Zhu Huaizhang gave her a deep look. "Twenty taels for a single talisman? You're the biggest swindler of all."
The Jin Shanyao... what does that mean? She was only focused on getting paid to do things, how did that become corrupt?!
"Sir... we must be reasonable, right? Twenty taels is the price set by the headmaster of the Green Mountain Academy. Five or ten coins are the prices we sell to the common people."
Anzhi Hall only sells fifty sheets a day. After deducting the cost of paper, ink, labor, time, and Xiao Huzi's cut, I barely make any money. If I don't make any money, it can't be considered a business, right?"
Zhu Huaizhang frowned slightly. "I didn't expect you to have accomplices. Tell me... who is Xiao Huzi?"
Jin Shanyao's jovial face vanished, her gaze sharpening. "Sir, you'd rather see the people go bankrupt than give them any hope, wouldn't you?"
Zhu Huaizhang, "Eloquent and flattering..."
"Oh ho, does she really think she knows nothing?" Jin Shanyao decided to teach her a lesson.
"According to the laws of this dynasty, simply selling talismans does not constitute spreading heresy or inciting unrest. A warning or confiscation of the talismans is permissible, but if the amount involved is substantial, it can be recovered."
After speaking, she looked at Zhu Huaizhang and said, word by word, "My lord... am I right?"
Zhu Huaizhang was unreadable; he simply said calmly, " Master Jin, you seem to know the laws quite well?"
Jin Shanyao clung to the cell bars, chuckling smugly... "A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit, sir... may I leave now?"
Zhu Huaizhang suddenly laughed, a laugh that sent chills down his spine as he Jin Shanyao. " The Jin Shanyao, and hundreds of people gathered outside the Anzhi Hall, blocking the street and causing a great commotion."
If a stampede occurs, it will inevitably lead to tragedy... This official hereby sentences the individual to half a month in prison as a warning to others."
"Oh... wasn't it about reselling talismans?" Jin Shanyao stood there dumbfounded, watching Zhu Huaizhang's retreating figure, her smile gradually fading.
Damn it... She made a fatal mistake, and he managed to slip through her defenses... Frustrated, she kicked the fence, and heard a crack... Zhu Huaizhang, who had walked halfway, turned back at the sound.
He glanced at the broken piece of wood, a smirk playing on his lips, and said to the clerk, "Damage to government facilities... a fine of one tael of silver, and the half-month penalty is extended to a full month."
Having said that, he Jin Shanyao, then turned and left...
Jin Shanyao, burning with rage, clung to the fence and shouted, "Shameless and cunning human! Tonight I'll send Ghost One to find you—no blowing out the lamp, no knocking, just standing by your bedside saying thank you... I'll thank you for a month!"
From the end of the passageway came Zhu Huaizhang's mocking voice, "Insulting an official of the imperial court, punish him with caning..."
"Sir, a large crowd has gathered outside the government office," Constable Wang's voice interrupted hastily. Zhu Huaizhang stopped speaking abruptly and said in a deep voice, "Let's go out and take a look."
Outside the government office.
Meng Anci and Meng Anzhi were holding a piece of white cloth covered with densely written names, and a group of people followed behind them.
When Zhu Huaizhang came out, everyone knelt down in unison.
Meng Anci forward, holding the list of ten thousand names, bowed deeply, and said loudly, "I am Meng Anci, a student of the Green Mountain Academy, and I have come today to defend Jin Shanyao."
Standing behind him were the students of the Green Mountain Academy, and even the dean, Zhao Cheng, had come.
Zhu Huaizhang nodded to Zhao Cheng and then took the register of ten thousand names... The characters were crooked and messy, and some even had fingerprints on them.
Do you know what crime it is to Jin Shanyao?
The Hexi Village were kowtowing, "My lord... I heard that Shopkeeper Jin was arrested for selling talismans. Please, my lord, have mercy..."
The Stone Gate Village chimed in, "Sir... most of our villagers make a living by raising silkworms and weaving cloth. This year's scorching heat... thankfully, Shopkeeper Jin's Cooling Talisman Paper prevented the silkworm cocoons from turning into fluttering moths."
Hu Family Village said, "Sir... you're new here and don't know much about Qingzhou Prefecture. Shopkeeper Jin and Little Doctor Meng offer free medical consultations every month, going from village to village to treat everyone for free."
