Chapter 18 Encounter Again

Early the next morning, Dai Yun knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Qiu Shuzhi said after putting on her official robes.

Dai Yun entered the room, and her first glance went to the ambergris incense that had burned less than a third. Seeing that the incense had been extinguished, she asked, “Does the official not like burning incense?”

“I only love agarwood incense. I’m not used to the scent of ambergris,” Qiu Shuzhi said as she adjusted her collar.

Dai Yun’s eyes narrowed slightly as she smiled, “I see. It was my oversight.”

The servants behind her entered in a line, carrying a sumptuous breakfast. Qiu Shuzhi only ladled a bowl of plain congee and asked while eating it with some pickles, “Where is the silver mine located?”

“The silver mine is in a very remote rural area. Those mine thieves love to secretly open small silver furnaces in obscure corners. Often, by the time government officials arrive, they’ve already vanished without a trace.”

“Take me to see it in a while.”

Dai Yun frowned, “The official wants to personally go to the silver mine?”

The porcelain white spoon paused at her lips, and she smiled, “What? Am I not allowed to go to the silver mine?”

“Of course you can go. You certainly can go. This official will arrange for preparations right away.” Dai Yun gave a look to the person beside her, who immediately ran out.

After finishing breakfast, Dai Yun had already arranged for a carriage to be prepared. Qiu Shuzhi and Dai Yun rode in the same carriage, with An Dai and Ji Mei following on horseback. Behind them was a group of Dai Yun’s yamen runners. The grand procession set off towards the direction of the silver mine.

As they got closer to the mine, Qiu Shuzhi lifted the curtain and looked around.

It was early morning, the time when villagers should be working diligently in the fields. However, Qiu Shuzhi noticed that the fields here were overgrown with weeds, looking as if no one had tended to them. There wasn’t a single person to be seen on the field ridges.

Qiu Shuzhi grew suspicious.

It wasn’t until their procession gradually entered the village that they saw a few villagers, all gathered on the roads of the settlement.

A few old people sat on doorsteps smoking long-stemmed pipes, puffing out clouds of smoke. The remaining young people were gathered in groups of three or five, gambling with dice. Beside them, there were even a few flamboyantly dressed male courtesans singing to liven up the atmosphere. Despite being an unremarkable small village, it was incredibly extravagant.

When they saw the large official procession, they weren’t surprised. They simply tossed a few more silver coins onto the table and continued gambling, as if they were already accustomed to such sights.

Qiu Shuzhi saw the silver coins on their gambling table and immediately ordered the carriage to stop.

Dai Yun hurriedly followed her out.

She walked directly to the gambling table and picked up one of the silver coins they were using as stakes, asking, “You ladies seem to be quite wealthy. May I ask where you made your fortune?”

Seeing the official robes on Qiu Shuzhi and hearing her question, those young people not only didn’t seem alarmed, but their eyes even showed a hint of contempt.

“There are ways to make money. We’re not stealing or robbing. Why are you questioning us? Are you treating us like criminals?”

“Don’t be rude, this is the Zhizhong of Shuntianfu!” Dai Yun scolded from behind.

Upon seeing Dai Yun, the young people immediately greeted her with smiling faces: “Magistrate Dai, why didn’t you let us know in advance that you were coming to the village? We could have had the villagers welcome you!”

These people’s attitude towards Dai Yun was completely different from their attitude towards Qiu Shuzhi, excessively warm.

“I’m here to accompany Official Qiu to inspect the silver mine. Zhou Hu, have you seen any mine thieves around?” Dai Yun asked.

“You can rest assured, official. The silver mine is doing well!” The leader, named Zhou Hu, patted her chest and said with conviction.

She was extremely stout and sturdy, with skin tanned dark, thick arms and broad shoulders, a short thick neck, and a fierce air about her brow and eyes. She was even panting heavily as she spoke.

Dai Yun patted her shoulder approvingly, “It’s all thanks to you.”

She turned to Qiu Shuzhi and said, “Official, you may not know, but the silver mine is in a remote location with treacherous and rugged terrain. It’s impossible to arrange for yamen runners to guard it, so this official has assigned these young people who grew up around the silver mine to patrol it at all times.”

Qiu Shuzhi was silent for a moment, then resumed her usual gentle and graceful smile, “I see. Then please, Miss Zhou, lead us to see the silver mine.”

Zhou Hu didn’t answer her, but looked towards Dai Yun instead.

Only after Dai Yun nodded did she say, “Follow me then, but you’ll have to walk too.”

The silver mine was located behind a great mountain. The mountain range was majestic, with a river flowing through below. The vast water and misty clouds, behind a screen of fresh green willows, led to an exceptionally difficult mountain path. There was only a narrow trail wide enough for one person to pass, with steep mountains on one side and nothing but the rushing river below on the other. One misstep would send you tumbling into the water, to be swept away by the current.

