Wang Jin was panicking. The yamen runner dragging him along was panicking too, gripping him tightly as he hauled him toward the county yamen.
The Investigating Censor was in Hangzhou. If people bringing complaints saw him and fled, how could he continue to hold his head high in Hangzhou?
The eight villagers followed into the county yamen in frightened uncertainty.
The County Magistrate had already straightened his official robes and taken his seat beneath the plaque that read "A Bright Mirror Hung High." At the sight of the eight villagers entering, he too felt deeply uneasy. He hoped it was a new case, yet feared it was a new case.
Ever since Xue Shao had arrived in Hangzhou, he had immersed himself in reviewing old case files and records.
One unsolved case had never yielded its murderer, but after Xue Shao carefully reviewed the files, he had taken men with him and solved it.
It had not been a major matter. The County Magistrate admitted that his abilities could not compare to an imperial censor sent from the capital. If an unsolved case was cracked, it was Xue Shao's credit; if it remained unsolved, he, the County Magistrate, would at most be scolded once more. In any case, he had already been scolded before it was solved.
But two other cases had uncovered miscarriages of justice.
One had been decided during his term, and one during his predecessor's.
When they were uncovered, half his heart had gone cold.
Then Xue Shao had not only investigated the cases, but also examined the records kept by the Revenue Office. What remained of his heart had gone cold as well.
He had heard that before coming to Hangzhou, Xue Shao had already dealt with quite a few officials and gentry colluding together, reclaiming