Yefutidaolu

Chapter 461 The Wind Rises in the Divine Capital
At the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), the Vermilion Bird constellation is in the constellation of Jing (Well), and

The area is flooded, and the main source of water is used for brewing oil and cooking, so there are many teahouses and similar establishments in this area.

At this moment, the teahouse here has just removed its door panels, and the first pot of coarse tea being brewed is bubbling and steaming.

As the waiter, Ah Fu, groggily wiped the greasy square table, he heard a familiar cough—it was Mr. Sun, an old customer of the teahouse who helped people write letters and draft legal documents on the street.

"Mr. Sun, you're here early today!" Afu quickly set out the earthenware pot and rough porcelain bowl, and ladled out a spoonful of strong tea.

Instead of taking a sip of tea first as usual, Mr. Sun slowly unfolded his set of writing implements.

His gray eyebrows furrowed as he lowered his voice and asked, "A-Fu, did you hear anything last night?"

"The noise?" Afu scratched his head. "Isn't it just the night watchman striking the clapper? Oh, it seems that a few squads of officers from the military garrison passed by in the middle of the night, their footsteps were a bit faster than usual."

“Not that one!” Old Mr. Sun leaned closer, his voice even lower. “I mean, the ‘Rich and Noble Gambling House’ in the south of the city! I passed by this morning, and the back door… had an official seal on it! There were still bloodstains on it!”

"Huh?" Afu's hand trembled, and a few drops of tea spilled out. "Closed down? Master Huang's place? No way! His superiors aren't..." Afu pointed to the ceiling, his meaning clear.

"That's why it's so strange!" Old Mr. Sun took a sip of scalding hot tea. "I quietly asked a policeman I know well, and he just waved his hand and said, 'The higher-ups are serious, don't ask around!'"

As they were talking, several regular customers entered the teahouse. One of them was Chef Zhao from a nearby restaurant, who would come every morning to get a pot of strong tea.

Chef Zhao was also quite skilled, especially in fire control, so he was in charge of controlling the fire in the restaurant. As he scratched his head, he said, "How strange! When I went out this morning, Wang Laizi, who always blocked the alley entrance to collect cleaning fees, was nowhere to be seen! His henchmen were also gone!"

“It’s not just Wang the Leper!” Widow Wang, who was doing needlework and knitting a funeral garment nearby, interjected with a hint of anger on her face. “I heard that ‘Miracle Hand Li’ who always pickpockets people at the market was caught red-handed by the city patrol last night, with the evidence stolen, and was taken away!”

A buzz of discussion immediately broke out in the teahouse.

"What kind of wind is blowing?"

"Did the sun rise in the west? Don't the officials usually turn a blind eye to those monsters and demons?"

"I think it's possible that some important person's son or daughter was stolen from or cheated, which is why the higher-ups are so angry!"

"Who cares! These menaces should have been dealt with long ago! One day of peace and quiet is one day at a time!"

These things had nothing to do with them; they were just clapping and cheering.

The teahouse remained open, and people simply treated it as a topic of conversation.

As time passed, the sun rose high in the sky, and by the time of Si Shi (9-11 AM), the teahouse was even more crowded, and the news became increasingly bizarre.

A traveling peddler announced mysteriously, "I heard from the people at the docks that it's not just our area! The 'Happy Forest' over in Liusu, the loan sharks at the docks, and the 'Orchid Gate' that specializes in honey traps... several dens were raided last night! And the ones who did it weren't ordinary constables, but seemed to be... a master from the palace!"

"The palace?" Everyone gasped.

"Could it be the Emperor himself..." someone boldly guessed, but dared not finish the sentence.

“It seems so to me!” An elderly man, dressed in a slightly worn silk robe and seemingly worldly-wise, stroked his beard. “Think about it, didn’t His Majesty just hold court a few days ago? It makes sense that he’s trying to rectify the atmosphere right away!”

"But this is a bit too ruthless..." Zhao Da clicked his tongue, "Third Master Huang's gang, just like that, gone? Without even a ripple?"

"Ruthless?" Old Mr. Sun snorted, his pen still on the paper, writing a letter for someone else. He didn't even look up. "Zhao Da, have you forgotten that last year your niece was tricked by that group of people, swindled out of her dowry, and almost drowned herself? Why didn't you think they were ruthless back then?"

Zhao Da choked, his face flushed, and he mumbled, "I...I had no choice..."

Just then, a commotion broke out across the street. Several officials dressed in the uniforms of the Prefect of the Capital were seen escorting two dejected men with bruised and swollen faces past. Behind them followed several weeping women, carrying children and holding some copper coins and loose silver in their hands.

"What's going on?" The tea drinkers craned their necks.

Ah Fu, quick-witted, ran out to inquire and returned soon with excitement on his face: "Incredible! The Jingzhao Yin's yamen is returning stolen money! These two were swindlers who specialized in cheating old people out of money in front of pharmacies. They were arrested last night, and before they could even enjoy the money they swindled, a portion of it was recovered and returned to the victims on the spot!"

