spoiled brat

Chapter 97, Section 96: Self-Salvation (Part Six)

They hesitated and made various excuses to refuse.

As soon as Yuan Yue raised her hand, everyone rushed forward and tied up all the warehouse guards. Zhao Zhao took out a bunch of keys from the head of the warehouse guards' waist and showed them to Yuan Yue: "Miss Yue, look."

To prevent moisture damage, granaries are typically only opened before spring sowing and after autumn harvest unless needed. Although it is autumn harvest time, the millet is still being threshed and winnowed, and has not yet reached the stage of being dried and stored.

After opening each of the granaries, Yuan Yue had someone measure the mold lines on the granary walls. They were found to be significantly higher than the rice level, confirming that what Li's mother had said was true.

Yuan Yue interrogated the warehouse guards: "Who conspired with you to steal grain?"

The Kudings didn't respond; their faces all screamed "I'd rather die than tell," much like the assassins in a storybook.

Judging from their posture, Zhao Zhao guessed that they were afraid of harming their families, and said lightly, "Why don't we detain them first, and then find out who their wives and children are? We can use that to blackmail them and get them to talk."

Upon hearing this, the gourd-like men erupted in anger, shouting, "How can you be so vicious at such a young age? Even storytellers and opera singers wouldn't stoop to such vulgarity. How dare someone from the royal palace use such tactics on us commoners!"

"You lowly commoners! You've even dared to steal grain from your master!" the maid scolded.

"Master? Bullshit! We're all surnamed Fan, and our family genealogy records in the ancestral hall are all older than yours. We've walked around this village more times than your father has ever messed with your mother! The money and grain in the granary are all collected by us year after year. Why should it all go to you outsiders? You're trying to kick us out, can't we at least take some money and grain with us?"

Yuan Yue sensed something was amiss and asked, "When did I say I wanted to kick you out?"

"The news has been circulating in the village for a while now! They're saying they're going to give our houses and land to the families of soldiers from other places!"

It seems that someone spread rumors, stirred up trouble among the farmhands, and then instigated them to do this shady work.

Besides Fan Jin and his old men, who else could it be? Yuan Yue only regretted her own stupidity, which had wasted so much time and given the villains an opportunity to take advantage of her.

"You can rest assured about the land issue. Our Prince Ning's Mansion is not worth risking a reputation for oppressing the people for such a petty gain," Yuan Yue said. "If you are willing to tell me who instructed you, this matter will be forgiven, and I will not hold it against you."

The crowd remained silent, offering no direct rebuttal, and their arrogance subsided.

Just as things were about to loosen, twenty or thirty burly men came from the south, escorting a small sedan chair and speeding towards them.

As the sedan chair came to a stop, Fan Jinpang squeezed out, glanced at the scene, and forced a bow: "Miss Yue."

"You're quick to get the news."

"My men reported that the young lady has come to inspect the granary. I was afraid you might have some questions, so I came to check on her."

Yuan Yue sneered: "Master Fan, there are too many things I don't understand. I'm too lazy to talk about the muddled accounts and the switching of medicines and poisoning, but could you please explain the matter of the embezzlement of grain by the guards?"

Van Jin looked at the bound guards and asked, feigning seriousness, "Is this true?"

The warehouse workers looked at Fan Jin as if he were their savior: "Chieftain..." After being glared at by him, they immediately changed their tune: "We are innocent! We have always guarded the warehouse strictly, and we have not let even a ghost in. Miss Yue insists that we colluded with thieves to steal grain... We are innocent!"

Fan Jin looked at Yuan Yue sheepishly: "Miss Yue, although I'm no longer in charge of affairs, I still manage the ancestral hall, and everyone in the village calls me clan leader. What's your basis for accusing my younger generation of stealing grain?"

He knew Yuan Yue hadn't even sorted out the accounts, so she had no idea how much rice was in the granary. A maid stepped forward: "Master Fan, you've managed the granary for many years, so you naturally know that Yunzhou summers are hot and humid, and even dried grain is prone to mold. Why don't you go and see how much higher the mold lines on the granary walls are than the rice level!"

