The clouds drifted, the wind was clear, and at noon, Sheng’an City stood tall and majestic.
Si Kongyue put down her hand, withdrawing her gaze from the distant, towering city, and spat out the stalk of rice in her mouth.
She patted the faded grey-scarlet fitted swordswoman’s outfit she wore, straightened the sword case on her back, took off the waterskin at her waist, and gulped down several mouthfuls.
“Ah~ that hits the spot!”
Wiping away the water at the corner of her mouth, she brushed aside the white streak in her bangs, gave her high wolf-tail ponytail a shake, and stepped into the bustling traffic of the official road.
Rumble rumble…
Cart wheels rolled over the grey stone-paved road.
“Hey, Yuxia, do you have a Jingwen Tie?”
She turned her head to look and saw a bald man waving at her from a land-bird drawn covered carriage, then pointed at the people in the rear compartment. “See? Group ride into the city, fair and square, only eighty wen!”
“Wait, what did you say?” Si Kongyue hadn’t planned on getting entangled with this touting coachman, but upon hearing the price, she couldn’t help but reply.
“Eighty wen, eh? Too expensive? That’s easy, easy, I’ll give you a deal, seventy-five wen…”
“You think I’m a fool?” Si Kongyue interrupted him, sneering coldly. “There are those who dare risk their heads for profit, but no one does business at a loss!”
She took out her Jingwen Tie from her robe and glanced at the ragged people inside the carriage. “Let’s not even talk about the price of a personal Jingwen Tie. Even a business group’s document, divided out, would cost at least two hundred wen per person, wouldn’t it?”
With that, she leapt forward, landing inside the carriage, muttered a quick apology, and lifted the hem of the hemp-clad woman’s pants at her side.
Seeing the iron chain on the woman’s ankle, Si Kongyue drew her sword; with a flash of cold light, she severed the chain.
“You…” The coachman instantly panicked and tried to call for help.
Si Kongyue pointed her sword at him and declared in a loud voice, “Outside the Imperial Capital, beneath the Son of Heaven’s feet, openly trading slaves—do you know your crime?”
“Nonsense, I-I’m not a slave merchant. They’re just business group employees,” the coachman forced himself to stay calm, arguing, “I’ve got their labor contracts here!”
With that, he pulled out a sheaf of papers stamped with handprints from his chest, speaking righteously. “Our business group hires in strict accordance with Da Qian law. And you, I was kindly inviting you to…”
Swish—
Si Kongyue snatched the contracts from his hand, scanned them briefly, snorted coldly, then circulated her True Qi, and flicked her hand.
Bang!
Dozens of contracts instantly burst into shreds, flying like snow.
“Forty-year fixed term, ten wen per month?” She grabbed the coachman’s collar and jumped down from the carriage. “Even the real slaves of North Desert and Southern Frontier have it better than this!”
She casually tossed the ashen-faced coachman to the ground, then waved to the spiritless people in the carriage. “The Slave Contracts are gone. You’re free now!”
Yet no one responded, nor dared to move.
Si Kongyue frowned, about to repeat herself, when three soldiers in breastplates and helmets, each armed with Mor Dao, ran up to the bird-cart and barked, “No fighting on the official road!”
Seeing the officers arrive, Si Kongyue immediately explained what had happened.
The leading officer looked her up and down, then noticed the longsword in her hand and nodded. “…Alright, leave this matter to us.”
“Thank you for your trouble.”
With the officers’ assurance, Si Kongyue didn’t linger, striding quickly toward Baqiao outside Sheng’an’s east gate.
Compared to that Slave Merchant, she still trusted Sheng’an’s officers. After all, under the Son of Heaven’s nose, who would dare collude with bandits or do anything so flagrant?
Besides, her master always said the Dragon Qi Grand Array in Sheng’an City suppressed all evil. These officers, imbued with Dragon Qi, surely wouldn’t…
She put her thoughts away, flicked her high wolf-tail ponytail, sheathed her sword, and strode on.
“Wait, something’s wrong!”
Halfway there, Si Kongyue patted her waist—now completely empty.
Her coin pouch and rations were gone!
She hadn’t even eaten yet!
She began a rapid mental review, thinking carefully over her actions.
She distinctly remembered carrying them when she left in the morning, so where had they gone?!
Could it be…
It must’ve been flung away when she took action earlier!
Realizing this, Si Kongyue spun around and hurried back to the “scene of the crime.”
Moments later.
Back at the site, not only were the Slave Merchant’s cart and the officers gone without a trace, but her missing coin pouch and rations were nowhere to be found.
Not even a shadow!
“Ah…” Si Kongyue’s face was full of despair. Noon sunlight shone on her face, yet all she felt was a wintry chill.
“Why… why is there nothing?”
She grabbed both her cheeks and pulled hard to either side.
