Where Immortals Once Walked

The head of the Zhan Family had already been dragged out and thrown to the ground by Li Family’s private soldiers, his face trampled with more than a few boot prints. Suddenly, the thunder of hooves erupted from the southern gate of the city. A sizeable army was charging straight toward the scene of the brawl, their momentum rolling like a storm. The clatter of hooves was deafening, the dust they raised blotted out the street, and the startled cityfolk could not help but clear the way instinctively.

The soldiers of this army wore gleaming armor, their steeds sleek and spirited, their posture straight and fierce. Every man radiated vigor.

And among them ran two giant wolves, each the size of a lion. Their red tongues lolled, saliva dripping freely from their fangs, sending every bystander scrambling back in terror.

At the very front, the standard-bearer raised a massive flag up high. This flag was embroidered with a single bold red word: 贺 (He).

The officials on the scene exchanged uneasy looks.

Could it be? Surely not, right?

In the blink of an eye, the troops reached the Zhan Residence. The handsome man leading them lifted his chin slightly, and immediately, over a hundred cavalrymen surged in behind him, riders and horses crashing through the gates to “break up the fight.”

The two wolves bounded in as well, their savage growls echoing through the courtyard.

With those beasts among them, it did not take long for the heads of both feuding families to sober up.

Before the eyes of the gathered crowd, the handsome man dismounted and strode toward the assembled officials. He asked coldly, “What’s going on here? Is this how Dunyu City welcomes me?”

A man stepped out from behind him. This man was none other than Peng Ju’an, the provincial military affairs officer.

Peng Ju’an hurriedly addressed the officials, “This is Lord He, the newly appointed Governor-General of Xia Province and our superior.”

He Chunhua flicked his left hand, and the mandate token shone brilliantly.

The officials no longer doubted the claim, and they all bowed deeply.

“Rise,” He Chunhua said only after allowing them the proper time for courtesy. “As of this moment, Peng Ju’an is relieved of his duties as military affairs officer. He will be reassigned elsewhere. Zeng Feixiong—”

Zeng Feixiong leaped off his horse and came forward at a run.

He Chunhua tossed him a Yuan Coin, the very same one that he had just taken from Peng Ju’an. “I hereby appoint you as the new military affairs officer of the Governor-General’s Office of Xia Province. You’ll oversee all military affairs. Serve me well!”

Zeng Feixiong answered with a resounding “Yes!”

In less time than it took to draw three breaths, the post of Xia Province’s military affairs officer had changed hands.

The officials understood immediately. The new Governor-General had not entered Dunyu City directly. He had first detoured to Qingping Township, revealed his identity there, and taken over the thousand-man force under Peng Ju’an’s command before marching back here.

What they did not know was that the Coordinating Army had stormed into Peng Ju’an’s home earlier that day. Producing the royal court’s transfer order and official seals, He Chunhua had seized command of the troops right in front of the Xia Province soldiers.

He still remembered the humiliation he had suffered that day, when Sun Fuping had come to him with the royal decree. Today, Peng Ju’an was the one who suffered that same indignity.

It was only by securing the army and by holding real power and men under his command that He Chunhua could establish himself in Dunyu at once.

Now, his personal force had swelled to more than two thousand and two hundred strong.

Just then, his troops split ranks, and over two hundred people were dragged out. These people were the Zhan Family and the Li Family’s private soldiers alike. All of them bore signs of brawling, whether it be torn clothing, bloodied faces, heads split open, or disheveled hair.

He Chunhua’s expression was cold as he said, “These people were caught committing violence on the southern county road. I brought them back here myself.”

The Coordinating Army that had stormed into the Zhan Residence was ferocious, more so than the two families put together. The local constables had been too afraid of the Li Family to make arrests, but the Coordinating Army had no such scruples.

When the Li Family’s men fought back in desperation, they were slapped to the ground or kicked sprawling within moments.

He Chunhua’s troops were a motley mix—Heishui City thugs, Woling Pass rebels—but they all knew how to hit hard without killing.

The onlookers swelled like a rising tide, eyes bright with the thrill of spectacle.

Soon enough, the chaos inside the Zhan Residence was completely subdued. Both families were dragged out in chains. Even Li Zhi and Li Rong, who could have avoided the scuffle, now stood disheveled, their clothes ripped and their faces scratched.

The Zhan Family fared even worse. At this moment, over a hundred of them were wounded, while more than ten were lying motionless on the ground, and no one was sure whether those ten-odd people were still breathing.

“Outrageous!” He Chunhua snapped, his voice booming like thunder as he lashed his riding whip toward the members of the Li Family. “Breaking into a private residence, keeping private troops, bullying the weak, robbing under broad daylight, are you trying to overthrow the King’s law?”

The officials beside him quickly seized the chance to announce his identity to the crowd.

Seeing this unfamiliar but clearly powerful official radiating authority, both sides immediately guessed who he was.

The head of the Zhan Family, Zhan Qingmao, was both terrified and overjoyed. He spat out a broken tooth and fell to his knees, pleading for Governor-General He to uphold justice. As for those from the Li Family, the two wolves eyed them down with drooling jaws, making their fury wilt and their fear soar.

The three hundred private soldiers they had brought were quickly disarmed and made to stand in shame, heads hung low.

Li Rong stepped forward and protested, “Our old patriarch was murdered! These people are behind it!”

Li Zhi’s lips twitched, but he kept his mouth shut.

He Chunhua’s gaze was icy. “I’ll give you both some dignity. We’ll take this case to the provincial yamen and carry out a public trial. All private soldiers who took part in the fight will be detained. As for the wounded, carry them into the Zhan Residence for treatment. You,” he pointed to the chief of staff, “summon physicians immediately. The costs go on the Li Family’s account.”