Fan Jin sent people to investigate, and sure enough, a lot was missing. He could no longer deny it. Yuan Yue said coldly, "Does Head Fan have anything else to say? If not, I will take them down for questioning."

The Kudings cried out, "Chieftain, save us...Chieftain!"

Yuan Yue raised her hand to signal to lead her men away, but Fan Jin suddenly shouted, "Wait!"

Twenty or thirty burly men surrounded him from behind, forming a dark, impenetrable wall that made the maids and servants Yuan Yue's companions appear even more frail.

“Miss Yue, you’ve only been here a short time. It’s probably not appropriate for you to make any big moves in the manor.” Fan Jin said with a smile, “Why don’t you leave with your people? Let’s interrogate them here. I’ll do it so as not to tarnish your reputation or make the Prince’s Mansion seem arrogant and domineering.”

He spoke softly, but his demeanor was anything but negotiable. Zhao Zhao thought to herself, "Oh no, Yuan Yue has been lifted up."

As expected, Yuan Yue, mindful of the Prince's reputation, reluctantly nodded. The servants, relieved, immediately smiled, only to see Fan Jin bend down, pick up a large stone from the ground, and smash it down on the head of the nearest person with a loud thud. The man instantly bled profusely and fainted before he could even cry out.

Fan Jin's dozens of men followed suit, surrounding the captured guards and beating them mercilessly, causing them to wail and scream in agony.

"Stop!" Yuan Yue shouted. But Fan Jin didn't take her seriously at all. The group of maids and servants she brought were no match for her. Several of them tried to stop her, but were slapped away before they even got close.

Helpless, the maids and servants could only protect Yuan Yue and Zhao Zhao as they retreated, watching helplessly as Fan Jin and his men beat the man to death. When the screams stopped, the man lying in a pool of blood on the ground was barely alive, probably beyond saving.

"How dare you!" Staring at the blood that had reached her feet, Yuan Yue clenched her fists. "Killing someone to silence them right in front of me, do you really not respect the Prince Ning's manor?" "I don't understand what you're saying, young lady." Fan Jin quickly knelt down, trembling with fear. "You're young and kind-hearted, unaware that this is the rule in the manor. This is the consequence of stealing money and grain; it's engraved on the stone tablet in the ancestral hall... Besides, didn't you ask me to handle this?"

The burly men behind him also knelt down, their posture humble but without respect, coldly glancing at Yuan Yue and her group.

Their eyes were menacing, and Zhao Zhao felt a chill run down her spine. The Fan family in this village was numerous and powerful; even if they were beaten to death here, what difference would it make? The bodies had to be disposed of properly, and the news had to be kept secret. By the time outsiders found out, they would probably be long gone.

Before Yuan Yue could speak again, Zhao Zhao tugged at her sleeve and then stepped forward to smooth things over: "Master Fan, Miss Yue doesn't mean to blame anyone, she's just a little frightened." She reached out to help Fan Jin, who was kneeling on the ground, to his feet.

Fan Jinshun got up from the slope and said, "Miss Yue, I was careless and frightened you..." He turned around and shouted at his men, "Hurry up and drag him away to bury him?"

"Yes!"

Everyone was dragged away, and Van Jin took his leave.

The maids and servants on Yuan Yue's side, still terrified from the sight of blood, suppressed their curses, saying, "They dare to do this in front of the young lady. If they get the chance in private, won't they tear us apart?"

"Miss Yue." Zhao Zhao still remembered what the man had said last night—what kind of life of luxury and immortality could be achieved by simply stealing grain? "The granary has been robbed, and I wonder what happened to the silver vault..."

Yuan Yue was immediately struck by these words and led people to investigate.

The young men went down into the cellar and quickly came back up to report: "Miss, those bastards stole a lot; the silver is at least several thousand taels less than when we entered the manor!"

