Prime Minister

Chapter 127, Section 126: [Removing the Fire from Underground]

Qingshan Town is located in the northwest of the county seat.

The Hu family was one of the most prominent families in the area, with a vast estate. Although it was not uncommon for private residences to exceed the established boundaries during the Taihe era, the extravagance of the Hu family mansion was still rare. Fortunately, it was a small place and would not attract much attention.

The Hu family is affiliated with the Liu family of the prefectural city. Their main business is the salt business, but they also dabble in various other businesses. Over the years, they have encroached on most of the farmland in Qingshan Town, and many people have become their tenants.

In the main hall of the inner courtyard, the patriarch Hu Qing sat at the table, a jade walnut twirling in his left hand. He coldly stared at his eldest son, Hu Yong, who was kneeling below, and scolded, "You worthless beast!"

Even though Hu Yong was over thirty, he still acted like a mouse avoiding a cat in front of Hu Qing, who had long held sway over him. He said timidly, "Dad, who knew that Ah Si and his gang were useless? They couldn't even keep an eye on a good-for-nothing, and he actually got away."

"You still have the nerve to say it?"

Hu Qing said coldly, "What did I tell you before? In these critical times, you must be extra careful. You spend your days chasing cockfights and dogs, or going to brothels in the county and prefectural cities, completely forgetting what I told you!"

"But……"

Hu Yong said timidly, "I wanted to kill Wang Shuan directly, but Father disagreed..."

"Snapped!"

Hu Qing stood up and slapped Hu Yong across the face, then sat down again, his face ashen, and said, "How could I have given birth to such an idiot like you!"

Hu Yong immediately dared not say another word, fearing that the other cheek would also be affected.

Hu Qing grew angrier the more he thought about it, and said coldly, "Back then, I sent you to take over the Wang family's land, and I took care of all the arrangements for you, but you idiot still managed to kill someone! If I hadn't spent a lot of money to silence some people in the town, you would have been locked up in jail by Zhang Shi long ago! You even wanted to kill Wang Shuan to cover it up. Open your dog eyes and see who's in charge of Yangzhou Prefecture now!"

Hu Yong said with difficulty, "It is Xue Tongzhi."

"You still want to cause trouble at this critical juncture? Are you afraid that Magistrate Xue won't find a reason to deal with our Hu family?"

Hu Qing was so disappointed in his son that he slammed his hand on the table, shattering the jade walnut into pieces.

Hu Yong shuddered in fright and said, completely bewildered, "Dad, Wang Shuan has run away, what should we do now?"

"His timing in escaping was too perfect; he's probably already at the county office complaining to Magistrate Xue."

Hu Qing rubbed his temples, about to give orders, when the head steward Hu Bao walked in somewhat flusteredly. Before he could even bow, he hurriedly said, "Master, the county officials have arrived. They say someone has filed a complaint against our Hu family. Magistrate Xue of this prefecture requests that you and the young master go to the county office."

"Father, Magistrate Xue has found out. What should we do?"

Hu Yong's body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Hu Qing stood up, kicked Hu Yong to the ground, and shouted angrily, "What's the panic?"

He then looked at Hu Bao and asked, "Did you hear that clearly? Those yamen runners came to invite us, not to arrest us and take us back?"

Hu Bao quickly replied, "I understand, it's to invite the master and young master over."

Hu Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He paced back and forth for a moment and said to Hu Bao, "You have two things to do now."

"What are your orders, sir?"

"The first thing to do is to immediately send someone to the prefectural city to find my nephew and tell him the whole story. Ask him to seek help from Prefect Liu, Magistrate Zheng, and the other families in the prefectural city. Magistrate Xue is up to no good, and it will be difficult for our Hu family to deal with him on our own. We must work together now, otherwise if our Hu family falls, all the problems in the salt administration will be exposed."

"Rest assured, sir, I guarantee I will take care of it."

Hu Bao patted his chest and agreed. The young nephew that Hu Qing mentioned was Hu Quan, the magistrate of Yangzhou Prefecture. The amount of money that the Hu family gave to help Hu Quan rise to power was staggering. Now it was naturally time for him to serve the clan.

Hu Qing thought for a moment and then said, "Secondly, if Yong'er and I are left in the county government office, you must take people to the county town to appeal for justice no later than the day after tomorrow!"

