"What seems wrong?"
Shen Lang asked curiously.
Ye Qianfan pointed at a few villagers nearby and explained to Shen Lang, "Look at their expressions. They don't look relaxed or at ease at all. They look lifeless, as though they're buckling under a heavy burden."
"By rights, the Great Yao Kingdom's household tax isn't all that harsh. And judging by the rice paddies and orchards we saw along the way, Riverside Town ought to have had a bumper harvest!"
"So why does every villager look weighed down with worries?"
"That is strange."
With Ye Qianfan's reminder, Shen Lang also realized something was wrong with Riverside Town.
Just as the two were whispering to each other...
A balding old man hurried out of the only courtyard compound in Riverside Town. He sported a little goatee, and though he was as thin as a rake, his belly bulged like a drum. His figure looked as strange as could be.
"Sir, you're finally here! I've been waiting for you!"
The old man hurried forward and bowed to the Station Chief with his hands clasped. Clearly, he had recognized from the Station Chief's clothes that he held the highest position in the group.
But the Station Chief frowned. "Has no one come before? The Demon-Quelling Office sent two groups of inspectors here earlier. Haven't you seen them?"
"Inspectors?"
The old man's brow creased into three deep furrows. "No, I haven't. Our town hasn't had a harvest for a year. We reported it to the court over six months ago, but no one ever came!"
"Oh, you have no idea how worried I've been..."
"You're the pavilion head here, aren't you?"
The swordswoman Shang Xueli's dissatisfaction with this old man had already reached its limit!
She stepped forward, her brows drawn in anger. **"Do you take