Zhou Hu and Dai Yun led the way, with Qiu Shuzhi following behind them, and Ji Mei silently guarding her rear.

After an hour of difficult progress, they finally reached the silver mine. It was a mountaintop that had already been hollowed out with countless holes. The original greenery had been stripped away, leaving only a few lonely tree stumps.

Several mine shafts in the center of the mountain were particularly eye-catching, with workers constantly emerging from the tunnels carrying baskets of silver ore. Once mined, all of this silver ore was to be handed over to the government.

These, it seemed, must be the official mines.

“Where are the tunnels dug by those thieves?” she asked.

She had come to investigate just how many tunnels those mine thieves had dug, to estimate how much profit they had gained from it.

Zhou Hu couldn’t help but laugh out loud, pointing at all the mine shafts on the mountain, “Look, those are all tunnels dug by the thieves!”

“All of them?” Qiu Shuzhi frowned deeply, looking at the large and small tunnels scattered across the entire mountain. These were all silver mines discovered on Da Qi’s territory. Now, when the national treasury was empty, the young Emperor was racking her brains to raise funds, yet these people were so bold.

The entire mountain, the entire mine, had been nearly half hollowed out. How much profit had those people gained from this?

The scent of ambergris seemed to reach her nostrils, carried across the mountains and waters.

“The silver mine was originally discovered by chance by local villagers, then reported to the court. After layers of approval, it entered the process of setting up official silver mines. But the court’s speed couldn’t keep up with how fast the news spread among the people, so by the time the court was ready to set up mine furnaces, they found that mine thieves had already privately opened furnaces. They simply decided to dig deeper at the old sites, which could also save some expenses,” Dai Yun said.

She took a deep breath, suppressing the slight anger in her heart: “Where are the recently illegally mined silver furnaces?”

Zhou Hu pointed to the mine shaft at the very edge: “Right there!”

A medium-sized mine shaft, right next to the official silver furnace.

“Privately digging mine shafts next to the official silver furnace, where did those thieves get the courage? Weren’t you hired to guard the silver mine?” Before Qiu Shuzhi could speak, Ji Mei behind her suddenly asked.

Zhou Hu said nonchalantly: “My dear official, as you’ve seen, the terrain of this mine is steep, with a big river right next to it. Those thieves dig under the cover of night, and as soon as they mine some silver, they take it away via the waterway, without anyone knowing. If even your imperial court can’t handle it, how could I, a mere village laborer, manage these things?”

“Besides, those thieves are ruthless. If I dared to stop them, I wouldn’t keep my life!” Zhou Hu gave Ji Mei a look.

“Miss Zhou speaks reasonably. Ji Mei, don’t be too harsh on her,” Qiu Shuzhi said gently.

“The official from the capital is indeed understanding,” Zhou Hu’s attitude towards her improved a bit upon hearing Qiu Shuzhi speak up for her.

“Miss Zhou, you’ve been here for so long. Have you seen what the mine thieves look like?”

“Oh my, those people only appear in the pitch-black night. I haven’t seen them either!” Zhou Hu slapped her forehead, “Next time I encounter those people, I’ll definitely try my best to see their faces clearly.”

“Official, you’ve seen the silver mine. Let’s go down the mountain early. This place is dangerous everywhere. If you get hurt or bumped, I, as a mere county magistrate, cannot bear the responsibility,” Dai Yun said.

“Alright,” Qiu Shuzhi knew she wouldn’t get any more information out of Dai Yun and Zhou Hu, so she might as well go down the mountain early.

After going down the mountain, Dai Yun whispered a few words to Zhou Hu. Qiu Shuzhi, who was already preparing to ride the carriage back to the county, was stopped by her.

“Official, you’ve come all the way from the capital. We must invite you for a drink.”

Zhou Hu wanted to grab her sleeve to stop her from leaving, but Ji Mei was quick to interpose a hand between the two, preventing her from succeeding.

“There’s no need for drinks,” Qiu Shuzhi refused.

“Official, you’ve come to our village and want to leave after staying less than half a day. Do you look down on us rural women?” Zhou Hu said rudely, her naturally fierce features making her appear even more intimidating.

“Alright then,” Qiu Shuzhi agreed.

Zhou Hu laughed loudly: “Girls, quickly tell your gentlemen to prepare the best wine and dishes to entertain our Official Qiu.”

Qiu Shuzhi had thought that in a remote village with material scarcity, food and clothing wouldn’t be too good, but she had underestimated these wealthy households who casually used silver coins as gambling stakes.

Dishes were brought out one after another: braised pork knuckle, glutinous rice stuffed duck, braised sea cucumber, steamed chicken wings, stir-fried crab meat, pheasant, rabbit jerky, pickled tripe with pine nut, and so on. The table was full of dishes, and even the wine was top-grade male red wine.

