Lushun Port remained brightly lit in the depths of night.

Large smuggling ships, unable to enter the port during the day, waited at sea just outside. At night, the boatmen hung rows of lanterns, illuminating the port as brightly as day.

There were specific rules for hanging the lanterns.

On ordinary days, official ships had to hang three lanterns in a row, a formation known as “Three Lantern String.” These vessels always entered the port during the day and departed at night, moving freely.

Smuggling ships had to hang their lanterns according to daily notices. Someone would row a small boat out to sea to deliver the instructions individually. Once protection money was received, they would be given that night’s code. If the lanterns were hung correctly, they could enter the port; this was known as the “Water Tax Lantern.”

As the large two-masted ship carrying Old Man Yao entered the port, dozens of smuggling cargo ships were sailing out. Like ghosts, they came and went silently.

Bare-chested sailors on board raised the sails, and there were even ballistas mounted on the ship, though it was unclear who they were meant to defend against.

Zhu Yunxi stood on the deck, silently observing the large ships, which had even removed their copper nameplates, and had the engraved marks beneath their masts smoothed over.

On the deck, Old Man Yao said calmly, “These are all merchant ships from our Ning Dynasty engaged in smuggling. Half are returning to Dongying, and half to Qidong.”

Liang Mao’er asked blankly, “Is no one stopping them?”

Old Man Yao stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his expression indifferent. “Our border soldiers are fighting to the death on the front lines,” he said, “yet behind them, people are secretly doing business with the Jing Dynasty. I don’t know what the point of this war is.”

Liang Gou’er, whose right sleeve hung empty, had arrived on deck at some point. “The Chen and Xu families deserve to die,” he muttered.

Old Man Yao scoffed. “Little Gou’er, you are naive. But if you go to the Jing Dynasty with such a simple mind, I doubt you’ll live long. Do you really think only the Chen and Xu families in the Ning Dynasty are engaged in this business? In the fourteenth year of Jianing, when the Jing Dynasty suffered a locust plague, the eight great Jin merchants even colluded with the Hu family to move the Datong border army, just to smuggle grain by land. The roots of the Ning Dynasty are rotten.”

Liang Gou’er wondered, “Does the Emperor know about these things?”

Old Man Yao chuckled, “What’s the use of knowing? Can he manage it all?”

With that, Old Man Yao glanced sideways at everyone and calmly instructed, “Later, when we get off the ship, if you see someone with a vermilion-lacquered long saber at their waist, don’t make a sound; just follow them. The Jing Dynasty’s travel permits and passes are very strict. Without assistance from the Strategic Planning Office, we won’t be able to move an inch.”

Zhu Yunxi looked at the black, surging sea and replied, “Understood.”

At this moment, the large ship docked, and the rough caw of a crow echoed.

Old Man Yao frowned and looked back, only to see the crow standing at the highest point of the two masts, gazing at the port.

He turned his head again, and among the bustling sailors and boatmen on shore, he saw more than ten people wearing vermilion-lacquered long sabers, waiting for something. Further away, people carrying torches were rapidly approaching.

After Liang Gou’er disembarked, he was about to go and meet the Strategic Planning Office personnel, but Old Man Yao pulled them back, saying in a deep voice, “No, we’ll blend in with the crowd and walk.”

With that, the few of them blended in with the boatmen, walking past the Strategic Planning Office personnel with their heads down, showing no intention of acknowledging them.

They hadn’t gone far when they saw dozens of young armored soldiers, wearing black pheasant tails on their helmets, carrying torches and long sabers, charging into Lushun Port and roaring, “Yuan Cheng of the Privy Council, Jiang Tan of the Strategic Planning Office, Lu Guanwu of the Military Intelligence Bureau, you deceive the heavens and defy your superiors, confuse order, form cliques for selfish gain, and obstruct the path of the virtuous! Today, by order of Lords Yuan Xiang and Lu Jin, we shall execute the treacherous officials in court, eliminate the three evils, and save the common people. Those who resist will be killed without mercy!”

Amidst the shouts, dozens of young armored soldiers charged towards the Strategic Planning Office personnel.

Liang Gou’er cursed, “Just our luck! We just got off the ship, and our contacts are getting hacked to death? What the hell do we do now, Old Man? Should we save them?”

Walking out with the boatmen, Old Man Yao said with a frown, “Yuan Xiang, the Central Secretariat Administrator, and Lu Jin have joined forces. The Jing Dynasty is about to undergo a drastic change. What’s the use of saving a few small fry?”

Liang Gou’er asked, puzzled, “What official position is Central Secretariat Administrator?”

Old Man Yao snapped, “Do you usually drink fake wine? That’s the Jing Dynasty’s chancellor, equivalent to our Grand Secretary!”

Liang Gou’er mumbled, “Oh. What was the name of the person we were supposed to seek?”

Old Man Yao said calmly, “Strategic Planning Office, Jiang Tan.”

Liang Gou’er recalled the young armored soldiers’ slogans about purging traitors. “He’s probably in no position to protect himself now,” he remarked.

