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

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

The dull yet rapid drumbeats, like the first thunderclap of summer, instantly shattered the tranquility of the early morning in Yanjing County.

The grievance drum, which had been hanging outside the county government office for more than a decade and had not been struck, was now being personally struck by Yang Xuan, who was holding the drumsticks and striking it heavily again and again.

Yang Xuan was not wearing official robes, but rather a plain white linen robe.

His movements were incredibly powerful; each swing of the drumsticks seemed to shatter the old, worn-out drum.

The sound of drums echoed through the streets and alleys, penetrating the roof tiles and reaching the ears of every early-rising resident of Yaozhou.

"What's going on? Why is the county government's drum beating?"

"Who is beating the drum to appeal for justice? Judging from the figure... it seems to be the county magistrate himself beating the drum!"

"Let's go! Let's go take a look!"

Driven by their natural curiosity and desire to see a spectacle, people from all over the city began to flock to the county government office like a tidal wave.

When they arrived, a body covered with a white sheet was already lying in the open space in front of the county government office.

Beside the body, several women and children knelt, weeping uncontrollably; they were the family members of Wang Quan, the old salt worker.

Pei Zhao, accompanied by forty fully armed salt guards, stood solemnly in formation on both sides.

"Thump—!"

Yang Xuan struck the drumstick one last time, threw it on the ground, turned around, and faced the growing crowd of people.

"Fellow villagers!"

Yang Xuan's voice was somewhat hoarse from the effort, but it conveyed a deep and heart-wrenching grief.

"Just last night, Wang Quan, the old salt worker from Qing'ao Well, was beaten to death in the street in a dark alley in the south of the city!"

A gasp of surprise erupted from the crowd.

Old Saltworker Wang Quan was a respected elder in the shantytown of the west of the city. He was known for his honesty and kindness. How could he have suddenly died a violent death?

Yang Xuan walked to the body and suddenly ripped off the white sheet covering it.

A gruesome, mangled corpse was exposed to everyone's view.

Many timid people covered their eyes in fear, while those workers and salt commissioners who knew Wang Quan had red eyes and clenched fists.

"What capital crime did Old Man Wang commit to deserve such torture?" Yang Xuan's gaze swept across the crowd, his voice as icy as ice. "He didn't break the law! He just wanted to come to the county government office to ask for the return of the rations and hard-earned wages that the Tian family had withheld for three years, on behalf of you and all the salt workers who toiled at Qing'ao Well!"

"Because of this, he was beaten to death! The killer was even so arrogant as to leave this badge at the scene!"

Yang Xuan took out the waist tag with the character "田" engraved on it from his sleeve, held it high so that everyone could see it clearly.

"The Tian family! It was the Tian family who did it!"

"Beasts! They not only drink our blood, now they want our lives!"

"Old Wang died unjustly!"

Among the crowd, several county government spies who had mingled among them immediately took the lead in shouting.

This anger spread like wildfire, instantly igniting the long-suppressed rage of all the lowly workers, salt workers, and ordinary people present.

In Yaozhou, the Tian family was like a mountain pressing down on their heads.

For generations, they toiled away in the salt wells, their blood and sweat exhausted, yet they could never even get a full meal and were often beaten by the overseers.

Now that the new magistrate has finally brought them hope, the Tian family has resorted to such heinous means to kill and silence them!

"Your Honor, you must do us justice!"

Hundreds and thousands of people knelt down in front of the county government office, their cries shaking the heavens and the earth.

Looking at the surging public opinion before him, Yang Xuan's eyes flashed with a resolute cold light.

"I am an official appointed by the imperial court. Since I am paid by the Tang Dynasty, I will absolutely not allow such a tyrant who disregards human life to run rampant in Yaozhou!"

Yang Xuan suddenly drew the sword from Pei Zhao's waist and pointed it directly at the Tian family mansion in the east of the city.

"A life for a life, a debt for a debt! Today, I will take you to the Tian family to demand justice and reclaim your hard-earned money!"

"Let's go to the Tian family! We'll demand justice!"

"Kill Tian Boyong and avenge Old Man Wang!"

Thousands of angry civilians and salt workers, incited by Yang Xuan, completely lost their minds.

They grabbed whatever they could find on the street—carrying poles, hoes, even stones—and surged eastward like a burst dam.

Yang Xuan walked at the front, with Pei Zhao and the salt guards closely protecting him on either side.

At this moment, he was no longer a civil official who upheld the law, but a madman who led a riot.

……

Inside the largest inn in the city.

Liu Wen, the prefectural governor, was enjoying a fine breakfast when he suddenly heard a deafening roar outside, so loud that he dropped his chopsticks in fright.

"What's going on outside? Why is it so noisy?" Liu Wen frowned and shouted.

A state soldier stumbled and crawled into the room, his face ashen.

"My lord, something terrible has happened! The entire city has gone mad! They're carrying hoes and sticks, and they're rushing towards the Tian family mansion, saying the Tian family killed a salt worker and they want Tian Boyong to pay with his life!"

"What?!" Liu Wen exclaimed in shock. "Where is Magistrate Yang Xuan? What is he doing, this local official? Why didn't he send anyone to suppress the rebellion?"

"The county... the county magistrate..." The soldier swallowed hard, "He personally carried a knife and led those unruly people at the front..."

"A madman! He's absolutely insane!"

Liu Wen was trembling with rage. He never expected that Yang Xuan would resort to such a suicidal tactic when faced with the desperate situation of being oppressed by the state government.

Inciting a popular uprising! This is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family!

At this moment, Liu Wen had no time to consider Yang Xuan's crimes.

He knew very well that if these thousands of rioters really stormed into the Tian family mansion and killed Tian Boyong, the chain of interests in Qing'ao Well would be completely broken, and he, as the prefectural governor, would also be held responsible.

"Quickly! Assemble all the state troops! Follow me immediately to suppress the rioters!"

Liu Wen grabbed the sword hanging on the wall and, leading a hundred fully armed state soldiers, rushed out of the inn.

……

At this moment, the area outside the Tian family mansion was completely surrounded by thousands of angry people.

The Tian family's guards were so frightened that they shut the gates tightly, hid on the courtyard wall, and held bows and arrows and spears in their hands, trembling all over.

They might bully lone salt workers, but they've never seen thousands of ordinary people fighting so desperately.

"Open the door! Tian Boyong, you coward, get out here!"

"Give us back our hard-earned money! Pay with your life, Old Man Wang!"

Stones and rotten vegetable leaves rained down on the Tian family's gate and courtyard wall. The heavy wooden door groaned in pain under the impact of the crowd, as if it would collapse at any moment.

Yang Xuan stood at the front of the crowd, coldly observing everything.

"Stop! All of you, stop right now!"

Just as the gate was about to be smashed open, a loud shout came from the other end of the street.

Liu Wen, leading a hundred state soldiers, forcefully parted the crowd like a sharp knife and rushed to the front of the Tian family's gate.

"You audacious scoundrels! How dare you gather a crowd to cause trouble and storm the residence of the local gentry! Do you intend to rebel?!"

Liu Wen, mounted on his horse, drew his sword and pointed at the surrounding people, shouting sternly, "Soldiers of the state, listen to my command! Form ranks! Anyone who dares to take another step forward will be killed without mercy!"

"Splash—"

One hundred soldiers from the state uniformly leveled their spears, the tips gleaming with a cold, sharp light.

The initially indignant crowd instinctively felt a sense of fear when faced with the swords and spears of the regular army, and their advance came to an abrupt halt.