Chapter Forty-Three: Midnight Shadows

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PS: Same old story—if you pass by, please leave a recommendation ticket. I’m turning into a nag...

Though the snow was falling even harder now, swirling thickly in the sky and slipping down collars with the biting wind, Du Shisan-niang still had no desire to retreat into her own room. This was the official residence attached to the county office, not her own small but warm thatched cottage. She had just spent a long while talking with her elder brother, but now she had no choice but to return to her quarters.

She did not know how much time had passed before she finally drew a quiet breath, beckoned with her hand, and walked in without looking back. The thick cotton curtain at the door had already been lowered. Rubbing her hands, chilled by the wind, she stood there in a daze for a long moment before suddenly whispering, “Zhu Ying, do you think we should go back to Fanchuan someday?”

“My lady!” Zhu Ying was utterly shocked, unable to comprehend. “How could you have such a thought?”

“It’s nothing!” Du Shisan-niang quickly shook her head. But thinking of these long days apart, though she always put on a brave face before her brother, she could not help but feel a pang of sorrow. Once inside, she sat on the low bed, hugging her knees, lost in thought. Every time she saw Du Shiyi, she felt as though her brother had changed in ways she could barely recognize; even knowing this was a good thing, she was beset by mixed feelings, as if he had grown into someone she no longer knew in the blink of an eye. She did not know how long she sat before finally raising her head to speak softly to Zhu Ying, whose face was full of worry, “It’s nothing, I just spoke without thinking. Whatever you do, don’t mention this to my brother.”

Meanwhile, Du Shiyi sat alone in his own room, untying a leather pouch to produce two smooth, polished brass balls. Though he mulled over the information intentionally revealed by Cui Weizhi, he knew that one must eat a meal one bite at a time, walk a road one step at a time. For him, the renowned Chancellor Yao Chong, though seemingly within reach, was in truth separated by countless mountains. It was meaningless to speculate about whether that man was in crisis. He rolled the heavy brass balls in his hand, but before long, his wrist grew sore and tired; he had to rest them on his knee for a moment. Yet he did not give up, instead studying the knack for their use, soon forgetting the passage of time—until a gentle knock sounded at the door.

Du Shisan-niang still had Zhu Ying for company, but he had politely refused the service of the Cui family’s maid, since at the Lu family’s cottage he had always tended to his own affairs. Recalling that he had previously stated he did not wish to be disturbed, he frowned. Yet, thinking it might be that meddlesome Cui Jianxuan, he hesitated, then finally stood and approached the door. Just as he was about to draw the bolt, he was startled to see a sharp blade slip in from outside, quietly lifting the latch. Alarmed, he nearly called out, but reconsidered, pressing his hand firmly on the latch and barking a low question.

“Who is it?”

His abrupt challenge and firm grip rendered the blade’s efforts useless, and his stern tone seemed to frighten the person outside. It was a long while before a timid voice replied, “Master Du, it’s Wu Jiu… To come so late without notice, and even attempt to sneak in—this is indeed a grave offense. But I truly had no other way... Please, Master Du, grant me a moment of your time, and I will be forever grateful!”

Realizing that the sneaky intruder was actually Wu Jiu, Du Shiyi could not help but be impressed by the man’s nerve. But he quickly understood that someone must have helped or turned a blind eye—otherwise, sneaking into the county magistrate’s inner residence would have consequences Wu Jiu could never bear. Though annoyed, Du Shiyi finally tightened his grip on the brass balls and opened the door with his left hand. In the next instant, a figure darted inside, dropped to his knees, and prostrated himself without hesitation.

“Master Du, I have nowhere else to turn. Please, I beg you, show me a way out!”

Seeing him kowtow three times before he could even close the door, Du Shiyi frowned and then quietly barred it. He stared at Wu Jiu for a long moment before speaking coolly, “Don’t kneel at the door. Come in and speak.”

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The guest rooms of the residence were all composed of two chambers—an outer room for daily living and an inner one for sleeping—modestly furnished with only a bed, a couch, a table, and a stand. Wu Jiu scrambled to his feet and entered the inner room, seeing Du Shiyi seated cross-legged on the couch. He hurried forward and knelt again, but before he could voice his pleas, Du Shiyi spoke first.

“Tell me, how much did you actually lose?”

Faced with this direct question, Wu Jiu’s face went pale. He knew this young master always acted unexpectedly, but with remarkable efficacy. Gritting his teeth, he confessed in detail, “In the ninth month, I sold everything. Meat prices were still high then, and each of us made a net profit of ten thousand cash. The others stopped while ahead, but I saw the profits were so easy, and I still had plenty of dried locusts left, so I borrowed another fifty thousand cash from others and bought five hundred piglets to raise on rented land… But now, with the year’s end approaching, it’s all stuck in my hands. If I can’t find a solution, I’ll have no choice but to sell my children—or even myself—as slaves to pay the debts.”

