Hot flashes

Zhou Heng stopped in front of him.

Old Zhao was in his forties, dark-skinned and thin, with a deeply lined face and eyes as cloudy as those of a village well. He looked at Zhou Heng, neither looking away nor speaking.

Zhou Heng pulled out one of the contracts from the stack and handed it to him.

"your."

Zhao Laosi did not answer.

Zhou Heng waited for a while, then placed the contract on the stone pier in front of his house and weighed it down with a stone.

"There are also seeds and farm tools; someone will bring them over later," he said. "I will continue to repair the irrigation ditch. Those who want to help will still be paid. Those who don't want to help won't be forced."

He turned to leave.

Zhao Laosi suddenly spoke up: "Sir."

Zhou Heng stopped.

Zhao Laosi's voice was dry, as if he hadn't drunk water in a long time: "That five hundred coins... I didn't take it."

Zhou Heng turned to look at him.

Old Zhao lowered his head, staring at the soil on the ground: "Someone asked me to fill in the irrigation ditch, offering me five hundred coins. I didn't do it. But I didn't report it either. I... I just pretended not to know."

Zhou Heng remained silent.

Zhao Laosi raised his head, and something flickered in his cloudy eyes.

"My daughter borrowed grain from Sun, the village head, two years ago. The interest kept piling up, and she couldn't pay it back. Sun wanted to use her to settle the debt. My wife went crazy and jumped into a well."

His voice was flat, as if he were talking about someone else's business, "My daughter was still taken away. Sold to the city, I don't know which family she was sold to."

Zhou Heng paused for a moment.

Zhao Laosi looked at him and suddenly smiled. That smile was uglier than a grimace.

"The adults came and cancelled the debt," he said. "My daughter won't be coming back. But at least she wasn't sold because of my debts."

He turned around and went inside.

The door wasn't closed.

Zhou Heng stood at the door for a long time.

That afternoon, he spent three hours in Qingnigou. He visited twenty-three households and delivered all the contracts.

Some farmers accepted the harvest, while others did not. He had the names of those who accepted the harvest noted down; he didn't inquire about those who didn't.

As the sun began to set, he arrived at the Zheng family's door.

Zheng Liu sat on the doorstep, without a child in her arms. She lowered her head, holding a needle in her hand, sewing on a tattered garment. The stitches were crooked, but she sewed very carefully.

Zhou Heng stood in front of her, but she didn't look up.

He knelt down and placed a contract at her feet.

"Your family's debts are all wiped out," he said.

Zheng Liu did not move.

Zhou Heng waited a moment, then said, "I've arranged for someone to look after the two children. Whenever you want to see them, someone will take you."

Zheng Liu's needle paused for a moment. Then she continued sewing.

Zhou Heng stood up and turned to leave.

"grown ups."

A sound came from behind me, very soft, as if it would dissipate with a gust of wind.

Zhou Heng turned around.

Zheng Liu did not look up. She was still sewing the tattered garment, the stitches even crookeder than before.

"That girl," she said, "her name is Zhaodi. She's four years old."

Zhou Heng stood there, looking at her.

After finishing the last stitch, Zheng Liu shook out the clothes, folded them neatly, and held them in her arms. She looked up at the distant mountain shadows.

"She wanted to eat candy. I thought I'd save up some money for the New Year and buy her one... but I never got to."

Zhou Heng remained silent.

He didn't know what to say.

The sun sank further. A wind rose in the valley, rustling the grass and trees. Zheng Liu sat on the threshold, clutching the tattered garment, motionless.

Zhou Heng turned and left.

He walked quite a distance before turning back for a glance. The tiny black dot was still sitting there, like a stone.

Chen Shen, standing beside him, whispered, "Young Master, it's getting dark."

Zhou Heng nodded.

He continued walking forward.

He walked out of Qingnigou, onto the mountain path, and when he reached the halfway point, he suddenly stopped.

"Chen Shen".

"exist."

"Have you found that peddler?"

Chen Shen shook his head: "Not yet. It's like they've vanished into thin air."

Zhou Heng gazed at the darkening sky in the distance and remained silent for a while.

