Xu Jingyi was one of Chun'an County's local magnates. His family owned three thousand mu of fertile land and had several hundred tenant farmers. They also ran businesses such as grain shops, herbal medicine stores, and silk shops, with substantial trade throughout Hangzhou Prefecture.
When Zhang Song, the clerk he had once known well, arrived at their residence in the county town with a large force of men, Xu Jingyi was utterly bewildered. He wanted to say a few words and ask what was going on, but the man who had once fawned over him like a dog gave him no face at all this time. Zhang Song came up and gave him a brutal beating, then arrested his entire family and sent them to the county yamen.
Beneath the shade of a tree, Wang Yan sat in a chair, looking at the entire Xu family kneeling before him as he listened to the report from the Chief Clerk of the Revenue Office.
"Third Master, we have seized three residences in the county, eight shops, and the grain warehouse belonging to their grain business. There were two thousand shi of grain, along with fifty thousand taels of silver..."
"Only two thousand shi?"
Hearing Wang Yan's displeasure, the Chief Clerk of the Revenue Office answered cautiously, "Third Master, grain has to be transported as well. Chun'an is a small county—how could it consume that much grain? Even if we seized every grain shop in the county, we still wouldn't get twenty thousand shi..."
Wang Yan's gaze fell on Zhang Song. "Fourth Master, you led the raid. Didn't you find any account books?"
"Yes, yes, we did! Where are the account books? The account books!" Zhang Song shouted, having his men bring out several large chests of ledgers. "Third Master, all the