Chapter 92

Chapter 92

"How are you feeling now, Xie Yuling?"

Shen Yuan gently touched the back of Xie Yuling's hand with his index finger, pressing on the raised vein. Finding it amusing, he couldn't resist giving it a little poke.

Seeing Shen Yuan starting to play around again, Xie Yuling said helplessly, "It tickles."

Shen Yuan found this somewhat novel, staring at Xie Yuling's face. "You don't even flinch when you're tickled? Come on, give me a smile."

"A-Yuan, stop playing," Xie Yuling reminded him to focus.

Shen Yuan let out a few laughs, completely capturing Xie Yuling's attention, then suddenly placed his hand over the back of Xie Yuling's hand.

The warmth and slight coolness of their skin met. Shen Yuan truly felt Xie Yuling's hand was too cold and couldn't help but press closer, wanting to share his warmth with him.

"How does it feel now?" Shen Yuan stared at Xie Yuling's face, asking him nervously.

Xie Yuling's hand remained completely still, just lying there under the warmth of Shen Yuan's palm.

The heat seemed to seep into the back of his hand. Accustomed to the cold, Xie Yuling felt as if the skin on his hand was being burned.

"It hurts a little," Xie Yuling said in a deep voice.

Shen Yuan was momentarily stunned, realizing this was a psychological reaction from Xie Yuling. "How much does it hurt?"

Xie Yuling's cool gaze met Shen Yuan's. "Like it's on fire."

"You can endure pain like that?" Shen Yuan quickly pulled his hand away, starting to suspect Xie Yuling wasn't just aloof but might actually have a poker face. This guy really showed no expression—not when startled, not when in pain.

"Hoo—" Shen Yuan blew on the back of Xie Yuling's hand, asking worriedly, "Xie Yuling, does it still hurt?"

Xie Yuling's hand trembled slightly. Shen Yuan's eyes were fixed on Xie Yuling's face, so he missed the flicker of emotion that escaped.

"It hurts."

At that one word, Shen Yuan busied himself back and forth—blowing on his hand, fetching a cold cloth to apply to the back of his hand—his thoughts and gaze completely occupied by concern over Xie Yuling's pain.

Xie Yuling's gaze never left Shen Yuan again, watching him fuss over him, watching him worry, watching his dark, beautiful eyes reveal his heartache.

But it still wasn't enough.

Shen Yuan hadn't expected Xie Yuling's psychological issues to be this severe. He spent a full four hours—two *shichen*—tending to him until it was completely dark before Xie Yuling finally found some relief.

It seemed they needed to slow down the progress from now on. Today had been too rushed.

...

Westmoon Country, capital Pingkang.

Westmoon Country possessed a massive gold mine within its borders, produced an abundance of gold and silver jewelry, and had a wide variety of dances and songs. Even commoners and villagers in the countryside could sing a couple of tunes and dance a few steps. During annual harvests or festivals, the entire nation would sing and dance, making its prosperity the highest among all the nations.

The largest tavern in Pingkang City was luxuriously decorated, with carved windows and doors gilded with gold leaf and silk streamers adorned with gold tassels. In the main hall, musicians played, and dancers moved with the rhythm alongside the patrons.

As one dance ended, the music stopped.

The tavern owner stepped onto the stage with a smile and addressed the patrons, "Today, our tavern has received a story, passed on by a traveling merchant from Wu Country."

Those who could afford to eat, drink, and enjoy themselves in this tavern were among the most prominent figures in Pingkang City.

Even those merely seated in the main hall had backgrounds that couldn't be underestimated, all hailing from notable families, large or small.

Hearing the story originated from Wu Country, many burst into laughter.

"Owner, have you gone senile? What kind of story worth telling could come from that backwater Wu Country, a place where they don't even know how to dance?"

"Exactly, their people are no different from monkeys in the wild. We don't want to hear about their old tales; it would soil our ears."

"If it's about scandals or old affairs within their royal family, just for amusement, that might be acceptable."

"Right, we've never seen an emperor who came from the streets. Illiterate, ignorant of etiquette. I heard that when the Wu Country emperor first started, he didn't even know he was holding a bamboo scroll upside down, pretending he could read it!"

"Hahahaha, the only thing their Wu Country has to offer are these kinds of stories for our entertainment."

