Chapter 80.
Yuying found that making choices in matters of the heart was much more difficult than finding ways to earn money and get by.
Never having been in love and still holding onto the hope of returning, she truly didn't know how to respond to Fuxian, so her only option was to flee.
Wen Xing poured a cup of lukewarm tea and handed it to her sister-in-law, who was lost in thought at the table, softly saying, “Don’t worry, I won’t ask anything.”
Yuying murmured a “thank you”, took the tea, and sipped it, trying to calm her wildly racing thoughts.
True to her word, her sister-in-law asked nothing, understandingly giving her a night's shelter.
After a sleepless night, Yuying still had no answer.
She wasn’t sure about the depth of her feelings for Fuxian. It must not be too deep yet, or she wouldn’t have hesitated to start a relationship in this somewhat unfamiliar era.
It was probably just a flutter of the heart.
Perhaps she should wait, wait until she had completely given up hope of returning home, wait until her feelings for Fuxian deepened to a point where she felt ready to start something.
After evading the situation last night, they inevitably met in the courtyard the next morning.
They exchanged a glance, and Yuying, suppressing a bit of nervousness, gave Fuxian a small smile and said, “Good morning.”
Faced with Yuying's composed demeanor, Fuxian was briefly taken aback, but then realized she was trying to smooth things over, pretending as if nothing had happened the night before.
Fuxian regretted having been too hasty the previous night, pushing her away.
He also understood that she was the kind to warm up slowly, needing to take things step by step. Pressuring her too much would only result in situations like last night, driving her away.
Realizing this, Fu Wei also smiled at her and gently said, "Good morning."
Seeing the faint smile on Fu Wei's face, Yu Ying tacitly understood its meaning and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Feeling relieved, she asked, "Don’t you have to be on duty at the hour of Chen? Aren’t you worried about being late if you go now?"
Fu Wei responded, "The county magistrate has given permission. It’s fine if I arrive at the yamen a bit later."
Yu Ying nodded upon hearing this and then went to the kitchen to see if any help was needed.
After breakfast, everyone locked the house, asked the He family to keep an eye on it, and then headed to Yu County.
Upon arriving in Yu County, they first went to Xikou Alley to leave Fu Ning in the care of the Luo family before heading to the yamen.
While the eldest brother and sister-in-law went to report in, Fu Wei went to talk to Huo, the yamen runner, to understand the situation.
The yamen runners who had previously accepted bribes from the Wu family had confessed. Now, the eldest brother and sister-in-law were just going through the formalities.
The Wu family mother and son couldn't understand how, after so many years, their deeds were suddenly exposed, and they were brought to the yamen!
Three years ago, the imperial court suddenly issued an order demanding that the term of service for the low-born in Lingnan be changed to seven years for men and six and a half years for women.
This policy caused widespread lamentation. Some tried to flee but were made examples of, publicly whipped until they were a bloody mess.
Fearing death, the Wu family mother and son racked their brains and resorted to the despicable tactic of using a scapegoat.
They almost drained their entire savings to bribe the yamen runners to let their niece take their place in service.
Thus, when the Wu family mother and son saw Wu Xing, despite not knowing how she returned, they instantly realized she was the one who had reported them.
The Wu family's elder aunt, in the public court, pointed at her long-unseen niece, her face contorted with rage, and cursed, "It must have been you, you wretched girl, who reported us! Why don’t you just die!"
Wen Xing was fiercely glared at, the mother and son's eyes seeming as if they wanted to tear her apart.
Haunted memories surged, her heart skipped a beat, and she unconsciously looked towards the crowd outside the hall. Spotting her husband, solid as a mountain, her fear instantly dissolved.
The Wen family mother and son followed her gaze to the crowd, and upon recognizing the grim-looking Fuzhen, their faces turned pale.
Fuzhen had grown even stronger than he was a few years ago.
After bribing the yamen runner, they had feared Fuzhen’s retaliation and thus hid in the city.
Only when they heard Fuzhen had been sent to the quarry did they breathe a sigh of relief and began to live worry-free.
