Chapter 18: Investigate First
Unlike the other people in the yamen, County Magistrate Huang didn’t eat breakfast early. He ate his lunch exceptionally early. Just after he finished his early lunch, the clerk from the Punishment Department brought Li Wencai in and handed him an accusation letter.
County Magistrate Huang read the accusation letter carefully, then looked at Li Wencai carefully. He shook the accusation letter and asked with a smile, “Your name is Li Wencai? You are Li Xuedong’s Third Uncle? Are you beyond five generations of kinship?”
“His family married in, so they can’t be considered part of our Li family!” Li Wencai gritted his teeth.
“Oh.” County Magistrate Huang let out an understanding “oh” and then asked, “So, Li Xuedong’s name isn’t in your Li family genealogy?”
“It is, though,” Li Wencai grudgingly squeezed out a few words.
“Oh, it’s in your Li family genealogy. Are Li Xuedong and you beyond five generations of kinship?” County Magistrate Huang asked again in a gentle tone.
“Counting from his great-grandmother’s side, he’s still within five generations, three generations out,” Li Wencai emphasized the words “great-grandmother” with force, to further highlight the status of Li Xuedong’s family marrying in.
“Your petition states that your nephew, Li Xuedong, the Xiucai scholar, had someone else take the examination for him. Do you know who this ‘someone else’ is?” County Magistrate Huang picked up the accusation letter, slowly shook it twice, and asked.
“His sister! That little girl. Their whole family, only that little girl is smart,” Li Wencai answered crisply and quickly.
County Magistrate Huang let out a long, slow “oh,” and then asked, “Little girl, little girl. Is that a name? Is she called Little Girl, or Little Nuan?”
“Little Nuan. Her mother didn’t want more children but got pregnant. When she was born, it was a girl, so they didn’t give her a name. Little Nuan, Little Nuan, it just became her name,” Li Wencai wanted to spit, but didn’t dare.
“Oh, I see. How old is this Little Nuan? At what age did she start school? In which schoolroom? Under which teacher?”
“She’s fifteen this year. They say she’s two years younger than Xuedong, but it’s only one year. Xuedong was born at the end of the year, and she was born at the beginning. She’s a full fifteen. She never attended school. She’s very smart; she can recite after hearing it once and remember after seeing it once. It can’t be said she never attended school. She’s been living at the Gao Family School with her brother since last autumn, attending classes with him,” Li Wencai corrected himself towards the end.
No wonder when that sickly person started school again, that little girl also entered the schoolroom with her brother. So, the one who was actually going to school wasn’t that sickly person, but that little girl!
County Magistrate Huang let out another long “oh,” placed the accusation letter on the table, and looked at Li Wencai, smiling, “This matter is extremely serious and requires thorough investigation. We must clarify everything. You may go back for now.”
“May I ask how many days the County Magistrate will need to clarify and investigate? This is all obvious; there’s no need to investigate.”
Li Wencai was not afraid of this very amiable County Magistrate. He was very familiar with the county grain clerk and the yamen runners. This County Magistrate had a very good temper, he had heard the grain clerk say this several times.
“At least three days, at most five. Don’t worry, you can go back now,” County Magistrate Huang said with a smile, waving his hand.
“Then I will go back and wait. County Magistrate, you must investigate thoroughly and handle this justly!” Li Wencai cupped his hands.
“Don’t worry,” County Magistrate Huang said with a gentle smile, waving his hand again.
Watching Li Wencai leave the yamen, Mr. Yao asked curiously, “Is he crazy? He seems perfectly fine.”
The clan had finally produced a Xiucai scholar, and he was actually filing an accusation letter with the county, claiming it was a proxy exam. This matter could only be due to madness.
“There are plenty of cases where people of the same clan and lineage have hatred as deep as the sea, wanting each other dead,” County Magistrate Huang said calmly, patted the accusation letter, and instructed Mr. Yao, “Find someone to send a message, please ask Mr. Gao to come over.”
Mr. Yao agreed and left the yamen to find someone to deliver the message.
Mr. Gao had just seen off two clan elders and a group of young men from the Li Clan who had come to offer thanks to their teacher. He was standing in the courtyard, stroking his beard, his heart surging with emotion, wanting to compose a poem. A messenger from the county town, shouting across the fence, announced: “The County Magistrate requests your presence, please come now.”
This shout extinguished Mr. Gao’s surging poetic inspiration. Mr. Gao quickly changed his clothes, borrowed a donkey, and rode towards the county town.
Mr. Yao led Mr. Gao into the signing room and poured him a cup of strong tea.
Mr. Gao took the tea and first smiled apologetically at County Magistrate Huang, explaining, “Two clan elders from the Li Clan came to my home to express their gratitude to the teacher. I had a few drinks with them.”
“It seems there are still people in the Li Clan who understand reason and courtesy,” County Magistrate Huang replied with a smile and pushed Li Wencai’s accusation letter to Mr. Gao, “Take a look at this.”
Mr. Gao quickly picked up the accusation letter and read it at a glance. He stared at County Magistrate Huang and, after a long pause, managed to speak, “He’s getting more shameless with age!”
“You know him?” County Magistrate Huang seemed unsurprised.
“Yes. When I first started my studies, I was in the same schoolroom as this Li Wencai. Back then, he was already shameless and ill-behaved, often bullying others by relying on his numbers.”
