Union

Chapter 54 They deserve it
Then there's the descendant of the Shang family who jumped out to complain. In terms of identity and bloodline, he is a descendant of the Shang family, but if you search through the Shang family genealogy, you can't find this person at all.

"Then where did he come from?" Yunying asked. "Could this person be a mistress's son?"

The second master gave Yunying a meaningful look, but she didn't even flinch when Yunying mentioned her mistress.

The second master said, "It's not a child born to a concubine, but rather the child born to the concubine of the eldest son of the Shang family."

"A concubine gave birth to a child?" Yunying frowned. "But even if a concubine gave birth to a child, shouldn't that be recorded in the family genealogy? Could it be that the Shang family was completely unaware that the concubine had given birth to a child?"

Second Master nodded. "You're right. When the Shang family released that maid, they had no idea she was pregnant."

Release them back into the wild?

Why can't she have such good fortune?
Yunying glanced at the Second Master, who was also looking at her. Their eyes met, Yunying's eyes were full of probing, while the Second Master turned his face away nonchalantly, pretending not to see her eager look.

Alright, Second Master's attitude is clear enough; he's not going to do anything that doesn't benefit him.

Therefore, we still need to prepare the money to redeem ourselves!
Yunying looked at the Second Master, who really did have a stingy stinginess about him.

Let's leave aside the Second Master and go back to the concubine who gave birth to the child.

It turned out that the eldest son of the Shang family had married earlier, but his first wife died during childbirth along with her unborn child. The eldest son of the Shang family remained faithful to his wife for three years. After three years, the family arranged for him to marry a woman from the Wei family who was divorced, a woman of equal social standing.

The Wei family's daughter was extremely jealous. To prevent the troubled young couple from having conflicts over concubines after they got married, the matriarch of the Shang family had the eldest son get rid of all the previous concubines and maids.

The concubine who was sent away only discovered she was pregnant two months later. By then, she had already been married to the man her parents had chosen for her for more than half a month.

At this point, she wanted to return to the Shang family with her unborn child, but they wouldn't want her anymore. So, she secretly gave birth to the child prematurely, hiding it from her husband's family. And so, the child grew up in that merchant's family.

It was a last resort, but who knew that this action would save the child's life?

Afterwards, the concubine heard about the tragedy that befell the Shang family and cried uncontrollably, inadvertently letting slip the truth.

Her husband was a kind and righteous man who respected the Shang family's tradition of teaching and educating. In addition, merchants are always more perceptive, and he also felt that the Shang family's collusion with bandits was quite suspicious. So he told his concubine not to tell anyone else about it and to continue raising the child as his own.

For more than a decade, the concubine and her husband had been carefully watching the developments in Yungui County, trying to find out who was the mastermind behind the plot to harm the Shang family.

Actually, it's easy to find out. Just look at who profited the most after the Shang family fell from power. That person is either the mastermind or an accomplice.

Magistrate Wu rose to power by stepping on the lives of dozens of members of the Shang family; his innocence is absolutely questionable. Furthermore, besides Magistrate Wu, County Assistant Magistrate Fan was the biggest beneficiary in this whole affair.

He rose from a minor official in the River God's office to a powerful county magistrate, a meteoric rise indeed.

In addition, the concubine had overheard that Magistrate Fan had come to the Shang family to become an apprentice and wanted to marry the eldest daughter of the family. Both of these requests were rejected by the head of the family. Therefore, it is easy to understand why Magistrate Fan conspired with Magistrate Wu to retaliate against the Shang family.

Having clarified the matter, the concubine and her husband dared not cause any major disturbance.

They were of low status and lacked concrete evidence to exonerate the Shang family—their mere speculation was insufficient to bring down Magistrate Wu and Assistant Magistrate Fan. So the two silently kept the matter to themselves, waiting for the opportune moment to strike decisively.

It was only when the Second Master took office this year that he used the excuse of Magistrate Fan's moral failings to bring Magistrate Fan down. The concubine and the merchant, who were far away in another prefecture, felt that the time was right and told the child about his background.

They also found some scattered evidence to corroborate that the Shang family did indeed deliver the manufactured weapons to the able-bodied men of Yungui County. After the Shang family returned, the weapons ended up in the hands of the river bandits.

