*The World Origin Palace, East Study.*

The Emperor slowly let out a breath — a breath that had been lodged in his chest for half a month.

Before Yang Xuanji entered the city, Prince Wu had said to him: whatever happens, please trust me, Your Majesty.

The Emperor had chosen to trust him then — but with a matter of such gravity, who could truly remain at ease?

Yang Xuanji was no small figure. Scheming against a man like that was no easy thing — and by “not easy,” this meant not merely the challenge of killing him, but also the challenge of doing so in a way that would leave the Emperor’s reputation untarnished.

Prince Wu’s chain of stratagems had succeeded, and the Emperor could finally exhale — yet a lingering chill of fear remained.

Prince Wu had just departed and gone home. The sight of that old man’s back as he walked out the door gave the Emperor a pang of sorrow.

Without his noticing, Prince Wu had somehow reached the point where he could no longer stand as straight and tall as he once had.

Perhaps because he had finally allowed himself to relax, he walked with a slight stoop.

What the Emperor did not know was that when Prince Wu had gone to Yang Xuanji’s camp more than half a month ago, he had walked with his back straight and his head held high before everyone there. This old man — whenever he was representing the dignity of Dachu — never showed a trace of weakness.

“Your Majesty…”

The Empress called softly.

The Emperor returned to his senses, asking gently, “What is it?”

The Empress said, “Prince Wu has rendered great service again this time. Your Majesty has yet to speak of how to reward him.”

The Emperor shook his head. “At this moment, the only thing I can still give Royal Uncle is my unwavering support.”

The Empress’s expression shifted subtly.

Indeed — what reward could Dachu offer Prince Wu now? Even in the height of Dachu’s prosperity, what could truly have been given to a man like Prince Wu?

“Your Majesty… Prince Wu’s only son, Yang Zhenting, doesn’t seem to have received any reward…”

Before the Empress could finish, the Emperor waved his hand to stop her. “Royal Uncle sent Zhenting away from Daxing — that was the last private wish he permitted himself. If I were to grant Zhenting a title now, it would only be pulling him back into this.”

The Empress understood.

The Emperor exhaled slowly. “Before, I thought Royal Uncle was being disloyal to our ancestors by doing that. Now I understand — Royal Uncle simply wanted to preserve one thread of bloodline…”

He rose and walked to the window, murmuring as though to himself: “I already owe Royal Uncle far too much. And rewarding Zhenting would only cause Royal Uncle more heartache… I cannot add another burden to his heart.”

The Empress understood the Emperor’s feelings, and so quickly found another subject to move the conversation on.

“Your Majesty still hasn’t thought of a good name for the child.”

She said it with a smile, her eyes bright.

“Ha ha ha ha…”

The Emperor laughed. “I don’t even know yet if it will be a boy or a girl. There’s no rush — we can choose the name once the child is born.”

The Empress gave a soft sound of agreement. The smile on her face was, to the Emperor, the most restorative thing in the world.

The following morning, the Emperor held court. Looking out at all the unfamiliar faces in the hall, the Emperor felt a quiet discomfort — yet he knew that those new faces were feeling even more uncomfortable.

Especially the Yue Province troops’ representatives: men of bandit origin, who understood nothing of proper conduct, laughing and cursing and behaving raucously even inside the imperial court.

These people all considered themselves meritorious subjects. Even though it had been the Liang Province troops who had stormed the World Origin Palace and captured Yang Xuanji alive, it didn’t stop the Yue Province men from feeling their own contributions were substantial.

In their view, simply agreeing to surrender had already been doing the Emperor a favor — after all, they had all been rebels fighting against the throne.

The Emperor instinctively glanced toward Prince Wu, who gave him a small nod, signaling that he had already understood.

That evening, Prince Wu hosted a banquet for the Yue Province commanders — all of them former great bandits under Zhai Li.

Honored by Prince Wu’s invitation, these men grew even more insufferably pleased with themselves. They drank heavily throughout the meal and became increasingly brazen.

One of them even declared loudly that the reason Prince Wu had invited only them and not the Liang Province men was because Prince Wu had no use for those pretentious sorts.

Word quickly reached the Liang Province commanders, who were immediately furious.

Not long after learning of this, they gathered a group and went to Prince Wu’s residence to request an audience.

