TGCFNM -Chapter 83 Climbing the Wall at Midnight

By evening, the city gates were tightly shut.

All the commoners who had failed to enter the city could only rest where they were.

As the sky gradually darkened, the wind turned chilly. People from familiar villages huddled together in circles. They didn’t dare light fires for warmth, nor did they dare leave their place in the queue. They simply endured it, waiting.

Old Uncle Wu had gone to call out to them several times. He had even invoked the name of the newly appointed magistrate, but no one was moved. They remained squatting where they were.

By the time Old Uncle Wu returned—supported by Zhang Dong—his daughter Wu Xiaoxiu had regained consciousness. Xiao Hua helped her sit up and lean against a tree trunk.

Chu Ling sat upright across from them and asked Wu Xiaoxiu, “So the silver—was it embezzled by that military officer?”

Wu Xiaoxiu nodded tearfully. “He said the silver was underweight. But instead of giving it to the recording official, he stuffed it into his own sleeve pocket. He said that if I accompanied them for drinks tonight, he would let my father and me enter the city. My father argued with them, and they—they beat us and threw us out.”

Old Uncle Wu sat down trembling, wiping away tears continuously.

“But even so, we still have to enter the city. Otherwise… otherwise we’ll starve to death, my lord…” Wu Xiaoxiu covered her face and began to cry.

Xiao Hua hugged her, her own eyes red.

“Who told you that entering the city costs five taels of silver?” Chu Ling asked.

“Wang Mazi,” Wu Xiaoxiu replied. “Wang Mazi said five taels would get us into the city. And if we gave him one more tael, he could find me a job in the city—working as a maid. Not a lifetime contract, just a temporary one. In three months, I could save up one tael.”

“My health isn’t good,” Old Uncle Wu sobbed. “Xiaoxiu… Xiaoxiu was going to become a maid for my sake. That way, we could survive in the city.”

Chu Ling rubbed her wrist and asked, “Do you have that one tael of silver with you? Let me take a look.”

Wu Xiaoxiu immediately blushed. Embarrassed, she pulled Xiao Hua into the woods. Only then did she take out the one tael of silver hidden inside her clothes and hand it over, face flushed. “Originally… originally it was meant to be given to you as life-saving money, my lord.”

“No need.” Chu Ling spoke casually, taking the silver and examining it carefully in the torchlight Zhang Dong had lit. She frowned.

Wan Sanjin glanced at it and said, “There are indeed quite a lot of impurities. But that shouldn’t be…”

Chu Ling immediately looked at him. “You know quite a bit about silver, don’t you?”

Wan Sanjin nodded. “I may not know every detail of the smelting process, but I’ve seen plenty when it comes to judging silver quality.”

Taking the silver from Chu Ling, he explained, “Normally, when refining silver, the mined ore is first sorted and classified. Then it’s melted in a crucible. Ash powder is added to remove impurities. After that, the purity is checked. If the color is too pale, some silver filings are added; if it’s too dark, some copper powder is mixed in.”

“The silver circulating on the market generally doesn’t vary much in purity, because it’s overseen by the government. Silver of this quality shouldn’t be circulating at all… This piece is likely impure test silver from the initial refining stage—meant to be remelted.”

Chu Ling pointed at the silver. “If this isn’t leftover test silver, but was intentionally minted like this and put into circulation—would that be possible?”

“My lord, who would dare? That’s punishable by execution of nine clans!” Wan Sanjin made a slicing gesture across his neck.

In her heart, Chu Ling answered: Someone would dare.

“Master Wan, give Old Uncle Wu one tael of silver in exchange for this one, then pass it to your elder brother for investigation. Your Wan family is now the wealthiest in Great Zhou, controlling Tiansheng Grand Bank—the financial lifeline of the entire realm. If there’s a problem with silver, your family will be the first to be hit,” Chu Ling said seriously.

Wan Sanjin immediately exchanged the silver with Old Uncle Wu. His expression darkened as he carefully put away the impure silver.

“My lord,” Wan Sanjin called softly, and the two of them turned their backs to the others.

Wan Sanjin lowered his voice. “I’ve already sent word through the innkeeper of Fulai Inn. If Changzhou’s silver mines are being secretly exploited, there must be storefronts to serve as cover. I suspect my elder brother may personally bring people to Changzhou to open a shop. When he arrives, I can hand it to him directly.”

“Handle it as you see fit,” Chu Ling said. Then she looked up at the sky. “Eat some dry rations and rest for a while. Then we’ll climb the wall.”

“Yes, my lord.”

The night grew deeper.

Chu Ling rolled her neck, touched her wrist, checked the silver needles at her waist, then picked up the poison Su He had freshly prepared and swept her gaze around. “Ready?”

Zhang Dong replied nervously, “R-ready.”

Xiao Hua’s eyes shone with excitement as she stared at the city wall. “My lord, can I use the fire poker?”

“You can. Just mind your strength,” Chu Ling said.

Su He also rose to his feet. “I’m fully prepared as well. Sanjin, you wait outside the city gate. After we drug them, we’ll open the gate for you.”

Wan Sanjin, whose lightness skill still wasn’t up to par: “……”

“Let’s go.” With that, Chu Ling leapt up first.

The others immediately followed.

Wan Sanjin could only lead Zhuifeng by the reins, bringing Old Uncle Wu and Wu Xiaoxiu toward the city gate. Along the way, they startled quite a few townspeople. Yet everyone merely glanced up at them—there was no tension, no resentment, only deep numbness.

Wan Sanjin felt his chest grow heavy.

Wu Xiaoxiu supported Old Uncle Wu and said softly, “Advisor Wan, they’re pitiful people too.”

The fact that they didn’t tie them up to claim merit—so they themselves could be allowed inside—and instead only watched numbly and avoided them… that was already the most they could do.

Wan Sanjin let out a heavy breath. “Following my lord all this way, I’ve seen far too much.”

On top of the city wall—

Having arrived first, Chu Ling and the others lay silently against the wall. After observing the guards and getting a clear sense of the situation, they flipped over in one swift motion.

With a single silver needle, Chu Ling rendered a guard unconscious. Su He immediately followed by scattering medicinal powder.

Xiao Hua was clean and efficient—one strike per person with her poker. Zhang Dong flipped in after them.

“Guarding the city this lazily—if someone really came to attack, they’d probably be the first to throw down their armor and run!” Chu Ling said with disdain.

“There are only this many guards?” Zhang Dong asked in shock.

“Stick to the original plan. Zhang Dong, you and Xiao Hua go this way. Su He and I will go that way. If you run into anyone, scatter the powder. Remember to cover your mouths and noses.” After giving her instructions, Chu Ling headed off in one direction with Su He.

Zhang Dong adjusted the bundle on his back and said firmly, “I won’t drag my sister and my lord down.”

Xiao Hua said, “Big Brother, stay close to me.”

Zhang Dong nodded, gripping the packet of medicinal powder tightly as the two carefully moved down the corridor. The place where guards were supposed to keep watch was now empty. Below the lookout was a stone staircase that people could use to go up and down.

“Someone’s coming up,” Zhang Dong suddenly said. “Xiao Hua, let’s first—”

Gripping the fire poker, Xiao Hua took advantage of the flickering light from the brazier and carefully went down. Soon, several screams echoed from within the stairwell.

“Big Brother, quick! Drug them, or I’m going to beat them to death!” Xiao Hua shouted.

Zhang Dong: “I’m coming…”