Union

Chapter 98 Plan
The aftermath of this incident also has something to do with the Second Master.

Some time ago, Second Master sent out almost all the county government's bailiffs to measure the fields and calculate the specific acreage of each household.

This matter doesn't bother the ordinary people much. They only have three or five acres of land, so there's really no need for them to falsify anything.

But for those local gentry and wealthy people, this matter was of great importance.

However, the Second Master was ruthless. After the New Year, he first exiled the corrupt Registrar Li, and then beheaded Fan County Magistrate and his gang, establishing a formidable reputation in Yungui County.

This county magistrate was not an incompetent man, nor could he be easily manipulated. In addition, the seasoned officials in the county government also fell to the hands of the second master, which deterred the local gentry and tyrants from making any moves.

Otherwise, if it were the newly appointed Second Master who wanted to measure the land, just try and see how many people would obstruct him, and how many would try every means to hold him back.

All this is to say that Second Master's land surveying affected some of the local interests, but given his strong-willed nature and the fact that he was not an easy person to deal with, the local gentry and common people did not dare to confront him directly.

But they only pretended to be obedient on the surface; behind the scenes, they did plenty of dirty work. For example, when the county yamen runners were measuring land, they would either slip them some gold and silver or treat them to food, drink, and entertainment. In short, their goal was to get the runners to falsify the data and not record the actual area of ​​their land.

However, most of the current county yamen runners are newly recruited by the Second Master, or at the very least, former runners—those who have survived to this day are adept at self-preservation. They never colluded with the likes of Magistrate Fan before, so why would they be willing to mingle with these local gentry and wealthy landowners after the Second Master takes office?
That would be digging your own grave!

The constables refused to accept the benefits offered by the local gentry and wealthy landowners, and naturally, they refused to falsify documents for them.

The local gentry and wealthy landowners had nowhere else to turn, and they really didn't want to bear too much taxation, so they came up with a new solution.

"What's the solution?" Yunying couldn't help but lean forward again.

Seeing this, the second master, feeling uneasy, took a sip of tea in his armchair and said, "They are making the tenants who rent their land bear this part of the tax burden. Whether it's a shortfall from before or something that might come later, it's all being passed on to the tenants."

Yun Ying frowned deeply. "Making tenant farmers bear the taxes? Isn't that a joke?"

Throughout history, it has always been the landlord who bears the tax burden; how can it be reasonable for the tenant to bear the tax burden?

Yunying had a general understanding of the current leasing system. For example, in most parts of the north and south of the Yangtze River, local gentry and wealthy people would lease land to the common people and collect 50% to 60% of the highest yield per mu as rent. In places like Lingnan Prefecture, the rent was even higher than in other areas, with landlords collecting 70% to 80% of the highest yield per mu.

Think about it, the land here is red soil, which is already very poor, and the yield per acre is not high. After paying the expensive rent, the farmers have so much grain that a family can only drink thin gruel all year round, and sometimes they don't even have enough to eat.

They were already so poor, yet the local gentry and wealthy landowners wanted to increase their burden by making them bear the taxes.

This is like herding sheep across a fiery mountain, driving people to their deaths!
The key point is that not only will they have to bear the taxes from now on, but the county magistrate will also have to collect the taxes owed before. They will be the ones to fill the gap. Even if you skinned them alive and sold them off by weight, they still wouldn't be able to make up for the shortfall.

Second Master said, "This is not the worst thing. The worst thing is that some people work for nothing and don't even get a piece of food all year round, and we still have to pay taxes for them."

This refers to the people who worked for Changshun's family.

Since they were working to pay off their debts, there was no way Changshun would pay them rent or provide them with food. If it weren't for the crops grown on their family land, these people would have starved to death long ago.

Even so, Chang Shun still felt he hadn't taken enough advantage and wanted the people to pay back their taxes. Wasn't that just pushing them to the brink?
Yunying suddenly realized that she had to file a complaint! Not filing a complaint meant certain death, while filing one might offer a way out. Anyone in her position would have to go to the yamen to file a complaint.

