Chapter 215: A Shocking Revelation

Zhang Yue returned to Qingzhou Prefecture from Zihedian Village at dusk. At the city gates, it was clear that fewer people were entering the city while more were leaving. The guards there yawned nonstop, looking listless. There were a few pedestrians scattered along the roads, and most shops along the streets had their doors closed. Many households had no lights on, indicating that their inhabitants had already gone to bed. Only the restaurants, inns, and brothels had red lanterns hanging outside, giving off a sense of liveliness.

Upon entering the prefectural office, he encountered several officials carrying thick stacks of documents. Zhang Yue waved his hand to indicate that formalities were unnecessary, then headed straight to see Prefect Ling Hua. Entering through the west gate of the ceremonial hall, passing through the main hall and another corridor, he arrived at the three halls where the prefect handled official affairs. His servant had already reported his arrival, so Ling Hua personally came out to greet him, still wearing his official robes.

“The evening meetings are over already. Brother Zhang, you’ve only just returned! You must have been running around nonstop these past few days, right?” Ling Hua asked with a smile, then quickly led Zhang Yue inside. Once inside the main room, he directed Zhang Yue to the east room, where a heated kang was lit, a stark contrast to the cold outside. He invited Zhang Yue to sit on the kang and said with a laugh, “I’m completely exhausted right now. Look, I haven’t even changed my clothes. If it were someone else, I would have received them in a cold room with cold tea and sent them away immediately.”

Since Ling Hua was a kind-hearted man who would sign any document as long as Zhang Yue nodded, and who would humbly seek advice from his subordinates even for minor matters, showing no trace of an upper-class attitude—especially after they had jointly submitted that memorial earlier—Zhang Yue simply bowed slightly without performing a formal official ceremony.

At that moment, he said with a smile, “Since Lord Ling says the evening meetings just ended, you probably haven’t eaten yet, right? If you don’t consider me a guest, why not have someone bring some food? I’m starving!”

“Alright, alright. I just ordered someone to prepare dinner—just an extra pair of chopsticks,” Ling Hua said, sending a servant to hurry up with the food. He then put on slippers, sat cross-legged on the kang, and asked, “So, have you encountered any troublesome people during your time in the countryside these past few days?”

Taking the white porcelain teacup from a young servant nearby, Zhang Yue took a sip to moisten his throat before sighing, “There aren’t that many difficult people in the world. Today I met a kind old man who let me eat and drink for free at his home. The roasted radishes, Chinese cabbages, pancakes, along with a plate of beef—everything was prepared with great effort. So, it’s not true that only people from poor and harsh places are difficult. Although the people of Shandong are poor, they still have kind hearts and aren’t all tricky. Today I explained this good governance policy to that family, and the old man said he would go to the city the next day to check the official announcements. The same is true for the places I visited a few days ago—the people there are afraid that those in power will say one thing but do another.”

Hearing that Zhang Yue had even eaten at a commoner’s home, Ling Hua was surprised and asked further details. When Zhang Yue repeated what Old Yang had said, he was deeply moved. Initially, he had only respected Zhang Yue because of his background, and later felt grateful for his advice. Now he truly admired him. As a scholar who had risen through the ranks to become a vice magistrate in Qingzhou, he still had some complaints, as Shandong was considered a poor region in the Ming Dynasty. Born into a wealthy family in the south, he still relied on goods and rice imported from there. If it were him staying at a commoner’s home, he would likely frown.

When the food was served—fermented bamboo shoots, crystal duck, three stewed dishes, stir-fried bean sprouts, along with a plate of flower cakes—and rice from the south—Zhang Yue saw that the servant also brought a pot of heated wine. He waved his hand to send them away and then asked, “I’ve been out early and back late these past few days and haven’t had time to ask. Are there any updates from Beijing?”

“I think our memorial has disappeared without a trace this time. I heard there was a huge uproar in the court over the memorials submitted by Lord Meng and Lord Sun, plus one from Prince Shouguang. It seems no one has the time to deal with that old matter.” Though he said this, Ling Hua knew that with Zhang Yue’s background, the memorial would surely reach the emperor. But thinking about the situation in Le’an these past few days, he still felt uneasy. “That County Magistrate Sun simply vanished. The furious Prince Han almost destroyed the Le’an county government office. The military dispatched hundreds of troops to guard Prince Shouguang’s palace; otherwise, even Prince Shouguang might not be safe, and Prince Han couldn’t leave Le’an at will. As you know, Lord Meng was summoned to Beijing urgently five days ago. In short, the situation is chaos!”

This chaotic situation applied only to the officialdom and princely estates; it had little impact on the common people, which was exactly what Zhang Yue had hoped for. He was powerless to do anything about the frequent natural disasters in Shandong, but he could at least try to address some of the man-made disasters. If the emperor could use this to reduce the Han King’s guards, the powerless prince would be unable to cause any trouble. If the emperor could impose some charge on Prince Shouguang, Zhu Zhanqi, for his disloyalty and unfilial behavior or simply imprison him behind high walls, that would be even better.

In any case, Meng Xian delivered the more than ten thousand jin of salt he had discovered straight to the Imperial Salt Transport Office. With a little trick of his own, the salt ended up in the Fang family’s hands. Although the future of salt management would still depend on that proposal for a while, it was still better than nothing. After all, this time Du Zhen had only requested the court to issue an order for land reclamation, but some matters still required the full support of a wealthy family like the Fangs. He didn’t believe that the people would rebel if they had enough to eat and wear.

