The world of film and television begins with the God of Medicine.

Chapter 1530 Prevention is better than cure
"Master, it's midnight, time to rest."

At Yuxi Palace, Lü Fang was trying to persuade Jiajing.

Emperor Jiajing sat cross-legged on the Daotai (a high-ranking official's platform), reviewing the memorials submitted by censors, officials, and others. A pile of documents lay scattered on the ground, those that Jiajing had thrown out.

He was really watching it very seriously!
"Hmph! A bunch of traitors!" Jiajing angrily threw down a memorial impeaching Wang Yan. "When it came to dividing my silver, they were all eager to get their hands on it, afraid of missing out if they were too slow. Now that I'm dividing it among them, they all complain about the people's suffering, accusing me of competing with the people for profit, and even calling Wang Yan a scourge to the country. They're all treacherous officials!"

Of course he had considered this situation; otherwise, he wouldn't have announced his seclusion to escape the hustle and bustle after hearing Lü Fang's retelling of Wang Yan's enchanting plans, which seemed to promise him to be a wise and benevolent ruler.

There's nothing more serious than Wang Yan collecting sanitation fees within Daxing County. Even war on the frontier, disasters, or local uprisings can't compare to this.

Because war can't produce any results in a short time, disaster relief and suppression are enough to deal with it. Small civil uprisings can be quelled in a day or two, and even if they grow stronger, they can't withstand a wave of attacks from government troops.

Collecting cleaning fees is different; this is real money-making, and it's used to solve problems related to war, disasters, and civil unrest.

Moreover, according to Wang Yan's theory of money and goods circulation, the tax revenue of Daxing will definitely increase exponentially in the future, and the people's lives will be prosperous, and the people's hearts will be at ease. The beneficiaries are too numerous. Only the powerful and wealthy will have to pay more silver. It can be said that everyone is happy...

However, it is precisely because of this difficulty that it is difficult to get the powerful and wealthy to pay their dues.

The common people are a mob, utterly incapable of any real power, unable even to form a coherent rebellion. It's only these powerful and wealthy individuals who know how to stir up trouble, how to cause chaos, and how to be far more united than the common people. Together they exploit the people, oppose the court, enrich themselves, yet spout empty rhetoric about working tirelessly day and night for the nation and its people, talking endlessly about governing with love for the people, being an incorruptible official, and being a responsible businessman…

“Master, these people have been like this for a long time. They’re just like this. Asking them for money is like asking them to die.” Lu Fang said with a smile. “Now, someone like Wang Yan has emerged who dares to take money from their pockets. Wang Yan has a saying: ‘I’d rather die than lose money.’ Let’s make them lose both their money and their lives.”

Jiajing shook his head: "Make sure everyone is on high alert and keeps a close watch on everything, inside and out."

"Your Majesty, please focus on your cultivation. I guarantee not even a fly will be able to get in," Lü Fang said confidently.

"It's only the end of January, where would there be any flies?"

Emperor Jiajing sighed deeply, "There aren't many true confidants left..."

"Master, I have already sent someone to keep an eye on things at the Daxing County government office."

"Even the best can make mistakes. There's no such thing as a thief if you don't guard against them. How can you keep an eye on them? Isn't Wang Yan's martial arts skill higher than Zhu Qi's and the others? I doubt they would dare to openly murder him. I think there's no problem. Wang Yan is a smart man and cautious enough, otherwise he would have been poisoned to death in the Northern Garrison."

Lü Fang chimed in, "With His Majesty's protection, Wang Yan will surely get through this ordeal, collect the cleaning fees, and generate more revenue for our Great Ming. His Majesty can also relax a bit."

"I've heard Yan Song and his son claim that the two capitals and thirteen provinces of our Great Ming Dynasty rest on their shoulders—what utterly audacious! Only His Majesty the Emperor can truly shoulder the weight of the Ming Dynasty; what are they to mere specks?"

Jiajing laughed, then threw away the memorial impeaching Wang Yan in his hand, and, with Lü Fang's help, went to bed to sleep...