The tavern owner waited for the crowd's laughter to subside before continuing with a smile, "Esteemed guests, you may not know, but this story from Wu Country is a fictional tale, not a true event. It's about humans and ghosts, titled 'Love Between Human and Ghost.'"

Upon hearing it was a story about humans and ghosts, everyone stopped laughing.

"Does it involve sacrifices?"

"Was it written by Shen Yuan from Qingyun County?"

News from the imperial city had spread to some degree among the families. They hadn't thought of it earlier, but once the key point was mentioned, everyone began to wonder if it might be this story.

After all, Westmoon Country had sent many people to invite Shen Yuan to serve as an official.

The fundamental reason was that their top spy had brought back sacrificial methods, saving them a huge amount of money—funds that previously had to be sent to North Country every year in exchange for using their sacrificial rites to honor their ancestors.

Because of this, the name of Shen Yuan from Qingyun County had spread directly among the nobility.

They were also curious about the story that recorded the sacrificial methods. But they hadn't reached the point of needing to hear it so badly that they would send people to Wu Country to gather it.

It was just a story about events between people, now changed to events between humans and ghosts. Novel, yes, but how good could it really be?

They weren't ordinary commoners who hadn't seen the world.

But since "Love Between Human and Ghost" had now arrived, it wouldn't hurt to condescend to listen.

The tavern had long employed a storyteller. A table and chair were quickly set up in the center of the stage, and the band was ready.

"Love Between Human and Ghost" was inherently a melodramatic story—amnesia from a cliff fall, disparities in status and position, the divide between human and ghost...

Even the well-traveled nobility of Westmoon hadn't expected it could be played out like this.

Hey! Amnesia! How novel!

Coupled with the accompanying music, it felt even more immersive. It was as if they were witnessing Chu Qi fall off the cliff themselves, their emotions tensing along with the scene.

Many speculated that Chu Qi's fall wasn't simple—it must be due to factional struggles.

They spoke with such conviction, analyzing it logically.

The indifferent attitude of Chu Qi's parents toward his life or death also made the nobility nod in agreement.

Among great noble families, heirs were never in short supply.

So what if he was the legitimate eldest son? If he died, there were countless other legitimate sons waiting.

Those who cannot create value for the family are nothing but worthless trash to be thrown away.

But when they heard that Chu Qi would rather die than submit and still chose to fight back, they mocked him for being weak and incompetent, a waste of effort.

Yet their minds were elsewhere, their laughter not reaching their eyes.

Such desperate, hysterical resistance and longing—had they really never considered it?

Yes, they had.

In the quiet of the night, they had.

At first, they found it utterly ridiculous that a young master of a noble house would fall in love with a rural healer.

The person who crafted this story was also beyond reason.

But as it went on, Chu Qi broke free from the scheming and betrayal of a family that didn't care whether he lived or died, and he gained a passionate, genuine love. As a ghost, his abilities were extraordinary; he had already transcended the power and status of the mortal realm.

Though Chu Qi was dead, what he possessed was unequaled by anyone.

In the end, they even envied Chu Qi.

They envied his supernatural abilities.

Most wine houses in Pingkang City had stages built for dancers, but recently, the largest tavern in the city had swapped dancing for storytelling on its stage.

Cheers rang out from downstairs, while in the upstairs private room, a handsome young man in a blue gown sat upright at the table. Across from him was a middle-aged man with a beard, his thin face authoritative without trying and his gaze sharp.

"Your Majesty, what do you think of this story?"

The Emperor of Westmoon gave a soft chuckle and countered, "Prime Minister Song, did you bring me here just to listen to a story?"

Song Zijuan smiled faintly. "You are wise, Your Majesty. I wish to propose that Your Majesty cooperate with the state of Wu."

"Wu is weak. If not for their fierce fighting, they would have been swallowed up and carved apart long ago. They have nothing to offer. How can we cooperate?" The Emperor of Westmoon spoke the truth. With neither scholarly nor martial achievements, they could hardly cooperate over storytelling.

"Paper," Song Zijuan stated firmly. "Not just paper. I have a feeling that before long, Wu will be vastly different. Even if we do not cooperate with them, we must absolutely not maintain the same contemptuous attitude as before."

