Chapter 25

Bao Zhong had a tight schedule. After retrieving Qu Cheng and his subordinates from prison, he confiscated the homes of those involved in the case. Then, he visited the county military camp for some training and discipline. The next day, he hurriedly set off, rushing back to Gaoling for a fierce confrontation with Governor Dong.

Wei Jing had already dealt with Qu Cheng; the latter was so delirious and unhinged that he was guaranteed not to utter anything he shouldn’t. Bao Zhong, however, was unperturbed—after all, all his trusted subordinates were still lucid and not at all mouthy.

In the early morning light, silver vehicles and freight carts streamed out one after another. For over a decade, the Qu family and their cronies had been amassing wealth—including illicit salt profits and silver—and now the entourage from Gaoling left Pingtao County in a grand procession.

“My lord,” Zhuang Yan furrowed his brow slightly and, with his hands clasped in a respectful gesture, said, “The money belonging to the Qu family should be far more than what we seized this morning, yet …”

The moment the Qu faction was apprehended, their residences were immediately sealed in accordance with the law, pending a thorough inventory by dedicated officials from the commandery. The Qu residence had been unsealed just yesterday, right under everyone’s eyes. How should he put it? While the amount of wealth in gold and silver was enormous, compared to the proceeds from over ten years of illicit salt dealings, it was still relatively modest.

Bao Zhong, however, found nothing amiss. He believed that Qu Cheng had already handed over most of the silver—after all, Qu Cheng’s superior was Dong Du, and above him stood none other than the Third Young Master He. But Zhuang Yan held a different view. Having dealt with the Qu family for over a decade, he knew their nature inside out. Qu Cheng was exceedingly greedy—in pursuing personal gain, he would even dare to risk converting official salt into a private enterprise. How could a man like him possibly hand over most of the profits? He would undoubtedly have found a way to pocket a large portion for himself.

Zhuang Yan was firmly convinced of this. However, yesterday, Bao Zhong led his troops to thoroughly ransack the Qu residence, leaving no stone unturned in the auxiliary compounds and county barracks. Everything that should have been searched was combed through, yet they still found no extra silver.

“Let’s set this matter aside for now.” With nothing evident to follow up on, they decided to drop the issue for the moment. In Wei Jing’s eyes, he wouldn’t obsess over that bit of illicit silver.

Nowadays, the county magistrate holds civil and military authority over a county and its finances. Although Pingtao is a frontier region, it is, after all, a wealthy county.

He asked Kou Xuan, “Wenchang, has the document for recruiting additional county soldiers been drafted?”

“It has been drafted.” Kou Xuan, the newly appointed chief official, was clad in his dark blue bureaucratic uniform and looked exceptionally vigorous. Though he had been so busy these past few days that his feet barely touched the ground, he showed no sign of fatigue despite the early fulfillment of his ambitions. He submitted the document to Wei Jing for review, affixed the seal, and then handed it over to Deng Guang, who had just entered.

This Deng Guang was the officer who had distinguished himself during the counter-capture of Qu Cheng and his faction; he has now been promoted to sergeant and is, by all accounts, the most dependable man currently at Wei Jing’s disposal in the county military camp. Taking the document from Kou Xuan, he should have immediately left to carry out his duties. Instead, after taking only two steps, he paused, and a trace of hesitation appeared on his face.

Wei Jing asked, “What is it?”

“Reporting to you, my Lord…” Deng Guang quickly clasped his hands in greeting, hesitated for a moment, and said, “Last year, Biao Xia—yes, Biao Xia—was temporarily reassigned to escort a convoy of trucks.”

It was an autumn day when a cold rain began to fall suddenly. He had been drafted on short notice without knowing the mission and even had to shed his armor in favor of plain cloth garments. When he arrived at the destination, he discovered that he was escorting a convoy of trucks that were tightly covered and completely loaded.

Although the rain wasn’t heavy, it was quite chilly as they pushed the carts from the dock to the western suburbs along a muddy, treacherous official road. Once there, they even had to haul the heavy cargo up the mountain on slippery ground, nearly losing their footing and tumbling down. The whole experience left an indelible impression.

No sooner had he stepped inside than he heard Zhuang Yan’s puzzled remarks—and for some reason, that incident suddenly came rushing back to him.

However, Deng Guang quickly added, “It wasn’t silver boxes.”

At that, Wei Jing’s interest was clearly piqued. “Then what kind of goods was it?”

