Peace Order

"Raise the sails!!!"

The East Sea of Great Qin, accompanied by a loud shout, the anchor of a large fishing boat is raised. Bare-armed men shout in unison and exert their strength, the boat cuts through the water, the sea bursts forth with mist as the fresh fishy smell hits their faces.

The morning light at the summer port hums with ten thousand kinds of sounds.

The scraping of oyster shells on stone slabs, the pounding of new tung oil being brushed on the hull, and the clattering of abacus beads at the pawnshop. Youths in summer cloth shorts carry whole slabs of oyster shells, the aroma of freshly baked sesame cakes mingling in the mist.

Signs of a Golden Age are already evident.

The summer of Taiping’s first year in Great Qin.

Trade routes have opened across various regions, and the Mo School scholars have also improved the ships.

The seafaring industry has become increasingly prosperous.

At one stall, a strong-armed aunt spreads oysters, eggs, and flour on a red-hot iron plate, making a coastal delicacy that is very filling. Today, seated at the roadside stall is a gentleman from the Central Plains.

Sitting by the canvas-covered stall, he speaks eloquently, recounting strange tales and anecdotes.

A large crowd surrounds him.

This old gentleman tells stories well, asking for neither silver nor money.

Just food and drink.

Now that Great Qin is pacified, if one were to ask for money, it would require considering whether a swindler might appear. Asking for food, even without stories, one would get a bun sufficient to fill the belly.

Yet, this old gentleman tells captivating stories.

With just his eloquence, he manages to swindle food and drink across the Four Seas and everywhere in the world.

Ah, no.

He trades poetry for wine money.

The vendor holds back complex thoughts while serving a platter of snacks to the old gentleman, placing a dish of dipping sauce beside it, listening to the eloquent old gentleman in a blue robe recount:

"Did you know, the wedding of Emperor Qin and Empress was extraordinarily grand, with officials in court dress assembled, inner court female officials holding phoenix fans and honors leading the way. The empress’s carriage adorned with nine dragons and nine phoenixes, jeweled curtains, palace lanterns ablaze like daylight."

"Drums and music resounded, reaching nine layers deep. Commoners lined the paths burning incense, chanting long life, the noise reaching the heavens."

"Hehe, that day, the Emperor arriving on a dragon was truly..."

He recites references, as if having seen it all firsthand.

The people merely watch the spectacle.

Behind the scene, a fisherman wearing a straw hat snickers.

"Him?"

"How can Emperor Qin afford such grandiosity?"

Beside him, an old man with a bamboo basket selling turtles twitches his mouth:

"Spare some dignity, don’t spread rumors."

The fisherman scoffed: "Does that need saying?"

"Which member of the Qilin Army doesn’t know the antics of their Great General and the Emperor?"

Finally, he said: "Rest assured, they can’t hear us."

Indeed, there’s quite a crowd around the storyteller, but passersby seem oblivious to the conversations of the fisherman and turtle seller, clearly nearby yet seemingly worlds apart.

The crowd only listens to the old gentleman discussing various interesting affairs.

It seems like the two from afar are in another world altogether.

The fisherman hears the storyteller talk about Emperor Qin’s wedding, his forehead veins bulging, his fishing rod trembling unconsciously, ripples spreading, scaring away the fish almost caught.

The nearby elder: "..."

The old turtle in the fish basket: "..."

The fisherman glances at the fish swimming away with a flicked tail, nonchalantly saying:

"Tu Shengyuan is, indeed, a chatterbox."

The old man and turtle exchange glances.

Wandering Rangers of the Mo School, Confucian Masters, and traveling merchants bring news from all corners, yet this gentleman claims the Mo School scholars are building steel ships. Such words are not believed by coastal fishermen; only wood floats on water, isn’t that common sense?

Iron lumps sink as soon as they touch water.

And they want to build ships?

Tsk tsk, it seems, across this vast region, there’s a lot of traveling merchants and Academy Masters, greatly facilitating life, but also letting news run rampant without anyone knowing what’s true or false.

The ship captain puffed on some southern tobacco.

"Time to set sail."

Thus, people dispersed, each busy with their own tasks.

The storytelling old gentleman swayed his wine jug, tainted with the fishy sea breeze, a bit drunk, yet felt a tug on his sleeve, looking down to see a child around ten, who said:

"Grandpa, I heard the Emperor has three palaces and six courtyards with seventy-two concubines."

"Is it true?!"

"Emperor Qin must be more powerful than the Red Emperor, surely he has, more, more, right!"

The fisherman froze.

Facing away from the storyteller and a group of fishermen, raising his ear.

Former chief Guest Elder of The World’s First Building, Tu Shengyuan, laughed heartily: "This Emperor Qin rose from obscurity, traversing the Four Seas, naturally has many close confidantes, yet seventy-two concubines is purely a rumor."

"Not to mention, there’s one who knew him from youth, journeyed everywhere without parting. Her father was a rare expert in the Martial World, the youngest Martial Arts Legend of the previous generation, also the leader of the Formation Path."

"Heart even smaller than an eye of a needle!"

Fisherman: "....."

Forehead veins bulging.

Tu Shengyuan, drunk, slurs: "Back then, even drugged someone before she birthed the girl."