Chapter Twenty-Eight: Scholars Are Not Given to Romance

Happy Mid-Autumn Festival~ Thanks to Songqunn for the generous reward~

Upon hearing this, Luo Da and Zhang Xiaonan exchanged a glance but said nothing. Though the matter had been stirred up by the chief of the Linqing Tax Division under the Ministry of Revenue, those directly blocking their way were from the Timber Extraction Bureau.

Clearly, Hou Fangyu had his own thoughts here.

Indeed, after learning that Qin Xia was merely eighteen years old, not yet twenty, and had already turned the Ministry of Revenue upside down, securing the enormously lucrative position as chief of the Linqing Tax Division, Hou Fangyu—young, hot-blooded, and rendered sensitive by his father’s imprisonment—could not help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Perhaps sensing the unusual gazes around him, Hou Fangyu looked at the burly, youthful man ahead and said, “Who are those gathered outside the Timber Extraction Bureau? Clearly, they’re preventing us from entering. Are they patrolmen from the Bureau?”

Luo Da and Zhang Xiaonan exchanged glances and shook their heads. “We’ve never seen these patrolmen before.”

Meanwhile, a sweating, anxious man at the front scoffed, “Patrolmen? With only a few dozen or a hundred men inside the Timber Extraction Bureau, how could they possibly accommodate these two hundred strong fellows? These are actually guards from the Linqing Wanquan Trading Company’s fleet. Their leader is Liu Yongquan, the captain of these guards. They’re here for the same reason—to pay their timber extraction dues. However… the Bureau is blocking them from doing so. And with their two hundred men standing here, if they can’t pay, how can we?”

“It seems… quite ordinary,” Hou Fangyu frowned, sensing something amiss.

Indeed, Luo Da and Zhang Xiaonan immediately leaned in and whispered, “Liu Yongquan’s Wanquan Trading Company is one of the most powerful in Linqing. If even Wanquan can’t get through, then no one in Linqing can. And the chief of the Timber Extraction Bureau, Liu Pei… is rumored to be a relative of Liu Zeqing, the General of Shandong…”

“So that’s it…” Hou Fangyu immediately understood.

This wasn’t truly an attempt to stop Wanquan Trading Company from paying the timber extraction dues. These two hundred men blocking the Bureau were less about forcing their way in and more about guarding the Bureau, preventing others from approaching. It was merely a change of appearance; should something go wrong, the Bureau could quickly distance itself and claim innocence.

After all, no mere trading company, however arrogant, would dare bring men with weapons to blockade a government office.

Such an arrangement, in fact, made the situation both offensive and defensive as needed.

Though he knew there was an element of theater, Hou Fangyu looked at the scar on Liu Yongquan’s face and felt a trace of fear.

The Hou family, titled Lords of Guiding, did have some reputation, especially among the Eastern Forest Faction. But that reputation couldn’t instantly be converted into physical prowess.

Of course, Hou Fangyu would never admit that, when facing these rough warriors, a sudden fear had risen in his heart.

“All thanks to Qin Xia’s meddling!” The thought of his northward journey being blocked by Qin Xia, and the possibility of further complications for his father’s release, filled Hou Fangyu with resentment. “Once I reach the capital, I shall expose the crimes of this villain!”

Hearing this, the ship captain who had introduced Liu Yongquan protested, “Hey, young man, why slander a good person? Lord Qin Xia proposed merging the timber extraction and ship materials at the Bureau—this is a great boon for everyone on the canal. With one less checkpoint, leaving the city is at least three days faster, not to mention the silver saved!”

Another merchant spoke up, displeased, “Young man, you shouldn’t speak so carelessly. We people of Shandong have truly benefited from Lord Qin Xia this time. He ordered that those selling grain need only prove their cargo is grain to be exempt from tax. Because of this, the price of rice in the city has dropped, and countless impoverished families, who couldn’t put food on the table, can now survive.”

“I heard that before the Bureau closed, many merchants witnessed Lord Qin Xia’s governance over the Linqing Tax Division. The previously insatiable clerks became disciplined, and since the advance requisition was abolished, those unjust fees are finally gone.”

“Yes, abolishing advance requisition was truly a great reform. Previously, taking a boat of twelve hundred taels’ worth of Songjiang cloth to sell in the capital, passing through Linqing, the requisition claimed only a quarter of thirty taels’ tax—ten taels silver. But in reality, greasing the palms of the officials cost thirty taels before even paying the tax. Supposedly, the quartered tax should be ten taels, but everyone ended up paying forty taels in full. Now, with advance requisition abolished, it’s only ten taels as it should be. Who would dare complain about Lord Qin Xia’s good governance? I must reason with him properly!”

“And Lord Qin Xia’s ability to manage his subordinates is remarkable. Entering the Tax Division, those clerks are like different people. Even if we pay a bit more tax, so what? Setting aside the bribes, we actually end up paying less.”

“This young man is truly ignorant!” At this, the sweating man turned to Hou Fangyu and rebuked him.

Hou Fangyu’s face flushed, his teeth grinding in fury as he glared at the clerks.

Never in his life had Hou Fangyu suffered such humiliation!

Luo Da and Zhang Xiaonan exchanged a glance and suddenly spoke up, “You scoundrels, how dare you speak to Young Lord Hou like this! No matter how capable Qin Xia is, causing a scandal at the Timber Extraction Bureau will still incur the court’s wrath!”

“Indeed, Young Lord Hou is the son of a loyal family. He’s here to solve the issue at the Bureau. Such disrespect—do you wish to drive him away in disappointment?” Zhang Xiaonan retorted.

With their words, the merchants and ship captains fell silent.

Qin Xia might be admirable, but at the moment, they couldn’t afford to care. Unable to enter Linqing’s water gate, their ships couldn’t continue north.

If they were only selling goods in Linqing, it wouldn’t matter—they could simply unload. But most needed to send their cargo north.

With Zhu Cilang forcing the Bureau to block the city gates, they suffered alongside, losing profits. At this thought, they lost the urge to argue.

Some even muttered complaints about Zhu Cilang, “That Qin Xia is indeed too reckless!”

Seeing this, Hou Fangyu straightened his back, as if victorious. “Hmph! I won’t argue with such ignorant folk!”

Suddenly, a commotion arose ahead.

A man in a blue crossed-collar narrow-sleeved robe, accompanied by a dozen burly men, parted the crowd and approached the Bureau’s entrance.

“That’s Yan Wei from the Ministry of Revenue’s Tax Division!” someone with sharp eyes recognized him.