Edict

"Come, come, gather around! I've got a new brother to introduce to everyone!"

Gu Jianming clapped his hands and called out, gathering the few people who were training in the yard. Pointing at Xu Yi, he said, "This is Brother Yi Xu, newly joined our Furong Town Patrol Office. From now on, we'll all be eating from the same pot, so look out for one another, brothers!"

Then Gu Jianming introduced Xu Yi to each of them by name.

Only then did Xu Yi realize that the six people standing there, himself included, made up the entirety of Furong Town's official security force.

Xu Yi politely cupped his hands and greeted each of his new colleagues. His proper, well-mannered demeanor earned him their goodwill.

After the brief introduction, Gu Jianming dismissed the others and led Xu Yi toward the main hall.

What followed was a whole string of routine formalities: filling out forms, collecting his uniform, getting his waist badge...

Finally, after explaining the monthly benefits and his salary of fifty taels of silver, Gu Jianming slammed a thick copy of the Great Yue Royal Court Edict onto the nanmu table in front of Xu Yi with a thump. "Find some time to read through it. Starting today, you're a constable of Furong Town." With that, he turned and walked out.

Xu Yi hadn't expected that such a simple procedure would transform him into a civil servant of the Great Yue Royal Court.

He was quite pleased with the change. Not only had he gained a respectable new identity, but he had also become part of the establishment.

Even as the lowest-ranking constable, Xu Yi believed he could still claim a share of the Great Yue Royal Court's authority.

The secrets behind it all, he suspected, would have to be found in this thick copy of the Great Yue Royal Court Edict.

After crossing into this world, Xu Yi had retained the calm and big-picture outlook of his previous life, while gaining this life's meticulousness and ability to endure solitude.

He found a sunny spot by the window and sat down. Pushing it open to let in a view of lush green, he opened the book and began to read in silence.

His Soul Power was exceptional, allowing him to maintain intense concentration. He finished reading the hefty Great Yue Royal Court Edict in just two hours.

It contained a total of 108,654 laws and regulations. He wouldn't claim to remember every last word, but he had retained at least eight or nine out of ten.

The blazing sun beyond the window had begun to fade, hanging low over Huiyin Mountain beneath the deepening dusk.

It was getting late. Thinking of the delicious food from noon—Qiu Wa had eaten her share, but Uncle Mu had missed out—Xu Yi hurried to his feet, grabbed the bag containing his clothes and waist badge, and strode out.

Half an incense stick later, Xu Yi had two meal boxes in his hands, each identical to the one from noon.

Now he was truly a man of means. Though a meal like the one at noon was extravagant, it had cost only a little over two taels of silver.

At the official rate, one Crimson Gold Coin could be exchanged for a hundred taels of silver. But Crimson Gold Coins were the currency of the upper world, and few ever entered circulation among common folk. That rate was simply a price the authorities had imposed to exchange silver for the coins.

In reality, on the black market, one Crimson Gold Coin could fetch a hundred and fifty taels of silver—and even at that price, they were nearly impossible to find.

As for Xu Yi's wealth, he had not only two Gold Cakes each worth a thousand gold coins, but also more than ten gold coins he'd looted from Elder Feng. Even if he spent them on meals every day at this level of extravagance, he could keep it up for more than ten years.

With wealth like that, why would Xu Yi scrimp on food and drink?

The sun slanted westward. The evening breeze stirred gently over the clear Dragon Whisker River, where ripples glittered in the fading light. Xu Yi strolled through the town center, gazing into the distance at the lakes and mountains, the tiny returning sails—all of it filling his eyes and ears.

As dinnertime approached, the people who had labored all day went off in search of their own ways to relax. Furong Town was entering its noisiest, liveliest hour.

The taverns and teahouses were packed. Vendors of every kind seemed to swarm from nowhere, spreading across every empty patch of ground in town like leeches.

There was so much to hear and see that Xu Yi felt his senses could barely keep up!

At that moment, the bustle of the marketplace came alive, and it seemed his own life had come alive with it.

He passed through the fragrant Peach Crisp Alley, and the docks soon came into view. The timing seemed just right; Uncle Mu might have moored his boat and come ashore. Xu Yi decided to go meet the old man there.

He had only taken a few steps when his handsome brows suddenly drew together!

"Good heavens, Old Mu! Which god did you pray to today, to haul in a Great Green Carp?"

"Just look at that! Old Mu's struck it rich today. That Great Green Carp must weigh two hundred pounds!"

"Wow! One Great Green Carp like that must be worth half a year's work for us!"

"Old Mu's luck has turned. Why else would there be no other fish in the net? Somehow, this Great Green Carp just had to swim right into it!"

"Cai the Third, your head's gone rusty! With a Great Green Carp like this, what more could you want? Why would you need those other fish?"

Old Mu had only just struggled to drag his net ashore. Before the brown beads of sweat had even sizzled on the green flagstones, someone spotted the Great Green Carp inside, more than ten feet long.

The fishermen returning for the evening quickly gathered around to see the astonishing catch. The moment they saw the size of the Great Green Carp, they broke into a chorus of exclamations.

Great Green Carp were a specialty of the Nielong River. Their flesh was tender and succulent, their crisp bones fragrant; they made the finest fish soup and were a favorite delicacy among the wealthy folk of Guang'an City.

Yet the prized fish were hard to come by. Great Green Carp usually swam at depths of more than three zhang, making them extremely difficult to catch. Even veteran fishermen only landed one now and then through sheer luck.

As a result, Great Green Carp fetched a sky-high price. A fish like the one before them would conservatively be worth over a hundred taels of silver—a truly remarkable catch for an ordinary fisherman.

Just as the crowd was gathered around, watching excitedly, people were abruptly shoved aside.

"Get the hell out of the way! I heard someone caught a Great Green Carp. Hurry up and let this young master have a look!"

A Black-robed youth, surrounded by seven or eight burly men in blue, roughly parted the crowd. Before his shout had even faded, he had pushed his way to the front.

With a tearing sound, the Black-robed youth's hands—sharp as the finest steel awls—sliced through the tough net as easily as if it were tofu. He seized the fish by the head with one hand and effortlessly hauled the Great Green Carp out.

"Well, well! What a fine fish, what a fine fish! A Great Green Carp like this! I was just worrying that I had nothing good to serve my distinguished guests. This must be a gift from heaven!"

The Black-robed youth held up the Great Green Carp, inspecting it from every angle as he spoke grandly, as though the fish had naturally belonged to him all along.

"Just as the young master says. It's fate!"

A middle-aged man in a blue silk robe and gold sash squeezed to the front and offered a flattering remark. Then he lifted his chin and said, "Old Mu, hurry up and put this Great Green Carp in the hold."

"Of course, of course, Fishery Head Yaya. Just a moment, just a moment."

Uncle Mu answered repeatedly and called over a few fishermen he knew, preparing to catch the Great Green Carp.

The middle-aged man with the gold sash was the head of the fishery. He handled the catch brought in each day by Uncle Mu and the others. His prices were low, but the arrangement was convenient.

Great Green Carp were rare and would surely fetch a high price at market. But Uncle Mu was an honest man who wouldn't try to work the system. When Fishery Head Yaya gave an order, he never argued.

Uncle Mu and two burly fishermen had just moved to grab the Great Green Carp when the Black-robed youth gave a casual flick of his hand, and they all came up empty-handed.