Chapter 117 I'll keep this hostage...

Chapter 117 I'll keep this hostage...

Along with the official document reviewed by the Ministry of Justice, four escorts arrived in Heqing County. Du Min led the four escorts into the prison. "Lu Zhan, the officials who are escorting you have arrived. You are to be exiled five thousand li to the Western Regions to guard the frontier."

Lu Zhan had been imprisoned for two months; half of his hair had turned white, and he had become much thinner. He didn't look at Du Min. The cell door opened, and he went straight to the four guards, waiting for them to put wooden cangues on him.

Wearing wooden shackles, Lu Zhan followed the guards out of the prison. The moment he stepped out, he was blinded by the dazzling light and his ears sensed the dense gazes around him before his eyes could see.

“Lord Du, if you have no further instructions, we will depart now,” the escort said.

Du Min nodded, looked at the onlookers pointing and gesturing outside the county government office, and said, "I will take you to the Heyang Bridge ferry."

The escorts led Lu Zhan ahead, with Du Min lagging behind. From the county government office to the Heyang Bridge ferry, they were surrounded by onlookers. He saw Lu's family members in the crowd, as well as local gentry such as the Wang and Zhang families. They hid behind the crowd, not daring to approach, and their gazes towards him were filled with fear, devoid of any hatred.

Upon reaching Heyang Bridge, since the Yellow River had not yet entered its dry season and the pontoon bridge had not yet been rebuilt, the current means of crossing the river were five grain transport boats with ropes attached, with the soldiers of Shacheng responsible for raising and lowering the ropes on both banks.

Wu Zhenjiang was demoted to deputy general. A new garrison commander, surnamed Qi, arrived in Shacheng. He saw the procession escorting the former garrison commander of Nancheng from afar, boarded a boat ahead of time, and went to the other side to avoid them.

Vice General Wu and the other guards escorting the prisoner boarded the ship. He walked up to Du Min and asked, "Lord Du, where has he been exiled to?"

"Western Regions".

“This means he will truly not be buried in his ancestral grave after death,” said Deputy General Wu.

Du Min chuckled, glancing at the dozen or so loads of pottery funerary objects piled up by the roadside, and asked, "Is there another funeral procession from another county crossing the river today?"

"Yes, there were only two teams, one from Weizhou and the other from Xiangzhou. They were far from Heqing County and had never heard of Magistrate Du's reputation. Yet they dared to swagger across the river with illegally obtained burial goods, only to be stopped by your county's yamen runners," Deputy General Wu joked. "Yesterday, I met Magistrate Zhao on the other side of the river. He said with relief that, thanks to your influence, the atmosphere in Heyin County has improved considerably in recent days."

Du Min smiled, looked at the river, and asked, "How are the preparations for the boats to rebuild the pontoon bridge and boardwalk going?"

The smile on Vice General Wu's face disappeared. "I dare not inquire about this matter. You will have to ask our Commander Qi."

Where are the others?

"Seeing you coming over, he went to the other side first. I guess he couldn't bear to see Lu Zhan in that state," Deputy General Wu said bluntly.

Du Min waited on the shore for the time it takes to burn half an incense stick, but Qi Zhenjiang didn't show up, so he returned to the county office.

"My lord." The warden, who was guarding the clerk's quarters, saw Du Min return and hurried over.

Du Min stopped in his tracks. "Why are you here again?"

"My lord, I know I was wrong and I will never do it again. Please let me come back." The warden bowed and pleaded cautiously. "I have an elderly mother who is nearly eighty years old at home, and four children. My brother is seriously ill, and his family is also relying on me to support them. I have a heavy burden on my shoulders and am short of money, so I went against my conscience and accepted the money from the Lu family."

When Xue Rong confessed in court, it was because the warden had accepted money from the Lu family and secretly led people from the Lu family into the prison to deliver a message from the Lu family of Chang'an, and to entice Xue Rong to confess and take the blame.

Du Min shook his head. "If you really repent and come back to work, that little salary still won't be enough to support your family. In the end, you will still be unable to control your greed and accept bribes again. Your dismissal document has already been submitted to the governor's office, and I think we will get a reply soon. Don't bother me anymore. I haven't confiscated the bribes you accepted, which is already out of consideration for your family's hardship."

Magistrate Sun came out of the duty room. "Brother Qian, the magistrate has already given you enough face. Go back and don't cause any more trouble."

Qian Yu's face was ashen. "I'm almost forty. Where can I find a way to make a living after leaving the county government? Lord Sun, you know my family situation. My children and my elder brother and sister-in-law's children make up eight people in total. My elder brother is sickly and needs to take medicine every few days. With so many mouths to feed, they are counting on me to bring money back to eat and keep them alive."