Yunying then asked the Second Master, "Could it be that Chang Shun has done something evil? Suiyu just said she would investigate what businesses he owns, what is the reason for that?"

The second master glanced at her, seemingly annoyed that she was asking too many questions.

Yunying pursed her lips, then shamelessly leaned closer, "So, Second Master, what other evil deeds has Changshun committed?"

The second master placed the teacup back on the desk. "According to the person who filed the complaint, Chang Shun also trafficked people."

Human trafficking?

Human trafficking is now considered a legal business, so Chang Shun's actions aren't illegal. Wait a minute, does that mean those people weren't there voluntarily, but were all abducted?
Yunying spoke her mind, and the Second Master nodded. "In recent years, women and children have been going missing from nearby villages every year. Changshun, who runs a tea plantation, travels around selling tea every year, and those women and children are sold off during these trips."

That was indeed discreet and inconspicuous... Wait a minute! They even trafficked people; Chang Shun is truly insidious and vicious to the extreme.

She had previously felt sorry for this man, thinking that the people of Yun Gui County were only taking money and doing nothing, and that Chang Shun was being taken advantage of. How despicable! It turns out that Chang Shun was the real ruthless monster who devoured people without spitting out the bones!
Yunying's curiosity was satisfied, and she patted her bottom, ready to leave.

Seeing her stand up, the second master asked her, "What are you going to do?"

"Nothing much, I'm about to go back." Yunying pointed outside. "I can hear the rain is about to stop, so I'd better take this opportunity to hurry back to the backyard, otherwise it will be even harder to walk when the rain gets heavier."

The second master gave a light snort, seemingly rebuking her for her heartless betrayal.

Yunying blushed slightly, but she couldn't stay in the Second Master's study forever, could she?
The second master seemed to want to avoid seeing it, and waved his hand to tell her to leave.

But where is the umbrella? Where did the umbrella go?

The rain outside had lessened, but it hadn't stopped. If she ran out into the rain, her clothes would probably get wet before she even reached the door. By the time she got to the backyard, she'd be soaked to the bone.

In these times, catching a cold or fever could be fatal. Yunying didn't dare risk her health, so she turned to the Second Master and asked, "Don't you have an umbrella?"

Second Master was surprised for a moment, then Shu'er smiled, "Then there probably isn't."

Suiyun held an umbrella for him earlier, while Suiyu held an umbrella for herself. They should have taken the umbrella with them before they left.

Yunying was dumbfounded. "How am I supposed to get back without an umbrella?"

"Then wait a little longer, until the rain has completely stopped before you leave."

What if the rain keeps going on?

"Then we'll wait for Suiyun and the others to return, and then have them take you back."

Fortunately, Yunying's luck wasn't too bad; after about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the rain stopped completely.

Yunying smiled happily, waved to the Second Master, and went to her own courtyard without looking back.

The backyard wasn't quiet at all; in fact, it was incredibly noisy. It turned out that the rain had stopped, and the maids and servants, who had been cooped up all day, had all come out for some fresh air.

When they saw Yunying lifting the hem of her skirt and tiptoeing over from outside, all the maids and servants came over with smiles to greet her.

He even asked ingratiatingly, "When did you get back, young lady?"

"Did you get wet, young lady? The rain was really heavy just now."

"Has the young lady eaten yet? Should I go and tell the kitchen to prepare a few side dishes for her?"

Yunying responded to them one by one, saying that she had not been back for long, that she had not been caught in the rain, and that she did not need any food. On the way back to the city, she and the Second Master had some dry rations.

However, she doesn't need food; she needs ginger soup. Also, someone needs to make a special trip to the front yard to deliver two bowls of ginger soup to Second Master's place.

Yunying grabbed a maidservant and asked her to run an errand for her, to deliver a message to the kitchen.

