My father ordered me to kill the emperor, but His Majesty bestowed a princess upon me instead.

Qingzhou City is much larger than Yong'an.

The city gate was also higher.

It was nearly dusk when we arrived.

There was no sign hanging at the city gate welcoming the censor.

Only one notice was posted.

The old records of those who died of the epidemic in Jiangbei were replaced.

All unregistered migrants, temporary river workers, salt workers, and relief workers must come to the South City within three days to verify their identities.

Those who fail to arrive by the deadline will be considered as absconding residents.

I paused in front of the notice for a while.

When was it posted?

The gatekeeper said, "This morning."

Who posted this?

"The Records Office of the Governor's Office"

"A personal order from the governor?"

"The notice bears the official seal of the governor."

It's a genuine seal again.

Fang Chengli stepped forward.

Is Lord Liang in the yamen today?

The soldiers recognized him.

Quickly bow.

"The governor went to the northern relief camp in the afternoon."

Why?

"There's trouble in the camp."

"Who's causing trouble?"

"dead."

After the soldier finished speaking, he realized that his words were not correct.

You should change your tune immediately.

"People in the old register of those who died from the plague."

well.

The officials and constables in Jiangbei have begun to learn to distinguish between them.

Death in the tent does not equate to death in person.

We did not enter the city.

Go directly to the Northern Relief Camp.

The camp was built next to the old military warehouse outside the city.

The wooden walls are very high.

There were the governor's personal guards at the gate.

No sword was drawn.

However, no one is allowed to enter or leave at will.

Liang Su stood inside the camp gate.

Around fifty years old.

She was slender.

The cuffs of his official robes were covered in mud.

He did not bring any ceremonial guards.

He had only two clerks with him.

As I approached, he was talking to a relief worker.

The person was very agitated.

"Lord Liang."

"You said you would restore our household registration."

"It's been three years!"

"My father's land has already been sold."

"When my mother died, the county officials said I was going to die young, and they wouldn't even let me go back for her funeral!"

Liang Su did not argue.

He simply said, "It is I who have broken my promise."

"So, the Bureau of Investigation sent us to the South City for verification today. Does that mean we can finally go home?"

Liang Su paused for a moment.

"Don't go."

The surrounding relief workers immediately became agitated.

Why?

"Another wait?"

"When?"

Liang Su raised his voice.

"The South City Inspection Order was not issued by this official."

"No one may leave the camp before tonight."

These words were met with even louder criticism.

Some say he wants to continue imprisoning people.

Some people say that the governor is using them as free labor.

Some people picked up wooden sticks.

The guards did not draw their swords.

They only used their shields to block.

Liang Su stood at the very front and did not retreat.

I watched for a while.

"Governor Liang."

He turned his head.

They weren't surprised to see me.

"Imperial Censor Shen arrived faster than I expected."

"Did Lord Liang know I was coming?"

"Didn't you already write the letter?"

"You knew seven days ago?"

Seven days ago, Pei Shen sent me a note from the old warehouse.

A thought struck me.

"Pei Shen?"

Pei Shen, Vice Minister of the Chancellery.

"The one that's already been handed over?"

"Exactly."

Liang Su took out a small piece of paper from his sleeve.

There was only one sentence on the paper.

Wang's abandonment of Beijing.

The Jiangbei section was the first to have its books changed.

The inscription was stamped with Pei Shen's private seal of the Secretariat.

The date is eight days ago.

It was one day earlier than when Lady Wang prepared the documents for leaving the capital.

Pei Shen did not decide to hand over the keys until he was in the Golden Hall.

He already knew that the Wang family was preparing to sever the old connections in the capital.

They also knew that the next blow would land on the old register in Jiangbei.

But he didn't tell me.

Instead, he told Liang Su.

This old fox certainly doesn't just tell riddles.

He's also capable.

But even after it's done, I don't tell anyone.

I asked, "Why do you believe I can prevent the book from being replaced?"

