Chapter Ninety-Nine: Finally, you can enjoy the blessings I've given you...
As the funeral procession crossed the bridge, everyone else kept their distance, except for Du Min and the Meng family, who squeezed forward. Several of them stood in a row, craning their necks, almost brushing past the coffin. Under the strange gazes of the mourners, they saw the burial goods clearly.
A pair of painted tomb guardian beasts, eight pairs of servant figurines, two loads of terracotta figurines of cattle, sheep, horses, pigs, dogs, and chickens, a terracotta house, followed by four loads of ceramics, including bowls, plates, jars, pots, bottles, cup holders, etc., as well as bronze mirrors, bronze hairpins, lacquered wooden boxes, inkstones, writing brushes and ink, and other daily necessities. Finally, there was a cart of grain, two boxes of medicinal herbs, and two boxes of silk clothing.
"This...this is even more complete than the luggage we brought when we moved." Mother Meng thought to herself that she had truly seen something amazing. These burial items would take at least a hundred strings of cash to make up the difference.
Du Min stopped the last servant scattering paper money and asked, "Whose deceased is this? Such a grand display, was he an official in life?"
“My master is a local gentryman named Wang from Xingjiaofang. He was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the first year of the Yonghui era and taught at the county school before his death,” the servant replied.
Du Min showed admiration, "So you are a person of high moral character and prestige."
The servant was satisfied with his answer and said, "What's so grand about this? The imperial court has ordered a ban on lavish burials, and these burial items were reduced again and again before they were finalized. If it had been two years earlier, the burial items would have been an extra mile long."
"This is after the reduction? Even the magistrate of our county probably didn't have this many burial items when he died," Meng's father couldn't help but interject.
"Judging from your accent, you're from the South?" the servant asked.
"Yes, he's from Wuxian County, Suzhou."
The servant's expression immediately changed. He looked at Du Min's silk clothes and then noticed the half-wooden fish-shaped talisman hanging on the man's waist. He immediately confirmed the man's identity.
Du Min smiled and said, "Hurry up and catch up, you're falling behind."
The servant boy ran away as if chased by a ghost.
Meng Qing chuckled to himself, "It seems your fame has already spread throughout Heqing County even before you've arrived."
Du Min shook his sleeves and said, "Let's go, let's cross the bridge."
In October, the Yellow River's water level dropped, and a pontoon bridge was suspended above the water. People and donkey carts walked onto it, and the pontoon bridge swayed violently.
"Mother! What kind of bridge is this? Will it break?" Mencius' mother walked on in fear.
Du Min pointed to the sandbar in the middle of the river. The sandbar was higher than the ground and a city was built on it. He explained, "This pontoon bridge is guarded by the military households in the sandbar city. It can be used by the army in times of war and will not be broken. If the bridge is broken, someone will be beheaded."
Even after hearing these words, Mencius' mother was still flustered. She had only crossed half of the pontoon bridge when her legs went weak, and she had no choice but to climb onto the donkey cart piled with luggage.
The pontoon bridge was a mile long, and it took about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before my feet finally touched the ground.
Meng Qing saw a stone tablet standing at the bridgehead. She went over to look at it and said, "This pontoon bridge is called Heyang Bridge."
Du Min walked over and glanced at it, saying, "Don't delay, let's go to the county government office first, and then come back to familiarize ourselves with the terrain later."
"Is that the county town over there?" Du Li asked, pointing to the city to the north.
“No, it should be like Shazhou City in the middle of the river, a major military town.” Du Min had read the geography of Heqing County. The county had three major military towns: Beicheng, Shazhou City, and Nancheng. The jurisdiction of these three towns was in the hands of the town generals, and he, as the county magistrate, had no authority over them.
"I'll go ask for directions," Gu Wudong stepped forward. "Lord Du, why don't I go to the county office to find the county magistrate first, and you can rest here for a while?"
"No need. Do I need someone to greet me when I'm on my turf?" Du Min waved his hand. "Go ask for directions."
Guided by Gu Wudong, the group arrived outside the Heqing County government office half an hour later, just in time to witness the county magistrate judging a case involving the theft of a tombstone.
"What's going on?" Meng Qing asked, squeezing into the crowd of onlookers outside the yamen.
