Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 344: The wooden fish head needs to be smashed
How much does one string of money, which is one thousand coins, weigh?
In his previous life, when Zhang Shou was bored, he once found a friend who collected worthless ancient coins and tried it out. He strung a thousand coins together with a hemp rope, and the coins weighed a full eight pounds and seven ounces! So, at this moment, when he personally held the strings of coins and handed them to the overjoyed recipients, after seven or eight people, he felt his arms a little sore.
After more than a dozen people passed by, he felt his neck was a bit heavy. After thirty people passed by, he even had to slow down. As for why there were so many people who wanted to claim the reward? Of course, it was because everyone was scrambling to catch people for the reward money, and even resorted to stacking people. Fortunately, there were old salted fish to identify them, so at least there were no thugs and ruffians who bullied people and even men and women mixed in.
Young Master Jiang, who personally went to the Jiang family to withdraw cash, did not take this expense seriously. It was only more than 40 strings of cash in total. Apart from the fact that he was a little tired when he hurried over to the carriage after loading the cash boxes one by one, the rest was nothing! The rest of the family was filled with gold and silver, and there were not many boxes of cash with strings of green money left...
It is said that Emperor Taizu originally wanted to use gold, silver and copper coins to circulate throughout the country, but because Emperor Taizong died unexpectedly at an early age, the whole plan was aborted halfway...
Although Shang Yang used gold to set up the pillar, Zhang Shou only gave out more than 40 strings of coins, and it was generous to others. However, because of the show put on by Lao Xianyu and him, and the example of Zhu Er, the prodigal son who turned over a new leaf, when the crowd finally dispersed from the gate of Changlu County Government, those stories, true or false, were spread to all parts of the city through them.
Although he was not as impressive as Zhu Tingfang who quelled the turmoil by capturing Xian Yunhe as soon as he entered the city, Zhang Shou's name was still known throughout the city because he was the inventor of the new textile machine that caused a sensation in the city.
At the same time, his outstanding appearance, gentle manners and manners spread throughout the city. Most importantly, everyone who received the reward talked about Zhang Shou's hospitality and felt that he was at least a trustworthy person. In terms of the word trustworthy, Zhu Tingfang couldn't compare - because General Mingwei didn't give such a big red envelope to anyone as soon as he arrived in Cangzhou!
One string of money can buy a lot of things. It can support a middle-class family for more than half a month, while a poor family can support them for at least two months if they are frugal!
After finally calming down the incident, Zhang Shou walked into the county government office, but he ignored the instigators who were brought in, and directly ordered Zhu Hong to take them to jail and wait for Zhu Tingfang to come back before dealing with them. He took Zhang Chen and Jiang Da Shao to the study. Zhu Ying thought about it, and finally called Zhu Er, who was still confused, to go to his elder brother's yard.
She had figured out that although her second brother was sometimes smart and sometimes confused, he was still a man who could handle right and wrong situations. But he couldn't hold his own in front of the old man... That old man was really too smart!
Zhang Shou left Ah Liu outside to guard the door, and then he carefully questioned Zhang Chen and Young Master Jiang about what happened when they went to meet someone today.
He originally thought that Zhang Chen would definitely rush to speak first, but unexpectedly, Zhang Chen glanced at Young Master Jiang and not only did not fight for it, but instead nodded his mouth to signal others to speak first. Young Master Jiang hesitated for a moment, and then smiled at him flatteringly.
"Needless to say, my family can take out all the cotton they have stored and immediately organize the workshop to resume work. Moreover, the textile machines in my workshop are still there, so we don't need to hire craftsmen to rebuild them. This condition is much better than the Qi family's."
At this point, Young Master Jiang seemed quite proud: "Those old men hired people to smash their own workshops in order to frame others and get away with it, but it only made things more obvious! Last night, Mr. Xu and his men made such a scene, and Old Man Qi was imprisoned first. The others who pretended to fainted were mostly not clean, and several managers in their homes were also imprisoned!"
"If Master Zhang and I hadn't gone there, the servants would have probably all escaped! I was the one who stepped in and told them that those who are guilty should be punished, and those who deserve punishment should be punished. The court will not be lenient to criminals, but it will not wrongly accuse good people either!"
"The youngest son of the Qi family who was spoiled by old man Qi, because his biological mother is the favored second wife, the eldest son is despised in various ways. I used to be in touch with the eldest son of the Qi family, so I instigated him to stand up and take responsibility."
Young Master Jiang paused and glanced at Zhang Chen quickly. Seeing that he was impatiently signaling him to just talk and not worry, he mustered up the courage to say, "I support him. His stepmother, who was a loan shark and secretly engaged in human trafficking through the charity hall, was locked up in the ancestral hall... That charity hall was even involved with beggars, and they kidnapped people and sold them to other places. They are really bad people."