Although this evidence cannot completely clear the Shang family of suspicion of colluding with bandits, it can at least allow the old case to be reopened.

Therefore, the descendants of the Shang family came to Yungui County with evidence.

Unfortunately, their current residence was far from Yun Gui County. By the time he finally arrived, a month had already passed. However, timing was everything; he arrived just in time for the Second Master to preside over the salt smuggling case and sentence Magistrate Fan to death…

With the truth finally revealed, Yunying breathed a sigh of relief and was also happy for the young man from the Shang family.

But after the initial joy, he remembered the dilapidated state of the Shang family's house, the long-lost glory of their ancestors, and the fact that all the other relatives of the Shang family, except for this young man, had perished... This matter was truly heartbreaking to think about.

Yunying stayed in the Second Master's study for almost an hour before leaving.

When she stepped out of the courtyard and saw He Sui, she saw He Sui looking at her with a worried expression.

Yunying patted Hesui's hand and said, "Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm just feeling anxious thinking about the wrongful conviction of the Shang family."

Yunying told Hesui what she had taken out of the Second Master's mouth.

Upon hearing that the Shang family's case was indeed a miscarriage of justice, and that it was orchestrated by Magistrate Fan, He Sui was filled with rage. Yun Ying had no doubt that if Magistrate Fan were actually in front of her, she would have torn him apart to vent her anger. But Magistrate Fan was currently imprisoned on death row and could not see anyone.

He Sui then said, "Miss, the Shang family's case should be tried publicly again, right?"

"Yes, it will. I just asked the Second Master, and the court will be in session tomorrow to hear this case."

Upon hearing this, He Sui pleaded, "Could you give me an hour's leave tomorrow? I want to go outside the county government office to watch Second Master preside over the trial. I also need to prepare rotten eggs and rotten vegetable leaves, just in time to smash Magistrate Fan's face until it's black and blue."

He Sui rubbed his hands together, his face filled with righteous indignation.

Looking at the appearance of the rice ears, Yunying thought that tomorrow many people in Yungui County would look just like the rice ears.

But what good is it if they hate it or get angry?

They stood by and watched the Shang family perish when they met their demise.

This can also be interpreted as them being afraid to confront officials, as they are powerless in the face of power.

After the Shang family members were either killed or exiled, what did they do?

They overturned the private school built by the Shang family and dug up the bluestone slabs paving the road. They even used wooden sticks to smash and destroy the Shang family's lintel and courtyard walls.

If the Shang family's residence hadn't already been taken over by the county government, they probably would have been able to enter the Shang residence and commit arson, murder, and looting.

Having lived in the county for so many years, do the people of Yungui County really have no understanding of the Shang family's character? Do they really believe that the Shang family is colluding with bandits?
Yunying dared not make a judgment, but she dared to say that the people of Yungui County were ignorant, clumsy, base, and cunning.

Sometimes she really wanted to say bitterly: They deserve to suffer, be poor, and suffer!

Feeling depressed and resentful, Yunying went back to her room and lay down immediately.

She couldn't fall asleep in bed, tossing and turning until midnight before finally drifting off to sleep.

She slept straight through until the next morning, only being woken up by He Sui knocking on the door.

He Sui and several other maids and servants came to Yun Ying's place to ask for leave.

Yunying readily granted them leave, but forbade them from bringing any "weapons" such as rotten eggs or rotten vegetable leaves outside the county government office. The crimes committed by Magistrate Fan were heinous, deserving of death. However, even though his crimes were heinous, he should be tried by the government. Even if he died, he should die under the laws and ironclad rules of the court, not amidst the anger and condemnation of the people.

After being lectured by Yunying, the maids and servants reluctantly put away their weapons.

Fortunately, the sound of drums came from outside the county government office at that moment. They didn't dare to linger and quickly bowed to Yunying before running out.

The case has already caused quite a stir, attracting a large number of onlookers.

The area outside the yamen was blocked for two miles, with people crowding the walls and trees.