"Wang Jia's deceased father's tombstone was stolen. He searched for two months at the foot of Beiman Mountain and only found it two days ago. It was Li Yi'an who stole it. Li Yi'an's deceased mother's tombstone was also stolen. When he was looking for the tombstone, he found that the words on Wang's father's tombstone were no longer legible, so he dug it up and carried it to erect a tombstone for his deceased mother," the busybody replied.
Meng Qing: "..."
She had already foreseen Du Min's future career as a detective.
The ins and outs of the case are very clear. The plaintiff, the defendant, and the evidence are all there. In the end, the case was closed with Li Yi'an, the thief of the monument, receiving ten strokes of the cane and being fined one string of cash.
After the onlookers dispersed, Du Min entered the county government office. Just as he was about to leave the courtroom, Magistrate Sun noticed the half-piece of wooden fish tally on Du Min's waist. He quickly stepped down and asked, "Are you Magistrate Du?"
"It is I."
"Your humble servant Sun Xing greets Lord Du."
Du Min helped him up, saying, "No need for formalities."
Magistrate Sun said, "Please wait a moment." He went back to his office and retrieved the other half of the wooden fish tally. He pieced the two pieces together perfectly, verified the identity, and then summoned the registrar and the county constable to pay their respects.
"This is Registrar Xu, named Xu Chuan. This is County Lieutenant Lin, named Lin Mingzheng," introduced Magistrate Sun.
"Greetings, Your Excellency."
"Greetings, Your Excellency."
Du Min nodded and handed the order to Magistrate Sun.
After checking, Magistrate Sun said, "The official residence has been cleaned. Please come and rest there, sir."
Du Min looked at his family members in the front office, and Magistrate Sun immediately made arrangements: "Sir, please take your family back to the office first, and I will arrange for the yamen runners to carry your luggage in."
Du Min nodded, and then Magistrate Sun led the way, and the group passed through the main hall, the second hall, and the office of clerks in the front yamen. After entering a gate, behind it was the inner residence of the magistrate and his family. The front yard was the residence, and the back yard was a garden. There were traces of religious ceremonies performed in various parts of the house.
“Magistrate Shen died from overwork. After his passing, I invited a high-ranking monk to perform a Buddhist ritual. Half a month ago, I also invited monks to cleanse the house. You can move in with peace of mind, sir,” Magistrate Sun explained.
Du Min felt relieved. "County Magistrate Sun is truly a meticulous and considerate person."
Magistrate Sun breathed a sigh of relief. "It's my duty, sir. Are you tired? Could you please arrange a welcome banquet for you and your family tonight?"
Du Min nodded, "Alright, invite all the officials from the county government. I'll get to know one of them, and we can talk about the recent affairs of the government office during the meal so I can familiarize myself with the situation there as soon as possible. As for my family, this is my second brother and sister-in-law, as well as my sister-in-law's family. My second brother and sister-in-law will live with me in the official residence, and the others will move out once they've settled in."
"Lord Sun, my name is Meng Qing, and this is my husband, Du Li. We have been ordered by the Minister of Rites to establish a paper-craft school in Heqing County. The Qingniao Paper-Craft School is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites, and the paper-craft offerings used in the Fengshan ceremony of the Emperor were made by us. The paper-craft school in Heqing County will be the first branch of the Chang'an School." Meng Qing invoked her powerful backer and said, "We are new here and unfamiliar with the area, so we may need to trouble you with the matter of choosing a location."
Magistrate Sun nodded repeatedly. “I have heard that paper offerings that can appear in the Fengshan ceremony will surely replace pottery funerary objects in the future, and will definitely suppress the extravagant burial practices in Heqing County. I am willing to do my best for it.”
The yamen runners carried the luggage in through the back door of the office. Du Min saw this and said, "Lord Sun, you can go back to your work now. We'll rest a bit."
Magistrate Sun should be right; before leaving, he summoned four servants to show themselves.
There were four servants, two men and two women: a cook, a seamstress, a gatekeeper, and a sweeper.
With a large house to live in, servants to wait on him, and a group of subordinates with clearly defined roles, Du Min had a concrete and clear understanding of the changes in his life at this moment.
Meng Qing led her parents on a tour of the government office. Although it was only a two-courtyard house, it was much more upscale than the Meng family's two-courtyard house. The backyard had a bamboo grove, a garden, and a vegetable patch. The front yard was well-arranged, with the main house next to the study, six side rooms on both sides, a large kitchen, and an outer study.
