Daxia,
Twenty li north of Shangyang County.
A luxuriously decorated carriage was slowly making its way along the pothole-ridden official road.
The driver was a young man in a gray robe, with a sword hanging at his waist.
Inside the carriage, a maidservant pointed to a corner on the map and said, “Your Majesty, this is the final stop of our incognito inspection tour—Shangyang County.”
Sitting in the center was a woman with skin like ice and bones like jade, possessing a beauty that could topple cities and kingdoms.
But more awe-inspiring than her breathtaking appearance was the commanding aura she exuded—one that seemed to look down upon all others.
How to describe it?
This aura… was like that of a certain gangster’s wife.
After all, this person was Daxia’s one and only Empress throughout history!
—Xia Xuanmiao!
“The northern region is entirely desolate, Your Majesty. We’ve been wandering around the north for over a month now and haven’t seen a single decent county town!”
The maidservant muttered softly.
Hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao chuckled lightly and said, “Si Qin, the main purpose of this incognito inspection tour is precisely this northern frontier.”
“Daxia has nine circuits, over one hundred and forty prefectures, and thousands of county towns! Yet the annual taxes collected from the four northern circuits are less than those from a single circuit in Jiangnan.”
“Why do you think that is?”
The maidservant shook her head and said, “This… your servant… does not know.”
Xia Xuanmiao sneered and shook her head. “From the few counties we’ve visited earlier, haven’t you realized it yet?”
“The officials here are all corrupt and lawless! Back in Anyang County, the magistrate actually spent tens of thousands of strings of cash to build himself a mansion!”
“When I inquired about it, they even said the magistrate of neighboring Shangyang County was even more outrageous! Hmph! Truly, all crows under the sun are black!”
“In that case, I have no choice but to come and see for myself!”
Hearing this, the maidservant Si Qin thought to herself: The magistrate of Shangyang County is probably in for big trouble!
During this incognito inspection tour, Xia Xuanmiao had been recording everything she saw and heard in a small notebook.
Once she returned to the capital, the entire nation would surely be swept by a storm of bloodshed!
Just then, the driver with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, a sword hanging at his waist, suddenly spoke up: “Your Maj… Miss, we have arrived.”
Hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao sneered and lifted the carriage curtain.
But the moment she saw the roadside sign, she was utterly stunned!
A massive metal sign stood erected by the roadside!
The iron sign was three zhang tall, painted green with white characters that read: “Welcome to Shangyang County!”
In addition, next to the metal sign stood a towering watchtower, also a full three zhang high!
Several yamen runners armed with crossbows stood atop the tower.
Looking further ahead, the scene was one of bustling activity!
On the official road leading to Shangyang County, four or five stone houses had been built at some point, and the road itself had been widened by several zhang!
Hundreds of carriages were lined up in a long queue, waiting for the yamen runners to inspect them one by one.
After inspection, the carriages would stop beside one of the stone houses, and then…
Xia Xuanmiao actually saw these commoners handing money to the clerks inside the stone houses!
Not only was the magistrate corrupt, but even these petty officials were embezzling so brazenly?!
At that moment, a yamen runner suddenly shouted through a megaphone: “Everyone, line up properly! Keep to the right! Have your silver ready! Remember, the road maintenance fee is ten wen! If you’re short even one, go somewhere else!”
Hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao immediately flew into a rage!
These scoundrels! Oppressing the common people is bad enough, but they have to shout and make a scene, as if afraid no one would notice?
How utterly brazen!
The maid beside her was also seething with anger! Clenching her fists, she said, “Your Majesty! We’ve encountered all sorts of corrupt officials during this incognito inspection, but such a blatantly corrupt one—this is the first time I’ve ever seen!”
Xia Xuanmiao also frowned deeply and said, “Hmph! That damned official!”
“Tsk! Who are you cursing?”
As soon as Xia Xuanmiao blurted out the words, she heard a clicking sound beside her ear.
Turning her head, she saw a carriage far more luxurious than her own parked right next to her!
Wait!
This wasn’t just any carriage!
This was clearly an imperial carriage!
Even more extravagant than the one in Xia Xuanmiao’s palace!
Even the maid beside her was stunned!
Inside the “imperial carriage,” Li Mu, dressed in plain clothes, leaned out and shot Xia Xuanmiao a disdainful look. “You can keep your thoughts to yourself. Saying it out loud so openly—where does that leave my dignity as an official?”
