A month ago, the Jizhou Prefecture had deployed nearly all its garrison troops to conduct mass arrests throughout the city, the highest-ranking of whom was Assistant Magistrate Zheng Chun.

A figure of Zheng Chun’s standing — someone who ranked among the top few in the Jizhou Prefecture — was like a centipede that dies but never falls. In the officialdom of present-day Dachu, any official without some kind of private assets would be looked down upon by his colleagues. All the more so for someone like Zheng Chun, a man of genuine local power.

The Jizhou Prefecture’s prison had always been a place of rich pickings. As the prison’s chief official, Zheng Chun had only to casually reach out his hand and people would come pressing fistfuls of silver into it.

The simplest and fastest way to make money was to trade in lives.

People who were well-off but had no connections to the government — merchants, for instance — if someone from their household was arrested and the authorities wanted to squeeze money from them, it was simple enough.

A banishment sentence could be reclassified as a death sentence. If the condemned was an only son, the price went up even higher. Taking half your family’s fortune could be considered an act of mercy and generosity on the official’s part. Bleeding you completely dry wasn’t unusual in the least.

If you had enough silver, the official would have someone go out and randomly grab a beggar off the street. When execution day arrived, the beggar’s head would fall — and whoever had been substituted could go home and carry on with their life. If you still had money left, Magistrate Zheng’s office offered thoughtful, comprehensive service and could even furnish the substitute with a new identity.

The laws of Dachu had become nothing more than a farce.

Not every condemned person was beheaded in public. The vast majority of executions took place at a small execution ground where common people couldn’t see.

And even if they could see — a disheveled, emaciated figure much like any other, a blade comes down, a head rolls across the ground. Who could tell the difference?

So Assistant Magistrate Zheng Chun had accumulated great wealth. And more importantly, over the years Zheng Chun had never failed to cut Jizhou Prefecture Governor Lian Gongming in on the proceeds. If you didn’t give him his share, could Lian Gongming allow you to operate without trouble?

Someone like Lian Gongming didn’t sell people out without giving it some thought. Why did he hand Zheng Chun over to Prince Yu that day in his own government office?

Because Zheng Chun had grown rather arrogant these past two years.

Especially after Zheng Chun took in that band of desperados from outside the city — his manner of speaking within the Jizhou Prefecture became increasingly presumptuous. He seemed to think his own importance had grown to nearly match Lian Gongming’s.

The gambling dens in the city — one-third of them belonged to Zheng Chun. Add the prison income on top of that, and the silver he handed Lian Gongming each year was an enormous sum. He felt he was Lian Gongming’s personal god of fortune, and that Lian Gongming ought naturally to treat him with greater deference.

On several prior occasions, Zheng Chun had spoken to Lian Gongming in a somewhat disrespectful manner in front of others. And the more desperados he took in under his wing, the more he became convinced that Lian Gongming didn’t dare do anything to him.

You may be the Governor, but are you not afraid to die?

In the month before things came to a head, Lian Gongming had expressed displeasure when the silver he received was slightly less than the previous month. At the time, Zheng Chun slapped the table — his manner had been genuinely insolent.

The implication in his words was: take what I give you, and be satisfied. Push for more and you’ll get nothing at all.

You’re a Governor now, I’m the one who’s loaded with money — and I’ve already made contact with Constabulary Commissioner Liu Chongxin. For all you know, a few tens of thousands of taels sent to him as a show of loyalty and this position of Governor might not stay yours for long.

Those words were never stated quite so plainly, but the meaning was clear enough. How could Lian Gongming endure it?

So after Zheng Chun was locked up, Lian Gongming made a great show of concern, visiting him in his cell on multiple occasions to console him, saying that the business outside still depended on him, telling him not to worry — once Prince Yu’s attention had moved elsewhere, he’d be released.

Lian Gongming even had word spread that Zheng Chun would be freed from prison before long.

As a result, Zheng Chun became even more arrogant, convinced that Lian Gongming couldn’t afford to lose his golden goose.

But… how could Lian Gongming possibly tolerate him?

Before killing Zheng Chun, however, Lian Gongming first had to get hold of the ledger — a record of who Zheng Chun had paid over the years, how much, and to whom. It was said the ledger documented everything with meticulous precision.

Without getting that ledger in hand, Lian Gongming couldn’t sleep soundly.

And from the intelligence gathered so far, the ledger was most likely inside the Changxing Gambling Den — Zheng Chun’s largest operation. The desperados he kept under his wing, Wang Heita among them, were mostly stationed there.

As for why Wang Heita’s portrait had made its way to the Azure Formation — there was a deeper layer to all of this that Li Diudiu had no access to yet. For instance, the portrait’s arrival at the Azure Formation also signaled a thaw between Lian Gongming and the Military Governor’s side.

Inside the tavern, after making acquaintance over the meal, the four men took their leave. But Xiahou Zuo wore a face full of worry.

“What are you thinking about?” Li Diudiu asked.

Xiahou Zuo said, “You shouldn’t have accepted it. You know… though I’m Prince Yu’s son and the Azure Formation is a force under the Military Governor, they may give me face, but they won’t necessarily give it to you.”

Li Diudiu nodded. “I know.”

Xiahou Zuo said, “And knowing that, you still accepted the portrait?”

Li Diudiu said, “I need the money.”

Xiahou Zuo said, “That’s money only a desperado can earn.”

Li Diudiu said, “You said it yourself — when the world falls into chaos, people who talk of books and principles will never do as well as people who talk of cutting you down. I’m not trying to be a desperado. I’m trying to live my own life through a world made for desperados.”

