The surroundings gradually became clear.
The white walls were covered with dirty black ash; the houses were shabby and broken, some places even lacked roofing tiles.
It had rained not long ago, and stepping onto the ground in the courtyard immediately covered one's feet in mud.
In the dilapidated courtyard, a large wooden sign leaned against the wall, with two characters written on it:
"Conscription."
A corpulent man sat behind the desk, dressed in official robes, his forehead soaked with sweat.
"Come on, move it!"
He yelled impatiently and casually threw a wooden token to the frail man opposite him, gesturing for him to leave with a wave of his hand.
That token bore two characters:
"Labor."
The frail man took the token, cried a few times, and, helpless, turned to leave.
The corpulent man straightened his official hat and barked with a fierce glare:
"Step up one by one for me to see, be quick about it, and don't waste this official's time!"