Chapter 36 Nearly Seven Hundred Acres of Farmland Secured!

“Are you guilty?”

“Heh.”

“What crime could a great benefactor like you have possibly committed?!”

“If I, Murong Kai, were to utter a few idle remarks about you today, wouldn’t you, oh great benefactor Xue, try to saddle my Murong family with usurious loans and force us into ruin?!”

Murong Kai, of course, had no intention of showing Xue the Benefactor any respect. His words were laced with barbs, and he let out a mocking, chilling laugh.

“Sir, this, this…”

Xue the Benefactor was already extremely flustered. Now, stunned by Murong Kai’s harsh “killer blow,” he was so frightened he nearly lost control of himself, and hurriedly cast a desperate look toward Zhao Bingchun for help.

As one of Feng City’s powerful gentry, he naturally had many dealings with Zhao Bingchun and was confident that Zhao would stand by him.

At this moment, Zhao Bingchun looked every bit the master of the situation, his demeanor airy as he spoke:

“Xue Mang, it’s not this official’s place to rebuke you, but in this matter, you have indeed acted most improperly. You too are a man of learning—how could you treat our Ming Sect disciple with such harshness?”

Though Zhao Bingchun’s words sounded like a reproach, Xue Mang, shrewd as he was, immediately realized that Zhao was giving him a way out.

He broke into a cold sweat and hastened to reply with utmost deference:

“Your fatherly wisdom is just; it was my own negligence. Who could have imagined that my underlings would commit such a treacherous act?!”

“My lord, my fatherly official—”

“You may rest assured. Such a contemptible villain as Xue An is an utter disgrace to the Xue family. I will have him beaten to death on the spot, as a warning to all!”

As he spoke, he summoned his attendants outside to have the newly awakened Xue An beaten to death without delay.

“Hmph!”

“A cat weeping for the mouse—a false show of pity!”

Murong Kai was unmoved by Xue Mang’s display, and sneered coldly:

“So this is how magnanimous our city’s great benefactor is? You think the life of a mere lowly servant is enough to settle such a matter?”

“Do you realize—”

“Do you know my friend’s status?”

“This…”

Xue Mang was momentarily dumbstruck, more cold sweat breaking out on his rather corpulent frame. He hastily glanced toward Zhao Bingchun for help.

Zhao Bingchun exchanged a meaningful look with Murong Kai and smiled, saying:

“Xue Mang, you are indeed at fault in this affair. The young lord is quite displeased—do you know what that means?”

Though Zhao’s tone sounded severe, Xue Mang felt a wave of relief.

With Zhao Bingchun safeguarding him, his life was no longer in danger; at worst, he would have to pay a hefty price to escape disaster. He quickly kowtowed respectfully before Zhao Bingchun:

“My fatherly official, I was confused. I beg you, for the sake of all I have done for Feng City over the years, show me a way out…”

At this, Zhao Bingchun turned with a smile to Li Yuanjing:

“Yuanjing, I have heard that all the fields in your village of Quanzi belong to the Xue family?”

Li Yuanjing was no fool. In an instant, he understood how Zhao Bingchun intended to resolve the matter.

He had been worrying about how to wrest some land from the Xue family, and now, unexpectedly, Zhao Bingchun had presented him with such a clever solution…

This sudden realization struck him—people of ancient times were by no means inferior in intellect to those of later ages.

Especially old hands in officialdom like Zhao Bingchun—calling him a cunning old fox would be no exaggeration.

Li Yuanjing hastened to respond respectfully:

“Fatherly official, your insight is keen. Our Quanzi Village has a little over two hundred and seventy acres of good farmland, and more than four hundred acres of hillside fields—all the property of the Xue family…”

Seeing the slight relaxation in Murong Kai’s expression, Zhao Bingchun smiled with complete confidence:

“Xue Mang, do you hear?”

“The Sage has said, ‘To recognize one's fault and mend it—this is the greatest good!’”

“You nearly ruined Yuanjing’s family, and though there may have been some misunderstanding, you cannot pretend ignorance.”

“These fields are to be compensation for my worthy younger brother Yuanjing, so that he may devote himself to his studies, win honors, and serve the country.”

“What say you?”

At this point, Xue Mang, even if he ground his teeth to powder and felt his heart bleeding, had no strength left to argue.

He could only pinch his nose and bow respectfully:

“Fatherly official, your judgment is just—I have no objections.”

