Miao Chu

Chapter 178 Anxious

Seeing that this student from the capital had decided their fate in just a few words, how could the two officials accept it?

The man in front only knew how to cry foul, but the one behind was much smarter. He immediately shouted, "Student Han! Who are you? You have no official position or rank, so what right do you have to interfere in the affairs of the government office?"

With that, he ignored Han Li and immediately turned to Cen Dezhang, shouting, "Prefect! Prefect! You arrived only a moment late, and you've been treated like this? I'm not satisfied!"

“I have served in the Huazhou prefectural government for more than ten years. I have not made any great contributions, but I have certainly worked hard. The account books and archives I have compiled are as high as a mountain. What has this man surnamed Han done to allow him to act so arrogantly and domineeringly here? Even Heaven cannot stand by and watch! How can the prefect tolerate this!”

After saying this, the person looked at the people to his left and right.

After a few breaths, a familiar face gritted his teeth and stepped forward to echo, "Prefect, with the Provincial Judicial Commissioner's inspection imminent, Jiang Tieshu has always been conscientious in his work. Even if there are occasional oversights, Han Xuesheng was only doing his job for the public good. It is only right to reprimand him. But if we dismiss him over such a small matter, we will be short one person. I'm afraid the accounts and the treasury will be too busy to handle the situation!"

This person was unwilling to offend too much, so although he spoke up for Han Li, he dared not say anything more about Han Li being domineering.

Having received this way out, the clerk Jiang also took the opportunity to back down, and hurriedly said, "Prefect, I made a mistake for a moment. There are just too many things to do. If we have to wait for both of us to be present to look at the files and accounts, we really won't be able to finish. In my haste, I made a mistake. I will never do it again. Please forgive me this time!"

As he spoke, tears streamed down his face. He took a few steps forward and knelt down to pay his respects to Cen Dezhang.

They saw each other all the time, and seeing them in such a pitiful state was something Cen Dezhang couldn't bear to see.

His heart softened, and he was about to speak, but before he could open his mouth, the retainer grabbed his hand and squeezed it hard.

The retainer stepped forward, blocking Cen Dezhang, and shouted at the clerk, "Still trying to argue! If you hadn't made a mistake, we wouldn't have found fault with you. Where was your preamble? Don't you know that without rules, there can be no order?"

He added, “No matter how good a prefect is, we can’t let you do bad things. Otherwise, who will work hard in the future? If someone makes a mistake, they can just kneel down and beg for forgiveness and that’s it! Leaving a mess for the superior to clean up is not fair!”

He then shouted towards the door, "Where is he? Do we have to ask the magistrate himself before we'll take him away?!"

Seeing the situation was turning against him, Jiang, the clerk, hurriedly begged for mercy, pleading and kowtowing repeatedly. Before the servants outside could enter, he cried out, "Prefect, please forgive me this time! I have a seventy-year-old mother at home, and young children waiting to be cared for. I know I was wrong! I know I was wrong!!!"

As he spoke, he kowtowed repeatedly, and within a few breaths, red marks appeared on his forehead.

Cen Dezhang, sitting in the back, couldn't bear to watch any longer. He felt he would think about this scene even when he went to sleep that night, and his heart ached. He couldn't help but cry out, "Zhengyan..."

He didn't call his retainers "Han Li".

Jiang Tieshu, who was on the ground, came to his senses and turned to look for Han Li.

Han Li, however, neither dodged nor yielded, letting him grab her, and said, "I've remembered you for a long time. You're the clerk in the yamen, your name is Jiang Liang, right?"

“I didn’t originally intend to pursue this matter now, but since you’re not satisfied, I’ll just ask you this: Last year, Magistrate Cen submitted a petition requesting Dinghe timber. In January, the Water Conservancy Bureau allocated the Dinghe timber, which was deposited into the Huazhou treasury on the third day of the second month and left the treasury on the twentieth day of the third month. Regardless of what was deposited, your name and signature are on the account for what was deposited—where did the Dinghe timber go?”

Jiang Liang looked up, tears and snot streaming down his face, about to cry again, but upon hearing the words "river-stabilizing timber," the tears actually stopped in his eyes. After a long while, he said in a trembling voice, "River-stabilizing timber... for... for repairing the river embankment, yes! It was allocated for repairing the river embankment, and it's already being stored under the embankment..."

As he spoke, he seemed to gain confidence, and his voice grew louder. Wiping away his tears and snot, he exclaimed, "Student Han, the log is already propped up under the riverbank. If you don't believe me, go down into the river and feel it for yourself!"

"You received it on March 20th?"

"So what if I took it—it's just a legitimate job, can't I take it???"

Two servants had already entered through the door, but they stood there awkwardly, not daring to move.

Han Li ignored the two men and Jiang Liang, and instead rang the bell to call a new servant.

He instructed, "Go to the state treasury and have Ding Liu bring over the March treasury requisition file. You will replace him."

The servant hurried away.

The state treasury was very close to the state government office, and soon Ding Liu, the treasury clerk, hurriedly entered.

