The Jiannan Regional Command's Dilemma. The official road ran along the riverbank, all the way downstream.
As the sun climbed higher, the mist had mostly dispersed. Only a thin veil of vapor still lingered over the river's surface.
Twenty li was neither far nor near.
After traveling for roughly an hour, a crude wooden stockade built beside the river came vaguely into view at the end of the official road.
The stockade was not large, consisting of several rows of wooden houses and a watchtower that was not particularly tall.
At the entrance stood more than a dozen figures clad in black uniforms streaked with red, gathered in twos and threes.
Some were wiping down their sabers. Some squatted on the ground, gambling with dice over a broken plank. More simply leaned against the fence with nothing to do, staring blankly at the river.
The sound of hoofbeats drew nearer.
Almost at the same moment, those polishing their blades stopped, those gambling put away their dice, and those daydreaming straightened up.
More than a dozen gazes turned in unison toward the road, and their previously relaxed expressions instantly sharpened with killing intent.
But when they saw who had arrived, bewilderment surfaced on every face.
What was going on?
A little girl had come?
Jiang Yuechu reined in her horse ten paces outside the stockade, then swung down from the saddle.
A broad-built man with a scar across his face stepped out from the crowd.
He looked Jiang Yuechu up and down, his brows tightly furrowed, and demanded in a deep voice, "Who goes there?"
"This is the Qingstone Ferry Demon Suppression Bureau's station?"
A younger-looking Demon Suppression Guard snapped impatiently, "What a pointless question! This is an important Demon Suppression Bureau site. Unauthorized persons are forbidden entry. Leave at once!"