Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Wei Liangxing and Xia Cheng were led into the house, and after they entered, they knelt by the door.

"Acheng," Xia Huifang squatted down in front of Xia Cheng, carefully checking him for injuries. Seeing that he was alright, she felt relieved.

“Village Chief, A-Cheng is innocent in being dragged into this,” Xia Yao said.

“I am innocent too, they conspired to harm me,” Wei Liangxing shouted excitedly, trying to stand up.

Seeing this, Li Chuan quickly held Wei Liangxing down.

“You’re not innocent; you took possession of that truckload of grain,” said Village Chief Zhao.

“I admit to taking the cart, and I’ve already returned it,” Wei Liangxing said. “But I didn’t take those thirty shi (a unit of dry measure), and I’ll never admit to it, even if it kills me.”

Village Chief Zhao turned to Xia Yao and said, "Xia Yao is here today too, so you can listen in as well. Wei Liangxing has claimed responsibility for that cartload of grain. It was already counted yesterday, ten shi. Wei Liangxing said he probably stole about twelve shi, and spilled some on the way."

"What about the other thirty shi?" Xia Yao asked.

“The other thirty shi were taken by water, leaving very little trace, so it will be difficult to find them,” Zhao, the village chief, looked at the two kneeling men. “Those people seemed to have come prepared. They stole the grain in a very short time, and even their route and escape method were planned very meticulously. This is something that no one person could do alone. Both of you are suspects.”

"Does Village Chief Zhao mean that the two conspired to steal?" Xia Yao asked.

“That’s possible,” said Village Chief Zhao.

Upon hearing this, Wei Liangxing exclaimed excitedly, "This has nothing to do with me. He did it all after I left."

“You left at midnight, and I received the news at midnight. It’s a half-hour journey from here to Hegu Village, or at least half an incense stick’s time, even if you’re fast. How could he have managed to steal thirty bushels of grain by himself?” Village Chief Zhao glanced at Wei Liangxing and continued, “Only you and your servants knew about your theft of the grain. According to your servants, you were only notified that you had to work that night around dinner time. In such a short time, how could A-Cheng have had time to deal with it without knowing anything? So either you planned it, or it was done by you and your servants.”

Upon hearing this, Wei Liangxing pointed at Acheng and said, "That was something he did together with the villagers."

"Absurd!" said Village Chief Zhao.

“Village Chief Zhao, you are wise! I only took the Xia family’s grain, I didn’t steal from any other families. I just wanted to get back the money for my ox, not steal the grain,” Wei Liangxing said excitedly.

“Yesterday I inspected that truckload of grain and found that the grains inside were not of the same variety; there were at least three different types. I compared them with the wheat grown by the villagers, and they all matched. How do you explain this?” Village Chief Zhao asked.

Wei Liangxing was stunned when he heard this. "Doesn't this just prove that he and the villagers conspired to frame me?!"

"I'm innocent! Grain is the lifeblood of the villagers! How could anyone be willing to do this with me?!" Acheng protested.

"Stop pretending, it must have been you. You killed my cow first, and then used this trick to cheat me out of my grain. You're really vicious!" Wei Liangxing was furious at this moment. He rushed over and grabbed Acheng by the neck.

Seeing this, the crowd rushed forward to stop them and quickly separated the two.

Xia Huifang tenderly shielded Acheng, while Xia Yao stood between the two to separate them. Li Chuan, on the other hand, pulled Wei Liangxing back a few steps.

"Stop making a scene, or you'll get a few lashes," said Zhao, the village chief, sitting impatiently in his chair.

Seeing that Wei Liangxing was not taking any action, Xia Huifang hurriedly checked Acheng's neck. After seeing a faint red mark on his neck, Xia Huifang said with a sob, "Village Chief, look! Acheng is injured."

"I understand," said Zhao, the village chief, looking at Li Chuan and pointing at Wei Liangxing. "Tie him up."

Then, Li Chuan waved to the village guards outside the door, and two village guards came in and tied up Wei Liangxing together.

“Mr. Xia, we all know that your family lost the most grain. Acheng is your younger brother, but since the grain can’t be found, I can’t let him go easily. My plan is to keep them locked up until they confess,” said Village Chief Zhao.

Xia Yao looked at A-Cheng and asked, "Where does the village chief plan to lock them up?"

“You all know I don’t have a place to detain people here. But if they’re detained at the county government, things will get serious. I don’t want to make a big fuss, but if they don’t hand over the grain, the whole village will object,” Village Chief Zhao said to Xia Yao. “You’re the most educated person in the village and also A-Cheng’s cousin. Do you have any good solutions?”

"If we pay back the grain we owe everyone first, then won't it just be a dispute between the two of us?" Xia Yao asked.

After thinking for a moment, Zhao, the village chief, nodded. “Yes, what you say makes sense. It all depends on what you think, because you might not be able to get those thirty bushels of grain back, and then you’ll suffer a great loss.”

Upon hearing this, Xia Huifang quickly grabbed Xia Yao's arm. Xia Yao turned his head and gave Xia Huifang a wink. Xia Huifang didn't say anything more and then let go of his arm.

"May I ask the village chief, how much grain did everyone lose? Is ten shi enough?" Xia Yao asked.

"More or less, probably about two shi short," said Village Chief Zhao. "What are we going to do with those two shi?"

Xia Yao lowered his head and thought for a moment, "Village Chief Zhao, let's talk in private."

Village Chief Zhao glanced at the people inside the house, then stood up and walked into the courtyard one after the other with Xia Yao.

They walked to a corner, and Xia Yao said, "Village Chief Zhao, I heard that the amount of grain this time was exaggerated by everyone."

Village Chief Zhao nodded, waiting for Xia Yao to continue.

“If we give them the amount they reported, the villagers will actually earn more grain. In that case, won’t they stage a show of stealing from those they’re guarding the next year? I’m afraid that this will cause you, Village Chief Zhao, some unnecessary trouble, and there will be some detours when collecting taxes in the future,” Xia Yao said, glancing at Village Chief Zhao’s expression. “As for me, just as you said, it’s very difficult to find the rest of the grain, and there’s a high chance that I will lose that much. I’m already a victim; if I were to give them two more shi (a unit of dry measure), it would be even more difficult for me.”

"You mean, just distribute what we found in this truckload and tell them there's no more food to distribute?" said Village Chief Zhao.

“Yes,” Xia Yao said.

"I'm afraid they'll have objections."

“They definitely have complaints, but it’s just a temporary grumbling. They know perfectly well what their situation is. But if they get a taste of success in this matter, I’m afraid they might cause trouble later, which would be bad,” Xia Yao said.

Village Chief Zhao seemed to be deep in thought.

Seeing that Zhao, the village chief, remained silent, Xia Yao continued, "The loss of grain is not our fault. Now that the thief has been found, everyone is more concerned about getting the grain back. If we can't deliver it, people will either blame Wei Liangxing and Acheng or question Zhao's abilities."

Village Chief Zhao looked at Xia Yao with a complicated expression.

"Now that everyone knows the grain has been recovered, why not distribute it to everyone to appease the people? As for my portion, I can wait a bit longer."

“Mr. Xia’s actions are truly righteous,” said Village Chief Zhao. “Then let’s do as Mr. Xia suggests. But what about the thirty bushels of grain?”

"Whether we can get the grain back depends on the village chief. I can't interfere with your judgment, but Acheng is my brother, and I hope you'll show him some leniency."

"Should we handle this officially?" said Village Chief Zhao.

Xia Yao nodded.