Chapter 27: Drop in the Ocean
Perhaps Xu Zhiqian’s character was energetic by nature or perhaps she wanted to urgently expel Zhang Fei from the Xu residence. In any case, on the following day, she led Zhang Fei to a temple at the border between Kaifeng County[1] and Xiangfu County.
Here, Zhang Fei finally met the farmer, a young man of similar age, but he appeared somewhat worn out.
Originally, this young farmer was on the brink of taking the final path chosen by most free farmers,[2] which was suicide. Fortunately, with Xu Zhiqian’s assistance, he found a means of livelihood working for the temple, securing a temporary place to stay.
Upon seeing Xu Zhiqian, the young farmer burst into loud and tearful sobs before even uttering a word.
Alas, this was hardly surprising. His life had just begun, and in the span of a single night, he lost his wife and ancestral land. Any person in his situation would likely crumble.
And this was precisely the fundamental problem of the feudal era.
Commoners simply lacked the ability to withstand any natural disasters or human oppression. With even a slight misstep, their entire family fortune could be lost, and they might even have to resort to selling their children.
“Don’t cry. I’ve invited an expert today to see if he can help you.”
Xu Zhiqian gestured towards Zhang Fei beside her.
An expert? Zhang Fei couldn’t help but give Xu Zhiqian a strange look, thinking to himself that this woman was quite pragmatic. When seeking my help, I’m an expert, but otherwise, I’m just a rogue. However, these two identities don’t seem to conflict. Upon hearing this, the young farmer was both surprised and delighted. He turned his head slightly to look at Zhang Fei.
Zhang Fei made a courteous gesture and said, “I am Zhang Fei. You can call me Zhang San.”
In ancient times, people generally didn’t use personal names, so people were accustomed to addressing him as Zhang San.
The young farmer quickly bowed and wiped his tears, saying, “Brother San, you can just call me Li Si.”
“So you’re Li Si. What?”
Zhang Fei looked at the young farmer and asked again, “Your… your name is Li Si?”
Li Si raised his head, nodded, and then nervously looked at Zhang Fei.
Xu Zhiqian curiously asked, “Is there a problem?”
“Oh, no! No problem!”
Zhang Fei shook his head, thinking to himself, Zhang San and Li Si, heh, it’s like I’ve met a long-lost brother.[3] Could this be fate? He then said to Li Si, “Brother Li Si, please sit down.”
After they were seated, Zhang Fei continued, “I need you to explain the entire process of this matter clearly.”
Although he was in the Song Dynasty now, his way of thinking hadn’t changed. The process was more important than the outcome; loopholes were rarely found in the outcome but in the process.
Suddenly, he turned to Xu Zhiqian and asked, “Are you good at writing?”
Xu Zhiqian understood immediately, but she was curious, “Do I need to take notes?”
Zhang Fei said, “I’m afraid I might forget.”
Xu Zhiqian glanced at Zhang Fei, thinking, “His memory is so bad even though he is a pen-in-cap?” However, she didn’t say much; after all, it wasn’t a significant issue. She promptly fetched writing materials and prepared to take notes.
Once Xu Zhiqian was ready, Zhang Fei turned to Li Si and said, “You may proceed.”
Li Si immediately recounted the whole story to Zhang Fei, just as he had told Xu Zhiqian. The story was the same: he fell seriously ill, and his wife sought medical help everywhere, depleting their savings. In the end, they had to borrow ten strings of coins from a local wealthy man named Chen Yuteng to cover medical expenses and make ends meet.
After Li Si finished speaking, Zhang Fei picked up the transcript that Xu Zhiqian had written and read it again.
Xu Zhiqian thought that this young man wasn’t very old, but he liked to put on airs of an elder.
He had heard exactly what Li Si had said, yet he insisted on looking at her notes. What was the point of this behavior?
Zhang Fei hadn’t noticed his own behavior; he was absorbed in reading the transcript. Suddenly, he asked, “The repayment date was on the fifteenth of June last year, but you signed the collateral agreement on the third of June. So this was before payment was due. Did they pressure you to repay the money?”