She even took out three copper coins from her purse and gave them to the little maid. The maid received a windfall and also gained some recognition in front of Yunying—whether she gained recognition in front of the Second Master or not didn't matter, since they couldn't enter the Second Master's courtyard anyway. But as long as they gained recognition in front of Yunying, they were overjoyed.

The young maidservant readily agreed and ran off to the kitchen in a few steps.

The remaining maids and servants who stayed behind all showed envious expressions upon seeing this, and became even more enthusiastic towards Yunying.

One of the clever old women even struck up a conversation with Yunying, "Miss, do you know that someone came to bang on the door drum just now?"

“How could you not know, Miss Yunying? Miss Yunying left with Second Master. Second Master has already returned to hold court, so Miss Yunying must have returned as well.”

"Oh dear, Miss Yunying, do you know what case it is today? The rain is too heavy, so none of us went out to listen in."

"It must be a life-or-death case, otherwise who would come to file a complaint in this heavy rain? Couldn't they have waited until the rain stopped?"

Yunying was eventually rescued by Sui'er and Liu'er, who rushed to the scene after hearing the news, and then returned to her own courtyard.

Sui'er and Liu'er muttered, "They're giving them too much face, talking non-stop to the girl."

"The girl is kind-hearted. Next time they dare to chatter around you like that, just slap the one closest to you, and the rest will behave themselves."

“I saw the old woman spitting all over the girl’s face. The girl has such a pretty face, I hope she doesn’t get pockmarks.”

That's what they said, but when they got back to Yunying's courtyard, Sui'er and Liu'er surrounded Yunying as well.

They inquired about what Yunying and the Second Master had gone out to do today, and also asked about the case that had happened before.

Yunying didn't hide anything from her two maids; she told them everything they wanted to know.

Upon hearing this, Sui'er and Liu'er were furious.

"Chang Shun is too wicked. One day he'll be struck by lightning!"

"I've heard about how they scheme to take advantage of ordinary people to get jobs. Not only that, but the tea plantation that Changshun bought isn't far from my home." "Not far from your home?"

Liu'er and Yunying both looked at Sui'er.

Sui'er nodded. "It's really not far, just two hills away from my house. I heard about this from my grandmother. When gold was found in the tea mountains of Changshun, my grandmother went to dig for it too, but unfortunately she didn't find anything."

"Really? What a coincidence." Yunying murmured, "Your family was lucky not to dig it up, otherwise you would have been ripped off by Chang Shun and worked for them for more than ten years for nothing."

“That’s exactly how it is,” Sui’er said. “My grandmother was also glad, saying that it was fortunate that she had worked for several days for nothing and hadn’t found anything. She said that those who found copper coins could simply return them; but those who found gold or silver, look at them, they were all skinned alive by Chang Shun.”

Sui'er murmured, "Later, everyone realized that this was a scheme set up by Chang Shun. But the people in the county government had all been bribed by Chang Shun, so when they went to the government office to appeal, the government office ignored them. Just like that, they were used by Chang Shun for more than ten years and were bullied to death."

Yunying paused for a moment, then couldn't help but ask a question she had been considering for a long time, "Isn't it said that the people here are a bit... unscrupulous?"

This isn't her framing anyone; it's simply that unruly people often thrive in remote, impoverished areas. The fact that people who paid others to reclaim wasteland without doing any work speaks volumes. The local people are stubborn, ignorant, apathetic, cunning, and shameless. So, are these deceitful and mean-spirited people really going to obediently work for Chang Shun for free just because the government has issued a verdict?
Sui'er said, "Of course not. In fact, it's Chang Shun who's too despicable. He used those people's children to threaten them. He threatened that if they didn't work hard, he would ruin their families so that the men wouldn't be able to get married and the women wouldn't be able to get married."

Yun Ying: "..." That's really vicious. No wonder those common people were completely under his control and could only obediently work for Chang Shun.

On another note, you said Chang Shun's tea plantation isn't far from yours. What's his tea plantation like?

