Undercurrents

With the holiday drawing near, every household in Dingzhou City hung lanterns and decorated their doors. Temple fairs and markets sprang up one after another, and even the authorities had lifted the curfew. At night, faint lantern lights could be seen along the city's moat, and everywhere crowds ventured out to enjoy the festivities beneath the night sky.

At that moment, a large boat was slowly making its way along the river outside the city. Two people sat on its deck: none other than Wu Ming and Wu Zhi, traveling incognito.

"Only when you see a scene like this do you feel there's some semblance of life among the common folk..."

Wu Zhi wore a blue-green robe and dressed like a Confucian scholar. Her many years of military campaigning had not weathered her; if anything, her greatly advanced martial arts had left her skin as smooth as ice and jade. She had the graceful, dashing air of a fine young gentleman, and beside her, Wu Ming was every bit her equal.

"First, it's thanks to your capable governance, E'xu. Second, this is near the capital. If even here the land were littered with corpses for a thousand miles, what chance would there be for the people elsewhere?"

Wu Ming smiled faintly.

The capital's concentration of wealth and political influence was naturally no trifling matter. After all, it lay at the Son of Heaven's feet. In any dynasty, the people's standard of living there was among the best. But to claim it represented the country's overall standard would be laughable.

The night breeze blew softly.

Wu Zhi and Wu Ming stole half a day of leisure from their busy lives, admiring the scenery on both sides of the river and occasionally warming some wine for a sip. They were thoroughly enjoying