Household and Housing

The villagers listened obediently to the words of the Village Head. The yamen runners had initially seized this opportunity, but after being warned by Zheng Shanci, they were disheartened and didn’t bother to trouble the villagers further, especially since they had to be searched before returning to the yamen.

According to the standards of the Da Yan court, they first inspected the wheat grains, picking out those that didn’t meet the standards, and then weighed them using molds, strictly adhering to the standards.

“Three shi of rice, alright, next one.” The yamen runner waved his hand, signaling the next villager to step forward.

One shi of grain equals ten dou of grain, and the Da Yan court imposed a tax of one out of thirty.

The villager stood there dumbfounded, as if he hadn’t come to his senses, still clutching twenty wen in his hand, intending to slip it to the yamen runner to avoid having his family’s grain withheld. But this time, the yamen runner didn’t ask for a toll.

“Why are you still standing there? Make way for others.” The yamen runner said impatiently.

The villager finally snapped out of it and hurriedly left, glancing back at the yamen runner as he walked away.

The next villager also just checked the quality and fullness of the wheat, weighed it with the mold, and didn’t nitpick or find fault.

“Why are you still looking at the officials over there, husband?” a village woman said.

She didn’t have a good impression of these yamen runners, who always entered the village like hungry dogs, grabbing at the villagers’ money bags, picking and choosing, just to get money.

“This time, the official didn’t ask me for money, so I can save these twenty wen. Once we sell the grain at home, we can go to town to buy some cotton to make cotton clothes.” The man said happily, with twenty wen in his pocket, feeling quite pleased.

“Really didn’t ask for it?!” The woman exclaimed in surprise, then smiled: “Finally acting like a human for once.”

Man: “…”

“Stop talking nonsense, let’s go home.”

The yamen runners didn’t delay this time, collecting taxes from village to village, while some were responsible for transporting the grain to the county town. The autumn harvest was their busiest time.

The accounting matters were left to the household department.

The county yamen had six departments, each with distinct responsibilities:

The Personnel Department handled the appointment, evaluation, promotion, and demotion of officials.

The Household Department was in charge of land management, population records, taxes, and finances.

The Ritual Department oversaw ceremonies, imperial examinations, and the operation of schools.

The Military Department managed military affairs, including local defense and conscription.

The Judicial Department was responsible for legal matters, including trials and law enforcement.

The Works Department supervised engineering, construction projects, land reclamation, and water conservancy.

With such a complete and structured system, it wasn’t uncommon for large families to use the yamen as a training ground. Promising young members were often placed in local positions to gain firsthand experience.

Their path, however, differed from that of ordinary people. These young elites were mentored closely—guided step by step by family elders and advisors—to one day become capable and qualified county magistrates themselves.

The household department was busy with accounting in the county yamen, and Qi County Deputy, who also managed tax collection, saw them busy and instructed a clerk: “Tell the dining hall to make some chicken soup and bring it to them later.”

“Yes, Qi Daren.”

Jiang Registrar didn’t hear this—he was busy.

As the Household Department handled tax calculations, it was his job to reconcile the household registration records with their data. If anything didn’t match, it had to be handed over to Zhu Registrar for further investigation.

The work at the county yamen might have seemed leisurely on the surface, but when things got busy, it was like spinning a top—relentless and dizzying.

Some tasks that technically weren’t their responsibility would end up on their desks anyway. They’d muddle through them at work, and then muddle their way back home, exhausted.

Zheng Shanci finished reading the files and planned to handle some pending cases the next day. As he stepped out of the room, he saw clerks hurrying back and forth, all carrying thick documents. Zheng Shanci glanced at them and saw the words “household registration.”

A clerk almost dropped his documents, and Zheng Shanci reached out to help.

“Thank you, Zheng Daren.” The clerk quickly expressed his gratitude.

Zheng Shanci: “I’ll help you carry it over.”

The clerk was apprehensive but didn’t dare refuse Zheng Shanci, so he led him into the household department.

