The Government Office of the Southern Commandant Office.
Jia Huan lowered his head and leafed through the case files.
Five huge ships belonging to the Jiangnan Imperial Textile Bureau had capsized on the Qiantang River. One hundred and fifty thousand bolts of silk had been plundered, and even three palace eunuchs had died!
The assistant commissioner of the Southern Office scrutinized him and said sternly:
"The office has submitted its report. You've been given another assignment."
"It wasn't easy to win you this opportunity. Recover the silk and petition the Directorate of Ceremonial, and you won't have to take up your post in Northern Liang!"
"Return empty-handed, and you'll head north yourself!"
After a moment's hesitation, Jia Huan said quietly:
"I'm only concerned that the guards themselves might be the thieves."
If the eunuchs' insatiable greed had led them to pocket the silk and then cry thief, he would offend the Directorate of Ceremonial no matter where his investigation took him.
Officer Fu paced back and forth, dismissing the idea:
"The Jiangnan Imperial Textile Bureau is dripping with fat. Every one of those eunuchs has made a fortune. Besides, this shipment of fine silks was meant to replenish the imperial family's private treasury. Losing it could cost them their heads! Those eunuchs don't have the bloody guts!"
After a brief pause, he cautioned:
"But nothing is absolute. Use your own judgment."
Jia Huan cupped his fists and accepted the order.
Returning to the Ping'an Division's office, he ordered sharply:
"Scholar, select two hundred elite men. We leave for Jiangnan immediately!"
On the morning of the sixth day, thick fog refused to lift.
Several riders galloped down a straight flagstone road and stopped before a grand government office.
The plaque above its gates bore four boldly flowing characters: "Jiangnan Imperial