They had planned to leave Yuxian before the couple’s service term ended and before their return.
But why had they returned before their service term was up?!
Amidst their astonishment, the trial had already begun.
The bribe-taking yamen runner, having been arrested when the former magistrate was dismissed, confessed his crime, hoping to drag others down with him.
Magistrate Zhou, known for cutting through complications, did not like to overcomplicate minor matters and quickly passed judgment on the "substitution" case.
The Wen family mother and son were guilty of bribing the yamen runner to replace someone for service without the cousin's consent.
Additionally, substituting a male with a female for service was an even graver crime.
The Wen family eldest son received thirty strokes of the cane, the old woman twenty, and both were to be imprisoned for three months, compensating six years of service money.
Watching her great-aunt and elder cousin, who had once mistreated her, being beaten and crying out, Wen Xing finally felt a sense of justice.
After the judgment of the Wen family's substitution case, many others came forward at the yamen, reporting forced substitutions in their families and asking for the magistrate’s intervention.
It was only upon investigation that it was discovered, following the change in policy for the lower class three years earlier, many had bribed officials to substitute others for hard labor in the quarries.
More often than not, the males were replaced by female family members in these cases.
For just five hundred wen, one could have their name changed, and for an additional three hundred wen, even their gender could be altered.
And most of these affairs were handled during the former county magistrate’s tenure, three years ago.
Corruption was rampant at every level, from the top to the very bottom.
Due to the Wu family mother and son’s seemingly simple case, many other cases involving forced labor in the quarry were uncovered, leading to an exceptionally busy time at the yamen.
Even Fu Wei was extremely busy, juggling responsibilities at the merchant association, new policies, and these various issues.
As Fu Wei got busy, he would return home for lunch and then head straight back to the yamen, sometimes not returning at all.
Meanwhile, Yu Ying busied herself with the newly reclaimed land.
In half a month, she visited Yu County once, but coincidentally missed Fu Wei, who was at the yamen all day.
Verifying these 'scapegoat' cases was straightforward, but deciding on the punishment posed some difficulty.
Forcing those people to the quarry might lead to loss of life, but not doing so could be unfair to those who were coerced there.
After much deliberation, the county magistrate accepted Fu Wei's suggestion.
——Release those forced to work in the quarry, and convert the remaining service time into service fees, to be paid monthly by those originally obligated to serve. If they fail to pay, they must serve honestly in the quarry.
It must be said, after resolving these scapegoat cases, County Magistrate Zhou's reputation significantly improved.
It took Yu Ying a while to realize that Fu Wei was not only handling his sister-in-law’s case but also strategically boosting County Magistrate Zhou’s reputation.
Riding on this wave of popularity, the county magistrate began implementing policies for cultivating medicinal herbs and soybeans.
The villagers planted the herbs, and the county magistrate arranged for knowledgeable individuals to teach them how to cultivate these medicinal plants, rotating through the villages under Yu County's jurisdiction.
The medicinal herbs harvested were bought by four medical halls at two different rates: six wen per jin for the average quality and four wen per jin for the lesser ones.
There was no concern about the farmers selling the herbs directly to traders, as all traders were registered with the yamen, and after investigation, it was found that the annual purchase of herbs was only a few thousand jins.
If managed properly, one acre of land could yield between 600 to 800 jins of herbs annually.
With such a large quantity of common, annual herbs, traders wouldn’t need that much. Even if they did, due to the short cultivation period, the traders wouldn't offer as high as ten or fifteen wen per jin.
The new policy stipulated that if sold directly to traders, the price couldn’t be lower than thirteen wen per jin, and selling below this rate would incur a penalty of ten wen per jin.
This was a strict regulation.
If the traders really wanted to buy, it would be suspicious, and an investigation could serve as a deterrent.
Under these regulations, farmers could choose their own selling method, but most inevitably opted to sell to the medical halls.
Even at the lower purchase rate, 600 jins of herbs dried to 70-80% would still weigh around 300 jins, which at four wen per jin, would yield about 1,300 wen.