County Magistrate Sun certainly understood; otherwise, he wouldn't have let him into the Clerk's Office.

"My free school is accepting apprentices again. Originally, I was going to charge tuition this year, but considering our past dealings, I can reserve three free spots for you. You send three children to the school to learn paper crafting, and I'll cover their room and board. After three years, they'll graduate and stay at the school as instructors, earning wages. It won't affect their household registration." Meng Qing returned from outside and offered her solution. "As for you, forget about the official duties. Xue Rong confessed and took the blame, almost letting the culprit escape punishment. It's only because Lord Du is kind that you weren't sentenced to three years as an apprentice."

Qianyu was too ashamed to complain anymore.

“Go back and think about it. If you decide to let your child learn paper crafting, register at the free school at the Heyang Bridge ferry within five days,” Meng Qing instructed.

"Yes." Qian Yu walked away dejectedly.

"Madam Meng, is the free school at the Heyang Bridge ferry going to open again?" Magistrate Sun asked.

"Yes, I went to check. The water has receded quite a bit, the dock is now above water, and the floor and walls of the granary are almost dry. Once we tidy up, the apprentices can move back and we can open for business," Meng Qing said.

"You were at the Heyang Bridge ferry crossing today? I didn't see you when I went there," Du Min asked.

Meng Qing lifted her foot slightly, gesturing for him to see the mud on her feet. "I came back from your second brother's rice paddy. I visited the free school yesterday. Come on, let's go back to the government office. I have something to tell you."

Du Min left with her.

"Mother, Third Uncle, you're back!" Wangzhou was teaching his classmate how to weave crickets with wheat straw under the eaves.

"Greetings, Lord Du. Greetings, Aunt Meng."

Eight boys, about the same age as Wang Zhou, greeted him.

"Lord Du." The newly arrived teacher hurriedly stood up and said nervously, "The class has just ended, and the young masters are resting."

Du Min nodded. "Wang Zhou, take your classmates to play in the backyard."

Wang Zhou immediately led his men away, and the young scholar hurriedly followed.

After Du Min was rescued and imprisoned, Meng Qing stopped Lu Wensi from teaching, and the primary school was closed for a month. Once Du Min's injuries improved and he was able to walk again, he opened his account book and marked two families, finally selecting the son of a local gentry and a tribute student who had failed the provincial examinations for two consecutive years to serve as the teacher at the primary school.

"Second sister-in-law, what do you want to say?" Du Min asked.

“In a few days, after the plan to recruit students for the free school is finalized, I plan to take your second brother and Wangzhou’s uncle to Luoyang. We’re going to Luoyang to open another free school and a paper horse shop,” Meng Qing said. “This trip might not end until the end of the year. Should we leave Wangzhou with you or take him with us?”

"Going for so long?" Du Min looked distressed. "There are still four months until the end of the year. Are you going to be gone for so long? Aren't you going to come back halfway? Luoyang is not far from Heqing County, only three days' journey."

“Your second brother might come back; he still cares about his rice paddies. I’m going to stay there and focus on training my apprentices,” Meng Qing said.

Du Min didn't want to talk anymore.

“If Wangzhou comes with us, and he misses you, your second brother will send him back to stay for a few days. If he chooses to stay here, you can arrange for someone to send him over every month, or your second brother can come back to pick him up.” Meng Qing and Du Li have already discussed it, but they haven’t informed Du Min and Wangzhou yet.

Du Min remained silent.

Wang Zhou, carrying a cricket, cautiously approached the front yard. He glanced at Du Min, then handed the cricket to Meng Qing, saying, "Mother, look, this cricket is even prettier today."

Meng Qing nodded, "It's even better than what I made up."

"What's wrong with my third uncle? Is he angry?" Wang Zhou leaned against Meng Qing's leg, looking at his third uncle with a grin.

Du Min glanced at him sideways, "Your father, mother, and uncle are going to Luoyang and are leaving you with me. My nephew and I will have to guard this empty mansion until the end of the year."

Looking up at the boat, Wang Zhou asked, "Mother, really?"

“You can come to Luoyang with us. If you miss your third uncle and grandparents, your dad will send you back,” Meng Qing said.

“But if I leave, no one will teach me to read.” Wang Zhou was conflicted.

“Then you stay here with your third uncle. If you miss us, have him send someone to take you to Luoyang,” Meng Qing said.

Wang Zhou was unhappy, "I think about you every day."

