On the arrival of the despatch from the Board, great was the joy felt by
every officer, without exception, of the prefecture in which he had held
office. Yue-ts'un, though at heart intensely mortified and incensed,
betrayed not the least outward symptom of annoyance, but still
preserved, as of old, a smiling and cheerful countenance.

He handed over charge of all official business and removed the savings
which he had accumulated during the several years he had been in office,
his family and all his chattels to his original home; where, after
having put everything in proper order, he himself travelled (carried the
winds and sleeved the moon) far and wide, visiting every relic of note
in the whole Empire.

As luck would have it, on a certain day while making a second journey
through the Wei Yang district, he heard the news that the Salt
Commissioner appointed this year was Lin Ju-hai. This Lin Ju-hai's
family name was Lin, his name Hai and his style Ju-hai. He had obtained
the third place in the previous triennial examination, and had, by this
time, already risen to the rank of Director of the Court of Censors. He
was a native of Ku Su. He had been recently named by Imperial
appointment a Censor attached to the Salt Inspectorate, and had arrived
at his post only a short while back.

In fact, the ancestors of Lin Ju-hai had, from years back, successively
inherited the title of Marquis, which rank, by its present descent to
Ju-hai, had already been enjoyed by five generations. When first
conferred, the hereditary right to the title had been limited to three
generations; but of late years, by an act of magnanimous favour and
generous beneficence, extraordinary bounty had been superadded; and on