Zhang Chen saw that Young Master Jiang was a little guilty, so he looked at the useless guy with contempt, and then said with his head held high: "Young Master, I was the one who supported him in this matter. The husband and son were all arrested, and when the matter came to an end, the wife of the Qi family was still dominating at home. When Jiang Siyuan and I went in, she was planning to beat to death the two concubines of Old Man Qi."
"I was too lazy to get involved in this kind of messy family affairs, but those two girls were only seventeen or eighteen. When they saw us come in, they rushed over like crazy, saying that they grew up in a charity hall, and were picked out at the age of four or five and sent to a private brothel to learn skills. At the age of seven or eight, they were...well, I won't say more. Anyway, what I saw was disgusting, and what I heard was disgusting! A family of beasts!"
Zhang Chen became angrier and angrier as he spoke, and finally stopped talking. Most of the families of Ruizong's meritorious officials had fathers and grandfathers who started out as soldiers. His grandfather was a counselor, but he also came from the army and was proficient in martial arts. His father was also a good reader, so his family education was not only good, but also strict in rules.
Even if he is as dissolute as Zhu Er, at most he would just hang out with his friends outside. He would get jealous and make plans for a fight, or even smash someone's shop out of anger... Then the elders in his family would pay compensation.
Who would have thought that hundreds of miles away from the capital, a family with a far inferior family background to theirs could be so corrupt that pus was oozing from the soles of their feet!
Young Master Jiang saw Zhang Chen reveal so many scandals of the Qi family. Zhang Shou's brows were already furrowed when he heard them. He coughed and said, "The Qi family has been operating in Cangzhou for several generations. It's no wonder that they are rotten. Old man Qi's second wife is also guilty of serious crimes, but the government will not investigate unless the people report it. Besides, her husband and son have been arrested. It will inevitably be embarrassing to arrest her."
"Besides, we have to leave someone to restrain Boss Qi, so I said, lock her up in the ancestral hall first..."
Before he could finish explaining the whole story, Zhang Shou said coldly, "Laws are not human feelings. Since Zhang Chen said it's rotten, then cut off all the rotten parts and don't leave any disgusting parts. I understand the principle of checks and balances, but that woman is the parent in name, so it will be too easy for her to turn the tables in the future. When General Zhu comes back, put the mistress of the Qi family in jail!"
This is... not even sparing women? Although she is a vicious, greedy, rotten woman, but if this gets out, will it...
Young Master Jiang was stunned for a moment. He looked at Zhang Chen again and saw that Zhang Chen did not show any strange expression. Instead, he said with a beaming face: "I knew that you, young master, hate evil and are the most responsible! There are differences between men and women, but everyone is equal before the law! That evil woman has done so many evil things that she should be sent to jail! If I hadn't been worried about gossip before, I would have wanted to do this a long time ago!"
Zhang Shou ignored Zhang Chen's flattery, but agreed with his last sentence. However, he did not waste time on the issue of equality before the law, and asked directly: "What kind of person is the eldest brother of the Qi family? What is his character? How does he act?"
Seeing Young Master Jiang moving his lips and wanting to speak but stopping, Zhang Chen said angrily, "One word, soft; two words, a pustule; three words, irresponsible! If it weren't for the fact that the old man surnamed Qi only had two sons, and the eldest son of the Qi family was so weak that he couldn't even do evil, Jiang and I really couldn't pick anyone, and we had to finish the resumption of work first, it would be strange for us to help him!"
"Jiang kid threatened him with a few words, and he immediately called together the servants who were still reluctantly on his side, but they didn't dare to say a word. It was Jiang kid who stepped in and imprisoned his stepmother in the ancestral hall. Then, Jiang kid threatened to turn the good people against him, and he was so scared that he quickly handed over the key to the warehouse where the cotton was stored, saying that we could use it as we pleased."
"Oh, he even handed over all the accounts in his home, saying that we could check the accounts as we pleased. He said he knew nothing, and kept saying that he had a good relationship with his cousin who was an official in the Ministry of Rites in the capital. If it weren't for this, he would have been killed by his stepmother. He also called out his wife and son, and almost entrusted his orphan to Jiang kid on the spot!"
"In short, it is impossible for this guy to have endured it until now. He can only be so timid!"
Zhang Shou had no doubt as to whether Zhang Chen was able to judge people - although Zhang Wu and Zhang Lu, whom Zhang Chen regarded as his younger brothers, had their shortcomings, they were generally good-looking young men with decent character - so, after a brief thought, he looked at Young Master Jiang.