The Daxing County government office was engulfed in flames!
People were shouting for help to put out the fire, save the ancestor, and save the documents. Nearby residents also rushed out to help, banging gongs and drums to call for help.

"Master! Master!"

Shouts rang out.

Wang Yan, dressed in a middle garment and draped in a robe, strolled out leisurely.

"Alright, what are you yelling about?" He stepped forward and kicked a minor official aside. "You son of a bitch, if it weren't for your empty shouting, I would have thought you were worried about my safety. Come on, take him down and throw him in jail."

As soon as Wang Yan finished speaking, the minor official knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Honor, I'm innocent! I'm innocent! I didn't set the fire!"

"Look, who said you set the fire? I only wanted to teach you a lesson because you talk the talk but don't walk the walk, but you've already confessed. If you didn't set the fire, then you know who did? Point it out. Show me who it was, and I'll be lenient with you. If you resist..."

My lord, I know the Thirteen Protectors of the Embroidered Uniform Guard; they're masters at disciplining people. I'll have them come over at dawn to torture you. Also, as you've seen, Eunuch Lü and I are on good terms, and I also know Eunuch Huang of the Eastern Depot. I'll ask Eunuch Huang to send two torturers over.

"It's a good opportunity for our prison's chief jailer to learn from the secret police's experience; that way, he'll be more efficient at interrogating prisoners in the future."

Such calm words, spoken by Wang Yan with a smile, were truly terrifying. Not Wang Yan, but the imperial guards—they were terrifying, truly terrifying.

The clerk stared blankly at Wang Yan, then his gaze fell on a yamen runner standing next to Wang Yan.

Seeing that Wang Yan was also turning his head to look over, the man suddenly drew the knife from his waist. However, before he could make any move, Wang Yan snatched the knife from his hand, dislocated both his arms and his jaw, and then kicked him away.

"Song Jun, is that you? I remember you. You slapped Young Master Xu twice during the day. I've treated you well, why are you so reckless? Arrest him too."

Wang Yan glanced around, his gaze settling on the warden. The man was in his forties, a large, obese fellow who had clearly amassed a fortune, his belly bulging with fat.

"Keep a close eye on these two. If they die in your prison, no one after you will escape. I will invite the Imperial Guard to investigate your ancestors for eighteen generations. I refuse to believe that the Ming Dynasty law cannot find a way to kill you."

"Master, we dare not get involved in such a thing..."

"You didn't participate, but you still made a lot of money. Look at you, you're as fat as a wild boar from the mountains. You've been skimming money off those prisoners all the time. Let me tell you, you're not getting away. Keep an eye on him, and we can try to smooth things over a bit more. If you don't, you're dead."

Just then, the registrar, Song Liangxin, rushed over in a panic: "Your Excellency! Your Excellency!"

He parted the crowd and saw Wang Yan, dressed in a robe and a blouse, barefoot in official boots, with one trouser leg inside and the other outside, his hair disheveled, but standing there with his hands behind his back, exuding a profound and imposing aura.

"Your Excellency, our county government's accounting office, main hall, and even the warehouse where past documents are stored are all on fire!"

Song Liangxin looked very worried.

Wang Yan waved his hand at the warden: "Arrest him too, and take another team to ransack his house."

"Your Excellency! Your Excellency! I'm innocent! What did I do? You are lawless and outrageous! I'm going to report you to the court!" Song Liangxin cried out.

"Slap yourself!" Wang Yan said impatiently. "I checked the accounts because I didn't want to make a big deal out of it, not because I couldn't find your problem. Anyone can see that the fire at the county government office tonight was aimed at me, at the cleaning fees. You're all siding with outsiders, ganging up on me to swindle me. Do you think I'll let you get away with this?"

The county government office is burned down like this. How much money will it cost to rebuild it? How much time will it take? Damn it, if you don't want me to prosper, then nobody else will! Go, search high and low! Whoever finds evidence will get money and a promotion! Even whistleblowers count! Otherwise, if accomplices are found, you know what will happen to you.”