After deducting the annual land rent of 200 wen, there was still a profit of about 1,000 wen.
Moreover, the rent didn’t require upfront payment, as the yamen would initially cover the cost of herb and soybean seeds, to be repaid the following year along with the rent.
But land rental wasn’t unrestricted; each family was limited to two acres for cultivation, with one acre designated for soybeans and one for herbs.
Upon implementation, some were skeptical of the policy.
Some said, "Tilling is time-consuming and laborious, it’s more profitable to grow grains than herbs."
However, many cooperated, genuinely believing Magistrate Zhou had the people’s best interests at heart.
For those in desperate straits, this policy was undoubtedly a lifesaver.
The most enthusiastic were the villagers of Lingshui Village.
Having witnessed the Fuxian family’s success with herbs, they were naturally excited by the new policy.
They were among the first to register at the yamen, pressing their fingerprints and signing for two acres of wasteland.
Not waiting for the yamen to send instructors on how to cultivate herbs, they proactively sought guidance from the Fuxian family.
Fearing the Fuxian family might refuse, the villagers hurriedly tilled the ten acres newly leased by the family.
Yuying had planned to hire people for cultivation, but half of the land was already plowed.
Teaching herb cultivation was inevitable and didn’t require secrecy, so when fellow villagers came asking, Yuying willingly shared her knowledge.
Days passed by one after another.
As the year neared its end, a letter arrived from Fuxian.
Fuxian was busy, and so was she, not having visited Yuxian since the Wen family’s case; it had been over a month since they last saw each other.
Receiving a letter from Fuxian unexpectedly left Yuying somewhat bewildered.
Wen Xing urged her, “Sister-in-law, quickly open it and see what Fuxian has written.”
Yuying, as if awakening from a dream, hurriedly opened Fuxian’s letter.
Moments later, Wen Xing asked, “What did Fuxian say, sister-in-law?”
Folding the letter, Yuying replied, “Fuxian wrote that in a few days, all the magistrates under Cangwu Prefecture are to report at the prefectural seat. He too is going, but since he has difficulty walking, the magistrate has allowed him to take his family along.”
Wen Xing paused for a moment before asking, “Do you want to go with him, sister-in-law?”
Yuying thought that traveling with the yamen officials would be much more convenient than her previous trip to the prefectural seat, and it would also be an opportunity to check on her market stall there.
After pondering for a moment, Yuying said, "I should go."
The departure was scheduled for three days later, but since Old Chen stopped driving his ox cart in winter, Yuying had to walk to the next village for an ox cart to Yuxian, which ran every two days.
Fortunately, there was one leaving tomorrow.
After packing simply, she left for Yuxian the next day, escorted by her brother and sister-in-law.
Fuxian reported to the magistrate the progress of the villages in leasing and cultivating wasteland over the past half month.
The magistrate nodded after listening, “We can’t see much at this stage. The herbs will only be sown in February next year. Let’s talk about the merchant association now.”
Fuxian continued, “The merchant association is now established, and the first batch of herbs is almost ready to be shipped.”
The first batch of herbs was mostly purchased from several medical halls.
This year, fewer traders came to Yuxian to buy herbs, resulting in a surplus at the medical halls.
For the escort, the yamen publicly recruited ten people, each medical hall also sent two, and the yamen dispatched four capable yamen runners.
The magistrate asked, “When will it be sent?”
“After the New Year’s celebration, when it’s a bit warmer and not freezing cold. At that time, there will be a high demand for herbs, and we can sell them at a good price.”
The magistrate hummed in agreement.
If this batch of herbs could be sold successfully, Yuxian’s finances wouldn’t be so strained.
After a few questions, the magistrate remembered the matter of Sun, the staff officer, and furrowed his brows, asking Fuxian, “It’s been two months of the three, and I still see no sign of Sun intending to leave the yamen. What do you think?”
Fuxian thought for a moment and suggested, “Perhaps, Your Honor, a talk with Sun might help him understand and make him consider leaving.”