Leaving Lushun Port, the slaughter in the city continued unabated.

Young armored soldiers, wielding long spears, galloped back and forth through the city, hunting down the “rebels.”

Old Man Yao’s voice was solemn. “This is different from what the Prince planned. I didn’t expect Lu Jin to recover so quickly. It’s likely not just Lushun; Zhongjing, Xijing, Dongjing, and Shangjing Prefectures are probably all engulfed in fighting. We can’t go looking for the Strategic Planning Office now; we must wait for the dust to settle.”

Liang Gou’er pondered for a moment, “Why can’t we join Lu Jin and Yuan Xiang?”

Old Man Yao scoffed, “How do you know they’ll be the winners? Throughout thousands of years, there have been many successful coups, but also many failures. If we back the wrong side, the Prince’s plans will be for nothing.”

With that, he turned and walked into Lushun City, keeping to the shadows under the eaves, cautiously following the crow’s guidance, and avoiding the fighting.

Passing by inns, they couldn’t stay even if they had money in their pockets.

The Jing Dynasty’s household registration system was far stricter than the Ning Dynasty’s. One needed a travel permit to stay at an inn, to leave the city, and to enter the city.

Without a Jing Dynasty travel permit, they couldn’t stay in any inn, nor could they leave the city.

They could try to force their way out, but what then? They hadn’t come to the Jing Dynasty just to survive.

At this moment, Liang Gou’er, Liang Mao’er, and Zhu Yunxi all looked helplessly at Old Man Yao, who scoffed, “Why are you panicking, you group of novices? Just make do in an alley tonight. We’ll talk about everything else tomorrow.”

Liang Gou’er said nonchalantly, “Compared to your age, isn’t everyone a novice?”

The four of them found a secluded alley and hid in its shadows.

Zhu Yunxi found several broken baskets, stacked them together, and offered them to Old Man Yao. “Please sit on the baskets, so you don’t catch a chill,” he said.

Old Man Yao glanced at him. “You’re quite perceptive,” he said.

He lifted his robes, sat on the baskets, and closed his eyes to rest. Zhu Yunxi leaned against the wall, looking up at the sky above the alley. In the narrow alley, the walls on both sides squeezed his view of the sky into a mere sliver.

Zhu Yunxi spoke, “Physician Yao…”

Old Man Yao looked up at him. “Still calling me Physician Yao? Do you want to get me killed? Just call me Old Man, like Little Gou’er. I’m broad-minded; I won’t fuss with you.”

Zhu Yunxi quickly said, “How about I call you Master too? You’ve taught me a lot on this journey.”

Old Man Yao shook his head. “No, I don’t take on such terrible apprentices.”

Zhu Yunxi opened his mouth but was so choked he couldn’t speak for a long time.

Liang Gou’er, listening nearby, couldn’t take it anymore. He scoffed, “What’s so great about your precious apprentice? He’s still just two eyes and one mouth. Do you really expect him to enter the Divine Realm?”

Old Man Yao glanced at him. “You don’t know a thing,” he said.

He looked up at the sky, then closed his eyes, no longer arguing.

The sky gradually brightened.

Old Man Yao got up and slowly walked out. “Keep up,” he said, “but don’t get too close.”

Zhu Yunxi quickly helped Liang Gou’er up, trailing far behind Old Man Yao, wondering what the old man was up to.

Lushun Port was already bustling again. The sky wasn’t fully bright yet, and boatmen and sailors squatted by the roadside, silently eating from their bowls. Unlike the Ning Dynasty, everyone here seemed taciturn.

Old Man Yao took out a money pouch and tied it to his waist. As he walked, the silver coins inside clinked with a heavy sound.

By the roadside, a young man dressed as a boatman fixated his gaze on Old Man Yao’s waist. He put down his bowl and chopsticks, stood up, and followed.

Zhu Yunxi, not far away, watched as the young man deliberately bumped into Old Man Yao. In an instant, the money pouch was in the young man’s hand.

Liang Mao’er was about to go retrieve the money pouch, but Liang Gou’er said lazily, “Don’t move. The old man did it on purpose.”

The next moment, Old Man Yao turned and followed the young man. The young man turned left and right, excitedly heading towards the market outside the port, then disappeared into a small alley.

Old Man Yao stopped in front of the alley, hands clasped behind his back.

Zhu Yunxi walked forward. “What are you doing?” he asked.

“Following him to find someone,” Old Man Yao said, stepping inside and slowly explaining, “In our jargon, we usually call these pickpockets ‘Xiao Liuzi’ or ‘Lao Rong.’ Those who sleep during the day and work at night, breaking into homes to steal, are called ‘Hei Qian.’ Those who sleep at night and work during the day, stealing from passersby, are called ‘Bai Qian’.”

“All ‘Xiao Liuzi’ must pay their respects to the local boss and are managed by the head boss of an area. They cannot immediately fence stolen goods; they must keep them with the head boss for three days. After that, the goods are fenced, and seventy percent of the proceeds go to the head boss.”

