Chapter 731

Yu Qian stood on the rock, able to see only the faces of those in front; those behind kept their heads firmly bowed, leaving him nothing but dark crowns.

Yu Qian's gaze fell from their thin, tattered clothes to their bare feet, and he sighed: "You've suffered."

The crowd froze; from behind, someone quietly lifted their head to look at him.

The sternness on Yu Qian's face had vanished, replaced only by gentleness: "Go home and live well…"

Yu Qian wanted to tell them to seek help from the authorities when facing hardship, to stop acting rashly—but thinking of Cai Cheng, he swallowed the words back.

If they believed the authorities were useful, why would they have rebelled?

Yu Qian frowned deeply; it seemed the imperial court must find ways to raise the credibility of local offices and supervise officials to ensure they fulfill their duties.

Yu Qian suppressed the thought; thousands of words condensed into just one: "Go home—"

The crowd didn't move, only looked at Song Dalin.

Song Dalin also retracted his startled gaze, waved to the crowd, and shouted loudly: "Disperse! Go home, find your mothers!"

Those at the back immediately scattered in groups of three or five, running off.

They dispersed in all directions, leaving Sanhu Village from its four sides—some crossing the fields, some running along narrow paths, most leaping onto bamboo rafts pre-arranged in the lake to head for the opposite shore…

Two thousand people gathered looked like a vast crowd, but once scattered across this vast land, they were as inconspicuous as a handful of beans; soon, Sanhu Village returned to stillness, and Song Dalin picked up his bundle, bowed to Yu Qian and Pan Yun: "My Lord Yu, Master Pan, I'm leaving too."

Yu Qian: "I hope you live well from now on."

Song Dalin grinned broadly: "I will!"

With that, he turned and strode away.

Wang Xiaojing hurried over to bow to them, then ran off after Song Dalin.

Yu Qian and the others stood in place for a long time, watching as the land around them returned to quiet; villagers who had hidden inside the village began to peek out…

After observing for a long while and confirming the rebels had truly left, they finally opened their doors and stepped out.

Seeing so many officials at the village entrance, they dared not approach, instead peering nervously from behind walls and trees.

Yu Qian waved to them.

The villagers hesitated a moment, then stepped forward.

Yu Qian turned to Cai Cheng: "Cai County Magistrate, you are still the County Magistrate of Yushan; now is the time to soothe the villagers."

Cai Cheng stepped forward to soothe them: "Alright, alright, the rebels are gone, you're safe now—call your families out quickly."

The villagers didn't move; someone hiding behind a wall shouted loudly: "Why come out?"

Cai Cheng glared: "Why ask so many questions? I told you to come out—come out!"

Yu Qian: …

Pan Yun burst into laughter; seeing Yu Qian look over, she immediately turned her head away, shoulders shaking—clearly still amused.

Yu Qian found no humor in it; a surge of anger flared instantly in his chest—how can an official serve well without compassion for the people?

The Ministry of Personnel's evaluations have grown increasingly careless.

Yu Qian suppressed his anger and stepped forward, waving gently: "Don't be afraid—we only wish to ask about these past days; we won't harm you."

The villagers finally approached slowly.

Yu Qian soothed them: "You've been frightened."

The villagers: "Not really frightened—we're fine. It was Master Wan and Master Tian who got frightened."

Master Wan clutched his swollen face and wept.

Yu Qian quickly soothed him: "Master Wan, you've suffered."

Master Wan grabbed Yu Qian's sleeve and wept bitterly, heart full of grievance: Just moments ago you weren't like this—you forced me to swear an oath… But he dared not voice it, only muttered it inwardly.

"My lord, we heard inside that Master Wan swore he'll only charge us fifty percent rent from now on?"

Yu Qian smiled and nodded: "Yes, you must be grateful for Master Wan's great wisdom."

The villagers murmured in joy, thanking Master Wan profusely, no longer caring that the rebels had occupied their village for days.

Master Wan feared they'd misunderstand and quickly clarified: "Not forever—only while I'm alive."

"Master Wan will live a hundred years!"

"Live a thousand years!"

"Live ten thousand years!"

"No no no…" Master Wan waved his hands, looking anxiously at Yu Qian.

Yu Qian laughed heartily, clapping Master Wan on the shoulder: "See how the villagers' joy brings such delight? If one can find this happiness, what in the world is not worth giving up?"

Master Wan tugged at his lips, thinking inwardly: Sounds noble, but it's not your money being spent…

Learning the villagers had not been frightened—that the rebels had only looted Master Wan and Master Tian's grain and money, and occasionally beaten them—Yu Qian relaxed, and went to visit Master Tian.

Master Tian lived at the other end of the village; he wasn't as wealthy as Master Wan, charged seventy percent rent, and after the wind disaster, he lent money to villagers at exorbitant interest, then raised grain prices to sell them food; in less than a month, he had seized two families' last three mu of land.

If nothing unexpected happened, by next April or May, when the villagers sold their new wheat and found they couldn't repay their debts, he could seize even more land, then lease it back to them at seventy percent rent—he would surpass Master Wan and become Sanhu Village's largest landlord.

Perhaps with a few more disasters, he could even surpass Qian Lao Ye and become the greatest landlord in Yushan County.

But an unexpected event occurred.

Song Dalin and his rebels arrived.

Unlike Master Wan, who occasionally resisted and caused trouble, Master Tian was exceptionally pragmatic; as soon as Song Dalin came, he and his family stayed quietly indoors, never stepping out unless summoned.

Then, during their search, the rebels found a chest full of his IOUs.

Wang Xiaojing could read and was good with numbers; he calculated the interest on the IOUs and gasped: "This is monthly interest—so if you borrowed one tael last month, you must repay one tael and two mao this month!"

Song Dalin, insensitive, shrugged: "Not that expensive."

Wang Xiaojing: "…If they can't pay, it compounds—interest added to principal. With this rolling interest, how much will they owe after a year? Let me calculate."

Wang Xiaojing counted until his fingers tangled, unable to finish.

But Song Dalin understood clearly—it was a massive sum.

So Song Dalin changed his mind, immediately herded the whole village to the village entrance, and then, in front of everyone, burned all these IOUs.

He said, "The interest is too hard to work out. Each of your families knows how much you owe. Just pay back what you borrowed next year. The interest—I'll let Master Tian off it on his behalf."

In the dark of night, a villager quietly asked, "What if we still can't pay it back next year?"

"Then the year after, or the year after that—within your lifetime!" Song Dalin waved dismissively and said, "Anyway, pay it back if you have it, and forget it if you don't. As long as your conscience doesn't hurt. As far as I can tell, Master Tian's conscience doesn't hurt."

Master Tian: …

After this fire, even though the villagers said nothing, their inner resistance to the rebel army dropped to its lowest, and they even faintly welcomed them.

Especially after Song Dalin seized grain from the two landlords' households and secretly gave relief to the village's widows, orphans, and families whose cooking fires had already gone out.

Even though the villagers didn't go out much, news traveled fast. Their initial worry and fear gradually faded, and both sides settled into an uneasy peace.

So when the villagers said they hadn't been frightened, they meant it—they really hadn't been frightened. The ones who were frightened were Master Tian and Master Wan. (End of chapter)