Li Si replied, “It’s because Chen Yuteng was worried that I might run away since I didn’t have a good harvest that year. So he sent people to watch me, and to urge me to repay the money quickly. He even tried to convince me to use my wife as collateral. Eventually, my wife and I couldn’t take it anymore. Besides, I couldn’t come up with the money to repay the debt. So, a few days before the repayment date, I signed the second contract.”
Zhang Fei looked at Xu Zhiqian and asked, “Is this legal?”
Does this person not know anything? Xu Zhiqian looked at Zhang Fei with frustration and explained, “Lending money to others isn’t considered a bad deed. And nobody wants to lose money. As long as no one is hurt, the authorities won’t concern themselves with such matters.”
In fact, even if someone is hurt, as long as it was not too serious, the authorities generally wouldn’t get involved. Sometimes, they might even help by giving the borrower another beating to ensure repayment.
Zhang Fei continued to ask, “Since you’ve suffered such injustice, why haven’t you gone to the authorities?”
Li Si stammered, “I-I’m afraid. Chen Yuteng is not someone to be trifled with. If things go wrong, I might end up being punished.”
Xu Zhiqian explained, “If there’s nothing wrong with the contract, and he goes to the authorities, he might even be charged with making false accusations.”
Observing Li Si’s nervous expression, Zhang Fei turned to Xu Zhiqian and asked, “You seem to be hiding something from me. Who is this Chen Yuteng? Is he truly just a wealthy man?”
Xu Zhiqian looked evasive.
Zhang Fei asked half-jokingly, “You’re not scheming against me, are you?”
“Of course not.”
Xu Zhiqian firmly denied and then added, “Chen Yuteng’s uncle is Wang Wenshan, the Director of the Agricultural Affairs Bureau.”
Currently, the Agricultural Affairs Bureau didn’t wield significant power. However, after Wang Anshi’s reforms, this department would become a crucial center of authority, responsible for implementing the Greensprouts Program.[4]
That was like being an important finance minister of the central government! In the future, he might even get promoted. That’s not a minor background!
“I knew that things weren’t that simple.” Zhang Fei said with a hint of annoyance, “How long were you planning on keeping this from me?”
Xu Zhiqian, feeling somewhat guilty, replied, “If you’re not even afraid of Academician Sima, why would you fear the Agricultural Affairs Bureau?”
“It’s not a matter of fear. If you’re hiding something from me, I won’t be able to help you. In fact, it could harm me.”
Xu Zhiqian asked, “Do you have a solution then?”
Zhang Fei snorted, “Don’t change the subject. If I find out again that you’ve been hiding something from me, you can find someone else to help you.”
Xu Zhiqian replied with a hint of annoyance, “Were you not the one asking for help?”
Zhang Fei responded seriously, “I’m looking for cooperation, an equal partnership. I’m not going to be a tool at your disposal. Do you think it would be worth continuing a collaboration full of lies?”
Admitting her guilt, Xu Zhiqian explained, “I didn’t mean to keep things from you. I just wanted to see if you had a solution. If you really had a plan, I would definitely tell you. I won’t hide it from you, especially since this could also involve my father.”
“I don’t like excuses.” Zhang Fei shook his head and added, “There shouldn’t be another instance of this. If there is, you’ll bear the consequences.”
Xu Zhiqian nodded slightly, thinking, “But if you can’t find a solution, I’ll still kick you out.”
Zhang Fei then instructed Xu Zhiqian to make a copy of all the contracts and documents, and he left with these materials.
Outside the temple, Xu Zhiqian asked, “Do you really not have a solution?”
“Not at the moment.”
Zhang Fei shook his head.
Xu Zhiqian’s disappointment was clearly visible.
Zhang Fei suddenly asked, “Have you discussed this matter with your father?”
“No!”
“Why not?”
Zhang Fei inquired, “Is it because the other party has ties to the Agricultural Affairs Bureau, and you’re afraid of causing trouble for your father?”
Xu Zhiqian turned around and said, “You’re underestimating my father. If he feared trouble, why did he support appealing the Ayun case? I didn’t tell my father because he wasn’t in Bianjing at the time. Also, I know it wouldn’t make a difference to tell him. Instances like this have happened countless times and many people have gone to the authorities, but no one has succeeded.”
“Is that so?”
Zhang Fei smiled and said, “It seems you have some confidence in me.”