“If you weren’t somewhat pleasing to my eyes, I’d have you beaten with fifty strokes!”
Hearing this, Xia Xuanmiao finally understood.
So this clean-cut man riding in the “imperial carriage” was the damned magistrate of Shangyang County, Li Mu!
However, Xia Xuanmiao didn’t rush to reveal her identity. After all, she hadn’t even entered the city yet, and this damned magistrate had already given her such a “surprise”!
She wanted to see what kind of spectacle awaited her in this damned magistrate’s county town!
Xia Xuanmiao sneered and said, “How magnanimous of you, sir.”
She had called him a damned official right to his face, yet he didn’t even get angry.
“Of course. I am a gentleman, after all. How could I stoop to the level of a mere woman?”
“A mere woman?!”
Just as Xia Xuanmiao was about to retort, an official on horseback with a sword at his waist suddenly shouted, “Make way, all of you! Let the leader pass first!”
The sword-bearing official rode a chestnut horse up to Li Mu, saluted, and grinned. “Sir, the road ahead has been cleared!”
Li Mu waved his hand dismissively. “Such unruly commoners. Can’t they see my grand carriage? They only make way when County Lieutenant Cheng arrives.”
The one who came to escort Li Mu was none other than the county lieutenant of Shangyang County, Cheng Dazhuang!
“Let’s go!”
Li Mu lazily waved his hand.
Before leaving, Cheng Dazhuang cast a meaningful glance at Xia Xuanmiao, who was waiting in her carriage.
Soon, Li Mu entered the city in his “imperial carriage.”
Passing through the towering city walls, a scene of prosperity unfolded before them!
Wide roads and orderly traffic.
Rows of shops lined both sides of the streets, and in the distance stood towering pavilions.
Old Eight Restaurant, Crown Holiday Inn, Ji Ni Tai Mei Foot Spa…
Looking at these shop names that felt both familiar and strange, brimming with lowbrow humor, Li Mu was filled with emotion!
Thinking back to when he first crossed over, Shangyang County had fewer than a hundred households and suffered from continuous famine!
And he was nothing but a poor scholar who had failed the imperial exams.
Look at the other transmigrators—some were born into wealthy families, others into official families, and some even became princes!
At the very least, they were minor county magistrates! But what about him? Both of his older brothers had starved to death! Just as his elderly mother was about to exchange the bodies of his starved brothers with those of other families’ similarly starved children for food—he arrived!
Fortunately, he hadn’t returned the knowledge from his textbooks to his teachers.
First, he earned his first pot of gold through business. Later, when the county magistrate was killed by bandits from the mountains, he generously sent a sum of money to the provincial governor and bought the official position of magistrate of Shangyang County.
Then, through diligent governance, Shangyang County gradually took on its present form.
By the way, the bandit who killed the previous magistrate is none other than the current county captain, Cheng Dazhuang!
Upon returning to the county office, Cheng Dazhuang approached Li Mu, rubbing his hands like a fly, and said, “Big brother, while you were away on official business, your mother came looking for me.”
“Tsk! Call me ‘Your Honor’! What did my mother want?” Li Mu raised an eyebrow slightly.
“Hehe, as Your Honor says…”
Cheng Dazhuang scratched his head and continued:
“Your mother said that you’re not getting any younger, almost thirty now, and still without a wife…”
Hearing this, Li Mu guessed what his mother wanted.
He immediately waved his hand and said, “Alright, alright, do you think I don’t want to?”
“Look at the well-bred young ladies in Shangyang County—either they’re already taken, or their looks are simply unappetizing.”
“Only the girls in the brothels are somewhat to my taste, but I can’t marry a prostitute, can I?”
Hearing this, Cheng Dazhuang could only shrink his neck and fall silent.
In his heart, however, he began to speculate about his superior’s thoughts.
His words seemed to imply that the local girls weren’t suitable. Could it be that he had taken a liking to that out-of-town girl at the toll station outside the city?
Hmph!
I planted these trees, and I opened this road! I, Cheng Dazhuang, have over a decade of experience as a mountain bandit!
If I dared to kill the previous magistrate, abducting a common girl would be a piece of cake!
Thinking this, Cheng Dazhuang felt secretly pleased: I really have a keen eye!
Who else but me, Cheng Dazhuang, can understand what the boss is thinking?