As this grown man broke down, sobbing and clutching the floor, Du Shiyi, though exasperated by his greed, still frowned and asked, “What’s the interest rate?”

“Well…” Wu Jiu hesitated, surprised that Du Shiyi saw through his loan sharking, and after a long pause, stammered, “Monthly interest… twenty percent, and it’s already been four months.”

Twenty percent a month? So in four or five months, the debt doubles? Such usury, and he dared to go for it!

Noticing Du Shiyi’s face darken, Wu Jiu hurried to explain, “It’s borrowed from the public fund. This year, the public fund was one and a half million, issued by the magistrate to the local Xu family. I borrowed directly from the Xu family, not rolling over the interest. If I’d borrowed from others, the monthly rate could be thirty or forty percent.”

While Du Shiyi realized Wu Jiu had borrowed at high interest, he was unclear about the so-called “public fund.” He raised his brows, “What do you mean by public fund?”

“It’s… the government provides capital to the local gentry, who lend it out and collect monthly interest for public and private expenses. For example, all the daily expenses of the county officials here in Dengfeng come from that. The rule here is, if forty thousand cash is lent out, then forty thousand a year is collected as interest, so the monthly interest is around ten percent…” Wu Jiu, anxious, swallowed and added, “That’s how it works here in Dengfeng.”

The very thought of such official usury made Du Shiyi frown deeply. But he knew such entrenched practices were beyond his power to change. He lowered his eyes and asked coolly, “You can’t even repay the principal now, let alone the interest, can you?”

“Master Du, your insight is like lightning.” Wu Jiu instinctively flattered, but seeing Du Shiyi’s cold expression, he shrank back, pitifully continuing, “Last month, I couldn’t even pay the interest. I had to swallow my pride and beg the Xu family, only then barely scraped by. But this month, for some reason, the butchers stopped slaughtering—and buying—meat, and prices have fallen lower and lower. I have nowhere left to turn… I beg you, Master Du, please be merciful and save my family!”

As Wu Jiu began to kowtow again, Du Shiyi rebuked him in a low voice, “Enough! If you’d only failed to sell your goods, I might still have a way. But you need to repay money immediately—that’s not so simple! You just said you’d sell your children and yourself. Surely, you didn’t pledge your children as collateral when you borrowed the public fund?”

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Wu Jiu glanced at Du Shiyi and, seeing his expression turn icy, shook his head frantically. “Of course not. I pledged one hundred mu of our family’s inalienable land, all the piglets I had then, and myself… But I still have an old mother and brothers at home. If the land is lost, they won’t stand for it. My mother has always favored my two younger brothers, and if things go to court, I’ll be blamed. That’s why, out of desperation, my children were to be sold into servitude to clear the debt…”

“Enough!”

Du Shiyi finally could not help but interrupt, seeing Wu Jiu clamp his mouth shut, but his hands still clawed desperately at the brick floor, his face full of pleading. Du Shiyi narrowed his eyes.

None of the clerks and servants at the county office were easy to deal with. Last time, following Cui Weizhi’s instructions, he had persuaded them with both words and benefits, eventually managing to stir up enough support to succeed. Helping Wu Jiu now was not out of the question—after all, he and Du Shisan-niang were outsiders here, with shallow roots and little wealth. If they were ever to return home, they could not rely solely on scholarship; they needed people and money. But first, he had to eliminate any future threat of betrayal from Wu Jiu.

After a long silence, he finally spoke. “Since you managed to sneak in tonight, someone must have helped you. Have you thought about what happens next? Even if you get what you want now, will you be able to stay in the county office in the future?”

Over the past few days, Wu Jiu had sought help everywhere, but finding no way out, he finally turned to Du Shiyi, who had originally advised him on this line of business. Hearing this, he realized that Cui Yuan, usually so unapproachable, had uncharacteristically helped him tonight. Wu Jiu’s face turned ashen. He looked up at Du Shiyi, then slumped to the floor in despair. “Then what am I to do? Without the backing of the county office, the Xu family will tear me apart…”

“I can help you with this.” Speaking each word deliberately, Du Shiyi waited until Wu Jiu’s face lit up with wild hope before continuing coolly, “But it won’t come without a price. Didn’t you say you’d sell your children, even yourself, into servitude? Transfer the loan to me, and I’ll take care of it. But you must pledge yourself to me, along with the pigs you’re raising.”

Wu Jiu stared hard at Du Shiyi, confirming he was not joking. He hesitated, but thinking of how his family was already being watched—unless he abandoned his wife and children, there was no way out—he had no choice. Moreover, with both principal and interest, he owed a hundred thousand cash; even selling his family whole would not cover the debt, and the five hundred pigs were stuck, unsold. He had some sense of Du Shiyi’s character—he was not a cruel master. After agonizing indecision, Wu Jiu clenched his fists and finally kowtowed heavily.

“As you wish, Master.”