“They were packed in burlap sacks wrapped in oilcloth—I can’t tell what they were. But those sacks were very full and exceedingly heavy, and the contents were made up of fine particles. I faintly thought it looked just like grain.”

“Grain?!” Wei Jing paused while rifling through the records, then asked in a deep voice, “Do you remember where the goods were stored?”

“Biao Xia still remembers it; we should be able to locate them.”

Pingtao was surrounded by mountains on three sides. Once you pass through the west city gate and travel no more than about ten li, you enter a mountainous area.

The road under the wheels grows narrow and begins to bounce and twist, undulating as it winds through the hills. Shao Qing lifted the window curtain to take in the view—a lush expanse of green, with some mountains having gentle slopes and others steep, their heights varying unpredictably.

Riding alongside the carriage to guard it, Wei Jing noticed her raising the curtain and said, “We’re almost there; Deng Guang said it’s just ahead.”

He had left the city searching for that granary storage, which was quite a distance away and would take some time to reach. Not comfortable leaving Shao Qing—who had no martial skills—behind in the city, he decided to bring her along.

Now that the search was over and there were no traces of the Qu faction, Shao Qing reverted to her female attire. She wore a light blue, thin silk tunic with traditional Hu-style sleeves. Her waist-length hair was styled into a snake-like bun, accentuated by a solitary plum blossom hairpin placed diagonally. Her almond-shaped eyes, as lustrous as polished apricots, flickered playfully, exuding liveliness and delicate charm.

“It’s fine; we really shouldn’t be far now,” she said, dismissing the minor bumps as if they were nothing more than a gentle drizzle compared to what she had experienced earlier.

However, by her own judgment, the location that supposedly stored grain couldn’t be much farther. The road was growing ever narrower—beyond that point, the grain trucks simply wouldn’t be able to enter.

Instead of hoarding silver, Qu Cheng had stored grain. If that were indeed the case, she couldn’t help but admire Qu Cheng for his unique foresight. The mountainous region around Pingtao does not produce grain, and yet in the Central Plains, where natural disasters occur frequently, grain prices often soar—directly affecting Yizhou.

Grain is hard currency—far more reliable than gold or silver. Now that Pingtao has changed hands, obtaining a large stockpile of grain would be far more advantageous for Wei Jing than securing a massive amount of gold and silver.

With grain, troops can be mustered; this isn’t just an empty slogan. That said, no matter how promising it sounds, they decided to see it for themselves to avoid getting their hopes up in vain.

Shao Qing, feeling a long-missed ease while barely restraining her delight, soon heard Deng Guang call out from ahead, “Reporting to the magistrate, it should be up the mountain from here!”

She peered closely and saw that the mountain before them descended gently—only to stretch for more than one li before suddenly turning steep. Deng Guang frowned as he examined several spots, finally parting a clump of thick grass to reveal a man-made stone path.

It was extremely concealed; the grass grew so luxuriantly that without guidance, this little road would have been nearly impossible to find.

Since the carriage couldn’t enter this area, Wei Jing rode his horse to the front of the carriage and said, “Ah Qing.”

Shao Qing lifted the carriage curtain and dashed out; taking his outstretched hand. He deftly scooped her up onto his horse as they headed toward the stone path. Her graceful figure and striking beauty were such that every companion kept their gaze straight ahead—no one dared to glance more than a moment at her.

Besides Deng Guang, who accompanied them, there was also Kou Xuan, Zhuang Yan, and about a dozen newly appointed county soldier squad leaders—each of whom had performed exceptionally well and was personally handpicked by Wei Jing.

Inside, the situation was unclear; they hadn’t yet determined exactly where additional manpower was needed. Moreover, since moving grain in the future would always require extra hands, Wei Jing had no intention of venturing in alone.

They followed the pebble road slowly upward, its sides densely lined with thatch. Eventually, they reached the foot of a suddenly towering mountain. At this point, the pebble path took a bend and merged into a relatively flat dirt road leading into the mountain.

Deng Guang led the way astride his horse. However, as the terrain here was no longer well suited for riding, Wei Jing dismounted and, extending a hand for support, helped Shao Qing move forward.

Even on a relatively flat mountain road, progress was not easy. Fortunately, Shao Qing was experienced, and Wei Jing strolled along as if on a leisurely walk. They didn’t need to venture very far—only about two li—when Deng Guang pointed and happily exclaimed, “This is the spot, no doubt about it!”