At the mention of Wu's paper, the Emperor of Westmoon thought for a moment.

Westmoon had originally invented paper, but unfortunately, they failed to keep it.

It was their own fault for initially hiding it, fearing others would covet it. As feared, they couldn't keep it secret; it was seized by the North Country shortly after its creation.

To this day, apart from the royal families of various countries, no one knew that North Country's paper originated from Westmoon.

Wu was different. The moment they made it, they announced it to all.

This way, even if someone stronger wanted to seize it, the populace would know the paper's origin.

In short, one misstep led to many more.

But for Westmoon to show goodwill to Wu was also difficult to accept.

After all, Westmoon had long held the upper hand; it was truly hard to tolerate submitting to those perceived as inferior.

The Emperor of Westmoon probed, "I heard that Prime Minister Song is on close personal terms with Shen Yuan of Qingyun County. Could it be that you've been swayed by compassion?"

Song Zijuan immediately declared his loyalty. "I have absolutely no personal motives. It's just that during these years in Wu, I've found that Emperor Wu, Li Xing, is quite different from previous monarchs. Moreover, Xie Yulin is a formidable opponent. The two of them balance each other—one handles civil affairs, the other military. Wu is likely to change."

The Emperor of Westmoon didn't show if he believed it and fell silent.

"Love Between Human and Ghost" not only gained popularity in Westmoon but also spread to other countries, where storytellers began telling the tale in detail.

As the story deepened, the name Shen Yuan of Qingyun became known to everyone from high-ranking officials and dignitaries down to street vendors and laborers in all lands.

In this era where everything depended on reputation and status, Shen Yuan's fame was accumulating at an astonishingly rapid pace.

Until it was common knowledge.

Shen Yuan was also aware of this.

While preparing pills with Xie Yulin, Shen Yuan used a mold to shape the medicinal paste into strips.

"Xie Yulin, did you have people tell 'Love Between Human and Ghost' in other countries?"

Teahouses across the entire prefecture wouldn't dare give the complete story to foreigners. Besides them and himself, only Xie Yulin had the complete story.

Xie Yulin nodded. "I collected silver for it and kept it safe for you. I'll give it to you all at once in a while."

"Why did you do this?" Shen Yuan asked.

Xie Yulin paused. This matter was entirely his own planning, kept secret from everyone. That Shen Yuan could guess was beyond his expectations, yet it made sense.

It seemed such interference had crossed Shen Yuan's bottom line.

Just as Xie Yulin prepared to apologize and try to placate Shen Yuan, he heard Shen Yuan ask, "With the story spreading in all countries, you must have expended a lot of manpower, resources, and effort. These days, you've been helping me fend off visitors, teaching me, treating your own illness, and handling official duties. Being so busy and still having to monitor reactions abroad—are you very tired?"

Shen Yuan put down the wooden mold, walked around behind Xie Yulin, pressed him to sit in the chair, and began massaging his shoulders.

"Xie Yulin, you're too good to me. I don't even know how to be good to you in return. Why don't you try letting me handle some things? I want to share your burden; I don't want you to be so tired."

Xie Yulin's body stiffened, his Adam's apple bobbing, unable to process Shen Yuan's words.

He wasn't blaming him for interfering too much, but only pitying him for being too tired, wanting to share his burden.

Xie Yulin let out a laugh, very soft.

Shen Yuan's ears twitched, and he swiftly leaned over to stare at Xie Yulin, his eyes bright with delight. "Hey! Xie Yulin, you laughed! You look incredibly handsome when you smile, lethally handsome."

"Do you like it?" Xie Yulin asked him.

Shen Yuan first nodded, then shook his head.

He said seriously, "I like it when you laugh because you're genuinely happy from the heart. You were very happy just now, right? Is my massage skill pretty good? If you feel comfortable, I'll massage you every day."

"By the way, Xie Yulin, why did you do this? Going through all this trouble to make everyone know my name."

"A-Yuan," Xie Yulin called out, his gaze softening, a faint smile curling at the corner of his mouth. "There are as many noble families in various countries as stars in the sky. I want to make the Shen Clan of Qingyun one of them. No one will dare bully you again."

