The Bearing of a Duke or Marquis

Coiling Dragon Lake · The docks

Su Ziji came out when he heard the call. The azure sky was spotless, the waters vast beneath it, and waves swept across the boundless lake to lap against the shore. Cen Rubai pointed toward the lakeside docks and said, "Young master, look! The officials and gentry of Shuangye Prefecture have come to welcome us!"

"Mm, indeed. The man in the center wearing fifth-rank official robes should be the prefect. On his left is the deputy prefect..."

Su Ziji identified them one by one. A group of officials waited anxiously, craning their necks in anticipation as the great ship drew ever closer to shore.

The prefect rose and gave his orders, and drums and music swelled. Once the boatmen brought the ship alongside, dropped anchor, and laid the gangplank, Luo Pei straightened his robes and cap and stepped ashore. Several flashes shot up, followed by a sudden thunderous boom—the ceremonial cannons welcoming the imperial envoy.

The area around Coiling Dragon Lake was not particularly bustling, but many people had heard that an imperial envoy was coming to deliver a decree to the Dragon Maiden in the Dragon Palace. Nothing piqued the common people's curiosity more than such an event. Even the blood sacrifice of officials had drawn a sizable crowd back then, so how could this occasion fail to do the same?

Thus, besides the officials, local gentry and scholars with examination degrees had also come at the prefect's request. Many commoners had gathered farther away, pointing at the great ships on the lake.

"Is that the platform for proclaiming the decree?"

A raised platform at least five meters high and twenty-odd square meters in area had been built beside the lake. Soldiers surrounded it, keeping unauthorized people away. Cen Rubai guessed its purpose