Trouble in the Herb Garden

In the west of town, next door to the Soul Master Hall's old stone house.

Zhao Shi sat at the table, holding a rough earthenware teacup without drinking. He stared at Lu Qinghe's page in the register and scratched a faint mark into it with his fingernail.

Something was wrong.

That child was too composed, too quiet, and everything he said was too carefully considered. What six-year-old with a Trash Martial Soul and a dirt-poor family wouldn't be afraid when he met a deacon? But that child... there hadn't been a trace of fear in his eyes.

It wasn't a show of composure. He simply hadn't taken Zhao Shi seriously at all.

Zhao Shi was angry, but wary too.

He had spent eight years in Maple Leaf Town, crawling from level twenty to level twenty-three at a snail's pace. He knew that was the limit of his talent, so he was practical and amiable, and kept a careful grip on the authority that came with his position.

He knew every rustle of wind and grass in the households of the town's Soul Masters.

Lu Qinghe had been stuck for fifteen years, then suddenly his Soul Power had stabilized. His family was growing Soul Condensing Grass, and their meals seemed to have improved. The changes were subtle, but they hadn't escaped his notice.

Where had the money come from? What connections did they have?

He had gone there today intending to put some pressure on them and get something concrete out of them. If they really had some inexpensive recipe, he could take a share of the benefits.

To his surprise, he'd run into a soft nail.

And a child had handed it to him.

Zhao Shi put down his teacup and drummed his fingers on the table. He recalled what Lu Yuan had said about a "natural Soul Power sedimentation cycle." He had indeed glimpsed the term in some tattered old text years ago, though he'd long since forgotten it. Where had the child read it? A stray page from an old book? Where would the Lu family have gotten an old book?

The more questions he had, the more uneasy he became.

It wasn't that he feared what the Lu family could do. He feared the feeling of things slipping out of his control. A family that had been handed a "death sentence" had quietly begun to turn things around, and he, the deacon, couldn't figure out how.

That wouldn't do.

He needed to look into it further. Perhaps he should find someone to ask: who had the Lu family been associating with lately? And what was the story behind that "Energy Soup"?

Zhao Shi narrowed his eyes. His customary smile faded, revealing the shrewdness and coldness of a petty official beneath it.

He picked up his pen and made a tiny mark beside Lu Qinghe's name.

It looked like an accidental stroke, but only he knew what it meant.

He had to keep an eye on them.

When Zhao Shi pushed the door open and entered, Lu Qinghe was crouching beneath the eaves.

Two Soul Master apprentices followed behind him, the Maple Leaf Town emblem embroidered on their cuffs.

"Brother Lu." Zhao Shi wore a smile, but his eyes strayed toward the back courtyard. "Those seedlings are growing nicely."

Lu Qinghe's heart sank. He put down the piece of iron in his hand and stood up. "Deacon Zhao, the child just planted those at random..."

"At random?" Zhao Shi interrupted him. He took a yellowed parchment scroll from his robes and unfurled it. "Article thirty-seven of the Soul Master Hall regulations, in black and white: anyone growing Soul Power herbs must register them." He pointed at the rows of Soul Condensing Grass and Starlight Dew Vine. "Both of these have medicinal properties that nourish Soul Power. Do they count?"

Lin Xiu came out of the kitchen, her face pale. "Deacon Zhao, the child didn't know any better..."

"The child didn't know, and the adults didn't either?" Zhao Shi glanced at her, his tone turning cold. "If they weren't registered, the rules say they must be dug up, and there's a fine of five Gold Soul Coins."

Five Gold Soul Coins.

Lu Qinghe's head buzzed. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. "You're bullying us! Why is Wang Mazi allowed to grow Clear Heart Grass?"

"Clear Heart Grass doesn't count as a Soul Power herb." Zhao Shi smiled, but his eyes did not. "These two of yours happen to count." He lowered his voice. "I'm not unreasonable. Hand over the recipe for that 'Energy Soup' and let the Soul Master Hall put it on record, and we'll let this matter go."

The scroll had been unrolled, and the dagger revealed.

A chill ran through Lu Qinghe. The courtyard gate hadn't been shut properly, and a few neighbors had gathered outside, peering in.

"That soup was just thrown together..." His throat was dry.

"Thrown together?" Zhao Shi's face darkened, and he waved to the men behind him. "Then we'll follow the rules. Dig them up!"

The two apprentices stepped forward at his command.

Lin Xiu screamed and rushed to stop them, only to be pushed gently aside. Lu Qinghe's eyes reddened. He stood in front of the rows of seedlings, unconsciously circulating his Soul Power and stirring up a light breeze.

Zhao Shi's gaze sharpened. "Thinking of fighting?"

The tension tightened.

The door to the house creaked open.

Lu Yuan walked out. He held an old book with worn corners, and his steps were steady. For a six-year-old child, his eyes were unbelievably calm.

He tugged at his father's sleeve.