Liang Su looked at the relief workers in the camp.

Pei Shen said that if there was only one person in the capital who would save the living from the dead first, it would be Shen An.

I think Pei Shen has a good opinion of me.

Maybe they just think I'm useful.

"You hid all 847 people?"

"It's not hidden."

Liang Su said, "Three years ago, when I investigated the land of the three prefectures where no one had died, I found that many of the families who had died of plague were still working in the salt fields, river works, and grain shops."

"If we directly reinstate their registered residence, local powerful families will kill them first."

"If left unchecked, they will continue to be treated as undocumented laborers."

"Therefore, I have established a relief and reconstruction camp."

"Gather all the people we can find under the guise of disaster relief."

I looked at the high wall.

"After they're gathered, are we not allowed to leave?"

"You can leave the camp to work."

"I can't go back to my hometown."

Why?

"Once the old records are made public, land ownership, marriages, and debts will all be re-examined."

Local clans will not wait for the imperial court to conduct a thorough investigation.

"In the past three years, nineteen people have returned to their hometowns without permission."

"Seven died."

Five were injured.

The rest fled back to camp.

Liang Su spoke calmly.

He was as calm as if he had said it many times before.

The man in the camp who had just cursed him shouted:

"So you're going to leave us here for the rest of our lives?"

Liang Su did not look at him.

"I have no better solution."

I suddenly remembered my mother's words.

Don't just look at how many people he's hiding.

See why he won't let anyone come back.

Liang Su was not unaware that they were alive.

It's not about exchanging them for silver.

He felt he was protecting someone.

But if you protect it for too long, the wall will become more and more like a prison.

"What about your wages?"

Bai Zhi asked.

Liang Su looked at her.

"The proceeds from the relief work will be deposited into the camp's accounts."

"After deducting food rations, medicine costs, and housing repair expenses, the remaining silver will be deposited according to the number of people."

Can I collect it myself?

"It can be obtained after reinstatement."

What if I can't regain my citizenship?

Liang Su remained silent.

Bai Zhi took the tent.

I frowned after reading the first page.

"847 personnel files."

"There are still 806 bank accounts in the books."

"How many people are actually alive?"

Liang Su looked at the clerk.

The clerk hesitated for a moment.

"After the division transferred 41 men this morning, there should be 757 men left in the camp."

Why not 806?

"Among the depository's accounts, forty-nine belonged to deceased individuals."

"The account number is not cancelled after a person dies."

Liang Su's face darkened.

"Why is this only being reported today?"

The clerk lowered his head.

"The camp always counted the total amount according to the bank deposits, and never counted the people one by one."

The account balance is 806.

The actual number of living people was 798.

He was taken away this morning.

Only 757 remained in the camp.

This is yet another account where numbers obscure the truth.

"Where did the forty-one people who were transferred go?"

Liang Su asked.

"The department said to go to Nancheng for verification."

"Who made that decision?"

"By order of the Governor."

Liang Su said, "I didn't send it."

The clerk quickly retrieved the document requesting the transfer of personnel.

True security.

Real signature.

Even Liang Su's habit of lowering the last stroke when writing the character "准" is exactly the same.

I looked at him.

"Where should it be printed?"

"The main hall of the governor's office."

Who keeps it safe?

"The office is in charge of the seal of office on a rotating basis."

"Xu Mingzhang?"

Liang Su nodded.

It was that same registrar again.

Fang Chengli's face was grim.

"Xu Mingzhang served the governor for six years."

"All disaster records in the Bureau of Experiences passed through his hands."

Liang Su looked at the transfer order.

He had no reason.

I said, "Yes."

"The new resettlement wooden signs for 847 people are in the interlayer of the East Post Station carriage."

"There will be another letter of accusation tomorrow."

"They say you're hiding dead people and raising an army."

Liang Su did not immediately defend himself.

He first asked, "Whose name is on the confession?"

"I."

He smiled.

"really."