But to their surprise, Prince Wu refused to see them, saying only that he was feeling unwell and would invite them again at a later time.

This response infuriated the Liang Province commanders greatly.

The group gathered together and grumbled among themselves. One said that the Emperor had only regained his throne because of the Liang Province troops — if not for them storming the World Origin Palace and destroying Yang Xuanji, where would the Emperor be sitting comfortably now?

Another said that the Emperor and Prince Wu were discarding them once their usefulness was spent.

Still another went further, saying that the Emperor and Prince Wu were probably trying to win over the Yue Province rabble, and might even be planning to use those bandits to replace the Liang Province commanders’ positions.

In no time at all, a simmering wave of resentment spread through the entire Liang Province army.

When this news was relayed back to Prince Wu’s residence, he merely smiled faintly upon hearing it, seemingly not the least bit concerned.

Before long, all of these aggrieved Liang Province commanders received invitations from Prince Wu — delivered in utmost secrecy.

Prince Wu invited them all to meet him the following day at a mountain villa outside the city.

This villa was the Prince Wu’s consort’s private property, renowned within Daxing for its scenic beauty.

During Yang Xuanji’s siege of the city, the villa had been considerably damaged, and now it looked like a scene of desolation. Whatever valuables had once been there had long since been looted, and finding who had taken what was now a hopeless task.

The Liang Province commanders changed into plain clothes and left the city one by one, making their way to the villa, where they were received by people Prince Wu had arranged and led into the garden.

In the rear garden of the villa, Prince Wu looked at these Liang Province commanders with a resigned expression.

Among these commanders was a man named Jiang Qihai — a genuine Dachu garrison soldier by origin — who held Prince Wu in considerable awe. After the Liang Province Military Governor Du Ke had been executed, Jiang Qihai had become the backbone of the Liang Province army. The whole group looked to him for leadership and sought his approval in all matters.

“Qihai.”

Prince Wu looked at Jiang Qihai and said, “I seem to remember that you were once a commander in the Right Garrison Guards, and only later transferred to Liang Province?”

Though Jiang Qihai’s heart held some resentment, his respect for Prince Wu remained intact, and so he bowed and replied, “To answer Your Highness — your subordinate is indeed from the Right Garrison Guards. It was Your Highness who recommended me to the Right Garrison Guards’ Supreme Commander at the time of my graduation from the military academy, which is how your subordinate came to serve in the garrison forces.”

Prince Wu smiled. “I thought as much — I haven’t gotten so old that I’m confusing my own memories.”

He rose and went person by person to pour wine for the Liang Province commanders. For each of those who were from the garrison forces, he could recall their histories — and in no time at all, everyone had begun reminiscing about the old days.

“Naturally, my feelings for all of you — and His Majesty’s as well — run deeper than for others.”

After drinking two cups of wine, Prince Wu let out a long breath.

Jiang Qihai said, “We are deeply grateful for His Majesty’s and Your Highness’s regard. But… those Yue Province men are becoming more and more outrageous. Just yesterday they barged into our camp and made a scene, claiming without any basis that our men had taken more than their share of provisions. Your Highness…”

Prince Wu of course knew about this — because he was the one who had instigated it.

But he sighed and shook his head. “I know.”

Jiang Qihai was taken aback. “Your Highness knows, then surely Your Highness understands that we did not take more provisions. For the Yue Province men to cause trouble like this…”

Before he could finish, Prince Wu interrupted him again.

Prince Wu said, “I know, and His Majesty knows as well — but the situation is somewhat unusual right now. His Majesty is in a difficult position, and so am I.”

This entire sequence of events had been Prince Wu’s orchestration from the very beginning.

That night at the banquet he had hosted for the Yue Province commanders, Prince Wu had told them that the Liang Province troops were growing increasingly arrogant because of their service protecting the Emperor, and that His Majesty was displeased with them.

He had dropped just enough hints to convey that the Liang Province men had become so consumed by pride in their achievements that they no longer showed proper respect even to the Emperor. His Majesty was furious — but as he could not treat men of merit poorly, he had been tolerating it.

Once these words were out, the bandit-born Yue Province men took the bait entirely and fell over each other cursing.

Then Prince Wu let slip a little more: that His Majesty intended to use the Yue Province troops to replace the arrogant Liang Province commanders, but had no pretext at the moment. Prince Wu mentioned that if some evidence could be found — something like them having taken more than their share of provisions — that would make everything much easier.