Everyone then looked intently and saw, right before their eyes, a vast expanse of sunlit, flat land teeming with an abundance of weeds and small trees. At the far end, on the left side of a massive rock perched on a sheer cliff, there lay a dark, pitch-black cave.

Wei Jing immediately gathered his inner energy, lightly tapping his toes before leaping swiftly to the front of the cave. He leaned in to listen for a moment before saying to Shao Qing, “There’s no one nearby.”

Even if there had been people, they would have long fled. Shao Qing had noticed that the wooden shed at the outer edge of the cave was in complete disarray—clearly, someone had once been guarding the area, but upon learning of the Qu family’s defeat, they had hastily slipped away.

Taking the torch lit by Wei Jing, she stepped into the cave with a sense of relief. Even with her mental preparation, once inside, she couldn’t help but be greatly astonished.

What a treasure trove for storing grain!

The cave’s entrance was small, but its interior was vast—deep and wide, yet remarkably dry. As Shao Qing proceeded further, she felt a slight, cool breeze brushing against her face, and the excellent ventilation caught her attention.

The space was enveloped by the scent of dried grain. Piles of large burlap sacks filled with grain were stacked on wooden platforms. The darkness obscured their full extent, yet the stockpiles continued deep within—an impressive abundance.

With a quick prod of his sword’s tip, Wei Jing revealed that the beans, the grains, and even the peanuts had been thoroughly sun-dried— the latter still unhulled.

Shao Qing beamed and said, “Those that haven’t been hulled can be stored for a long time.”

Moreover, she observed that the grain must have been regularly refreshed over the years since, as they looked around along the way, they hadn’t encountered any old or stale stocks.

A glimmer of excitement also flashed in Wei Jing’s eyes. It was nothing short of an unexpected delight; not only was there plenty of grain, but the cave itself turned out to be a rare treasure for storing it. He raised the torch and scanned the cave, replying with a soft “mm.”

His tone was unusually pleasant, and Shao Qing couldn’t help but smile. After a moment, she quietly asked, “What about the others that Deng Guang brought in? Are they reliable?”

She was referring to the roughly ten newly appointed squad leaders—Kou Xuan and Zhuang Yan among them—who were already bound by shared interests with Wei Jing and had their families right under his watch. That connection was far more secure than most other relationships.

Wei Jing murmured in a low voice, “No problems.”

Since he had brought these people along, it was clear he was confident in keeping hold of them; they were natives of Pingtao, and even though they once served under Qu Cheng, their reputation among the common folk was still acceptable.

Shao Qing trusted in his abilities—if he said there was no issue, she could feel at ease.

The two of them roamed around the cave with their torches until Zhuang Yan and the others arrived, just in time for those roughly ten squad leaders to be put to use.

Perhaps the previous guard had tried to move more grain before leaving and, being crude, ended up knocking over one of the grain piles. The burlap sacks tumbled across the ground, spilling their contents far and wide, so everything needed to be restacked.

After nearly two hours of work, Wei Jing had a roughly complete understanding of the cave’s layout. With a clear plan in mind, before leaving, he strictly ordered everyone not to disclose any details—warning that anyone who did would be severely punished according to military law. He then divided the roughly ten squad leaders into three groups to take turns guarding the granary.

Once all arrangements were in place, the first group stayed behind while the others returned to the city.

……

An unexpected delight had arrived—a vast granary was now secured, the conscription of soldiers was underway, and the county barracks were being expanded. In this modest county, Wei Jing rapidly took charge of all matters, and in no more than ten days or so, he had firmly secured control over Pingtao. Everything had finally stabilized, and all developments were moving in a positive direction.

For Shao Qing, there was one more piece of extremely delightful news. She had finally obtained her household registration; she was no longer an undocumented person.

Truly something to celebrate!

That afternoon, just as Shao Qing had finished organizing nearly ten years’ worth of Pingtao’s financial records, she saw Wang Mi enter with a cheerful smile. Curiously, she asked, “Madam Wang, what is making you so happy?”

As she spoke, she rubbed her wrist. Having been under Qu Cheng’s control for so long, Pingtao had many matters that needed to be sorted out. However, with Wei Jing now having only a few capable people at his disposal, she voluntarily offered to help.

