The companion asked:
“Sir, should we also take a look at that bank across the street?”
“There’s no need. That young man already explained what it does. No way am I exchanging my silver for those pieces of paper!”
“Even if that shopkeeper were as cunning as a fox, he could never deceive this old man’s discerning eyes.”
The companion fell silent.
He had no idea who had just paid a deposit.
“I’ve also found out who’s in charge of the village. Come on, let’s get back in the carriage and go to the village committee office.”
The carriage continued forward until they reached the village committee compound.
Someone had already gone ahead to report the arrival of Elder Wu, one of the Three Elders of the township.
How had they found out?
Naturally, because Wu himself had told them at the leasing center.
Zhao Liu had only needed to steer the conversation slightly, and the old man had ended up revealing everything he should—and shouldn’t—have said.
The only thing he hadn’t revealed was the color of his underwear.
“Sir, what brings you here?”
Zhao Shi stepped out of the small room by the entrance, pretending he knew absolutely nothing.
Wu’s companion stepped forward and held his head high.
“Our lord is one of the Three Elders of Qingniu Township. Have your village chief come out.”
“Huh? One of the Three Elders? All right, I’ll go get her right away.”
Zhao Shi pretended to panic and hurried inside.
He even stumbled and nearly fell over.
Sun Dazhu, who was still inside the small room, silently watched the scene.
Zhao Shi really is clever.
He’s so good at pretending that it looks completely real.
I’m nowhere near his level.
A short while later, Jinyi emerged accompanied by two even younger maids.
They were two girls she had personally selected from among the household servants because they were particularly clever and quick-witted.
She had brought them along to train them.
“Elder Wu, good morning. I’m Zhao Jinyi, the village chief of Taoyuan Village.”
Although Wu had already heard that the village chief was little more than a girl, actually seeing her standing before him was still astonishing.
Moreover, the girl was truly beautiful.
She looked healthy, and both her bearing and manners made her seem like a young lady from a wealthy family.
For a moment, Wu didn’t even know how he should approach the conversation.
Jinyi immediately understood some of his thoughts and smiled.
“Elder, let’s go inside and talk. Please.”
“All right.”
Jinyi walked ahead, and Wu followed her into her office.
Jinyi’s office was very spacious.
More than ten people could sit around the table and chairs arranged for visitors without any trouble.
The furniture and decorations were exquisite.
There were also two bookshelves filled with books. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
The office looked more like a study than a simple workplace.
It was not something an ordinary person could afford.
Wu had visited the county magistrate’s study before, and even that place wasn’t nearly as impressive.
The books alone must have been worth a small fortune.
Books were extremely expensive in this era, and their prices were measured in silver.
Wu immediately became even more cautious.
The two sat down.
Jinyi gave an order.
“Chunlan, serve Elder Wu some tea.”
Little Chunlan took a container filled with various items from a nearby decorative shelf, took out a small amount of tea leaves, and placed them in a delicate teapot.
The other girl, Qiuju, brought a kettle of hot water from the adjoining room and poured it into the teapot.
“This is roasted tea that our lord gave us. Normally, one would only have the opportunity to drink it in the capital. Elder, I wonder if you’ve ever tried it. Why don’t we have some together?”
Only available in the capital?
Could this be tribute tea?
Jinyi poured one cup for him and another for herself.
“Please.”
Wu became even more cautious.
He smiled obsequiously, stretching his lips into something resembling a withered flower, then held the teacup with both hands and took a small sip.
He hadn’t even had a chance to savor it before he began praising it.
“Chief Zhao, may I ask where your lord is from?”
“My lord is from the north. There is an elder in his family who holds a high position at court and wears purple robes. As for the details, it would be better if Elder didn’t ask. My lord doesn’t like using his family’s influence to impose himself on others, so he never reveals his identity.”
“All right, I won’t ask. I won’t ask.”
Good heavens!
Purple robes!
Only officials of the third rank or higher are permitted to wear purple.
No wonder even one of his maids has such an imposing presence.
There was an old saying: Even a seventh-rank official standing at a prime minister’s gate carries authority.
This was probably exactly what he was witnessing now.
“Elder, did you come here this time regarding the land tax?”
“Ah, well…”
Wu was suddenly at a loss for words.
Should I actually collect taxes from a family like this?
Jinyi pretended to be displeased.
“Elder, my lord isn’t even willing to rely on his family’s influence to gain special treatment. He has always respected the law. If a certain amount of tax is owed, then he’ll pay it. My lord isn’t short of a few copper coins.”
“You also know about Immortal’s Liquor. That product was developed by my lord. Do you really think we’d be short of money when it comes to paying a little land tax?”
“Yes, yes. Chief Zhao is absolutely right. Lord Zhao is… very… very generous.”
“This year, we cultivated approximately two hundred and ten mu of wasteland. The tax on newly cultivated land is sixty percent of the rate for first-grade farmland, correct? Using ordinary crops as the basis, that means a tax of forty percent. That comes to forty-eight jin of ordinary grain per mu.”
“At the current price of ordinary grain, that comes to forty-six thousand three hundred wen.”
“My lord has decided to round up the amount to make things easier for you, so we’ll give you forty-seven liang of silver. Elder, have I made any mistakes?”
“No, no.”
Wu’s mind was still a complete mess.
And even if there had been a mistake, he wouldn’t have dared point it out.
“Chunlan, go with Jinxiu and bring forty-seven liang of silver.”
“Yes, Miss.”
The little maid stood up, gathered her skirt, and ran out.
Before long, she returned with a tray and placed it in front of Wu.
There were four large silver ingots and seven smaller ones.
Except these ingots looked completely different from the usual kind.
They looked like dumplings.
And they were made entirely of silver.
They were quite beautiful.
“Elder Wu, here is the tax payment. If there’s nothing else, I won’t see you out.”
“No need, no need. Then I’ll take my leave.”
Wu tucked the silver into his clothes, hunched his back, and hurried out of the room.
He climbed into the carriage and left Taoyuan Village as quickly as possible.
He had originally wanted to request an audience with Lord Zhao, but he hadn’t even been able to withstand the presence of one of his maids.
In the end, he hadn’t had the courage to say a word.
Once Elder Wu, who had come to collect the taxes, had been sent on his way, Jinyi continued with her work as though nothing had happened.
A few liang of silver were nothing.
It was barely what they earned from selling liquor in a single day.
Giving her lord a fabricated identity could save them a great deal of trouble.
Otherwise, some minor official might show up every few days trying to squeeze money out of them.
Even if she wasn’t afraid of them, constantly dealing with such people would become a headache.
Now, however, everything was much simpler.
Her lord came from a powerful family.
The properties they owned here served as proof as well.
After all, how could an ordinary person have built up such a fortune?
And if someone actually suspected that the whole thing was fake, they still wouldn’t be able to prove it.
Were they going to travel all the way to the capital and question every third-rank official and above one by one?
That would be nothing short of courting death.
So long as they didn’t directly provoke a third-rank official or someone above that rank, they practically had nothing to worry about when it came to the authorities.
Now she had plenty of time to develop the village.
By the time this lie was exposed, Jinyi was confident that she would already have enough power to protect herself.
Even…