Dragon

"Eek, eek!" Both foxes nodded at once.

"Just as I thought." Hearing the answer, Su Ziji felt a sense of grim confirmation. In a matter this strange, human meddling had always seemed less likely than monsters at work.

Ahead of him, Zeng Nianzhen had keen hearing. He could not understand the foxes, but he had heard what Su Ziji said.

Zeng Nianzhen frowned. Though the wandering swordsman seemed carefree, the locust plague had caused too much harm. Hearing that monsters were behind it, his face turned cold. "Damn them. I failed to cut them down to the last one before, and they escaped. Now they're bringing disaster to the human world!"

Su Ziji asked, "Mr. Zeng, would you come with me to slay the monsters?"

"Of course I would, sir. But monsters are wary. If soldiers approach, I'm afraid they'll flee at once," Zeng Nianzhen said.

"No soldiers. Just us." Su Ziji touched his sword. He did not mind Zeng Nianzhen seeing it, but it would be no laughing matter if officials did.

"But... sir, your life is worth a fortune." Zeng Nianzhen hesitated.

"Do you think I can't fight?"

"Of course not." Zeng Nianzhen recalled how Su Ziji had fought the prince of the Kingdom of Lin, and his doubts eased.

The man before him was not only an official; he had a swordsman's spirit, too.

That suited a swordsman's tastes very well.

Hongping County, Shunan Prefecture

In a small garden on the outskirts, with elms in front and mulberries behind, everything looked ordinary. Two men were talking inside.

Both appeared to be in their thirties or forties. One wore a silk robe and looked prosperous, perhaps a merchant. The other wore a faded blue gown, stiff from repeated washing, and had an air of scholarship about him. Perhaps