After that, he called for the attendant officer. “You’ll help the Zhan Family tally their losses. Search the three hundred suspects and confiscate all stolen goods as evidence. Lock them up and have them await trial!”

“Now then, heads of the Li and Zhan Families, come with me!”

His orders flowed as smoothly as running water, each word decisive, each command precise. He infused his voice with true energy, ensuring that everyone present heard him loud and clear.

The crowd burst into applause.

They loved this sort of swift, domineering official. The whole scene felt like a well-staged play. The two great families had performed the conflict, and the new governor-general had arrived just in time for a thunderous finale.

From horseback, He Lingchuan smiled faintly as he glanced over the crowd. Mao Tao and a few men in plain clothes were scattered among the onlookers, clapping and cheering the loudest.

His father’s carefully prepared entrance had gone off even better than planned.

Now, everyone in Dunyu knew that the new Governor-General of Xia Province had arrived, and that he had immediately crushed the city’s two most notorious bullies. If that was not awe-inspiring, then what was?

Still, the applause, though present, was not as fervent as it could be. Clearly, the people’s fear of the Li Family ran deep.

The newly appointed military affairs officer, Zeng Feixiong, left two hundred Coordinating Army soldiers behind to assist the chief of staff, the attendant officer, and other officials, ensuring they had sufficient backing.

These men had followed the He Family the longest. They were broad-shouldered, ruthless, and disciplined. Their presence alone made the local soldiers stand straighter.

With the heads of both families taken away, the city officials finally breathed easy for the first time in days.

As the chief of staff and attendant officer entered the Zhan Residence, the attendant officer whispered to the other, “This Governor-General He is cut from a different cloth. He’s only just arrived, and he’s already put both families in their place.”

“Let’s wait and see,” the chief of staff murmured back. “No one comes to Dunyu without crossing swords with the Li Family sooner or later. Still, Old Li dying right before the new governor’s arrival? Talk about bad luck for them, and good luck for him.”

Meanwhile, He Lingchuan rode at the head of the army as they entered the city. Many bystanders pointed and whispered.

A girl gasped. “Look! That man’s got a monkey on his shoulder, and the monkey is wearing a hat!”

Young Master He straightened his back proudly.

Another voice sighed in admiration, “He’s so handsome.”

He Lingchuan froze. Why did that voice sound like a man’s?

Suppressing a shudder, he pretended the gawking crowd was a welcoming parade.

Their army moved north, right into the heart of the city. It was clear that He Chunhua intended to strike while the iron was hot. Outwardly, he was escorting the two families for interrogation, but in truth, he was putting the entire city on notice.

From what He Lingchuan observed, Dunyu’s streets were fairly wide. The main avenue was wide enough for five carriages to ride side by side, but the farther one went into the alleyways, the narrower they became. Some alleys were so tight a fat man or a pregnant woman might not even squeeze through.

The houses were sturdy and practical, lacking ornate decoration, though there were more two and three-story buildings here than in Heishui City.

Still, he passed several stately residences with spacious courtyards, handsome façades, and brickwork laid so neatly it gleamed.

He pointed to one particularly elegant estate and asked a local constable, “Is that one of the great families’ residences?”

“Great families? Oh no, sir, that’s not one of the great families’ residences,” the constable said quickly, shaking his head like a rattle drum. “That’s the residence of the Hu Family. They’re silk merchants. They’re nowhere near as rich as the four great families.”

It’s not a residence of one of the great families? He Lingchuan raised a brow.

After about another three hundred meters, they passed another row of sprawling estates. These ones had black tiles, carved beams, and walls decorated with relief brickwork. The army rode alongside its walls for dozens of breaths.

Now this, this was an estate worthy of envy.

Even without asking, the constable blurted out, “That’s the Li Residence.”

“Oh, impressive,” He Lingchuan said appreciatively. Even after seeing the wealth of Shihuan City, he had to admit the Li Family’s grandeur was something else. From the looks of it, his father’s new post in Xia Province promised not just greater power than Qiansong Commandery, but also greater profit.

Or rather, greater prospects.

The constable seemed sharp, so He Lingchuan asked casually, “When did Old Master Li die?”

Just a few days ago in Ru County, his father had been complaining that the head of the Li Family was a tough nut to crack. And now, on the very day they arrived, he was already dead. Such convenient timing almost seemed too good to be true.

“This morning, sir,” the constable answered at once, now aware that he was speaking to the new governor’s eldest son. “It was sudden. The Li Family is convinced that the Zhan Family was behind it, so they gathered their men and came to seek revenge.”

“Quite the show of force,” He Lingchuan remarked. This is the provincial capital, not some backwater village. To bring three hundred armed men to attack a rival family in broad daylight, just how lawless can they be? “Are there often private brawls here like the one earlier?”

“Ah, well...” The constable hesitated. To agree would be to condemn his own inaction. “The people here are... spirited. We do our best to mediate.”

But in truth, when faced with hundreds of the Li Family’s men wielding blades, the local constables hardly dared to intervene. Some had been beaten before for even trying. Compensation, if any, came as a pittance of medical fees.

In short, being beaten by the Li Family was just part of the job.

He Lingchuan, who had lived in rough-and-tumble Heishui City, immediately understood the situation.

As they marched north, the crowd following behind grew larger. The streets thrummed with excitement, as if it were a festival. Word had spread that the new governor-general would be holding a public trial, and that his first case involved two of the most powerful families of Dunyu. No wind or snow could quench such curiosity and excitement.