I am a master in India

Chapter 211 People!
Looking at the corpse before him, Ron was speechless, while Ratan felt stifled.

They hadn't expected the King of Mirzabul to react so quickly and decisively.

You wanted the murderer, didn't you? Here he is.

They didn't even need anyone else to lift a finger; they brought the so-called "criminals" to justice on their own.

A life for a life—that couldn't be fairer in Uttar Pradesh.

The Mirzabul police station also quickly closed the case because the guru was indeed at the crime scene that night.

The villagers testified that someone else was involved? No, it's too dark, you must have seen wrong.

Killing Guru outright was a brilliant move; Ron and the others didn't even have a chance to interrogate him.

With the cooperation of the Mirzabul police station, the Lucknow headquarters has accepted their application to close the case.

Yadav's assistant also called, implying that they should not cause any further trouble, clearly indicating that the Tripati family had also made arrangements in Lucknow.

"Damn it, that damned king is despicable!" Ratan cursed angrily.

"This matter has to end here," Ron sighed.

From a moral standpoint, the Tripati family has already given the Sur family an explanation.

If they continue to press the issue, it will only make the Suer family appear unruly.

It was just a worker who was injured, yet the Tripati family was willing to severely punish the perpetrator. No one would have any objections to that.

Otherwise, how would other powers and officials in Uttar Pradesh view the Sur family?

As for the flawed case closure process, has anyone in Uttar Pradesh really paid attention to it?

Only the poor go to the police; the rich have long since escaped the system.

“We underestimated that Kalinbai. He’s very capable; he’s known as the King of Mirzabul.”

"I'd rather fight him to the death." Ratan had nowhere to vent his anger.

He was impulsive and easily angered, but not stupid. His attempt to attack Kalimbay was already without any legitimate reason.

“He’s a ruthless and ambitious man. We’ve already made enemies, so we need to be extra careful around him from now on.” Ron didn’t like this situation; it was too passive.

“I’ll be stationed at the mine from now on. If he dares to come, that’s exactly what I want.” Ratan plans to put aside the hemp side business and hand it over to his family.

This is a huge project worth hundreds of millions of rupees, and we cannot afford to fail.

In a couple of days, the family will send more juniors over. It's a crucial time for expanding our influence, so everyone must do their utmost.

“I will stay in Mumbai for a while longer, at least until things have completely calmed down.” Ron planned to remain in Mirzabul.

Construction of the mine is proceeding smoothly, with the construction team coming from Odisha, India’s most mineral-rich state.

They have extensive construction experience, and are laying roads, power grids, and water pipelines.

The mine's tunnels lead directly to the ore vein; if mechanical efficiency is not a priority, manual mining is possible.

The foundation of the cement plant is solidifying, and the construction of the subsequent factory buildings will only accelerate.

Ron expects to be able to try producing cement manually next month, with a potential yield of one or two thousand tons per month.

The cement plant will not be officially put into operation until the second half of the year.

This kind of massive project is far more complex than Suer Electric, no wonder only governments and giants could handle it in the past.

Just bear with it a little longer. It's already January 1994, and he'll be on his way to takeoff by the end of the year.

The Muna family has been shrouded in gloom lately, and their lives are getting worse day by day.

Raja's unexpected death dragged this family, which was just beginning to "rise," back into the abyss.

The most pressing problem they face is that they can't afford to repay their high-interest loans.

The groom died before the bride was even married, and the Yadav family broke off the engagement the very next day.

In fact, the night Raja was shot, the bride was so frightened that she ran home and didn't even step inside Muna's house.

Since the marriage didn't happen, the dowry should be taken back.

Muna's grandmother, Old Rutu, threw a tantrum and acted like a spoiled child, but it was no use.

Yadav was not someone they could afford to offend, so they returned all of it, including the five thousand rupees in pristine condition, the "Hero" brand bicycle, and the thick gold chain.

Without this generous dowry, the tea shop owner's usurious loan was out of the question.

No sooner had Yadav left than the tea shop owner came to collect the debt.

In Kana Village, no one can hide anything from anyone else.

Muna's family couldn't come up with 3,500 rupees, so the tea shop owner asked Muna to work for him to pay off the debt.

That won't do. Muna is the family's hope now. He found the best owner in the world—the big boss of the mine!

As long as he has a job, the family has hope of rising again.

Losing your job means the end of everything.

But the tea shop owner was very tough; he was eager for Muna to lose her job.

How dare a country rat dream of getting ahead?
I'd better just go back to the teahouse and let him hit me on the head with a big spoon dipped in syrup!
The tea shop owner forbids the people of Kana Village from breaking free of their cages; servants are to remain servants for generations to come.

Old Rutu wanted Muna to ask Ron for help again, but Muna refused.

He had already asked his master for help regarding his brother's matter; how could a servant cause trouble for his master every day?

He frowned and racked his brains, searching for a way to solve the problem of usury.

If all else fails, I can simply give all of my monthly salary of 300 rupees to the tea shop owner.

With interest compounding, he may have to pay back the high-interest loan for many years, but at least there is still hope.

The family is going back to the hard life they used to live, with no income, no savings, and barely enough to eat.

In the end, it was Ron who noticed his unusual behavior and, after asking a few villagers, learned the whole story.

