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

The next morning, I took Ah Liu out of the city.

Ah Liu originally didn't want to go.

He tried to convince me last night, and his reasons were quite valid.

"Young master, think about it. The Yongning River is outside the city, and the road outside the city is far away. The longer the road, the easier it is for trouble to occur. Besides, we have just been granted official positions, residences, and marriages by the emperor. We are currently in a very sensitive situation. What if someone takes advantage of this opportunity to make a move?"

I think he makes a lot of sense.

Then I told him, "So you're coming with me."

Ah Liu immediately realized that what he said made sense.

The Yongning River is located forty li south of the capital.

We didn't ride in an official sedan chair, nor did we bring any attendants; we only rented an inconspicuous donkey cart. Ah Liu drove the cart, and I sat inside, with the few pages of accounts I had copied down tucked in my arms.

Ah Liu sighed the whole way.

As I sighed for the thirty-seventh time, I lifted the curtain: "Doesn't your lung hurt?"

Ah Liu asked with a pained expression, "Young Master, what exactly are we going to see by the river?"

"Look at the stones."

"What's so interesting about stones?"

"The account book says that the Yongning River embankment is made of Hengshan bluestone. I want to see if the stones on the embankment are indeed bluestone."

Ah Liu thought for a moment: "What if it is?"

That means I guessed wrong.

"Shall we come back then?"

"When he came back, he wrote a report saying that the accounts were clear and that the leak in the river embankment was because God was being unreasonable."

Ah Liu thought for a moment, then said, "What if it isn't?"

"That means the Ministry of Works is being unreasonable."

He shrank his neck.

"Between God and the Ministry of Works, I think God is easier to deal with."

This sounds absurd, but upon closer examination, it might not be wrong.

Not long after I left the city, I noticed that someone was following me.

Two horses.

Not too far, not too close, about thirty paces.

They didn't try to hide it; it was as if they deliberately let me know they were there.

This is interesting.

Those who truly intend to kill usually don't act this way.

The person following them is either a stalker or a messenger.

Ah Liu also discovered it.

He lowered his voice: "Young Master, are those two people behind us following us?"

"Um."

"What should we do?"

"Keep going."

"Should we shake them off?"

"Who are you going to dump with your donkey cart?"

Ah Liu glanced at the slow-moving donkey ahead and fell silent.

He probably realized that the only thing he could shake off was time.

As you approach the Yongning River, you can see the riverbank in the distance.

From a distance, it looks quite decent.

The greyish-white embankment stretched along the riverbank, neat and orderly under the sunlight. If one were to merely glance at it from a carriage, one might think that the Ministry of Works had indeed done a good job.

But accounts are things that you shouldn't look at closely.

The same applies to engineering projects.

I got out of the car, walked closer to the riverbank, and squatted down to look at the first stone.

I knew what was going on at just one glance.

This is not Hengshan green stone.

Genuine bluestone has a deep color, a hard texture, and a slightly bluish-gray luster. The stone in front of me is whitish, with a rough surface and scattered patterns; it's clearly just ordinary rough stone.

I reached out and touched the stone surface, then scratched it with my fingernail.

A white mark quickly appeared on the stone surface.

Ah Liu leaned closer: "Young Master, what are you doing?"

"Inspect the goods."

"By using fingernails?"

"If you have a hammer, you can use a hammer too."

Ah Liu thought about it seriously: "Shall I go find it now?"

"Come back. If you hit me with that hammer, the Ministry of Works will be demanding compensation for the river embankment."

I stood up and walked along the embankment for a while.

The problem isn't just about the stone.

The thickness is also incorrect.

The inscription on the sign said the bluestone slabs were four inches thick, but the exposed sections were at most two and a half inches. A thin layer of lime was applied to the joints, but in some places it had peeled off, exposing the soil underneath.

This is not about repairing a dike.

This is like giving the riverbank a makeover.

I was reluctant to use powder when applying it.

Ah Liu didn't quite understand, but he noticed that my expression was off.

"Young master, is there a problem with this dike?"

"have."

How big?

"To put it another way, when the water rises in autumn, the fact that it leaks is its last act of dignity."

Ah Liu understood, and his face turned pale.

Several farmers were washing clothes by the river.

I walked over, picked out the oldest-looking man, squatted down, and started talking to him.

"Sir, was this dike built last year?"

The old man looked up at me.

I'm dressed casually today, neither like an official nor a merchant. He probably just thinks I'm a scholar passing by.

"Yes, it was repaired last spring."

"How long did it take to repair?"

"Three months, I guess."

"Sure?"

"How can I not be sure? My home is right here, I see it every day. It came in the spring, and it dissipated before summer even got too hot."

Three months.

The account book states six months.

I continued, "Are there many people?"

The old man wrung out his clothes and thought for a moment: "At first there were many, about a hundred people. But then there were fewer and fewer, until finally there were only twenty or thirty people slacking off."

About a hundred people.

There are a maximum of 360 people in the tent.

I made another note of it in my mind.

"Were the stones transported from Hengshan?"

The old man smiled.

His laughter was genuine, yet also tinged with helplessness.