Seeing Song Liangxin's bruised and swollen face, someone actually stepped forward to expose him...

It's incredibly difficult for someone to embezzle money all by themselves. Even though Song Liangxin is the registrar, ranking among the top four in Daxing County, he can't do everything himself; he always needs someone to run errands. Wang Yan, this newly arrived leader, is now insane and has connections that reach the highest levels, so there certainly won't be any major problems. If they don't cooperate, their fate will be dire; Wang Yan will definitely make them suffer terribly.

This is the kind of understanding a normal person should have.

Ultimately, everyone who engages in corruption wants a better life and to be superior to others, not to suffer. They can certainly distinguish between what's more important and what's less important.

Still clinging to a sliver of hope, thinking that Wang Yan couldn't do anything to him, Song Liangxin was immediately arrested and thrown into prison. Ma Defu, the county magistrate, personally interrogated him and recorded his testimony...

Wang Yan looked at Yan Minghui, who had rushed over and was still panting heavily, and asked, "County Magistrate Yan, do you have anything to say?"

"This humble official does not understand what Your Excellency is talking about."

Wang Yan chuckled, then asked someone for some clothes and went to a sheltered spot to warm himself by his little red clay stove and drink tea from his teapot...

The fire was quite loud, and he had already sent someone to report it. With the help of the local residents and the firefighters who arrived later, the fire was finally extinguished just before dawn.

After Wang Da and his son finished shopping, they cooked a lot of porridge and didn't forget to use the leftover lamb bones from yesterday to make lamb bone noodle soup for Wang Yan.

The fire was quite fierce, burning only a few places, while other areas were not significantly affected...

What's even more remarkable is that even though it was already daylight, and even though the Daxing County government office was bustling with activity, with the smell of burning wood and black ash everywhere, it still felt deathly silent.

Because there was no one, no government office, no further instructions, no one to investigate, no one to hold anyone accountable—nothing at all. If half of the Daxing government office hadn't been burned down, it would have been just another ordinary day.

Only one silly boy ran over in a panic.

"Third Master, are you alright?" Qi Dazhu, riding his horse, jumped off and slid down to Wang Yan before the horse even stopped.

"If I had something to do, would I still be sitting here? I'm just a bit disheveled, but it's nothing serious. You're not completely stupid, at least you knew to come dressed in plain clothes."

"It was Seventh Master who stopped me; he insisted I change my clothes before letting me come over."

"Then you should thank Seventh Master and treat him to wine and meat later. Otherwise, if you come here wearing the robes of the Imperial Guard, others will think it's His Majesty's order, which will cause a big problem. Haven't eaten yet? Old Wang, make another big bowl of noodles for my brother."

Wang Da, who was busy not far away, responded and quickly started making noodles.

"Third Master, why don't you just quit..." Qi Dazhu hesitantly advised, "This is a job that's designed to kill you."

“Dazhu, if I didn’t do this, would your family have such a big red brick house? Would your silk reeling business be more profitable? Would the roads in Chun’an County be better? Would the wealthy families in Chun’an be more obedient? Would I be able to make any money?”

Wang Yan said with a laugh, "I don't want to take advantage of the poor. I'm going to make this happen. I'll fight them and see who kills whom! If I don't kill them, it'll be too much trouble to get them to willingly part with their money. Alright, I'm lucky and won't die until I've made enough money. You can go back after you finish your noodles."

Qi Dazhu, who had a large appetite, silently finished a large bowl of noodles, wiped away his tears, and left.

Because he was powerless, he wanted to help the Third Master, but there was nothing he could do. Even coming to check on the Third Master's safety was a mistake!
After eating and drinking his fill, Wang Yan changed into the clothes that the clerk had found for him to make do for now before he began to deal with the problem.

Everyone was watching and waiting. Jiajing's attitude was already very clear: he wanted to see if Wang was tough enough, whether he was useful, and whether he was as good as he claimed.

As for the cabinet and related government departments, they were unable to speak at this time, nor could they act on the emperor's words.