Ron beckoned Muna over and asked him.

"Does your family owe money to loan sharks?"

“Master, I didn’t squander the money, nor did I gamble. The loan sharks were…” “I know,” Ron waved his hand, “How much did your brother owe for his wedding?”

Muna breathed a sigh of relief. If his master had mistakenly thought he had gambled away money at exorbitant interest rates, he would have been in serious trouble.

“Three thousand five hundred rupees. I could have paid it back for my brother’s wedding, but…” Muna suddenly stopped.

“Here are three thousand five hundred rupees.” Ron handed him the money.

"Master?" Muna stared blankly, not knowing what to say.

"Consider it a loan from me, but there's one condition."

“Please speak!” A resolute glint flashed in Muna’s eyes.

He had made up his mind, and he would not hesitate to kill someone.

"Live well," Ron said with a smile.

“Master.” Muna suddenly couldn’t speak.

"Here's a task for you: get as many people in Mirzabul as possible to support the Suer Cement Plant. Let's start with Kana village."

“Yes, Master!” Muna shouted.

He left the mine and walked home, but as he walked, he suddenly burst into tears.

He couldn't control himself, and tears streamed down his face.

He suddenly understood a principle.

The master never treated him as a servant; he only saw him as a person.

All alone!
Muna was never this close to that word before; it was an unforgettable experience.

Muna paid off the tea shop owner's high-interest loan, but the disappointment in the owner's eyes did not bring him much joy.

He returned to his shack-like home, rummaged through everything, and finally found the cloth bag he had hidden.

The bag was covered in dust and had large and small holes gnawed by insects and ants.

But the contents were still there. Muna carefully opened the cloth bundle, and the yellowed pages stirred his heartstrings.

Yes, he is educated; he should be literate.

Rural India is very poor, but there are still government-run public schools.

Muna's primary school teacher was a fat man who loved chewing betel nuts and would always spit out the red betel nut juice.

The classroom walls were covered with his phlegm stains, like a layer of low red wallpaper.

He often took a lunch break, during which time the students would secretly steal betel nuts from his pocket and share them.

They chewed betel nuts, imitating their teacher, with their hands on their buttocks, bending their waists slightly backward, and then "poof!" spat them out.

The three dirty walls were covered with betel nut juice that they had spat on in turn. On another wall was a mural depicting Buddha sitting under a tree, surrounded by several deer and squirrels.

Over time, the murals have become faded and mottled; this is the only wall that the teacher spared.

He was not a competent official and frequently embezzled funds allocated by his superiors.

The government once had a plan to provide students with three pancakes, along with lentils and kimchi, at lunchtime every day.

But Muna and the others had never seen anything like flatbread, lentils, or pickles before; everyone knew what they were.

The teacher pocketed their lunch money, and he had a plausible excuse for embezzling: he hadn't been paid for six months.

This is a fact and everyone knows it.

You can't expect Indian public school teachers to be very responsible; they'll resort to Gandhi-style protests to get their wages—that is, they won't do anything if they don't get paid in a day.

Of course, he was also afraid of losing his job, because although state-owned enterprises in India have very low incomes, they can earn a lot of extra money on the side.

Once, a truck delivered government-issued uniforms to the students to the school. However, they never saw them.

A week later, however, these uniforms were seen being sold in a neighboring village.

No one blamed the teacher; you can't expect someone to emerge from a cesspool without smelling bad.

Everyone knows that they would have done the same if they were in his situation. Some even admire his shrewdness and efficiency in avoiding being caught.

It's easy to imagine how poor the students' academic performance would be in such a school.

However, Muna was different from them; he loved reading.

One day, a man wearing a blue hunting shirt walked towards their school. The clothes he was wearing were the most expensive Muna had ever seen.

Compared to this, even khaki uniforms pale in comparison.

They crowded at the doorway, staring at his clothes. He was carrying a cane, and when he saw the students gathered at the door, he waved the cane around with a "whoosh" sound.

The students rushed into the classroom, opened their textbooks, and sat down. This was a surprise educational inspection.

The man in the blue hunting shirt, who should be called the supervisor, tapped the hole in the wall with his cane and knocked on the reddish wall. The teacher, standing to the side, was so frightened that he kept saying, "I'm sorry, sir, I'm sorry."

"No winnowing baskets, no chairs, not even school uniforms. Damn it, how much of the school funds did you embezzle?"

The supervisor turned around and wrote four sentences on the blackboard, then pointed at a student with his cane: "Read!"

Several students who were called up stared blankly at the blackboard.

“Sir, let Muna give it a try. He’s the smartest in our class. He’s doing well.”

Then Muna stood up and said, "We live in a beautiful country."

“Not bad,” the supervisor said. “Compared to these scoundrels and idiots, you are a smart, upright, lively and lovely student.”

That day, the supervisor gave him a book as a gift: "The Life Story of Mahatma Gandhi - A Reader for Youth Education".

Muna has treasured this book to this day; it is a shining gem in his heart.

Unfortunately, his father later died of illness, and the family lost their income.

Muna had to drop out of school to work as a waiter in a tea shop, earning a meager income to help support her family.

He kept in mind the task his master had assigned him that day.

His intuition told him that to win the hearts of the people, he first needed to be literate!
(End of this chapter)