"The people of Yunbei basically can't leave, nor can they afford salt. Since they live by the sea, it's normal for them to think of making their own salt," Zhu Changle pondered briefly. "Aunt Feng, please help me run another errand. Go to a few households and bring back some salt."
Aunt Feng nodded and left.
Dingding took a sip of wine, "That chaotic area seems like it was made specifically for Yunbei. They probably know best who comes in and who goes out. Is it now controlled by Gu'an?"
"Almost certainly. They want to keep Yunbei trapped here, serving both as their protective screen and their backyard."
"The county magistrate of Gu'an is really not a good person."
"It may not be entirely the magistrate's doing," Zhu Changle shook her head. "Magistrates get transferred and promoted. They can't stay in one place forever. The real immovable forces are the local gentry and powerful families. But that's not important. I'm more curious about what the past magistrates of Yunbei were like. If there was a method for salt production, they should have tried to present it, whether for fame or profit. Even if they had no connections in Yunbei, they should have had opportunities after leaving. But the reality is that Yunbei is still neglected like a servant girl, which suggests outsiders might not know about this at all."
"Couldn't it be that the salt is barely usable by the common people and not presentable at all?"
"That's possible, which is why I sent Aunt Feng to get some salt," Zhu Changle kicked him lightly. "You just can't help picking fights, can you?"
"I'd feel like I'm missing out if I didn't," Dingding grinned, raising his wine cup and taking a big gulp.
He's really asking for it, Zhu Changle gritted her teeth. If it weren't so late at night and she didn't want to cause a commotion, she'd make him hop around in pain.
Dingding chuckled and reached for the wine jug.
Qiuli was quicker, taking the jug to refill his and Changle's cups, then placing it by his own feet.
"..."
Zhu Changle immediately perked up, lifting her chin proudly, "See that? I have backup! Bully me and you won't even get to drink."
Dingding scoffed, "I didn't even want to drink anymore!"
"You'd better keep that attitude."
As they waited for Aunt Feng, the two bantered back and forth, just as they had for many years past. Only now, the observer had changed from Lan Ping to Qiuli.
Aunt Feng returned quickly, opening five paper packages on the table. Everyone except Qiuli tried them. Dingding spat repeatedly but couldn't get rid of the bitter taste, hurriedly drinking a cup of tea to wash it away.
"Bitter and astringent!" Zhu Changle drank a cup of wine, which seemed to clear the taste faster. She then tried samples from the other four packages.
Qiuli hadn't expected her to do this. As the daughter of the Zhu family and the disciple of Zhong Ningmei, she didn't need to force herself like this.
He picked up the wine jug to pour her a cup, watching her drink it before refilling.
Pointing at the last package, Zhu Changle looked up at Aunt Feng, "This one tastes a bit different. The bitterness and astringency are less pronounced."
Aunt Feng pushed the last two packages aside, "It's from the County Deputy Magistrate's house."
The entire back courtyard was divided in two, with the larger part belonging to the magistrate's domain, and the smaller half housing the deputy magistrate's family.
"Was the other one hidden?"
"Yes, the one in plain sight was the same as the other households."
"If that's the case, doesn't it mean the salt could be even better?" Zhu Changle examined the last package closely. It was whiter, with smaller grains. What if it were even whiter? What if the grains were even smaller?
"This deputy magistrate is very mysterious to me now," Zhu Changle suddenly lowered her voice, as if about to tell a ghost story. "Think about it. Yunbei has been without a magistrate for a year, and during this time, the deputy magistrate has been in charge. There might have been times without a magistrate before too. After years of management, an outsider magistrate might not be able to outmaneuver him. Perhaps he only shows the magistrate what he wants them to see."
That's quite possible, Dingding thought, and it led him to another question, "Is the deputy magistrate a local?"
"Local officials are usually locals, I think." Zhu Changle wasn't entirely sure about this point and turned to ask Qiuli, "Is that right?"
Qiuli nodded.
"Then the biggest local power might really be this person," Zhu Changle muttered, taking a sip of wine to calm herself. "Let's put this aside for now and investigate later. Tell me, what did you find out in your reconnaissance?"
Dingding said, "There's actually an interesting point. Every place has a disparity between rich and poor, even in small villages. Even within a family, some have a few more taels of silver, some have less, some have better houses, some worse. There's always some difference. But in the houses I went to, although the houses varied in size and the furniture in quality, one thing was the same: the kitchens only had bran and beans. I searched everywhere and couldn't find a single grain of rice."
This was also Zhu Changle's discovery. Hearing Dingding say this only confirmed this point, so she wasn't surprised. She asked the other two, "Was it the same for you?"
Aunt Feng nodded.
Qiuli mentioned another point, "One household had half a bowl of oil."
"I guess that counts as wealthy in Yunbei," Zhu Changle looked at the unfinished dishes on the table, feeling uneasy. She picked up her chopsticks to continue eating, not wanting to waste food.
Dingding followed suit, picking up his chopsticks, "It's amazing that a place has eliminated the gap between rich and poor, with no visible wealthy families or local gentry. How did they manage that?"
It's more than amazing; this level of unity is almost frightening. If the person behind this has good intentions, it's a blessing for Yunbei. But if they harbor ill intentions, they could drain Yunbei dry for their own benefit.
Qiuli rotated his wine cup, pondering casually. He too was becoming interested in this behind-the-scenes figure.
With so much on her mind and particularly curious about the deputy magistrate, Zhu Changle went to the government office early the next morning.
"Father."
Hearing her voice, Zhu Maonian's head began to ache. He apologized to the two men present, "My daughter is ill-mannered. I will certainly admonish her properly in the future."
"Father, what are you going to admonish me about now?" Zhu Changle bounced in. "I have feet, you know. Even if you don't let me come, I'll come if I want to."
What kind of talk is this? Zhu Maonian was fuming, wondering if she really wanted to give him a bad reputation.
Zhu Changle, of course, wasn't afraid of this paper tiger. She went forward and linked arms with him, feigning innocence, "Father, did I interrupt your important discussion?"
"What do you think?" He shook off her unruly hand and turned to his smiling colleagues, "This is my daughter. She's a bit lively. I apologize for the embarrassment."
Both men quickly said it was no problem.
Zhu Maonian understood his daughter and knew she had a sense of propriety. She wouldn't have come to disturb his work without reason. Unable to guess her purpose, he went along with the current situation and introduced the two men to her, "This is County Deputy Magistrate Luo. You should address him as Uncle."
"Uncle," Zhu Changle called out clearly, openly scrutinizing this deputy magistrate she was so curious about.
Scholars often liked to grow beards, and he had one too. Father had her call him Uncle, so he must be a bit younger than Father, though judging by his appearance, not by much. He had the typical local features: not tall, with dark yellow skin. Even as the deputy magistrate, he hadn't managed to cultivate a fairer complexion.