"With his parents and brothers all in jail, if the eldest son of the Qi family really gets the family business all by himself, and the news gets out, I'm afraid he, a member of the Qi family, may not be able to keep it. In this world, it is hard to believe that a gentleman can stay clean in a rotten family. What's more, he is just a weak and incompetent guy. A sheep can't survive surrounded by wolves. So, Jiang Dalang, you should go again."
Young Master Jiang pointed at his nose. Seeing that Zhang Shou did not take back his words, he asked anxiously, "What can I do?"
"What you did in front of me yesterday, just let the eldest brother of the Qi family do the same as you did."
"What I did..." Young Master Jiang was puzzled at first, then he realized it with a start, and his eyes widened immediately, "Doctor Zhang is saying... is he saying that I took on the crime on behalf of my father, admitted the crime and accepted the punishment? Let him also take on his father's crime..."
Seeing Zhang Shou nodded calmly, he was immediately in a dilemma: "That's because my father has always been good to me. Besides, although my two younger brothers are selfish, at least there is no life-and-death hatred between us. Besides, my family would be finished without my father... But the eldest brother of the Qi family is different. Although he is weak, I think he probably wishes his parents and brothers would all die!"
"It's no surprise that he has such thoughts since his parents are not kind!"
Zhang Chen thought of his father who always ignored him, and he couldn't help but hate him. But when he thought about how happy his father was this time giving money and people, the angry words on his lips changed.
"But in the eyes of others, there are no parents who are not good. So what the young master said is right, and I didn't think it through before. If he, as the eldest son, is unwilling to even make this gesture, then as long as his parents and brothers find out, they will be furious and accuse him of being unfilial, and he will be doomed. Besides, he doesn't have any ability, so it's meaningless for us to waste time and effort to protect him!"
As he spoke, he glanced at Zhang Shou and saw him nod slightly, clearly agreeing with his judgment. However, he did not say anything to tell him what to do after letting the eldest son of the Qi family take the blame for his parents. He could only think about it based on Zhang Shou's idea.
As he thought about it, Zhang Chen said thoughtfully, "Let the eldest son of the Qi family recommend a branch of the Qi family to take over the family business, and then let him take the blame for his parents? Of course, given the crimes of the three people in the Qi family, it is impossible to reduce their crimes just because of a filial son. Those who deserve to be killed should be killed, and those who deserve to be imprisoned should be imprisoned. Then, this filial son can just guard the ancestral hall for three years and not care about anything."
"Anyway, even if he is asked to take care of it, he may not be able to do it well!"
Young Master Jiang opened his mouth so wide that his eyes almost popped out of his head, and blurted out, "Isn't this the same as handing over the family business to someone else? How could he possibly be willing to let such great power fall into someone else's hands!"
"That's why I asked you to speak up, and that's why I let the eldest son of the Qi family choose his own person!" Zhang Chen glanced at Young Master Jiang impatiently, "If he doesn't even have this much vision, then he should just give up the idea of inheriting the family business as soon as possible. You know, even if his father, stepmother, and brother are all dead, he will be swallowed up by others without a trace!"
Seeing Zhang Shou chuckle, although he did not comment, Jiang Dashao thought about it and seemed to agree with him. He immediately broke out in a cold sweat, thinking that he had really hit the right spot by accident last night.
But when he was completely confused, he couldn't help but ask in a low voice: "Then...what about me and my father?" I have already publicly admitted my father's guilt and accepted the punishment. What will be the fate of my father and me in the future?
Seeing that Zhang Shou couldn't help but hold his forehead with his hand, Zhang Chen was immediately furious. Today, he took Young Master Jiang out and gave him pointers everywhere, but in the end, this kid was still so stupid.
If you and your son really want to go to jail or be beheaded...why did I go through so much trouble to bring you out to do things?
Zhang Chen grabbed a teacup lid in a rage and threw it at Young Master Jiang. However, Young Master Jiang not only did not dodge, but instead quickly caught the lid with his hand, and then handed it to him with a flattering face. Zhang Chen was so angry that he laughed.
"You are quite skilled at this, kid. Are you used to being beaten by your father? Your father was not worthy of being deceived by others, so he was blinded by greed and stopped working and forced the innocent people to rebel. Then he was instigated by others to stop the horse and cause trouble, and he almost committed suicide in his excitement. The crime is serious, but he can't die. So now you are diligent, efficient, and sincere in making amends, so you can at least help your father redeem himself a little, do you understand?"
"If we lock you up in the ancestral hall, who will do the job? Hurry up and stop talking nonsense. You haven't told me the situations of other families yet!" Just as Zhang Chen was urging Young Master Jiang, Zhang Shou suddenly heard Ah Liu's voice outside.
"Master, it seems something happened up ahead!"
