Qianhe Town.
In the dim morning light, a dense fog still shrouded the riverside town. Suddenly, a burst of rapid hoofbeats quickly shattered the tranquility of the small town.
A horseman from the north arrived along the straight and spacious official road and stopped in front of a tea pavilion.
Usually, these tea pavilions by the roadsides and in front of markets also served breakfast, and there were already early risers inside, eating hot tofu brains and freshly cooked buns.
Seeing the splendid horse stationed in front of the tea pavilion, the people inside cast their astonished gaze.
Wang Chen jumped down from his horse, led it over, and tied it to a nearby hitching post. Then he said to the owner of the tea pavilion, "Shopkeeper, bring me a basket of buns and two bowls of tofu brain, salty ones. Also, feed my horse a bundle of hay and some fresh water, and remember to add extra soybean meal and eggs."