It's two days before the arrival of the emperor, and the peasants are complaining about the lack of food and water. They're also complaining about how the emperor doesn't treat them well. Lan tells the peasants that the emperor has assigned him a job in the administration of the county. Lan says that he's an imperial scholar, so he should be able to do whatever the emperor wants with his talents and knowledge. Lan also says that the nursery rhymes that he wrote for the children are a warning to the emperor not to make too much fuss over them.