Ger, So Proud

Chapter 95

“Whose house is this?”

Night had fallen, and the bright moon hung in the sky. He Ze led Lin Yu under the moonlight, arriving at the back gate of a courtyard in Shi Village.

“Shi Qiangxi’s. Every year, his family pays triple the actual taxes. It’s been this way since Shi Xingwen’s father was in charge, for over ten years now.”

“Knock, knock, knock…” He Ze rapped on Shi Qiangxi’s courtyard gate.

“Who is it? Coming, coming… stop knocking!” The door was opened by an old man with white hair and a slightly hunched back. Seeing the two strangers, he warily half-closed the door, showing only half of his face. “Who are you?”

“Sir, my partner and I are passing through and would like to ask for a drink of water. May we come in?” He Ze’s face was full of sincerity. He also displayed Lin Yu’s right hand, showing a bright red mole that indicated Lin Yu’s identity as a ger.

The old man’s vigilance eased slightly. “Alright, come in.”

Once inside the courtyard, while the old man fetched water, He Ze and Lin Yu exchanged a glance, preparing to get to the main point. “Sir, actually, we were directed here by Village Chief Shi Dashan. He mentioned that your family pays double the usual taxes to Shi Xingwen every year. Is that true?”

Shi Qiangxi’s hand trembled, and the bowl he was holding fell to the ground with a clang. “There’s no such thing… don’t listen to nonsense!”

“Are you saying that Village Chief Shi is lying?”

Shi Qiangxi hesitated and then stammered, “You can’t trust what he says!”

“But this complaint letter specifically mentions you,” He Ze held up the two pages of the letter. “This letter was written and signed by Village Chief Shi Dashan himself. He wouldn’t risk going to prison by making a false accusation, would he?”

Shi Dashan, who planned to profit from the situation, wouldn’t leave such a big piece of evidence behind! But He Ze showed no signs of deceit on his face.

“This, this…” Shi Qiangxi became flustered. “What is he trying to do?”

“Sir, I advise you to tell us the truth. We are here under the orders of Magistrate Zhou, ultimately for the sake of the local people.”

“No, I can’t say anything!” Shi Qiangxi held his head in his hands, squatting dejectedly. “The magistrate is far away and can’t manage our local matters! Here, it’s all up to Shi Xingwen; everything has to go through him. How can we not listen to him?”

“Sir, even if Lizheng’s power is significant, it can’t surpass that of the magistrate, can it? Magistrate Zhou is known for his honesty and love for the people. Since Shi Xingwen’s actions have reached his ears, how could he ignore them? Think about it. If Magistrate Zhou wasn’t involved, how would Village Chief Shi dare to write this letter for us?” Lin Yu took the letter from He Ze and waved it.

“Did Shi Dashan really write it?” Shi Qiangxi finally lifted his head, although he couldn’t read.

“Of course,” He Ze replied without changing his expression.

“If you can really get the magistrate to handle our village’s matters… villagers have tried to report him before, but they couldn’t even get through the government office doors…”

“The magistrate didn’t know before; he was deceived by those beneath him. Otherwise, why would he send us here tonight?”

Hearing this, Shi Qiangxi grew more excited. “Really? Then, if I speak, I won’t be punished, right? I gave him money, but I never asked him for anything, not even once!”

He emphasized this point.

“Not even once?” He Ze seemed skeptical.

“Not once! Sir, I swear! I know it’s illegal; I couldn’t do it.” Shi Qiangxi hastily explained. “My two sons have small businesses in town and make a decent living each year. My wife and I stay in the village, tending to the house and land. Every year, we scrape together the extra tax silver those two demand. He’s an official, managing all the village’s affairs. Even where the irrigation channels go is up to him. We couldn’t fight him, and we didn’t want to lose our peaceful life. So, we endured it.”

By this point, Shi Qiangxi was already in tears. “But now that you’re here, it’s good. This year, my eldest son-in-law gave us a grandson. Next year, we can finally get some new clothes for the little ones.”

Listening to this, Lin Yu felt uncomfortable and tugged at He Ze’s sleeve.

“Uncle Shi, tell us exactly how Shi Xingwen’s father made you pay extra taxes back then, and how much you’ve paid over the years. I’ll write it down, and you can sign it with your thumbprint later. The day of reckoning for the wicked is near, and life will only get better.”

“Yes! Yes!” Shi Qiangxi’s face turned flush, whether from the joy of finally lifting years of oppression or from hope for the future. He reminisced, “In the first year, our eldest was fifteen, and the youngest was only eleven…”

After leaving Shi Qiangxi’s yard, He Ze exhaled deeply and turned to his companion. “Alright, we’ve got the first one! There’s still a long way to go.”

“I understand,” Lin Yu looked up at him, his expression quite proud.

“Hmm?”

“You’re saying we have a heavy burden and a long road ahead. Right?”

“Smart!” He Ze praised him generously.

Lin Yu rolled his eyes at him. “You keep saying you’ll teach me to read, but how many days have you actually taught?”

“…I’ve been busy, haven’t I?”

Fortunately, it was true that he had been busy, so Lin Yu didn’t press him further. During this period, he had gone up the mountain less often, and since Uncle Xu lived next door, he had learned quite a few characters and could somewhat understand simple poems and texts.

