Disposal

The supply wagons slowly entered the town, followed by the hooves of numerous Imperial Guards horses kicking up clouds of dust.

"General, we've arrived at Guqing Town." Zhou Cong rode his horse alongside the supply wagon.

"Alright, let's go straight to the inn." Wei Shu didn't move, simply staring straight ahead.

"Yes, General." Zhou Cong led the way, with the supply wagons protected in the middle by the Imperial Guards. Jiang Jin, having barely managed to stay awake all the way to Guqing County, was eager to get out of the wagons and relax.

"General, I'll ride a horse for the rest of the time. This supply wagon is really uncomfortable to sit in." Jiang Jin stuck his head out of the wagon; there were many vendors along the roadside.

At the hour of You (5-7 PM), the supply wagon slowly came to a stop in front of the inn. Zhou Cong dismounted first and led the three inside to conduct a thorough search. Only after confirming there were no ambushes did they return to the supply wagon.

"General, everything is normal." Upon hearing this, Jiang Jin lifted the curtain and jumped down from the supply wagon.

"Zhou Cong, quickly tell them to bring some cold noodles!" Jiang Jin lifted her skirt and entered the inn. Although it was simple, it was very clean.

"Are you looking for a place to stay or a meal?" a woman asked the group as they entered, wiping the table with a coarse cloth.

"How many rooms do you have left today?" Jiang Jin's gentle voice reached the woman's ears.

"There are eight rooms left. How many rooms would you like?" The woman stopped what she was doing and looked at Jiang Jin curiously.

"We'll take them all!" Jiang Jin took out a few gold coins and placed them on the table in front of the woman.

"My lady, this is a bit too much!" The woman only took two gold coins, leaving the rest untouched.

"It's alright. We'll be staying here for the night and a meal. Do you have any cold noodles?" Jiang Jin sat down and wiped her chopsticks with a burlap sack.

"Yes, madam, is there anything else you'd like to eat?" The woman poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of Jiang Jin.

"Sesame cakes, and a bowl of rice wine!" Jiang Jin was about to order something else when the sound of swords being drawn suddenly came from outside.

Jiang Jin's eyelids twitched, and she rushed to the door, only to see several constables pointing their knives at the Imperial Guards.

"Who are you, and how dare you act so presumptuously in Guqing Town!" The leader said sternly, as if he regarded Wei Shu as a criminal.

"We are a merchant caravan traveling from Yuezhou to the capital, merely passing through Guqing Town. We have no intention of offending anyone," Jiang Jin said, striding to Wei Shu's side.

"Officer, should we put down our swords before we speak?" Seeing Jiang Jin's clear eyes and gentle demeanor, the officer gestured for the men behind him to sheathe their swords. However, the officer himself was already pointing his sword at Wei Shu.

"I demand to see your credentials!" Seeing that Wei Shu remained unmoved, the head constable moved his knife forward an inch further.

"Zhou Cong, give him the document!" Wei Shu stepped forward, arms crossed, looking at the head constable with interest. "Head constable, have you noticed anything?" Wei Shu chuckled.

"Who do you think you are, daring to laugh at our head constable!" The man behind the head constable drew his sword and held it to Jiang Jin's neck. Wei Shu's eyes turned cold, and he kicked the man three meters away.

"Are you alright?" Seeing that Jiang Jin's neck was still fair but her breathing was a little erratic, Wei Shu finally felt relieved.

"It's alright, it just happened to hit the shawl, it didn't hurt me." Jiang Jin took a few steps forward, and the constable blocked her way. "Young lady, I apologize on behalf of my brother."

"Officer, why don't you tell me? He was cursing my husband, so why did you put your hand on my neck?" Seeing Jiang Jin's ambiguous smile, the officer had no intention of arguing.

"Zhou Cong, seize them!" Jiang Jin rarely used his authority to intimidate, and in an instant, all the Imperial Guards restrained the constables. Jiang Jin smiled, took out a dagger from his pocket, and squatted down to face the man lying on the ground.

"You're too weak to offend your husband, so you take it out on me. Don't you know that women are never objects for you to vent your anger on?" Jiang Jin raised her knife and made a shallow cut on the man's arm.

"I spared your life because you are dedicated to serving the people. I'm teaching you a lesson because you didn't treat women as ordinary citizens." Jiang Jin took out a handkerchief and gently wiped the dagger.

"Zhou Cong, get him some wound medicine, don't let him die." Jiang Jin turned to walk towards Wei Shu, when the man behind her suddenly stood up and lunged at her. Just as the knife in his hand was pressed against Jiang Jin's shoulder, a cold laugh rang out.

"Overestimating yourself!" Jiang Jin turned and backed away, kicking the knife out of the man's hand. Her own dagger plunged into the man's shoulder, and as it was pulled out, blood splattered all over Jiang Jin's face.

"Dazhuang!" The head constable, who was being escorted, saw the man fall and his eyes widened in horror.

"Don't worry, it won't kill you unless it pierces your heart." Jiang Jin wiped the dagger clean and sheathed it.

"Zhou Cong, release them." Seeing Jiang Jin walk behind him, Wei Shu ordered the Imperial Guards to release the constables.

The head constable quickly checked the man's breathing. Fortunately, just as Jiang Jin had said, he had only been stabbed and not killed.

"Thank you, madam, for sparing my life, sir." The constable knew that Jiang Jin had shown mercy.

“You really should thank the young man beside me. If he had used his full strength, the constable on the ground probably wouldn’t be able to get up anymore.” Jiang Jin dusted off the dust on her skirt.

