Start with acting, and you'll achieve immortality!

Li Ping stood by the second-floor window, his gaze following the plume of smoke down to the entrance of the guild hall.

In just a few breaths, the rapid sound of horses' hooves came to an abrupt halt outside the gate, kicking up a cloud of dust and drawing the attention of the entire street.

Fifty horses blocked the street corner, led by a young man dressed in silk, who was waving a folding fan.

In his early twenties, with a fair complexion and an innate air of arrogance in his eyes.

Fifty servants stood on either side, each with a burly build and a standard-issue broadsword hanging at their waist.

A gust of autumn wind blew, and the brass rings on the scabbard tapped softly, producing a series of crisp, cold metallic sounds.

Qian Duo was bending over sweeping the steps when the sudden sound of galloping hooves made his hand tremble. The bamboo broom slipped from his grasp and rolled down the stone steps.

"My lord! My lord, there are so many horses and so many swords coming from outside!"

Li Ping walked out of the front hall and glanced at the people blocking the doorway.

The young man pointed to the plaque of the guild hall with his fan: "Jiangning Guild Hall?"

He laughed. "What kind of run-down temple dug out of a sewer deserves to have a sign in the capital?"

"Is Young Master Zhao hard of hearing and blind as well?"

Li Ping leaned against the doorframe. "After all, the capital is so big, one more cripple like you won't make a difference."

Zhao Kun's expression changed slightly, his fan hovering in mid-air: "You investigated me?"

"Zhao Kun, son of Minister Zhao, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel"

Li Ping said, "Last night I drank three cups of Zhuyeqing tea at Zuixianlou and flirted with two singers, right?"

Zhao Kun narrowed his eyes: "Since we know each other, that makes things easier. Five hundred taels a month—will you deliver it to my residence yourself, or should I have someone carry it?"

Li Ping didn't reply, he just looked at him.

"What, you think it's too much?"

Zhao Kun put away his fan. "People die every day in the capital. One more or one less, and the authorities can't possibly keep up."

Five hundred taels is indeed not expensive.

Li Ping nodded, "I just don't know if Vice Minister Zhao's annual salary is enough for you to fan yourself even a few times."

Zhao Kun's face stiffened.

"Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, a third-rank official"

Li Ping said slowly, "An annual salary of three hundred taels, and you're asking for six thousand taels right off the bat? Has the Ministry of Personnel of the Great Qian Dynasty changed its name to Zhao?"

Zhao Kun tightened his grip on the fan.

"If the money is completely clean, then there's naturally no problem."

Li Ping continued, "The problem is that things aren't done cleanly. The Ministry of Personnel oversees the evaluation and promotion of officials throughout the country—what if people find out that the son of the Vice Minister is collecting protection money outside—"

He paused.

"You're asking how much stiffer your father's neck is compared to the official hat on his head?"

Zhao Kun felt as if his throat was stuffed with cotton. He suddenly dug at the gold-flecked folding fan with his fingertips, causing the frame to crackle slightly as it was squeezed out of shape.

Three breaths of silence

Zhao Kun suddenly laughed: "Lord Li, this bluffing tactic might work in Jiangning, but it won't work in the capital."

He clapped his hands.

Fifty servants stepped forward in unison.

"It's true that my father is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, but you, a nobody from a small guild hall—do you really think you can submit a memorial to the Censorate?"

Zhao Kun sneered, "This quagmire in the capital is deep. Be careful you don't end up soaking in the moat before you even get to submit your memorial."

Li Ping didn't move.

Zhao Kun clapped his hands again: "Smash the door!"

Three servants carrying sticks walked towards the gate of the guild hall.

Da Niu rushed out of the backyard, clutching the door bolt.

Su Wan walked out through the side door, her left hand already on the hilt of her sword.

Li Ping raised his hand: "Wait a minute."

Da Niu stopped and looked back at him.

Li Ping looked at Zhao Kun and suddenly smiled: "Young Master Zhao, are you sure you want to make a move?"

"What, scared?"

Zhao Kun waved his fan. "Hand over five hundred taels now, and I'll pretend today's events never happened."

"Not afraid"

Li Ping said, "I'm just worried that Young Master Zhao's knees are too weak, and he might kneel down too quickly later."

Zhao Kun sneered and was about to clap his hands again.

A servant suddenly leaned close to his ear and whispered a few words.

Zhao Kun's expression changed, and he looked towards the street corner.

An old man stood on the street corner, dressed in a blue robe, holding a booklet in his hand.

That's the color of the Censorate's robes.

The old man on the street corner turned another page of the booklet.

Zhao Kun's face turned completely pale.

Li Ping leaned against the doorframe, his voice flat: "Young Master Zhao, as I said, sending a memorial to the Censorate isn't difficult, but I didn't mention that Lord Ma of the Censorate has been standing here for half an hour."

"You just said you were going to break down the door?"

Li Ping continued, "Will you do it yourself, or will you have a servant do it? Lord Ma's pen is waiting to record this first blow."

He whirled around, not even bothering to pick up the fan that had fallen to the ground, and mounted his horse: "Let's go!"

"Hurry up!"

The fifty servants hesitated for a moment, then turned and the sound of horses' hooves filled the air, creating chaos as they quickly disappeared at the end of the street.

The old man on the street corner closed the booklet, nodded to Li Ping, and turned to leave.

Qian Duosha stood at the door, only coming to his senses after a long while: "My lord, that...that was really someone from the Censorate?"

