The two young men stepped sideways simultaneously, reached back simultaneously, tore their bundles open simultaneously — and simultaneously drew out their blades.

Their blades were not the standard horizontal sabers of Dachu — clearly self-forged, heavier in construction, but shorter than a regulation saber.

“Good reflexes.”

Gui Yuanshu smiled. “Do all the people of Shang’an County go out to find work armed with blades?”

One of the young men leveled his blade at Gui Yuanshu: “Who exactly are you?!”

Gui Yuanshu shrugged. “Just a traveler passing through — but one with a tendency to stick his nose in where it doesn’t belong. The name’s Gui, which people shorten to say that everything is his business.”

One of the young men said: “We have no quarrel with you. Stop pushing us into a corner.”

Gui Yuanshu took a look around. Zheng Shunshun and Ding Man had each taken up their positions to the left and right, the three of them forming a triangle around the two young men.

From the way those two moved, though, both of them seemed to be a cut above Zheng Shunshun and Ding Man.

Zhang Youdong and Zhao Shanying had been sent by Gui Yuanshu into Shang’an County town, and the rest of his people were at the village entrance.

So in this moment, Gui Yuanshu was not especially confident.

More to the point — he still hadn’t confirmed these two men’s identities. At minimum, they didn’t look like any sort of highway bandits. What kind of bandit would wander around in a place this poor and remote? But something was clearly off about these two.

Gui Yuanshu fell silent for a moment, then smiled. “There’s no reason this has to come to blows. We could just talk.”

He gestured to Zheng Shunshun and Ding Man to lower their weapons, then stepped forward alone toward the two young men.

At the same time. Shang’an County town. The city gates.

Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong had joined the line and made their way to the inspection checkpoint. The garrison soldiers there looked them up and down.

Both of them were far too familiar with that kind of look — the look that assessed a person’s wealth by their clothing.

In command was a squad leader who appeared to be around forty years of age, wearing a military uniform that wasn’t even properly fastened. He had an air that immediately put people off.

“Where are you from?”

The squad leader asked.

Zhao Shanying answered: “From Jizhou.”

“Jizhou?”

At those two words, the squad leader’s expression visibly changed. He grew more serious than before, straightened his uniform, and walked up to Zhao Shanying. “What are you coming here to do?”

He extended his hand. “Show me your travel papers.”

Zhao Shanying said: “We’re assistants from a medical supply shop — we’ve come out to take a look around.”

He handed over his travel papers. The garrison squad leader examined them carefully, and his expression shifted again. “You’re with Shen’s Medical Hall?”

Zhao Shanying said: “That’s right, that’s right — we’re both with Shen’s Medical Hall.”

The squad leader waved his hand. “Go on through.”

Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong exchanged a glance — both of them could tell something was off.

Before this, the squad leader’s manner had been thoroughly unpleasant, extracting passage fees from merchants going in and out and turning back those who wouldn’t pay.

But the moment he heard they were with Shen’s Medical Hall, he had waved them through at once — and hadn’t asked for money.

The moment they were inside the county gates, the squad leader waved over one of his men and said: “Get yourself to the county office right away and report to the magistrate — tell him people from Jizhou are here. From Shen’s Medical Hall.”

The man ran flat-out to the county office and found County Magistrate Yin Chang.

“People from Shen’s Medical Hall?”

The moment Yin Chang heard the report, he leapt to his feet and issued orders: “Get people out to every corner of the county — I don’t want a single beggar visible anywhere inside these walls. Not even anyone with a disheveled appearance. Send plenty of people. Tell every shop and business they must be open and doing trade, and have them switch out all their price placards — no one is to be able to tell they’ve inflated their prices.”

He was genuinely flustered. These were only two minor assistants from Shen’s Medical Hall — but everyone knew how close Shen’s Medical Hall was to Prince Ning.

If these had been merchants or ordinary travelers passing through from Jizhou, he wouldn’t have been remotely this concerned. But people from Shen’s Medical Hall — those he could not afford to handle carelessly.

