Including this year, the River Embankment Official, Song Tuo, had served in Xiuting for exactly thirteen years.
In those thirteen years, he knew there was a River-Subduing Iron Ox in that river bend, but he had never seen it with his own eyes. After all, the iron ox had always been submerged; unless someone was bored enough to drag it ashore, who would ever see it?
But at this very moment, that iron ox stood just three or five paces away from him. Its pair of horns pointed straight at him, as if they might pierce through his unspeakable secrets at any second.
Several young officers, along with a dozen or so bailiffs, dropped their iron chains in unison. Without pausing to catch their breath, they began a relay to transport the items salvaged from the river.
Sack after sack, soaked in muddy water, was brought ashore. Song Tuo stared blankly at the rapidly growing pile of hemp bags, his heart sinking even deeper than the iron ox in the river.
Gao Quan watched the expression on Song Tuo’s face with a cold eye, then spoke slowly to Qiu Ling.
“Since this was once a wharf, the water-subduing ox would certainly not have been placed near the mooring area. Its appearance next to that wooden walkway means someone forcibly dragged it across the riverbed, solely to use the ox to conceal the traces beneath the water.”
Song Tuo shuddered again upon hearing this from a distance. Qiu Ling said nothing in response, instead fixing his gaze on the iron ox.
A River-Subduing Iron Ox weighed at least ten thousand catties. Soaked in the river for years, it would be covered in silt, not to mention the resistance from the river’s current. What kind of person could drag an iron ox mired in river mud horizontally for dozens of paces? And what evidence were they trying so desperately to hide?
The hemp sacks pulled from the water were each over half a man’s height, heavy and sodden with mud. Seven or eight young officers worked until sunset before they managed to clear them all out. A rough count revealed nearly a hundred sacks.
Perhaps the continuous months of rain were not the true cause of the water accumulation here; these hundred-odd sacks sunk in the river bend were the real culprits.
Qiu Ling gripped his sword and was about to step forward when the short adjutant, who had just finished wringing out his hem, stepped ahead of him.
“Allow me, Protector. Please step back a bit.”
Having spoken, Gao Quan drew his saber and slashed open the mouth of one of the sacks, then held his breath and retreated a few steps.
The punctured bag disgorged a large heap of river silt. Within the mud, strange, thin, strip-like objects were vaguely visible—varying in size and numerous, but because they had been submerged for so long, their original forms were indistinguishable. A strange fragrance, mixed with the stench of rot, immediately wafted out, forcing everyone to cover their noses and retreat several paces.
Once the smell dissipated slightly, Duan Xiaozhou could no longer contain his curiosity. He boldly stepped forward, squatted down, and used his saber to poke and rummage through the mess. After a long while, he remained perplexed.
“What on earth are these things?”
“These are the goods the Su family previously transported out of the city,” the young Protector’s voice rang out coldly. He walked forward, narrowing his eyes to discern the details. “Snow Ginseng, Deer Heart Grass, and cinnabar mixed with Biluo Incense. I can only recognize these for now, but the rest should be much the same—precious medicinal herbs, minerals for alchemy, and contraband spices.”
After listening, Gao Quan scrutinized the mud-covered items once more.
“It seems Su Lin did indeed make many trips at the behest of the person behind the scenes, smuggling private goods into the capital for them. However, he held official transit papers and wasn't new to this business. Even if he were discovered, he surely had the connections to grease palms with silver. Why sink it all into the river? And looking at the number of sacks, this is far more than a single ship's cargo.”
“Because Su Lin didn't know about this.”
The person behind the scenes was indeed using the Su family’s ships to transport goods to the capital. However, it wasn't cinnabar and herbs, but something else.
Qiu Ling looked at the mud-soaked sacks and said after a moment of reflection, “Shortly after Su Lin’s cargo ships left the city, they would dock here. The cargo on the ships was surreptitiously swapped before they continued to the capital. Su Lin was on good terms with the inspectors of the Office of Water Works along the route; once the ships left the Longshu region, no one would board them for inspection. This batch of goods could thus be delivered silently into the heart of the capital. Even if someone investigated later, it would only lead back to Su Lin.”
“If they wanted to smuggle things, wouldn't starting the journey from a mountain river halfway through avoid an inspection? Why must they depart from Jiugao?”
