Union

Chapter 24 A Series of Actions
The county government office in Yungui County is bustling again.

Pan Xing, the defendant in the donkey theft case, was arrested and brought back to the county government office.

Who is Pershing?

When it comes to Pan Xing, the people of Yungui County have some impression of him. But that impression is definitely not a good one.

Why do you say that?
Don't underestimate Pan Xing just because he's from Qingshi Town, which is under the jurisdiction of Yungui County. He's a carefree and irresponsible person who spends his days idly, fooling around, and hanging out with the other vagrants in the county.

Today he might harass a respectable woman, tomorrow he might steal a few pears from a street vendor. Of course, these are all minor matters; the real big things, well, those are things that would surely incite hatred.

The problem lay in Pershing's business.

It turns out that the Pan family had a family tradition of making vinegar, but the vinegar was ridiculously expensive, tasted bland, and had a bitter taste, so not many people came to buy it.

By the time of Pershing's generation, the vinegar shop had no business and was on the verge of closing down. But Pershing somehow managed to obtain a recipe for brewing wine.

However, it's unclear whether Pershing failed to grasp the essence of brewing, was unwilling to use high-quality ingredients, or was simply too lazy to properly clean the vinegar-making equipment before using it for brewing. In any case, the resulting wine had a strong horse urine smell, and upon closer tasting, it also had a sour and astringent taste.

It's true, even if you give this wine to impoverished people, they won't drink it.

With wine brewed like this, it's no wonder it won't sell.

But Pan Xing was a very wicked man. He had recognized several big brothers in the county town, and those big brothers had other brothers. A group of people supported Pan Xing and stirred up trouble in Yungui County and its subordinate villages and towns. Anyone who opened a business and needed alcohol had to buy it from Pan Xing.

Otherwise, people will come to your door to cause trouble every few days. At best, they will disrupt your business; at worst, they will cause physical harm or even death.

Thus, intimidated by the power of these people, Pershing's business improved. Gradually, he became a well-known wealthy man.

It's fair to say that Pershing has made a lot of money over the years, but while making money, his reputation has been greatly ruined.

Last time Pan Xing came to court, everyone hoped that the magistrate could rid the people of this scourge and deal with him. Although the donkey eventually ran to Old Man Li's house, Old Man Li, having retrieved the donkey, was filled with lingering fear. Let alone continuing to sue Pan Xing and send him to jail, Old Man Li would be grateful if Pan Xing didn't turn around and gather his brothers to retaliate against him.

When the people of Yungui County learned of this, although they were angry at his lack of self-respect, they put themselves in his shoes. If they were Old Man Li, they probably wouldn't have had any further entanglement with Pan Xing after the donkey was taken back.

They are all law-abiding citizens, but they cannot afford to offend these inhuman beasts.

Although it was a great pity that I could not see Pan Xing brought to justice, the new magistrate was clearly an honest official who would not protect evil bandits, so it was not far from Pan Xing's capture.

The common people thought that Pan Xing would get his comeuppance sooner or later, but they never expected that the comeuppance would come so quickly.

Pershing has been sued again!

And the person who sued him was Old Man Li!

Old Man Li said that Pan Xing stole his donkey, and the government should punish him according to the law. Otherwise, he would continue to appeal and ask the prefectural magistrate to uphold justice for him.

Old Man Li beat the drum to appeal for justice, and the county government naturally wouldn't sit idly by. So, Pan Xing went into the courtroom again.

This time, however, the person who sold him the donkey could not be found at the cattle and horse market, so Pershing was imprisoned and happily received free room and board.

Old Li was overjoyed and happily went home.

The people of Yungui County were overjoyed, saying that evil had been punished and that the county magistrate was a just and upright official.

Unfortunately, this joy lasted only two days before Pan Xing was released by the authorities.

why?

Because the shopkeeper who sold the donkey to Pershing volunteered to save Pershing from danger.

But this shopkeeper was thin and small, with white hair and beard, and he spoke to people with trepidation. No matter how you looked at him, he was just an ordinary old man, and he didn't look like a big shopkeeper who could make a name for himself in the cattle and horse market.

But he insisted that he had sold the donkey to Pan Xing, that Pan Xing had bought the donkey from him with money, and that Pan Xing was innocent. The yamen had no choice but to release Pan Xing again.

Pershing was released, but the old man was imprisoned because he couldn't explain how he "accidentally" obtained the donkey...

Indeed, anyone who came could see at a glance that this old man was a scapegoat. But he stuck to his story, and the county magistrate had no choice but to release Pan Xing.

Pan Xing swaggered into the street, laughing arrogantly and smugly in front of the county government office. His arrogant demeanor was so infuriating that people bit their lips until they bled.

Perhaps there were just too many people who hated Pershing, and even God felt that it was no use not to deal with him. So, a day later, Pershing was imprisoned again!

This time, however, it was because the old man who had rescued him before had recanted his testimony in prison!

