — three ships to him were no more than a light drizzle.

But Li Chi insisted on the principle that even close brothers must keep clear accounts, and paid the full sum without shortfall.

With three ships arriving, and arriving from the Cao family’s own fleet — the merchants doing business on the Nanping River began to catch a faint whiff of something unusual.

At the General’s Residence.

Meng Kedi sipped his tea and listened to Liu Yao and the others report, finding it more interesting with each word.

Liu Yao smiled and said, “This Young Master Li truly is a practical man. Not a trace of empty posturing.”

Meng Kedi nodded. “Practical is good. A lack of practicality means a guilty conscience. The more practical he is, the deeper his investment in Anyang, and the more trustworthy the man.”

Ding Shengjia said, “The information coming in from my end is also favorable. The branches of Shen Medical Hall across the various prefectures have already compiled the defense layouts of their respective counties.”

He looked toward Meng Kedi and said, “For the nearer counties, Shen Medical Hall’s people have already delivered the materials. For those further away, they are en route.”

Meng Kedi smiled. “By that measure, he is indeed a practical man.”

Liu Yao said, “He had originally said he would buy ships within two months. Yet it has been barely twenty days, and three new vessels have already arrived.”

“I also sent men to make inquiries at the shipyard. They said that Young Master Li has placed an order there for ten cargo ships, with one already under construction.”

Meng Kedi considered this. Ten large ships — at minimum two years to complete. It seemed Li Duidui truly intended to settle in Anyang for the long term.

Meng Kedi said, “What business he runs is of no concern to me.”

After a brief pause, he continued, “What I need is the defense layout of each prefecture in Jizhou, the distribution of the summer grain crop — and ideally, coordination from within when my forces lay siege.”

He looked at Ding Shengjia. “As you see it now, can Shen Medical Hall deliver?”

Ding Shengjia replied, “The matter of coordinating from within I cannot confirm. But on the first two points, Shen Medical Hall has performed rather well.”

Meng Kedi said, “You have grown closer with Li Duidui. Go and ask him again tomorrow. If he can commit to delivering, we truly cannot afford to delay any longer.”

Ding Shengjia bowed. “General, rest assured. I will go tomorrow.”

Meng Kedi then turned to Xue Chunbao. “I assigned you the vanguard and gave you a full division. I’ve long had you preparing — how ready are you?”

Xue Chunbao bowed. “Reporting to the General: the vanguard is fully prepared and may set out at any time.”

“The day after tomorrow, then.”

Meng Kedi said, “The day after tomorrow is the nineteenth day of the fifth month. I had it checked — it is an auspicious day.”

Xue Chunbao was immediately seized with excitement. A man who lived for battle and bloodshed — the moment he heard they were about to go to war, the thrill surged through him and would not be suppressed.

He answered loudly, “Yes, sir!”

Meng Kedi continued, “For this campaign: Xue Chunbao takes one division as the vanguard; I will personally command fifty thousand as the central force; Ding Shengjia takes one division as the rear guard.”

He rose and walked to the map. After studying it a moment, he raised his hand and pointed at the location of Jizhou. “The vanguard departs in two days. The main force sets out three days after that. We must be outside Jizhou’s walls by mid-sixth month.”

“Yes, sir!”

Every man answered in unison.

At that same moment, at Shen Medical Hall.

In the study, Yu Jiuling looked at Li Chi with barely concealed urgency.

“Boss, the date you agreed to with my older brother is only twenty days away. When exactly are you planning to leave?”

Li Chi smiled. “Barring anything unexpected, Meng Kedi’s forces should move out in three or four days. The moment his front foot leaves, my back foot follows.”

Yu Jiuling said, “But when we came here it took close to a month. Even if you leave in three or four days, that leaves barely half a month. Is that really enough time?”

Li Chi said, “It’s rare to have a brother this devoted. Your older brother pelts you with dirt clods every single day, and yet here you are fretting on her behalf.”

Yu Jiuling said, “If he didn’t pelt me with dirt clods, I’d never bother worrying about him.”

Li Chi laughed and walked to the window, gazing out at the crowd filling the main hall beyond.

“Half a month is enough.”

Li Chi drew in a long, slow breath. “What I promised her — I won’t go back on.”

Seated not far away, Shen Ruzhan watched the back of this man’s figure and reflected that people who knew how to keep their word were, all things considered, easier on the eyes.

She, too, had once made a promise — but had not been able to keep her appointment.

By the time she learned of it, nine days had already passed since the date they had agreed upon. He had died in battle.

He had been such a remarkable person. By day, he was sunlight itself; by night, he was the stars.

She had been delayed tending to someone’s wound and missed their meeting. When she finally arrived in Liangzhou, he was no longer in the world.

So she had stayed in Liangzhou — longer than she had ever remained anywhere.

Three years.

Three years keeping vigil at his grave.

That was how the first Shen Medical Hall came to be — in Liangzhou.

He had died of wounds that would not heal, so she stayed in Liangzhou and saved as many lives as she could. She knew that no number of lives saved could bring him back.

His grave lay outside the city walls. She went often.

And yet —

*Within sight of each other, yet every step an unbreachable wall.*

—