Wei Jing—who was usually busy running errands—certainly wasn’t keen on her taking over additional tasks. So, he assigned her to handle the taxation and financial records. And, it must be said, her efficiency left a group of men thoroughly impressed.

“Madam is truly capable,” remarked Wang Mi. Her tone carried both praise and envy. Yet, as a modern housewife who had never ventured into public affairs or taken on official responsibilities, her admiration was fleeting. She pulled out a yellow slip of paper and laughed, “This is what my husband just brought back.”

Shao Qing took it and, upon examining it, discovered that it was a household registration document.

Kou Xuan is now in charge of this matter as well. Once everything was clarified, he began issuing new household registrations for everyone. Because the Kou family was entangled in old issues, he reestablished their registrations anew; as for Shao Qing, he didn’t waste any time—he processed hers along with the others.

The yellow document bore a surname—the Liu surname—that Shao Qing had casually chosen in the past. She didn’t even have a given name and was simply called Liu Sanniang. The household registration was placed under the Kou family, marking her as a cousin.

Shao Qing couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m even a Liu Third Sister!”

Wang Mi also laughed, saying, “My family’s gotten lucky—now we’re relatives of the madam!”

Anyway, this arrangement was only temporary. Shao Qing’s household registration would be transferred to Wei Jing’s side in two or three months, and the procedure would be no different from a typical marriage.

“It also saves us the hassle of registering a female household,” Wang Mi added offhand. At that, Shao Qing’s eyes lit up, and she eagerly asked, “Can one actually register a female household?”

Her original self was raised in seclusion and never dealt with such matters in daily life, leaving her completely clueless. And at that moment, upon hearing the term “female household,” she immediately recalled her muddled marital relationship with Wei Jing.

She was truly troubled. While she understood Wei Jing’s attitude toward this relationship, she had never intended or been mentally prepared for marriage, whether in her past life or this one.

Alas, life is full of shocks. After losing consciousness and then regaining it, one is suddenly set on an irrevocable path of exile and flight—and to top it off, given a husband as a bonus. How could she possibly accept that calmly?!

Wei Jing treated her very well—through life and death, supporting each other in every step. Truthfully, no matter how this life unfolds, he will always hold a unique place in her heart. Yet, this feeling, more akin to that of comrades in arms, was nothing like the bond one has with a husband.

Shao Qing had indeed been considering talking with Wei Jing about it, but she couldn’t find the right angle. She knew all too well that he was paranoid, sensitive, and easily hurt. Given that their bond was forged through life and death, and that he always went to great lengths to protect her, Shao Qing was unwilling to hurt him.

She was very distressed. Fortunately, Wei Jing was still mourning for his mother and brothers—with no intention of consummating their marriage immediately—and there was still plenty of time; she figured she could eventually find a gentler solution.

That was what Shao Qing had been mulling over, but before long, she discovered a rather promising approach: Establish a female household.

First, separate her household registration so that the two of them are legally no longer considered husband and wife. This was the first step; as for the second step, she could think it over gradually later.

Shao Qing was elated.

Well, until today, she’d never truly looked forward to marriage. Having mistakenly fallen into it, she’d always felt that something was missing—a sense of being the master of her own destiny. If possible, she’d prefer to remain single forever.

She hurriedly asked, “Sister Wang, how do we establish this ‘female household’? Even if it’s a bit troublesome, that’s fine—just have Big Brother Kou from the Kou family set one up for me!”

Wang Mi replied in surprise, “To set up this female household, uh, it’s not that it can’t be done—it’s just that…” But why go through all that trouble anyway?

She didn’t really understand why Shao Qing had this idea, though she didn’t say much more. “I’ll go back and speak with Ah Bi’s father,” she added.

After agreeing, Wang Mi couldn’t help asking once again, “Madam, do you really want to establish a female household?”

“Mm, I…”

“What do you mean by a ‘female household’?!”

Just as Shao Qing’s words left her mouth, a sudden male voice interrupted her—deep and slightly magnetic, very familiar. She turned her head and saw that Wei Jing had already stepped onto the stairs and stood in the corridor. He fixed his gaze on her; his dark eyes were filled with confusion and shock. After a tumult of emotions flickered across his face, they eventually coalesced into a deep, somber gloom.

It was like the eve of a storm—the sea roiled with towering waves, darkness looming and devouring, a swirling vortex of hurricane-force fury ready to consume and destroy everything.

“Ah Qing, come with me!”

Before she could say another word, he was at her side and taking her away.