After dinner, after chatting with Ling Hua, it was already time for the moon to rise above the treetops. Zhang Yue got up to take his leave. His own office was on the left side of the government building, so he had to pass through the front door after coming out of the governor’s back yard. By then, the duty officers in the county office were already on night patrol. They all bowed to him upon seeing him, and he nodded in return. When he reached the ceremonial gate outside the main hall, he suddenly saw a doorkeeper rushing over.

That doorkeeper was one of the attendants Zhang Yue had brought with him earlier, someone who was usually very polite. But now, after rushing over in a sprint, he didn’t even bother to bow and hurriedly said, “Sir, Miss Meng the Fourth from the Meng family is here. She says she has an urgent matter to discuss with you! I heard her voice—she seems to be crying. I don’t know what happened!”

Meng Min? Zhang Yue didn’t have time to think further and quickly rushed toward the front door of the government building. When he reached the west corner gate, he stepped over the threshold in one go and immediately saw someone pacing back and forth in front of the carriage. Although the person was wearing a hooded cloak and their face was hidden, Zhang Yue recognized them at a glance as Meng Min from the silhouette illuminated by the lantern in front of the government building.

“Fourth sister!”

Hearing this call, the person in the cloak immediately turned around. Once they recognized Zhang Yue, they staggered forward and grabbed his arms without hesitation. It was then that Zhang Yue noticed Meng Min’s waxy pale complexion, her eyes red and swollen, and a deep blood mark on her lips, as if she had bitten them hard. Realizing something serious had happened, he quickly gave the doorkeeper a signal and helped her into the office.

Only a dim little oil lamp was lit in the doorkeeper’s room. When the two of them entered and lifted the cotton curtain, the cold wind blew, causing the flame to flicker wildly and casting the shadows of the two people in the room into constant motion. Meng Min, sitting on the bench, clenched the silk handkerchief in her hand tightly, her chest rising and falling erratically. After a long while, she finally raised her head and blurted out, “Brother Yue, please help me think of a way to save my father and mother!”
Zhang Yue had initially thought that perhaps Lady Wu’s illness had worsened, but upon hearing these words, he was stunned and immediately felt a very badpremonition. Taking a deep breath, he asked in a calm voice, “Don’t worry. Tell me slowly—what exactly happened?”
“In the evening, Uncle Liu sent someone to inform us that as soon as Father arrived in Beijing, he was arrested by the Jinyiwei, and now his fate is unknown. It’s all my fault. I thought that mother had come to discuss something unimportant, so I met her in her room. As soon as she heard the news, she fainted. After the doctor examined her, he said that she was already extremely weak and, having suffered a shock, it’s likely…”
At this point, Meng Min could no longer hide her despair and guilt, and she burst into tears. She remembered clearly that when Father was ordered to return to Beijing, he was full of confidence and said he would bring the family back soon. Who could have imagined such an outcome in such a short time? Though she was a woman, she knew exactly what the Jinyiwei was and how terrifying it was. How many people had been taken there over the past decade, and how many had managed to come out unharmed?
Suddenly, she felt someone slipping something into her hand. Looking up, she saw that it was Zhang Yue handing her a pine-colored handkerchief. Her silk handkerchief had already been soaked with tears in the carriage. At that moment, she tried hard to stop sobbing and used the handkerchief to wipe her red eyes.
“I’ve already instructed a few girls who know about this not to spread the news, and I dare not tell my third and fourth brothers either. I don’t know what to do. Logically, I should ask them to go to Beijing and try to get help from our second uncle, but they’ve never experienced hardship before. If they say or do something impulsive, things might become even worse, especially since mother is still ill…”

Seeing Meng Min’s voice choked with emotion and her hand gripping the handkerchief trembling slightly, unable to speak further, Zhang Yue couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Although the Meng family had many children, Meng Tao and Meng Fan, their two sons, were not particularly sensible, and the other children were still young. Usually, it was only this young girl who kept the large household going, not to mention now. Before this, he had only thought that Meng Xian’s actions might not be appropriate, but who could have imagined that the emperor would suddenly lock Meng Xian up in the Jinyiwei prison!

“Minnin, your top priority now is not to return to Beijing but to stay calm!”

He took a deep breath, placed a hand on Meng Min’s shoulder, and helped her sit down. “Uncle Meng’s situation came suddenly, but he used to be the commander of the guards in Changshan. Prince Zhao will surely take action, and Marquis Baoding will definitely not stand by idly. Since you said your aunt suddenly fell ill, we definitely need someone here.”

“You say Tao and Fan haven’t experienced major events, so it’s worrying to send them back. Well, when my eldest uncle was imprisoned, my eldest brother and fourth brother were also inexperienced, yet our grandmother still trusted us enough to send us to Nanjing because of the Duke of Ying. It’s the same with your family’s situation now. You just need to explain the stakes to them and have them follow Marquis Baoding’s instructions, while you stay here to take care of your mother.”

Faced with Zhang Yue’s unchallengeable tone, Meng Min felt a surge of hope and didn’t even notice his way of addressing her. She nodded vigorously. Looking down at the pine-colored handkerchief in her hand, about to hand it back, she suddenly had another idea. Gritting her teeth, she looked up and asked, “Brother Yue, my sixth sister returned to Beijing last year to visit our aunt. If my third and fourth brothers go back now, with the younger siblings still small, I can’t take care of them alone. If possible, could Sister Du come and help me?”