Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 215 Jia Yucun does not handle muddled cases
At this stage, Lai Er's loyalty to Jia Zhen is unquestionable, so he dares not slack off and keeps hurrying along the way.

At the beginning, he was extremely careful along the way. Whenever he came across a post station, he would never show himself and would always stay there.

I walked like this for half a month and found that nothing happened. This way to Xiangyang is much safer than going to Liaodong. When traveling in Liaodong, you can encounter horse thieves' cavalry every now and then. It's really that if there are fewer people, the horse thieves dare to come and rob.

When the soldiers came to encircle and suppress the bandits, they became civilians, which was extremely annoying. They were still the vassal tribes recognized by the court and had to hold a certificate to work.

After arriving in Xiangyang smoothly, with only a few days to go west, Lai Er finally relaxed and was not so nervous. After all, he had been nervous all the way, and if a person is tense for a long time, it is difficult to tense up again once he relaxes.

After a night's rest, Lai Er was impatient and set off immediately. The trip was smooth and he could reach Yunyang in three days. If the trip continued smoothly, the last day would come. Lai Er thought to himself, "The Lai family has only one tenth of the two thousand hectares of land. Isn't that too much?" This is 200 hectares. If he left a few people to guard it and bought some belongings, it would not be difficult to earn 500 taels of silver a year.

This was just right, but there was no post station on the way. Lai Da was a little panicked, after all, this was a security disaster area. Seeing that the sky was getting darker and despair was about to begin, Lai Er saw a flag swaying in the wind at the foot of the mountain, and was immediately overjoyed. It turned out that there was always a way out.

The waiter came out to greet the customer, wiping his hands on his apron with a smile: "Sir, would you like to stay at the hotel?"

Lai Er felt relieved when he saw that he was of small stature and did not look like the kind of man who did business without capital.

When he entered the store, he saw a woman sitting in front of the counter. She even gave Lai Er a flirtatious look when she saw him.

Lai Er suddenly felt that meeting such a woman in this desolate mountain was quite unique. Lai Er booked three rooms in the upper room, and ordered a few pounds of venison and two pounds of muddy wine. Seven or eight people had a delicious meal. While constantly flirting with the woman, he did not have any defense against you. During the meal, someone went to the toilet, and when he came back, he heard someone talking, it seemed to be the woman in front of the hall.

"Captain Ding, why bother? Just treat these useless guys to a nice meal of pork and pork. Why bother treating them with fine wine and good meat?"

"You don't understand. Every industry has its own rules. When you send someone off, you always have to give him a final meal."

The servant opened his mouth wide, afraid of making a sound, so he stuffed his fists into his mouth and wanted to run away, but his legs were too weak. It took him a long time to stand up, and he tiptoed to find the back door. Suddenly, he saw a man and a woman holding hands, also running out cautiously.

When the two sides met, they held their breath and didn't shout. After a while of hand gestures, they knew they were all fleeing. The man and woman were in front, and the servants were behind. They quietly went out through the back door and went into the woods beside the road before they dared to speak.

"I am a shopkeeper here. During the civil unrest, thieves destroyed the post station, and the government didn't take care of it later. I had a foolish idea to open a shop here. I thought that business would be good. It was fine a while ago, but today a disaster has come. If they were not afraid that the strong smell of blood would scare the customers, my husband and I would not be alive."

The man said, "Please take me to Yunyang Prefecture to report the news. I will reward you handsomely."

As he was talking, he heard a swaying of his companions in the store, and someone shouted, "He ran away, he ran away, chase him!"

The three of them suddenly rushed around in the woods like wolves and pigs, and soon they were separated.

The servant panicked and ran for half an hour before stopping. He saw that everything around him was pitch black and he shivered in despair. He stayed there in the cold wind all night. When daybreak came, he looked around again and found that the official road was not far away. He felt as if he had been saved.

In Yunyang Prefecture, Jia Yucun was handling a case involving a dispute among the people in the lobby.

A woman knelt down in the hall and told the story: "Mr. Bai tricked my husband into going to a banquet, got him drunk, and used his hand to press his fingerprint on the contract. My husband realized he was cheated when he woke up, and he hanged himself in panic. I heard from the villagers that Mr. Jia is a judge, and he will definitely give my husband justice."

"You're talking nonsense. It's obviously your man who lost money in gambling, so he used thirty acres of land as collateral and sublet it to someone else. We're all from the same village, and everyone knows that your man is a gambler." The fat and white Mr. Bai defended himself with full energy.

Jia Yucun in the hall recalled Jia Lian's instructions that whenever there was a conflict between the common people and the rich, he should side with the common people. When Jia Lian was around, these landlords and gentry did not dare to act rashly. If a new prefect was replaced, there would definitely be trouble. By testing them little by little, Your Majesty suppressed their arrogance at the beginning.