Shen Yuan was so moved he was about to cry. He wrapped his arms around Xie Yulin's neck, pressing his head against Xie Yulin's, whimpering, "It must be so tiring for you alone. I'll do it with you! Good brother! For life!"

Xie Yulin: ...

Sigh.

...

Days passed peacefully and productively. "The Path to Immortality" entered its later stages.

During this period, the tea guests followed Shen Yuan's voice, cheering for the creatures in the story and hoping they could all survive this cataclysmic war.

The demons had invaded, and the human realm had already mobilized its entire population, joining forces with other realms to resist the enemy.

The gods of the divine realm descended to save the world, each displaying their divine powers. However, all living beings in the world have desires, and the demonic tribe fed on these to grow stronger. Meanwhile, spiritual energy became increasingly scarce, leaving the cultivation realm and the monster realm—both of which rely on such energy—in dire straits. The ghost realm, constrained by its vulnerability to yang energy, had weaknesses that were too obvious, and its situation was also grim.

The deities of the divine realm lacked the power of faith and suffered successive defeats.

The demons launched another attack.

Just as everyone was in despair, Yun Fan led the cultivators of Boundless Immortal Mountain to begin burning incense for Immortal Qingxing.

Everyone prayed devoutly, and the intangible power of faith drifted into Immortal Qingxing's body along with the wisps of smoke from the incense.

Yun Fan said, "Today, we fight alongside the gods! Our faith is the gods' strength. Against the demons, it is a fight to the death!"

The cultivators of Boundless Immortal Mountain shouted in unison, ready for battle, determined to fight the demons to the end!

The accumulated momentum from before was fully realized at this moment. Immortal Qingxing, who was nearly fading into silence, was revitalized by his young grand-disciple.

At the critical moment, Immortal Qingxing appeared in the world to lend his strength to the cultivation realm.

In this battle, neither the cultivation realm nor the demons gained the upper hand.

But Yun Fan could confirm how crucial the power of faith from all creatures was to the gods.

The news spread to the other realms, with the human realm responding first, as they already had ready-made divine statues to worship.

They prayed to the gods but relied on themselves; no one truly handed everything over to the deities after praying.

In the eyes of those who had experienced multiple battles, their faith was meant to enable the gods to fight better alongside them.

The living beings of the various realms were humble, but the power they gathered was not to be underestimated.

In the final battle, the gods fell, and the living beings were saved.

The gods of the divine realm lay in eternal rest with the demons, and all realms mourned together.

Yun Fan still offered incense to Immortal Qingxing every day, saying, "A god truly dies when belief fades."

While the people live, the gods endure.

If the people perish, the gods cease to exist.

To revive the gods, the various realms vied to offer incense.

Gradually, the practice began to change in nature, especially in the human realm. Because it was divided into different kingdoms with different patron deities, competition between them became intense.

Each nation wished their own deity to be the most powerful and the first to awaken, so they could be strongly protected.

The tea guests listened to a thrilling tale of the war across the six realms, witnessing the power of mortal faith, the tragedy of the gods' fall, and the relationship between mortals and deities. By the end, many found it profoundly true.

After finishing the tale of the great war, Shen Yuan left the Storytellers' Union.

Just outside, he happened to meet Qin Shisong, who was on patrol.

Nowadays, the patrols of the Civil Blade and Martial Blade factions were no longer as distinctly separate as before, where the Civil Blade was responsible for quieter districts and the Martial Blade for the rougher areas.

The two sides worked together in a well-organized shift system, and law and order in Qingyun County improved rapidly.

Aside from the diligent and responsible officials in the yamen, the influence of *The Swordsman* also played a significant role.

Since the public edition of *The Swordsman* appeared in every street and alley, Qingyun County transformed daily.

Shen Yuan had consciously added a series of positive traits, like helping others and abiding by the law, into this version of *The Swordsman*.

This was inspired by *Love Between Human and Ghost*, where many ritual elements were added, and people now paid special attention to such practices.

This effort did not disappoint Shen Yuan. According to Qin Shisong and Li Baozhu, the local hoodlums were like night and day compared to before.

Although they were still at loose ends, they each formed their own "sects," which were fairly harmonious, and no conflicts had occurred so far.

Meeting Shen Yuan this time, Qin Shisong walked with him toward the yamen and told him about the new developments of these sects in Qingyun County.

