Li Youfu sniffed. He smelled a tempting stewed meat aroma.
It could not have been wrong, this was the signature dish of that “Keyunlai” restaurant in the Western Market, and there was also the aroma of sesame rice cakes.
In the entire Ningtai City, one could not find a tastier restaurant than that place, and the person who ordered dishes was a gourmet. These two items tasted both delicious and full of flavor together.
However, this place was very far from the Western Market. Even if they used a takeout box to bring it here, it should have “gone stale” by then; the rice cakes would have been moistened and lost their flavor due to the rising steam from the stewed meat, and the stewed meat would have cooled and congealed its fat, so why did it smell as if it had just been served now?
Could it be that a branch of Keyunlai had opened here?
Li Youfu looked around in all directions. Aside from a row of medicine shops, dried goods shops, and tea leaf shops, there was nothing.
Indeed, this street was not supposed to sell food. Ningtai had been modeled after Taijing, and its market neighborhoods were very particular, separating dead goods from live goods, separating dried goods from fresh goods, and the four main categories of eating, clothing, housing, and transportation did not adjoin each other.
To get from Keyunlai to here, one had to pass through seven streets. Even for the errand-runners in the city patrol yamen, it would take two quarter-hours.
Although the streets were empty today, not as crowded as usual, to keep these two dishes from losing their flavor, one would have had to carry the takeout box and fly over.
Li Youfu subconsciously looked up at the rooftop.
——Strange, the aroma really seemed to have drifted down from above.
He sniffed again, yet only a lingering scent remained. He was not a dog and had no way to trace the smell.
“Captain Li?”
“Coming!” Li Youfu snapped back to reality, dismounted, and approached an old clerk.
King Ning’s official system had been chaotic, it had both official court positions and the titles of vassal king’s retainers.
The rank of Captain was a military officer with a grade, but not all Captains were the same. Within the city patrol yamen, Cheng Jingchuan was a very proper sixth-grade Captain who led tasks and received a salary, but Li Youfu was an insignificant ninth-grade, called a Captain, but rather like the head of constables.
Yamen runners and constables were low-level clerks of humble status, their descendants could not take the imperial examinations.
Every month, the pay that Li Youfu received was issued by the yamen, not through the Ministry of Revenue, and there were many ways to manipulate this, basically, half was deducted.
How did low-level yamen runners survive without receiving their full pay? They extorted the common people. Among them, tax clerks were the most vicious, and they had dozens of ways to rake in money. The most common was using big containers and small scales; when collecting grain tax, they did not look at weight, only at the container. They made large containers and piled the grain high until it overflowed, often shaking some onto the ground, so that the hundred catties of grain the court demanded in taxes, they could collect a hundred and twenty catties.
Tax clerks were indeed lacking in morals and hateful, yet they themselves harbored a stomach full of resentment.
Of the money they “scooped” up, only a very small portion belonged to themselves. The rest still had to be turned over to those above, who were the ones who had deducted their food allowance and pay.
“We were just a dog, sent out to bite people and returning to wag our tails in order to survive.” Li Youfu’s grandfather was a tax clerk, and before dying, he could not let go of his family, gripping his descendants’ hands with difficulty, saying, “A dog might have food today, but tomorrow it might be killed and its meat cooked. We wielded power outside and did endless deeds harmful to our conscience. What real benefit did we gain?”
The Li family felt very displeased by these words; what was this about being a dog, how could he degrade himself this way?
Only Li Youfu suddenly remembered several colleagues in the yamen who were beheaded last autumn for failing to collect enough taxes, charged with tyranny, and disturbing the civil order. The common people, upon hearing of the execution of the cruel officials, rejoiced as if celebrating a festival, hurling rotten vegetables and spoiled eggs at the prisoners, covering their heads and faces. The wives and children of the prisoners wailed helplessly.
Their homes were confiscated, left penniless, trembling with fear.
After a few days passed, these people disappeared without a trace, and nobody knew if they had been sold to workshops or brothels.
Li Youfu could not get over it, because collecting taxes grew harder year by year. Most of the land was under the names of the powerful and noble, a portion belonged to temples, and none of these had to pay taxes. Only a pitifully small number of commoners remained, and even if pushed to death, they could not squeeze out a few more pounds of oil!
If the tax clerks acted too ruthlessly, they might be “eliminated for justice” by roaming heroes and die in the wilderness; if they showed mercy, they would fail to gather enough grain and could not fulfill their duties, resulting in their entire family’s death.
Grief-stricken, Li Youfu stepped forward, grasped his grandfather’s hand, and said loudly, “We harmed our conscience, with our heads hanging by a thread, not knowing when we would die. The benefit we gained was that grandfather fed our family, ensuring we would not degenerate into refugees like those farmers, forced into labor and dying from exhaustion, or freezing and starving to death. But was this not a benefit we were supposed to have by default since we served and risked our lives for the government?”
