Chapter 211: Killing in the Street

The Yuanshan Empire's capital, the Great Wolf Capital, is nestled against a mountain and bordered by water.

The mountain is one that countless renowned generals from the many great plains nations surrounding the vast grasslands have deemed the number one objective in life.

It is the former Helan Mountain, which left behind the eternal verse in Dongsheng Continent's history, "Never return until Helan is taken," now renamed the Tianyuan Mountain Range by Chang Sheng Tie Mu.

The water is the Hulun Lake, formed by converging canals.

And the Great Wolf Capital is like a peninsula, its eastern and western sides tightly embraced by the Hulun Lake.

Its northern side merges with the towering Tianyuan Mountain, which seems to pierce the heavens and earth.

Its southern side cradles the entire Yuan Mountain Grasslands...

In the dead of night.

Zhang Gui's accompanying fleet finally took its turn, sailing into a brightly lit dock on the western side of the Great Wolf Capital's Outer City, as bright as day.

Though it's called the Outer City, there are actually no city walls here.

If you take the land route, you can come and go as you please, with no one bothering you at all.

And by water, aside from the risk of colliding with other ships and the need for specialized small boats to guide you to berth, there's actually no supervision either.

The dock at Zhang Gui's fief, Zhihai Town, was already lax enough, but at least there were tax officials collecting duties.

But here, there aren't even any tax collectors.

Disembarking and walking along the bustling main road, Zhang Gui looked around at the smiling faces all about.

He couldn't help but look at Salisa beside him and ask, "Is it really this free here?"

"It's very free, that's true, but we'd better hurry to the Ship Administration Bureau to get our identity waist tokens."

Salisa's words had just fallen.

Across the street, a long-haired woman in revealing clothes burst through the crowd, stumbling forward.

Within three steps, a long whip, as thick as a thumb and as agile as a spirit snake, coiled around her neck.

She was forcibly yanked back into a magnificent wooden building by the roadside.

In the instant she was pulled flying by the whip, Zhang Gui had already seen that the long-haired woman's neck had twisted into an angle impossible for a living person to achieve.

Yet the people around carried on as usual, not a single one showing any doubt.

"Don't act rashly, Caiyang. This is the capital of the Yuanshan people, with its own unique order.

As a master or a master's representative, killing an escaped slave is perfectly normal.

It's just that carrying out the execution in the street is a bit undignified."

"You're right, Salisa. In fact, a Great Wolf Capital like this fits my expectations even better.

It also gives meaning to some of my actions and efforts."

Zhang Gui patted Salisa's hand, which was tugging at his sleeve, and said expressionlessly.

The rest of the journey was spent in silence as they arrived at the dock's Ship Administration Bureau.

The Yuanshan people are not good at management.

Therefore, in the Ship Administration Bureau, which deals with numbers all day, from the director to the menial laborers, one could vaguely tell from their speech and bearing that their origins were likely either Enclosed Citizens or New Citizens.

However, since they already held positions in the Yuanshan Imperial Court, they were naturally elevated to the official ranks of Only Walk or even Clever Walk...

The Yuanshan Kingdom's "officials have three classes, people are divided into four grades" means:

Officials, from high to low, are divided into the "Heads" responsible for decision-making, the "Clever Walks" who oversee execution, and the "Only Walks" who do the specific work.

And official status cannot be inherited.

Whatever official you are determines your class of official, and you enjoy the corresponding status.

"People are divided into four classes" refers to:

The Yuanshan people are divided into the "Old Citizens," who have Yuanshan blood;

The "New Citizens," who, though without Yuanshan blood, were born in Yuanshan;

The "Enclosed Citizens," captured in war or during grass-encircling raids;

And the "Slaves," composed of prisoners of war, whose lives and deaths are not their own.

Among them, even the most destitute "Old Citizen" is forever an "Old Citizen."

"New Citizens" and "Enclosed Citizens" who fall to the lowest depths can sell themselves and become

"Slaves."

Furthermore, Old Citizens, New Citizens, and even Enclosed Citizens can become officials, only "Slaves" are forbidden.

And once you become an official, unless you commit a crime and are punished by the Imperial Court, you are completely removed from the "people" class for life.

Even if you retire and lose your authority, you can retain the lowest "Only Walk" official status for life.

But even if you reach the rank of "Head," as long as your children haven't become officials, they still belong to whichever of the "four classes of people" they were born into.

Because the nobles in Yuanshan whose status can be inherited are not included in the "officials have three classes, people are divided into four grades" system.

The greater among them are kings of vassal states and marquesses with fiefs;

The lesser are great chieftains and minor chieftains with hereditary pastures.

Of course, this is not absolute.

Some pastures are so vast as to be absurd, such as Imperial Princess Tiemulundun's "Embracing the Sun's Splendor," which rivals a prefecture or circuit of a small country.

And while great chieftains like that are rare in Yuanshan, they are not unheard of...

Zhang Gui waited a while in the Ship Administration Bureau and discovered that the docks of the Great Wolf Capital did have tax officials.

It's just that the tax officials don't actively board ships to collect taxes.

Instead, it's like "Jiang Taigong fishing—those willing take the bait," as they stay in the Ship Administration Bureau waiting for merchants to come to them.

After all, without the "registration slip" they issue, you can't sell a single coin's worth of goods.

"You are merchants who have traveled tens of thousands of kilometers from Xihe Continent, and some of your goods were specially shipped to celebrate the Dragon Princess of Hulun Lake's birthday."

This tax need not be mentioned; I will inevitably take care of it, otherwise how could I display the extraordinary bearing of my great nation Yuanshan.

You should know that the great empire now ranking first across the Dongsheng Continent is Yuanshan.

No need to say more; just look at the Great Wolf Capital beneath our feet and you'll know…

The fat clerk who also serves as tax officer, on night duty at the Ship Administration Bureau, there seemed to speak endlessly, generously and fiercely urging people to urinate.

The subtext seemed to be laid bare: you barbarians from these small foreign states come to Yuanshan to see the world; how could we let you suffer losses? We could never disgrace this face.

In fact, not even half a tael of silver was given.

If Zhang Gui were ordinary, he would actually love to observe such unseen customs and local color.

But tonight, listening to the fat clerk bluster about his "grand narrative", I felt inexplicably irritated.

I slipped out the door quietly.

Outside, I breathed in some warm wind.

Suddenly someone reached out to pat Zhang Gui's shoulder.

And Zhang Gui seemed to have a flash of insight; the divine cluster "Zongheng Ruyi" inside his body automatically activated.

His figure flickered, instantly circling behind the person and placing his hand on the shoulder,

"Young brother, do I know you?"

"No, I don't. I've been a well‑meaning, overly helpful person since childhood.

Seeing your Western dress, I was standing alone outside the Ship Administration Bureau, hoping for good fortune."

"I sensed that being in unfamiliar surroundings must have caused you some trouble, so I wanted to ask if I could be of any help?"

Zhang Gui, hearing this, looked at the youth who turned back with an awkward smile toward him.

Following his gaze, he turned his head to look a short distance away, where several Young Strong Men were rubbing their fists, ready for a fight,

"Those are your companions, aren't they?

Inside, there is even someone who, like you, has entered the Dao.

What exactly is your situation?

Planning to be so bold as to 'slaughter a sheep' right here in the Shou Shan Zhi Di of Yuanshan Kingdom?"

The youth startled.

"Don't talk about 'slaughtering a sheep' recklessly; we are peaceful, orderly good citizens of the Liang Family.

We're just scraping a living on the streets.

(End of chapter)