"Alright, I'm going to eat some cold noodles now. Let the young master clean up the mess." Jiang Jin turned and went back to the inn. A bowl of cold noodles and two sesame cakes were already laid out on the table.

"Please wait a moment, madam, the rice wine will be here shortly." The woman was pouring the rice wine in the back.

"My lady, you must not be from a small town, right?" The woman placed the rice wine in front of Jiang Jin.

"I've seen many people who have traveled far and wide, but I've never seen anyone like you, madam," the woman said with a smile as she turned to wipe the table and spoke to Jiang Jin.

"The calluses on your fingers didn't come from practicing calligraphy or painting." The woman had barely finished speaking when Wei Shu walked in, followed by Zhou Cong supporting the injured man and casually placing him on a bench.

"You acted decisively, leaving me to clean up your mess." Wei Shu sat down next to Jiang Jin, picked up a sesame cake and put it in his mouth. "Your injuries haven't healed yet, so you shouldn't drink alcohol."

"I'm fully recovered." Jiang Jin said, picking up her wine cup and drinking it all in one gulp. "This wine is exquisite, my lord, wouldn't you like a bowl?"

"No, please enjoy it slowly." Wei Shu was about to get up when Jiang Jin stopped him.

"What...do you want to do with them?" Jiang Jin's gaze fell on those people.

“I have already sent someone to inform the county magistrate.” Wei Shu glanced at Zhou Cong. “Young master, everything has been arranged by the higher-ups. You and your wife can settle in with peace of mind.”

"What an honor to have you here!" A man in a light green official robe followed Zhou Liao from a distance.

"We were truly guilty for not knowing that General Wei was here!"

"General Wei, you are a young hero. We, your ignorant constables, have offended you. Please forgive us!" One of the men, dressed in light blue, subtly pulled the head constable behind him.

"This must be Lady Wei. She and General Wei are truly a match made in heaven, a couple blessed by the gods!" Seeing that Wei Shu didn't react, the group praised Jiang Jin instead.

"No need for flattery. They are innocent people, yet they drew their swords and injured my wife. I wonder if the magistrate has any punishment planned?" Jiang Jin raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, stirring his cold noodles incessantly.

"What are your orders, General Wei?" The magistrate glanced uneasily at the rumored ruthless man with a gloomy expression.

"The magistrate asked me how to punish him. Does he want me to take his place?" Wei Shu remained unyielding.

"According to the laws of the Great Yan Dynasty, assaulting an innocent person without causing injury is punishable by one year of imprisonment," the man in the light blue official robe pleaded.

"Are you the county magistrate?" Jiang Jin put down her chopsticks and asked the man in front of her.

"I am Zhu Si, the county magistrate of Guqing County." As soon as Jiang Jin spoke, Zhu Si quickly pleaded, "Da Zhuang was a bit impulsive, but he has never done anything to bully men or women. Madam, could you please let them go?"

“But he wanted to kill me.” Jiang Jin stood up and stood in front of Wei Shu. “If I hadn’t dodged in time, I probably wouldn’t be able to stand here and talk to you.”

"No, absolutely not! Da Zhuang's knife was just an inch from my wife's neck. When she turned around, Da Zhuang deliberately moved it further away. He really just wanted to scare her!" The shopkeeper knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly. He couldn't understand why he had offended the fearsome General Wei.

"What do you think, County Lieutenant Zhu?" Jiang Jin asked, looking at the upright-looking county lieutenant in front of him.

"Anyone who intentionally kills another resulting in death shall be sentenced to beheading; anyone who intentionally kills another without causing injury shall be sentenced to three years of penal servitude," Zhu Si said softly with a sigh.

"After all that, has the magistrate come to a conclusion?" Wei Shu looked at the magistrate impatiently. "It's such a small case, yet it's taking so long to decide. I really don't know how you passed the Ministry of Personnel's evaluation."

"Although Dazhuang didn't harm the lady, he still harbored malicious intentions. How about sentencing him to exile for a thousand miles?" the magistrate said tremulously, constantly observing Wei Shu's expression.

"Three years of apprenticeship," Jiang Jin said, glancing at Wei Shu's expression.

"Thank you, Madam. Thank you, General." Zhu Si quickly bowed and saluted, fearing that Wei Shu might speak up and increase the punishment at any moment.

"Let's go." Wei Shu nodded in agreement with Jiang Jin and led her upstairs to the bedroom.

“Wei Shu, not everyone is like you. I know you might be trying to test the officials of Guqing County to see if they are not afraid of powerful figures, but people who are willing to sacrifice their lives for righteousness are rare in this world; most are sycophants who fawn over those in power.” Jiang Jin poured herself a cup of tea and took a small sip.

"This magistrate does fit the character 'zhong' (meaning 'mediocre' or 'mediocre'), although he flattered you but did not harm that person's life."

"Why are you now trying to guess my intentions instead of His Majesty's?" Wei Shu stood behind Jiang Jin and bowed slightly.

"Are you suspecting me of testing you?" Jiang Jin's eyelids twitched upon hearing this, and she continued drinking her tea without stopping.

"General, you jest. How could I possibly doubt you?" Jiang Jin tilted his head slightly to look at Wei Shu. "Or perhaps you did test me, and now you're feeling guilty?"

The two were very close, as if Wei Shu could kiss Jiang Jin's soft lips with just a slight movement of his body.

"And what about Madam? Has Madam ever done anything to wrong me?" Neither was willing to back down, and the two remained deadlocked. Fortunately, a knock sounded at the door, which broke the tense atmosphere.