Chapter 53: Section 53: The County Magistrate and the Adviser

Ambitious schemers who thrive in murky waters will always exist.

This sort of thing, of course, could not be tolerated. Right now was precisely when Zhou Tong's band of outsiders was at its most vulnerable — once they failed to hold the field, what followed would be a chaotic free-for-all with warlords rising on all sides. Setting aside how many more rounds of fighting that would take, the utter breakdown of public order was something the authorities would never accept.

So the moment the news was confirmed, Zhou Longtou immediately began summoning the divine dragon. The Namekians, who already had their nerves taut and were intensely monitoring how events unfolded, answered the summons at once. This time the scale was much larger — just a few dilapidated temples inside and outside the city. Leaving aside the ones outside the city, for the dilapidated temple inside the city, the Namekians, in order to be fast and quiet, deployed great killers like silenced pistols and flash grenades. The entire process took only one moment, including the time needed to carry the corpses onto the boat.

In the time after this, the Beggar Sect was utterly tranquil from top to bottom; the original undercurrents were, for the moment, frozen solid.

Another night passed.

The layout of the government offices in Hangzhou City was quite unique. The main halls of one prefecture and two counties were actually clustered together — no one knew whether this prized plot of land beside Gou Hill truly could bring prosperity to an official's career.

The Prefectural Yamen sat to the north, while Qiantang and Renhe counties faced each other east and west, the three offices arranged in a triangle so close that the crowing of each other's roosters and barking of each other's dogs could be heard. So much so that when the runners of the two counties spoke of one another, they used "the one on the east side, the one on the west side" — the sort of substitute names used in our Qing Dynasty.

Early morning, in the Back Residence of the Renhe County Yamen, County Magistrate Wu Jingzhong and Yu Shiye were savoring tea in the study.

His Excellency Wu of the County was a Presented Scholar of the forty-second year of the Wanli reign, and had now reached the age of knowing his destiny. His Excellency Wu had well-defined features, a square face and large ears, and ordinarily carried himself with considerable official dignity — but here in his own study at the moment, he was not particularly formal.

Yu Shiye, who had followed his master through the ups and downs of officialdom for many years, was now a trusted confidant and family member. Seeing his master set down his tea bowl, he spoke: "Master, yesterday the steward of the Liu Yaozu household invited me to sit for a while and brought up the matter of the Beggar Sect."

"What connection does the Liu Family have with that gang of villains?"

"Master, there is something you do not know. In earlier years, the Liu Family had business along the Hui-Hang Road, and that gang originally roamed the Hui-Hang Road as well. Heh heh, they are, more or less, old friends."

"Hmph. Birds of a feather flock together."

"Master, in the end it is merely beggars brawling — a trifling matter. A slight raising of the hand and it passes."

"Hmph. Over a dozen lives beaten to death in broad daylight, with utter contempt for the law. This matter — let us see them at the Nanjing Ministry of Justice."

"Yes, yes. That is exactly what I told them yesterday. The Liu Family also knows that these fellow provincials went too far in their conduct, and that you, Master, will certainly not let this go lightly this time. They wish to spend a bloody fortune to protect their people."

"Protect? How do they propose to protect them?"

"Protect them with a family heirloom."

The next moment, upon the table appeared a gold disc attached to a gold chain, gleaming with a fine metallic luster.

Seeing that his master did not know how to proceed for the moment, Yu Shiye smiled faintly and reached out his hand, pressing lightly on the top of the gold disc.

With a soft click, the metal casing sprang open. Beneath the gold casing was a layer of transparent crystal cover, and beneath the cover, three silver needles of varying lengths were ticking away.

Master Wu now understood what he was looking at. The ring of exquisite Chinese characters around the dial — Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao — had tipped him off: this was a copper sundial!

"This object was custom-ordered by the Liu Family from Westerners at great expense, taking three years from start to finish. Originally, the inside was engraved with foreign numerals..."

"Oh? So that means the Liu Family has quite a few capable people, does it?"

"A wealthy merchant clan of many years' standing." Seeing that his master's interest was piqued, Yu Shiye proceeded to learn on the spot and sell on the spot, recounting in detail the story he had heard from Liu He the day before.

By the time Yu Shiye had finished speaking, His Excellency Wu of the County was already thoroughly delighted and had begun to fondle the Liu Family's heirloom, unable to put it down.

