Zhao Qiang's uncle was named Tang Youcai, a clerk at the Baoji County yamen with an eighth-rank minor official position. People in the yamen called him "sir," while others generally referred to him as "Clerk Tang."
Clerk Tang was a typical mediocre official. Having worked in officialdom for over twenty years, he lived by the motto "seek not to achieve, but to avoid mistakes." He had spent most of his life in a state of half-confusion and half-awareness, never aspiring to climb the ranks, knowing full well the limits of his abilities.
For this very reason, Clerk Tang neither flattered his superiors nor bullied his subordinates. He did his job conscientiously and could barely be considered an "honest official."
The only time in his life he had ever used his position of authority was to arrange a job for his nephew Zhao Qiang within the yamen.
He had thought life would continue peacefully like this, but who could have guessed that Zhao Qiang would silently get into trouble, ending up bound and delivered to the yamen to face charges.
"Sigh!" Clerk Tang was getting a headache. After Liu Ming'an and the others left, he came to the jail cell and had been waiting for Zhao Qiang to regain consciousness.
"Sir, why don't you go attend to your business first? I'll call you when Instructor Zhao wakes up," suggested a nearby jailer, seeing Clerk Tang sighing and waiting for so long.
"It's fine, don't worry about me. I want to question him myself when he wakes up," Clerk Tang replied, waving his hand dismissively.
Jiang Ning had hit hard, and Zhao Qiang didn't come to until nearly noon. His two dislocated arms had been reset by the jailers, and the knife wounds had been simply bandaged. Everything seemed okay, except for his uncle's gloomy face glaring at him.
"Uncle, I..." Zhao Qiang dreaded this situation the most. He stammered a few words before trailing off, unable to continue. He could only hang his head, avoiding Clerk Tang's reproachful gaze.
"You..." Clerk Tang, seeing his nephew's demeanor, swallowed the words that had come to his lips.
In truth, Clerk Tang couldn't say whether he liked or disliked this nephew. But his wife pitied Zhao Qiang for being orphaned and alone, and insisted that he help look after the boy. If he didn't listen to her, she would make a fuss. For the sake of domestic peace, Clerk Tang had to comply, however reluctantly.
"Tell me, what exactly happened?" Clerk Tang finally asked in a deep voice after a while.
Zhao Qiang, however, kept his head down and didn't answer.
Clerk Tang immediately recognized that Zhao Qiang's pride was at work. Feeling that his kindness had been wasted on an ingrate, he angrily said, "For heaven's sake, I'm begging you, Tang Youcai is begging you, alright? Just tell me the truth, did you really go to steal from someone?"
"...Yes."
Zhao Qiang's voice was barely audible, but Clerk Tang heard it. Frowning, he continued to press, "What did you steal?"
"Money."
"How much did you steal?"
"I meant to steal a hundred taels, but I was caught by that woman before I could get it."
Clerk Tang's frown deepened, and he couldn't help raising his voice, "A hundred taels? You don't have a wife or children to support, what do you need so much money for?"
Zhao Qiang fell silent again.
Clerk Tang was about to burst with anger, "You're already sitting in jail, what could you possibly have left to hide, huh?"
After a long internal struggle, Zhao Qiang finally spoke, "I owe gambling debts."
"Gambling? How much do you owe?"
"...A hundred taels."
Zhao Qiang's voice dropped even lower, but Clerk Tang was listening so intently that he still heard it. He wished he hadn't.
"A hundred taels? A hundred taels? A hundred taels?" Clerk Tang's eyes bulged like brass bells as he repeated the question three times in disbelief.
Zhao Qiang nodded weakly, "That's only after my brother pleaded on my behalf to reduce it to just a hundred taels. Actually, I owed... I owed... six thousand six hundred and fifty taels..."
In that instant, Clerk Tang felt the world spinning around him. His vision clouded with dark spots, and for a while, he couldn't see anything clearly. His ears were buzzing as if thousands of bees had swarmed into his brain.
One look at his uncle and Zhao Qiang knew he had upset him terribly. Seeing Clerk Tang clutching his head and looking about to collapse, Zhao Qiang grew anxious. He quickly got up to support his uncle, patting his back to help him breathe while apologizing, "Uncle, I've been a fool. Don't make yourself ill over this. Just forget about me, let them judge me as they see fit. Don't let this trouble affect you..."
In truth, Zhao Qiang's feelings towards Clerk Tang were somewhat complex. He had no blood relation to Clerk Tang; their connection was solely due to his aunt's fondness for him.
When Clerk Tang first started looking after him, Zhao Qiang knew that his uncle actually looked down on him. The reason was simple: at that time, Zhao Qiang spent his days idling about, pilfering here and there, looking every bit the small-time hoodlum. Even he looked down on himself. But Clerk Tang was still willing to take care of him, even going to the trouble of sending him to learn martial arts, and finally arranging for him to work at the yamen, giving him a stable job to earn a living.
Now Zhao Qiang knew he had gotten into big trouble. The County Magistrate was a upright and impartial official. Clerk Tang, as his uncle, should have kept his distance to avoid suspicion. Coming to the jail to question him was already a risk.
"Uncle, just forget about me. I'll accept whatever punishment comes my way – beatings, imprisonment, exile to the frontier as a soldier... You should go back now. Tell Aunt to think of me as dead. I'll remember the kindness you both have shown me. In my next life, I'll repay you as a beast of burden..."
It took Clerk Tang quite a while to accept the fact that Zhao Qiang owed six thousand six hundred and fifty taels of silver. As soon as he regained his senses and heard Zhao Qiang speaking as if making his last wishes, he became even more furious. He couldn't help but raise his hand and give Zhao Qiang a hard knock on the forehead, "What kind of defeatist talk is that? Who's the official here, you or me? The County Magistrate hasn't even spoken yet, and you're already sentencing yourself?"
Zhao Qiang could hear the concern in Clerk Tang's voice. He tugged at the corners of his mouth, feeling quite bitter inside.
Clerk Tang had been so shocked earlier that he had lost his composure, but now that he had calmed down, the more he thought about it, the more peculiar it seemed. He knew Zhao Qiang gambled, but it had always been harmless small bets. How had he suddenly come to owe so much money? And who was this "brother" who could reduce a debt of six thousand six hundred and fifty taels to just one hundred taels? How had Zhao Qiang managed to break into someone's house to steal? And how did he know that someone in a village would have a hundred taels of silver?
"Now, I want you to tell me every single detail about how you came to owe this money, how you went to steal it, and who your accomplices were. Remember, don't leave out any detail!"
Clerk Tang's expression was serious, and his tone was uncharacteristically stern. Zhao Qiang didn't dare anger him further, so he told Clerk Tang everything from start to finish, without holding anything back – how he met Monkey, how he accrued the debt, and how he went to Lotus Flower Village to steal the money.
To his surprise, Clerk Tang became even angrier after hearing the whole story. He was breathing heavily, his lips quivering with rage.
"Despicable! Utterly despicable!" Clerk Tang said through gritted teeth.
Zhao Qiang thought Clerk Tang was referring to him. Not daring to argue, he agreed, "Yes, I'm despicable. I deserve to die. Uncle, please don't be angry. Be careful not to make yourself ill."
"I'm not talking about you!" Clerk Tang looked at his foolish nephew, his eyes flashing with pity. He let out a long sigh, "How can you be so stupid? You've been completely fooled, and yet you're still grateful to the very people who tricked you. Ah, what a shame..."