Magistrate Zhou laughed, “Are you relying on your usefulness to me now and not planning to find a way to make Sun resign?”
“I wouldn’t dare,” Fuxian replied.
“You wouldn’t dare, yet you aren’t hurrying to figure it out. In Cangwu Prefecture, no other county magistrate has three staff officers. Going to the prefectural seat might invite criticism from the Prefect.”
This thought made Magistrate Zhou feel a headache coming on.
The magistrate had stopped assigning tasks to Sun, hoping he would realize the situation and resign on his own.
But Sun pretended to be oblivious and stubbornly refused to leave.
“The man is getting more muddled with age, refusing the dignity I’m offering him,” the magistrate mused.
At this point, the magistrate no longer felt inclined to save Sun's face.
His only concern was that dismissing Sun without respect might cool the hearts of the yamen runners and attendants who had been under Sun's care.
Fuxian assured, “Sun will voluntarily leave before the New Year.”
The magistrate raised an eyebrow, “I hope so.”
As Fuxian left the magistrate’s study, a fine drizzle began to fall outside the eaves, casting a slight gloom over his expression.
He was well aware of the schedule of all ox carts from Lingshui Village to Yuxian and knew that Old Chen, due to his age, stopped coming to Yuxian in the winter.
If A-Ying was to accompany him to the prefectural seat, she would have arrived in Yuxian today.
With such weather, it's unlikely A-Ying will come to Yuxian today.
If they miss this opportunity to meet, the next chance would only be during the New Year festivities.
Fuxian sighed inwardly, his breath forming a fog in the cold air.
He withdrew his gaze, letting the young attendant who had come running push his wheelchair away.
There was a light rain today, and the young attendant had volunteered enthusiastically to escort him home.
Back home, it was Fuxian who opened the gate for him.
As Fuxian was about to close the gate after wheeling his uncle inside, a familiar voice suddenly called out, “Wait!”
For a moment, Fuxian thought he was hearing things.
Chapter 80.
Yuying found that making choices in matters of the heart was much more difficult than finding ways to earn money and get by.
Never having been in love and still holding onto the hope of returning, she truly didn't know how to respond to Fuxian, so her only option was to flee.
Wen Xing poured a cup of lukewarm tea and handed it to her sister-in-law, who was lost in thought at the table, softly saying, “Don’t worry, I won’t ask anything.”
Yuying murmured a “thank you”, took the tea, and sipped it, trying to calm her wildly racing thoughts.
True to her word, her sister-in-law asked nothing, understandingly giving her a night's shelter.
After a sleepless night, Yuying still had no answer.
She wasn’t sure about the depth of her feelings for Fuxian. It must not be too deep yet, or she wouldn’t have hesitated to start a relationship in this somewhat unfamiliar era.
It was probably just a flutter of the heart.
Perhaps she should wait, wait until she had completely given up hope of returning home, wait until her feelings for Fuxian deepened to a point where she felt ready to start something.
After evading the situation last night, they inevitably met in the courtyard the next morning.
They exchanged a glance, and Yuying, suppressing a bit of nervousness, gave Fuxian a small smile and said, “Good morning.”
Faced with Yuying's composed demeanor, Fuxian was briefly taken aback, but then realized she was trying to smooth things over, pretending as if nothing had happened the night before.
Fuxian regretted having been too hasty the previous night, pushing her away.
He also understood that she was the kind to warm up slowly, needing to take things step by step. Pressuring her too much would only result in situations like last night, driving her away.
Realizing this, Fu Wei also smiled at her and gently said, "Good morning."
Seeing the faint smile on Fu Wei's face, Yu Ying tacitly understood its meaning and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Feeling relieved, she asked, "Don’t you have to be on duty at the hour of Chen? Aren’t you worried about being late if you go now?"
Fu Wei responded, "The county magistrate has given permission. It’s fine if I arrive at the yamen a bit later."
Yu Ying nodded upon hearing this and then went to the kitchen to see if any help was needed.
