Du Liangchuan reflected deeply and suddenly realized he had been completely wrong—he should never have mentioned the word “money” to a penniless man like Pei Zhu. Now not only was the money unpaid, but the man was shamelessly trying to borrow from them again.
Indeed, Youzhou was not short of funds; every year the court allocated extra money to secure the border. But even that money wasn’t fully under Du’s control, so why would he willingly lend any of it to someone else—especially to Yongning County? In Du’s eyes, Pei Zhu was no different from a deadbeat. A brazen man like him was bound to make anyone cautious, no matter that Du Liangchuan outranked him by several official grades.
That afternoon, Du Liangchuan had a copy of Youzhou’s account books made and hurriedly prepared to return to the city. The longer he stayed, the greater the risk that Pei Zhu might literally stretch out his hand and take the money.
Playing the part fully, Pei Zhu even shook Du’s hand at their farewell with heartfelt sincerity: “Sir, the justice of Yongning County rests entirely upon you. These barbarians are far too audacious. You must petition carefully to His Majesty—preferably, have troops sent to crush the Eastern Hu, so that the people of Yongning County can finally get justice!”
Du Liangchuan didn’t even bother replying and hastily climbed into his carriage. He had no desire to return to this miserable place, nor did he want to see the clueless, penniless county magistrate again.
Even as he departed, Pei Zhu’s voice lingered behind like a ghost: “Sir, do send the funds for the canal construction as soon as possible—the whole of Yongning County is waiting!”
Du Liangchuan lifted the carriage curtain and shouted to the driver: “Go faster!”
The carriage soon disappeared into a cloud of dust.
Pei Zhu pinched his nose but still wasn’t satisfied. He had initially planned to exploit the silver mine, but now he had no interest in depleting that limited resource. All his focus was on the prefectural office. The more he thought about it, the more viable borrowing money seemed. Whether they repaid it or not was irrelevant—he just needed to get it. Once the funds were obtained, the canal construction could proceed legitimately, and all the accounts could be brought into the open.
This close call was thanks to their overnight revisions of the accounts. Together, they cross-checked multiple times until certain everything was correct before they could relax. None of them were skilled at falsifying accounts; only Wang Chuo had some ability, but even he struggled with complex bookkeeping. There was no one in the county office adept at accounts, so if they could avoid making fake books, all the better.
Afterward, Pei Zhu had Wang Chuo draft a document to send to Youzhou—nothing else, just a formal appeal citing poverty and requesting funds.
Zheng Xingcheng was stunned by Pei Zhu’s audacity. He had assumed the borrowing was merely a diversion tactic, never imagining Pei Zhu actually intended to go through with it.
“How can you be sure the prefectural office will lend us money?”
“Because we already owe them a huge sum!” Pei Zhu argued, confident in his own twisted logic. “If they want us to repay, they first have to help us solve our biggest problem—let Yongning County earn money. Otherwise, how could we repay? Should we extort the people? Their pockets are empty; there’s no more to squeeze. They’ll have to lend it, whether they want to or not.”
Zheng Xingcheng: “……”
Preposterous.
He had no expectations of Pei Zhu, and now that the matters of tax and spoils were settled, his personal accounts and the embezzled funds were finally resolved. Feeling both relieved and utterly exhausted, he didn’t even linger at the office for supper that evening, returning home with Zhang Rusheng and the others.
Their departure was convenient; a lot of leftover dishes from hosting Du Liangchuan remained, and Pei Zhu instructed the kitchen to reheat everything and share it among the staff. At least it was meat, and it would be wasteful not to eat it.
Wang Chuo hadn’t experienced such hardship in a long time. Even during exile, he had friends to look after him, so he had never been truly poor. Now…
“This is spare rib—Master Wang, please eat. Over the next few days, we’ll need your help drafting several more requests for funds.”
A piece of cured meat suddenly appeared in his bowl, and when he looked up, he saw Pei Zhu smiling cheerfully, without a trace of gloom.
Wang Chuo had never been flattered so openly, but he didn’t mind. He had thought he was used to intrigue and scheming, but in Yongning County, he discovered another way of living.
After Pei Zhu’s “bribe,” Wang Chuo drafted the documents with even more care, and the same day they were urgently sent to the prefectural office.
Du Liangchuan returned to Youzhou late in the day, and the following morning he reported Yongning County’s situation to Prefect Liu Dai.
With the entire town’s testimony and flawless accounts, it was confirmed that the robbery was indeed the work of the barbarians.
As expected, Prefect Liu rubbed his forehead, recalling the draft memorial he had been working on. He had to finish and submit it to the capital immediately; any further delay would result in punishment for him as well.
While discussing how to refine the memorial, a clerk arrived with documents from Yongning County for their review.
Liu Dai was puzzled: “Why is Yongning County sending documents in such a hurry?”
Du Liangchuan suddenly felt a foreboding sense. Surely the county magistrate wasn’t so tactless?
Opening the documents, Du Liangchuan was completely stunned.
Indeed, someone actually dared to come to the prefectural office to openly plead poverty and borrow money!
Even Liu Dai stared blankly: “They haven’t repaid the previous sum, and now they come to borrow more?”
The two exchanged a glance. Du Liangchuan frowned in irritation. “Sir, that Pei Zhu has a twisted logic for everything. He won’t rest until he gets the money. And from his tone, unless we lend him another sum, he will never repay the first debt.”