Li’s father heard this and angrily cursed, “Those cunning commoners, they only scratched at the ground for food. How could they compare with us……”
“They were oxen and mules, whipped and driven to work for their entire lives, while we were pigs and dogs. We ate better than horses, mules, and oxen, and did not need to do physically strenuous work, but when we became useless or had been fattened enough, what then?” At that time, overcome by sorrow, Li Youfu cried aloud.
The dying grandfather suddenly laughed, he was relieved, because among his children and grandchildren, there was finally someone who understood.
Grandfather Li had served in the Ningtai yamen since the Chu Dynasty, experiencing a series of changes such as King Ning taking up his fief, the fall of the Chu Dynasty, and King Ning’s self-establishment. He had changed superiors at least ten times, yet he still comfortably worked as a tax clerk, because he was a clever man who knew how to read people’s faces and was not too greedy.
“Do not be too greedy……be a capable hunting dog that others could not do without……”
Grandfather Li spoke these words haltingly and then passed away. He was a clever man, but that was all, unable to think of a better path.
Tax clerks attracted too much hatred, and also attracted people’s attention (their families had money).
Thinking of ways, Li Youfu became a constable runner, and deliberately befriended petty clerks and runners in his own yamen and others. Gradually, he discovered that he was not alone in thinking this way, and then he caught a stroke of good fortune.
He learned genuine martial arts, and became an insignificant Captain, which still counted as an official status. Those who did not know his exact rank might have thought he was a commander.
King Ning had died last night, and half the city smelled thick smoke. Compared to the anxious Li family, Li Youfu wished he could take a deep breath and feel refreshed.
Today, while patrolling the streets, he even had the mood to think of Keyunlai’s signature dishes.
“Captain Li, you worked hard.” The old clerk who called out to Li Youfu chuckled, “Where were you headed?”
“Elder Gao, you are too kind.” Li Youfu cupped his hands. He had not slept all night, yet showed not the slightest fatigue, “That Wuwei Ward was not peaceful, it seemed to be the Chen family’s private soldiers, I had to go and see.”
“I came here precisely for that matter.” The old clerk smiled at the other city patrol soldiers, then slowly mounted a mule.
“Go!”
With a wave of Li Youfu’s hand, everyone immediately followed.
Ningtai City had never been so peaceful on a morning like this. No shops opened, no ruffians extorted money, no foppish scions swaggered through the streets.
Wuwei Ward had already been surrounded layer upon layer. The soldiers under Li Youfu were not there to confront the Chen family’s private soldiers head-on; they only blocked the intersections, seizing anyone who tried to take advantage of the situation to cause trouble.
Sounds of killing and shouting kept coming from inside, and Li Youfu could not help but furrow his brows.
“Captain, wouldn’t this……count as following rebels in their revolt?” A soldier uneasily moved closer to ask.
Li Youfu looked up and found that although the others did not ask aloud, they all looked worried.
“Be it rebellion or revolt, what did it have to do with us? The city patrol yamen only handled vicious criminals, and we could not even get close to where the trouble happened!” Li Youfu deliberately spoke lightly, “No matter who became the new King Ning, in order to calm the people, they still had to give the brothers some benefits!”
Upon hearing this, everyone’s expressions improved a bit. Indeed, they were just muddling along for a meal.
Li Youfu had sharp eyes and saw that two of them had flickering gazes, as if contemplating something. He coughed softly: “The current situation was unclear, and those Chen and Wang families were all in trouble one after another. As the saying went, ‘Wealth and honor were sought in danger,’ but there still had to be an opportunity, right? I saw that all of them were hanging by a thread, we had to wait and see. I could not just recklessly lead the brothers forward at risk to their lives.”
These words greatly comforted everyone. Although they envied the extravagant life of the powerful who came and went at will, they knew their own worth.
Small figures like them, even if they sided with the right camp, would probably only receive some reward money; getting a promotion to higher rank was out of the question.
Unless a little prince fell from the sky, giving them the merit of protecting and supporting the rightful ruler. But even then, at most they could hide him properly, what more could they do? These illiterate soldiers, could they become great generals or chancellors? Without that ability, how could they help the little prince ascend the throne?
Those two who had been thinking actively also gave up their idea. Initially, they had thought of informing someone they deemed “promising” among the high officials, but from what they saw since last night until now, it seemed indeed as Li Youfu said—they could not be sure who held the upper hand. They should not risk informing anyone and end up burying themselves.
The old clerk silently slipped into an alley. He held a token, and relying on it, he quickly entered the blockade zone and was brought before the general leading the suppression of Chen’s private soldiers.
“General Ping, the casualties were too great, please wait a moment longer, the Chen family would not continue their desperate resistance.” The old clerk said respectfully.
The general sneered and was about to say something when the sounds of slaughter suddenly ceased.
They saw the head of the Chen family being pushed out, unexpectedly held hostage by several family guards.
“Beasts! You betrayed me!” The head of the Chen family roared.