After breakfast, everyone locked the house, asked the He family to keep an eye on it, and then headed to Yu County.
Upon arriving in Yu County, they first went to Xikou Alley to leave Fu Ning in the care of the Luo family before heading to the yamen.
While the eldest brother and sister-in-law went to report in, Fu Wei went to talk to Huo, the yamen runner, to understand the situation.
The yamen runners who had previously accepted bribes from the Wu family had confessed. Now, the eldest brother and sister-in-law were just going through the formalities.
The Wu family mother and son couldn't understand how, after so many years, their deeds were suddenly exposed, and they were brought to the yamen!
Three years ago, the imperial court suddenly issued an order demanding that the term of service for the low-born in Lingnan be changed to seven years for men and six and a half years for women.
This policy caused widespread lamentation. Some tried to flee but were made examples of, publicly whipped until they were a bloody mess.
Fearing death, the Wu family mother and son racked their brains and resorted to the despicable tactic of using a scapegoat.
They almost drained their entire savings to bribe the yamen runners to let their niece take their place in service.
Thus, when the Wu family mother and son saw Wu Xing, despite not knowing how she returned, they instantly realized she was the one who had reported them.
The Wu family's elder aunt, in the public court, pointed at her long-unseen niece, her face contorted with rage, and cursed, "It must have been you, you wretched girl, who reported us! Why don’t you just die!"
Wen Xing was fiercely glared at, the mother and son's eyes seeming as if they wanted to tear her apart.
Haunted memories surged, her heart skipped a beat, and she unconsciously looked towards the crowd outside the hall. Spotting her husband, solid as a mountain, her fear instantly dissolved.
The Wen family mother and son followed her gaze to the crowd, and upon recognizing the grim-looking Fuzhen, their faces turned pale.
Fuzhen had grown even stronger than he was a few years ago.
After bribing the yamen runner, they had feared Fuzhen’s retaliation and thus hid in the city.
Only when they heard Fuzhen had been sent to the quarry did they breathe a sigh of relief and began to live worry-free.
They had planned to leave Yuxian before the couple’s service term ended and before their return.
But why had they returned before their service term was up?!
Amidst their astonishment, the trial had already begun.
The bribe-taking yamen runner, having been arrested when the former magistrate was dismissed, confessed his crime, hoping to drag others down with him.
Magistrate Zhou, known for cutting through complications, did not like to overcomplicate minor matters and quickly passed judgment on the "substitution" case.
The Wen family mother and son were guilty of bribing the yamen runner to replace someone for service without the cousin's consent.
Additionally, substituting a male with a female for service was an even graver crime.
The Wen family eldest son received thirty strokes of the cane, the old woman twenty, and both were to be imprisoned for three months, compensating six years of service money.
Watching her great-aunt and elder cousin, who had once mistreated her, being beaten and crying out, Wen Xing finally felt a sense of justice.
After the judgment of the Wen family's substitution case, many others came forward at the yamen, reporting forced substitutions in their families and asking for the magistrate’s intervention.
It was only upon investigation that it was discovered, following the change in policy for the lower class three years earlier, many had bribed officials to substitute others for hard labor in the quarries.
More often than not, the males were replaced by female family members in these cases.
For just five hundred wen, one could have their name changed, and for an additional three hundred wen, even their gender could be altered.
And most of these affairs were handled during the former county magistrate’s tenure, three years ago.
Corruption was rampant at every level, from the top to the very bottom.
Due to the Wu family mother and son’s seemingly simple case, many other cases involving forced labor in the quarry were uncovered, leading to an exceptionally busy time at the yamen.
Even Fu Wei was extremely busy, juggling responsibilities at the merchant association, new policies, and these various issues.
As Fu Wei got busy, he would return home for lunch and then head straight back to the yamen, sometimes not returning at all.
Meanwhile, Yu Ying busied herself with the newly reclaimed land.
In half a month, she visited Yu County once, but coincidentally missed Fu Wei, who was at the yamen all day.