The reasoning was clearly explained in the document: Yongning County wanted to build a canal to prevent flooding and benefit the entire Youzhou region, but their accounts lacked funds, so they had no choice but to borrow from Youzhou. Audacious! Anyone with basic tact would never have done such a thing.
Liu Dai, aware of Yongning County’s poverty, promptly sent a reply.
By the next evening, Pei Zhu received it. The prefect made polite assurances, repeatedly promising that Youzhou would not abandon Yongning County, and that they would contribute to the canal construction.
However, the most important detail—exact figures—was completely omitted. Pei Zhu tossed the letter aside, complaining to Wei Ping: “They said all the sweet words, but no money, no schedule. What’s the use of such a reply?”
Wei Ping read the letter; it was full of flattering words that warmed the heart, but Yongning County needed funds. Words were useless without money.
Unwilling to accept this, Pei Zhu went to Wang Chuo’s room to draft yet another letter to send first thing the next morning. Several letters later, Youzhou’s assurances were exhausted, but they still wouldn’t release funds.
Demanding money proved difficult; for several days Pei Zhu struggled, providing plenty of entertainment for Zheng Xingcheng and Zhang Rusheng.
Zheng Xingcheng warned mischievously: “Master, maybe you should ease up a bit. Offend the Youzhou Prefect, and you might end up last in the year-end evaluation.”
Pei Zhu didn’t care about evaluations—how much worse could it get? Thinking of the image he had cultivated, he immediately retorted: “Do you think I need a mere Youzhou Prefect to rise? Give it a few years, and no matter my record, I’ll recover my standing.”
Seeing Pei Zhu’s confidence and the connections of the Pei family, Zheng Xingcheng fell silent.
Pei Zhu, smug as ever, realized how useful the Pei family name was—especially when tricking Du Liangchuan, it worked perfectly. If Du ever discovered Pei Zhu’s real situation with the Pei family, he would surely be furious.
Despite several setbacks in borrowing money, Pei Zhu was only emboldened. The more they refused, the more he fixated on it. Besides, the funds rightfully belonged to Yongning County—the locals had endured disasters on behalf of Youzhou. Lending them the money was merely giving face; in principle, it should have been theirs outright.
Construction of the reservoir could not be delayed. If accounts lacked money, Pei Zhu would temporarily assume the debt, issue IOUs to the people, and proceed with the digging.
He repeatedly assured the villagers: “Don’t worry—my reputation is on the line. Your wages will be paid as soon as possible, not a penny delayed.”
In truth, whether the rural households received wages was of little concern—they had already accepted the county’s mission and should contribute labor. The county itself had exhausted all funds in managing the aftermath, likely unable to pay wages.
But to avoid embarrassing Pei Zhu, the villagers pretended ignorance and quietly comforted him:
“Master, even if the wages aren’t paid, it’s fine—the wheat has already been sown.”
“Exactly. Don’t skimp for the sake of repayment; if there’s no money, just delay a little.”
They understood.
Pei Zhu sighed at their simplicity. Compared to the ungrateful, stingy officials, these people were genuinely considerate despite being oppressed. Pei Zhu had not intended to push things to extremes, but now he had no choice.
He ordered officials from Anping County to send laborers to help with the reservoir.
The Anping magistrate reacted exactly like Du Liangchuan: “On what basis?”
Wei Ping replied sternly: “Our Master said that building this canal benefits more than Yongning County; all downstream areas will benefit. Yongning County is struggling, so your county should contribute—it’s only right.”
The Anping magistrate had never encountered someone so boldly unreasonable.
“Besides, the prefectural office is willing to provide funds—what’s a few extra people from Anping County? Yongning County leads, and the others barely need to worry. You’re already getting a huge advantage!” Wei Ping continued, full of malice, recalling how Yongning County had always blocked the front while others hid behind, never lending a hand. “Yongning County is this poor—does anyone have the audacity to take all the benefits?”
With the matter pressed so far, Anping County had no choice but to send some people to assist the “beggars.”
Doubtful themselves, they asked the prefectural office when the funds for Yongning County’s canal would arrive, how much, and why no information had been disclosed. They also noticed that although Yongning County’s methods were crude, the matter seemed well-handled; could the prefectural office eventually help them build a canal too?
Following Anping County’s example, Wei Ping repeated the process in neighboring counties, spreading the news of Youzhou lending money for the canal.
As more counties inquired, the prefectural office increasingly faced public pressure; refusal to lend would have been impossible to justify.
Du Liangchuan had never felt so humiliated—he had been outmaneuvered by a mere county magistrate! He fumed: “Sir, Pei Zhu acts recklessly—doesn’t he fear ruining his future?”
Liu Dai’s expression was complex: “He is already in Yongning County. What future is there for him?”
Being the magistrate of Yongning County was no easy post; who would want to replace him? Moreover, someone literate could find work anywhere. According to Du Liangchuan, Pei Zhu was also a strikingly handsome young man. With that face, even without an official post, he wouldn’t lack wealth or comfort.
Du Liangchuan still disagreed: “So this time, we just let him have his way?”
Liu Dai sighed: “This time, we have no choice.”
His current concern was the memorial—reporting to the throne. The new ruler was temperamental, and the outcome was uncertain.
Two days later, Youzhou sent people again. Pei Zhu received them with full preparation and, once the meeting ended, sent them off with uncontainable joy.
No sooner had they left than Pei Zhu couldn’t contain himself, summoning everyone excitedly: “Everyone, the county office has money—no, I mean—we’ve received the funds!”