Because Wang Yan was acting within the rules, and with Jiajing protecting him, trying to punish Wang Yan by disregarding the rules would be suicidal. Within the rules, they couldn't do anything about it.

Collecting cleaning fees from businesses within his jurisdiction was Wang Yan's legitimate power as county magistrate. The only problem was that the fees were a bit excessive; that was all they could use to attack Wang Yan for being impolite and disrespectful—a harmless accusation.

Therefore, the problem Wang Yan needed to address wasn't how the fire started, who instigated it, who was involved, or what the inside story was. It was about collecting a cleaning fee!
He issued a public notice and had officials go door-to-door to inform everyone that the cleaning fee would be collected today. Now, the question is whether he dares to collect it and whether he can actually collect it.

However, Wang Yan will definitely take action regarding the fire, since he has already arrested Song Liangxin and confiscated his property. He will certainly take this opportunity to thoroughly clean up the government office.

So Wang Yan went to see Song Liangxin, who had been dealt with badly, and after a brief conversation, Song Liangxin, who was stubbornly resisting, revealed that County Magistrate Yan Minghui was also involved.

Then Yan Minghui cried out that he was innocent and was arrested and imprisoned. At that time, another older county magistrate, Ma Defu, was covered in sweat.

Wang Yan smiled and asked him what was wrong. He said the fire was burning too brightly and it was too hot...

"As the old saying goes, 'It is more dangerous to prevent people from speaking out than to prevent a river from overflowing.' What does that mean? It means that preventing the people from speaking out and criticizing is more serious than blocking a river and causing a flood. I have only been in office for three days, and the Daxing County government office has already caught fire, causing damage. In my opinion, in the capital of our Great Ming Dynasty, under the emperor's nose, preventing fire is more dangerous than preventing a river from overflowing."

Looking at the dozens of disheveled fire-armored soldiers, the officials, and the onlookers in front of him, Wang Yan spoke loudly.

“Our capital is prosperous and densely populated, with houses arranged closely together. If a fire breaks out in one place and is not extinguished in time, it will spread and burn down houses, kill people, and cause heavy losses. Fortunately, thanks to His Majesty’s protection, although the fire last night burned down half of the government office and destroyed case files and account books, no innocent people were killed or injured.”

The thought of losing control of the fire and causing a major disaster weighs heavily on my mind. And looking at these brave firefighters, their lives are truly admirable. They rushed over immediately last night and have been working tirelessly until now, only managing to eat a sip of porridge and some flatbread. They are all commendable.

This fire has taught me a lesson. We must be rigorous in our investigations and crackdowns to nip fire risks in the bud and prevent them from escalating. The first step is personnel. Whom? Fire-armored warriors!
"You all receive meager salaries but bear heavy responsibilities, and you're held accountable for any problems that arise. This is utterly unreasonable! I hereby announce that, starting today, the Fire Armor force will be expanded to two hundred men, and salaries will be doubled, with the lowest-paid among them receiving five hundred coins per month, which is half a tael of silver. Those who become officials will earn even more. Fire Armor warriors, are you willing?"

"Yes! Yes! Yes!"

The fire-armored soldiers were practically screaming with excitement. The expansion meant that some people would be promoted, their salaries would double, and they would receive at least half a tael of silver. Everyone's lives would suddenly improve.

Wang Yan pressed his hands down: "I feel a great responsibility and cannot delay for a moment. All you fire-armored warriors, please work hard and come with me today to conduct a thorough inspection. We will go to every corner of our East City to eliminate the risk of fire."

Those who were called yesterday, along with the yamen runners and their cronies, are all here. The rest of you, follow Magistrate Ma's orders: prepare food for us, clean up the ruins of the yamen, and bring all the culprits who deliberately set fire to my Daxing Yamen to justice. Do you all understand?

"understand!"

"Alright, follow me."

Wang Yan personally led a group of nearly a hundred people, leaving the yamen in a grand procession, heading straight for the most bustling market in the eastern part of the city...

I want to express my sincere gratitude to all the kind readers who have given me generous support through tips, monthly tickets, recommendation tickets, and those who have been reading quietly!