Hu Bao's eyes darted around, and he quickly understood.

The Hu family was like local tyrants in Qingshan Town. It was easy for them to incite dozens or even hundreds of people to go to the county government to seek justice. Although this was suspected of being a riot, Hu Qing wanted to ensure that he would not be punished by Xue Huai before the reinforcements from the prefectural city arrived. Even if such methods had consequences, he didn't care about them.

Hu Bao bowed and said, "Master, I understand what to do."

Hu Qing trusted his steward, who had been with him for many years, completely; he trusted him more than his son, Hu Yong.

He raised his hand and patted Hu Bao on the shoulder, then led Hu Yong toward the front house.

……

The main hall of Yizhen County Government Office.

While waiting for the Hu family father and son, Xue Huai had the clerk take Wang Shuan to make more detailed records, and at the same time dealt with a few minor cases.

Around 9:45 AM, the county yamen runners finally brought the Hu family father and son back.

Hu Yong hadn't expected that there were still dozens of people watching from the corner. Looking at the solemn yamen runners on both sides and Xue Huai with a cold expression in the hall, his legs suddenly felt weak.

While he was hanging out in the city's entertainment district, he heard people talk about Xue Huai's ruthless methods. Coupled with his guilty conscience, he kept his head down and dared not make any rash moves.

Hu Qing frowned and coughed lightly to calm his useless son down. He then stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Junior Hu Qing greets Your Excellency!"

Hu Yong realized what was happening and quickly followed suit with a bow.

Both father and son were students of the Imperial Academy, meaning they bought their places in the Imperial Academy with silver. This status was traditionally looked down upon by officials who had passed the imperial examinations, but at least they had official rank and enjoyed more rights than ordinary people.

For example, they do not need to kneel and bow when facing Xue Huai, who is of the fifth rank.

Xue Huai looked up and saw that Hu Qingnian, who was over fifty years old, had a calm and composed demeanor. On the contrary, Hu Yong, who was standing next to him, was timid and shrinking, and it was obvious at a glance that he was a useless playboy.

He said expressionlessly, "Hu Qing, do you know why I summoned you and your son here?"

"I heard about this from the yamen runners when I came here."

Hu Qing glanced at Wang Shuan kneeling not far away and said sternly, "Your Honor, what Wang Shuan is accusing is a complete and utter false accusation!"

Wang Shuan's eyes reddened, but he desperately restrained himself. He knew he couldn't provoke Xue Huai's displeasure, even though his heart was completely consumed by anger. "False accusation?"

Xue Huai said indifferently, "Then tell me why it's a false accusation."

"I obey."

Hu Qing calmly replied, “Your Excellency, in October of the thirteenth year of the Taihe era, I lent thirty taels of silver to Wang Dayou, a resident of this town. We agreed on a five-year term with a monthly interest rate of one percent. If Wang Dayou was unable to repay the money by the due date, he would use his family’s ancestral property of eighty mu of paddy fields to settle the debt. This is indeed true. However, unlike Wang Shuan’s false accusation, I never forced his father, Wang Dayou, to sign a contract. This matter is guaranteed by the town’s headman.”

"You bullshit!"

Wang Shuan finally lost his temper and shouted, "It was clearly you who got my father drunk and then induced him to sign this absurd contract!"

"Wang Shuan, how dare you speak so recklessly in front of the provincial and county magistrates?"

Hu Qing said coldly, "When I signed the contract with your father that day, the town's headman and others were all present, and they can all testify that your father was perfectly lucid!"

"Wang Shuan, you may step back now."

Xue Huai waved his hand and looked at Hu Qing, asking, "Why did Wang Dayou and his wife Zhang suddenly die?"

Hu Qing sighed, “Your Excellency, after the debt period ended, I sent someone to the Wang family to discuss repayment. However, Wang Dayou reneged on the debt and, along with his wife Zhang, pushed and shoved my son. During the struggle, Wang Dayou accidentally fell and hit his forehead, ultimately dying despite medical treatment. I felt extremely guilty and paid for his medicine and medical expenses. I never asked Wang Shuan for the money back. As for Zhang, perhaps she was too grief-stricken by Wang Dayou's passing to think straight.”

He responded fluently and calmly, clearly having already planned how to handle the situation when Wang Dayou and his wife passed away.