"Is Lord Liang not surprised?"

"If the letter of accusation only mentions this official, it is not substantial enough."

"With Shen Lie's son personally verifying it, that's enough."

This person is very clear-headed.

It was precisely because he was too clear-headed that he kept more than 800 people inside the wall for three years.

I went into the relief camp.

More than 750 relief workers stood in the open space.

Some people are angry.

Some people are numb.

Someone was holding the South City verification notice.

They thought they could finally get their names back.

Liang Su told them not to go.

Without evidence, he resembles an official unwilling to release a laborer.

I asked, "Do you have an old roster here?"

Liang Su said, "Yes."

"Give it to me."

"Not in the governor's office."

"Where?"

"The camp's underground grain depot."

I look at him.

"Why not put it in the official treasury?"

"The accounts in the official treasury have been tampered with three times."

"The people in the relief camp didn't recognize official seals."

"I only recognize my own name."

That's a good reason.

It's also quite ironic.

He doesn't trust government offices.

The letter was written to the death of the person by the government.

There are 847 small grain records in the underground granary.

old name.

Old books.

Time of disappearance.

Pages of those who died from the plague.

Current number.

Family members provided clues.

There is also personal savings.

Not a single one missing.

This is the actual review book.

This is also an account that Liang Su has kept secret for the past three years.

Bai Zhi flipped through it for a moment.

Why are the forty-nine names underlined in black?

Liang Su said, "He's dead."

"Died in the camp?"

"Twenty-eight."

"Seven people were killed after returning to their hometowns without permission."

Nine people died from old wounds sustained at the saltworks.

"Five others are missing."

"Why is it still counted as 847 li?"

"Because once removed from the review register, the land originally belonging to a family that has died out will be completely transferred to someone else's name."

"A person dies, but their name cannot die again."

That sentence made me take another look at him.

Liang Su was not a member of the Accounts Clearance Committee.

At least not yet.

But he never actually opened the account.

He guarded his name.

Don't let them disappear.

They are not allowed to see the light.

This is very similar to Pei Shen.

Pei Shen wanted to take control of the accounts.

I want to open an account.

I asked, "How long does Lord Liang intend to continue this control?"

He looked at me.

"It was discovered that the imperial court was capable of handling the land, clan, and old cases of 847 people at once."

"What if the imperial court never does it?"

"I've been controlling it all along."

"Do they agree?"

Liang Su did not answer.

The 757 men in the camp had already answered for him.

Nobody wants to be a number for life.

I said, "The results will be posted in the South City as usual tomorrow."

Liang Su suddenly looked up.

"no."

Why?

"That verification code is a trap."

"I know."

"Forty-one people have been taken away."

"That's why we need to open it even more."

"Shen An".

This was the first time he called me by my name.

"You can bring seventy-two people to life in Yong'an."

"Ninety-four people could be brought to life in Qingfeng."

There are more than 700 people here.

"Behind them were hundreds of farms, dozens of grain stores, seven salt merchants, and thirty-one clans."

"Once the rankings are announced, the entire Qingzhou will be thrown into chaos."

"What if we don't open it?"

"At least the person is still alive."

I looked at him.

"Lord Liang."

"Living inside the walls doesn't mean you've truly lived."

He was silent for a long time.

Finally, he said, "Find forty-one people first."

"try to find."

The rankings have been released.

He stared at me.

"Aren't you afraid of chaos?"

"Afraid."

I said, "So we need to write down the names before things get chaotic."

Bai Zhi has finished taking inventory of the underground files.

Among the forty-one missing persons, there is a familiar name.

Qi Xiaoman.

After Qingfeng escaped, he was written as the person who fell into the river.

He is not dead.

After escaping to Qingzhou, he was taken into Liang Su's relief labor camp.

This morning, I was taken away by the disciplinary department again.

His file contained a piece of paper that had just been written.

Only one sentence:

The results were announced at noon.

Forty-one people died first.