Great Tang Idyll

Book 2: Chapter 61

Boss Mi felt that he would definitely be the winner today. He wanted to look down at Song Jing'gong with condescending eyes, but he found that he was a little shorter than Song Jing'gong, so he could only give up this plan and he replied with a fake smile on his face,

"What is Mister Song saying? We were the ones that arrived late and made Mister Song wait anxiously. This is the money we brought. Mister Song can let someone count it. This time I have finally come to understand that Mister Song and that Zhang manor are truly kind people. It's hard to believe that you would be willing to conduct business at a loss."

While Boss Mi was talking, someone from behind had already carried a box out from the carriage. It was a mystery as to how they did it, but once the box was open, there were a lot of copper coins inside, and a small amount of silver. In addition to silver, there was also silk. Everyone here now understood why there was only one person that got off of the carriage in the back; it was because the carriage was loaded with all of these items.

It wasn't just the carriage behind, but also in the carriage in front of Boss Mi's carriage. Money was also carried out from there. This time, they were buying 9,000 picul of old grains, and the total cost was over 600 taels of silver.

Song Jing'gong did not act overly courteous. He got people to count on the spot, and the voice of counting was heard from time to time. This situation made Boss Mi's expression a little ugly. Why didn't they find a place to rest first and then count the money? Why did they start counting the money just like that? If they realized that the number was wrong after he and his men left, it's not like he wouldn't come back to pay the difference. It was obvious that they didn't trust him.

Not only did he think so, but the people around him also had the same idea. Mister Song had never done this before when he was buying and selling with others. From the perspective of the people who have done business with Song Jing'gong before, they felt suspicious of those who Song Jing'gong didn't trust.

"Have you heard? The Zhang family is a bit out of their mind this time. How could they do something like this?" A person spoke to the person next to him. The other surrounding people were in the same group as the person.

One of the people in the group immediately continued, "Who would disagree? Aren't they so stupid for exchanging new grain for old grain? Sigh, I can't trust them anymore. What if one day they make us do something as stupid as this? How will we live? We're not as well off as them."

"You don't get it, do you? I heard people say that the Zhang manor's grain cannot be used as seeds at all, and it does not have such a high yield. The purpose of buying grain outside is to prevent others from guessing that their grains were shipped in from other places. Thus, they made up this guise of exchanging grains with others."

Another person from the same group also pitched in. When the three people talked, they pretended to lower the volume of their voices, but it was obvious that they were doing this deliberately and their voices were actually quite loud, allowing the people around them to hear them clearly.

"I don't think so. I think they're pretty good. The people in the county go to them to buy liang'pi, and each of them can earn some money for their families. I heard that the manor doesn't make a lot of profit."

A citizen of the San'shui County heard these words and retorted back a little unhappily. The three laughed secretly when someone finally responded. The person who was the first to talk continued,

"What do you know? Let's put that high yield aside and talk about the auspicious omens first. Those auspicious omens are also a lie. You know the current magistrate? He will be transferred soon, and he will be a recorder at another location. From the position of a magistrate to a recorder. Isn't that a drop in position? It's over for the Zhang manor this time. In the future, I won't buy their things anymore, otherwise I would have bad luck like them."

"Yes, yes. I won't buy from them anymore either. I bought two portions of liang'pi last time, and I had a stomach ache after eating it. I heard from someone who has inside news say that a lot of dirty things are put in it. Why else would they be able to sell it so cheaply? There is also that vegetable oil, which is made from soybeans. It seems so scary just thinking about it. It uses soybeans! Eating too much makes your stomach upset."

Another person chimed in, trying to ruin the foundations of the Zhang manor's business. The remaining third person looked at the dock and shook his head.

He deliberately made his voice tremble a little when he was speaking. The people around him really felt sweaty when they heard him. They didn't know who to believe anymore. There was indeed a snake that was dug out, and some people even saw it with their own eyes. Thinking about it now, it must have been a mountain god.

There were quite a few people who were responsible for spreading such rumours. Not only did the commoners learn about this, but also the merchants. Everyone now grew suspicious.

"What's going on? Why are these kinds of rumours being spread ?" Magistrate Cheng was standing on the boat, and some people that had rowed their boat passed by him told him about this matter.

The servant knew that the magistrate was asking him, but he didn't know either. He called over a small boat to bring him back to shore and he went to find Song Jing'gong, who was waiting for people to finish counting the money. He said to him,

"Mister Song, it seems that there is trouble. There have been a lot of rumors going around that are harmful towards the Zhang manor. Do you know what's going on? Hurry up and think of a solution."

Song Jing'gong looked around, and he found that someone was looking at him with an abnormal gaze. There were also two or three people walking through the crowd, occasionally stopping to say a few words. Seeing this situation, Song Jing'gong laughed. He said to the magistrate's servant,

"It's okay. Who else would spread rumors like this at a time like this? Of course it is Boss Mi. I heard that he has a wisdom bank with the surnamed Liu next to him. I thought he would be able to do something better, but it turned out to be just like this. In that case, then I'll do the same thing as them. Xiao'jiu, come over and execute the orders I gave you at the beginning."