Xu Zhiqian sneered, “I just can’t stand your shameless boasting.”
“I see.” Zhang Fei nodded and continued, “Would you mind if I consult your father?”
“If you don’t believe me, you’re free to consult him.”
Zhang Fei wasn’t intentionally mocking Xu Zhiqian. Once he returned to the Xu residence, he informed Xu Zun of the matter and sought his advice. After all, Xu Zun had extensive experience that Xu Zhiqian lacked.
After carefully examining the materials they provided, Xu Zun sighed and said, “There’s no problem with this contract. Even though Li Si is illiterate, witnesses read it aloud, and proper procedure was followed. It’s his own negligence for not asking for clarification at the time.”
“But it’s clearly a case of fraud. Considering Li Si’s situation, it’s unlikely he would choose to use his wife to repay the principal only, especially when he couldn’t afford the interest. It would have been more straightforward to use the land to pay off the entire debt.”
Xu Zun shook his head and sighed, “Do you know the principle ‘officials comply with policy; the people comply with contracts’? In disputes like this, the contract is crucial. Generally, the authorities would make judgments based on the contract. Otherwise, they would be bogged down in endless legal battles.”
“I’m aware of that, but the interest involved in this case is irregular.”
Xu Zun sighed, “In fact, the imperial government once imposed numerous restrictions on high interest rates. For example, if someone borrowed grain, they had to repay in grain. This was meant to prevent wealthy landowners from exploiting farmers by imposing a discount when calculating the exchange rate.
Ironically, this turned out to be counterproductive. Usually, farmers only have grain, not currency. However, loans are given in currency. This results in a situation where if the grain cannot be converted into currency promptly, it becomes impossible to repay the debt.[5] Eventually, the land must be used as collateral, which exacerbates the issue of land consolidation. Moreover, how much is Li Si’s wife even worth? It’s impossible to calculate. Therefore, during the reign of the Genuine Emperor, the government relaxed these restrictions.”
“In that case, it seems there’s no case to be fought.”
Xu Zun shook his head and said, “I’m helpless in this matter. However, if you have a solution and can find evidence, I will definitely support you.”
In cases of such disputes between private parties, there was nothing he could do.
Allowing high-interest loans meant that farmers were trapped. But their situation would deteriorate even faster if such loans were not allowed and they had no means of getting through a bad harvest.
This was why maintaining the principle of ‘officials comply with policy; the people comply with contracts’ was already quite fair and just. Expecting more would be unrealistic.
If this principle wasn’t upheld, consider this: who would dare to lend money? There would undoubtedly be many defaulters.
Currently, there were already quite a few defaulters.
The government didn’t have the manpower to deal with all of them. And allowing landowners to pursue repayment in their own way would only lead to more problems.
Of course, upholding this principle benefited the ruling class. One key factor was that most people were illiterate.
These contractual word games were simply a means for landlords to exploit free farmers.
Cases like Li Si’s were just a drop in the ocean. Xu Zun had seen many, but he could only make judgments according to the law.
This was why he took the initiative to educate people in the countryside about legal knowledge—to prevent such situations. However, he and his daughter’s abilities were limited, and they could only do so much to help.
Xu Zhiqian asked Zhang Fei once again, “What do you plan to do?”
Zhang Fei glanced at Xu Zhiqian and said earnestly, “I plan to borrow a copy of the Code of Punishments and study it.”
“?!”
[1] Not to be confused with Kaifeng Prefecture. Both counties mentioned here are part of the Kaifeng Prefecture, but one of the counties also shares the name of the prefecture.
[2] Free farmers refers to farmers who owned the land they worked on, as opposed to tenants or serfs.
[3] Zhang San means Zhang Number 3, and Li Si means Li Number 4. So it would be like if Tom, Dick and Harry got together in real life.
[4] The Greensprouts Program was a policy where the government would provide loans to the people to tide them between farming seasons. The idea was that the loans would be given at a lower rate than that offered by the wealthy class, which would allow the government to profit while still benefitting the people. Historically, this was one of Wang Anshi’s controversial programs, and will play a big role in the story.
[5] Currency in the form of precious metal was generally lacking in ancient China, until silver started flowing when the West started bringing in South American silver to purchase Chinese goods during the Ming dynasty.