fictionpage Chapter 270: Ghosts And Snake Gods
Chapter 270: Ghosts And Snake Gods
Chu Shen and the caravan had been wary of each other for three days, but their surface relationship was harmonious. No matter how they speculated about each other behind their backs, they would greet each other with smiles when they met.
The young woman in charge of Ping'an Inn, Juanniang, couldn't sense any estrangement between the two parties. She treated them both as guests and busied herself tirelessly, working hard but attentively.
They had initially thought that this situation wouldn't last long. The martial law in Yongzhou City couldn't possibly continue indefinitely. However, contrary to their expectations, the martial law in Yongzhou City became increasingly strict, with no sign of ending.
Not only did the number of patrol teams on the streets increase, but all the government officials were dispatched to visit and even search every household.
Ping'an Inn became dangerous as a result.
Juanniang's husband, the former innkeeper of Ping'an Inn, had been bedridden after being beaten by the government officials because he couldn't pay his debts. He was now coughing up blood all day long.
Ordinary people might think that since Juanniang's family was in such a state, the matter would pass. However, the malicious government officials didn't think so at all.
Refusing to pay the debts not only meant non-cooperation with their work, but also damage to their authority. Although they had "educated" the other party with violence, they would still be ridiculed by others in the government office because of this incident: Why is it that no one dares to cause trouble in other people's jurisdictions, but in yours, there are people who fearlessly challenge death?
As the saying goes, it's easy to meet the King of Hell, but difficult to deal with the little ghosts. This refers to these people who are at the bottom of the bureaucratic system, easily bullied by all sorts of people in the government office. If even the common people are no longer afraid of them, how can they continue to survive?
As time went on, these government officials not only didn't consider the hardships of Juanniang's family, but instead became more and more angry.
On this day, they finally came to the door again.
"Oh, why is the young lady here doing the bookkeeping? Where is the shopkeeper?" said the leader, who was more like a bully. His face was full of flesh, and his body was very strong. His skin was dark, making him look like a black Hercules.
When Jianniang heard her husband's urgent cough from inside the house, she felt a little timid, but she still mustered up the courage to say, "My husband was injured by you, and he hasn't recovered yet. What else do you want?"
The leader of the yamen sneered, "You, little lady, better watch your mouth. The shopkeeper resists taxes and donations, which is a crime punishable by death. We brothers just gave him some education, already showing mercy. If we were to send him to the yamen prison, what do you think would happen to him?"
The other yamen officials also chimed in, emphasizing that they were just trying to help and that the shopkeeper was being dishonest.
Seeing their shameless faces, Jianniang's face turned red with anger, but she didn't know how to refute them.
She was just from a humble background and had no knowledge of official affairs. After marrying the innkeeper of Ping'an Inn, she focused on being a good wife and mother and had never dealt with such matters. How could she know how to handle this?
Moreover, even if she were well-versed in the law, what difference would it make?
Her husband had been the innkeeper for so long, didn't he know what to do?
But with the word "official," even if these yamen officials were not real officials, they still had been given some power by the officials, enough to distort right and wrong. They could point at an ant and call it a cockroach, or point at a rat's head and call it a duck's neck. With their mouths, they could say whatever they wanted, and what could she do about it?
On the contrary, seeing her blushing and helpless, the yamen officials found it amusing and burst into laughter, making her feel even more helpless.
The head yamen runner looked at her with teary eyes, and Xiong shook with anger. He felt a bit itchy in his heart. Suddenly, he straightened up and waved his hand to his subordinates, saying, "Alright, stop messing around. Don't forget why we came here this time, understood!"
Turning his head, he said to Juan Niang, "I heard that there have been new guests staying at your inn recently. Bring out the list and proof of identity for me to see. Don't hide any criminals."
This was an excuse for the yamen runners to come to Ping An Inn, but it was also a normal inspection. Juan Niang didn't know their intentions and was only forced by the authority of these joking yamen officials. She took out the account book, knowing that she couldn't give these insects any excuses, and said, "Our inn operates legitimate business, and our guests are all decent people. The procedures are naturally complete!"
The head yamen runner didn't pay attention to her words at all. He directly took the account book and flipped through it.
"Hey, your business has been really good these days."
Excluding Chu Shen, there were about twenty people in the merchant caravan that stayed. It was indeed considered good business.
But Juan Niang's husband needed medicine, and there were costs to accommodate guests at the inn. After being busy for a long time, there were actually not many leftovers.
But the head yamen runner didn't care about these. Seeing that there were no problems with the records in the account book, he used the excuse of the last incident where the shopkeeper was injured to cause trouble again. "The list seems fine, but you haven't paid the city tax for the last levy. Since you have income now, shouldn't you make up for it? It's just a matter of three or two silver, why not just settle it quickly?"
Juan Niang felt suffocated again. "Even if we've had some business these days, how can we come up with three or two silver? Besides, it was only two silver last time, why has it suddenly increased by ten silver?"
The head yamen runner sneered, "Who told you not to pay earlier? Isn't the city under martial law these days? It's natural to add a little to the city tax. If you still don't pay, who knows how much it will be next time."
... Seeking flowers... 0
The other yamen runners also laughed. They enjoyed bullying people and were used to being bullied by officials and their staff in the yamen. If they didn't find some balance from the common people, wouldn't it be unfair for them to endure these grievances?
The maid was so angry that she couldn't speak clearly: "You, you...
"Don't talk about 'you' and 'us' anymore, hurry up and pay!" The leader of the yamen slapped the table fiercely, looking fierce and terrifying. This scared the maid, causing her to tremble. Then he smirked lewdly, "Of course, if you really can't pay, there are other ways."
His subordinates were already familiar with his ways. Seeing his appearance, they knew he had some ideas. When they saw the maid's figure, each of them had already thought of something and laughed obscenely.
The maid didn't know how wicked these yamen officials were and instinctively asked, "What other ways?"
The leader of the yamen touched his hat that represented his identity, looking pleased with himself, and said, "To be honest, three or two silver is not much. Just distribute it randomly, and the other businesses that should pay will pay a few dozen or a hundred wen more. This will settle your family's account for us easily. But... you have to be sensible and give us something. Otherwise, why should we help you? Brothers, isn't this reasonable?"
"The boss is right!" The other yamen officials cheered.
Even if the maid didn't understand the ways of the world, seeing these yamen officials staring at her like wolves, she knew they had ulterior motives. Her face turned pale and she said, "You don't have to bother, my family will pay the money in full."
At this moment, even if she felt heartbroken over the three or two silver, it was better to send these bastards away and be done with it.
Thinking of the ten liang standard silver ingot in the counter, she had already made up her mind.
However, the leader of the yamen was somewhat surprised. He could be sure that the Ping'an Inn had long since run out of liquid assets, otherwise the shopkeeper wouldn't have clashed with him over the city tax and ended up getting injured. In just a few days, this young lady shouldn't have been able to earn so much silver. Why did she still look like she had some savings?
It wasn't until the maid took out the silver ingot and started weighing and cutting it that he secretly slapped his thigh. He didn't expect the maid to actually have silver to take out.
The maid handed over three or two silver and felt quite fortunate. It was thanks to the generosity of the merchant caravan that stayed at the inn, otherwise she really didn't know what to do. "In that case, can the adult..."