Start with acting, and you'll achieve immortality!

The Blue Wolf acted swiftly; just as dawn broke, the petition detailing "Jiangning bandits gathering to commit murder" was delivered to the Jingzhao Prefecture.

Qinglang was a shrewd man; not only did he submit the petition, but he also brought eight wounded men to the entrance of the yamen, where they cried and howled, attracting a crowd from half the street. When the prefect's sedan chair was carried in through the side gate, the curtain wasn't even lifted.

The officer who received the order was Chief Constable Zhou.

He didn't rush to arrest the person. Instead, he went to Jiangning himself. The bloodstains on the bluestone slab in front of the Li residence had been wiped into a neat circle, and four newly painted characters on the lintel read: Jiangning Li Residence. He stood there for a while before leading his men to knock on the door.

Twenty constables blocked the alleyway completely. Dressed in blue robes and black hats, with iron rulers at their waists, they were much more orderly than the eighty torchbearers from the previous night. Constable Zhou, in his forties, had high cheekbones and half-closed eyes, as if he hadn't woken up yet. But when he scanned people, his eyes were like two scale hooks, first weighing them down before speaking.

"You're Li Ping, the one who caused such a stir in Jiangning?"

Li Ping stood inside the doorway, still dressed in his blue robe: "It's me."

"Someone has accused you of engaging in gang fights and illegally setting up an armed force," Constable Zhou flashed his badge, "Come with us to the Jingzhao Prefecture."

"So lively at the gates of the Jingzhao Prefecture this early in the morning, what deity is in such a hurry to be reincarnated?"

"More than eighty people are lying in the clinic," said Zhou, the head constable of the "Green Wolf Gang." "Lord Li really went easy on them."

Li Ping said "Oh," as if he had just remembered: "That's right. Last night, a pack of mad dogs were barking wildly outside the door. My men were just helping to clean up the streets in the capital, and they were a bit too rough."

"Too heavy? Eighty people with broken bones and tendons, carried to the entrance of the government office, and you call that too heavy?"

"It's just that the hooligans in the capital are too weak and can't take much damage."

Officer Zhou stared at him for a couple of moments, then, without saying a word, raised his hand and said, "Lock it up."

Two constables stepped forward carrying iron chains.

"Wait a minute." Li Ping didn't move. He took out a seal and a roll of yellow silk from his pocket and placed them on the stone stool at the door. "Officer Zhou, if we put these chains on, I'm afraid the Jingzhao Prefecture won't be able to handle it."

Officer Zhou glanced at it

Prefectural Governor's Seal and Imperial Edict

They're all genuine; fakes can't replicate that patina, and the ink on the imperial edict doesn't lie.

"The prefect's seal is indeed impressive," Constable Zhou's gaze shifted from the seal back to Li Ping's face, "but this is under the Emperor's nose. Holding an imperial edict as a get-out-of-jail-free card, Lord Li, do you think the Jingzhao Prefecture is just for show?"

The last three words were pronounced clearly: I know who you are, but I won't accept your face.

Li Ping smiled.

"Officer Zhou is right." He put away the seal and the imperial edict, his movements unhurried. "That's official business. Now let me tell you about the things behind the scenes."

He pulled a second item from his pocket, a thin booklet with curled edges, and slapped it onto the stone bench.

"Lord Li, you think you can buy your life with these few pages of worthless paper so early in the morning?"

"I've kept a record of the blood and tears of the merchants in the south of the city for three days," Li Ping said. "I've noted down which day I collected 'customs money' from which shop, which day I smashed up whose shop, and even which day Zhou's men went for tea. Should I read a few of these records aloud in the street?"

Officer Zhou didn't move.

"The Green Wolf Gang submitted a complaint, but I'm submitting a death warrant," Li Ping pointed to the booklet. "Eighty thugs raided the residence of a high-ranking official at night, only to be falsely accused of being law-abiding citizens. If this booklet is sent to the Ministry of Justice, Officer Zhou, guess who will wear the hat of condoning gangsters in the Jingzhao Prefecture?"

The alley fell silent. The constables looked at each other, the chains hanging limply, and no one dared to move.

Li Ping pushed the booklet towards Constable Zhou:

"Arresting me would only annoy the Emperor; arresting them would only give the Capital Prefecture merits, Constable Zhou. You can't lose money either way."

Officer Zhou remained silent for a long time.

He reached out, picked up the booklet, flipped through it to the page on Silk Lane, paused, and saw the name of a cloth shop written on it, right next to the words "four teeth lost".

He closed the booklet.

"Go to the Green Wolf Gang's headquarters and arrest them," he said to the constables behind him.

"Boss?"

"Retract that bullshit complaint! The Green Wolf Gang is bullying and inciting trouble. Go to headquarters and bring back all the people in charge."

The constables hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't dare ask any questions, and hurried off towards the dock.

Officer Zhou walked to the alley entrance, suddenly stopped, and turned to look at Li Ping.

"Lord Li," he said, "the quagmire of the capital is bottomless, and has drowned many clever people who thought they were on the right track. You'd better watch yourself."

"I know," Li Ping said, "but how can a country bumpkin like me catch fish if I don't stir up the water?"

Officer Zhou didn't say anything more, turned around and left.

Qian Duo peeked out from behind the gatepost, watching the yamen runners' departing figures, and remained stunned for a long time: "Sir... how could that Zhou fellow change his attitude so suddenly? That iron chain was almost around your neck just now!"

"He's not helping me," Li Ping said, putting the booklet back in his pocket and patting it. "He's helping himself get a better job."

"What if the ledger is wrong?"

"There's no mistake," Li Ping said. "In this world, a knife can only kill, but the words on this paper can sever the heart."

After pondering for a while, Qian Duo suddenly said, "Sir, then I must learn to write."

"What's wrong?"

"Next time you need to write something down, I'll copy it for you," Qian Duo said, "so you won't say I'm just eating and not doing any work."

Li Ping looked at him: "Cheng, go back and have Su Wan teach you; she has good handwriting."

"...Miss Su?" Qian Duo swallowed hard. "Then I must first ask whether she teaches with a pen or a sword sheath?"

"Using a sword"

"Then I'll practice by myself."

In the afternoon, news came from the dock: Qinglang had been summoned to the Jingzhao Prefecture for questioning, but was released in less than two hours. It was said that his sedan chair was carried directly to the entrance of the South City Chamber of Commerce, and he even had a smile on his face when he got out.

After listening, Li Ping tapped his fingers twice on the rim of the teacup.

"An account book might scare away a dog, but it won't scare away the person walking it," he said, putting down his teacup. "The profits in the south of the city are too much for the Green Wolf Gang to handle."

Just as Qian Duo was about to ask another question, there was a rapid knock on the door, and a gold-embossed invitation was handed in.

Li Ping glanced at the three characters "Zui Xian Lou" on the post and smiled: "No need to wait, the main event has already set up the stage."