In the thirteenth year of the Tianbao era: I became Yang Guozhong's eldest son.

"Old Master Huang," Cui Shen called softly.

The old man stopped hammering, raised his only remaining cloudy eye, and looked warily at the three people at the door.

"Who are you? I'm a cripple now, and I don't have anything of value on me. If you're here to collect a debt, please leave."

The old man's voice was rough, as if it had been rubbed on sandpaper.

Yang Xuan took off his straw hat and walked into the shed where it was difficult to even stand up straight.

"Old Master Huang, we're not here to collect a debt, we're here to ask you to come out of retirement," Yang Xuan said to the old man earnestly.

Upon hearing this, the old man was first taken aback, then, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, let out a hoarse and unpleasant dry laugh.

"You want me to come out of seclusion? Young man, are you trying to make fun of this old man? These old bones of mine can barely support myself, what can I possibly do?"

"You can do a lot of things." Yang Xuan looked around at the simple environment inside the shed, and finally his gaze fell on the iron bar that the old man was hammering halfway in his hand.

"The number one craftsman in Yaozhou, 'Thousand-Handed Huang.' Back then, the deepest brine well in Qing'ao Well was carved out by you and your team, using only your own hands and a few old blueprints. Your craftsmanship is more valuable than all the knives in Yanjing County combined."

Upon hearing the words "Thousand-Handed Huang" and "Old Brine Well," the old man's body trembled violently, and a sharp glint flashed in his cloudy single eye.

But he quickly covered it up, lowered his head again, and continued to hammer the iron bar in his hand.

"Young man, you've mistaken me for someone else. There's no 'Thousand-Handed Huang' here, just a blind, near-death old man. You can leave now, don't bother me while I'm working."

Yang Xuan did not move; he looked at the old man with deep eyes.

"Old Master Huang, I know what you're worried about." Yang Xuan's voice was soft, yet it carried a power that went straight to the heart.

"Back then, because you refused to help Tian Boyong tamper with the weight of salt produced, he accused you of 'damaging the well frame,' not only blinding you in one eye but also driving you out of Qing'ao Well, leaving you with nothing but ruin and death. You can only eke out a living in this shantytown with your grandson."

The old man's hand suddenly stopped, and the hammer slammed heavily onto the anvil with a dull thud.

He suddenly looked up, staring intently at Yang Xuan, his remaining eye burning with anger and resentment.

"Who are you?!"

"My name is Yang Xuan." Yang Xuan met the old man's gaze without flinching. "The current magistrate of Yanjing County."

"The county magistrate?" The old man was stunned for a moment, then the flame in his eyes went out, replaced by a deep despair and mockery.

"So it's Your Excellency, the County Magistrate. What, the Tian family finds me an eyesore and won't even let me wait to die in this dilapidated shed, requiring Your Excellency to come and arrest me personally?"

"You're wrong." Yang Xuan shook his head. "I'm not a member of the Tian family, and I'm not here to take you away. As I just said, I'm here to invite you to come out of seclusion."

Yang Xuan stepped forward, took out a ten-tael silver ingot from his sleeve, and placed it on the anvil in front of the old man.

"The Tian family doesn't need you, but I will."

The old man looked at the gleaming silver ingot, swallowed hard, but did not reach out to take it.

"Your Honor, although I have lost an eye, my heart is not blind. The Tian family holds absolute power in Yanjing County. You are a newly arrived magistrate. Even if you want to use me, can you protect me? If I go with you, I'm afraid my only grandson will be lying dead in the street tomorrow."

The old man's voice was filled with a deep sense of powerlessness.

This is the greatest tragedy for the artisans at the bottom of Yaozhou.

They have skills and abilities, but they lack the power to protect themselves.

Before powerful and influential people, they were nothing more than ants that could be crushed at any moment.

"Old Huang, you're mistaken," Cui Shen, who had been silent until now, spoke up. He pointed outside the door, "Do you know who the thief was who robbed the county government's treasury last night?"

The old man shook his head.

"They were experts from the Zhechong Prefecture." Cui Shen's tone carried a hint of arrogance. "But they didn't even get close to the storeroom before our county government officers drove them away."

"Liu Shenxing and Mo San, the intermediaries for the Tian family, are currently imprisoned in the county government's death row. The old accounts of Qing'ao Well and the outlets for the goods have also been taken over by the county government."

With each word Cui Shen spoke, the old man's eyes brightened a little more.

"Old Master Huang, my son isn't like those corrupt magistrates of the past who only knew how to take bribes and act like clay idols. He not only dares to investigate accounts, but he also dares to kill! The Tian family doesn't even dare to enter the county government office now, so are you still afraid he can't protect you?"

The old man was deeply shocked by Cui Shen's words.

Although he was hiding in this shantytown, he had heard the rumors circulating on the streets recently.

The new magistrate led his men to rob Mo San's salt cart and exchanged the salt for grain, breaking the Tian family's food shortage.

Is the world in Yanjing County really about to change?

Yang Xuan, observing the old man's changing expressions, knew that the time was almost right.

"Old Huang, I know you harbor resentment and bitterness." Yang Xuan looked directly into the old man's eyes.

"Can you bear to see your unparalleled skills go to your grave like this? Can you bear to see your grandson spend his whole life living like a rat in a sewer in this dark shantytown?"

These words were like a sharp knife, piercing the old man's weak spot.

The old man glanced back at the pale, shivering child in the corner, and his eyes immediately welled up with tears.

"Your Excellency..." The old man's voice trembled, and he suddenly knelt down before Yang Xuan with a thud. "My life is worthless, but my grandson is only seven years old! He has never had a full meal or worn a new piece of clothing..."

Yang Xuan quickly reached out and helped the old man up.

"As long as you are willing to come out of the mountains, I, Yang Xuan, assure you that from today onwards, your grandson will have meat to eat and new clothes to wear every day. In the future, I will also hire the best teacher in the city to teach him to read and write."

Yang Xuan's gaze was as firm as iron.

"Moreover, I not only want to use you, I want to make good use of you. All those old well frames and equipment at Qing'ao Well need to be replaced. I need you to help me build a brand new Qing'ao Well that no one can take away!"

"You hate the Tian family, don't you? Then let's use these salt wells to bury them completely!"

The old man stared blankly at Yang Xuan, at the reckless madness and confidence in the young magistrate's eyes.

His heart, which had been dead, suddenly began to beat wildly and uncontrollably.

"Alright!" The old man gritted his teeth, grabbed the silver ingot from the anvil, and said, "I'll sell my life to you, sir! As long as you can protect my grandson, I'll risk my life to carve out a new world for you!"

Yang Xuan smiled.

He knew that he had finally moved the most crucial cornerstone in Yaozhou.