The teahouse instantly erupted in chaos.

"Did you really pay back the money?"

Have the officials changed their ways?

"Thank God!"

Widow Liu clasped her hands together and murmured, "If only things could stay like this forever...how wonderful that would be."

Time continues to move forward.

The teahouse was already about 30% full of customers.

"Things are about to change." Li San, who sells steamed buns, sighed as he held his newly acquired license. "This morning, the officials went door-to-door handing out these, saying that you can't set up a stall without a license."

The accountant slowly blew on the tea froth: "More than that. My nephew works as a clerk in the capital's magistrate's office. He said that twelve rectification orders were issued last night. Seven dens of the 'eagle-herding gang' that defrauds loans were raided, and about a hundred people were arrested for 'donkey-leading gangs' that prey on outsiders."

A cold laugh suddenly came from the corner.

Everyone turned their heads and saw a stranger in a blue robe. The man was twirling an empty teacup between his fingers, but his gaze was fixed on the newly posted public notice outside the window.

"Does this gentleman find it inappropriate?" Li San asked tentatively.

The man in the blue robe said calmly, "Wild grass cannot be burned out."

Before the words were finished, a commotion arose from the street. Three prison carts rolled over the bluestone slabs, and tied up on them were none other than the nuns of "Cihang Nunnery"—these fake nuns had been swindling women out of incense money for ten years.

The old melon seller suddenly slammed his fist on the table: "Serves them right! Last month, my daughter was cheated out of five taels of silver by them!"

The teahouse erupted in chaos. One person said the fake pharmacy in the west of the city had been shut down, while another talked about the "Grand Canal Gang" that extorted money at the docks breaking up.

"Make way! Make way, everyone!" The money exchange clerk pushed through the crowd and slammed the notice on the wall. "New imperial decree! Monthly interest rates on loans cannot exceed three percent!"

The tea drinkers were in an uproar.

The cloth merchant, Fatty Liu, immediately smashed his teacup: "How are we supposed to live now!"

"Manager Liu can't collect his exorbitant interest anymore?" someone said sarcastically. "When you drove Old Zhang to his death last month, you didn't hold back at all."

Suddenly, four black-armored guards escorted people past.

The woman chained up was none other than the madam of "Happy Forest." This woman specialized in abducting respectable women and selling them into brothels, and was hated to the core by the locals. Suddenly, Yinzhu, a courtesan in the teahouse, began to sob.

She was abducted by this madam three years ago, and her left little finger was chopped off when she refused to serve customers.

"What are you crying about!" Manager Sun suddenly stood up. "You should be laughing! These blood-sucking maggots should have been thrown into a vat of boiling oil long ago!"

The tea drinkers all joined in the shouting.

Yinzhu wiped away her tears and laughed out loud, scattering all the copper coins she had earned that day to the beggars on the street.

Two yamen runners went into the shop to rest.

The younger one gestured excitedly: "This morning we busted a human trafficking den in the West Market and rescued more than thirty children!"

The old yamen runner sipped his tea silently: "Keep your voice down. Do you think this is a good thing? Most of these children were sold by their families."

The room fell silent.

The man in the blue robe just smiled and said, "What's the use? Last year, there was a flood in Jiangbei, and the government's disaster relief funds were embezzled at every level. Farmers sold their children, and human traffickers were just the last link in the chain."

Suddenly, the sound of galloping hooves rushed past. The postman, running alongside, shouted, "Urgent! The Emperor has exempted Jiangbei from three years' poll tax!"

The man in the blue robe paused for a moment, his teacup still between his fingers.

"Have you noticed?" Yinzhu suddenly said, "There are far fewer beggars today."

The old man selling melons cracked melon seeds: "They've all been taken to the charity hall! The government posted a notice this morning saying that anyone with the ability to work will be provided with two meals a day and will have to help repair the road."

The cloth merchant, Fatty Liu, said sarcastically, "Road repair? I'm afraid they'll cut wages again!"

"Manager Liu, be careful what you say." The accountant unfolded the newly arrived "Imperial Gazette." "His Majesty has allocated one million taels of silver from the Imperial Treasury. Do you see this seal? The City Patrol Division is directly in charge!"

Suddenly, a children's rhyme drifted through the rain, sung by several young boys who were skipping and jumping: "Black-armored boy, measuring with an iron ruler, measuring whose heart is black."

In the afternoon, the warm sunlight shone into the teahouse, but the conversation shifted from public security to the more practical topic of making a living.

A rice merchant's clerk came in for tea, sighing, "Gentlemen, you're probably celebrating too soon. Do you know how much the price of rice went up this morning?"

"It went up? Why?"