Thinking of this, Jia Yucun had the idea of ​​robbing Mr. Bai again, and immediately picked up the gavel and slammed it hard. There was a loud bang, and suddenly there was silence. Jia Yucun then asked Mr. Bai: "Did I ask you to speak? You are disrespecting me. Come, give me 30 slaps on the face first." Then he threw down a warrant.

The yamen runners below were all locals left behind by Jia Lian. When they followed Jia Lian, they had dealt with many gentry. The temper of the new prefect was not well understood, so no one acted rashly for a while.

As soon as Jia Yucun opened his mouth, these yamen runners became determined. They rushed forward, clamped him down, and didn't give him a chance to talk nonsense. They picked up the warrant and slapped him in the face. They slapped him so hard that someone counted. These yamen runners were really bad.

In order to test Jia Yucun, he deliberately counted wrong and started again from twenty.

Thirty slaps, forty slaps. Jia Yucun just looked on with a sneer on his face, not angry at all.

When Mr. Bai's teeth were mostly gone and he could not speak, Jia Yucun said, "Okay, now you can defend yourself." Mr. Bai screamed and yelled, but Jia Yucun listened seriously.

The common people watching the excitement outside saw it clearly, and the yamen runners saw it even more clearly, that this prefect was truly corrupt.

Jia Yucun turned to the clerk beside him and said, "Write this down. The accused has a muteness and cannot speak."

Turning around to look at Mr. Bai again, he was so angry that he was stunned. Is there such a dark place?
Behind you is a plaque that says "upright and aboveboard". Do you have any guilty conscience?

"Jiang, do you have any witnesses?"

The woman cried, "I have no witnesses. My husband wouldn't commit suicide for no reason, would he?"

"Come here, go and check where the drinking party was held that day and who were the people sitting with them. The trial has ended here today and the defendant has been taken into custody. Is Jiang's whereabouts?" Jia Yucun took out another warrant, and the bailiff took it and went to investigate.

The lady in the hall said, "I live in the countryside, and there is nowhere to go in the city."

Jia Yucun looked at the people watching in the hall and sighed, "Come here, take her to the Lin family shop to live, and give her a job while waiting for the retrial. Don't let her live on the streets. Court is adjourned!"

When they reached the back door, people outside suddenly shouted, like thunder in silence: "Great Lord!"

A warm current started from his spine and spread throughout his body. Jia Yucun stopped, turned around and bowed to the people.

After a while of this, Jia Yucun finally returned to the backyard. His lawyer came up to him and said, "Dongweng, something bad has happened."

Jia Yucun was surprised and asked, "What's the matter?" His good mood disappeared immediately.

After the master came up and whispered, Jia Yucun frowned and thought to himself, "It's really unlucky. Why did the steward of the Jia family's East Mansion come to Yunyang without saying hello? At least he should have sent a letter in advance so that I could send someone to pick him up. Now that things have come to this, I hope I won't suffer the complaints of the young master."

"Let's settle the people first. I'll ask the yamen runners to check and see what's going on."

The lawyer said, "The servant said that when he came back from the toilet, he overheard a woman talking and mentioned Chief Ding."

Jia Yucun was immediately shocked and said, "It's this thief! Go and tell Commander Yue that Ding Damu has gone down the mountain." The yamen runners who were sent out came back to report in the evening. It was confirmed that a small shop at Sanshili Bend in the east of the city had been burned down. The shop owner and his wife were missing, and eight bodies were found in the fire scene. The number matched.

The bailiff also said, "That couple are honest people. They never cheat anyone in business. Unexpectedly, they were in trouble. I'm afraid they didn't get away that night."

Jia Yucun was so worried that he had to write a letter overnight and send it to the Jia Mansion in the capital by express horse.

As for the corpse, just burn it again and put a few handfuls of ashes in a jar.

That night, the Bai family came to see him. Jia Yucun was quite tempted when he saw the gift list, but his advisor said, "Dongweng, this gift list is just a drop in the bucket for the Bai family."

Jia Yucun immediately slammed the table and said, "That's right, the Bai family has defied me, and their crime is even more serious."

I added silently in my heart, "You want to bribe me with just 500 taels of silver? I have 6,000 hectares of official land in my hands."

Five thousand taels of silver, maybe you can make some concessions.

After taking office in Yunyang, Jia Yucun's biggest feeling was that there were more outsiders on the land, who came from other places to rent government fields and make a living.

This matter made Jia Yucun quite entangled. There was not much benefit in renting the government land to the people. But so many people wanted to stay. After all, the empty government land would only grow weeds, right?

After experiencing civil unrest, Yunyang's population dropped sharply, and is now less than half of what it was before the unrest.

Jia Yucun thought about this matter again and again, and also mentioned it to Jia Lian in his heart, waiting for his reply.

Because the urgent letter took only 20 days to go back and forth, Jia Yucun had already finished examining Mr. Bai's case. As expected, Mr. Bai was convicted of fraud and forced to death, plus contempt of government, and was sentenced to return the lease of 30 mu of government land, compensate Jiang with 100 taels of silver, and fined 5,000 taels as a warning to others.