"Deacon Zhao." Lu Yuan looked up, his voice clear. "You say Soul Condensing Grass and Starlight Dew Vine are Soul Power herbs, and that growing them violates the regulations. Is that right?"

Zhao Shi narrowed his eyes. "That's right."

"Then may I ask?" Lu Yuan opened the book and pointed to a line of small print. "What is the standard for determining that? Is it based on whether the herbs themselves contain Soul Power, or on their recognized medicinal effects?"

Zhao Shi was taken aback. "Their medicinal effects, of course."

"Good." Lu Yuan turned the book toward him. "The Illustrated Guide to Common Herbs of the Continent, compiled by the Soul Master Hall Headquarters. Page three hundred and seventy-two, on Soul Condensing Grass: 'Its Soul Power residue cannot be directly absorbed and used by Soul Masters. It is not included in the official register of Soul Power herbs.'"

He paused and turned a few pages.

"Starlight Dew Vine: 'Its Soul Power activity is weak and unstable. It is listed only as an auxiliary material under observation, not an officially recognized Soul Power herb. Its cultivation requires no special registration.'"

The courtyard fell silent for a moment.

The neighbors began buzzing among themselves.

Zhao Shi's expression changed. He stared at the battered book, then at Lu Yuan's face.

"That book of yours... it's old." His voice was dry. "Headquarters may have revised it since then..."

"That's possible." Lu Yuan nodded. "Then do you have a provision from the latest revision that explicitly puts them on the official register? If you do, show it to us, and we'll accept the fine."

Zhao Shi was at a loss for words.

He didn't have a fucking provision.

If he couldn't produce one, it meant his performance today had fallen flat.

His face burned. He stared at Lu Yuan, his gaze so dark it could have dripped water.

"Fine, fine." Zhao Shi forced the words through his teeth, along with a stiff smile. "It seems I remembered wrong. Your family's herb garden doesn't need to be registered."

He had conceded defeat.

Lu Yuan bowed slightly. "Thank you for seeing the matter clearly, Deacon Zhao."

Zhao Shi glared fiercely at him, then turned and left. The two apprentices followed, looking sheepish.

The courtyard gate slammed shut with a clang.

Lu Qinghe's legs gave way, and Lin Xiu hurried to support him. The two of them looked at their son, then at the old book, their thoughts in a tangle.

Lu Yuan stood where he was, holding the book.

He had gotten through it.

But he had seen the look in Zhao Shi's eyes. He wasn't letting it go; he was holding a grudge.

The trouble had only just begun.

He tapped the spine of the book lightly with his index finger.

Lu Yuan stood there holding the book for about three breaths.

Then he turned and walked back into the house.

Lu Qinghe held on to the doorframe, while Lin Xiu still gripped his arm. Neither of them spoke. They simply watched their son put the book back on the table and return.

"It's all right now," Lu Yuan said.

His voice was perfectly level.

Lin Xiu's eyes reddened. She released her husband, crouched down, and pulled Lu Yuan into her arms. "Little Yuan... you scared your mother to death." Her voice trembled. "How did you dare... he's from the Soul Master Hall..."

Lu Yuan let her hold him without moving.

Lu Qinghe took a deep breath and went to the courtyard gate, peering outside through the crack. The alley was empty now. The neighbors who had come to watch had dispersed, and Zhao Shi and the two others were nowhere in sight.

He turned around, leaned back against the gate, and slowly slid down to sit on the ground.

"He's gone," Lu Qinghe said, his voice terribly hoarse. "He's really gone."

Lin Xiu let go of her son, wiped her eyes, and went to pull her husband up. "Get up. The ground is cold."

Lu Qinghe didn't move. He stared at his son, a complicated look in his eyes. "How did you know all that? That book... that guide, I've never even seen it before."

"I picked it up at a secondhand bookstall," Lu Yuan said. "Two Copper Soul Coins."

It was the truth. He had indeed found the Illustrated Guide to Common Herbs of the Continent at a secondhand bookstall in the west of town last month. Its pages were yellowed and its corners worn and frayed, but the contents were complete. The stall owner hadn't recognized its value and had sold it as scrap paper.

Lu Qinghe opened his mouth but asked no more. He braced his hands on his knees and stood up, his legs still a little weak. "What happened today... is it over?"

"For now," Lu Yuan said.

Lin Xiu grew anxious. "What do you mean, for now? Didn't he admit he was wrong?"

"Mother." Lu Yuan looked at her. "He's a Soul Master Hall deacon, in charge of registering and checking every Soul Master in town. Today, in front of a whole crowd of people, a six-year-old child used a provision from a book to leave him speechless. Do you think he'll just let it go?"

Lin Xiu froze.

Lu Qinghe's face darkened. "You mean... he'll come looking for trouble again?"

"He definitely will." Lu Yuan walked to the window and looked out through a crack. The alley was empty, the afternoon sun slanting across it. There wasn't even a shadow on the ground. "And next time, he won't use an open pretext like 'illegal cultivation.'"