“Because cargo ships sailing out of Jiugao bear the inspection marks of the government. Consequently, no one will question or search them along the way. Furthermore, when the Su family’s ships reach the capital, they are met by people from the Prince’s Manor. One could say the path north is entirely unobstructed.”
Gao Quan understood instantly upon hearing this. He sighed as he looked at the sacks on the bank.
“So, that Su Lin was merely being used. If he knew that the tributes he spent so much effort transporting to the capital ended up rotting and stinking here, I wonder what he would think.”
“In business, everyone takes what they need. One cannot blame others.”
Duan Xiaozhou, listening from the side, couldn't help but ask in confusion, “What exactly was that person trying to transport? To go to such great lengths...”
“Something even more precious than these, or... something far more dangerous.”
Song Tuo had clearly not expected things to develop to this point. The contents of those sacks—cinnabar and Biluo Incense—any one of those items could cost a lowly River Embankment Official like him his head. He feared that today would be his end, and there would be no escaping this calamity.
At this thought, his eyes grew vacant. Even when the short adjutant questioned him, the man’s voice seemed to drift from far and near.
“Official Song, I will ask you one last time. In the past three months, has truly no one stayed here?”
Song Tuo’s mouth felt dry. He licked his lips for a long while before finally speaking.
“Reporting to the Protector and the other lords... in my years of service, I dare not say I have done everything perfectly, but I have been diligent and conscientious, never daring to slack for a moment. Every day, by regulation, I send nineteen river workers to patrol various parts of the wharf morning and evening to prevent any threat from bandits. However, government regulations state that ships entering and leaving the wharf must have their official transit papers and tax documents checked. The Su family’s cargo ships had both, and they were familiar faces on this route. Therefore, I did not think to inspect the goods one by one. That is why... that is why...”
Song Tuo rambled incoherently, trying to excuse himself. But he was an honest man; he had never imagined such a day would come. The more unprepared words he spoke, the more hollow they sounded. Halfway through, he was so ashamed he could not lift his head.
However, although none of his words hit the mark, they indirectly proved that he was unaware of the truth behind the Su family’s affairs.
If he was telling the truth.
Qiu Ling glanced at him. Drawing on years of experience in solving cases and judging character, he had already reached a conclusion in his heart.
“The Su family’s ships are large vessels with a deep draft; even if they were to dock, they wouldn't choose this spot. Listen carefully to my question and do not avoid the important points or answer in the wrong direction. Were there any other ships that docked here but were not recorded in the register?”
Song Tuo’s already pale face turned even whiter. He looked like a paper man standing by the riverbank.
Seeing this, Gao Quan’s tone instinctively turned cold.
“Official Song, do you know the fate of that spice merchant named Su? The Protector is giving you a chance by asking you now. If you do not wish to take it, we can only send you to the dungeons of the Prefectural Manor to stay for a while.”
Fan Tong, the Prefect of Longshu, loved only three things in his life: hosting banquets, selecting beauties, and building dungeons.
As a lowly River Embankment Official with no backing, if he were caught in a mistake and sent in there, would he even have a life left after a few days?
Song Tuo shuddered violently. Finally unable to endure it, he collapsed to his knees.
“Protector, have mercy! I... I did indeed privately allow a small boat in, but...”
“But what?!”
“He said he was only harvesting timber at the river bend and never occupied the wharf for long, so I never grew suspicious...”
Qiu Ling’s expression was more serious than ever, yet his voice remained calm.
“As the River Embankment Official stationed here for over ten years, you should know the importance of the forests on both banks for stabilizing the dikes. Harvesting bamboo and timber requires the personal approval of the Prefect. Not only did you not obtain approval, but you also placed the harvesting of Blood Beech into the hands of an unidentified person. Do you know this is a capital offense?”
The young Protector’s voice was light, yet it stirred a monstrous wave in Song Tuo’s heart. Thinking back to everything, he wished he could turn back time and slap himself several times.
“The Protector is wise! Blood Beech wood is expensive; I wouldn't dare have designs on it even if I had ten thousand lives. I only allowed that man to harvest some Golden Rain Bamboo.”