…

With Zhao Bingchun presiding and Murong Kai overseeing, and Xue Mang having conceded, there was no longer any room for mischief.

Although Li Yuanjing belonged to the craftsman class—a base status legally ineligible to own land—Zhao Bingchun, with a stroke of his pen, changed his status to that of a scholar, granting him legal ownership.

Granted, if the law were strictly enforced, there would be loopholes. But in this remote mountain village, under Zhao Bingchun’s direct supervision, who would dare raise objections?

Very soon, as Zhao Bingchun personally drafted the deed, and both parties signed and sealed it, the nearly seven hundred acres of land in Quanzi Village formerly under the Xue family’s name were transferred to Li Yuanjing, becoming his property.

As he gazed at the fresh, ink-scented deed, even Li Yuanjing himself could not help his hand from trembling in excitement!

Though he had not received the ten thousand taels of silver offered by Murong Kai, he was far from losing out.

One must know—in this era, land, especially fertile fields, was such a premium asset that even the wealthy could not easily acquire it.

Especially from entrenched gentry like the Xue family!

They had no lack of money, and unless struck by some cataclysm beyond their control, they would never sell ancestral land.

Yet now, with Zhao Bingchun wielding the knife and Murong Kai watching, Xue the Benefactor, even if aggrieved, had no choice but to disgorge his estate.

Moreover, though Li Yuanjing’s academic record at the county school was mediocre, Zhao Bingchun had immediately designated him a scholar.

Next year, Li Yuanjing could skip the preliminary examination and go straight to the county-level exam for titled scholars.

This made Li Yuanjing all the more aware of the terrifying weight of the phrase “the power of the official’s word” in this era!

…

Once everything had been settled, Murong Kai had originally wished to stay and spend a long evening in literary discussion with Li Yuanjing.

But Zhao Bingchun, no fool, insisted that Murong Kai leave with him.

After all, a small village like Quanzi, without even a defensive wall, could hardly be called safe.

Though reluctant, Murong Kai finally agreed after Li Yuanjing’s repeated persuasion.

Before leaving, however, he gripped Li Yuanjing’s hand tightly and said with feeling:

“Brother Li, due to certain matters, my family will likely be leaving Feng City within the next three to five days. I won’t say anything more.”

“Little brother shall await you in the capital—may you soon achieve top honors and become renowned across the land!”

Li Yuanjing, by now rather fond of Murong Kai’s forthright nature, returned the firm handshake and said:

“Brother Murong, I will!”

“A gentleman’s word!”

Murong Kai immediately extended his palm.

“Smack!”

“A swift horse and a single whip!”

Their hands met with a crisp clap, and the two could not help but burst into hearty laughter.

After a while, Li Yuanjing finally bid farewell to the reluctant Murong Kai and Zhao Bingchun and their retinues.

When Zhao Bingchun had departed and the others were gone, Xue the Benefactor, who had lingered behind, forced a smile and said:

“You’re quite something, Brother Li, to have even managed to beguile Young Master Murong like this.”

A faint smile played at the corners of Li Yuanjing’s lips as he cupped his hands in reply:

“You flatter me, Benefactor Xue. I only wish to devote myself to my studies and take no interest in worldly strife.”

“Hmph!”

With a fierce flick of his sleeve, Xue Mang could not even be bothered to look at Li Yuanjing again. He waved his attendants away, not forgetting to have Xue An’s already lifeless body removed.

Only dark red bloodstains remained in the muddy earth.

Watching their retreating figures, Li Yuanjing’s expression grew somber.

Even with Murong Kai’s friendship, and a certain rapport with Zhao Bingchun, if Xue the Benefactor were to stir up trouble—

Li Yuanjing would still have a hard time dealing with it!

But now, having seen Xue Mang’s true face and discerned a little of his character, Li Yuanjing understood—

This was likely just the beginning of a long and tangled struggle!

“Yuanjing, what on earth happened?”

“Why did such important people come to your home?”

“And why was Xue An beaten to death, and all our village’s fields taken from the Benefactor and given to you?”

At that moment, seeing that Xue and his party were long gone, the old village chief could no longer hold back and hurried over to question Li Yuanjing.

All around, the villagers—who had watched the scene unfold for much of the day—now looked at Li Yuanjing with eager eyes.

From this moment on,

Li Yuanjing had become the true landlord of Quanzi Village, and every villager his tenant.