Qin Qiong had also heard many tales of Wang Yan. Having chanced upon him today and received such hospitality from him, he felt both honored and flattered.
"Lord Wang truly is... different from most people?" Qin Qiong was not entirely sure how to put it.
Wang Yan sat beside him, smiling as he took a sip of wine. "I was once a mere foot soldier in the ranks. To this day, I have never dared forget where I came from. I know full well how hard it is for common people like us to survive. We cannot endure even the slightest disaster. Our fields must be sold to wealthy families, our sons and daughters sold off as servants and maids, while we ourselves suffer every sort of humiliation.
"Yet those great and wealthy households feast on delicacies, own ten thousand mu of fertile land, and can humiliate people like us at will. Report them to the authorities, and the authorities do nothing. Is that fair? It isn't!
"So although I now stand at the pinnacle of officialdom, I have no desire to associate with those powerful families. I mean to target them instead. If they fall into my hands, I will deal with them harshly and make them cough up their land, money, and grain. When the day comes that they have nothing left, we shall see whether they can still swagger about and order people around. Then we'll see who is truly more noble than whom."
Qin Qiong's teeth ached from listening to that speech. He had a kind heart and pitied the poor, but he had never thought as Wang Yan did.
"Lord Wang is truly righteous." He cupped his hands, his honest face filled with sincerity.
"I simply can't stand them." Wang Yan smiled. "Do you know