Most importantly, he had a large number of witnesses, from the village head of Qingshan Town to the doctor who treated Wang Dayou. They had all received large sums of money from him, so he was not worried that these people would recant their testimonies.

Xue Huai slowly said, "Even if what you said is true, a monthly interest rate of one percent does not comply with the regulations of the Great Yan Dynasty."

A monthly interest rate of one percent equates to an annual interest rate of twelve percent. The Great Yan Law stipulates that private lending cannot exceed an annual interest rate of three percent.

Hu Qing then explained, “Your Excellency, Wang Dayou is known for being lazy and gluttonous. I was initially unwilling to lend him money, but he kept pestering me and even offered to set a monthly interest rate of one percent. Out of consideration for our neighborly relations, I had no choice but to reluctantly agree. Many people in this town can testify to this.”

On the other side, when Wang Shuan heard such distorted and slanderous words against his deceased father, his blood ran cold, and he wished he could pounce on the Hu family father and son and bite them to death on the spot.

Xue Huai glanced at Wang Shuan, signaling him to calm down, then suddenly said, "Hu Yong!"

"I am here... I am here."

Did you instruct your servants to beat Wang Dayou to death that day?

"what……"

Hu Yong almost let slip the secret, but luckily Hu Qing coughed beside him, and he quickly shook his head and said, "Your Excellency, I never instructed anyone to beat Wang Dayou. He was the one who pushed me and then tripped and fell to the ground. Please investigate, Your Excellency."

Hu Qing added at the opportune moment: "If Your Excellency does not believe me, you can summon those who were present that day. They can testify for our Hu family. To be honest, Your Excellency, Wang Shuan approached me a few days ago, intending to extort three thousand taels of silver. Because I refused, he came to the county office to falsely accuse me!"

The hall was silent.

Xue Huai looked around at everyone, his gaze finally settling on Hu Qing's face. Looking at this composed local gentry, he said meaningfully, "There's no need to trouble those witnesses to come to the county government."

“Since Wang Shuan is willing to sue your Hu family father and son at the cost of being punished for false accusation, and you insist that it is his false accusation, I do not have enough detailed evidence to judge the case. In that case, I have no choice but to go to Qingshan Town to see who is lying.”

"Your Excellency, this is unacceptable!"

Hu Qing panicked. He never expected Xue Huai to leave the county town. This decision undoubtedly disrupted all his plans.

"how?"

Xue Huai stood up and said coldly, "Could it be that Qingshan Town is some kind of dragon's den or tiger's lair, and that my life would be in danger if I went there?"

Hu Qing realized he had given himself away, so he immediately smiled apologetically and said, "Your Excellency is too kind. Qingshan Town is under the jurisdiction of the Great Yan Dynasty and has always been peaceful and stable. There is absolutely no danger here."

"It's good to be safe."

Xue Huai walked over slowly, calmly gathered his men, and more than fifty people, including Wang Shuan, the Hu family father and son, and Zhang Shi, the magistrate of Yizhen County, followed him out of the county government hall.

Before leaving, Xue Huai looked up at the sun and beckoned Jiang Sheng over.

"Master!"

Jiang Sheng strode forward.

Sitting on his horse, Xue Huai asked softly, "Have you ever killed anyone?"

Jiang Sheng was taken aback and shook his head.

Xue Huai then asked, "Do you dare to kill?"

Jiang Sheng seemed to understand why he asked that question, and nodded without hesitation, saying, "I dare!"

"That's good."

Xue Huai smiled slightly, then spurred his horse forward.

In the rear of the procession, Hu Qing and Hu Yong were tightly surrounded by four guards that Xue Huai had brought from the capital, with government officials outside them. The officials from Yizhen County could only follow behind.

The father and son exchanged a glance, and at that moment, Hu Qing's eyes were no longer filled with certainty.

It seemed as if shrouded in gloom and unease.

……

……

(Dear readers, I have something to tell you. I've been feeling dizzy a lot these past few days. I went for a preliminary check-up yesterday, and the doctor said I have insufficient blood supply to my brain. I'm going to the city hospital for a check-up tomorrow, and I've already made an appointment. So, if I can write tomorrow, the update will be a little late. If I get back too late, I'll have to take a day off. Please forgive me!)

(End of this chapter)