“So you’ve known each other since childhood. Regarding the matter he’s accusing, does Li Xuedong really have such a smart sister?” County Magistrate Huang continued to ask.
“He does have a sister. Whether she’s smart or not, I haven’t really paid attention,” Mr. Gao frowned, thinking carefully.
Xuedong’s sister always kept her head down, either cowering in some corner or staying close behind Mother Huang, showing half her face and peeking out timidly. He didn’t think he had ever seen her whole face.
Hearing Mr. Gao say this, County Magistrate Huang seemed to let out a sigh of relief, and asked with a smile, “Li Wencai and Li Xiucai are still within five generations of kinship. Filing this accusation letter is no small matter. Do their two families have a feud?”
“Alas, it can’t be called a feud. I’ll tell the County Magistrate what I know.”
“Xuedong started school when he was eight. This child’s talent wasn’t very good, but he was diligent.”
“In the late autumn three years ago, Xuedong’s father fell ill and passed away. From then on, Xuedong stopped attending school. I sent someone to check on him once, and they said he was continuously ill until last October, when Xuedong’s Eldest Sister brought him and his sister to the schoolroom.”
“Xuedong’s family is in Xiao Li Village. It’s only about half an hour to our Gaojiaji. In the past, Xuedong would come early and leave late, not staying at the schoolroom.”
“When his Eldest Sister brought him to the schoolroom last year, she asked him to stay at the schoolroom and repeatedly told me that if anything happened, his sister should deliver a message, and not to let Xuedong leave the schoolroom alone.”
County Magistrate Huang and Mr. Yao exchanged a glance.
“Xuedong’s sister always followed Xuedong, wherever he went. According to Xuedong’s Eldest Sister, Xuedong had been ill for a year or two and was frail, so he had his sister follow him to take care of him. Later, alas!”
Mr. Gao let out a long sigh.
“Xuedong’s sister is called Little Nuan. That Little Nuan is thin and timid, and very well-behaved. My old maidservant, Mother Huang, doted on her. She was timid, so she only talked to Mother Huang. These things, Mother Huang told my wife, and my wife told me, I overheard,”
“After Xuedong’s father was buried, Xuedong fell ill. He was quite sick and only gradually recovered after more than a year. When Xuedong could finally leave his home and walk around the village for the first time, Li Wencai’s two grandsons beat Xuedong up. It was fortunate that Li’s five siblings were there, and they were holding sticks. They said that Little Nuan was terrified and cried so loudly that people in the neighboring villages could hear her.”
“About half a month later, one evening, Li Wencai’s two grandsons mistook Little Nuan for Xuedong and hit Little Nuan on the head with a stick. Little Nuan was unconscious for two to three days before waking up. Little Nuan here.”
Mr. Gao pointed to the right side of his head.
“There’s such a long scar left. My little daughter likes Little Nuan. When she was combing Little Nuan’s hair, she saw it. My wife also saw it and cried when she told me about it.
“Mother Huang said that Little Nuan told her that she followed her brother so that if someone attacked with a dark stick, they wouldn’t be able to distinguish her from her brother, and she could take a blow for her brother.
“Alas, how pitiful,” Mr. Gao wiped away a tear. “The day Xuedong returned home after passing the County Examination, not far past Gaojiaji, he was surrounded by Li Wencai’s grandsons. Fortunately, all five Li siblings were there, and they were holding sticks. They said Little Nuan was so scared that she cried and screamed so loudly that the neighboring villages could hear her clearly.”
“How much land does Li Xiucai’s family own?” County Magistrate Huang asked pointedly.
“Thirty-seven mu of excellent paddy fields, and five rooms of blue brick and tile houses,” Mr. Gao replied.
“That’s not a small amount,” County Magistrate Huang said, tapping the accusation letter.
“Li Wencai is the Village Head of Xiao Li Village. Li Wencai’s maternal uncle is a clan elder. The Clan Leader is Li Wencai’s cousin within three generations. Li Wencai has five brothers, and seventeen or eighteen sons and nephews, and even more grandchildren. He has so many people that I hear no one in their clan dares to provoke him.
“Alas, Heaven has compassion for all life. Xuedong passing the Xiucai examination has earned these siblings a way to live,” Mr. Gao wiped away another tear.
Xuedong’s life is so bitter.
“Where did the silver for Li Xiucai to take this Courtyard Examination come from? Do you know?” County Magistrate Huang asked again.
“It was from Old Master Kuan of the prosperous ‘Wang’ branch of their clan, Li Shi Kuan…” Mr. Gao carefully recounted how Li Xuedong, after placing third in the County Examination, sought help from the clan, but they ignored him, and how Old Master Kuan secretly found him.
County Magistrate Huang nodded slowly and said to Mr. Gao with a smile, “I have a general understanding. This case will definitely need to be investigated. At that time, I will have to trouble Mr. Gao to come again.”
“You are too kind, County Magistrate. I am at your service anytime.”
“I hope the County Magistrate can bring justice to Xuedong and his sister. This scoundrel Li Wencai is truly too overbearing!” Mr. Gao glanced at the accusation letter, almost wanting to spit.
“Don’t worry, Mr. Gao. Thank you for your trouble,” County Magistrate Huang said with a smile.
Early in the morning, I first checked various groups for messages to grab vegetables and all sorts of unnecessary items, creating a lively atmosphere.
I’ve been busy until now and saw that an extra chapter was needed.
The extra chapter is here!