Most of the Yue Province men were blunt and straightforward, without much capacity for complicated scheming. Prompted by Prince Wu, they immediately acted on impulse.

That was how the Yue Province men had ended up storming the Liang Province camp — and those same men had gone in thinking the Emperor and Prince Wu were looking out for them, so they feared nothing.

Prince Wu sighed. “Because of your great contributions, His Majesty originally intended to reward you generously — but the Yue Province men ran to His Majesty and made a scene.”

Jiang Qihai said, “How dare they be so brazen?!”

Prince Wu sighed. “His Majesty had made promises to treat them well. These men are of bandit origin — crude and unruly by nature. They understand nothing of proper conduct.”

“They caused a scene, and His Majesty had no choice but to give them the same rewards as your side. He had hoped this would settle them down — but they were still not satisfied.”

“They said that if they couldn’t get a larger share of provisions and supplies, they would leave the city and return to Yue Province. His Majesty didn’t immediately agree, only saying he would arrange for more to be distributed once it could be gathered…”

Prince Wu looked at Jiang Qihai and said, “They even had the audacity to demand they take over the palace guard’s role defending the imperial city. Is that not a direct threat to His Majesty? They know His Majesty doesn’t want internal conflict, so they exploit his tolerance to push further and further. My inviting them to a banquet earlier was also His Majesty’s reluctant gesture.”

Jiang Qihai said furiously, “But Your Highness — if we keep letting these men do as they please, won’t they just keep getting worse?!”

Prince Wu sighed. “Those words are correct, and the reasoning is sound — but His Majesty worries that if there is internal fighting, the common people and soldiers who have only just had a few days of peace would have to suffer the horrors of war again, and there would be enormous loss of life. So…”

He shook his head. “His Majesty is in a truly difficult position.”

After these words, every one of the Liang Province commanders had gone pale with fury.

The men who had rallied to restore the Emperor to his throne were the Liang Province troops. The men who had stormed the World Origin Palace and died for it were the Liang Province troops.

Now the Yue Province men — who had done nothing — wanted to ride above them. How could this be endured?

Most of them were from the garrison forces by origin and had always looked down on those bandits. The anger in their hearts could no longer be suppressed.

Prince Wu said, “Both you and I are His Majesty’s subjects. If we can ease His Majesty’s burdens, all the better. If we cannot, at least we should not add to them. That is why I called you here in secret — I wanted to urge you all to let the matter rest for now and avoid further conflict…”

Jiang Qihai said, “Your Highness! Those men are a disaster waiting to happen. If we don’t deal with them, sooner or later they will be the ones starting an uprising.”

The others voiced agreement in a chorus.

Prince Wu said, “But His Majesty worries…”

Jiang Qihai said, “We’ll handle it ourselves first. His Majesty won’t blame us afterward.”

Prince Wu said, “The Yue Province troops number two hundred thousand. If this is handled poorly, it could cause a catastrophe.”

Jiang Qihai said, “Tomorrow at court, Your Highness can arrange for the palace guards not to search us — we bring weapons into the hall, and right there in front of the throne, we cut down these villains who have been humiliating His Majesty.”

Prince Wu shook his head. “If it happens that way, I fear His Majesty will be saddled with a terrible reputation.”

Jiang Qihai paused, thought carefully for a moment, then said, “Then how about this: tomorrow, Your Highness brings those men to our camp claiming to inspect the provisions. As long as they enter our camp, not a single one leaves alive. This won’t happen inside the World Origin Palace — it won’t affect His Majesty’s reputation.”

He looked at Prince Wu. “Only, Your Highness would…”

Prince Wu rose and clasped his hands in a bow. “To cut out traitors for His Majesty’s sake — what does it matter if I take on a little infamy? If you truly dare to do this, I will stand beside you!”

Every man rose and clasped his hands in response: “We are willing to slay traitors for His Majesty!”

Once everything had been arranged, Prince Wu hurried back into the city, stopping first at the World Origin Palace, where he remained for about an hour.

When he had left the city, he had gone in disguise; when he returned, he quietly slipped back to his residence to change clothes, then boarded a carriage befitting his rank to enter the palace. The earlier departure in disguise was because he didn’t want to be seen; the later arrival in a formal carriage was precisely because he wanted to be seen.