“Jinxing Town… population tax…”

“Jinxing Town… tax…”

“Jinxing Town…”

The clerks in the household department were working quickly with their abacuses, and stepping into this room made one feel busy. Zheng Shanci placed the documents on the table. 

He heard the name Jinxing Town, which, as a place that grew wheat in Xinfeng County, was one of the most important sources of income for the county yamen, crucial for completing annual taxes and grain quotas.

Zheng Shanci thought about the severe soil erosion in Jinxing Town, yet they had to plant wheat every year. He didn’t plan to have the villagers plant wheat next year, anticipating strong opposition from the county yamen.

Seeing the busy state of the household department, Zheng Shanci thought to help. He picked up an account book still being calculated, found a blank sheet of paper, and started calculating.

Qi County Deputy instructed the dining hall to make chicken soup for the household department and then left.

Zheng Shanci calculated faster than the household department. Initially, they didn’t believe him, but after verifying the numbers, they found they matched Zheng Shanci’s calculations, and their perception changed.

Zheng Shanci didn’t hold back and shared his calculation methods with them. The household department clerks, already skilled in arithmetic, quickly understood and applied his methods, significantly improving their calculation speed.

When the dining hall brought the chicken soup, they were surprised to see Zheng Shanci still there and quickly paid their respects: “Greetings, Zheng Daren. This is the chicken soup Qi Daren had prepared for you all.”

Zheng Shanci was a bit surprised. He drank a bowl of chicken soup, not realizing it was already late. The household department clerks, after drinking the soup, thanked Zheng Shanci for his generous sharing before heading home.

Zheng Shanci: “I learned these from the books of predecessors, not my own achievements.”

“Zheng Daren is too modest.” An old scholar from the household department stroked his beard: “Not everyone is willing to share such things with others.”

Formulas might seem commonplace to future generations, often overlooked. But in ancient times, they were highly sought after, as a single formula could change many things.

Zheng Shanci solemnly cupped his hands: “I was a bit arrogant.”

The old scholar laughed heartily and cupped his hands in return: “Zheng Daren is a gentleman.”

When Zheng Shanci returned home, Yu Lanyi was sitting in a chair, looking displeased.

It was already past dinner time when he got home, and he remembered sending Wangfu to inform them.

“Lanyi, have you eaten?”

Yu Lanyi: “I ate a long time ago and had the kitchen save you a portion. Jin Yun went to have the kitchen bring it over.”

A bowl of chicken soup wasn’t enough to fill him, so Zheng Shanci ate some food to feel full.

Seeing that Zheng Shanci was full, Yu Lanyi finally felt relieved.

Back in the Marquis’ Mansion, his father often came home late due to social engagements or official duties. Yu Changxing was even busier—he spent more days in the Imperial Palace than at home. In those days, it was Yu Fulang who would instruct the kitchen to set aside food for their father.

Now, learning from the Wangfu that Zheng Shanci would be late, Yu Lanyi had instinctively told the kitchen to save food for him. He hadn’t even thought twice. The work at the county yamen was demanding; often, there simply wasn’t time to sit down and eat.

Yu Lanyi suddenly paused, struck by the realization.

He was virtuous.

Without even noticing, he had started doing things that once belonged to someone else—quietly, thoughtfully, without fanfare. That thought made him sit a little straighter.

After the autumn harvest, once taxes were paid, the people finally breathed a little easier.

They kept enough grain to last the winter, then brought the surplus to town to sell. The silver earned was tucked away for the New Year—to buy goods for the festivities, to treat the children, to make life feel full for a little while.

They worked hard all year, but as long as life stayed stable, they were content.

This year, something was different.

For once, the yamen runners didn’t make things deliberately difficult. No random tolls, no new excuses to squeeze money from villagers. That alone saved everyone quite a bit.

In the past, the yamen runners would take large cuts of the grain, claiming it wasn’t good enough and needed to be “supplemented.” Sometimes they’d even demand coin outright, saying it was “customary.”

Now, although their tone was still curt and their faces remained stern, as long as they didn’t reach into anyone’s money bags, the villagers were content.