Song Jing'gong spoke and ordered a person next to him. The person left immediately. The servant really didn't understand, and asked, "Mister Song, you thought about this already? What do you plan to do? I have to go back and tell the Magistrate. "

Song Jing'gong replied to Magistrate Cheng's servant. He looked at Boss Mi, who was pacing around at a distance of about ten steps away in front of him. It happened that Boss Mi was also looking at him. Song Jing'gong smiled slightly and pointed around with his hand. Everything was beyond verbal expressions.

Seeing Song Jing'gong's smile, Boss Mi was taken aback. When he pointed around with his finger, Boss Mi felt like the fire in his heart was splashed with cold water, and the flame was immediately extinguished. He looked around worriedly and turned his head to ignore Song Jing'gong. He said to Wisdom-bank Liu,

"Brother Liu, Song Jing'gong seems to know that we were the ones that spread the rumors. He smiled at me just now. What should we do?"

"Boss, you don't need to worry. At this time, anyone who is not a fool would know. He did that on purpose; he wants us to be scared. Unfortunately, it is too late for him to think of a solution. He's probably anxious right now."

Wisdom-bank Liu still had that calm appearance, as if he had already figured it out. Boss Mi felt relieved after hearing his words. He wanted to give Song Jing'gong a smile, but Song Jing'gong was no longer looking at him.

"My lord, I heard from Mister Song that Boss Mi was the one who sent people to spread those rumours." The servant said when he returned to the boat that Magistrate Cheng was on.

Magistrate Cheng was obviously dissatisfied with this answer, "Of course I know those people were sent by Boss Mi. I asked you to ask him if he was able to do anything about it."

"Yes. Mister Song said that there is no need to worry and that everything is under control. He said that when he came, the Zhang manor's mastermind had already thought about it. If Boss Mi did not do this, they wouldn't use this plan against him. Mister Song has ordered someone to handle it already. Things will perhaps be more clear in a while." The servant repeated Song Jing'gong's words almost exactly.

"Hmm, that's good then. I was not thinking straight because I was too worried. With the mastermind's supervision, what is there to fear? The ploys of a mastermind is not something you and I can easily understand."

It was at this time when Xiao Jiu's work began. Quite a few people also walked into the crowd, with their eyes set on the people spreading the rumors. Those people didn't realize what was going on yet, and were still talking.

"Have you heard that the Zhang manor's rice does not have such a high yield at all? It is a lie."

"Who said that? How come I don't know about that? Hey, are you from the San'shui County? How come I have never seen you before? Which manor are you from? What is your surname? Where were you when I went to collect old grains? Do you know what my name is?"

As soon as the person said this, another person replied back immediately. The person who cooperated with him also pitched in, "Yeah, how come I haven't seen you in San'shui County before? And you too? Could it be that you were sent here to cause trouble on purpose? I heard that Boss Mi has a black heart and wants to mix the collected old grain with the new grains and sell it to us when the harvest is bad.

The Zhang manor was afraid that they would do this and cause us to suffer, so they took the initiative to exchange new grains with us. But where would they get the new grains from? All of the good grains from the surrounding areas were taken away by that person with the surname Mi, who deserves to be cut a thousand times1. He asked for twice the normal price when he sold the new grains to the Zhang manor. "

"Really? Now that I hear you say this, I think it's true. Otherwise, how could this person with the surname Mi buy more than nine thousand picul of old grain? Some of the grain has turned moldy already. He can't just throw it away, right? Why not send us the good grains directly?"

Another cooperating person spoke.

"No, that's not the case. Master Mi is a good guy. He just wants to buy seeds at a low price. It's true." The man sent by Boss Mi was anxious and told the truth. The people around him looked like they just had a moment of realization.

"What do you mean by true and false? Look, you were sent by the person with the surname Mi, right. Master'? Why don't you say Madam too! Don't you try to deny it. Everything will be clear once we see the old grains that he's going to collect. Don't you run. Stop there. Arrest him and send him to the authorities."

The people sent by Song Jing'gong didn't expect someone to blatantly spill out the truth like that. It was all good now. They couldn't deny it even if they wanted to. They grabbed the clothes of these two men, and the people around them also helped angrily. They were too evil. The one with the surname Mi was way too evil.

Translator's Notes

1. cut a thousand times

This is shortened form of the Chinese proverb (lit. trans. Thousand cuts, ten thousand scrapes), which means to cut the flesh off the bones of someone. It is a form of torture or execution used on criminals who have committed an extremely serious crime (the formal name of this process is called ling'chi lit. trans. prolonged assault').

However, the phrase could be used towards someone that is evil and should be heavily punished, or should not die so easily.

The shortened form of this proverb has gentler connotations, and is more commonly used compared to the full proverb. For example, a woman might yell this out to her husband when angered.