Lu Chonglou was certain that somewhere within this vast grain convoy, Xu Ji had planted informants.

He had turned the question over in his mind: if Xu Ji’s men wanted to move against him, what would be the ideal method?

Yet in a convoy like this, apart from the Court Adjudicator’s Office agents assigned to protect him, he knew almost no one. There was simply no way to guess.

Every person in this convoy, aside from his own guards, could potentially pose a threat when he wasn’t looking.

He spent the whole day traveling and the whole day thinking. When the convoy halted again at dusk for camp, he finally let his mind rest.

He stepped out of the carriage, stretched, and watched from a distance as Ye Xiaoqian once again arranged the defensive watch — all routine by now, the established rotation running like clockwork.

As the last light faded, the familiar oppression settled over Lu Chonglou once more.

It was the kind of oppression ordinary people could not understand, because ordinary people did not face such things.

You know someone wants to kill you. You know it will happen within these next few days. But you don’t know which day. You don’t know which person. You don’t know how.

“Come on, my lord.”

Ye Xiaoqian waved to him from across the camp.

“Where to?” Lu Chonglou asked, walking over.

“To eat,” Ye Xiaoqian said simply.

Lu Chonglou paused. “Cadging meals again?”

Ye Xiaoqian stepped closer and spoke in a tone of great seriousness: “My lord, you have it wrong. You are the commanding officer of this entire convoy. So it isn’t cadging — it’s *showing concern for the rank and file*.”

“I have a face to save,” Lu Chonglou said flatly. “I’m not going.”

“My lord, you’re embarrassed because you’re afraid the men who saw you eating with them yesterday will see you again today. Am I right?”

Lu Chonglou said nothing.

“My lord, this convoy has over ten thousand men. Why go back to the same few?”

Lu Chonglou shook his head firmly.

Ye Xiaoqian leaned in. “Think about it, my lord — if we run into danger, the rations you save could save a life.”

“But…”

“The Qianban said: the higher one’s position, the more one must consider. As the commanding officer, such considerations leave no room for embarrassment.”

Lu Chonglou: “……”

“Also,” Ye Xiaoqian added, “there’s a river not far from where we’re camped. I saw a bunch of the supply bearers heading there to catch fish. If we could cadge a fish dinner—”

“That would be *helping them*, not cadging,” Lu Chonglou said.

And he turned and walked toward the supply bearers’ camp. Ye Xiaoqian grinned and fell into step behind him.

—

Nearby, behind a supply cart, two men dressed as civilian volunteers leaned against the wheel, pretending to chat. But their eyes kept darting toward Lu Chonglou and Ye Xiaoqian.

When they saw the pair heading toward the supply bearers’ camp, the two men also quietly turned away.

Sometime later, in the main camp, they found their unit.

The man in charge of the supply bearers’ section was a prefectural clerk from Yuezhou named Gao Yu — one of Xu Ji’s confidants, formerly one of his personal guards, promoted after arriving in Yuezhou. His task on this journey was to keep a close eye on Lu Chonglou and find an opportunity to strike.

At this moment, Wen Jiu was also in his tent.

The two informants entered, bowed, and reported what they had observed. Gao Yu swore under his breath.

“This Ye Xiaoqian — is he doing this deliberately?”

He turned to Wen Jiu. “Ever since we entered Liangzhou, Ye Xiaoqian has been dragging Lu Chonglou around the entire camp. They never eat the food sent to them — instead they wander off and cadge meals from different people every time. No pattern to it. There’s no way to predict where they’ll end up.”

Wen Jiu’s brow darkened.

From the very start, he had suspected that Ye Xiaoqian was nothing like his outward appearance. A Baiban of the Court Adjudicator’s Office — how could such a person have no guile?

The wandering to cadge meals — from the very first day they entered Liangzhou — could not possibly be coincidence.

“The drug that was sent over before,” Gao Yu said, “there’s been no chance to administer it.”

“What about the water?”

“No opportunity there either. The Court Adjudicator’s agents draw the water themselves, boil it before drinking, and their food and water are under constant guard.”

Wen Jiu exhaled slowly.

This Ye Xiaoqian — who looked for all the world like a careless, inexperienced fool — had, upon closer examination, a mind of remarkable precision.

And Lu Chonglou was no pushover either. He had apparently understood exactly what Ye Xiaoqian was doing, and was going along with it without a moment’s concern for his own dignity.

“This Lu Chonglou is a madman,” Gao Yu muttered. “What kind of commanding officer goes around eating the supply bearers’ food?”

Wen Jiu made a contemptuous sound. “Do you think Lu Chonglou is a fool?”

Gao Yu started.

“If Lu Chonglou didn’t understand what Ye Xiaoqian was doing, do you think he’d throw away his dignity like that? A fourth-ranked official, scavenging from civilian workers — he’d have to have no face left at all.”