After Mr. Bai was released, he became so angry that he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died that night.

After this incident, the gentry of Yunyang became obedient again. This new Lord Jia was even more vicious than the previous Lord Jia.

The gentleman has no hope of making a living! The gentleman has no hope of making a living!

Those who have connections will use their connections to start working to get rid of Jia Yucun, otherwise life will be unbearable.

As a gentry, you cannot bully the people, you cannot turn the people's land into your own, and you cannot take the people's wives and daughters into your room. What fun is there in life?
When Jia Lian in the capital received the letter, he was immediately horrified and said to Wang Xifeng beside him, "Lai Er is in trouble. I will go to the East Mansion to inform him." When the East Mansion saw Jia Zhen, he took out Jia Yucun's letter. After reading it, Jia Zhen immediately said anxiously, "Lai Er has let me down!"

Jia Lian sighed, "I didn't expect him to be so careless. I told him many times to take my letter and ask the prefect for help in Xiangyang. I sent someone to escort him, but he didn't do what I asked. It was fate that he caught up with the big bandit Ding Damu coming down the mountain. No matter what, Yunyang prefect Jia Yucun can't shirk his responsibility and make him pay the money."

When Jia Zhen heard that there was money to be paid, his grief over losing Lai Er eased a little, and he asked, "How much?"

"The housekeeper of the Jia Mansion may have to pay five thousand taels."

Jia Zhen said, "It's too little. It should be at least 10,000 taels."

Jia Lian was silent for a moment. Seeing this, Jia Zhen felt awkward: "Don't we have to appease the Lai family? The money doesn't belong to me alone."

Yu Shi turned her face away and thought to herself: It’s better not to explain at all. Aren’t you treating me like a fool?
Jia Lian nodded: "I'll try! We'll tell you if it works." After saying that, he turned around and left. Even a fool could see that Jia Lian was very unhappy. Jia Zhen knew something was wrong and quickly said to Youshi: "Why don't you catch up with him and help him put in a good word."

Youshi did not resist, but whispered: "I am lowly, if you wear a green scarf in the future, don't hold me accountable."

Jia Zhen did not say anything, but just waved his hand, thinking: Do you think you are worth ten thousand taels? What good things are you thinking? If it really works out, there will be more ways to get money from Jia Lian in the future, isn't it wonderful? Unfortunately, Youshi is almost thirty years old, and she is old and ugly. I am afraid it will be difficult to have a chance. Ten years earlier, it should be no problem.

Oops, I forgot to mention the matter of the Yunyang land. I’ll wait for another opportunity later. I’ve pissed that guy off today.

It is said that Youshi caught up with Jia Lian without much pursuit.

"I know you're coming after me, I'm waiting."

"There are many servants in the house, and there are many eyes. You should be careful. That guy is shameless. He got the handle and kept asking you for money."

Youshi was truly desperate; Jia Zhen's attitude was too clear.

Jia Lian sneered and said, "If you do too much evil, you will eventually perish!"

You said, "In a few days, I will go to the Mantou Temple to fulfill my vow."

In Yunyang, Jia Yucun received a reply, the meaning was very clear, Jia Zhen claimed 10,000 taels, and it was handled at his discretion, and it was okay if he didn't give it. The servant didn't protect his master well, so he didn't need to come back, and stayed in Yunyang as a farmer, or arranged a livelihood for him. Send someone to send the ashes back to the Jia Mansion. As for the others, don't worry about them, he is just a housekeeper, so he is a house servant, so his relatives can be generously compensated. This person didn't listen to Jia Lian's instructions, which led to the accident on the road, so brother Yucun didn't have to take it to heart.

Jia Yucun felt warm in his heart after reading this. He was indeed one of his own. He would not punish him for a servant. He took the initiative to give an excuse because he did not listen to Jia Lian's advice. Speaking of which, the relationship between the East and West Palaces is worth talking about.

As for the matter of the ten thousand taels of silver, although it hurts, I can give it. After all, it can also make the gentry of Yunyang suffer a little.

It is not difficult to sell the government land in hand at a high price.

When Lai Er's family heard the news, they burst into tears. Jia Zhen left a hundred taels of silver and let the matter go.

Jia Lian came to comfort her and said, "Although I am not to blame for this incident, it was caused by me. If I don't do something, I will feel bad."

As he spoke, Jia Lian left five hundred taels of silver and promised that if the child failed in his studies when he grew up, he would arrange a job for him.

Lai Er left behind three women and six children. A few hundred taels of silver was not a lot of money for the Lai family. But the actions of the two masters left a deep impression on people. Lai Er died for Jia Zhen, so why are you giving him an attitude?

The servants in the East and West Mansions did not say anything, but in their hearts they felt grievances. The centripetal force of the West Mansion's main house headed by Jia Lian increased greatly as a result. This is a story for later, so we will not discuss it for now.

Jia Lian was on vacation at home for two months, and when it was about to end, he realized a problem: where should I report?
(End of this chapter)