“Good brothers, my foot!”
Jin Feng almost laughed in anger. “The bandits you cultivated came with hundreds of men to kill me, and after I dealt with them, I’m supposed to compensate you?
Master Zhou, did your head get caught in a door before you left home today?
What kind of logic is that?”
“Mr. Jin, we’re both educated men. You’ve insulted me once or twice, that’s fine, but curse me again, and I’ll turn on you!”
Master Zhou finally dropped his pretence.
“Oh, and how does Master Zhou plan to turn on me?” Jin Feng asked with a smile. “As a court official secretly fostering bandits to prey on the countryside, you’re liable for execution. You can barely protect yourself, so what makes you think you can threaten me?”
This was why Jin Feng had been so cold and blunt with Master Zhou from the start.
In his eyes, Master Zhou was already finished. The only reason he entertained this conversation was to figure out what Master Zhou was scheming.
“Mr. Jin, you say I fostered bandits. Does that make it true?” Master Zhou leaned forward, staring intently at Jin Feng. “Whether Liu Jiang is a bandit isn’t up to you, it’s up to me!”
“So that’s your plan,” Jin Feng said, realisation dawning.
“You’re too arrogant. The tens of thousands of people in Jinchuan County know Liu Jiang is a bandit. Do you think you can just twist the truth with a single word?” Qing Muluan, unable to stay silent, slammed the table. “We captured over a hundred men alive. They’re ironclad proof!”
“Hahaha, Mr. Jin, your friend is too naive,” Master Zhou laughed as if he’d heard a joke, then said coldly, “I won’t speak for other places, but in Jinchuan, I am the law!
If I say Liu Jiang is a bandit, he is. If I say he isn’t, he isn’t!”
“Then we’ll see you in court!” Qing Muluan said, grinding her teeth in anger.
“Go to court? Be my guest,” Master Zhou sneered. “Let’s see if the county magistrate believes you and a few bandits, or me!
But I’ll warn you, Mr. Jin, according to Dakang law, a commoner suing an official gets twenty lashes first, right or wrong. If you want to go to court, better prepare your backside for a beating.”
“Has Dakang’s officialdom become this corrupt?” Jin Feng sighed upon hearing this.
The law was made by officials, naturally to protect the interests of the gentry and nobility.
Jin Feng had read about this rule of commoners being beaten before suing officials in history books from his previous life.
With his physique, twenty lashes would leave him bedridden for half a year, and if he was unlucky, he might even be crippled.
Even if he endured the beating, Jin Feng wouldn’t win the case.
The county magistrate was Master Zhou’s puppet. Whether Liu Jiang and his men were bandits was indeed up to Master Zhou.
Moreover, Dakang law prohibited commoners from escalating lawsuits beyond their local jurisdiction. Even if Jin Feng took his case to the higher courts in the prefectural city or Xichuan, no one would entertain him.
In other words, Master Zhou had Jin Feng cornered!
That’s why he was so fearless.
“Well, Mr. Jin, have you figured it out now?” Master Zhou said, looking smug. “I don’t know how you defeated Liu Jiang, but no matter how good a fighter you are, you can’t beat me, unless you plan to rebel!
Oh, and by the way, I should remind you, privately raising armed men is also illegal.”
“True,” Jin Feng nodded in agreement.
Since ancient times, one of the commoners’ creeds was to never fight an official.
It wasn’t without reason.
All Master Zhou had to do was label Liu Jiang and his men as refugees, and not only would Jin Feng miss out on the reward for killing bandits, he’d be charged with slaughtering innocent refugees.
At best, he’d be exiled. At worst, he’d be executed on the spot.
“For the sake of Marquis Qing, I won’t make things difficult for you. Just follow my earlier demands: hand over the spoils from Iron Jar Mountain and pay me five thousand taels of silver…” Master Zhou paused, slapping his forehead. “Look at me, forgetting about the spinning wheel and Iron Jar Mountain.
But it’s not too late to add them now.”
“Mr. Jin, listen carefully. Hand over the spoils and compensation, withdraw your men from Iron Jar Mountain, release Liu Jiang, and give me the spinning wheel. In return, for Marquis Qing’s sake, I’ll let you off and won’t pursue your crime of raising armed men. How does that sound?”
Master Zhou’s tone was chilling. “I’m showing you respect by calling you Mr. Jin. Without that respect, you’re just an ant I can crush with a flick of my hand!
This is your last chance. Otherwise, don’t blame me for sending the prefectural troops to suppress Xihe Bay. When that happens, even if Marquis Qing himself comes, he won’t be able to save you!”
Clap, clap, clap!
Jin Feng held back an outraged Qing Muluan and smiled, applauding Master Zhou. “Your plan is impressive, Master Zhou, but you’ve overlooked one thing!”
“What’s that?” Master Zhou frowned instinctively.
“I’m not a commoner. I’m a baron personally ennobled by His Majesty the Emperor!” Jin Feng pulled a token from his pocket and tossed it onto the table. “Feel free to verify it, Master Zhou.”
“What?!” Master Zhou snatched the token, his face paling dramatically.
Impersonating a noble was a capital offence. Unless Jin Feng had lost his mind, he wouldn’t dare fake it.
So if Jin Feng produced the token, it had to be real.
“Damn it, didn’t they say His Majesty guards noble titles closely? How could he grant one to a mountain villager like Jin Feng?” Master Zhou’s mind raced.
He knew he’d miscalculated.
It wasn’t that he wasn’t clever enough, but he never imagined Jin Feng could be a noble.
With the emperor deliberately curbing the power of the nobility, new titles were rare these days.
Most people, upon receiving a title, would proclaim it loudly to the world, but Jin Feng was so low-key that, apart from Qing Muluan and A Mei, who had seen his records, no one in Jinchuan County knew of his noble status.
Not even Guan Xiaorou.
Let alone Master Zhou.
In Dakang’s rigid hierarchy, nobles and commoners were worlds apart.
Even as the lowest-ranking baron, Jin Feng enjoyed numerous privileges.
For instance, even if he committed a crime, the county authorities had no right to arrest or try him. They could only report it to the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Rites for approval before taking action.
Nobles also had the right to hire guards and petition the imperial court directly in the capital.
While meeting the emperor was unlikely, with Jin Feng’s connection to Marquis Qing, he stood a good chance of reaching Duke Qing.
A single word from Duke Qing could spell disaster for Master Zhou.
“Well, Master Zhou, do you still want to crush me?” Jin Feng asked with a cold smile.
“You misunderstand, sir. I was only joking earlier,” Master Zhou said cautiously, placing the token back on the table. “Liu Jiang preyed on the countryside, and the people have long resented him. Your heroic act has rid the people of a scourge, truly heartening. I’ll make sure the county magistrate reports your merits to the court!”
“No longer want my spinning wheel?” Jin Feng asked, still smiling coldly. “No longer want compensation for your losses?”