Sui'er didn't know why Yunying asked this question, but since her mistress had asked, she just had to answer honestly.

Sui'er said, "Changshun's tea plantation is doing very well and making a lot of money. That's what the villagers say. But if you ask me, I don't think he's making that much money. Otherwise, Changshun could just stay at home and wait for tea merchants to come and buy his tea. Why would he have to go out and sell his tea himself?"

Yunying wanted to tell Sui'er that Changshun's act of going out to sell goods was just a pretense; in reality, he was selling people. However, the matter was still under investigation, and without concrete evidence, she couldn't spread rumors.

Yunying stopped talking about these things. Just then, a maid came in carrying a food box containing ginger soup. Yunying drank the ginger soup, then went to bathe and change her clothes, and thus the day passed.

In the following days, Yunying was busy calculating the area of ​​the fields or going out with Suiyun to select barren mountains that could be developed into terraced fields.

She was busy every day, braving wind and rain, so much so that after more than half a month, she suddenly discovered that the newly made summer clothes were a bit loose.

Sui'er gestured to the extra part, "The girl has lost so much weight."

She pinched Yunying's slender waist again, "Your waist is so thin now, I can fit it between my two hands."

Liu'er also said, "Second Master is going too far. Our young lady is all alone, but Second Master treats her like several people."

"The capable should do more, right? Well, what can I do when the girl is so capable?"

Yunying only realized she had lost a lot of weight after being mentioned by her maid. She hurriedly went to the mirror and carefully examined her face.

Fortunately, I only lost weight, but my face didn't get tanned.

However, as the sun gets stronger, she must remember to wear a veil when she goes out, otherwise even the best skin will be wasted if she doesn't take proper sun protection measures.

Yunying was admiring herself in the mirror when a maidservant rushed over and said, "Miss, the Rongguo Duke's Mansion in the capital has sent over a lot of things, enough to fill two carriages. Miss, would you like to go and see what to do with these things?"

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Yunying immediately agreed and led Sui'er to the front yard.

They ran into Qiu Ning on the way, and Qiu Ning, upon hearing what they were going to do, also wanted to join in the fun.

She added, "I'm not going to embezzle anything from Second Master. I'm just going to take a look and maybe wander around the front yard. I'm going crazy from being confined to this small backyard all day."

"If you feel stifled, just tell me and I'll have someone arrange a carriage for you. You can go for a stroll in the streets."

"Then forget it. You can't come with me anyway, it's no fun shopping by myself."

Qiu Ning added, "Speaking of which, the capital really values ​​our Second Master. Every two or three months they send him a lot of things, including food, daily necessities, and clothes. It's like the Second Master is a baby who hasn't been weaned yet."

Yunying looked around, then turned and glared at Qiu Ning. "Shut up! If someone hears this and complains to the Second Master, you'll be in big trouble."

Qiu Ning smirked dismissively, "Second Master has no idea who I am. If he doesn't even know me, how can he punish me? Alright, alright, I won't say anything more."

As the group talked, they arrived at the carriage yard. Sure enough, they saw two carriages parked in the yard, and the coachman had already been taken aside by Mo Xue to have some tea.

A shipping manifest was delivered to Yunying.

She sent the food to the kitchen, and later took the necessities to the Second Master's courtyard, along with some cultural artifacts, antiques, spices, folding fans, and so on.

There was also a box specially filled with rouge, face powder, jewelry, and fabrics for women. It was unclear whether it was for several women or for the Second Master to give as gifts or rewards.

Everything was ready, and Yunying originally asked Moxue to deliver it to Second Master's courtyard.

Mo Xue replied, "If you have some free time, I would be grateful if you could take the trouble to send these things away and put them away properly. I am in a hurry to go to Houtang Village to deliver some things to Second Master."

Yunying nodded reluctantly, then asked Moxue, "Is Second Master in Houtang Village now? Is there any progress on the artificial pearl cultivation project?"

