Prime Minister.

Chapter 118, Section 117: [Solving the Case]

The next day.

Just after Chen Shi (7-9 AM), a group of clerks and yamen runners had already gathered in front of the government office.

They were led by Wang Gui and comprised six departments of the prefectural government, including the Records Office, the Mirror Office, the Inspection Office, and the Household and Personnel Office. In addition, there were fifteen fast-moving yamen runners carrying waist knives.

The early May sun already carried a hint of restlessness, yet people dared not stand lazily in the shade as usual.

Wang Gui's feelings were somewhat complicated.

After leaving the government office yesterday, he and six other clerks were summoned by Liu Rang and Zheng Xuan for a long talk, which lasted until nightfall before they could go home.

Liu Rang treated them very gently, not holding their obedience to Xue Huai the day before. On the contrary, he clearly stated that he could fully understand their helplessness and told Wang Gui and the others not to feel guilty.

In addition, Liu Rang and Zheng Xuan, working together, repeatedly warned Wang Gui and the others, describing Xue Huai as a monstrous threat, urging them to stay alert, follow Xue Huai's instructions, but not forget their own stance.

In short, they could not betray the local officials and gentry of Yangzhou, and they had to promptly report Xue Huai's every move back.

"What kind of mess is this..."

Wang Gui muttered a curse to himself, then turned to look at the other clerks who shared his plight. Their eyes held a mixture of apprehension and helplessness.

They're not stupid; they must have realized by now that Xue Huai's purpose in establishing this temporary affairs office was to kill two birds with one stone: to smoothly resolve the backlog of thorny official business in the government office, and to sow discord among the officials who were originally united in their efforts.

The two paths before Wang Gui and his companions became increasingly clear: either stand firm and feign compliance with Xue Huai, or turn around and pledge allegiance to this promising magistrate.

This decision concerns one's future and livelihood, so no one dares to make a decision lightly.

"coming!"

Someone whispered a reminder, and the group of nearly thirty people immediately became orderly.

Xue Huai, dressed in a blue official robe, strode out, followed by nine people: Li Shun with three clerks and Jiang Sheng with four guards.

"Is everyone here?"

Xue Huai looked around at everyone, then came to the group of constables and pointed at Jiang Sheng, saying to them, "His name is Jiang Sheng. He is the head of my guards. You will be under his command for the next period of time."

These yamen runners were selected according to Xue Huai's requirements. They were young, had simple backgrounds, and were not from Yangzhou Prefecture, making them relatively easy to manage.

Jiang Sheng never imagined that he would become a leader one day. Fortunately, Xue Huai had given him some advice yesterday, so he was not so nervous now. He immediately stepped forward to give a brief self-introduction, and then divided the team of twenty people into two teams, A and B, with ten people in each team and each having their own assigned tasks to take turns.

Xue Huai watched from the side without intervening. Although Jiang Sheng was nominally still Jiang Li's man, after spending the past few months together, he could sense that Jiang Sheng longed to become his confidant.

In that case, he needs Jiang Sheng to demonstrate a certain level of ability, not necessarily to stand alone, but at least not to have him constantly cleaning up the mess.

Jiang Sheng had seen a lot of big scenes and had come into contact with many high-ranking officials in the capital. He had no problem keeping a group of yamen runners carefully selected by Xue Huai in check.

Xue Huai was very satisfied, and then looked at Wang Gui and the others and said, "Gentlemen, without further ado, let's go to the Jiangdu County Government Office now. Magistrate Li is already waiting for us there."

"I accept my order from my humble position!"

Everyone mounted their horses. This time, they would start from Jiangdu County, then head west to Yizhen County, and then circle back north and east, covering a total distance of about 600 li. It would be impossible to walk on two legs; they would have to rely on horses.

Fortunately, Yangzhou Prefecture was wealthy enough; if it were a remote and poor prefecture, it would have been impossible to gather even a few dozen horses.

Xue Huai's mount was the magnificent steed that Jiang Li had gifted him, which accompanied him all the way from the capital to Yangzhou.

Dozens of fine horses left the government office and sped off towards the Jiangdu County government office in the southeast.

Jiangdu was an outlying city of Yangzhou. The county government and the prefectural government were actually located in the same city, about a mile apart, which took only about 15 minutes by horseback.

Upon arriving at the county government office, Magistrate Li Chunjiu and a group of his subordinates had been waiting for quite some time.

"This humble official pays his respects to Your Excellency!"

Li Chunjiu was thirty-seven years old at the time. He was a third-class Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations). He had a lean and refined appearance and a scholarly and elegant demeanor.

"Magistrate Li, there's no need for such formalities."

Xue Huai dismounted and said calmly, "You've already read the official document from the government yesterday, haven't you?"

"This humble official has reviewed it."

Li Chunjiu respectfully said, "The relevant personnel are currently waiting in the main hall of the county government, awaiting a summons from Your Excellency." "Very well."

Xue Huai said succinctly, "Then let's meet."

His decisive and efficient style of doing things made Li Chunjiu feel a little uncomfortable.

Li Chunjiu came from a poor family. After arriving in Yangzhou to serve as the magistrate of Jiangdu County, he quickly integrated into the leisurely atmosphere of this scenic spot in Huaiyang. He was not negligent in his duties, but at least he did not get straight to the point like Xue Huai. He always maintained a calm and composed demeanor.