“The situation was lost, even the Third Prince died in the palace. Uncle, why did you still persist? Did you want the entire family to die together?” The young man of the Chen family berated, then turned around with a fawning smile and cupped his hands, “General Ping, please look……”
Before he finished speaking, General Ping had already cleaved down with his blade.
The young man fell with a wretched scream, his eyes full of terror. The Chen family head laughed wildly, looking insane: “Death, only death. Would you still not act?”
The family guards were at a loss. The troops encircling Chen’s residence had already stepped through the gate.
The old clerk’s face showed mockery. He put away the token and quickly left.
“General, who was that old man?” A guard asked suspiciously.
“Just a nobody.”
General Ping snorted.
After leaving Wuwei Ward, the old clerk resumed his aged and decrepit manner.
Along the way, he encountered many minor officials and clerks. Some were patrolling like Li Youfu, while others had secretly come out to gather information.
“Elder Gao, what should we do? It seemed to be in complete chaos. Should we……should we consider seeking allegiance?”
“No, not enough people had died yet!” The old clerk narrowed his eyes and said coldly, “You pretend to know nothing, and things would naturally come to pass.”
As for those who tried to gather information, the old clerk sighed and spoke aimlessly, and at most, only a dozen could be reprimanded.
These people were all very similar to Li Youfu. They used to be lowly yamen runners but now had managed to gain official status. There was a strange fervor in their eyes.
Similar events happened simultaneously in many places in Ningtai City. There were more than a hundred people like the old clerk.
In the barracks, the Court of Prisons, the City Patrol Office, and even the Six Ministries, their identities varied. Their understanding of the “truth” varied. The low-ranked minor officials suffered because they could not advance in rank, and each noble family who understood nothing about administration became their superior one after another, making life increasingly difficult. The small officers like captains and banner officers in the barracks had to endure deductions and accept powerless noble clan members as leaders.
Most people were quickly appeased by the news that after King Ning died, noble families slaughtered each other, and a large number of official positions would soon become vacant.
Compared to the illusory merits of supporting a ruler, the downfall or death of a detestable superior meant they could be promoted immediately. That was good news. Why stand out? Better to show their abilities and maybe be appreciated!
Yet a small number of people, such as Li Youfu, felt no anxiety at all, which was especially unusual.
“In earlier years, my grandfather thought that as long as our family could survive, who cared if those commoners sold their children and daughters, or if their families were destroyed!” Li Youfu said to a constable under him, who could not help but nod.
In another alley a few streets away, the old clerk spoke to a tax clerk: “The land either belonged to the powerful nobles or to temples and monasteries. The common people’s own land became less and less, and the number of people we could exploit decreased every year. The superiors’ appetites only grew, year after year of good harvests, yet we could not collect enough grain taxes, who cared about our lives?”
Inside the great courtyard of the Chen residence.
General Ping said to his confidant: “If tasks were not done well and the grain was not fully collected, the tax clerks would only become more brutal. In order to survive, the common people abandoned their meager fields and became tenant farmers of temples or noble households. The tax clerks committed all sorts of evils yet could not survive. Weren’t such scoundrels terrifying once they went mad? They hoped that the noble families would die off, and their land be confiscated, so that they could enjoy another ten good years.”
Inside the royal palace.
Cheng Jingchuan looked at the person before him and said calmly: “In Jiangnan, peace prevailed. With population growth, the land remained limited. Tenants must go to great lengths to please the manor stewards and work desperately at farming, just to renew their lease next year. If they could not become tenants, they would become refugees and die along with their families. Those manor stewards were even more arrogant than local tyrants. Although Jiangnan was so prosperous, countless new skeletons were still added every year. Fengxing Pavilion connected to major merchant firms and knew a lot of news about the world, it would not be ignorant of this logic.”
“Is that why you ordered the massacre of several great noble families outside the city? Because they held the most land under their names?”
The speaker was dressed like a scholar, looked impoverished, and his eyes were stern.
“Master Qiu……Qiu Pavilion Lord, as long as the common people could farm in peace, and there was no privately owned land under heaven, would these disputes not be easily resolved?”
Cheng Jingchuan stood up and said, “Which of the high officials, the noble families, and powerful clans would willingly hand over their land? Therefore, they must die. Of course, I could not kill them all, but I could destroy them. Since I had to be an enemy to the world, I would establish a new world.”
Author’s note:
What Cheng Jingchuan spoke of was not public ownership of land, but royal ownership of land, meaning only the court and the royal family had public fields, while landlords’ holdings were called private fields. The root of all ancient social conflicts lay in land. In ancient times, some people proposed similar reforms, but obviously, they could not overcome the interests of the landlord class, which was also the scholar-official class, and could not implement it.
In fact, to truly solve the land problem, there had to be productivity development so that people could detach from the land.
Just like in modern times……the conflict lay in energy. If a truly new form of energy appeared and technological productivity soared, the world’s structure would immediately change. The Middle East would then be worth a fart.
