It's really hard to just farm peacefully.

After Guard Huang left, Jiang Yan enjoyed a large bowl of steaming hot duck soup. Because it had been simmered for almost an hour longer, the originally somewhat coarse duck meat had become so tender that it melted in her mouth.

But Steward Mu couldn't concentrate on tasting the food; he sat alone outside the door, bowl and chopsticks in hand, his brow furrowed in worry.

“Jiang Shuzuo, you know the lord better than I do. What do you think we should do to please him? The people left in this manor are all honest and law-abiding farmers. We can’t expect them to pick up hoes and dig up other people’s wheat fields and cut off their irrigation ditches… It’s not worth it to cause bloodshed, and we’re not as good as the guards.”

Jiang Yan crossed her legs and said, "No rush, no rush. We're not the main force. We can think about it tomorrow."

Steward Mu sighed, "But we've been singled out by Lord Twenty-Five... How can we possibly get away with this?"

Steward Mu sighed, then suddenly raised his voice: "Hey? Wasn't it said that our lord is tolerant and benevolent? How come it sounds like Guard Huang has been tricked many times???!!!"

Jiang Yan's smile faltered slightly. She was eating, why bring up something unpleasant? With a hint of temper, she said, "I often act without thinking, so Steward Mu, shouldn't you consider cutting ties with me in advance to avoid implicating me later?"

"You're not planning something big, are you?" Steward Mu's idea of ​​cooperation began to waver.

Jiang Yan widened her eyes to show her innocence: "How could that be? Do you think I have that kind of ability?"

The wood steward thought it was true, definitely true.

He kept a close eye on Jiang Yan's big moves, but as weeks passed, all he knew was that she would occasionally take people out for a stroll and then talk to the farmers working in the fields; nothing else happened. When he asked her what her plan was, she only said, "Wait and see."

How could he possibly calm down... Steward Mu's heart was pounding with anxiety. He had no idea how to finish his work, especially since Jiang Yan had almost finished resting and was immediately summoned back to her master's side to continue working. Her communication with Zhuangzi had dropped drastically, as if the revenge operation was no longer relevant to her.

Looking at the ripe wheat fields ready for harvest, Manager Mu secretly resolved that once this harvest was finished, he would have to revise the action plan. If he waited any longer, he would become the biggest joke in Kyoto.

……

Starting on the eleventh day after the wheat harvest, the gate of the manor where Steward Mu lived would be knocked on every night.

At first, the steward didn't take it seriously and was even pleased with his good management. But one afternoon, when he gathered the newly joined villagers for a talk, he saw that the people who had brought their own food to join him had filled a threshing ground. Suddenly, he realized that something was wrong.

He urged his servants to quickly tie up the donkey cart and then hurriedly rushed to the city to report to Steward Fu. However, he was taken to the council hall in the front courtyard, where Lord Fu was sitting at the head of the table. His face was obscured by shadows, and Jiang Yan, whom he had resented for a long time, stood alone in the hall.

Steward Mu cleared his mind of distractions and reported truthfully. Then he heard Lord Fu chuckle: "I asked you to cause trouble for others, and now the trouble has come looking for me. Jiang Yan, you've secretly orchestrated this big incident in just half a month. How are you so capable?"

Jiang Yan, who was singled out, was not intimidated at all. She replied with a rather righteous air: "I consulted Lord Twenty-Five before taking action and also reported that I would be using the Kyoto Register. No one objected at the time, and no one stopped me from continuing my actions afterward."

Fu Jian's voice was icy: "So you took it upon yourself to destroy the land deeds of the Jiang, Zhao, Xi, Fang, Huang, and Sun families, and then incited their tenants to steal grain and flee to my Fu family?!"

"My subordinates strictly followed the regulations to destroy the fake deeds and did not act on their own initiative. According to the deeds at the end of January this year, the relevant land still belonged to the people in the suburbs of the capital, and the deeds were subsequently kept in the Ministry of Agriculture. However, in March, when I accompanied Lord Twenty-Five to inspect the spring plowing, those lands had already been taken over by those few families, and the farmers had become tenant farmers. I asked the clerks in the government office, and none of them admitted to handling the matter. Since no one handled it, it must be that fake deeds were intentionally mixed in, and they should be corrected."

"The so-called grain theft and escape is reasonable. The grain was grown by the farmers who saved money and worked hard to sow the seeds and cultivate it. They are just taking back the fruits of their labor. How can it be considered theft? As for the escape, it was not at my instruction. I suppose it was because those six families were too harsh and oppressive, which made people unable to bear it any longer."

Fu Jian didn't want to listen to Jiang Yan's sophistry. "You've cleared your name and said no one guided you. Did all those people have a tacit understanding and then fled to my Fu family's estate in unison?" He has several estates in the capital, and in the past two days, the managers from various places have reported that many people have come to his door seeking protection.

“Yesterday, some aggrieved parties came to the Song and Xie families to complain, accusing me of violating the agreement and instructing my subordinates to cause trouble in the Xie family’s jurisdiction. Can you bear this responsibility?”

Jiang Yan rolled his eyes inwardly. The truth was that he was unhappy and wanted his subordinates to teach him a lesson, but when he actually succeeded, he didn't want to take responsibility. What was he pretending to be innocent for?

She took a few deep breaths without making a sound, then straightened her eyes and tone and said: "I did not instigate them. When I talked to those farmers, we only talked about things in the fields, such as how much rent they paid, who provided the seeds, how the harvest was distributed, how the newly introduced farm tools could save labor, and how much money they would receive as a reward during festivals."

"If you don't believe me, you can ask the farmers to verify it; it's absolutely true. Oh, I forgot to mention, we also talked about our daily meals."

Fu Jian stared at Jiang Yan for a long time before finally warning, "Shut your mouths and get out."

Jiang Yan: ...

Walking along the corridor with no one in front or behind, Steward Mu sighed deeply, "Jiang Shuzuo, I'm afraid you can't clean up this mess you've made."

"Pah, pah, pah, don't curse me." Jiang Yan was urgently summoned by Inspector Fu, who pressured her with his eyes and questioned her verbally, but she wasn't nervous or uneasy at all. Because this time she didn't feel any signs of impending disaster, which meant that things weren't as serious as they seemed... It was just going through the motions... Who was it for?

"Jiang Shuzuo, Jiang Shuzuo." Manager Mu raised his voice to forcefully bring Jiang Yan back to her senses. "We've been friends for a while now, so let's say goodbye. I won't give you another chance to trick me."

"...I'm so sorry to have caused you so much worry and anxiety." Jiang Yan felt very apologetic, but then quickly called out to the departing Steward Mu, "What about the pigs I keep at your place?"

"I'm not raising them anymore," Steward Mu blurted out in a fit of anger.

"Ah..." Jiang Yan was disappointed. "Alright then, but I'll trouble you to take care of it for a couple more days. I'll bring some people over to kill it as soon as I finish my leave."

Manager Mu remained silent; he didn't want to slaughter it just like that. The pig had been raised for so long, and he had a share of its flesh, plus he felt it still had the potential to grow much longer.

……