"They say they want to hold a Martial Arts Tournament to select the top sect in Qingyun," Qin Shisong said with a laugh. "They really know how to cause a commotion. Before, they competed to do good deeds—carrying water for elderly women, climbing trees to pick fruit for children, helping vendors find lost kids... To be honest, they really made a splash. Everyone jokingly calls them 'chivalrous heroes.'"

"The more they were called that, the more enthusiastic they became. Just two days ago, a child in the west of the city was kidnapped by an outsider, and they chased him for three days and three nights to bring the child back."

Qin Shisong couldn't help but sigh, "Because of them, the west of the city is now much, much more peaceful. Li Baozhu loves to joke with them and calls them 'great heroes,' which makes them ecstatic and drives them to help people with even more vigor."

Listening to Qin Shisong's account, vivid images emerged in Shen Yuan's mind.

He said sincerely, "Do not do evil because it is small; do not refrain from doing good because it is small. According to *The Swordsman*, their actions truly make them heroes."

Shen Yuan's words were relayed by Qin Shisong to those reformed ruffians. Receiving recognition and praise from the county Registrar—who was also the creator of their favorite *The Swordsman*—thrilled them beyond measure.

Thus, the leaders of each sect went to the Storytellers' Union with great sincerity. When they met Shen Yuan, they invited him to preside over their Martial Arts Tournament.

Last time Shen Yuan ran into Qin Shisong, he had heard a bit about the tournament. Shen Yuan hadn't asked for details then, thinking he would find these people in the next couple of days to ask what the tournament would involve and how it would be conducted.

Shen Yuan didn't want the Martial Arts Tournament to turn into brawls; it indeed needed guidance and control.

He hadn't expected them to come to him first.

Shen Yuan invited them all inside, saying they needed to discuss it carefully.

This move moved the group of "sect leaders" to tears; no one in a position of authority had ever treated them so kindly before.

Moreover, Shen Yuan had already praised them earlier, and now his words and actions aligned. Feeling Shen Yuan's goodwill, the sect leaders, upon reaching the upstairs room, abandoned the idea of competing and directly asked Shen Yuan to become their Martial Arts Alliance Leader.

Shen Yuan was both amused and exasperated. "You are all straightforward and value loyalty, and I appreciate your sentiments. However, I truly cannot take on the position of Martial Arts Alliance Leader. As I hold multiple roles, I fear I might neglect my duties to you, which would be worse."

This statement only made the situation spiral.

A dozen or so people knelt on one knee in a crowd, imitating the etiquette from *The Swordsman*, and said in unison, "We ask Registrar Shen to become the Martial Arts Alliance Leader!"

Shen Yuan didn't understand how things had turned out this way, but although these people were immature, they weren't ill-intentioned.

He said, "Everyone, please rise first. So, are you still going to hold the Martial Arts Tournament?"

The group got up in a flurry, filling the room. It was quite noisy.

"Of course we'll hold it! We've already spread the word."

"Yeah, if we don't, the brothers' preparations would be in vain!"

"Everyone's looking forward to it, so it has to happen. When the time comes, Chief, you'll preside over it and let them compete. Everything else will be pretty much the same, except we won't appoint an alliance leader at the end."

As everyone talked over each other, Shen Yuan listened carefully—the core idea was that the Martial Arts Tournament would proceed as scheduled.

Shen Yuan then asked, "What exactly will they compete in?"

The group broke into chatter again.

"Wrestling."

"Fighting."

"Staff duels."

"Cussing contests."

"Hair-pulling."

What in the world is all this? Shen Yuan thought to himself, grateful he had asked, or else the constables would have had their hands full.

After thinking it over, he said, "Everyone, I have an idea."

"These kinds of competitions aren't any fun. We can't compare internal energy or martial arts like in *The Swordsman*. How about we try something different instead? We could set up a series of events like long-distance running, sprinting, throwing wooden javelins, hurdles, swimming, rowing, weightlifting, and so on. You all can choose the events you're best at to compete in, with the top three winners receiving different prizes. I'll personally sponsor the rewards. How does that sound?"

Shen Yuan explained his idea, and their eyes lit up, one after another.

No one objected; instead, everyone raised their hands eagerly, clamoring to participate.