"Yes," Li Ping said, "Old Cat was invited yesterday. Master Ma owes the guild a favor, and this comes in handy."

Da Niu walked over carrying the door bolt: "Sir, are we just going to let him go like this? I haven't even smashed the bolt down yet!"

"What if we don't let him go?" Li Ping said. "If a real fight breaks out, the people from the guild might win, but if Zhao Kun gets injured, things will escalate. The best outcome is that he backed down now."

Su Wan withdrew her hand and glanced towards the end of the street: "He'll come back."

"No, that won't happen," Li Ping said. "His father will find out about today's events tonight, and Vice Minister Zhao will personally come to visit tomorrow."

Sure enough, the next evening, Vice Minister Zhao personally came to visit.

Qian Duo froze when he saw the sedan chair of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel stop at the gate.

"My lord! Vice Minister Zhao has arrived!"

Li Ping was drinking tea when he heard this, so he put down his teacup and said, "Please come in."

Zhao Wenyuan alighted from the sedan chair, dressed in casual clothes, his white beard neatly trimmed.

He looked to be in his fifties, and his features bore a slight resemblance to Zhao Kun, but their temperaments were completely different—Zhao Kun possessed the arrogance of a spoiled brat, while Zhao Wenyuan exuded the composure of someone who had long held a high position.

"Lord Li," Zhao Wenyuan bowed, "I am Zhao Wenyuan, and I have come to apologize."

Li Ping gestured for him to sit down and poured him a cup of tea: "Lord Zhao, you're too kind."

"You're welcome," Zhao Wenyuan sighed. "My son was ignorant and offended Lord Li yesterday; it was my fault for not disciplining him properly."

What he took out of his sleeve was not a purse, but a thin directory.

"These are the accounts my unfilial son collected in the south of the city over the past three years," he said, pushing the list in front of Li Ping.

"Two thousand taels of silver have already been delivered to the back gate. If that's not enough, I'll sell my estate to make up the difference. I only ask that Lord Li accept this booklet."

Qian Duo stood to the side, his eyes widening suddenly.

Li Ping did not immediately accept the list: "Isn't Lord Zhao afraid that this document will fall into the hands of the Censorate?"

"I'm afraid," Zhao Wenyuan answered bluntly. "Precisely because I'm afraid, I can't just give you a bag of silver to shut you up. You might be able to shut yourself up, but you can't shut up the dozens of merchants in the south of the city."

He stood up and bowed to Li Ping.

"The Zhao family is at fault, and the guild will return the silver to them as a rule for the merchants. If Lord Li finds it too dirty, I will personally carry the silver and kneel down to apologize to each and every merchant."

Li Ping glanced at him for a moment, then pushed the list towards Qian Duo.

"Keep a separate record of who was charged how much, and how much was refunded after verification. The money from the Zhao family will not go into the guild hall's accounts."

The wealthy man, clutching the list tightly, said, "I understand."

Zhao Wenyuan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Li Ping poured him more tea: "Lord Zhao, paying compensation only settles old scores. What will happen to your son's hundred or so men in the future? That's the new problem."

"I've already dismissed him," Zhao Wenyuan said. "I confined him to his residence for three months, then sent him back to his hometown, far away from the capital."

Li Ping nodded.

Zhao Wenyuan got up to say goodbye and walked to the door. He turned back and glanced at Li Ping.

"Lord Li, the capital is a dangerous place," he said. "I still have some self-respect, but some people have no shame whatsoever."

"I know," Li Ping said, "that's why we need to establish rules."

Zhao Wenyuan gave him a deep look, then turned and got into the sedan chair.

After the sedan chair had driven away, Qian Duo approached and asked, "Sir, has Vice Minister Zhao revealed everything about his son?"

"If he doesn't hand it over, the Censorate's memorial tomorrow will be enough to force him to retire to his hometown."

Li Ping said, "Take the initiative to make restitution is his only way to survive."

Qian Duo flipped through the list, which was densely filled with dozens of shop names and amounts: "Are we really not keeping any of this silver?"

"Not a single coin will be left," Li Ping said. "Taking this money will bend your spine. What we want is the hearts of the people in the south of the city, not these two thousand taels of silver for a coffin."

Qian Duo clutched the list even tighter: "I'll go verify it tomorrow."

Li Ping stood up, walked to the door, and looked at the pedestrians coming and going on the street. "The trouble in the south of the city is resolved," he said, "but the trouble outside the city has only just begun."

Qian Duo asked, puzzled, "Is there more trouble?"

"Zhao Kun is just the first," Li Ping said, turning back to the front hall. "There are plenty of纨绔 (playboys) in the capital. One has been scared off, but ten others are still watching."

Qian Duo swallowed hard: "Then what should we do?"

"We'll deal with them one by one," Li Ping said. "Now that the rules in the south of the city are established, the rules in the capital must also be established."

That evening, Old Cat brought news—Zhao Kun had been imprisoned in his residence by Vice Minister Zhao and forbidden to leave for three months; the hundred-odd people collecting protection money in the south of the city had all been dismissed.

After reading the message, Li Ping folded the note.

"The south side of the city is finally completely clean."

Outside the window, the cold moonlight, like frost, cast a pale white glow on the roof tiles of the guild hall, while the shadows deep in the streets and alleys slowly crept in like a tide.

Li Ping pushed open the window, climbed onto the roof of the guild hall, and looked out at the deeper night beyond the city. He casually pulled out a peanut.