Chapter 58: Solution

The original owner of Li Qingzhi’s body had experienced many hardships and had witnessed scenes of great suffering.

But, overall, Daqi was peaceful.

In peacetime, if someone incites public anger… Zhang Yunquan was finished.

“Brother-in-law, yesterday someone really did throw feces at Zhang Yunquan’s doorstep!” Jin Xiaoshu saw Li Qingzhi getting excited. “Brother-in-law, what you said yesterday was true?”

“Of course it was,” Li Qingzhi said.

Jin Xiaoshu gasped, “Brother-in-law, how do you know County Magistrate Gou?”

“I wrote a book for County Magistrate Gou, and he liked it very much,” Li Qingzhi said.

Jin Xiaoshu was a bit confused.

“I wrote Mr. Zhu’s autobiography, and I wrote a book like that for County Magistrate Gou,” Li Qingzhi explained.

“Such books! Brother-in-law, no wonder County Magistrate Gou likes you!”

“Using the word ‘like’ here isn’t quite appropriate. ‘Appreciate’ would be better,” Li Qingzhi corrected.

“I see. Brother-in-law, your books are really interesting. Can you read the rest to me?” Jin Xiaoshu really wanted to know the rest of the plot.

But Li Qingzhi refused him, saying, “Xiaoshu, I’ve been busy all day today and I’m tired. You should wait until your sister learns and let her read it to you.” This way, he could encourage Jin Xiaoye to study.

“Ah Qing, you should go rest in the cabin!” Jin Xiaoye added.

Li Qingzhi didn’t refuse. He had been with County Magistrate Gou all day today, his mind had been tense, and he was a bit weary.

And tomorrow, there was another tough battle to fight.

Chongcheng County, the Sun residence.

Sun Juren had known about the incident of his nephew helping people empty chamber pots for money a long time ago, as Zhang Yunquan had told him about it.

He didn’t think there was anything wrong with it. Helping people empty chamber pots should indeed be paid for. Otherwise, who would be willing to do such dirty work?

However, many people were unwilling to pay and even dumped waste secretly… Sun Juren thought these people were going too far.

And then today… not only did someone throw feces at Zhang Yunquan’s residence, but someone also sued Zhang Yunquan. Sun Juren was very angry. He had almost sent someone to reassure Zhang Yunquan, telling him not to worry, and that if he needed help, he would assist him.

Until this moment, Sun Juren hadn’t taken this matter seriously.

But this afternoon, one of Sun Juren’s students hurriedly found him and told him about the rumors outside, saying, “Sir, now the people in the city all think that because of you, Zhang Yunquan dares to commit so many atrocities.” This was actually true. Zhang Yunquan was indeed emboldened because of Sun Juren’s support.

Sun Juren was wealthy, and he had never experienced hardships since childhood. He always looked down on the common people from above.

In his eyes, Zhang Yunquan’s men only charged one coin for helping people empty chamber pots, which he thought was very little. He couldn’t understand why those common people were unwilling.

But he cared about his reputation. Upon hearing the rumors, he became a bit restless and planned to discuss what to do about it tomorrow.

However, when he woke up… someone had also thrown feces at Sun Juren’s doorstep.

This wasn’t even arranged by Zhu Qian, but was done spontaneously by the people in the city.

The common people could endure a lot. Unless they were pushed to their limits, they wouldn’t resist.

If Li Qingzhi hadn’t intervened, after the city stank for a while, the people of Chongcheng County would probably have accepted the practice of emptying a chamber pot for one coin.

Of course, by that time, the rivers of Chongcheng County would certainly not be as clear as they are now, and the act of secretly dumping waste would certainly continue unabated.

But because of public opinion, things have changed now.

Early the next morning, people were clamoring around various parts of the county town, demanding County Magistrate Gou to punish Zhang Chuqian.

At first, the ordinary people in the city were hesitant and dared not actually go, but as they saw more and more people going…

So many people! Many people unconsciously joined the crowd.

Before long, it was crowded near the county government office even though the day had just begun.

The common people who came to the county government office found themselves surrounded by people who despised Zhang Chuqian. Amidst the discussions, their hostility towards Zhang Chuqian grew stronger.

When Li Qingzhi and Zhu Qian rushed to the vicinity of the county government office, they found themselves unable to squeeze in. And all around them, there were voices condemning Zhang Yunquan.

There was nothing more for them to do now.

This time, Zhu Qian stood on County Magistrate Gou’s side and saw that he had won his bet. He was in a great mood and said to Li Qingzhi, “Nephew, shall we go to the tavern and have something to eat?”

“Sure.” Li Qingzhi readily agreed. He couldn’t refuse such a good thing as eating.

The two entered a nearby tavern, where many literati had gathered and were discussing Zhang Yunquan’s affairs.

At such times, no one would praise Zhang Yunquan. Everyone was cursing him, but the literati cursed without using dirty words, which made Li Qingzhi feel relieved and silently learn.

As they talked, they inevitably talked about Sun Juren. A young man in his twenties said, “I have always admired Sun Juren, but I never thought he would be such a person!”

As soon as this person spoke, several others echoed his sentiment, expressing strong dissatisfaction with Sun Juren and feeling that he had condoned Zhang Yunquan’s actions.

Some even felt that Zhang Yunquan’s behavior was helping Sun Juren accumulate wealth.

As people became more and more angry, one of Sun Juren’s students present couldn’t bear it anymore and said, “Master Sun may not know about this!”

