Xie Huizhou met the local county magistrate, Mu Jiu. Before meeting him, he had asked the Shadow Guards about him.
While many local officials had fled when bandits ran rampant, he had remained at his post, fighting bandits while also resisting enemies raiding south from the Northern Border.
He had actually kept this up for several months in such a maddening deadlock. He was a man of integrity and resourcefulness, a rare talent.
Xie Huizhou was deeply curious about just what sort of talent could manage such a feat.
Mu Jiu was a refined, handsome scholar, accompanied by an adviser and several bailiffs. He looked rather poor; even his official robes were patched.
If even the county magistrate lived like this, the area truly had to be poor, and the unrest had only made resources tighter.
Xie Huizhou suddenly found Mu Jiu somewhat familiar. Before he could remember who he was and call out his name, the other man recognized him first.
"Ninth Prince! This humble official once met you during the Imperial Examination. I never expected that after several months apart, Your Highness would be as distinguished as ever."
"So it was you."
Only then did Xie Huizhou remember seeing this man while invigilating the Imperial Examination. He had been stumped by the questions Xie Huizhou set, and Xie Huizhou had overheard him swearing under his breath.
Finding this candidate commendably brave, Xie Huizhou had taken a look at his name beside him. He remembered that the man was privately on good terms with Zhou Yanqing and had been his fellow townsman.
That mouth of his had offended someone. Instead of remaining in Capital City as an official, he had been posted to this deserted backwater as a minor county magistrate.
Barring anything unexpected, he would spend his whole