By the time he left the World Origin Palace, the sky had already grown dark. As Prince Wu settled into his carriage, he finally allowed himself a long, deep exhale.

Whatever troubled the Emperor was a matter his servant was duty-bound to resolve as swiftly as possible.

The situation within the city had always been one of treacherous undercurrents beneath a calm surface — and the hidden dangers were countless.

If the matter of the Yue Province troops and the Liang Province troops was not resolved, there was every chance that those who had pledged loyalty today would be raising rebel banners again tomorrow.

The Yue Province men especially — every one of them had been Li Xionghu’s old followers, rebels from the very beginning.

If internal conflict broke out in the city now — whether the Liang Province troops or the Yue Province troops were the ones to turn — the damage would far exceed anything Yang Xuanji’s siege had caused. Incomparably greater.

In the carriage, Prince Wu rested with his eyes closed, going over his scheme in careful detail once more, making sure there were no gaps. When he was satisfied there were none, his mind settled somewhat.

Halfway back to his residence, Prince Wu ordered one of his men to go invite all the Yue Province commanders to his residence at once — urgently.

So when Prince Wu arrived home, the Yue Province commanders had already begun arriving one after another.

After the great bandit Zhai Li had been executed, the Yue Province men had initially been in a state of panic — they weren’t truly foolish, and could they really believe everything Yang Xuanji had said?

Yes, they were of bandit origin and hadn’t read much, and didn’t understand many things. But that didn’t mean they were stupid.

It was basic human instinct — no learning required.

When a mother wants to go out and the child insists on following, and the mother says she’s just going to work in the fields and will be back shortly, thinking the child is young enough to be fooled — does the child actually believe it?

Were the Liang Province men only able to see through Yang Xuanji’s deception because they were educated?

No. They had simply made a choice.

When you know your chief has been killed, and if you don’t comply, you’ll be next — and moreover, you never held that chief in particularly high regard — you are forced to face a choice.

Option one: play dumb. Option two: fight to the death.

And looking into the darker corners of human nature — even those who had held Zhai Li in genuine respect would still have faced the same two choices.

Everyone had pretended to believe Yang Xuanji’s story, while still finding excuses now and then to perform the appearance of wondering when their old chief was coming back.

Inevitably, someone among them would be pushed forward as a new leader — just one who couldn’t openly admit it.

This man was called Liao Shan. He was not one of Zhai Li’s close confidants — all of Zhai Li’s closest men had already been eliminated by Prince Wu’s scheme. Precisely because his connection to Zhai Li had been less close, Yang Xuanji had chosen him to temporarily take command as acting General of the Yue Province troops.

After arriving at Prince Wu’s residence, Liao Shan and his men sat in the receiving hall chatting idly while waiting for Prince Wu to come out.

One of the Yue Province commanders, a man named Li Yong, lowered his voice and asked Liao Shan, “Do you think Prince Wu called us here because of yesterday when we barged into the Liang Province camp?”

Liao Shan smiled. “If that’s what this is about, then it’s good news.”

Everyone laughed — after all, they had gone to stir up trouble with the Liang Province men precisely because of what Prince Wu had arranged.

They were told that the Liang Province garrison soldiers looked down on them. But did they think any better of those garrison men in return?

One side: garrison commanders, elite soldiers from the former Liang Province Military Governor’s forces. The other side: rebel troops who had been fighting against the imperial court from the very beginning. At their very cores, they held each other in contempt.

The difference was this: the Liang Province men looked at the Yue Province men with disdain; the Yue Province men looked at the Liang Province men with hatred.

Liao Shan said, “This thing happened yesterday. Prince Wu spent the entire day without a word to us, and then summoned us the moment he returned from the World Origin Palace. That clearly means His Majesty has some instructions. We just have to wait and hear what they are.”

The group all murmured agreement, feeling rather pleased with themselves.

Prince Wu changed his clothes, splashed water on his face to look more alert, and then came out to the receiving hall.

The moment he walked in, all the Yue Province commanders stood and bowed in greeting.

“Sit, sit — no need for all those formalities. You’re all straightforward men — plain-spoken and direct. I’ve always liked that about you. Don’t go picking up stiff and pompous habits.”

Prince Wu smiled as he took his seat, pressing his hand down gently, and the Yue Province commanders all sat.