Golden Rain Bamboo was a common wild bamboo found in the mountains along the Huan River. Compared to Blood Beech, it was indeed not worth much.
But it was precisely because of this that Song Tuo had lost his head and fallen into the trap, holding onto a bit of luck to "provide convenience" for a suspicious outsider.
“Who exactly was it? And why harvest Golden Rain Bamboo? With bamboo all over the mountains, why did he have to harvest yours?!”
Song Tuo’s tongue felt stiff. After a long while, he continued tremulously.
“I... I do not know. He said his surname was An. I couldn't tell where he was from by his accent. He looked like a mere scholar and claimed to be a procurer for an academy in Quzhou, urgently seeking raw materials for the light paper used in compiling scriptures and classics. Passing by here, he saw that the Golden Rain Bamboo on our mountains was excellent, so he was willing to pay some gold and silver to buy it all at once...”
“So you were tempted by money and allowed him to enter and leave this place, secretly loading and unloading cargo, completely casting aside the laws of Xiangliang and your own duties?!”
“I never accepted a single copper from that scholar! It was just... it was just...”
Song Tuo was emotional, his eyes bloodshot, but halfway through, he seemed unable to continue.
Seeing this, Gao Quan said sharply, “At this point, if you still intend to hide anything, I don't think we need to trouble Lord Fan. It would be better for the Protector to execute you on the spot; at least it would be quick!”
Upon hearing this, Song Tuo’s expression shifted unpredictably. After a long while, he confessed with a sob.
“When that scholar first offered gold and silver, I refused. Harvesting has always been approved by Prefect Fan. In the past ten years, let alone Blood Beech, he has never handed this authority over any other timber to anyone else. How could I possibly interfere? Who knew that scholar would linger and refuse to leave? Somehow, he found my letters from home and used the urgent matters mentioned in them to make a point. He told me he had a cargo ship with an official seal and could help me smuggle refugees. My ancestral home is in Yu County, Lujiang. Last year, the lower reaches of the Huan River flooded again. Nine out of ten fields were submerged, and refugees were everywhere. As the River Embankment Official of this very river, I was in Jiugao and powerless. When he spoke like that, I truly could not refuse. I agreed to his request then and there, only asking him to smuggle twenty-seven of my fellow villagers from Yu County to Jiugao. Beyond that, I asked for nothing else.”
Blood Beech was a famous timber in the Longshu area. Since the imperial court ordered the strict management of river embankments, the harvesting of Blood Beech had become a lucrative post. Fan Tong naturally wouldn't hand it over to an outsider; he likely found his own confidants to take over the task, then took several detours to funnel the profits back into his own pocket.
As for the floods in Yu County, if one traced the source, it was a long-standing issue...
The young Protector thought rapidly, his expression growing colder and colder.
Seeing this, Song Tuo thought he was doomed today. But amidst his agony and conflict, he still pleaded tremblingly, “It was all my momentary confusion that led to this great mistake. I beg the Protector to punish me alone. I have no complaints whether I am killed or flayed, but I beg you to spare my family and my fellow villagers. They truly know nothing of this. They huddled in the bottom of that cargo ship for three days and nights without even a drop of water, just to enter the Jiugao region and start their lives anew. I beg the Protector to see that they are all wretched people and let them go...”
He finished speaking while shivering, his eyes filled with tears. He bowed deeply, not daring to look up at the young Protector’s face.
He looked to be only in his forties, but his hair was already yellowed and dry. His exposed knuckles were somewhat deformed, and his knees were very stiff as he performed the kowtow. These were the chronic ailments of someone who spent years guarding riverbanks. Looking closer, his ill-fitting official uniform showed signs of mending, proving that being a River Embankment Official was indeed a hard lot.
After a long time, the young Protector finally spoke slowly.
“You say you privately gave the harvesting of Golden Rain Bamboo to an outsider just so he would help smuggle refugees into the city. But since when has Jiugao been forbidden from taking in refugees?”
Song Tuo, who had been in a state of gloom, did not hear the expected sentence of "imprisonment and execution." He looked up in a daze, wiped the tear tracks from his beard, and then spoke.
