In the back room of Baohe Hall, Zhao Fu unfolded the land deed Su Wan had given him and examined it carefully by candlelight.
Su Wan sat opposite him, her hands on her knees, waiting.
The pharmacy was already closed, and the staff had all fled. She had the guards tidy up the front of the pharmacy, close the door, and lower the barriers. She and Zhao Fu went to the back room, where she showed Zhao Fu the land deed she was keeping.
“Miss, this land deed is correct,” Zhao Fu placed the land deed on the table. “When the master bought this land, I was the one who handled it. I accidentally pressed a fingerprint on the land deed back then, and it’s still here.”
He pointed to a fingerprint on the land deed and showed it to Su Wan: "This is the fingerprint I left back then."
He turned and took a piece of inkpad from the table, pressed his index finger on it to stain it, and then pressed it again on a clean piece of paper. He handed the land deed and the blank paper to Su Wan.
“Miss, if you compare it carefully, you will see that what I said is true.”
Su Wan believed Zhao Fu's words, but she was somewhat puzzled.
“Then how come Su Heng has another land deed?” she picked up the land deed. “Can a piece of land have two land deeds?”
“Of course not,” Zhao Fu laughed. “If the master wants to sell this land to Su Heng, he must take this land deed with Su Heng to the county government office to complete the process. The county magistrate will have his clerk issue a new land deed and a new end deed. After the official seal is affixed, both the new land deed and the end deed kept by the county government office will be torn up in public before the process is considered complete.”
Su Wan said, "I think I understand."
Zhao Fu confirmed that the land deed was the one he had handled back then, and that the land deed should be genuine.
Su Heng has a land deed for this land, and it even has a copy at the county government office. This proves that his land deed is genuine. However, it's clear that when he processed the land deed, it didn't go through either his father's or hers.
The county government actually transferred the land to Su Heng without the original owner's consent?
Su Wan thought about it and suddenly realized that this time she might not only be dealing with the Yang family.
"Uncle Zhao, if I take this land deed to the county government now, what will the magistrate say?" She didn't know much about how the ancient government operated, so she could ask Zhao Fu.
Zhao Fu said, "Miss, when you go to the county government, you naturally want to reclaim the ownership of this land. The magistrate will definitely summon Mr. and Mrs. Su Heng and have them bring the land deed to court for verification. The result will be that their land deed is genuine, and yours is fake."
Su Wan thought about it and realized that was indeed the case.
Su Heng's land deed had a concluding section at the county government office. The land deed she held should also have a concluding section at the county government office.
“Uncle Zhao, since this land deed of mine has an official seal, it must also have a copy of the deed in the county government office.”
“That should be the case,” Zhao Fu said with some difficulty. “But Miss, please think about it carefully. The Su couple obtained a new land deed without your presence or the master’s. This is clearly a violation of the laws of the Great Jin Dynasty. They are very likely in collusion with the county magistrate. Even if you go, they will not give you the end of the deed.”
He initially thought Su Heng and his wife were good people, but after discovering their true colors, he had been trying to reclaim ownership of the pharmacy for Su's father. However, he was outnumbered and powerless, and unwilling to give up, he had been waiting there. Finally, he waited for his young mistress to arrive, not wanting Su Wan to fall into a trap.
Su Wan felt a chill in her heart. If what Zhao Fu said was true, and the county government was the only institution that could prove the land deed, then as long as it destroyed the end of the deed, it would be useless for her to take the land deed to demand its return.
Originally, she planned to make a scene, provoke Yang into punishing her, and then use the land deed to reclaim the pharmacy. Now, things seem to have become more complicated.
According to Zhao Fu, the magistrate of Suiyang County was clearly colluding with Su Heng. Even if she took the land deed to the county government, the magistrate would not only deny its validity but might also charge her with something like forging official seals.
That would be tragic.
Originally, she came to reclaim the pharmacy and punish Yang. In the end, she ended up in prison instead, much to Yang's delight.
Fortunately, Zhao Fu reminded us of this.
She said to Zhao Fu, "Uncle Zhao, thank you so much. If you hadn't reminded me, I might have taken the land deed to the county government office."
Zhao Fu smiled and said, "Miss, I've watched you grow up since you were a child. With the passing of Madam and Master one after another, I couldn't help you in any way. I can only offer a little help here, Miss, as a token of my appreciation."
“Uncle Zhao, please don’t say that,” Su Wan said. “Your lameness is from when I was a child and didn’t know any better.”
“Miss, you’ve apologized to me several times already,” Zhao Fu said with a smile. “I don’t care anymore. Besides, you were only five years old then, what did you know?”
Su Wan still felt a little guilty and said, "Uncle Zhao, let me treat your foot after I get back to the pharmacy."
Zhao Fu was only in his forties, but his hair was already completely white. She remembered that when she left Youzhou three years ago, Zhao Fu wasn't like this. It was clear he had suffered a lot under Yang's care over the past three years. Regardless, she wanted to repay Zhao Fu.
"Miss, you said you'd treat my feet?" Zhao Fu looked at her with some disbelief. "You'd treat my feet?"
"yes."
When did you learn medicine?
Su Wan coughed and said, "I've been treated to a miracle doctor."
Zhao Fu smiled wryly and said, "I appreciate your kindness, Miss. I've seen several doctors over the years, and they all said that with so much time gone by, even surgery might not be able to cure it."
"It's okay, they don't have that skill, but I do."
"Miss, which divine physician do you consult?" Zhao Fu was impressed by Su Wan's confidence and couldn't help but want to know more.
Su Wan directly cited one of the pioneers of medicine: "Bian Que".
She had originally intended to mention Hua Tuo, but then she remembered that Hua Tuo had been killed by Cao Cao and met a bad end. She regretted it as soon as she said it, because she recalled that Bian Que had also met a tragic end, murdered by a Qin state physician named Li Xi.
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