"Me, me, me! Chief! I'm a really fast runner! Boss Qin chased me for five streets once and couldn't catch me!"

Shen Yuan couldn't help but look at the speaker—a lean young man who wore a proud expression. He looked honest and straightforward, but who would have thought he was so slippery? This must be the one Qin Shisong could never catch.

Those behind him weren't about to be outdone.

"I once stole a meat pie from a rich family, and several people chased me. I ate while running, finished the pie, and then jumped into the river and swam far away. I'm a top-notch swimmer!"

"I stole dog food once—hey, don't laugh! That damn dog was eating a big chicken leg, something even I hadn't tasted before. Wouldn't you have stolen it too? The merchant set his dog on me, but even the dog couldn't catch up."

"I once carried eight heavy sacks at the docks all at once. I'm sure I could win first place in weightlifting."

"Didn't you mess up your back? You probably can't take first place now."

"Even with a bad back, I can still win first place!"

Listening to everyone bickering back and forth, each refusing to yield, Shen Yuan suddenly felt a twinge of sadness.

He asked, "How come none of you could find work before?"

Everyone fell silent. One of them sighed and spoke first, "Chief, I'll be honest with you—I couldn't survive. My family is large, but the county is small. The slightly better jobs are all taken, and there's no room for us. Nowadays, even working at the docks requires greasing palms just to get in. My family simply couldn't afford it, and I couldn't find any work. I ended up working as a thug for gambling dens, not for money, just for a meal."

"I have no family left, only myself."

"I'm like him—my whole family is gone. I lost the will to live."

"We couldn't find work, and our families had no money to bribe the foremen."

Shen Yuan realized that most of the people here either couldn't find work or had no family left.

"Stay for lunch, everyone."

Everyone was delighted, but in the end, they still shook their heads.

One person said, "Registrar Shen, you have a good heart, but we can't always take advantage of you. In *The Swordsman*, even a young girl like Liu Qingyu managed to survive and never gave up under those circumstances. We should also get our own lives in order and stop living like we used to."

Another nodded in agreement and even reminded Shen Yuan, "Registrar Shen, our group were no good in the past. No matter how many reasons we give, it doesn't change the fact that we did wrong. Right is right, wrong is wrong. Now, we should be like the hero Ling Feng, protecting our Qingyun County properly. But not all the ne'er-do-wells think like us; some of them are truly bad. Registrar Shen, don't let them trick you."

Shen Yuan replied, "Thank you for the reminder. As for the meal, please, go ahead and eat. The Storytellers' Union has plenty of food. Consider it a feast to celebrate me becoming the Alliance Leader, how about that?"

No one present had the heart to refuse a second time; the temptation of a full meal was too great for them.

"Alright! Thank you, Alliance Leader!"

Shen Yuan made sure everyone ate a solid, satisfying meal.

That single meal raised Shen Yuan's standing in their eyes immensely.

Before this, no one in the world had ever given them such a meal—one with no strings attached, simply wanting them to fill their bellies.

Shen Yuan transformed the Martial Arts Tournament into an athletic competition, scheduled for half a month later. He wanted to leave some time for preparation but not too long, as the hot weather could easily lead to heatstroke.

Half a month was just right.

Shen Yuan sponsored the entire event. Apart from the Lantern Festival, Qingyun County had no other activities.

The money was no object to him; it was good to let everyone join in the fun.

At the yamen, Shen Yuan had also discussed this with Deputy Magistrate Wang, who thought it was a great idea and had already started planning vendor spots around the competition area and drafting stall fees.

"Xiao Yuan, you're bringing in money for the office—this is a good thing! How about we also charge an entry fee? The stall fees alone are too little."

Shen Yuan laughed, "Deputy Magistrate, you really love your job."

Deputy Magistrate Wang loved hearing Shen Yuan talk. He stroked his beard, "Well, what can you do? For the sake of the yamen, no matter how hard it is, it's worth it for this deputy magistrate."

Although this old man loves money and is greedy, his first reaction when encountering major issues is to step back.

However, with Magistrate Pang always bearing down on him, if he didn't retreat during major matters, Magistrate Pang would have had him killed many times over.

He has one good point: once he gives his word, he won't change it and will fully cooperate. Even if he can't help accomplish the task, he will absolutely not hold anyone back.