"Why?" the shop assistant asked with a bitter face. "With those loan sharks and gambling dens gone, there's less 'quick money' circulating in the market! Many small merchants and vendors who rely on them for their livelihood have suddenly lost their cash flow! Many of our rice shop's regular customers who used to buy on credit are now complaining that they have no money to pay. The owner has no choice but to raise prices a bit to recoup some of the costs."

The group exchanged bewildered glances. This was something they hadn't expected.

"And there's more!" a porter who hauls cargo chimes in. "With no one left at the docks, there's no one to collect protection money for unloading, but things have been chaotic for a while now. Today, many ships are unloading slowly, and wages aren't being settled promptly. I heard... a new 'boss' is taking over and is currently dividing up the territory."

A shadow fell over the joyful atmosphere.

Mr. Sun put down his pen and sighed: "Water that is too clear has no fish. It's not that those filthy things are good, it's just... this capital city is like a stagnant pool, with tangled roots and silt at the bottom. If you stir it up suddenly, you can see some clear water, but the silt at the bottom will come up and choke you to death."

"Old man Sun, I don't like hearing that!" another person shouted from the side. "So those swindlers and bullies think they're right? We can't survive without them? A short pain is better than a long one! Life might be tough, but at least we won't be robbed at night, and our daughters won't be scammed when they go out!"

"Exactly!" Widow Liu chimed in. "Before, we had to be wary of pickpockets when buying groceries, but now we feel much more at ease! Rice is expensive, so we'll just eat less! It's better than having our whole pot stolen!"

The teahouse was divided into two factions: one thought the rectification was good, while the other worried about the ensuing chaos, and they argued endlessly.

As evening approached, the number of tea drinkers gradually dwindled.

Just as Afu was about to put the door panel up, a clean-looking, kind-faced middle-aged man walked in, ordered a bowl of tea, and sat in the corner, slowly drinking it.

Ah Fu found the man unfamiliar, unlike any of the locals, so he paid closer attention. He noticed that as the man drank his tea, his eyes would frequently sweep across the street, as if he were observing something.

After a while, a stranger approached the teahouse entrance furtively and whispered to Ah Fu, "Brother, can I ask you something? Who's in charge of this area now?"

Before Afu could answer, the middle-aged man in the corner suddenly spoke up, his voice calm yet authoritative: "Friend, what can I do for you, looking for the person in charge?"

The man was taken aback, glanced at the middle-aged man, and seemed to think that the other man had an extraordinary demeanor. He smiled ingratiatingly and said, "It's nothing, I just wanted to ask... are the 'rules' of this place still the same as before?"

The middle-aged man smiled slightly: "Rules? The rules of the capital are naturally the rules written in the Great Edict. Under the emperor's feet, in broad daylight, what other 'rules' are there?"

The man's expression changed slightly, and he chuckled dryly, "Yes, yes, yes, what you say is true, sir... I was confused, I was confused." After saying that, he slunk away.

Afu stared in disbelief. The middle-aged man finished his tea, put down a few copper coins, and said gently to Afu, "Young brother, if anyone comes to ask 'who's in charge' or 'what the rules are' again, just tell them—nowadays, only the rules of the government are recognized." After saying that, he got up and left, his figure quickly disappearing into the twilight.

Afu's heart pounded as he looked at the few copper coins.

He vaguely sensed that the heavens of the capital city seemed to be truly beginning to change. Before, gangs and swindlers set the rules, but now... it seemed that the people truly "above" were starting to set the rules themselves.

As night fell, oil lamps were lit in the teahouse. The last few old customers were still chatting idly.

"It seems they're serious this time," Mr. Sun concluded. "It's not just about catching a few petty thieves; it's about uprooting the entire organization."

"Will it be completely eradicated?" some pessimistically asked.

"It's better to try than not to try," Zhao Da remained optimistic. "At least for the next few days, we can get a good night's sleep."

Looking at the lights gradually coming on outside the window, Widow Liu said softly, "Today I saw that little girl from the next alley who always gets beaten by her drunkard father was actually jumping rope at her door."

Silence fell over the teahouse. Yes, those small, previously overlooked changes might be the greatest significance of this overhaul.

"I just don't know... how long this wind will last." Mr. Sun took a final sip of cold tea and said quietly, "I hope it's not just a passing breeze."

As Afu was putting up the door panel, he saw a group of city patrol soldiers marching in orderly steps through the street, their armor gleaming coldly under the lamplight.

The old woman who used to swindle money on the street corner never reappeared.

The night in the capital city seemed much quieter and colder than usual.

Change has spread like a pebble thrown into a lake, ripples spreading outwards. Some applaud, some lament, and some watch blankly. For these ordinary people in the Forget-Worry Teahouse, they understand nothing of court intrigue or power struggles; they only care about whether the road ahead is easy and whether their meals are secure.

Tonight, at least the rice in my bowl seems to be less bothered by flies.

(End of this chapter)