“Reporting to the Protector, the Jiugao area did indeed have a tradition of taking in refugees. This was a rule established by Lord Qiu. Even when the other six cities of Longshu closed their doors and drove refugees away, Jiugao never completely shut its gates. It was only starting from last year, not long after the Second Young Master took over river security, that this rule was completely banned. Especially refugees coming from the Juchao area—none are allowed into the city...”
Qiu Ling paused, his brow furrowing immediately.
“Second Young Master? Which Second Young Master?”
Song Tuo stole a quick glance at the man before him, as if confirming that he was indeed the new Protector named Qiu Ling. Then, he said somewhat helplessly, “It... it is the Second Young Master of Commander Qiu’s household...”
“Absurd!” Qiu Ling was furious. He swung his longsword, and the row of hemp sacks five paces away was instantly struck by the sword qi, bursting apart. “He is a mere idle playboy without even a minor official post. What right does he have to manage river transport inspections and privately alter the established rules for guarding the city?”
Song Tuo had not expected that the man who hadn't scolded him much after he confessed his crimes would now erupt in such thunderous rage. Terrified, he prostrated himself again, defending himself repeatedly.
“Protector, please calm your anger! According to the custom in the Longshu area, the canal camps are distributed along the waterways, sometimes managing different prefectures and counties. The personnel flow is very chaotic. Lowly seventh-rank officials like us River Embankment Officials only act according to the tokens and official seals of the Office of Water Works. The Second Young Master held the token, and the official documents he sent indeed bore the official seal. How could I dare to disobey?!”
Qiu Ling stood with his sword, the tip trembling slightly from its master’s suppressed fury. After a long while, he continued to ask in a terrifying voice, “Besides river security, what else has he interfered in?”
“Besides that, the current waterway defense maps in the city were newly replaced last year. Also, the planning maps for the city’s watchtowers, firewalls, shops, and markets were all personally overseen by him.”
After Song Tuo finished speaking, the surroundings fell into an instant silence.
A long time passed before the young Protector finally slid his sword back into its scabbard.
The explosive anger from before had vanished from his face, but he looked even more suppressed and terrifying.
Several of the younger officers looked at each other, none daring to step forward. After a while, Gao Quan approached and asked, “Protector, are we now...”
“Back to the city,” Qiu Ling uttered three words, then turned back to Song Tuo. “Do you still remember the scholar’s appearance?”
Song Tuo nodded quickly.
“He didn't come many times. Each time, he just sat at the bow of the ship from a distance, reading. However, the first time he came to find me, I looked at his face carefully. He wasn't old, maybe in his early twenties. I also remember his boat was an old Canxing boat. That kind of boat was used in the past for ceremonies related to sericulture. The style is somewhat special, with a post at the stern for tying silk ribbons. Very few people in the Jiugao area use them now...”
“Tell everything you know in detail. If you hide anything, you will be charged with concealment.”
Having spoken, Qiu Ling gave a look. An alert young officer immediately took out a charcoal pen and hemp paper, walked toward Song Tuo, and began to question him in detail about the scholar’s appearance to draw a portrait.
Duan Xiaozhou, watching from the side, didn't quite understand. He couldn't help but pull Gao Quan aside and ask in a low voice, “The Protector is leaving just like that? Then how should we handle Song Tuo? Are we really going to report him to the Prefect when we get back? I don't think Lord Fan has any interest in this mess; he’ll just say our Protector is being meddlesome again.”
Duan Xiaozhou curled his lip as he spoke.
Not far away, the young Protector had already taken his horse and was preparing to leave. Gao Quan looked at the man’s somewhat silent back and spoke after a long while.
“I fear the Golden Rain Bamboo was a ruse, and the smuggling was the true goal. Tell the people from the Office of Water Works to survey the nearby embankments and riverbanks to see if it was just a few stalks of bamboo that were missing. Especially the sections that were previously reinforced—any hidden dangers of cave-ins or landslides must be ruled out one by one.”
“Yes.” Duan Xiaozhou complied. Hearing no further instructions, he looked up at Gao Quan again. “And Song Tuo...”
Gao Quan’s gaze quietly swept over the River Embankment Official in his ill-fitting uniform. When he spoke again, his voice carried a rare hint of a sigh.
“Consider him lucky. When it comes to the longing for one's home, no one knows the bitterness of it better than our Protector. Once the Office of Water Works counts exactly how many stalks of Golden Rain Bamboo are missing, have him replant every single one of them.”