Because of this, Shen Yuan had a decent impression of Deputy Magistrate Wang and treated him well as his superior.

At this moment, Shen Yuan refused him, not allowing fees to be collected from the participants, as those people truly had no money, and that wasn't his intention anyway.

Although Deputy Magistrate Wang felt it was a pity, he nodded in agreement.

Shen Yuan also understood that Deputy Magistrate Wang wanted to generate revenue and achieve some political merit. After thinking for a moment, he suggested, "How about we make this event bigger and get everyone involved? Then we could seek sponsorships from merchants and the powerful?"

Deputy Magistrate Wang instinctively caught a strong whiff of money from Shen Yuan's words. His eyes almost turned into gold ingots, "Quick, quick, quick! Tell me, how does this sponsorship thing work?"

Shen Yuan said, "There are two ways to make money, and we can do both simultaneously. The first method is selling tickets. For ordinary tickets, we set the price low—one or two wen—so more ordinary folks will come to watch. To attract even more people, we can also hold a lottery. Number some bamboo slips, and the audience members who get the corresponding numbered slips win prizes. We'll set up VIP and super-VIP sections with good viewing angles, distanced from the ordinary sections. We can assign dedicated staff to serve in these areas and set the ticket prices higher. Deputy Magistrate, you know much more about this than I do; you can decide the specifics."

Deputy Magistrate Wang was extremely excited and hurriedly asked, "What about the second method? Is it sponsorship?"

"Yes," Shen Yuan continued. "We can get merchants to pay and, based on how much they give, advertise for them. Advertising—getting the word out. We can have the competitors wear uniforms with the merchants' names on them, like 'Liu's Osmanthus Cake' or 'Wan's Unfiltered Wine.' I have the paper; I can write using our Wu Country paper. This is unique to Wu Country—in fact, it's one-of-a-kind among all the nations. We won't lack for sponsors."

Deputy Magistrate Wang was amazed. Such an honor—they'd surely empty their coffers to secure it! In the future, they could boast about being the first wine shop advertised on Wu Country paper, or the first pastry shop advertised on paper in all the nations... These titles would also be incredibly prestigious!

"As for the nobles, that's even easier to handle." Shen Yuan asked Deputy Magistrate Wang, "They lack neither money nor profit—what do they lack?"

Deputy Magistrate Wang shot back without hesitation, "Prestige!"

Shen Yuan nodded with a grin. "Exactly, prestige. I'll write the sponsors into my stories as positive characters, or have my storytellers praise them publicly. If they're written into a story, the sponsorship amount would naturally be higher. After all, my stories get around to every country."

Spread across all countries!

Deputy Magistrate Wang was so excited that he immediately pulled out a coin purse from his pocket. "Xiao Yuan! Do me a favor. I'll have my servant bring more silver later. I want to be the first sponsor! Come on, Xiao Yuan, write me into a story!"

Spreading across all countries—that's just too tempting!

Just imagining people from every other nation learning about him through these stories had his hands shaking with excitement.

If he didn't grab this chance now, then when? If the nobles found out, they'd go even crazier than him.

By then, there'd be no chance left for him!

Shen Yuan didn't refuse Deputy Magistrate Wang but instead laid out a condition.

"Deputy Magistrate, I agree to this, but I also ask you to agree to one thing for me."

Deputy Magistrate Wang nodded repeatedly. Whatever Shen Yuan asked of him, he knew he could handle it.

Shen Yuan said, "I want as much of this sponsorship money as possible to genuinely be used to improve people's livelihoods."

Deputy Magistrate Wang understood—this was about watching out for corruption.

Well, this matter... it was tricky but doable.

This kid was really giving him a tough task.

But in the entire county office, aside from him, the local power broker, no one else could handle this.

"If I gave you half the silver, would you be willing to give up on this?" Deputy Magistrate Wang fixed his sharp gaze on Shen Yuan.

This sum of money was bound to be substantial. Even if Shen Yuan made a lot of money, he couldn't earn this much from the sports event in such a short time.

Without a moment's hesitation, Shen Yuan replied, "I won't give up."

Deputy Magistrate Wang was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Good! I promise you this. You needn't worry about it anymore."