Transmigrated into a minor official in a county government, with children at home waiting for rice t

Kong Youan picked up the silver coins from Qian Laohei's hand, one by one, and put them into his sleeve. Finally, he added softly, "Donkey Three, go get the knife and let him cut off his little finger himself!"

Without hesitation, Donkey Three turned around and brought the kitchen knife from the kitchen.

Qian Laohei knelt on the ground, his right hand gripping the knife handle, the blade hovering above his left little finger. He shook it three times, but the blade still couldn't be aimed correctly.

Unable to bear it any longer, Donkey Three snatched the cleaver away and chopped off his little finger at the base.

Blood splattered on the ground, staining Qian Laohei's trousers and Lu San's shoes.

Qian Laohei screamed and fell backward, hitting the back of his head on the foot of the bed, and passed out.

Donkey Three squatted down and checked his breathing. "Clerk, he's alright. He's probably just knocked unconscious."

Kong Youan stood up, took a handkerchief and wiped away the tiny specks of blood splattered on the back of his hand. "When he wakes up, tell him that if he dares to reach out again, it won't be as simple as just losing a little finger!"

He threw the blood-stained handkerchief at Qian Laohei's face and turned to walk away.

He paused at the door, turned to look at Donkey Three, and said, "Keep an eye on things at the market and docks for Old Black next month. If you collect less than him, don't blame me for not giving you a chance."

After leaving the Qian family's courtyard, Kong Youan walked down the alley, his fingers slowly twisting his cuffs.

Qian Laohei only swallowed three silver beans; the disloyal servants were simply chopped off.

But Zhang Sanlang accepted the gesture with a smile, and then deftly pushed the money back.

I had intended to win him over, but since he doesn't appreciate it, I'll have to try a different approach.

After thinking for two days, Kong Youan sent someone to summon Donkey Three.

Donkey Sanxing burst through the door. "Clerk, I've taken over Boss Qian's business. At the docks..."

Kong Youan waved his hand from behind his desk, "The dock matters aren't urgent. In the next few days, you need to do three things. First, find a stranger and get a packet of smuggled salt."

"When Old Sun is packing up his stall and not paying attention, slip it under the stove at his tofu-frying stall. Then send someone to tell the archer that there are vendors smuggling salt at the docks."

Donkey Three pondered these words for a moment, "Old Sun? That old cart driver who fries tofu?"

"That's him. Second, this afternoon you go see Zhang Shouren, the head manager of Zhang's General Store. Tell him you'd like to invite him for a cup of tea at the teahouse across from his shop, in a private room by the window. That's all."

Donkey Three took half a step forward and lowered his voice, "Clerk, I understand dealing with Old Sun. But what's the point of having tea with Zhang Shouren, who just runs a general store?"

"What do you know? He's Zhang Sanlang's elder brother. Even if they're no longer related, he's still his elder brother. If Zhang Sanlang doesn't know what's good for him, then we'll start with his neighbors, his family, from the docks to the market, step by step."

"Ruin his reputation, arrest his neighbor, hmph, with both cards laid out on the table, let's see where he can hide now. Also, go tell Qian Laohei to..."

Kong Youan had just finished his secret meeting with Lv San when the door was pushed open.

Yu Shoufen from the criminal investigation department hurriedly entered and bowed to Kong Youan.

"Clerk, County Lieutenant Xu has sent someone to report that a corpse has been pulled from the dock. The body is already white from being submerged in water. It has been discovered that the person is Chen Youde's steward."

"A copy of a land transfer document was found in the lining of his clothes. County Magistrate Xu checked it and found that this man had been drinking with Qian Laohei at Fengle Tower before his death. County Magistrate Xu wants you to send someone to summon Qian Laohei."

Kong Youan took the messy copy, unfolded it, and glanced at it.

The paper was wrinkled from being soaked in water, and most of the ink had bled out, but the date at the bottom was still legible.

Fifteen mu of paddy fields near Guangji Bridge, the buyer is Chen Youde, and the seller is Gu Erzhu.

He folded the copy and placed it on the corner of the desk. "This case involves confidential information from the criminal investigation department and will not be made public for the time being. All files will be locked in the cabinet for now and sent to County Magistrate Xu after inspection."

Yu Shoufen responded and withdrew.

After closing the door, he looked at the copy again.

The date on this copy is quite intriguing.

He personally handled the land dispute. After the Gu family withdrew their lawsuit, the land was transferred to Chen Youde. All the documents were recorded on the same day. The household registration and the criminal case closure documents were only one day apart, which was a procedural convention and not something done intentionally.

Steward Chen obtained this copy from who-knows-where, probably intending to keep it as a talisman. Now, the talisman has sunk into the Guangji River along with him.

Amulets can't save the dead.

The archived documents in the prison can serve as evidence, but this tattered copy cannot be used as evidence. The corpse has long been soaked until it turns white. The real headache is with Xu Kai.

This county constable has been watching me for a while now, and he'll definitely seize this opportunity to expedite the inspection, which would actually do me a favor. Instead of racing against him, I'd rather hide his files.

He tucked the copy into the document bag in the cabinet and instructed Donkey Three to carry it out.

In the afternoon, Kong Youan sat in a private room by the window in the teahouse opposite Zhang's shop. Zhang Shouren pushed open the door, stood at the door, cupped his hands in greeting, and put on the usual smile of a businessman.

"Officer Kong, I wonder why you summoned me here? What brings you here?"

Kong Youan poured him a cup of tea and pushed it in front of him. "Sit down. These are just family matters, nothing to offer advice on."

Zhang Shouren sat down halfway and took the teacup with both hands.

"I heard that there have been some changes in Zhang's family recently. Your third brother severed ties with his relatives, took the ancestral home, and also got ten acres of ancestral land?" Kong Youan picked up his teacup, his tone casual as if he were talking about the weather.

Zhang Shouren's smile faded slightly. "That is indeed true. My father was soft-hearted and severed ties with the family, returning the old house to its owner. Who knew he would be so greedy and even swallow up the ancestral land?"

"Since that's the case, why not sue him? He's unfilial and disrespectful to his elders, and he's encroached on ancestral property. Just those two charges alone will be enough to give him a hard time in court."

Zhang Shouren shook his head with a wry smile, "There's no way to sue. The severance document was written by the clan elder, and he also took away the ancestral land deed. It's all in black and white, the paperwork is complete. We'll lose even if we take it to the yamen."

He gripped his teacup, his brow furrowed. "What's most infuriating is that recently he even let that old man who used to watch over my house set up a stall at the docks selling fried tofu. What kind of nonsense is this? My dilapidated yard has now become his livelihood!"

Kong Youan took a sip of tea and slowly began, "It doesn't matter if you lose the lawsuit. Once you've severed ties, you should close the door and live your own life, and return the ancestral land. Your father is too soft-hearted; as the eldest brother, you should worry more about him..."

Zhang Shouren pondered these words for a moment, then slowly put down his teacup.

When he got home, it was already dark. In the main room, Zhang's father was soaking his feet under the lamp. He relayed Kong Youan's words to him.

Before he could finish speaking, his wife poked her head out and said, "What did I tell you? We shouldn't have given him the house in the first place! Now look what's happened, he's hogging the ancestral home and land, and even making that old good-for-nothing set up a stall at the docks, utterly disgracing the Zhang family..."

Zhang Shouren glared at her. "Dad's soaking his feet, so shut up."

Zhang's father picked up the foot-wiping cloth draped over the back of the chair and slowly wiped his feet. He then placed the cloth back on the chair. "That person is a clerk in the criminal investigation department. Why would he bother to tell you this? Dalang, don't be used!"