“Also — tell your people to keep a discreet eye on those two at all times. Every move they make, every step they take…”

“And tell Yin Xincheng — those disciples and followers of his, keep them off the streets for the next few days. Make sure everything looks respectable.”

“And send people everywhere else too — have someone close down the gambling dens running off the side lanes… Have Yin Xincheng dispatch the constables to go door-to-door and make it clear: anyone who dares to breathe a word of the wrong thing should not expect to be dealt with lightly.”

His subordinates scrambled out to carry out the orders, as if they couldn’t afford to waste a single moment.

Yin Chang paced back and forth inside his room. The county office’s chief aide, Guo Jing, said: “Sir — aren’t you making too much of this? They’re just two minor assistants from Shen’s Medical Hall. They’re not necessarily going to have any way to speak directly to those above.”

“Can’t not take precautions.”

Yin Chang said: “The prefect has made it very clear — if anyone runs into trouble, the family will not step in to help, and all ties will be severed immediately… The Yin family’s business interests throughout Dengzhou are extensive. If Prince Ning finds out what’s going on here, that would be trouble.”

Inside the county town, Zhang Youdong and Zhao Shanying had barely gone any distance at all before someone stepped into their path.

The man greeted them cordially. “Good day, gentlemen. I am from the county office — the name is Zhao Cun. The county magistrate heard that you are from Shen’s Medical Hall, and he would like to invite both of you to the county office for a chat.”

Zhao Shanying asked: “What for?”

Zhao Cun hastened to answer: “Our magistrate has long been troubled by the lack of a proper medical establishment for the people. Our magistrate treats the people as if they were family — their food, clothing, shelter, and travel, all of it is a matter of constant concern to him. Under his governance, the people now live in comfortable sufficiency. The one thing lacking is a proper medical clinic. The moment the magistrate heard you were from Shen’s Medical Hall, he was most eager to meet with you personally and see whether Shen’s Medical Hall might be persuaded to open a branch office here.”

His manner was earnest beyond measure. Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong glanced at each other, then gave a nod. “Very well, then. Let us go meet the county magistrate.”

They followed him. Behind them, the county constables were already out in force with their whips.

Every beggar in sight was being driven out of the county — those who wouldn’t move received a vicious thrashing. The number of constables in this county office was remarkably high. They fanned out into the shops one after another and passed the word: all counterfeit and inferior goods were to be removed from display immediately.

After Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong entered the county office, Constable Chief Yin Xincheng led his people through every street and lane.

In a small alleyway, two elderly beggars were still huddled there — clearly too old and feeble to walk, already nearly starved to the point of collapse, with nowhere near enough strength left in them to leave the county.

Yin Xincheng spotted these two old beggars, and his face immediately darkened with fury.

He walked over and drove his foot straight into one old beggar’s head — a savage kick. The old man let out a muffled groan and his eyes rolled back in his head.

“Useless old wretches. Didn’t you hear the orders earlier to clear out?”

Yin Xincheng snapped: “Are we too easy on you lot? Is that why you dare to ignore what I say?”

The other elderly beggar struggled to kneel upright, knocking his head to the ground again and again. “Mercy, great lord — we truly haven’t eaten and cannot move from the hunger…”

“Hungry?”

Yin Xincheng went in with another kick. “I haven’t eaten today either. Are you the only ones who go without food?”

One of his subordinate constables said: “Sir, these two old ones really can’t make it out of here on their own. If the people from Jizhou spot them, the county magistrate will hold us accountable.”

Yin Xincheng looked around, then issued an order: “Go find two sacks. Then go find a large cart. Have Liu San and his men come over here.”

Liu San was the leader of a local gang of street toughs. He was summoned in short order, arriving with several dozen of his followers.

Yin Xincheng pointed at the two old beggars. “Kill them, bag them, and get them on the cart. There are probably still more like this in the county — I’ll give you one hour. Clean all of this up. If anything gets missed and the people from Jizhou see it, I’ll deal with you first.”

