Year three of Great Xia, the sixth day of August, just after nightfall.
In the main hall of the building constructed against the eastern cliff of the Inner Valley in Hanqiong Gourd Valley, dressed in the regular crimson attire of Viscount Xuanling, Lu Yang sat at the desk, his brows furrowed with worry.
There were three people seated on each side of the hall. On the left, from closest to farthest, were Zhu Shun from Camp Supply and Military Equipment, He Xing from Artisan Department, and He Ning from Civil Affairs Department; on the right, from closest to farthest, were Zhao Hu from Hunting Bureau, Lin Fan from Logging Department, and Wang Tao from Prison Department.
Zhu Shun, sitting at the first position on the left, was reading from an account book:
