A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 320 What a load of crap!
"So, cousin, you suspected there was something wrong with that eagle farm?"

Li Junyou didn't think Song Xuan's arrival was sudden; he must have had some suspicions.

Zhe Jixuan's face showed only surprise; it turned out that they were related.

Yang Wenguang certainly knew where Song Xuan and Li Junyou's kinship came from, and that their relationship was quite close, as they were of the same generation as their maternal uncles.

Song Xuan shook his head:
I'm suspicious of everyone.

"However, what you said about eagle breeders killing people to feed their hearts to the eagles does give me a clue."

"I don't know if there's any kind of witchcraft that requires a precious piece of flesh to be consecrated."

Li Junyou nodded:

"Don't worry, cousin, I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly."

Song Xuan nodded, then looked at Zhe Jixuan and said:

"Your dad only told you to buy eagles, he didn't tell you to do anything else?"

"No."

Song Xuan also sighed and didn't say anything more.

It seems he doesn't even have the chance to become a spy like Guo Baokun!

In Song Xuan's view, this kind of matter definitely needed to be discussed with the Zhe family.

It seems his father understands his eldest son quite well; there are some things he might not tell him, and that might actually lead to success.

Yang Wenguang wanted to talk to Song Xuan about it, but Liu Congde's brother-in-law was there.

Although he was extremely respectful to Song Xuan, could he really be swayed by Song Xuan and willingly draw a line between himself and Liu Congde when faced with interests?
In Yang Wenguang's opinion, there's no point in even thinking about it.

After the food was served, Wang Yufeng spoke up first:

"My lord, I've heard you wrote a poem for the Eight Immortals Restaurant?"

"Yes, I wrote it."

Wang Yufeng was still somewhat surprised when Song Xuan admitted it.

After all, Song Xuan hadn't written anything new since entering the capital, and then he actually wrote a poem for a restaurant.

The key issue isn't Fanlou itself.

"I thought this was fake." Li Junyou was also somewhat surprised.

"Yeah, why should we write for them?"

Wang Yufeng also expressed his confusion: "I heard that someone is willing to pay a high price to sell it from Baxianlou."

"How much did the Eight Immortals Restaurant pay the high-ranking official for his writing?"

Song Xuan, holding a bowl and picking up some food, said:

"What writing fee? I just wrote it randomly. Consider it a reward for Baxianlou being the first to voluntarily make up the debt."

"what?"

Li Junyou did not understand Song Xuan's behavior.

Isn't this using one's own "money" to subsidize the Song Dynasty's finances?
After all, this is quite different from the Li family's fine family tradition.

They were accustomed to turning the Song Dynasty's wealth into their own.

Li Junyou wondered if Song Xuan had no elders in his family to teach him, so he didn't know how high his literary value was.

Especially in Tokyo, a place rife with "money transactions".

Anything can fetch a price, as long as someone wants to buy it.

"Written randomly?"

The people at the same table looked at each other in bewilderment.

Who could possibly write such poems so carelessly?

Song Xuan was being far too modest.

Li Junyou knew the manager of Baxianlou Restaurant. That man surnamed Su had hired craftsmen to carve it day and night, then gilded it and hung it high in the hall.

The first thing everyone sees when they enter the store is this plaque.

Today, it attracted a large crowd to watch the spectacle, and I heard that none of the other 71 legitimate stores gave it a warm welcome.

Because they had just finished their guild meeting, Baxianlou was the first to express its opinion.

But during the meeting, Baxianlou didn't say a word.

How infuriating!
Yang Wenguang marveled.

Song Xuan said he wrote it haphazardly, but those people regarded it as a treasure.

Who would believe it?

As expected of a top scholar, he never cared about his own talent.

Now that a fellow Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) has been murdered, Song Xuan is working tirelessly to save him.

I wonder if he will wander around like this in the future when ordinary people are murdered.

Yang Wenguang didn't say much.

He was just looking for an opportunity to talk to Song Xuan alone about the situation in the Northwest.

If war were to break out in the Northwest, it would be the time for these military generals to make their mark.

Otherwise, you'll spend your whole life standing guard in the imperial city.

Where in the Song Dynasty would there be so many seats available for you?
Although Yang Wenguang did not want to fight, as a military general, he longed to enhance his value through war.

Otherwise, someone like Cao Wei, who is skilled in both literature and martial arts, would have no opportunity to use his talents and would have spent his whole life sighing.

Li Junyou mentioned the Yellow River project to Song Xuan again. Many people were not angry; on the contrary, they thought Liu Congde was bold and knew how to make money.

If I had the chance, I would definitely do the same.

Song Xuan nodded, indicating that he understood. It seemed that the people of Tokyo had long been used to being flooded.

This is not the kind of "public opinion" he wanted.

After they parted ways, Song Xuan went straight back to the yamen to rest.

Yang Wenguang, on the other hand, took his cousin and the eagle home.

Li Junyou also went home to rest and asked his grandfather, who had left work early, about some things.

As Li Shiheng listened to his grandson's description, he stroked his beard and said:
“Our nephew-in-law is resourceful and insightful; he can accomplish great things with little money. This is a testament to his trust.”

"Setting up a log as a sign of trust?"

Li Junyou narrowed his eyes.

"Indeed, Baxianlou has brazenly put on a show. Can the other restaurants still sit still?"

"They will just rush to pay their taxes."

"Just like the old story of Banlou, Song Twelve said that he never cared about money when writing poems and essays."

"Even if you are a beggar, as long as you say the right thing, he will write a poem for you for free."

"But if my cousin writes a poem for every legitimate shop, wouldn't they all become worthless?"

Li Junyou believed that scarcity increases value, which is why the capital city of Dongjing was willing to pay a high price for a poem by Song Xuan.

However, there has never been a market for it.

Even when he was studying in Luoyang, people had already heard that he had a lot of poetry and prose to his name, but he was just too lazy to write them down.

Those who wanted to buy the gold couldn't find Song Xuan's way to do so.

"Do you think it's possible?" Li Shiheng stroked his beard and smiled.
"Even if Song Twelve once said that it wouldn't matter if each person wrote a poem, he wouldn't write one for every family."

"Especially regarding the Banlou incident, anyone who dares to ask him for it again is offending him."

"With all these connections, even if someone figured out the scheming involved, under the influence of the prevailing trend, everyone would still dream of being the next lucky one."

Li Shiheng stood up and strolled around twice:

“Our nephew-in-law is truly extraordinary. I thought he would suffer a loss in the process of becoming the magistrate of Kaifeng.”

"Now it seems that he would be more than qualified to be the Prefect of Kaifeng."

Hearing his grandfather's praise, Li Junyou agreed.

Whether it was internally integrating the people in the county government for his own use, or externally using methods like making an example of someone to warn others, his methods were far beyond what ordinary people could match.

"What's most important, do you know?"

"I don't know, I hope Grandpa can explain it clearly."

"young."

"young?"

Li Shiheng sighed:
“When I was his age, I was still struggling on the path of the imperial examination.”

“I was worried about feeding myself every day, let alone having pen, ink, paper and inkstone. From that time on, I secretly vowed that I would never be poor again.”

"Because nothing can be grown in the land of Qinzhou (today's Tianshui) except for poverty!"

Li Junyou certainly understood his grandfather's words, and he had also heard others discuss it quite a bit.

After all, his grandfather was exceptionally intelligent, but also greedy!

But Li Junyou felt that there was nothing wrong with being greedy.

If it weren't for my grandfather, would I have been able to live a life of luxury since childhood?
At least my grandfather, who worked for the imperial court, never owed the court any money.

He made a fortune using the government's money for over twenty years, only to take the profits back to his own family.

Win-win!

“Song Twelve is different. He’s been smart since he was a child. He makes money by doing business to support himself and even hires a few thugs to protect him. He’s focused on studying hard all the way.”

"That's how he was able to achieve the triple crown at such a young age, but his childhood experiences also honed his skills."

Li Shiheng said with great emotion:
"I have never sung praises of suffering, but suffering has always haunted the first half of my life."

“My nephew-in-law is not the kind of person who likes to glorify suffering.”

He had a conversation with his nephew-in-law on the day of Song Xuan's wedding.

After all, Lao Cao's parents are no longer alive, but his father-in-law is, so how could he not sit in a front seat?

"At that time, I was certain that this child had a very bright future."

Everyone says Cao Liyong was lucky to snatch a good son-in-law, and they all praise him.

"Actually, I've always felt that it was my nephew-in-law who chose me as his son-in-law, which led to the fact that I'm being praised by others."

Li Junyou didn't respond.

After all, this matter somewhat overturned his understanding.

Regardless of anything else, his uncle was the number one military officer in the Song Dynasty.

As long as he doesn't rebel, no one can shake his position.

Li Shiheng smiled and told his grandson not to worry so much. He had been deeply moved by what he heard about this today.

"Grandpa can't help you in a short time."

Li Shiheng stopped in his tracks: "But Song Xuan is fine, you should stick with him."

"Yes."

……

When Song Xuan returned to the county government office, he listened to Qi Lecheng's report that the managers of twenty-five restaurants, including Banlou, Liqijia, Changqinglou, Dailou, and Yichenglou, had arrived with money.

The courtyard was noisy. Song Xuan nodded: "Alright, so many people coming at once, it's not easy to entertain them."

Qi Lecheng quickly took the lead and called out, "My lord is back!"

In an instant, all the shopkeepers around gathered around.

Ban Feng and other yamen runners stepped forward one after another to stop the crowd from getting close to Song Xuan and committing any improper acts.

Song Xuan did not reprimand Ban Feng and the others for their behavior; these businessmen were all driven by profit.

If I hadn't given Baxianlou a little-known poem, would this gang have come here like flies drawn by the scent?
Although the status of merchants has improved, they still cannot be compared with that of the scholar-officials.

Therefore, they were not at all unhappy about being prevented from getting close to Song Xuan by the yamen runners.

Instead, they hoped that Song Xuan would be generous and, considering that they had made up for their debts, treat them the same as the Eight Immortals Restaurant.

One song per person, no one should steal it!

After all, Song Xuan had a well-known reputation.

With so many people arriving, things got chaotic, and Song Xuan didn't go into the back hall.

That place isn't suitable for handling so many people.

So Song Xuan sat directly in the front hall, the place where he was usually responsible for interrogating prisoners.

Although many yamen runners were stationed there to maintain order, they did not bring any fire or water sticks, nor did they express any sense of power or authority.

"My lord."

"Greetings, Your Excellency."

The group of people still greeted each other with bows and salutations through the yamen runners, their faces bearing the obsequious smiles of scholars.

"My lord, this is the list of those who have come to repay their debts."

Song Xuan took the roster from the registrar Zheng Wenhuan and looked it over from beginning to end: "Is it registered in order?"

"It is indeed registered according to the order of outstanding payments."

Zheng Wenhuan was still a little proud. He had prepared in advance, which made it easier for Song Xuan to see who had more and who had less, without needing to sort them again.

"What I mean is, which family arrived first and which family arrived later."

Zheng Wenhuan was taken aback when Song Xuan said this.

Then they heard the innkeeper shout, "So that the sir may know, I was the first to arrive, the very first one here!"

"I was here first."

"Bullshit, it was me."

Song Xuan listened to their arguing but did not stop them.

"I'm going to the restroom. Magistrate Zhou, please help me for a while."

"Hey, hey."

Zhou Derong quickly responded and sat down in the chair belonging to the county magistrate with mixed feelings, watching the merchants below making a fuss.

So this is what it's like to be a county magistrate!
He has struggled for more than 20 years and has only just reached this point. It is still a long way off for him to become a magistrate who can rule a region and become a local tyrant!

After all, Zhou Derong had also worked his way up from a clerk position.

Reaching this point today already makes them truly exceptional individuals!

Although minor officials may not have official ranks, they wield considerable power in the eyes of the common people.

The underworld can easily infiltrate the legitimate world, at most reaching the level of officials.

It's really hard to justify letting an official who passed the imperial examinations twice become a gang leader.

For example, Song Jiang went to the capital to take the imperial examination and finally became a prefect, but he only liked to use weapons and recruit heroes from the Jianghu (江湖, the martial arts world), spending his days talking about murder and arson. That sounds outrageous. There is ultimately a gap between officials and the people.

Officials were the places where the underworld and the legitimate world were most likely to intersect in ancient times.

It is said that a county magistrate ruins a family and a prefectural governor exterminates an entire clan.

However, the clerks who were looked down upon by the Song Dynasty officials were already the ceiling that ordinary people could reach.

They rarely see real officials; Clerk Song represents the government, his word is law, and he has the power to "kill or save."

How could a mere clerk be worthy of being called a timely rain?
How can you match them up? How can you match them up? Living in the Song Dynasty, watch how that clerk will make your life a living hell!

However, in the capital city of Tokyo, a mere clerk like you can't cause any trouble.

In the early Song Dynasty, officials were ashamed of engaging in commerce and usually did it secretly.

However, starting from the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, the situation changed drastically, and many officials openly engaged in business, becoming "official merchants".

They not only operate openly, but their operations are also growing in scale.

Not only were their methods illegal, but they were also proud of them.

People are no longer as unacceptable as before; on the contrary, public opinion is becoming more and more "understanding."

As the Song Dynasty enjoyed a long period of peace, the idea that having money meant being powerful became deeply ingrained in people's minds.

This is also why Song Xuan's attempt to spread rumors by sending people from the Imperial City Guard failed to achieve his desired outcome!
There was even a twist in the story: Liu Congde's voluntary repayment of the debt was portrayed as him cooperating with Song Xuan's work.

This made Song Xuan believe that someone was manipulating public opinion behind the scenes, most likely Liu E was behind it.

Snapped.

Magistrate Zhou slammed the gavel down, interrupting his humiliating memories of his past as a clerk.

Everyone was startled and looked at Magistrate Zhou, but none of them paid him any attention.

There's no other reason than that everyone has someone behind them!

"Quiet! What kind of order is this, making such a racket?"

"I advise you to arrange your order of arrival as soon as possible, lest the master comes back in a moment and throws a tantrum and kicks you all out."

“You can disregard my, Zhou Derong’s, dignity.”

County Magistrate Zhou surveyed the group of people and said coldly:

“But since you, sir, have asked me to sit here and handle this, I represent your dignity.”

"If you don't give me face, you're slapping the lord in the face again."

"If you anger the master, don't blame me for not speaking up for you out of consideration for our past relationship."

Zhou Derong's arrogant demeanor, which seemed to be a mere figurehead, actually intimidated the group.

So everyone calmed down and quickly lined up in order.

“Registrar Zheng, please make another record. Once it’s done, I’ll go and fetch the master back.”

"Yes."

These usually respectable shopkeepers lined up obediently, not daring to say anything more.

Banlou is the first in line; let's see what happens to him.

If he can be forgiven, it will further prove that Master Song is dealing with the matter, not the person.

In this way, everyone had a good understanding of Song Xuan's temperament.

That way, we can address the problem more effectively in the future, and avoid angering Song Xuan.

Song Xuan lay on the recliner and took a nap.

County Magistrate Zhou stood outside the door for a while but did not go in to disturb him.

Even though everyone present today is a prominent businessman, the top-ranked shops are quite reserved and haven't participated.

It's perfectly normal to leave them out in the cold for a while.

County Magistrate Zhou hadn't expected that Song Xuan was so adept at the ways of officialdom.

In particular, he kept replaying his furious outburst in court.

So this is what it feels like to be a county magistrate!

Zhou Derong didn't know how to describe it, but he knew that there was a huge gap between him and becoming a county magistrate.

He recalled what Song Xuan had said back then, and wondered if he would have a chance to overcome this chasm if he worked hard under him.

Zheng Wenhuan, panting, ran all the way and said:

"Is the master finished?"

"what happened?"

A flash of anger crossed Zhou Derong's face:

"Are you saying those merchants won't even wait a little while?"

"No, no, the Imperial Censor Wang Shu has come in a hurry and wants to see you, sir."

"Oh?"

Zhou Derong didn't wait any longer, but knocked on the door and said:
"My lord, Censor-in-Chief Wang Shu requests an audience."

Song Xuan sat up from the recliner: "Who is this person? I've never heard of him."

County Magistrate Zhou quickly introduced Wang Shu to Song Xuan, who was also a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations).

Because his second wife was the daughter of the former prime minister Kou Zhun, he was implicated and demoted, serving as an official in the provinces for many years.

He was particularly famous for governing Sichuan, and was known as Zhang Yong (formerly Zhang Yong, later Wang Yong).

However, due to his effective administration of justice, his heavy reliance on criminal law, and his status as the current emperor's tutor, he was recalled.

Song Xuan nodded, knowing he had no connection with Wang Shu, and then had someone invite him in.

As soon as Wang Shu entered the backyard, he saw Song Xuan standing at the door to greet him, his eyes slightly red and swollen. He immediately said:

“Magistrate Song, I am Wang Shu, now serving as the Vice Censor-in-Chief. I have come here on private business.”

Song Xuan looked at the little old man with white hair and beard:

“Please speak freely, Lord Wang. If I can help, I certainly will.”

Wang Shu did not hide anything:
"Li Yuan is my son-in-law."

"what?"

Song Xuan was somewhat bewildered, so he called the coroner and accompanied Wang Shu to the morgue.

The morgue was built to be extremely cool, and some ice was placed inside.

Wang Shu entered the morgue.

He had often come in to watch the coroners examine corpses and solve cases, but he never expected that something like this would happen to him.

Song Xuan stood aside, watching Wang Shu, a man in his sixties, examine his son-in-law's body.

When Wang Shu looked at the empty heart, he was completely stunned.

"I've heard of cases where people are murdered in bathrooms to harvest hearts and kidneys, but I've never understood why?"

Despite her strong will, Wang Shu couldn't help but shed tears.

This is his youngest daughter's husband; they've only been married for less than two years.

Moreover, Li Yuan was a talent that I had high hopes for after I was demoted to a post outside the capital, so I deliberately let him follow my old path.

I never expected such a thing to happen.

If I hadn't been recalled this year, this wouldn't have happened.

“Minister Wang, this is the first time I’ve heard of this. All the case files from the past are in Kaifeng Prefecture. I have no right to access them and cannot obtain firsthand information.”

Hearing Song Xuan's words, Wang Shu understood and wiped away her tears.
"Magistrate Song, did you discover anything during your investigation of the scene?"

"Shoe print".

Song Xuan described what he had made rubbings of and his judgments based on the scene.

It's impossible to determine immediately whether it's the same perpetrator from before or a copycat crime.

Wang Shu listened to Song Xuan's detailed description.

He did agree that Song Xuan hadn't dealt with things haphazardly, but had instead entrusted the investigation to his subordinates.

However, relying solely on shoe prints to find the real culprit among a million people is an incredibly difficult task.

Moreover, with Wang Shu's return to the capital, he felt that the population of Tokyo City had probably exceeded one million.

“I can’t make a judgment on this matter either, but I can go to Kaifeng Prefecture and retrieve all the files on the bathroom murder case for you, so we can look at them together.”

Wang Shu gritted his teeth and said:

"No matter what, I will bring the murderer to justice!"

"That would be great."

Song Xuan nodded repeatedly:

"With Wang Zhongcheng's help, we can quickly catch the murderer and prevent him from becoming too old to use a knife, thus avoiding the case becoming an unsolved case and him escaping punishment."

"So you subconsciously ruled out revenge killings and murders for money?"

Song Xuan shook his head:
"I can't rule out a revenge killing for sure, but I can rule out a robbery killing. The clothes and valuables weren't taken, but the heart was taken, unless someone was willing to pay a high price for the heart."

"But then I thought about all the beggars in Tokyo, and how many people were kidnapped in Wuyou Cave."

"If such a business existed, they would have done it long ago. Why would they bother hunting down a mere scholar?"

"We can't say anything until the murderer is caught."

"Too."

Song Xuan didn't want to argue with him about this.

Anyway, until the murderer is caught, everything we say is just nonsense.

Wang Shu sighed, concealing the sadness on his face, and slowly covered his son-in-law with a white cloth:
"Let's leave it here for two days. I haven't told my daughter about this yet."

"Hey."

Song Xuan didn't respond.

Wang Shu walked around the corpse and approached Song Xuan, sizing him up:

"Magistrate Song, you didn't even try to comfort me in my grief."

"What's the use of mourning when someone dies? Only by catching the murderer and beheading him can we pay tribute to the dead and at the same time allow ourselves to sleep peacefully for the rest of our lives."

Hearing Song Xuan's insightful words, Wang Shu was stunned for a moment before speaking:

"Magistrate Song truly deserves to be called the youngest top scholar in our Great Song Dynasty; he sees things so clearly."

"Wang Zhongcheng should think about how to face his family."

Song Xuan asked him to leave the morgue, saying that as the emperor's teacher, he would surely be given an important position in the future.

After Song Xuan saw Wang Shu off, he stood at the entrance of the county government office and watched him leave in a donkey cart.

“My lord, he is unwilling to speak to me.”

Qi Lecheng offered an explanation, and Wang Shu barged right in.

Song Xuan nodded, this was simply because Qi was not successful.

He was a high-ranking official, and his family had run into trouble, so it's perfectly normal for him to just barge in.

"Okay, I'll go and meet these guys."

With his hands behind his back, Song Xuan strolled slowly toward the main hall.

When everyone saw Song Xuan arrive, they quickly bowed.

Song Xuan ignored everyone, simply walked up the steps, sat in the main seat, and looked at the group of people below.

“Registrar Zheng, the list of people who came has been arranged in order of arrival.”

"Replying to your question, sir, the roster is here."

Song Xuan took it and looked at it slowly.

Song Xuan's actions indeed made the people below afraid to even breathe.

After all, the official's temper is exceptionally "good," as long as you don't provoke him.

Liu Congde was thrown out by the high-ranking official.

The rest of Tokyo City was unaware of this matter, but those with influence heard about it.

"Is Manager Ban the first one to arrive?"

Upon hearing Song Xuan's question, the manager of Banlou immediately stepped forward:
"I did arrive early this morning, but I never expected that you would leave without coming in. I have been waiting here until now and haven't even had lunch yet."

"Qian Gansan".

"The little one is here."

"You take Manager Ban to count the money and put it in the counter."

"Here."

Song Xuan then said to Manager Ban, "Send someone to buy you some food to tide you over. I have something to say to you later."

"Yes."

Manager Ban followed him anxiously.

Song Xuan looked at the second-place winner and said, "Please introduce yourself."

One by one, they came to introduce themselves, and Song Xuan sat there listening, occasionally taking notes on a piece of paper.

This left the shopkeepers below completely bewildered as to what Song Xuan was really up to.

In short, it was a process of going through the meetings one by one, with Song Xuan taking notes.

After everyone had finished taking notes, Song Xuan finally breathed a sigh of relief, stood up, and strolled around for a few minutes.

"Qian Gansan, make sure your brothers are careful. If anything goes wrong, you'll be ruined."

"Here."

After Song Xuan finished speaking, he took his notes and went straight back to the back room, leaving many shopkeepers looking at each other in bewilderment.

They were still waiting for Song Xuan to write a poem for them.

Even just a simple word would be appreciated.

But Song Xuan just took the money and left, looking all fresh and clean.

They nudged each other, exchanging glances, all wanting someone else to step forward and ask Master Song.

But he didn't want to offend Song Xuan.

No one dared to ask.

Song Xuan took the collected information and sat down on the recliner to continue resting.

The group didn't dare to question Song Xuan; instead, they surrounded County Magistrate Zhou.

(End of this chapter)