Sun Juren’s student was bound to speak up for Sun Juren, but how could he contend against the crowd alone? The situation instantly became one-sided.

With the phrase “My brother-in-law is Mr. Sun” spreading throughout Chongcheng County, Sun Juren’s reputation in the county had plummeted.

At this point, Sun Juren finally sensed that something was wrong. He sent someone to inquire about the situation outside and was horrified to learn that thousands of people had surrounded the county government office.

What was this? This was people inciting public anger!

With thousands of people surrounding the county government office, this was a serious matter!

If County Magistrate Gou were to report this matter to the prefect, the prefect would definitely send someone to investigate and appease the people. By then…

Too harsh! County Magistrate Gou was too harsh!

After becoming the County Magistrate of Chongcheng County, he pretended not to care about power, and he didn’t bother with matters that didn’t concern him. He only dealt with cases and ate food all day. And then, when they least expected it, he struck them hard.

Sun Juren hurriedly left his house and went to find Zhang Yunquan. However, on the way, someone threw rotten eggs at his sedan chair.

What on earth was going on?!

In the midst of his panic, Sun Juren didn’t forget to have someone investigate the situation. And then, when he arrived at Zhang Yunquan’s residence in a sorry state, someone delivered some sheets of paper to him.

The writings in these papers detailed all of Zhang Yunquan’s misdeeds.

After reading several sheets of paper, Sun Juren didn’t hesitate and slapped Zhang Yunquan across the face. “Are you courting death by acting so domineeringly?” he exclaimed.

Zhang Yunquan hurriedly protested, “Brother-in-law, it’s a mistake! These things are all fabricated by someone!”

Zhang Yunquan was lying. The things written by Li Qingzhi were all based on facts. However, to avoid causing trouble for the victims, he would sometimes obscure some information when writing.

Sun Juren snapped back to reality and took another look at the papers. “These seem to be written by the same person… This must have been prepared by that surnamed Gou to frame you and me!”

Sun Juren felt that this matter must have been orchestrated by County Magistrate Gou for power.

This person’s methods were truly vicious.

But he had no choice. Faced with this situation, he could only choose to make a bold move and sacrifice the smaller piece to save the larger.

Sun Juren said, “Zhang Yunquan, if you want to live, you should surrender with me to the county town.”

Zhang Yunquan’s face changed drastically. Just yesterday, he had gone to the county government office without fear. And now, they were asking him to surrender in the county town?

Sun Juren continued, “You have incited public anger. If you don’t confess quickly, you might end up being executed and having your family property confiscated!”

Regardless of whether Zhang Yunquan was willing or not, Sun Juren ordered his men to tie him up and they set off for the county government office.

If County Magistrate Gou was willing, he could escalate the matter to the prefectural city, and both Sun Juren and Zhang Yunquan would meet a tragic end.

But this would not benefit him. If such a thing happened in Chongcheng County, the prefect would think he was incompetent, unable to manage even a small county.

Therefore, after Sun Juren brought Zhang Yunquan to the county government office and had him thrown into the dungeon, County Magistrate Gou came out to appease the people and persuaded them to disperse.

Immediately after, he sent people to arrest Zhang Yunquan’s accomplices and threw them all into the dungeon.

While capturing the criminals, County Magistrate Gou also posted notices informing the people of the city that anyone who had been harmed by Zhang Yunquan or his subordinates should come forward and file a complaint at the county government office. He promised to investigate each case and punish the criminals accordingly.

For a moment, the people of Chongcheng County were overjoyed, as if they were celebrating the New Year.

“County Magistrate Gou is truly a good person!”

“Both Zhang Yunquan and his subordinates have been arrested! This is really great!”

“Zhang Chuqian deserves to be in jail!”

Zhang Yunquan was in prison, but Sun Juren was fine. Someone inevitably brought up the matter: “Why is Sun Juren fine?”

“Those things weren’t done by Sun Juren, so of course he’s fine.”

“Sun Juren took Zhang Chuqian to the yamen, isn’t that considered cutting ties with his own family for the greater good?”

…

Sun Juren himself hadn’t done anything wrong, and on top of that, he was a master… so the common people could understand why he was fine. 

But they didn’t have any positive feelings for Sun Juren anymore. They felt that Sun Juren wasn’t even worth a single hair on County Magistrate Gou’s head.

Sun Juren was frustrated by this situation, but there was nothing he could do about it.

Not only had his reputation suffered, but he had also lost a considerable amount of power. After County Magistrate Gou got rid of Zhang Yunquan, those who hadn’t taken him seriously before were now wary of crossing County Magistrate Gou. Some of them even actively sided with County Magistrate Gou. Finally, County Magistrate Gou gained full control of Chongcheng County.

County Magistrate Gou hadn’t been interested in climbing the ranks before, but as power fell into his hands, his mindset changed. He began to consider making some achievements.

Most importantly, everyone in the county is praising him now.

Ultimately, County Magistrate Gou was just an ordinary person who cared about his reputation. When the people of Chongcheng County thought he was a good official, he also wanted to be a good official and not disappoint the people.

Li Qingzhi saw this change in County Magistrate Gou’s mindset.

He thought it was a good thing and even considered adding fuel to the fire to make the people of Chongcheng County believe even more firmly that County Magistrate Gou was a good official.

He found Zhu Qian and said, “Uncle Zhu, can we have storytellers in the county tell the stories I wrote about County Magistrate Gou solving cases?”