"No need to check anymore."

Chen Shen was taken aback: "Young Master?"

Zhou Heng turned his head and looked at him. In the twilight, those eyes shone with a frightening light.

"He didn't run away," Zhou Heng said. "He's dead."

Chen Shen's pupils contracted slightly.

Zhou Heng continued walking forward. After taking a few steps, the voice drifted back from ahead:

"Go back and tell Li Chong to make a list of everyone in Jiangling City who has dealings with aristocratic families."

Chen Shen followed him and asked in a low voice, "Does the young master suspect it's a powerful family?"

Zhou Heng did not answer.

It was already late at night when we returned to Jiangling City.

Zhou Heng didn't sleep. He sat under the lamp, a piece of paper spread out in front of him.

He picked up his pen and added at the end:

Aristocratic families.

Who is the most powerful clan in Jiangling?

He lowered his eyes.

In the south of the city lived a family surnamed Xie. The Xie family was the largest aristocratic family in Jiangling, having produced three vice ministers, two prefects, and one minister in the previous dynasty.

After Xiao Jue ascended the throne, the Xie family was the first to submit a letter of surrender, their attitude so respectful it was impeccable. When Li Chong came to Jiangling, the Xie family sent him money and grain, showing more filial piety than a son.

But Zhou Heng remembered one thing: the Xie family owned three times the amount of farmland in the area as the second-ranked family. Their pawnshops were scattered throughout the counties of Jiangling. Their usurious loans, with interest compounding, could bankrupt a family.

The new policies should include equal land distribution, tax reduction, and the establishment of government-run pawnshops for low-interest loans.

Which one of them isn't cutting into the Xie family's flesh?

Zhou Heng put down his pen and leaned back in his chair.

The sound of the night watchman's gong came from outside the window. It was the third watch.

He closed his eyes.

The Xie family.

The next day, Zhou Heng sent a letter to the Xie residence.

The post was written very politely: "Zhou Heng, a Hanlin Academician, has long admired the name of Lord Xie and wishes to pay him a visit. I wonder if Lord Xie is available?"

The reply came quickly: Master Xie Xun of the Xie family, tomorrow at 9:00 AM, I will be waiting for you.

Chen Shen frowned as he looked at the post: "Young Master, if the Xie family really has a problem, why would you come knocking on their door like this—"

"What's there to be afraid of?" Zhou Heng folded the invitation and put it in his sleeve. "I am a high-ranking official of the imperial court, a prime minister of the second rank. No matter how powerful the Xie family is, would they dare to touch me?"

Chen Shen didn't speak. But Zhou Heng could see the worry in his eyes.

Zhou Heng patted him on the shoulder: "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."

He also wanted to see what kind of person Xie Xun really was.

At 9:00 AM, Zhou Heng arrived at the Xie residence on time.

The Xie residence was very large. It had three courtyards, with carved beams and painted rafters, and a pair of imposing stone lions at the gate. When the gatekeeper saw him, he ran inside to announce his arrival, and a moment later, a middle-aged man in a blue robe came out to greet him.

The man was around fifty years old, with a lean face and three long wisps of beard, exuding a refined and scholarly air. Upon seeing Zhou Heng, he bowed deeply with his hands clasped.

"Lord Zhou's presence at my humble abode is an honor. I am Xie Xun, and I apologize for not welcoming you sooner."

Zhou Heng returned the greeting: "Thank you for your hospitality, sir. I apologize for my intrusion in visiting you."

Xie Xun smiled and stepped aside to make way: "Lord Zhou, please."

The two entered the mansion one after the other.

Passing through the hanging flower gate and around the screen wall, one enters a path paved with blue bricks. Bamboo groves line both sides of the path, their leaves rustling in the wind. As Zhou Heng walks, he subtly observes his surroundings.

The Xie residence appears elegant, yet it exudes a profound sense of history. The carved window frames, the painted eaves, and the perfectly placed rocks and plants—none of these are things that a nouveau riche could possess.

He recalled a saying Xiao Jue had once said: "The aristocratic families of Jiangnan have a foundation built over centuries. It cannot be destroyed in just a few battles."