In just half a month, several thousand taels of silver had flowed out. Yuan Yue closed her eyes, filled with self-reproach and regret. Zhao Zhao comforted her, saying, "The most important thing right now is to transfer the silver out first and put it into Tianyi Bank for safekeeping."

“But those warehouse guards who were beaten to death said that everyone in the village thinks they’ve hoarded the land and grain. If we transport it out in large quantities, do you think they’ll stop?” The maid squatted down dejectedly. “If Fan Jinyi incites them, who knows what kind of trouble they’ll cause.”

"Are they the only ones who can be thieves?" Zhao Zhao asked rhetorically.

Everyone was stunned. They had grown up under the power of their master's family, and they had no need or reason to play tricks. Being too righteous would only bring them trouble.

"You mean..." Yuan Yue glanced into the cellar, "we're also secretly smuggling things out?"

“This method is truly a last resort,” Zhao Zhao said. “But right now, we must first protect the money, and then slowly outmaneuver the Fan family.”

Everyone agreed it was feasible. After some discussion, they discovered that most of the people patrolling the village at night were Fan Jin's men, making it impossible to smuggle goods out at night. Fortunately, it was late summer harvest time, and the village was stockpiling large quantities of goods at the shops. They could use the grain and wheat as a cover to smuggle out the money.

The plan was agreed upon, but the question of who would escort the silver became a problem. Transporting the goods was not an important matter, but if someone close to Yuan Yue were to go, it would definitely arouse Fan Jin's suspicion.

“Miss Yue, why don’t I go?” Zhao Zhao said. “I’ve only just started working for you, so it’s normal for me to be assigned to a menial job. Besides, I’m from Xiangyun County, so I know a lot of strong and sturdy neighbors. I can bring some back to the village to make up for it.” She paused, then continued, “It’s better than us being scared off by those dozens of thugs just now.”

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at Zhao Zhao, finding it rather strange. An ordinary person, after being hired and encountering such troubles, should have wanted to run away; why was she so eager to get involved?
Yuan Yue asked, "Aren't you afraid?"

Zhao Zhao realized that she was not like an ordinary person who was afraid of death. Upon hearing this, she knelt down and looked up at Yuan Yue, acting very pitiful: "Of course I am afraid. To be honest, I have my own selfish reasons. The outside world is in chaos. Although the village is not stable either, at least we have enough to eat... I am fortunate to have been chosen by you, and I want to bring my relatives and friends to heaven with me."

That makes perfect sense. Besides, the families of soldiers who had moved here were also going to escort the goods, so there's no fear that Zhaozhao would run away with the money. Yuan Yue helped Zhaozhao up: "Okay."

-

Today is an even-numbered day, so I'm rushing to the market.

Farmers and villagers carried their goods to the county to sell, and the streets were bustling with pedestrians and carriages.

At this time, the beggars would become sensible and gather together at the dilapidated temple in the west of the city, huddled together like ants, and talk about what they had seen and heard recently.

"...Last time, that 'living bodhisattva' asked us to help find out where her mother was, saying she'd pay double if we found out. Have you found out anything?"

"We practically turned the land upside down, but we didn't find a single hair! Sigh, it's better not to talk about it, because it reminds me of those steamed buns from that day... I'm so hungry, I've spent all the copper coins I got last time, I wonder when I'll be able to make a fortune again."

No sooner had one beggar's stomach finished rumbling than another immediately joined in, the rumbling sounds echoing throughout the dilapidated temple.

Suddenly, the crooked door of the dilapidated temple creaked open, and a child's voice asked, "Who wants to eat steamed buns!"

The beggars were so hungry that they could barely open their eyes in the sunlight. They could make out a half-grown child standing outside the threshold, dressed in coarse linen clothes, who didn't look like someone who had money to offer food.

"Little brat, are you kidding your grandpas?"

Several handfuls of dirt flew towards the child, who covered his head and dodged, explaining, "It wasn't me! It wasn't me! It was a big sister who gave him candy! She sent me to call the oldest among you to the past!"