After a while, His Excellency Wu seemed to recall something. "What did you say that gang's background was just now?"

"Oh, Master, allow me to report: these people's ancestors were coastal fishermen. During the Jiajing reign when the Wokou troubles erupted, they also contributed their strength to the imperial court. Later, when the Wokou grew powerful, these people moved into the wilds of Zhexi to live. Now, after several generations, they have grown homesick and wish to return, hoping to earn a living under your governance, Master. Being newcomers unfamiliar with the rules, their conduct was somewhat rash. Heh heh, heh heh."

"What about the ones on the west side?"

"The Liu Family has sent people to settle things there. Someone has also gone to the Prefect to smooth things over. Everything above and below is properly arranged."

"Oh. In that case, you go handle this matter. Ai — heroes who fought the Wokou, after all. We cannot very well annihilate their entire clan, can we?"

"Master, you may set your mind at ease. With Zhu Zhenggang dead, there are no further complications in this matter. It will be very easy to handle."

"Speaking of which, Zhu Zheng's death from illness was rather convenient, was it not?"

"Yes, yes. How coincidental that he should suddenly become... useless."

Having the office right across the way had its advantages. Whether public business or private matters, communication between the two yamens was very convenient.

That very afternoon, Luo Shuban of the Criminal Division of Qiantang County arrived at the door with bailiffs in tow, declaring the need to "handle a case" and demanding to pursue the "fierce criminals."

The middle gate of Wuxian Temple was thrown wide open. Zhou Tong and a host of newly ascendant favorites lined up to welcome them. After ushering the visitors into the main hall, Zhou Tong ordered someone to bring over a chest of gold-thread nanmu wood. Inside was full-weight, large-ingot fine silver seized from Huang Qi's residence, counted as the monthly tribute. After Luo Shuban swept a glance over it, a trace of a smile finally appeared on his face.

The next moment, Zhou Tong produced two sheets of paper from inside his robe, explaining that as mountain folk newly arrived, they were not yet acquainted with the right people. These two title deeds, he said, were his own "gate-greeting gift" to all the gentlemen at the yamen. He hoped that Luo Shuban would not begrudge the trouble and, upon returning, would see to their distribution and allocation. Should there be further benefits in the future, he would naturally keep Master Luo in mind.

Only after seeing the two title deeds from the household of the Former Huang Gang Leader did Luo Shuban's eyebrows bloom with smiles. Not long after, Luo Shuban had finished investigating the case and walked out chatting and laughing with Zhou Tong. Then, before the assembled crowd outside, he praised a certain person as "sensible and knowing when to advance or retreat" — someone who could get things done.

When Luo Shuban and his party reached the gate, that Hu Rotten to the Core, standing to the side, presented the five white-haired, utterly "ferocious criminals" who had been prepared long in advance — the ones guilty of murdering the Former Huang Tuan Leader and his associates. Amidst the bailiffs' shouts, iron chains flew through the air. The next moment, having inspected the scene and apprehended the vicious criminals, Luo Shuban and his party returned to the yamen to report on their mission.

The same procedure was repeated once more when the people from Renhe County arrived later that evening. This time, the Criminal Law Advisor of Renhe County personally led the team. Upon hearing that the vicious criminals had already been taken away, he made no particular comment, but just before leaving, in front of the assembled crowd, he gave Zhou Tong a parting word of advice: "Put your heart into your work from now on."

When it came to the highest art of passing the buck, the two county yamens of Qiantang and Renhe could absolutely rank in the top three of the entire Ming Dynasty.

Due to historical reasons, the jurisdictions of these two counties within Hangzhou crisscrossed in a tangled mess, with exclaves everywhere. The famous proverb "Qiantang won't govern it, Renhe won't take it in" referred to precisely this situation: if there is benefit, I must have a share; if there is trouble, please go next door.

For the Beggar Sect's Group Head, who governed countless beggars within Hangzhou City, that parting remark from Yu Shiye was what finally gave Zhou Tong his complete official certification — matching the tiger tally.

As for the matter three days later, when Zhou Tong formally ascended his seat at Wuxian Temple and received the bold heroes of every path from every road — such things need not be recounted in detail. In summary, at the cost of two imitation antique pocket watches, a handful of Tamsui pearls, several bottles of Lümeisu Zhusheye, and some ammunition, the Crossing Faction successfully opened up an underground channel to handle human resources support for the great enterprise of expansion to come.