He Sui and her companions were late in leaving and were blocked at the side entrance. They were naturally quite disappointed that they couldn't get out, but fortunately, there were still many people ahead of them, constantly relaying the situation in the courtroom. The descriptions were so vivid that He Sui and her companions forgot their disappointment and frequently erupted in exclamations and curses.

Leaving aside the commotion outside, after He Sui and the others left, Yun Ying tidied herself up and went to Aunt Ding's place.

Aunt Ding was walking around the room.

The doors and windows in the room were tightly shut, and not a bit of cold air could get in. Aunt Ding was wearing a padded jacket, her face was covered in a thin layer of sweat, and her complexion was flushed.

Seeing this, Yunying felt much more at ease. "You look even better than before."

Aunt Ding held her hand and smiled, "I also feel that my strength has recovered a lot. Before, I could only walk three or five laps around the house, but today I have already walked ten laps."

"Don't be impatient. As the old saying goes, 'Haste makes waste.' Take it one step at a time. With Doctor Yao here, you will recover your health one day."

Aunt Ding smiled upon hearing this, her eyes revealing a clear and insightful understanding. "Whether I can recover my health or not is not important, as long as I can still serve Madam and attend to her, that's enough."

The two exchanged a few more words about the medication, and then Aunt Ding inquired about the commotion outside.

Aunt Ding must have heard the rumors that He Sui spread last night. She sighed and said, "County Magistrate Fan is really audacious and ruthless. It's only because he was born in a small place like Yun Gui County and has no influential people around him to guide him. Otherwise, given his abilities, if he could be given a bigger platform, his achievements would be immeasurable."

Aunt Ding shook her head and said, "What a pity. He went astray, his heart turned bad, and he sought his own death."

Yunying said, "He murdered people, sold smuggled salt, he disregarded the law and acted recklessly. What good is such a person no matter how capable he is? The long arm of the law will eventually catch up with him. He may escape for a day or two, but he cannot remain at large forever."

“What you said makes sense.” Aunt Ding ignored Yun Ying’s sharp words on this matter. If she were Yun Ying’s age, she could have said even more sarcastic things. But now that she’s old, she has long seen through the ways of the world and understands that while someone like Magistrate Fan deserves to die, if he could use his talents to benefit the people, he might have achieved something.

Talking about these things now would be hindsight, so I won't go into it.

But Aunt Ding thought again, "It's fortunate that the smuggling salt business keeps Magistrate Fan on his toes. Otherwise, with the county government so poor that it can't even pay salaries, Magistrate Fan would probably have to impose some exorbitant taxes on the people of Yungui County to make a living."

He added, "It's because Yun Gui County is so poor that it hardly earns any income all year round. That's why Magistrate Fan didn't try anything funny in the county government; otherwise, he would have committed another crime."

What Aunt Ding mentioned was something Yun Ying had never imagined.

But looking back now, that's definitely true.

Magistrate Fan is morally corrupt, having committed murder and sold smuggled salt. Yet, in his official duties, he seems quite dedicated?!
Thinking back to the county files that Second Master had reviewed before, all of which were compiled by Magistrate Fan, Second Master didn't seem to have said anything harsh about them. He even nodded occasionally, as if to say that the wording in the official documents was quite shrewd and that his handling of affairs was commendable?
But all of that is in the past, so let's not dwell on it.

Aunt Ding started talking about the New Year's gift, and said that she planned to return to Beijing with the New Year's gift.

This was a bit of a mouthful, and when Yunying first heard it, she almost didn't understand what it meant.

But after a moment's thought, and understanding what Aunt Ding was trying to say, Yunying couldn't help but frown.

"You mean you want to go back to Beijing?"

Aunt Ding nodded: "These days, I've seen that you manage the household quite well, and you no longer need my guidance. There's no use for this old woman to stay here, so I'd like to go back to the capital."

Actually, it was this poisoning incident that truly frightened Aunt Ding from the bottom of her heart.

She told Yunying the truth: "I am not afraid of death, but if I cannot see Madam before I die, I will not be able to close my eyes in peace."

Aunt Ding's eyes were filled with longing tears. "Perhaps you don't understand my feelings. But Madam and I grew up together, and I've never been away from her for so long. Not to mention I'm not used to it, I think Madam must be too. Originally, I was thinking of waiting until Second Master's backyard was settled before going back. But I'm really scared, scared that I'll die here and never see Madam again."