However, a higher rank can have an advantage, especially since Xue Huai was renowned. Li Chunjiu dared not show the slightest dissatisfaction and quickly took the lead.

The group went straight into the main hall of the county government office. Under the complex gazes of dozens of local gentry and commoners, Xue Huai sat in the main seat, with a plaque reading "A Clear Mirror Hangs High" hanging above him. Li Chunjiu sat at the table on the left.

For the people below, such a display was truly unusual.

Two clerks placed six files on the large table in front of Xue Huai. He picked up the top file, looked solemnly at the people below, and said loudly, "Where is Wang Dong?"

A portly man in his forties stepped forward, knelt down respectfully, and said, "Your Excellency, I am Wang Dong."

Looking at this man, Xue Huai could tell at a glance that he had extensive experience in dealing with officials. Although he appeared humble and subservient on the surface, he was actually calm and composed.

He said calmly, "Where is the plaintiff in this case?"

Three men immediately came to Wang Dong's side and kowtowed to Xue Huai. They were the representatives of the twenty-five plaintiff households in this case.

Looking at the three men's impoverished clothes and uneasy expressions, Xue Huai softened his tone and said, "I am Xue Huai, now the Assistant Magistrate of Yangzhou. I am here today specifically to resolve your case. Now you can tell me the whole story in detail, without any deception or embellishment. You must tell me the whole truth, understand?"

"This humble subject...this humble subject understands."

The three men nodded hurriedly, and then the man in the middle stammered, "Sir, last summer there was a great flood along the river, and all the fields belonging to my family and others were submerged. Master Wang sent someone to find us, saying he was willing to buy them at the price of top-quality paddy fields, and we naturally agreed. At first, everything was agreed upon; our land totaled sixty mu, and the price was eighteen taels per mu. But after the transaction was completed, we discovered that the price on the contract had inexplicably changed to four taels per mu!"

"Your Excellency, he's just spouting nonsense!"

Wang Dong quickly spoke up, explaining, "Those sixty mu of paddy fields were originally low-grade land, and they were flooded. How could they possibly be worth eighteen taels per mu? I never said that price. I always told them it was four taels of silver per mu. These people are greedy and want to extort me after the deal is done! Please, Your Excellency, do me justice!"

"You...you're talking nonsense!"

The man named Huang Da said angrily and anxiously, "Your steward clearly said it was eighteen taels per mu, but you only paid four taels per mu in the end, and you won't even let us take back our land! We don't want the money, we just want the land that belongs to us!"

"Why should we let you take it back?"

Wang Dong said anxiously, "I've already given you a total of 240 taels, and the drainage of those paddy fields cost me a lot of money. Now you're saying you won't sell them? What about my losses?"

Seeing that the two sides were about to start arguing, Xue Huai raised his hand and slammed the gavel, and the hall quickly quieted down.

He looked at Li Chunjiu sitting next to him and said, "Magistrate Li, where is the county government's fish scale map?"

Li Chunjiu hurriedly had a minor official present the map, and then said softly, "Your Excellency, according to the records in the map, the sixty mu of paddy fields involved in this case are indeed of inferior quality, and the price offered by Wang Dong is reasonable."

Xue Huai picked up the picture book and flipped through it without commenting.

Seeing this, Li Chunjiu continued, "This case has dragged on for more than half a year. I have repeatedly checked the case files and witness testimonies. Whether it is the record in the map or the contract between the two parties, the selling price of this batch of paddy fields is four taels per mu. However... the people have been complaining, coming to the county government to file a complaint every few days, and they have gathered more than a hundred people to occupy those paddy fields all day long, not allowing the Wang family to set foot on them. When I sent people to the site to mediate, they even dared to push and shove the yamen runners. When they saw that I would not side with them, these people submitted their petitions to the prefectural government. Alas."

Through his description, the unruly characters of those twenty-five households came to life.

On the surface, Wang Dong's side had enough detailed and conclusive evidence that there was nothing wrong with the deal. On the contrary, the people who sold the land seemed greedy and insatiable. They were still not satisfied even after receiving 240 taels of silver, and they caused great trouble for the Jiangdu County government.

Xue Huai put down the album and looked at Li Chunjiu, saying, "Does Magistrate Li think these people are deliberately causing trouble?"

"This... I dare not."

Li Chunjiu lowered his voice and said, "Your Excellency, I have tried to persuade these people several times, but they can only get two hundred and forty taels. Even if the case is taken to the Provincial Administration Commission, they will not win. But they refuse to listen no matter what, and have made trouble at the prefectural government office more than once. I am helpless."

Xue Huai understood his subtext.

In other words, Jiangdu was an attached city of Yangzhou, and Li Chunjiu was under the jurisdiction of the prefectural government. He dared not use harsh methods to deal with these people. Otherwise, if it were a county magistrate elsewhere, he would have ordered the officials to arrest the troublemakers and imprison them for several months. At that time, who would dare to continue to cause trouble?

In some ways, the magistrate of Jiangdu County and the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture in the capital were very similar, both feeling frustrated and helpless.

Xue Huai turned to look at the four people kneeling below the hall again. Wang Dong was respectful and calm, while Huang Da and the other two were full of indignation.

He couldn't help but say pointedly, "Magistrate Li, you seem to have overlooked a problem."

(End of this chapter)