Gao Yu finally understood: Lu Chonglou was simply playing along with Ye Xiaoqian’s scheme.

Things were indeed growing difficult. The drug supply was limited — you couldn’t exactly poison the entire convoy. And even if you had enough, doing so would be the act of a madman. If the whole convoy died, no one would be left to deliver the grain.

“Two things need to happen,” Wen Jiu said. “First: find a way to create a diversion that draws Ye Xiaoqian away from Lu Chonglou — but keep it small. Nothing that disrupts the convoy. The grain mission is critical. When it reaches Shuzhou successfully, His Highness will reward our lord handsomely, and there may be further commendations. Our lord will not permit anything to jeopardize it.”

“Second: station more men to watch for openings. If Lu Chonglou insists on cadging meals, have your people take the initiative and *invite* him to eat with them.”

Gao Yu bowed. “I’ll see it done.”

“I shouldn’t be personally involved in this,” Wen Jiu added. “And it’s best if Madame Mi doesn’t show her face either. If it can be handled within your section, so much the better.”

“Understood, sir. You may trust me.”

Wen Jiu nodded, then moved to the tent door and parted the flap slightly to look outside. He exhaled, slow and long.

He had once been a blood-soaked river bandit, unencumbered by such calculations. But now — now he was accustomed to the life of an official, and could not imagine going back.

It was also precisely because he had worked under Xu Ji long enough that he deeply understood the terror of the Court Adjudicator’s Office.

In his bandit days, he would have simply snuck in under cover of darkness and killed the man.

*”The order was not to touch Ye Xiaoqian,”* he murmured to himself. *”But if it comes to it — remove Ye Xiaoqian as well.”*

Gao Yu’s face fell. They both knew Xu Ji’s character all too well. Anyone who failed to follow his instructions to the letter — even if the task ultimately succeeded — was unlikely to come out of it well.

So Gao Yu’s fear was this: these orders were coming from Wen Jiu. If Xu Ji later called anyone to account, Wen Jiu would simply shift the blame to him.

He didn’t dare refuse, but he didn’t dare agree either, and so he stayed silent.

Wen Jiu looked out a while longer, then turned back. “Have someone escort me out.”

Gao Yu exhaled with relief and quickly gave the order.

—

On the other side of the camp, Lu Chonglou was fumbling to help a supply bearer pull a fish out of the water, grinning from ear to ear.

He was enjoying himself. The supply bearers even more so — they had never encountered an official like this before.

*A fourth-ranked official,* they marveled, *of such stature — and yet he’s here with us catching fish. Not a hint of airs about him. He even waded in without his trousers at Ye Baiban’s urging.*

From this alone, they knew: Lu Chonglou was a good official. A genuinely rare one.

People cherished this kind of official from the heart.

While the fish roasted, Lu Chonglou sat among the supply bearers and talked — stories ranging from north to south, near and far. His scholarship was broad, and the things he shared were things the workers had never thought of before. They listened with rapt attention.

Ye Xiaoqian sat nearby, grinning his usual grin — but his eyes never stopped scanning the surrounding camp.

He was certain that people were watching them from the shadows. But the convoy was too large; he couldn’t possibly monitor everyone.

What he *could* be certain of: whoever was watching them had a connection to someone named Gao Yu.

“Brothers,” Ye Xiaoqian said suddenly, his voice light and cheerful, “I just remembered something. I need everyone’s help.”

The workers readily agreed.

“We’ve entered Liangzhou,” Ye Xiaoqian said. “And I need you all to keep watch for something. Liangzhou used to be under the enemy’s control. There are still many enemy agents lying low here.”

“The enemy came from Shuzhou,” he continued. “And that’s exactly where we’re taking this grain. So those agents may very well try to sabotage our convoy. They might have already infiltrated our ranks — it’s a large group, many people don’t know each other, and they’d have opportunities.”

One of the workers said: “Sir, you mean — if we see an unfamiliar face, we should report it to you?”

“Exactly!” Ye Xiaoqian said. “You may not know people from other sections, but you know your own section, right? If not — starting tomorrow, take some time to get acquainted.”

“Done!”

“My lord, leave it to us!”

The workers responded in chorus.

Ye Xiaoqian smiled. “Then I’m counting on all of you, brothers.”

That small show of respect left the workers a little flustered — they were plain, honest folk, unused to being thanked by officials.

“Let’s eat,” Ye Xiaoqian said with a grin. “The fish is ready.”

Lu Chonglou glanced sidelong at Ye Xiaoqian, and a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth before he could help it.

He looked at this seventeen-year-old boy — the light in Ye Xiaoqian’s eyes was so clear and bright. And so was the light in Lu Chonglou’s.

—