This was the first time Zhu Yunxi had heard of this rule. He asked curiously, “Why do they have to keep them with the head boss for three days first?”

“To save their lives,” Old Man Yao said casually. “Keeping stolen goods for three days is to wait for people to come looking for them. If they steal from an important figure, the authorities will come to the head boss to demand the items, and the boss must hand them over. If he can’t produce the items, many people will die.”

Zhu Yunxi asked again, “Why give the head boss seventy percent? That’s too much.”

Old Man Yao sneered, “If you don’t hand it over, the head boss doesn’t need to lift a finger; he can just call the yamen constables to arrest you. You don’t actually think the head boss takes all seventy percent himself, do you?”

At this moment, Old Man Yao arrived at a house and politely knocked on the door.

With a creak, the wooden door opened a crack from inside. A middle-aged man revealed half of his face and asked cautiously, “Who are you looking for?”

Old Man Yao smiled. “I’m looking for your head boss to discuss some business,” he said.

Before the person inside could react, he had already pushed the door open and walked inside as if it were his own.

In the courtyard, several bare-backed individuals were lifting stone locks to train their bodies.

A muscular, middle-aged man sat in a reclining chair, with the young pickpocket who had just entered the courtyard standing before him.

The middle-aged man asked the pickpocket, “So much silver—you didn’t steal from some high-ranking official, did you? Who did you steal this from?”

Seeing the door pushed open, the pickpocket froze, then pointed at Old Man Yao. “It was stolen from him,” he said.

The middle-aged man also froze, then narrowed his eyes and stood up, twirling two iron balls in his hand. “I don’t know which ‘river-crossing dragon’ has come looking for me, Jiang?” he said.

Old Man Yao didn’t waste words with him. He said directly, “I want four travel permits to Liaoyang Prefecture in Dongjing Province. The silver in your hand is the payment for the permits.”

The middle-aged man weighed the silver in his hand and sneered, “There’s enough silver, and I have permits here. But I can’t just sell them to you immediately just because you came knocking. You’ve broken the rules by coming here directly.”

Old Man Yao’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

In an instant, he flicked a stone lock on the ground with his foot, kicking it towards a martial arts practitioner in the courtyard.

The practitioner, hearing the stone lock whistle, tried to take the blow, but it crushed his chest, and he spat a mouthful of blood ten feet high. The middle-aged man’s expression changed. He turned to run, but another stone lock shattered his leg.

After a short time, when he looked back again, only corpses littered the courtyard. He was the only one still alive.

Liang Gou’er’s expression changed. He looked at Old Man Yao in astonishment.

Old Man Yao, with hands clasped behind his hunched back, stopped in front of the head boss. “Can you speak properly now?” he asked.

The middle-aged man frantically said, “The travel permits are all in the second box from the left inside the house; please take them yourself! I was blind just now; please don’t hold it against me!”

Old Man Yao waved his hand at Liang Mao’er and Zhu Yunxi. “Go get the permits,” he instructed, “find four for Liaoyang Prefecture in Dongjing Province, and remember to find ones that match our four ages.”

A travel permit specified the holder’s identity, age, residence, origin, and destination, and prohibited aimless wandering in between. Anyone caught crossing a pass or ferry without a permit would receive eighty strokes of the rod. Those who crossed border passes illegally would receive one hundred strokes and three years of penal servitude.

After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Zhu Yunxi came out with four travel permits. “I found them,” he said, “but it was hard to find one matching your age, so I could only get one for a sixty-four-year-old.”

Old Man Yao sighed, “It will barely do.”

Liang Gou’er teased, “Won’t it give us away?”

Old Man Yao glared at him, and Liang Gou’er quickly pulled back his neck.

Old Man Yao then looked at Zhu Yunxi, pointed at the head boss lying on the ground, and said indifferently, “Kill him.”

Zhu Yunxi froze. “But we’ve already gotten…” he began.

Old Man Yao glanced at him sideways. “If he reports us to the authorities after we leave, won’t these permits have been obtained for nothing? If you show any more soft-heartedness, I advise you to find a three-foot white silk rope and hang yourself now, rather than waste my old man’s time.”

Zhu Yunxi knew that he would have to kill sooner or later. But when the moment to actually kill arrived, he still hesitated.

Old Man Yao gazed at him, then said slowly, “Young Master, this is the true Jianghu.”

Zhu Yunxi froze. So the Jianghu was not beautiful at all.

Unlike the storyteller’s tales, the Jianghu held no lovers fighting with combined swords, no romantic excursions across vast distances. In this Jianghu, there were only those who never returned.

Old Man Yao turned and walked towards the door. “If you can kill,” he said, “we’ll keep going forward. If you can’t, I’ll go alone.”

The next moment, Zhu Yunxi picked up a plain saber from the courtyard. With a swift motion, he brought the saber down on the head boss’s neck. Blood spurted, and the bloodstains on his face were like scattered plum blossoms.

Zhu Yunxi looked up and asked, “Old Man, where to next?”

Old Man Yao said airily, “The Martial Temple, to find an old acquaintance.”