Liu San answered at once, turned to his men, and said: “Bag these two old ones.”

His followers moved in, wooden clubs in hand, and began to beat the two old beggars.

“Useless fools!”

Yin Xincheng stepped forward and kicked one of the ruffians head over heels. He snarled: “No blood. Strangle them!”

Liu San also kicked the same ruffian. “Wipe up any blood. Make him angry at you again and I’ll deal with you myself.”

The ruffians strangled the two old beggars to death with their bare hands, stuffed them into sacks, and tossed them carelessly onto the cart.

The group fanned out through the lanes, and any beggars they found hiding were strangled on the spot with rope and thrown onto the cart.

Any ordinary townspeople who came out in shabby clothing received a savage beating on the spot.

In the county office.

County Magistrate Yin Chang rose to his feet with an expression of the most genuine sincerity, raised his cup toward Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong, and said: “I came here from Yanzhou — and I passed through Jizhou. I saw with my own eyes what life was like for the people of Yanzhou and what life was like for the people of Jizhou. At that very moment, I made a vow to myself — if I ever held office, I would make sure the people of Yuzhou could live as well as the people of Jizhou.”

He held his cup and spoke, and when he came to the part that moved him most, his voice trembled ever so slightly, and his hand trembled with it.

“Thanks to the prefect’s recognition of what little talent I possess, I have been appointed to serve as magistrate here in Shang’an County. In these past two years, if even one household in this county could not fill their bellies, I could not sleep soundly at night.”

“Now, every family in the county is clothed and fed, without exception. And yet as their magistrate, there remains so much more to be done — and this matter of a medical clinic…”

As he said this, even his eyes grew faintly red.

“I wear the official robes of a magistrate. If I cannot seek out a proper livelihood for the people entrusted to my care, I am unworthy of these robes, and unworthy of my place among Prince Ning’s subjects.”

Yin Chang raised his cup. “And so I make this appeal: when the two of you return to Jizhou, please convey a word on my behalf to the proprietor of Shen’s Medical Hall — that the people of Shang’an County await Shen’s Medical Hall the way parched earth awaits the rains. If the proprietor is willing to open a branch here in Shang’an County, I will do everything within my power to ensure every preparation is made for Shen’s Medical Hall’s arrival.”

Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong stood as one, listened until he had finished, and then lifted their cups and drank together with Yin Chang.

Chief Aide Guo Jing came in from outside and said in a low voice next to Yin Chang’s ear: “Yin Xincheng has everything sorted.”

Yin Chang gave a small nod. “Understood.”

Guo Jing bowed and withdrew.

Yin Chang said to Zhao Shanying and Zhang Youdong: “I’ve already had someone prepare a place for the two of you to rest. Properly speaking I should invite you to stay here at the county office — but that would be a breach of protocol. So I can only ask you to put up at the inn instead. The lodging costs I will cover out of my own pocket — I do not dare touch public funds for something like this. Every copper coin must go toward the people. So if the accommodation is not quite to your satisfaction, I hope you will not hold it against me.”

Zhang Youdong and Zhao Shanying offered their thanks. They looked over the table — four dishes and a soup, only a single dish with any meat, and not much meat in it at that.

The wine wasn’t anything fine either — one sip made it clear it had been watered down, cheap stuff.

The magistrate’s own robe looked somewhat worn — no patches, but clearly something he had been wearing for several years to be in that state.

The style of hospitality was warm, yet thoroughly modest.

Yin Chang clasped his hands together in a gesture of respect. “Once the two of you have eaten your fill, I will have someone escort you to the inn — though I’m afraid I cannot use my own carriage for this. My carriage and horses are county property and cannot be used at will. I hope you will understand and forgive this discourtesy.”

His manner was, to all appearances, one of the utmost sincerity and warmth — and yet unmistakably principled.