"If anyone can't afford medicine, they can go to the Anzhi Hall to get chopped medicinal pieces and discarded medicinal roots... Anzhi Hall also distributed medicine for free during the plague."
Shopkeeper Jin even took Little Doctor Meng to live in the Green Mountain Academy to treat patients.
Sir... do you really think someone like that would cheat us out of a few coins?
One person took the lead in pleading for leniency, and others followed suit. The crowd knelt outside the government office under the scorching sun; the ground was so hot it hurt their knees, but not one of them got up.
Zhu Huaizhang looked at the expectant and pleading eyes of the crowd, but did not speak. Instead, he listened quietly to their stories.
An elderly man with dark skin said nervously, " Lord Zhu... my family of twelve depends on our three mu of land for survival. We are always struggling to make ends meet."
Anzhi Hall hired us to plant and harvest medicinal herbs... No employer would hire someone my age who works slowly, only Anzhi Hall was willing to hire us.
We were responsible for drying the herbs and turning them over. If it was going to rain, we would bang a gong, and the strong ones would come and clean up.
Although the wages are lower than the market price, the food is good, with meat at every meal, and the wages are paid daily. In the past two years, my family has added five more acres of land.
The old man, sweating nervously, looked up at Zhu Huaizhang with a determined gaze. "Sir... we bought the five-copper talisman voluntarily. Please, sir, have mercy and release Shopkeeper Jin."
No sooner had the old man finished speaking than a woman interrupted, "Sir... do you know why there are chairs outside the Anzhi Hall?"
That's for us to sit in; it's a place where anyone who's been bullied, whether man or woman, can take refuge.
"Sir... you said that anyone who runs a shop would create trouble for themselves?"
The Lin family, grandfather and grandson, along with a group of children, rushed over and knelt down with a thud as soon as they arrived in front of the government office.
They cried out, "Sir... we are all homeless people adopted by the Anzhi Hall."
Old Madam Lin, who was blind, pointed haphazardly behind her, "Look at these children. Some of them were abandoned by their families, and some were picked up by their employers on the roadside."
We lived on the farm year-round, learning to read, recognize herbs... and acquire survival skills.
Sir... do you think someone who can adopt orphans would be a fraud?
Jin Shanyao sat in the cell listening to the voices outside, feeling a mix of emotions. She clutched at a straw and muttered to herself, "It's only right to get paid for work, but they're complaining about just two pieces of meat."
The free clinic was to teach Meng Anzhi medicine. The medicinal herbs were just going to be thrown away anyway, so let them drink them... It wasn't my idea, why bring this up?
And that chair... fine, just leave it there, what's with this talk of seeking refuge? Old Madam Lin's eyesight isn't good either, yet she brought her child to the government office entrance, it's utterly ridiculous."
She considers the cause and effect of everything she does, so don't try to pin everything on her.
Jin Shanyao's eyes were a little wet, and her heart was warm... She lowered her head and listened to Niu Zhuangzhuang's clear voice, "My illness... was cured by Aunt Yao. I didn't spend a single penny on the medicine I drank."
And my family even got to eat dumplings during Chinese New Year...
Zhu Huaizhang tightened his grip on the register of ten thousand names, his throat tightening as he said with difficulty, "Does eating dumplings have anything to do with the Jin Shanyao?"
"Of course... My mother used to weave hemp ropes, but Aunt Yao said we could make money weaving burlap sacks. But we didn't have a market, so Aunt Yao said Anzhi Hall would buy them, and they would buy as many as we Anzhi Hall, which is why we were able to eat dumplings."
Jin Shanyao was in prison, chuckled when she heard him say that. "Silly... whose sack isn't a sack?" As if she had thought of something, she yelled at the ventilation duct.
" Niu Zhuangzhuang, are you kneeling? Get up... Your leg has only been healed for a few days, and you're already kneeling everywhere."
The sound of the Jin Shanyao traveled through the walls and clearly reached everyone's ears. Niu Zhuangzhuang subconsciously stood up, but after thinking for a moment, he knelt back down.
He kowtowed deeply to Zhu Huaizhang, "My lord... Aunt Yao is such a good person, please release her!"
Zhu Huaizhang's nose tingled, and he quickly turned his face away. After a long while, he took a deep breath and turned around, saying, "Everyone, please stand up and listen to me..."
After speaking, seeing that everyone was still kneeling on the ground, Zhu Huaizhang knew that this was an organized and premeditated act, so he looked at Meng Anci, who was standing in front of everyone.