Seeing that the room was full of people and Jiang Liang was kneeling on the ground, Ding Liu was already somewhat panicked. Now, not knowing what had happened, she could only stand there helplessly.

Han Li called out to him and asked, "You were in charge of the warehouse on the 20th of March. What items were taken out of the warehouse that day?"

Ding Liu was holding the inventory register in his hand. Upon hearing this, he quickly opened the register and read it one by one. Before long, he read about Dinghe wood.

Han Li asked, "You received eighty sticks, were they collected at 5 PM? In which storeroom were they stored?"

Ding Liu reported it.

Who will receive it?

"It was used by Secretary Jiang!"

Han Li suddenly said, "Aren't you going to reconsider?"

Jiang Liang, who had been kneeling, suddenly stood up and said angrily, "I've admitted to taking the timber, and I've admitted to the warehouse clerk. Both of them are legitimate officials from the state government. How dare you, an outsider, point fingers here? You surnamed Han, aren't you going a bit too far?"

Before the man could continue, Han Li coldly said, "You received the Dinghe timber on March 20th. That day, Wu Gongshi led people to the treasury to count the materials used for the river works. They counted from morning till night, and no one was seen carrying the timber. Dinghe timber is so big, and you received eighty of them in one go. When did you receive them? Did you fly out on your back?"

"The river engineering materials in the state warehouse are stored in the Jia-type warehouse, including the river-stabilizing timber. They are all in one room, with seven or eight pairs of eyes watching them. Even if Wu Gongshi is blind, does that mean everyone else is blind too?"

Jiang Liang froze on the spot, opening his mouth to speak, but couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

He thought that perhaps he had accidentally filled in the wrong date.

The registration was clear, and the name was signed according to the rules—but I had insisted on everything just now, which had locked up my escape route, so now I couldn't go back on my word even if I wanted to.

Han Li looked up and glanced at everyone, then asked, "Does anyone have any objections to Magistrate Cen's plan to dismiss this person?"

The room was completely silent.

Han Li then asked, "Where is the Ministry of Justice?"

Soon, two people stepped forward. "The Dinghe wood is quite valuable, and eighty pieces have mysteriously disappeared. This is one issue. It's so easy to embezzle and misappropriate funds from the state treasury's accounts. We don't know if any other materials have been misappropriated."

As he spoke, he turned around and looked at Cen Dezhang.

That Dinghe Mu Nai Cen Dezhang had repeatedly petitioned, using all his connections and influence to finally obtain it, only to discover now that it had been taken by someone else without his consent. And that was eighty pieces, almost emptying his pockets. Even though he was a kind-hearted man, he was so angry that his chest ached.

This matter is fine, but the warehouse guards are practically useless. If the Provincial Judicial Commissioner comes down to inspect and finds discrepancies between the accounts and the warehouse, I'm afraid I'll be relegated to a low-ranking position again, and this hard-earned official post will be over.

He rarely showed anger, and said, "Take these two away and interrogate them thoroughly!"

Two people were taken away at once, and the already quiet room became even quieter, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Han Li held the roster in his hand, first calling out the names of ten people, and then said, "Each of you will take one servant and go to Mingfu Temple to count one monk and one student, and to check the grain. Any objections?"

No one dared to utter a single word, nor did they mention being busy or having many things to do; they all stepped forward to receive their orders.

Han Li then selected twenty more men and said, “Each of you will lead a patrol team. Today I recruited a thousand able-bodied men from Weizhou, and four hundred have arrived. After we unload the grain at the temple, you will lead the men to the shacks outside the city and arrange for them to stay there. You will also have men patrol the area and assist Lord Wu in handling tomorrow’s affairs. Do you have any objections?”

The men obediently agreed, took the order, and immediately went out the door. They didn't dare to stop and hurriedly went to pick up their patrolmen, fearing that if they were too slow, they would get into trouble.

After issuing seven or eight orders in a row, Han Li turned to Cen Dezhang and asked, "Does the Prefect have anything to add? Please assign it."

Cen Dezhang quickly replied, "That's good, very well done, nothing more to add."

After seeing everyone off, he stood up and said to Han Li, "Zhengyan, you really worked hard this time. You only went to Weizhou for two or three days and actually managed to raise so much grain and recruit a thousand able-bodied men. Fortunately, you were there, otherwise the framework for building canals and digging rivers would never have been set up!"

They then asked him how he managed to raise the grain and where he recruited the people.

Han Li didn't hide anything from him, and recounted in detail how Song Miao met an old woman who was buying vegetables, how she learned that the woman came by water, how the two hit it off, and what they did after arriving in Weizhou.

Although it was just a straightforward account, luck clearly played a part. Everyone pooled their wisdom and efforts, each contributing their strengths. As for Han Li, he even brought up Master Chen, who was far away in the capital, so that Cen Dezhang listened and praised him. Finally, he sighed, "I'm ashamed. I wasn't careful enough, and I was too easily swayed, so I couldn't bring myself to do it properly, which is why things have been delayed again and again..."