"That's wonderful, wonderful!" Mencius' mother said with envy. "Becoming an official means the court will provide you with a house and servants to wait on you. You'll have real prestige."
Du Min smiled broadly upon hearing this. He looked around the front and back yards again and again, extremely satisfied.
"Second sister-in-law and second brother, you two will stay in the west wing next to the study, Wangzhou will stay in the east wing next to mine, and the other four rooms will be used as guest rooms. Uncle Meng, Aunt Pan, and Gu Wudong's family can choose to stay in any of them," Du Min made the arrangements.
The west wing is next to the study, and Meng Qing was worried that it would affect Du Min's reading in the future. She refused this arrangement, saying, "I don't like the name 'west wing.' I will live in the wing next to Wangzhou with your second brother."
"I want to live next to my parents," Wang Zhou suggested.
"Whatever, whatever you want. You can change rooms every month if you want," Du Min said generously.
“We are fortunate to have you.” Meng Qing could tell what he wanted to hear right now.
"Finally, you can enjoy the blessings I have given you." Du Min was delighted.
"Come on, let's tidy up the room first, let's tidy up Wangzhou first." Du Li pushed Meng Qing away, and he turned around and said, "Third brother, write down anything you're missing or lacking in your room, your second sister-in-law and I will go out to buy it this afternoon."
Du Min nodded.
The families busied themselves with their tasks. After Meng Chun helped his parents unpack their luggage, he went into Wang Zhou's room and said, "I'll sleep with Wang Zhou for a few days. I don't want to bother tidying up another room. Once the house outside is ready, I'll move out. I estimate it won't take more than a few days."
Meng Qing looked at Wang Zhou, "Can your uncle sleep with you for a few days?"
"Great!" Wang Zhou exclaimed happily.
"Once your uncle has settled on a house, he will come to take you to live with me." Meng Chun picked up Wang Zhou and said, "Nephew, when you become an official and are assigned to a government office, will you take your uncle to live with you?"
Wang Zhou nodded emphatically.
"Good nephew!" Meng Chun exclaimed happily.
Meng Qing and Du Li cleaned Wang Zhou's room, and then the couple went next door to clean the room where they would be staying. Just as they finished making the bed, Du Min knocked on the door and called them to have dinner.
Lunch consisted of mutton soup and flatbread, a typical Henan dish. After eating, Du Min immediately ordered that from now on, at least two out of the three meals a day should include rice.
After the meal, everyone except Du Min went out to buy things. It took them half a day to buy all the utensils they could think of.
The next day, Meng Qing and Du Li, along with Wang Zhou, accompanied Meng's parents and Gu Wudong's family to look at houses. Du Min arranged for a yamen runner to lead the way.
With yamen runners clearing the way and brokers doing their best to introduce the house, Gu Wudong's family bought a large two-courtyard house that very day. It was not far from the county government office and cost three hundred strings of cash.
Meng's parents and Meng Chun were merchants, and there were restrictions on the types of houses they could own. After living in the government office and seeing the house that Gu Wudong's family had bought, they were dissatisfied with the merchant's residence.
Finally, Meng's father and mother discussed buying a three-courtyard house in Wangzhou's name, and made it clear that once the house was registered under Wangzhou's name, it belonged to Wangzhou.
Meng Qing disagreed, "Changing places always brings difficulties at the beginning. You need to buy shops and stock up on goods, and it might take you a year or two to recoup all the costs. Why spend so much money on your accommodation? Aren't you short of cash? How much money have you saved in total? You even paid for the boat fare when you came. Are you going to spend all your money? Besides, Wang Zhou is still so young. He's not old enough to need to buy property yet. By the time he grows up, the house will be old. Moreover, we can't stay in Heqing County forever. Buying a small two-courtyard house will suffice; it will be easier to resell it later."
“I plan to have Meng Chun pay for this house. He has over 800 strings of cash, and this house is worth nearly 500 strings. It will take up half of his money. His savings have shrunk, and our savings have all been tied up in shops. He only feels the urgency now that we have no money left,” Meng’s father said. “He only has unrealistic ideas because he thinks it’s easy to make money when he has too much money.”
Meng Qing: "...He gave me half of the money he saved, didn't you know?"
“That’s even better. Take out all his money, and you can make up the difference. The two of you can work together to buy Wangzhou’s first house.” Father Meng clapped his hands and smiled happily. “Good lad, more generous than me. Good, good, I’ve raised a good son.”
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