Verifying these 'scapegoat' cases was straightforward, but deciding on the punishment posed some difficulty.
Forcing those people to the quarry might lead to loss of life, but not doing so could be unfair to those who were coerced there.
After much deliberation, the county magistrate accepted Fu Wei's suggestion.
——Release those forced to work in the quarry, and convert the remaining service time into service fees, to be paid monthly by those originally obligated to serve. If they fail to pay, they must serve honestly in the quarry.
It must be said, after resolving these scapegoat cases, County Magistrate Zhou's reputation significantly improved.
It took Yu Ying a while to realize that Fu Wei was not only handling his sister-in-law’s case but also strategically boosting County Magistrate Zhou’s reputation.
Riding on this wave of popularity, the county magistrate began implementing policies for cultivating medicinal herbs and soybeans.
The villagers planted the herbs, and the county magistrate arranged for knowledgeable individuals to teach them how to cultivate these medicinal plants, rotating through the villages under Yu County's jurisdiction.
The medicinal herbs harvested were bought by four medical halls at two different rates: six wen per jin for the average quality and four wen per jin for the lesser ones.
There was no concern about the farmers selling the herbs directly to traders, as all traders were registered with the yamen, and after investigation, it was found that the annual purchase of herbs was only a few thousand jins.
If managed properly, one acre of land could yield between 600 to 800 jins of herbs annually.
With such a large quantity of common, annual herbs, traders wouldn’t need that much. Even if they did, due to the short cultivation period, the traders wouldn't offer as high as ten or fifteen wen per jin.
The new policy stipulated that if sold directly to traders, the price couldn’t be lower than thirteen wen per jin, and selling below this rate would incur a penalty of ten wen per jin.
This was a strict regulation.
If the traders really wanted to buy, it would be suspicious, and an investigation could serve as a deterrent.
Under these regulations, farmers could choose their own selling method, but most inevitably opted to sell to the medical halls.
Even at the lower purchase rate, 600 jins of herbs dried to 70-80% would still weigh around 300 jins, which at four wen per jin, would yield about 1,300 wen.
After deducting the annual land rent of 200 wen, there was still a profit of about 1,000 wen.
Moreover, the rent didn’t require upfront payment, as the yamen would initially cover the cost of herb and soybean seeds, to be repaid the following year along with the rent.
But land rental wasn’t unrestricted; each family was limited to two acres for cultivation, with one acre designated for soybeans and one for herbs.
Upon implementation, some were skeptical of the policy.
Some said, "Tilling is time-consuming and laborious, it’s more profitable to grow grains than herbs."
However, many cooperated, genuinely believing Magistrate Zhou had the people’s best interests at heart.
For those in desperate straits, this policy was undoubtedly a lifesaver.
The most enthusiastic were the villagers of Lingshui Village.
Having witnessed the Fuxian family’s success with herbs, they were naturally excited by the new policy.
They were among the first to register at the yamen, pressing their fingerprints and signing for two acres of wasteland.
Not waiting for the yamen to send instructors on how to cultivate herbs, they proactively sought guidance from the Fuxian family.
Fearing the Fuxian family might refuse, the villagers hurriedly tilled the ten acres newly leased by the family.
Yuying had planned to hire people for cultivation, but half of the land was already plowed.
Teaching herb cultivation was inevitable and didn’t require secrecy, so when fellow villagers came asking, Yuying willingly shared her knowledge.
Days passed by one after another.
As the year neared its end, a letter arrived from Fuxian.
Fuxian was busy, and so was she, not having visited Yuxian since the Wen family’s case; it had been over a month since they last saw each other.
Receiving a letter from Fuxian unexpectedly left Yuying somewhat bewildered.
Wen Xing urged her, “Sister-in-law, quickly open it and see what Fuxian has written.”
Yuying, as if awakening from a dream, hurriedly opened Fuxian’s letter.
Moments later, Wen Xing asked, “What did Fuxian say, sister-in-law?”