“Your Highness, you summoned us so urgently — is there something the matter?”

Liao Shan asked — though in truth he had been bursting with impatience for a while now.

Prince Wu let out a sigh, his expression tinged with helplessness and a hint of bitterness.

Liao Shan immediately asked with concern, “What is it, Your Highness?”

Prince Wu sighed. “I’ve just come back from the palace. His Majesty is very troubled, and very angry.”

He looked at Liao Shan and said, “Word of my banquet with you all the other day got back to those people, and they took it to His Majesty to complain.”

Liao Shan was immediately incensed. “Do they have a death wish? How dare they go and vex His Majesty?!”

Prince Wu said, “As I mentioned to you before — they use their service record as a shield, growing more and more arrogant toward His Majesty.”

“His Majesty has been intending to use you all to replace them in their military posts — bringing the Liang Province troops under the Yue Province command structure for unified deployment, with me as the overall commander, all of you serving under my banner.”

Liao Shan said, “We would naturally be glad to serve under Your Highness.”

Prince Wu said, “Perhaps Jiang Qihai and his men received some intelligence, or perhaps it was because you went to disrupt their camp, and then my inviting only you to a banquet and not them — whatever the reason, they went to the World Origin Palace and made a scene in front of His Majesty.”

He looked at Liao Shan and said, “Jiang Qihai even said, shamelessly, that if His Majesty didn’t give them justice, he would take his troops and leave Daxing.”

Prince Wu gave another long sigh. “His Majesty’s rewards to them were actually somewhat higher than those granted to you — and even then, some of it was given quietly, out of a desire to pacify them. And yet His Majesty’s forbearance only made them push further.”

Hearing that the Emperor’s rewards to the Liang Province men had been higher — and given secretly on top of that — the Yue Province commanders grew even more infuriated.

Prince Wu said, “His Majesty knows he has treated you unfairly. But you are honest and forthright people, and that is precisely what His Majesty values about you… Yet this proves the saying that the ordinary folk have always known: the crying child gets fed.”

Liao Shan said furiously, “Your Highness, we can’t just keep letting those bastards swagger around unchecked. We have to find a way to deal with them — scare them into line.”

Prince Wu sighed. “Mere intimidation and suppression alone would be meaningless — it would only deepen their resentment, and sooner or later a crisis would break out. You must understand — what His Majesty fears most is that they might rebel again.”

Prince Wu said, “His Majesty trusts you all — and again, it is because you are honest people who keep your word, true subjects of Dachu who have always been loyal at heart. Most of you followed Zhai Li because you were misled, and because of the oppression you suffered from local officials. That is not your fault, and His Majesty knows it and feels your grievance.”

“But are the Liang Province men the same? They are not. They were already men of high rank and comfortable salaries — eating from the imperial court’s hand, taking the imperial court’s pay — and yet they still wanted to turn against the court. They are wolves in their very nature.”

Liao Shan said furiously, “Then let’s just kill them and be done with it!”

Prince Wu sighed. “Easier said than done. The Liang Province troops number nearly two hundred and fifty thousand. If it comes to fighting, it would put Daxing itself in danger — even His Majesty’s life.”

Liao Shan paused, then said, “If we can just find a way to eliminate their commanders, the common soldiers won’t dare make trouble.”

Prince Wu immediately asked, “Do you have a plan?”

Liao Shan shook his head. “I don’t… But if Your Highness has something in mind, just say the word. We’ve already pledged ourselves to Your Highness and to His Majesty — whatever you and His Majesty instruct, we’ll carry out.”

The whole group voiced agreement.

Prince Wu considered for a moment, then said, “It’s not that there are no options — only that there’s some risk involved.”

Liao Shan smiled. “Your Highness underestimates us. What are we afraid of?”

Prince Wu immediately beckoned them all closer and lowered his voice. “As long as we have clear evidence of their crimes, His Majesty can deal with them. Tomorrow, I will take you with me to the Liang Province camp.”

“You bring thirty large carts loaded with provisions and supplies — say you’ve come to retrieve what they took from your stores. With me leading you in, they won’t dare block us.”

“Once inside, go straight to their supply depot. Then kick up a fuss — say those thirty carts of provisions are what they took from you. That is your material proof.”

Liao Shan’s eyes lit up. “And once that is established, His Majesty can deal with them!”

