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That night, in the study of the County Magistrate’s residence:

“Gu Yang, the head of the Gu family, fifty-two years old. A ruthless man with considerable cunning…”

“He Youde, the head of the He family, forty-nine years old. Known for his explosive temper…”

“Bo Chang of the Bo family… Only twenty this year? So young?”

Lu Xuan meticulously organized the information he had gathered.

At noon, Lu Xuan kept a few yamen runners for questioning. Only then did he understand the public’s reaction when he ordered the restoration of the Mingyuan complaint drum at the yamen’s entrance. The drum, a symbol of communication between the yamen and the common people, was removed by the Qingxian Society. Without it, the yamen couldn’t hear the people’s grievances.

All affairs in Qingxian City were to be handled by the Qingxian Society. This was the stance of the three major families towards the county yamen, a subtle hint. Previous magistrates who attempted to restore the drum either eventually yielded, removing the drum themselves to appease the Qingxian Society, or met with mysterious deaths due to ‘accidents.’ Rumors said these magistrates were punished for offending Qingxian’s authority.

“There must be Qingxian Society members among the yamen runners… Let me think, where should I start?”

Lu Xuan massaged his temples.

It had been a long time since he had to think so hard.

“In Qingxian City, there are five hundred city guards, all under their control, not to mention the elite fighters of the Qingxian Society. There must be thousands.”

Cheng Lingzhu said, “To defeat the three major families, you’ll definitely need to leverage the city’s common people… The ‘Mingyuan Drum’ has been reinstalled, but we need to find a way to establish the Magistrate’s authority.”

“Indeed.”

Lu Xuan nodded, continuing to browse through the documents.

Both reverted to their true appearances in the room. The candlelight through the lantern cast a soft glow, adding a tender warmth to the girl’s eyes as she watched the man pouring over documents.

She approached Lu Xuan from behind, gently embracing him, resting her chin on his shoulder.

Just as Lu Xuan turned to kiss her, a rustle came from outside the window.

Lu Xuan and Cheng Lingzhu exchanged glances and opened the window. A white shadow leaped in, landing on the desk.

“A fox?”

Lu Xuan was momentarily surprised.

The study was in a separate courtyard, though overgrown with weeds, it was fairly tidy. This fox must have come from outside.

The white fox was not shy, stepping on the documents Lu Xuan was reading, leaving a dirty paw print, blinking its eyes.

“Its hind leg is injured.”

Cheng Lingzhu noticed the fox’s condition. Its leg was badly wounded, as if bitten by something.

“It’s unusual for it to seek help from humans without fear of bad intentions.”

Lu Xuan smiled, stroking its head. The little fox did not resist, instead nuzzling his palm.

Lu Xuan was about to use a spiritual medicine from his storage treasure to treat the fox, but he paused halfway.

He stood up and retrieved a bottle of healing ointment from a cabinet. In Qingxian City, he decided to maintain his role as a mortal county magistrate, using as little magic as possible.

Together, they cleaned the fox’s wound, sprinkled the medicine, and bandaged

it properly. The little white fox remained quiet and well-behaved throughout

the process.

Cheng Lingzhu cradled its belly, patting its head gently.

Lu Xuan circled around, lifting the fox’s tail to examine. “Hmm, a female fox…”

He was then promptly kicked by the uninjured leg of the fox, showing her displeasure.

“Hey, she’s still a young girl, you can’t just look at her like that,” Cheng Lingzhu chided with a laugh.

“This fox seems quite intelligent.”

Lu Xuan and the little fox locked eyes. The fox turned her head away, ignoring him.

Then Lu Xuan flicked her forehead playfully.

After playing with the fox for a while and seeing it was getting late, they placed her in the courtyard and went to their bedroom to sleep.

The next morning.

When Lu Xuan opened the door, he was surprised to find a palm-sized furball at the doorstep — the injured fox from yesterday.

The study and the bedroom were in different courtyards, meaning the white fox had climbed over the wall to follow him.

Cheng Lingzhu bent down, stroking its head: “Alright, alright. The master has to go and judge cases. We’ll play with you when we return.”

The little fox seemed to understand, rubbing against her feet before finding a sunny spot to lie down obediently.

At the yamen.

When Lu Xuan and Cheng Lingzhu appeared in the main hall, all the yamen runners were already assembled.

Yesterday’s orders had been effective; nobody wanted to be punished. This left Lu Xuan, who was eagerly wielding his authority stick, quite disappointed.

Was there no one who would let him demonstrate his authority?

That morning.

Lu Xuan experienced the tedium of being a county magistrate in Qingxian City.

For two whole hours.

Whether trivial family matters or major criminal cases.

Not a single person came to report.

This gave Lu Xuan the false impression that Qingxian City had simple customs and good public order.

“Lu Ping, did you announce in the streets yesterday, as I ordered, that the county yamen is reopening for cases?” Lu Xuan asked before leaving the hall.

“I did!”

Lu Ping replied succinctly, without his usual stutter..