Starting with his deathbed remonstrance to Zhu Yuanzhang, the emperors were brought to their knees.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Tu's pupils trembled violently as if an earthquake had struck.

For some reason, these words sounded both familiar and inexplicably made me feel uneasy.

"What...what do you want to do? What do you mean by 'die for justice'? You're not going to court today!"

Zhang Tu quickly said.

Upon hearing this, Li Qing realized that he had made a mistake; today was the first day of the Lunar New Year, and officials were all on holiday.

Oops, slip of the tongue!

Li Qing quickly laughed it off.

"What's with all this talk of dying for someone? It's so unlucky during the New Year. I mean, the weather's nice today, wanna go for a stroll? Want to come along?"

Zhang Tu stared intently at his face, his eyes full of suspicion.

The man before me, Zhou Wan, was recently promoted to the position of Imperial Censor.

But for some reason, he always felt that this person's eyes, tone of voice, and even the way he walked had an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Just like... just like those censors who died for their principles!

"You're not really going to die trying to remonstrate with me, are you?"

Zhang Tu swallowed hard and asked cautiously.

"Don't you know what happened to those censors who went mad before?"

"The previous few censors?"

Li Qing blinked, feigning a blank expression.

"What do you mean? I haven't been in the capital for very long, so I really don't know."

"Sigh, it's heartbreaking to think about."

Zhang Tu sighed, looked around, and lowered his voice.

"Their human skin is still hanging on Chang'an Gate! All of us officials in the capital have to go to Chang'an Gate to report for duty before going to court. The Emperor deliberately makes us watch so that we can think things through before we speak."

Li Qing chuckled inwardly. Good heavens, his own disguise was still hanging on the city gate as a warning sign. Who would believe it if this got out?

"Don't worry, Lao Zhang, I'm not the kind of crazy person who would risk their life at the drop of a hat."

He patted his chest and assured them.

"I'm a very health-conscious person, but I get bored staying at home and want to go out and join in the fun."

Besides, those censors who died for their principles are truly role models for us all. Their passionate advocacy for the people is so admirable!

"I admire them, but they risked their lives for it!"

Zhang Tu shook his head and sighed.

"It's Chinese New Year, so let's go out for a walk."

The two walked side by side down the street, which was indeed bustling with activity. Vendors selling candied hawthorns and sugar figurines called out their wares along the street.

Children dressed in new clothes chased after firecrackers, and the restaurant was filled with the sounds of clinking glasses and exchanging toasts—a scene of prosperity and grandeur.

This was Li Qing's first time celebrating the New Year in ancient times, and he couldn't help but feel curious, constantly looking around.

But the further you walk into the alley where the official residences are concentrated, the more deserted the atmosphere becomes.

As Li Qing passed by a house, she heard a child crying inside.

He peeked inside and saw that the Imperial Censor Wang's wife was holding two emaciated children.

On the table were two bowls of thin porridge and a dish of pickled vegetables. The older daughter was crying and shouting:

"Mom, I want to eat meat, I want to eat dumplings..."

An official stood with his back to the door, his shoulders trembling slightly, unable to utter a single word.

Zhang Tu stopped in his tracks, the smile on his face vanished instantly, and he sighed and whispered:

"Old Wang is the most honest and upright man. He has elderly parents and young children to support. The court owes him nine months' salary, and he has long been struggling to make ends meet."

Yesterday I saw him go to the river outside the city to break the ice and fish. His hands were so frozen they were rotting, and he didn't catch many fish.

Li Qing's face darkened.

The salaries in the Ming Dynasty were not much, let alone for honest officials; it was difficult to make a living on just the rice and grain they received.

Similarly, he himself didn't have much money.

After a year of hard work, the salary is only ninety shi of rice, which is equivalent to no more than forty-five taels of silver.

That wasn't all; the imperial court also issued excessive amounts of paper money and used cloth as collateral.

After all the deductions, the actual annual income is less than half of the nominal salary, which means at most twenty taels of silver, and sometimes not even that.

After walking a few more steps, I saw an official squatting at the door, writing Spring Festival couplets on red paper with charcoal.

There was a small sign next to it that read, "Writing Spring Festival couplets, one penny per pair."

The cold wind billowed his official robes, and his hands were frozen red; he had to breathe on them to warm them after writing just a few words.

"Old Li had no choice."

Zhang Tu sighed, his voice a little hoarse.

"His mother was bedridden and had no money for medicine, so he could only earn a few copper coins by writing Spring Festival couplets."

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, who wouldn't want to be at home with their family? Who would want to suffer in this windy place?

Li Qing didn't speak, but clenched her fists.

He walked and looked around.

Some officials couldn't even afford Spring Festival couplets, leaving their doors bare; others had children wearing patched-up clothes, watching longingly as their peers on the street carried candied hawthorns.

Meanwhile, inside the Forbidden City, Zhu Yuanzhang was holding a grand banquet to entertain all the vassal kings and founding dukes.

The table was laden with delicacies from land and sea, and there was an endless supply of fine wine and food. The cost of one meal was enough to feed these officials for ten years.

"Old Zhang, I'm not going shopping."

Li Qing suddenly stopped and turned to look in the direction of the palace, a resolute glint in his eyes.

Zhang Tu's heart skipped a beat; he had a bad feeling.

"What...what are you going to do? Brother Zhou, let's not do anything reckless!"

"I didn't do anything reckless."

Li Qing smiled.

"They can feast on fish and meat in the palace, so why can't we, who are working for the Ming Dynasty, even have dumplings for the New Year?"

I'm going to the palace to demand my unpaid wages from Zhu Chongba!

"You're insane!"

Zhang Tu grabbed his arm, sweating profusely with anxiety.

"On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the Emperor is celebrating with his relatives and nobles. If you were to storm the palace demanding your wages at this time, the Emperor would surely have you executed by slow slicing! Have you forgotten the human skins hanging on the gates of Chang'an?"

"I haven't forgotten."

Li Qing gently pulled her hand away from his and patted his shoulder.

"But if I don't go, in another half month, some of us will starve to death at home."

Looking at these people, Li Qing suddenly felt like doing something.

"Zhou Wan! Come back!"

Zhang Tu shouted from behind, stamping his feet in frustration.

Li Qing didn't turn around, but simply waved his hand, his voice carrying far away:

"Old Zhang, wait for me! Once I get our salaries back, we'll have a hot meal of dumplings together!"

Zhang Tu watched his receding figure, then leaned weakly against the wall, only one thought in his mind:

Oh no, another one has gone mad.

This time, who knows, there will be another human skin on Chang'an Gate.

On the first day of the Lunar New Year, the top floor of Hongwu Tower, the tallest building in Nanjing, was illuminated by glazed lamps, and a long table was laden with delicacies from land and sea, while the sounds of string and bamboo instruments filled the air.

Zhu Yuanzhang was sitting in the main seat, raising his cup to receive New Year's greetings from a group of founding nobles and various vassal kings.

The room was filled with the joyous atmosphere of clinking glasses and toasts, but no one expected that a storm was brewing downstairs that would overturn the entire banquet.

Just as Zhu Yuanzhang was enjoying his drink, Jiang Huan suddenly entered the hall and hesitated before reporting.

"Your Majesty, Imperial Censor Zhou Wan has barged into Hongwu Tower, saying he has something of utmost importance to discuss with you."

He even threatened that if you didn't see him, he would jump off this 36-foot-high building right now!