Prince Wu said, “Don’t be afraid if they make trouble. In fact, the better outcome is if they take it all the way to His Majesty’s door — even if they march it into the palace. I’ll find a way to make sure they enter carrying weapons. With two crimes combined, their fate will be inescapable.”

Liao Shan and the others broke into smiles at once.

The following morning, Liao Shan had his men load up carts from his own camp’s stores. Prince Wu had said thirty carts — worried it might not be enough, Liao Shan had forty loaded instead.

After waiting about half an hour, Prince Wu arrived. Liao Shan then took the majority of his commanders along with a force of seven or eight hundred men, and made their way toward the Liang Province camp in a great show of aggression.

Unsurprisingly, with Prince Wu present, the Liang Province soldiers on duty did not dare obstruct them.

Prince Wu had said beforehand that as long as the carts were moved inside the camp, the deed was done — so Liao Shan was feeling rather pleased with himself.

Prince Wu would testify before the Emperor that the carts had arrived empty. Thinking this, Liao Shan felt even more pleased.

On the Jiang Qihai’s side, they played along — deliberately pretending not to have rushed to the gate in time.

By the time Prince Wu led Liao Shan and his men to the supply depot, Jiang Qihai came hurrying up with his men, seemingly arriving just a moment too late.

The two groups came face to face, and immediately began hurling insults at each other. The scene instantly turned into an uproar.

Prince Wu stood to one side with a deeply furrowed brow and a cold expression — though inwardly, he was quite delighted.

“Have you all had enough?!”

As the situation looked about to break into a brawl, Prince Wu stepped forward and shouted.

Both sides had been waiting for Prince Wu to intervene, so they settled down at once.

Liao Shan said, “Your Highness, they’ve misappropriated this much of our provisions and supplies, and they were ours to begin with — Your Highness must stand up for us!”

Jiang Qihai said, “Do you think we’re blind? You brought this stuff in yourself. And you have the nerve to frame us for it?”

Liao Shan said, “Nonsense! Your Highness can testify for us — when we came, all the carts were empty. The goods on them were only just found here in your hands!”

Prince Wu said to Liao Shan, “Don’t get agitated. Let me take a look.”

Liao Shan quickly stepped aside, making way with his men.

Prince Wu walked to the side of one of the carts, gave the contents a cursory look, pulled down a sack of grain, and made a sound of surprised curiosity.

He looked at Liao Shan. “What is this about?”

Liao Shan quickly came over. “What is it, Your Highness?”

Prince Wu pointed to the sack of grain. “On this sack — there is still the marking used when provisions were distributed to your side. See for yourself.”

Liao Shan looked. There was indeed a character written on the sack — the character for “Yue.”

Liao Shan was stunned. “But… how can this be?”

Prince Wu’s expression shifted to something resembling restrained anger. “Liao Shan, you had better explain — what is going on here? You told me these were empty carts. How is it that your own grain is here?”

Liao Shan’s eyes went wide.

He immediately shouted, “Your Highness, you can’t do this — Your Highness, you were the one who arranged all of this!”

Prince Wu said sharply, “Liao Shan — what nonsense are you talking?!”

Liao Shan suddenly understood everything in one flash of clarity. “You were all on the same side — everyone, draw your weapons, fight back!”

The group immediately drew their blades.

But what good did drawing blades do?

The moment Liao Shan drew his weapon, Prince Wu brought the edge of his palm down on Liao Shan’s neck, then seized him and swept backward — with his skill, subduing one Liao Shan was no difficulty at all.

The moment Prince Wu moved, Jiang Qihai immediately gave the order: “Loose arrows!”

The archers surrounding them let fly at once. Against that volley, the force of seven or eight hundred men had no defense.

Of the Yue Province men who had come, every last one was killed — all except Liao Shan, who had been captured alive by Prince Wu.

About an hour later, the Emperor issued an edict summoning the remaining Yue Province commanders into the palace, saying he wished to deal with the matter of the provisions.

Those men still thought Prince Wu’s scheme had worked out in their favor, and went hurrying off to the World Origin Palace in high spirits, eager to watch the show.

The moment they passed through the palace gates, they were seized by the palace guards.

Huichunqiu, the commander of the palace guard, gestured casually — and several guards threw down the sabers they had been cradling in their arms at the feet of those men.

—