He wouldn’t tell him that he already understood the poem he gave him last time.

“Suddenly looking back, that person is in the dim light.”

Thinking of this, a smile curved at Lin Yu’s lips. He Ze took his hand. “Tonight we’ll find one more person, then we can almost head home.”

The next day, they repeated their approach.

The list had the names of more than a dozen people, some from Shi Family Village and some from other villages, including two from He Family Village.

Some were coerced by Shi Xingwen and his father’s tyranny, some for their own benefit, some like Shi Qiangxi who felt guilty, and a few kind words were enough to make them confess. Others were easily scared, becoming as docile as quails after a fright, while a few were tough but decided to comply after seeing Lin Yu smash a solid wood table with a punch and He Ze take out shining silver ingots.

Of course, the last type was in the minority, so He Ze wasn’t worried about them turning against him.

By the evening of the third day, the two left another house in Shi Family Village. This time it went exceptionally smoothly; the homeowner almost knelt and bowed when he learned their purpose.

He, too, had given money to Shi Xingwen. Three years ago, during the recruitment, no one in Shi Family Village wanted to go, so they pooled silver together. Later, Shi Xingwen supervised the drawing of lots. Those with some money all gave it to Shi Xingwen, and he was no exception. However, he gave less, so his son was one of the three chosen. Since then, three years had passed without a word.

In just three years, the hair of this pair of elderly parents had turned white with grief.

“There’s just one more,” He Ze sighed. “Shi Deyou, technically, Shi Xingwen should call him Second Uncle. Two years ago, when Shi Family Village divided the land, he alone got seven acres of prime land along the stream, making him the richest in Shi Family Village.”

“Who is this?”

“Hmm?”

“The few people we visited earlier in Shi Family Village mentioned this person. He’s a tough nut to crack, a hard case who won’t budge no matter what.” He Ze suddenly paused, seeming hesitant. After a moment, he made up his mind and said, “Promise me, no matter what you see later, don’t be afraid.”

It wasn’t the right time or place, and perhaps it was just a moment of impulse, but he decided to reveal the secret he had been hiding for so long.

Lin Yu felt a bit confused, but also seemed to sense something was coming.

Shi Deyou was a drunkard, and recently he’d been drinking late into the night. Instead of knocking on his door, they climbed over his courtyard wall and waited.

By the time they heard a noise at the gate, the moon was already high in the sky, and most of the villagers were asleep.

“Shh!” He Ze signaled Lin Yu to stay quiet.

The gate unlocked, opened, and then closed with a latch.

It began.

In Shi Deyou’s courtyard, there was an old peach tree stump near the wall. It had turned black from years of exposure to the elements, with a sieve on top drying some yellow daylilies.

Lin Yu watched in amazement as the man next to him waved his hand, and the stump started sprouting a bud at a visible speed. It grew quickly into a branch, which stretched along the ground and wrapped around Shi Deyou’s leg.

The next second, Shi Deyou fell to the ground with a thud.

“Who? Who’s the bastard?” he cursed, sitting up and looking around but seeing nothing.

The branch had already retracted.

Lin Yu looked at He Ze in disbelief, but He Ze didn’t look at him. He just gripped Lin Yu’s hand tighter, making it hurt.

When Shi Deyou finally stood up, the branch stretched out again.

This time, it lashed across his back.

“Ow! Who—” Shi Deyou turned around quickly and nearly popped his eyes out of his head. The drunkenness vanished instantly. “Ghost, ghost! There’s a ghost!”

He stumbled towards the door, but just as he reached it, the branch pulled him back.

Terrified, Shi Deyou started crying and screaming. Soon, a smell of urine filled the air as his pants were soaked. He Ze wrinkled his nose in disgust and covered Lin Yu’s.

Another branch extended from the stump, picked up a cloth from the drying rack, and stuffed it into Shi Deyou’s mouth.

Now the courtyard was filled only with muffled struggles.

He Ze didn’t plan to show himself. Shi Deyou had attended school as a child and could read a few characters.

Lin Yu watched an eerie interrogation unfold. The branch wrote on the ground, and Shi Deyou responded. Several times, Shi Deyou tried to resist but was beaten into submission by the branches.

After the interrogation, He Ze threw down a prepared confession. A branch pricked Shi Deyou’s finger, and he shakily pressed his thumbprint on it.

With the last target’s testimony secured, He Ze and Lin Yu walked along the path in Shi Family Village, surrounded by silence.

Shi Xingwen’s fate seemed sealed. Although it was a cause for celebration, the two remained unusually quiet.

When they reached the ox cart on the main road, He Ze stopped, and Lin Yu halted a meter behind him.

“Were you scared just now?” He Ze heard himself ask. “Do you think it’s terrifying? I know it might be hard for you to accept this kind of ability, but it really has nothing to do with ghosts or gods. I’m not a monster or an evil being, so don’t be afraid of me. In my world, this ability is just useful for survival. It helped me find you in the mountains last time, and…”

He kept talking, becoming more and more incoherent.

(T/N: The cat’s out of the bag…(⌒0⌒)／~~)