Having spoken, Gao Quan turned and vaulted onto his horse, galloping to catch up with Qiu Ling.
The sound of the Huan River rolling through its channel gradually faded. Under the shade of the beech trees, the cicadas chirped noisily, and the horses' hooves beat a rapid rhythm as the group traveled in silence.
The young officers, who had been busy for a day and a night, were more or less starting to doze off. Only the short adjutant sat bolt upright in his saddle, eyes fixed forward. He suddenly spoke.
“I recall now that on the day the Su family’s cargo ship caught fire, the Second Young Master was also on one of the ships. Looking at it now, he must have been old acquaintances with those inspectors from the Office of Water Works. Otherwise, even if he revealed his identity as a member of the Qiu Manor, he couldn't have gotten away so easily.”
Before Gao Quan’s voice even landed, the dozing officers snapped awake.
They had finally found some clues, only to have that troublesome Second Young Master of the Qiu Manor dragged into it. Adjutant Gao mentioning this now—wasn't that adding fuel to the fire? Did he simply lack the ability to read the room, or was he born with a temperament that loved jumping into fire pits?
Two officers riding close by didn't dare lift their heads, wishing they could abandon their horses and vanish into a crack in the ground to escape this agonizingly awkward scene.
However, the young Protector did not immediately tell the "blind" Gao Quan to shut up, but continued to remain silent.
Seeing this, Gao Quan seemed to remember something else and continued to himself, “However, if the Second Young Master truly didn't want the Protector to know about this, he could have privately ordered the waterway inspectors to intercept the Su family’s ships and search them that day. There was really no need to let Miss Qin put on that performance of catching them red-handed for you to see.”
So it wasn't adding fuel, but offering an explanation.
Everyone breathed a long sigh of relief. But in the next moment, Gao Quan’s voice rang out again.
“I have one thing I do not understand and would like to boldly ask.”
Gao Quan seemed dull but was actually sharp, while Lu Zican seemed steady but was actually impulsive; the two were a naturally complementary pair. This was why Qiu Ling had chosen them to assist him in the first place.
The young Protector was silent for a moment before finally reacting.
“Ask.”
Gao Quan steadied himself and spoke in a low voice.
“From the Lu Manor case in the capital at the beginning to the current Su family case in Jiugao, why has the Protector been certain from the start that these matters are related to the Battle of Juchao years ago?”
If Gao Quan’s previous words had made the officers on horseback as quiet as cicadas in winter, this sentence made even the surrounding cicadas seem to stop chirping instantly.
There was a stagnant sense of pressure in the air, a pressure emanating from the young Protector in black armor, though he himself was clearly unaware of it.
The swaying thickets cast shadows on the winding path. Under the scorching sun, the Blood Beech trees emitted a faint fragrance—the scent children growing up in Jiugao often thought of as the smell of summer.
Blood Beech was once the most common tree in the Jiugao area. In the past, many families liked to transplant some to grow in their own courtyards.
The Qiu Manor also had one. it grew tall and large, looking not like a transplant but as if it had grown there from the start, appearing to be several hundred years old.
In the past, he loved to play on a swing, practice with wooden swords, and catch insects under that tree.
Whenever he looked up, the lush branches of that great tree would sway gently in the breeze.
But at some point, those countless flexible branches seemed to take on a life of their own, weaving together and twisting into a rope that was neither thick nor thin.
He saw one end of that rope hanging high from a roof beam. And beneath the beam, something was swaying in the wind.
The sound of countless fiber strands being twisted tight came rhythmically.
*Creak, creak...*
“Protector?”
Gao Quan’s worried voice came through. Qiu Ling blinked, his vision finally returning to the small path shaded by dense foliage.
At some point, a layer of cold sweat had broken out on his palms, completely soaking the leather reins that were as thick as a thumb.
Behind him, the unseen Huan River surged day and night, destined to converge with a hundred other rivers—just as the rivers of truth would eventually flow toward a single place.
“Because I saw it with my own eyes,” Qiu Ling said. Then, as if to confirm it to himself, he repeated, “Because everything behind this case is something I once saw with my own eyes. If even I cannot be certain, who else can?”
***