"You're going to Luoyang to open a free school this year, are you going to Bianzhou next year, and Huaizhou the year after?" Du Min asked. "Second sister-in-law, you can't do this. You said in Chang'an that you would follow me from now on."

“No, that won’t happen. Once the free schools in Luoyang have developed, we’ll return to Heqing County. When we open free schools in other places, we’ll arrange for servants to handle it,” Meng Qing said.

“Alright.” Du Min relented and pulled Wang Zhou over. “I’ll keep this hostage.”

Wang Zhou refused, but he immediately made his choice: "I want to go to Luoyang with my parents!"

"Don't even think about it! No way!" Du Min wouldn't let it go. The next moment, he feigned weakness and played the victim: "Wang Zhou, if you leave too, there will only be my third uncle left in Heqing County. At night, I will be all alone in the government office, with no one to talk to. How pitiful! And your maternal grandparents, your mother took your uncle away, and the two siblings ran away. You have to take care of them and be filial to your maternal grandparents."

Meng Qing didn't participate. She went to the Clerk's Office to find Magistrate Sun and asked him to write a few notices for her to accept apprentices, and then have the yamen runners post them out for her.

"Twenty strings of cash for tuition?" Magistrate Sun asked.

Meng Qing nodded, "The target group for this apprenticeship is merchants. Twenty strings of cash is a threshold. Those who can afford twenty strings of cash will likely choose to open their own shops after completing their apprenticeship. A year later, paper horse shops will spring up everywhere in Heqing County and Heyin County, and the status of pottery funerary objects and lacquerware funerary objects will decline accordingly."

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Sun readily took on the task, saying, "Madam Meng, I will immediately arrange for the yamen runners to post the notice."

Meng Qing said, "I'd like to trouble you with one more thing, Lord Sun. Please arrange for a yamen runner to deliver a letter to Magistrate Zhao in Heyin County. I plan to recruit another fifty apprentices in Heyin County and see if he is willing to cooperate."

“Alright,” County Magistrate Sun agreed.

After receiving the letter, Magistrate Zhao traveled by boat to Heqing County. At the ferry, he met General Qi, who was also there to discuss matters with Du Min. The two then went together to the Heqing County government office.

Magistrate Zhao wanted to ask Du Min to come and help him maintain order. "Lord Du, you are now very famous. Could you go to the foot of Beiman Mountain and stand guard for me? You can name your price."

“I did it, so the credit goes to me. When it comes to performance evaluations, you should explain in the documents what I did and how much effort I put in,” Du Min said blatantly.

Magistrate Zhao was reluctant to part with it, so he proposed a condition for the exchange: "Heyin County can help you rebuild the pontoon bridge. With the resources of your county alone, you are short of both funds and manpower, aren't you?"

Qi Zhenjiang nodded. "I came here today to discuss the bridge construction with Lord Du. A one-mile pontoon bridge requires five hundred boats. The flood in May only salvaged more than forty damaged boats. To gather five hundred boats, relying solely on the boatmen and carpenters in the county, it will take until the end of next year. However, the imperial court has ordered us to complete the project by the end of this year."

“Once the funds allocated by the imperial court arrive, we will use them to purchase goods in nearby prefectures and counties,” Du Min said.

"We're short on funds since the ships are coming from out of town. If the county government can provide some subsidies, then we'll do as Lord Du says," said General Qi.

Du Min didn't want to spend the money; he wanted to save the money to repair the river. But he was unwilling to give up his efforts to help Magistrate Zhao achieve political success.

"I'll think about it some more," he said.

After Magistrate Zhao and Town Chief Qi were about to leave, Du Min found Meng Qing and asked for her opinion.

“I actually have an idea,” Meng Qing said. “I heard from the granary supervisor that the county government’s warehouses are already full of the confiscated illegal burial goods. Why don’t you sell them? You can talk to Magistrate Zhao and tell him to intercept funeral processions at the foot of Beiman Mountain. The confiscated burial goods will go to Heqing County. You can sell them and then have the money to build the bridge.” “After the pontoon bridge is built, you can also push the responsibility of guarding the bridge and inspecting funeral processions onto General Qi. That way, you won’t be the only one offending anyone.”

Du Min clapped her hands, "Second sister-in-law, you really have a good idea."

“I won’t offer my advice for nothing. We’ll hand over the confiscated burial items to the Meng family’s paper horse shop for sale. Once they’re sold, we’ll take 20% of the profits.” Meng Qing had long had his eye on those confiscated burial items.

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Author's Note: There will be another update at 12 o'clock.