Aunt Ding's hands trembled slightly as she tightly gripped Yun Ying's hand.

"By the end of December, I should be almost fully recovered. At that time, Second Master will be sending New Year's gifts to the capital. I will take Ruizhu with me and return to the capital with the guards. This way, it will save Second Master from having to send someone to escort me again later."

Yunying understood Aunt Ding's thoughts and feelings, but, "If you leave, what will happen to the backyard?" She wouldn't have to take care of it, would she?
Aunt Ding chuckled and patted Yunying's hand, "The Second Master's backyard is naturally in your hands."

When her suspicions were confirmed, Yunying instinctively tried to refuse, but Aunt Ding gripped her hand tightly and said, "You silly girl, don't be in such a hurry to refuse, let me explain."

Aunt Ding said meaningfully, "Over the past few days, I've also noticed that you're a girl without ambition. Everyone has their own aspirations, and I can't say much about that. But if you want to leave your household registration, it won't be easy."

“Your indentures are all in the hands of the Second Madam. Without her permission, you certainly can’t get rid of your status. The Second Madam is, after all, a mistress, so I can’t comment on her. But if you want her to return your indentures, I’m not trying to discourage you, but it’s a thousand times harder than climbing to heaven.”

"But perhaps there's a way out with Second Master. If you manage the inner courtyard well for him and win his favor, he might ask Second Madam for your indenture, considering how diligent you've been."

She continued, "But who knows how many years that will be? In the next few years, you'll need a way to make a living and a place to stay. You've noticed that Second Master is busy with official duties and has no time for the household. Mulan and Qiuning are not as well off as you, and their health has suffered after this poisoning. I don't want to burden them. After much thought, I've decided that I can only entrust the affairs of this household to you. Yunying, you wouldn't even grant your aunt this small wish and make me return to the capital with a heart full of worry, would you?"

Yunying wanted to say that there wasn't much to do in the manor. Even if Mujin and Qiuning couldn't manage it all by themselves, wouldn't it be better if the two of them did it together?
You feel sorry for them because they were poisoned, but why don't you feel sorry for me because I have to go to the Second Master's place every day and suffer his poisoning?

Yunying was feeling down, but she didn't say anything. She knew better than anyone that Aunt Ding had put her in charge because she wanted what was best for her. And in her own opinion, she didn't seem to be too opposed to it.

After all, there really aren't many things to do in this mansion, and as long as you're familiar with the procedures and dare to use people effectively, being a steward is really a very simple matter.

Moreover, there are many hidden benefits to having a housekeeper. The two most obvious are that she no longer has to suffer in terms of food and daily necessities, and she has a lot more freedom.

She will have many more opportunities to go out, which will make it easier for her to find business opportunities and earn enough money to make a living in the future. Not to mention the distant future, just looking at the present, the steward's monthly allowance has increased by at least two taels, and she is now receiving four taels of silver.

Even a mosquito bite is still meat, let alone the extra two taels of silver. That's not just a mosquito bite; it's the same amount as her previous monthly allowance. It's like her monthly allowance has doubled. If she were to receive two taels less each month from now on, she would honestly be quite unhappy.

Yunying thought it over and over and decided that being a housekeeper could really be a job that she could do for a long time.

However, personnel appointments are not something that Aunt Ding can decide on her own; Second Master's approval is required.

Yunying nodded and then expressed her concerns.

Upon hearing this, Aunt Ding smiled broadly and said, "Don't worry, if I say I'll put you in charge from now on, Second Master will absolutely not refuse."

Yunying was surprised that Aunt Ding's words were so confident, and Aunt Ding also realized that her tone was too certain. She quickly added, "After all, you've managed the household very well these past few days. You've handled everything, big and small, with ease, and everyone in the mansion is well-behaved and obedient, with far fewer disputes. The Second Master has seen all of this, so I said that if you continue to manage the household, he certainly won't have any objections."

There will be two updates today. The other update should be around 9 PM. Please check back then, my darlings.

(End of this chapter)