This feast was so luxurious that even she, a fifth-rank official, felt it was extravagant.

Back when she served the young Emperor in the imperial study, the young Yue Shen already knew the words frugality and thrift, and never indulged in luxury.

If she knew that now a villager’s life was better than hers, how would she feel?

She lowered her head, feeling melancholy.

“Why is the official lowering her head? Are these dishes not satisfactory to you?”

Qiu Shuzhi smiled and shook her head: “I’m just not used to such rich food.”

“That’s easy to fix.” Zhou Hu shouted loudly: “Hurry up and bring the three delicacies osmanthus soup. What are you dawdling for!”

“Coming,” a delicate voice tinged with fear came through. The door curtain was lifted, and a slender man entered carrying the three delicacies osmanthus soup, trembling as he walked. His messy long hair couldn’t hide the panic in his eyes.

Qiu Shuzhi’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. It was him—Rui Zhu.

In just over a month’s time, that charming and lovely youth had been reduced to this state.

He kept his head lowered, not daring to look up, until he got close to her and realized that the guest Zhou Hu had mobilized the whole village to entertain was actually Qiu Shuzhi.

Rui Zhu’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Crash—

The porcelain bowl fell to the ground and shattered, soup spilling everywhere, splashing half of her body.

“Damn it, you useless thing!” Zhou Hu cursed loudly, raising her leg to deliver a vicious kick to his stomach.

Rui Zhu was kicked to the ground, clutching his stomach, his face pale.

“It’s just a bowl of soup, stop beating him,” Qiu Shuzhi spoke up to stop her.

Zhou Hu acted as if she hadn’t heard, stomping on his back a few more times.

Rui Zhu was like a bird with broken wings, only able to lie on the ground passively enduring the beating. This youth not yet eighteen, who just a month ago had been dancing gracefully before her like a delicate oriole, was now being ground into the mud.

“Stop beating him!” Qiu Shuzhi couldn’t bear to watch anymore and grabbed her wrist.

“Official, this is my family matter, don’t interfere. This man of mine just needs a beating. He’ll be fine after a couple of hits,” Zhou Hu said dismissively.

Qiu Shuzhi suppressed her anger with difficulty: “Even if he is your man, you can’t treat him like this.”

Zhou Hu sneered, “I spent a lot of money to buy this man back. He’s just a servant, a plaything. If I can’t beat him, am I supposed to worship him like a Buddha?”

As she spoke, she went outside and brought back a fire tong, ready to ‘discipline’ Rui Zhu properly.

Qiu Shuzhi directly shielded Rui Zhu behind her, her eyes cold: “Only the weak bully those weaker than themselves.”

Ji Mei gripped her spear, standing beside Qiu Shuzhi: “You’re a prominent figure in the village. What’s so impressive about bullying your own man? If you’re capable, go catch those thieves.”

The veins on Zhou Hu’s forehead bulged, her eyes flashing with ferocity.

“Official, you’re overstepping. Zhao Mei is my man, what business is it of yours?”

“I am an official of Da Qi, he is a subject of Da Qi, why can’t I intervene?” Qiu Shuzhi stood with her hands behind her back, her usual gentleness gone, fully displaying a high and mighty attitude.

“This time Zhou Hu was a bit impulsive. The official’s guidance is correct, it was indeed her mistake. But for a family, it’s always some quarreling that gets them through a lifetime. Couples fight at the head of the bed and make up at the foot. Zhao Mei, you won’t hold it against Zhou Hu, right?”

Dai Yun looked with a smile at Rui Zhu, who was cowering behind Qiu Shuzhi.

Rui Zhu was afraid at the sight of her, timidly nodding.

Dai Yun clapped her hands: “See, isn’t this all good now? Everyone’s happy.”

Qiu Shuzhi kept a stern face without speaking. Domestic violence was never a happy ending for all. She wanted to take Rui Zhu away, but he was Zhou Hu’s minor attendant, and she was powerless. As long as Zhou Hu didn’t dismiss him for a day, he would forever be Zhou Hu’s outlet for venting.

However, what worried her more was Rui Zhu’s future days. She had helped him today, but there was no guarantee that after she left, Zhou Hu wouldn’t torment Rui Zhu even more viciously.

“According to Da Qi law, a wife beating her husband should be punished,” she said in a deep voice.

Zhou Hu’s heart surged with shock: “I was just disciplining my man, not beating an outsider. How does that warrant imprisonment and punishment?”

Qiu Shuzhi suddenly felt her heart sink.

The person meant to be a lifelong companion by one’s pillow, even when beaten, could only use the cover of ‘family matter’ to hide the shame, not even as good as a stranger.

Her heart soured: “Men are people too. This time I’ll waive your crime, but if I see you beating him again next time, I’ll have no choice but to handle it officially.”