“Someone definitely picked it up, but why didn’t they wait for the owner to come back, ahhhh!!!”
The girl’s wail drew the curious stares of passersby.
Blushing to her ears, Si Kongyue hurriedly lowered her head, muttering to herself.
Back in the Sword Sect, her senior brothers and sisters always returned lost things. She had almost never lost anything there.
But after coming down the mountain, everything changed—not just today, even her baggage and horse had gone missing not long ago!
She had been forced to walk all the way to Sheng’an!
“How infuriating… This land where evil flourishes—only I, Si Kongyue, can cleanse it!”
But first, she had to get into Sheng’an City before the hour of Wei and grab a free vegetarian meal at Cien Hall to fill her stomach.
Resolving herself, she glanced at the looming city walls, then quickened her pace.
“Why is everyone blocked here? Why won’t they let us cross the bridge?”
At Baqiao, an irritated Si Kongyue pushed through the crowd gathered at the bridgehead and called out to the group of black-clad, sword-belted warriors atop the bridge.
“Yuxia, are you also planning to enter the city?”
The cold warriors ahead didn’t respond, but a scholar wearing a Zhujin and carrying a bamboo case at his back explained, “Not sure what’s going on, but it seems Baqiao has been sealed off by some Mister Gu from inside the city.”
“Sealed off by someone?!”
Si Kongyue’s beautiful eyes widened, her right hand instinctively resting on her sword hilt, barely restraining her mounting anger as she lowered her voice. “Brother, please explain in detail.”
“I’m not too sure either,” the scholar replied. “Apparently, it’s the Gu Family’s Mister Gu. He wants to sit on Baqiao and fish for leisure, so he ordered his guards to block the bridge, fearing passersby would disturb his peace.”
“Fishing? On the river?” Si Kongyue glanced at the calm, ripple-less waters below the bridge, finding it absurd. “Where are the waves to observe?”
“Who knows?” The scholar wiped sweat from his brow and sighed. “But his father is the Chancellor, so for those of us from out of town… what can we do!”
“Judging by your dress, you’re here for the exam, right?”
At the mention of exams, the scholar smiled with pride. “Exactly. I’m honored with the chance to go to the capital for Chunwei, and today I was about to enter from Sheng’an’s east gate—”
“Enough, no need for the details.” Si Kongyue patted his shoulder, making him stagger.
Thinking of the Slave Merchant on the road and her own mysteriously missing coin pouch and rations, she said earnestly, “I hope you can be a good official in the future. As for this—leave it to me.”
With that, she flicked her sleeve and strode forward.
“Stop. Baqiao is closed today!”
As she stepped onto the bridge road, the black-clad warriors shouted.
“Heh, closed today?” Si Kongyue marched up to them, standing tall as she said loudly, “Do you have official documents? If not, arbitrarily blocking an official road outside the city is a violation of the law.”
The black-clad warriors weren’t intimidated, instead gripping their sword hilts. “This is your last warning. Baqiao is closed today. If you want to enter the city, go by another gate.”
At this, Si Kongyue frowned, her gaze passing over the warriors to the center of Baqiao.
A figure lounged in a fine wooden chair, holding a fishing rod, leisurely accepting shaved ice fed to him by kneeling maidservants at his side, all while glancing her way.
As their eyes met, Si Kongyue finally saw his face clearly.
The man wore brocade robes, unrivaled in his elegance and handsomeness, with a pair of languid, charming eyes now fixed on her with a look of amused curiosity.
She hated to admit it, but from her aesthetic view, this fellow… truly fit the saying: “Like jade among the fields, unmatched in the world.”
No, no, no.
What’s the use of good looks?
All appearance and no substance—arrogant, willful, and for the sake of his own pleasure, he disregarded the needs of the people and the laws of Da Qian.
She had always despised those who bullied others by relying on their family background!
After leaving the mountain and coming all this way to Sheng’an, she’d seen plenty like him.
She thought such people wouldn’t exist in Sheng’an, but to her dismay—she encountered this festering sore even before entering the city.
Si Kongyue didn’t bother with the black-clad warriors, knowing they were merely following orders. If she wanted to solve the problem, she’d have to “strike at the root.”
With that thought, she raised her head and called out to the man at the center of Baqiao, “Hey, Gu! Let me ask you—will you let everyone cross Baqiao into the city or not?”
“…”
But the fisherman in the middle of the bridge acted as if he hadn’t heard her at all, just gave her a glance, sneered with contempt, and continued enjoying the shaved ice offered by the maid at his side.
Treated like air, Si Kongyue felt fury surge within her. With a swish, she drew her sword and pointed it at him. “Gu! You—”
“Noisy! Get her out of here.” The fisherman finally spoke, but not to her.
“Yes, Mister.”
At his command, several black-clad warriors drew their long blades halfway from their waists. Even under the midday sun, the chill of their blades was undiminished.