Xiahou Zuo let out a sigh. “Those four aren’t targeting you, and they’re not looking down on you or disrespecting you. I understand why Ruan Chen gave you that portrait without consulting me first…”

He looked at Li Diudiu. “I told them — after I leave, I want you to take my place in the Azure Formation. But you’re a kid. Why would they follow you? Don’t you think that portrait is a blood oath? No — Ruan Chen and the others want to see whether you actually have the right to stand where Xiahou Zuo stood.”

Li Diudiu was taken aback.

Xiahou Zuo said, “The reason I didn’t stop it later is because I know that even if I forcibly dragged you up to a level you could never reach on your own, if you lack the ability to prove yourself, you’ll eventually fall back down from it. Falling flat on level ground and falling from the third floor — those are two very different falls.”

Li Diudiu nodded. He understood.

Xiahou Zuo had brought him into the Azure Formation out of fear that after he left for the northern frontier next year, Li Diudiu would have no one to rely on and would be bullied. With the Azure Formation’s protection, no one in the academy would dare harass him freely.

But what gave him the right to take Xiahou Zuo’s place?

Xiahou Zuo said, “Ruan Chen and the others — if they’ve decided you have the ability and are worth calling brother, they won’t care how young or old you are, what your background is. Once those brothers make up their minds, even when it comes to putting their lives on the line, nothing will change. So in the end I didn’t stop Ruan Chen.”

He paused, then continued, “I once told you: what others give you is theirs. What you take with your own hands is your own ability. Ruan Chen and the others bow to nothing but loyalty and skill. You have both — and you have more of both than I do.”

Xiahou Zuo clapped him on the shoulder. “So when he wanted you to go after Wang Heita, it came from a place of genuine sincerity — a genuine desire to get to know you, and a genuine desire to call you brother.”

Li Diudiu said, “I’d thought of some of this, but not thoroughly enough.”

Xiahou Zuo smiled. “How old are you? Kids your age are still pissing in the mud and playing fart games. You’re already the famous little storyteller of Yun Zhai Tea House.”

Li Diudiu said, “That doesn’t sound like a compliment.”

Xiahou Zuo said, “Be confident — drop the ‘sound like.'”

Li Diudiu glanced at him sideways.

Xiahou Zuo said, “When it comes down to it, you can’t establish yourself in the jianghu by playing music and telling stories. I’ve thought it through for you: given your background, even after you graduate from the Four Pages Academy, the only world where you could carve out a decent life is the jianghu. And if you factor in your personality, the jianghu is your only option.”

Li Diudiu smiled. “Why?”

Xiahou Zuo said, “Can you become someone like Lian Gongming? If you can’t, then you won’t get far in official life.”

Li Diudiu said, “What if I reached a position far, far greater than Lian Gongming?”

Xiahou Zuo said, “Far greater? How much greater? As great as the Military Governor? The Military Governor is just a bigger Lian Gongming. Even though I’m on closer terms with the Military Governor, I still have to say it — he’s just cleaner than Lian Gongming, that’s all.”

He asked Li Diudiu, “Even bigger? Prime Minister? A Prime Minister is just a much, much bigger Lian Gongming. I’ve never seen a Prime Minister kowtow and scrape before Liu Chongxin, but I’ve heard about it. How much bigger can you get? Emperor? That kind of talk would get your head cut off, but it’s the truth — you can’t become Emperor. And you can’t stoop to playing along with the corrupt, so the official path is closed to you.”

Li Diudiu fell silent.

He truly couldn’t bring himself to go along with corruption.

Xiahou Zuo said, “So… after I leave Jizhou, you’ll still have at least five years at the academy. During those five years the Azure Formation will look after you — nothing major should happen. Before I go, I’ll also put in a word with my father. His word still carries some weight, at least.”

Li Diudiu gave a quiet hum, then after a very long silence said, “Would saying thank you sound too dismissive?”

Xiahou Zuo snorted. “Thank me for what?”

Li Diudiu said, “I’m thanking you.”

Xiahou Zuo: “…”

Li Diudiu was quiet for a moment, then said, “What you said just now left me feeling a little hopeless. Is our Dachu really this far gone? The Military Governor can’t do it. The Prime Minister can’t do it. So it can only be the Emperor — and if the current Emperor can’t, then what about the new Emperor? If the new Emperor has what it takes, might Dachu still be saved?”

Xiahou Zuo exhaled a long breath, lowering his voice. “By rights, given who I am, I shouldn’t be saying any of this. But in truth… even if the current Emperor were to pass on today and a new Emperor ascended the throne, it would already be too late. The kind of person I think could do it — that person could only be someone who tears everything down to build anew.”

He looked at Li Diudiu. “We’re all small figures. Measured against the great upheaval that is to come, we’re all small figures.”

Li Diudiu privately felt he was probably doing alright — not quite so small.

But people are all the same in this way. Whether it’s a time of chaos or of peace, who would ever think themselves inadequate? Especially when young, most people feel they must be different from everyone else, that they’re uniquely destined for something greater, that fortune might descend upon them at any moment. And so they end up fading into the crowd just like everyone else.

Xiahou Zuo called to him: “Diudiu.”

Li Chi replied, “What is it, Iron Pillar?”

Xiahou Zuo: “You son of a—”

Li Diudiu: “You son of a—!”

Xiahou Zuo smiled. “You dare call me that?”

Li Diudiu: “I do dare… forget it, pretend I said nothing.”

Xiahou Zuo laughed. “Tonight when we go out, just observe. Get a feel for what the Azure Formation does, what needs to be done, how to do it. Don’t worry about anything else. As for Wang Heita — I’ll help you look into everything. In the end, having his reward land in your hands will be enough.”

Li Diudiu gave a quiet hum and didn’t say much more.

Xiahou Zuo said, “Show a little more appreciation.”

Li Diudiu gave another hum, then said, “Alright, Wet Nurse.”

Xiahou Zuo: “Oh, come on!”

—