"Yes. Mr. Lu returned a few days ago, bringing back a lot of mother-of-pearl. These past two days, Mr. Lu has been leading people to implant pearl nuclei made from ground seashells into the mother-of-pearl. Second Master took people to check on the progress."

He added, "I've run into some trouble. Luckily, Second Master has a set of tools that might be useful for implanting the bead core, so he asked me to come back and get them."

After saying this, Mo Xue nodded slightly to Yun Ying and quickly left.

Before leaving, he also gave two letters to Yunying, asking her to put them in the Second Master's study.

One of the two letters was from the Duchess of Rongguo, and the other was from the Duke of Rongguo.

Both letters were delivered by guards who accompanied the carriage to Yun Gui County, and now Mo Xue is handing them over to Yun Ying.

It has to be said that this clearly demonstrates that the four people, represented by Mo Xue, now recognize Yun Ying.

Mo Xue left, and Qiu Ning was also going back to the backyard.

Before leaving, Qiu Ning whispered in Yun Ying's ear, urging her to seize the opportunity and try to conceive a son.

Qiu Ning said, "Now, Mo Xue and the others all have goodwill towards you, and Second Master only has eyes for you. As long as you can give birth to a son, Yun Ying, you will never have to worry for the rest of your life. In the future, you can stand tall and be the wife of the county magistrate, and go out to socialize with the families of officials."

"Yun Ying, you must seize this opportunity!"

Yunying nodded in agreement and urged Qiuning to hurry back to the backyard.

Seeing that she completely ignored her words, Qiu Ning glared at Yun Ying with exasperation. To prevent her from continuing to ramble on, Yun Ying quickly said, "I know what I'm doing. You should go back now."

After seeing Qiu Ning off, Yun Ying took a lot of clothes and went to the Second Master's courtyard.

She first placed the two letters on the desk in the Second Master's study, and then went to the Second Master's bedroom.

This was the first time Yunying had ever stepped into the room where the Second Master had started his business, and her heart couldn't help but beat faster.

She told the guards to put down the clothes and then let them go about their business, while she stayed in the room to help the Second Master put away his things.

It was only then that Yunying dared to raise her head and carefully observe every corner of the Second Master's room.

Second Master's room was visibly tidy, clean, solemn, and dignified, just like him.

Opposite the door was a round table made of huanghuali wood, on which was placed a set of chrysanthemum petal jade tea set; against the wall was a carved red lacquer antique display shelf with children playing on it, on which Yunying had seen some things before, and some she had never seen before.

It's worth mentioning that, unlike other rooms, there aren't two armchairs and an incense table on the wall directly opposite the door. These things are absent here. The only thing there is a simple and heavy sword hanging on this wall.

The hilt was inlaid with rubies and sapphires, and the scabbard bore scratches and indelible bloodstains. At first glance, the sword seemed unremarkable, merely an ornament. But upon closer inspection, one could detect an unmistakable stench of blood on it—clearly, this was no ordinary, nameless sword!
If you miss this sword, look to the left. There stands a rosewood canopy that rises step by step, and the view inside is blocked by a four-panel screen with pine, cypress, plum, and orchid doors. And inside that is the Second Master's bedroom.

Yunying looked away, patted her cheeks, and felt like an unwitting voyeur.

She despised herself for this and whispered to herself, "What's yours is yours, and what's not yours is not yours. What's the use of keeping your mind about it?" She should just be honest and do her job well.

Yunying looked away and then at the thing in her hand.

She didn't know where to put the folding fans, jade hairpins, and the like, but she definitely needed to put the clothes in the wardrobe.

However, these clothes are wrinkled from long-distance transportation and compression, so they certainly can't be put into the closet like this.

Today is my birthday! Happy birthday to me! I hope I have a hot body, be as beautiful as a flower, eat meat every day, and have money to spend every year~~ This is what my daughter sang for me, I hope it comes true! Hahahaha…

(End of this chapter)