"Hengshan? Who told you that? The bluestone from Hengshan is very expensive. Isn't this just rough stone quarried from the north slope? Everyone around here recognizes it."

Ah Liu took a soft breath behind me.

I didn't turn around.

"Did the dike leak after it was repaired?"

"It started leaking after a few rains in the fall. Two groups of officials came, took a look, and said it was normal wear and tear and could be fixed with some repairs. But the repairs didn't help; it still leaked."

After the old man finished speaking, he glanced at me again.

"Young man, why are you asking these questions?"

I smiled and said, "We're thinking of repairing the courtyard wall at home, so we came to see the craftsmanship of the Ministry of Works."

The old man paused for a moment, then waved his hand.

"Don't copy that. If you build your yard wall like that, not even the dogs can stop you."

I stood up and thanked them.

Ah Liu followed me a few steps away and couldn't help but whisper, "Young master, this old man has a sharp tongue."

"He's telling the truth."

"So now we have evidence?"

"There's a clue."

"Isn't this evidence?"

I shook my head: "The old man's words can be taken into account, but they can't be written directly into the memorial. The stone also needs to be verified by an expert. Only when the account books, the actual site, and the witnesses all match can it be submitted to the higher authorities."

Ah Liu sighed, "Investigating cases is such a hassle."

"Beheading is troublesome too. Someone has to be inconvenienced."

He thought about it and stopped complaining.

We walked upstream along the riverbank.

The two people who were tracking them are still there.

When I was talking to the old man, they moved a little closer. Now that I've moved away, they've moved back to their original distance.

They don't want to see where I go.

They wanted to know who I had asked.

This is more complicated than simply tracking.

Because this means that everyone I've met might be remembered by them.

I glanced back at the old man.

He was still washing clothes by the river, seemingly unaware of anything.

But I suddenly realized that my words might have caused him trouble.

Ah Liu followed my gaze and whispered, "Young Master, should we remind him?"

"How should I remind them?"

"Should I tell him not to talk nonsense?"

"That really alerts others that he has a problem."

Ah Liu shut up.

Sometimes, doing nothing is the least bad option.

At least for now.

We spent half a day by the river.

I inspected three sections of the embankment, asked five people, and noted down the stone materials, construction period, number of river workers, and two obvious areas of seepage.

On the way back to the city, Ah Liu was so hungry that his stomach was practically sticking to his back.

He kept repeating, "Young Master, can we get a decent meal when we get back?"

"able."

"real?"

"The Ministry of Works treated us to fine tea; we should treat ourselves too."

Ah Liu perked up: "Meat?"

"Eat noodles."

He was silent for a while.

"Sure, can I add meat to the noodles?"

Before I could answer, we had already arrived at Chengpingfang.

The gatekeeper came forward and said that someone was waiting at the mansion.

"Who?"

"The young lady Qiutang who serves Her Highness the Princess."

I stopped in my tracks.

The princess's people?

Ah Liu muttered quietly from the side, "Young Master, you're not even married yet, aren't you visiting the Princess's residence a bit too often?"

I glanced at him.

He immediately lowered his head: "I'll go see if I can add meat to the noodles."

A young woman was standing in the front hall.

She was in her early twenties, dressed simply, with clear features, and stood very steadily. She gave a slight bow when she saw me enter.

"Lord Shen, this is your servant Qiutang. His Highness has ordered me to bring you something."

She handed me a wooden box.

I took it and opened it.

There was a book inside.

It's not some rare or unique copy; it's just an ordinary copy of the "Yongning Prefecture Gazetteer."

A corner of the book page was folded in the middle.

I turned the page along the fold and saw a page about the mountains and roads of Yongning Prefecture. Below the word "Horizontal Mountain," someone had drawn a line with very light ink.

The land route from Hengshan to Yongning River is eighty li, with no waterway.

I stared at the line of text and remained silent for a moment.

The princess was also at Chaheng Mountain.

Or rather, she knew all along that I would find out about Yokoyama.

Qiu Tang seemed oblivious to my expression, and whispered, "Her Highness said she just happened to pick up this book randomly. If Lord Shen finds it useless, he can just throw it away."

After saying this, she bowed and took her leave.

They came quickly and left quickly.

It's like they just sent over an unimportant book.

But this book in my hand happens to fill in the most critical gap in the account book.

The entire route from Hengshan to Yongning is by land.

The freight cost of 2.8 qian per cubic meter is even less likely to be true.

I closed the book and suddenly smiled.

Ah Liu peeked in from outside the door: "Young Master, what did the Princess send?"

"A book."

"love letter?"

I looked at him.

Ah Liu pulled half his head back: "I was just asking casually."

I placed the "Yongning Prefecture Gazetteer" on the table and then pressed the Ministry of Works' account books next to it.

Account books.

River embankment.

Local gazetteer.

The three items placed together look like three pieces of bone pieced together.

Now the case is finally taking shape.

But another problem followed.

Why did Princess Zhaoning give me this book?

She said she didn't believe me.

But everything she handed me felt like she was helping me.

As I looked at the extremely faint ink line on the page, a thought suddenly popped into my head.

The princess may be investigating more than just me.

She is also investigating this river.

She might even have known before I did that something was buried at the bottom of the river.