Folding the letter, Yuying replied, “Fuxian wrote that in a few days, all the magistrates under Cangwu Prefecture are to report at the prefectural seat. He too is going, but since he has difficulty walking, the magistrate has allowed him to take his family along.”
Wen Xing paused for a moment before asking, “Do you want to go with him, sister-in-law?”
Yuying thought that traveling with the yamen officials would be much more convenient than her previous trip to the prefectural seat, and it would also be an opportunity to check on her market stall there.
After pondering for a moment, Yuying said, "I should go."
The departure was scheduled for three days later, but since Old Chen stopped driving his ox cart in winter, Yuying had to walk to the next village for an ox cart to Yuxian, which ran every two days.
Fortunately, there was one leaving tomorrow.
After packing simply, she left for Yuxian the next day, escorted by her brother and sister-in-law.
Fuxian reported to the magistrate the progress of the villages in leasing and cultivating wasteland over the past half month.
The magistrate nodded after listening, “We can’t see much at this stage. The herbs will only be sown in February next year. Let’s talk about the merchant association now.”
Fuxian continued, “The merchant association is now established, and the first batch of herbs is almost ready to be shipped.”
The first batch of herbs was mostly purchased from several medical halls.
This year, fewer traders came to Yuxian to buy herbs, resulting in a surplus at the medical halls.
For the escort, the yamen publicly recruited ten people, each medical hall also sent two, and the yamen dispatched four capable yamen runners.
The magistrate asked, “When will it be sent?”
“After the New Year’s celebration, when it’s a bit warmer and not freezing cold. At that time, there will be a high demand for herbs, and we can sell them at a good price.”
The magistrate hummed in agreement.
If this batch of herbs could be sold successfully, Yuxian’s finances wouldn’t be so strained.
After a few questions, the magistrate remembered the matter of Sun, the staff officer, and furrowed his brows, asking Fuxian, “It’s been two months of the three, and I still see no sign of Sun intending to leave the yamen. What do you think?”
Fuxian thought for a moment and suggested, “Perhaps, Your Honor, a talk with Sun might help him understand and make him consider leaving.”
Magistrate Zhou laughed, “Are you relying on your usefulness to me now and not planning to find a way to make Sun resign?”
“I wouldn’t dare,” Fuxian replied.
“You wouldn’t dare, yet you aren’t hurrying to figure it out. In Cangwu Prefecture, no other county magistrate has three staff officers. Going to the prefectural seat might invite criticism from the Prefect.”
This thought made Magistrate Zhou feel a headache coming on.
The magistrate had stopped assigning tasks to Sun, hoping he would realize the situation and resign on his own.
But Sun pretended to be oblivious and stubbornly refused to leave.
“The man is getting more muddled with age, refusing the dignity I’m offering him,” the magistrate mused.
At this point, the magistrate no longer felt inclined to save Sun's face.
His only concern was that dismissing Sun without respect might cool the hearts of the yamen runners and attendants who had been under Sun's care.
Fuxian assured, “Sun will voluntarily leave before the New Year.”
The magistrate raised an eyebrow, “I hope so.”
As Fuxian left the magistrate’s study, a fine drizzle began to fall outside the eaves, casting a slight gloom over his expression.
He was well aware of the schedule of all ox carts from Lingshui Village to Yuxian and knew that Old Chen, due to his age, stopped coming to Yuxian in the winter.
If A-Ying was to accompany him to the prefectural seat, she would have arrived in Yuxian today.
With such weather, it's unlikely A-Ying will come to Yuxian today.
If they miss this opportunity to meet, the next chance would only be during the New Year festivities.
Fuxian sighed inwardly, his breath forming a fog in the cold air.
He withdrew his gaze, letting the young attendant who had come running push his wheelchair away.
There was a light rain today, and the young attendant had volunteered enthusiastically to escort him home.
Back home, it was Fuxian who opened the gate for him.
As Fuxian was about to close the gate after wheeling his uncle inside, a familiar voice suddenly called out, “Wait!”
For a moment, Fuxian thought he was hearing things.
