The autumn moon shone bright, and the evening breeze blew clear.
Wang Yang led his soldiers out of the little courtyard with the money. His brocade garments gleamed in the night as he flourished his whip from horseback and swaggered home.
The moment he entered the gates, he told Black Han to fetch five thousand coins for Squad Leader He Ji to distribute among the soldiers.
At the time, a soldier's monthly pay was only three hundred coins (see the endnote to Chapter 93, "Moving House," and Chapter 258, "A Few Words as Binding as a Contract"), while the cheapest hired labor on the market earned just eight coins a day. Counting the squad leader, twenty-one soldiers had accompanied Wang Yang this time. Dividing five thousand coins among them meant earning nearly a month's pay in a single evening. Who wouldn't be delighted?
Though they had served Wang Yang only briefly, almost every soldier thought this noble young master was generous in spirit and lavish with his money. They wished they could attend him every day.
He Ji felt the same, but he wanted more than merely to run errands.
This was an opportunity as vast as the heavens.
And there was a very, very, very strong chance that it was the greatest opportunity He Ji would ever encounter in his life!
He had already resolved to give up his post as squad leader and become one of Wang Yang's retainer troops.
He had told no one of this decision, not even his wife.
When he first began running errands for Wang Yang and bringing reward money home, his wife had been beside herself with joy. She burned incense to thank the gods and added dishes to their meals in celebration, as though wisps of lucky smoke were rising from