Chapter 220 Gathering Evidence
Could it be that the locust plague has prevented them from fully recovering?
At this moment, villagers from Qingyun Village passed by and greeted Jiang Mi.
Jiang Mi recognized him as her former neighbor, Uncle Zhou, and greeted him warmly in return: "Hello, Uncle Zhou. I see that your crops aren't doing very well. Is this year's harvest not good?"
Uncle Zhou sighed: "Yes, this year not only was the harvest bad, but we also encountered so many disasters, and we almost had no harvest at all. We really can't live like this. We were so grateful for your help to Qingyun Village before, and when the plague came, you even gave us medicine. If it weren't for you, we don't know what would have happened to us."
Jiang Mi didn't think she had done any favors for Qingyun Village. She had only been doing missions before. Besides, those things were just a small favor for her. Although there were many hateful people in Qingyun Village, there were many more innocent people.
"It's nothing. It's just that the county magistrate loves the people and can't bear to see them suffer. I'm just adding to their good fortune, while he's the one who's helping them in their time of need. You should thank him."
Uncle Zhou was clear-headed. The county magistrate was a good official, which was their good fortune. However, such a good official only received a monthly salary and had no money at all. He was pitifully poor. The reason he was able to generously help the people was not because of the money given by the higher authorities, but because Jiang Mi earned the money herself.
It's strange how people can suddenly become so much better off than others. I don't know why. Maybe they just worked harder.
"You are such a modest child. I have watched you grow up since you were little. I never expected you to become what you are today."
Jiang Mi lowered her head shyly. Uncle Zhou had often helped their family before, and now that he was praising her like this, she felt embarrassed.
"How about this, I'll give you some seeds, and you can plant the same kind as me. Then we can sell them together at the market. Besides, the crops I'm planting now take a short time to mature."
Uncle Zhou certainly knew that Jiang Mi had grown many rare things and made a lot of money from them. Who wouldn't be envious? But these were the things that made him money, so how could he easily take them out?
"This isn't right. Besides, these are the things that make your family money. If I do this, aren't I taking away your livelihood? And my fields are already like this, so I'm not counting on anything else."
Jiang Mi didn't care about any of that; she could make money from any other source.
"It's alright, I don't care. You've helped our family a lot before, and now that we're doing well, it's only right that we help you. Just do as I say, and I guarantee you'll make a lot of money. If you feel you don't have enough land, you can come work for us. The pay is the same as other workers. You know, the people who work for us get paid quite a bit."
Uncle Zhou was very grateful. He had always had a good impression of the Jiang family. After thinking for a moment, he whispered to Jiang Mi, "Was that village chief dismissed from his post? He was very dissatisfied and said he wanted to appeal to higher authorities, but he didn't know anyone. He was just a small village chief. When he went elsewhere, no one would even see him. He was also timid. He wanted to make a scene at the county magistrate's office, but he didn't dare. He went to plead for leniency several times, but the county magistrate wouldn't even see him, let alone let him plead for him."
Jiang Mi smiled coldly. This kind of person is not worth pitying at all. The fact that he has offended the current county magistrate means that the magistrate has tolerated this person for a long time and given him many chances. However, he has repeatedly failed to correct his ways, so he has no one to blame but himself.
"He has done so many evil deeds and should have been punished long ago. He has only been dismissed from his post, which has not had much impact. Over the years, he has embezzled and accepted bribes, bribed officials, and oppressed the people. He has done so many evil deeds. It is too lenient for him!"
Uncle Zhou sighed: "Who says it isn't true? Working under him all these years has been so frustrating. Every year we have to contribute some grain to him. After paying our own taxes, we don't even have enough to eat, yet he still wants a share. He rents out his own land at high prices, but he still tries to forcibly take other people's land. The villagers of Qingyun Village are all furious with him and wish he were dead!"
Jiang Mi thought about it and realized she couldn't let Village Chief Yang get away with it so easily. Suddenly, she had an idea.
He said to Uncle Zhou, "You're right, but do you have any evidence that he has been oppressing you all these years? If you can collect evidence, I can help you hand it over to the county magistrate. At that time, we will need you to be our witnesses. Even if this village chief Yang doesn't die, he will be skinned alive."
Having lived under the oppression of Village Chief Yang for so many years, he had long been accustomed to the fear of seeing Village Chief Yang. At most, he would only dare to curse and swear in his heart, but he dared not say a word. Collecting evidence was not difficult, but he dared not go to court to confront Village Chief Yang.
Jiang Mi naturally guessed what Uncle Zhou was thinking. Just by looking at Uncle Zhou's expression, she knew that this matter would require more thought.
“Uncle Zhou, don’t worry. That Village Chief Yang… no, I should say Yang Wanfu, he’s no longer the village chief. What are you afraid of him for? He’s just an ordinary villager, just like you. By the way, doesn’t your Qingyun Village have a village chief yet? I think it would be better to let the villagers elect one themselves, and then let the county magistrate make the decision. Uncle Zhou, you are highly respected and a good person, so I think you have a great chance.”
Upon hearing this, Uncle Zhou quickly waved his hand, saying, "How could I possibly be capable? I only read a few books when I was young; I'm completely incapable of being the village chief. I'm afraid I'll disappoint everyone. I can help you collect the evidence you mentioned, but let's forget about a courtroom confrontation."
Jiang Mi smiled and said, "Alright, that's your freedom. Of course you can decide. I'll ask Uncle Zhou to find more people so we can all find evidence of Yang Wanfu's crimes and present it to the magistrate. Whoever wants to be a witness can do so; we won't force anyone."
After hearing this, Uncle Zhou felt less stressed and became bolder: "Okay, I'll go back and find someone to help me collect evidence. I'll give the evidence to you then. Once Yang Wanfu is in jail, we won't be afraid anymore. He's a very wicked person. We're just afraid that he'll be desperate and retaliate against us."
Jiang Mi sneered: "The fact that he has this mentality means he's not afraid yet. We need to make him truly afraid before he dares to do it again."
Uncle Zhou trusted Jiang Mi completely. After receiving some seeds from Jiang Mi, he went back to take care of the matter.
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