The old man recanted his testimony for a simple reason: in the dead of night, he was nearly strangled to death. He was rescued by someone, and the old man realized that the person behind it all probably wanted him to shut up forever. He was utterly terrified.

When he came to his senses, the old man grabbed Sui Yu's arm, who had saved his life, and cried his heart out. He kept saying that he regretted it and shouldn't have done such a heartless thing for money; look, he almost lost his life.

It turned out that someone had approached him specifically and given him a large sum of money, asking him to "rescue" Pan Xing.

Just then, his wife fell seriously ill, his son lost his leg, and the family desperately needed money. In a moment of madness, the old man readily agreed. But he only agreed to go to jail; he had no intention of dying in someone else's place.

After the old man recanted his testimony, Pan Xing was imprisoned again.

This time, not only was Pan Xing imprisoned, but two constables from the county government also ended up in jail.

They were the ones who wanted to strangle the old man. If Sui Yu hadn't arrived in time, the old man would have really died at their hands.

However, once they're caught red-handed, they can forget about getting out.

A murder charge is almost inevitable; they could face life imprisonment for the least serious offense, or exile and beheading for the most serious.

In addition to the two constables, the county constable Lian was also sent to prison.

This constable Lian was the one who tied the rope around the donkey's lips during the trial of the "donkey theft case."

He was the head of the constables in the county government. He had a square face full of masculinity, a tall and imposing body, and eyes full of righteousness. He looked very convincing.

Yet this highly respected constable ordered two yamen runners to commit murder in the prison.

The downfall of Constable Lian led to a thorough investigation of all the yamen runners in the county government, from top to bottom.

This thorough investigation left only three or five relatively clean individuals who continued to hold their positions; the rest were either stripped of their posts and sent home, or directly sent to prison.

The changes at the county government office were so swift and rapid that they were truly dazzling.

By the time the people of the county came to their senses, the new head constable had already taken office. This man was a bodyguard to the new magistrate, exuding a heroic air. He appeared taciturn, yet his imposing presence and sharp eyes were undeniable.

Before the people could even shake off the gossip about how "the new constable is good in every way, but he's too young, and we don't know if he can handle such a big responsibility," the county government made another move—

The county government of Yungui County is selecting able-bodied young men from its jurisdiction to serve as constables. Those interested can register at the county government on a certain date.

The people were in an uproar.

At this point, Pershing, the scapegoat, and the newly appointed head constable were no longer of any concern to them.

The people huddled together, all talking about having their sons, nephews, and grandsons sign up to be constables.

Those are constables!

Although constables are not considered proper government officials, but rather clerks, they are still staff members of the yamen (government office) and receive a monthly salary of about one tael of silver... Don't say that being a constable will affect the future of one's descendants, or that one's descendants will be barred from taking the imperial examinations for three generations.

Their area is incredibly poor; the people can't even afford to eat. Look around the whole county, how many families actually have access to education?

What ordinary person doesn't spend all their time thinking about food, drink, and clothing?

As for the imperial examinations, let them save up for several decades before considering it.

The thought that if a constable came from their family, no one would dare to bully them anymore, and they would even be looked up to when they went out would fuel their excitement. For a moment, they were speechless and rushed home, urging their children and grandchildren to wash up, find the best clothes to cover their ugliness, and hurry to the county town to register.

With such a commotion, Yunying and the others naturally heard it in the back courtyard.

Because the maids and servants in the manor were discussing it so enthusiastically!
Most of these women were from Yungui County. Their families were so poor that they could no longer make ends meet, so they had no choice but to sell themselves and work as servants.

They were lucky enough to be chosen by Aunt Ding and directly selected to work as maids in the mansion.

However, the contracts they signed with the government were for living expenses.

This means that after a certain number of years, they can regain their freedom and return home to continue enjoying family life.

Let's leave those distant issues aside and focus on what's right in front of us.

These old women only realized how officials lived after they entered the county government office.

They ate chicken, duck, fish, and meat; wore fine silks and satins; every item in the mansion had a story to tell; and every word and action was carefully considered.

We're all human, but some people live like celestial beings, while others cry like cabbages in the field.

Of course, the adults' comfortable lives were partly due to their noble birth and family support. But even without family support, becoming an official and receiving a salary would have improved their lives somewhat. They didn't ask for much, nor did they dare to hope for a life as luxurious as the county magistrate's, but at least they could make ends meet and at least have clothes without patches.
The old women were overjoyed and all took leave to go home and visit their families.

After returning home, they approached Yunying again, asking her, both openly and subtly, if they could pull some strings.

Yunying looked completely bewildered. They wanted her to use connections?
Is she considered a prominent figure in the public eye?

Thinking back, the last time she met that second master was more than half a month ago. And that meeting also ended unhappily—to say that would be too kind of her; the truth is that the second master made it clear that he didn't like her, so she wisely excused herself and kept her distance from him.

She herself can't even hold her own in front of the Second Master, so expecting her to plead for others in front of him is like trying to make a big boat out of a small ditch—it's wishful thinking.

(End of this chapter)