Hearing him belittle himself like that, Han Li didn't say anything polite. Instead, he said, "Now that we've captured Ding Liu and Jiang Liang, we're going to interrogate them properly. It's definitely not just about these Dinghe woods; there must be other loopholes."

He added, “After all, it’s the state treasury. Petty theft is one thing, but such audacity must have come from more than one or two people. The prefect should act decisively. If we don’t seize this opportunity to establish our authority, there will be no peace.”

Cen Dezhang nodded repeatedly.

Han Li bowed and said to the retainer, "I was in charge of recruiting people and raising grain this time. In order to avoid suspicion, I will not participate in the inventory and subsequent arrangements. I will trouble you to take care of it."

The retainer readily agreed, "Don't worry, we have all assigned tasks and are each keeping an eye on our own areas. We will make sure your efforts are not in vain!"

The two talked to each other, leaving Cen Dezhang standing aside, and the latter didn't seem to notice anything amiss.

After handing over several matters, Han Lifu took his leave. Before leaving, he said to Cen Dezhang, "I know that the prefect is kind-hearted and acts gently. He often cannot bear to use harsh methods. But there are always trade-offs. If we take care of these cunning clerks in the yamen and let them do whatever they want, we will not be able to take care of the people of Huazhou."

"The Vice Prefect is a scholar who passed the imperial examinations twice. He is well-versed in the classics and understands the practical application of knowledge. He has also served as an official in several places. I, Han, am just a scholar. It is not my place to say such things. But I ask the Vice Prefect to consider which is more important."

After saying this, he bowed and went out the door.

Seeing that it was getting late, Han Li went straight to the back office to fetch his horse.

Having explained everything and knowing that the main task was done, even if there were some minor flaws, they wouldn't affect the overall situation. He finally felt relieved and then overjoyed, feeling a warm glow in his heart.

There was nothing urgent, but he just didn't want to waste a single moment. He wished that wings would grow on his horse, or even more wings and legs, so that he could fly back to the post station as fast as he could.

If we get back early, we can eat a meal and say a few words sooner.

***
Han Li was in a hurry to return to the official post station, but Song Miao was unhurried, squeezing the oyster mushrooms in her hands dry while waiting for the pot in front of her to heat up.

In front of the stove, Dabing was cooking over a fire. As he cooked, he asked, "What kind of mushrooms are these? They're just a small bunch, why are they so expensive? More expensive than meat?"

Song Miao said, "It's oyster mushroom from Yichuan, also called Haifeng mushroom. It's said that it grows in the misty peaks and has the most delicious flavor."

As she spoke, seeing that the pot was already hot, she added a little lard, then added shredded ginger and scallion whites, stir-fried them lightly, and waited for the aroma of ginger and scallions to come out before adding the oyster mushrooms, which had been torn into small pieces.

Stir-fry over medium-high heat. After a short while, the mushrooms softened, bringing out a very thin layer of broth from the bottom of the pot.

Raw shiitake mushrooms naturally have a mushroom smell, but unlike shiitake mushrooms, which have a milder aroma, they smell damp, somewhat like the smell that hits you when you part a pile of rice straw after harvesting rice and leaving it wet in the field, after a heavy rain.

It's not exactly fragrant, but it has a pleasant, slightly damp scent, reminiscent of the warmth of an autumn afternoon.

When stir-fried with lard, the mushroom aroma intensifies instantly, not only becoming stronger but also finally bringing out a delicate fragrance.

Now, add enough boiling water to bring out the flavor of the oyster mushrooms. After a while, turn off the stove and switch to medium-low heat. When the water in the pot is no longer boiling so vigorously, slowly slice the meat.

This time I made oyster mushroom and sliced ​​pork soup, an extremely simple and convenient soup that emphasizes the quality of the ingredients.

Oyster mushrooms must be picked at the right time; not too old, otherwise they will be too tough, and not too young, otherwise they will lack aroma and mushroom flavor. In addition, the pork must be especially fresh.

The pig was slaughtered in the afternoon. The pork shoulder was taken, sliced ​​thinly, and only a little salt was added for marinating. No other seasonings were used. Once it was put into the pot, the water boiled and the meat turned white. Then, salt and a little pepper were added immediately for seasoning.

This soup has a light golden color and is almost crystal clear, but it smells very strong with mushrooms and meat.

Song Miao served a separate bowl to Wang Shuji and took it out.

On the drying ground, Wang Shuji sat at a newly moved table, his left hand shackled and his right hand holding chopsticks, slowly eating.

Across from them sat several government officials, each with bowls and chopsticks laid out in front of them, yet none of them touched them, and everyone felt as if they were sitting on pins and needles.

The man at the head was sweating profusely with anxiety, clutching the keys in his hand. He tried to step forward several times, but was stopped each time by the Wang family servants.

He said with a mournful face, "Sir Wang, you are a magnanimous man. Please forgive me for now and let me remove those shackles!"