Chapter 270: The People’s Strength
Author: White Pear Flower
Raws: https://book.qidian.com/info/2386994/
Translated by Gumihou
Proofread by Pill Bug
Gumihou: A chapter of tee hee, back patting and platitudes.
Like most things related to Fu Qiuning, Jin Fengju allowed his own hubris to take over, forgot to watch his words and lost favour over the most trivial things possible. [1] How was he to know that his wife, a daughter from a prince’s household, would value these insignificant beasts so much?
[1] Naturally, there were noble families who valued their pets, but these were usually limited to expensive pure breeds like Persian cats and thoroughbred horses. Ah, no, he should not think that way when it came to Qiuning. His sensitive little wife saw value in the little things. So, of course, she would value a cat that had rescued the children. [2] Fortunately for Jin Fengju, Yu Jie and Jian Feng entered the room before things could escalate. Yu Jie was especially skilled as she quickly sensed the tension in the air and suggested, “Madam, the Master must have been tired from working so hard for so many days outside. To think that he did not wake up till mid-morning! Surely he must be hungry? It would take some time before lunch is served, why not have a light brunch together first?”Jin Fengju quickly took up the idea and said, “Right, right, a very good idea indeed. How could I miss a meal with my beloved wife? Ah, now that you mention it, I am feeling a little hungry. Truly, I had not had a proper meal for days now…”
At the mention of food, or more precisely, the lack thereof, Yu Jie and Jin Fengju froze. Both of them suddenly remembered that Fu Qiuning, of all people, was the only one in the room who actually come close to starving to death…
“Pirates! Japanese pirates!”
A sudden shout from outside broke the tension. Although it was not good news, Jin Fengju and Yu Jie were more than happy to welcome this person into the residence. Jin Fengju hurried out. Various members of the household either poked their heads out to check out what was happening or followed after Jin Fengju.
Jin Ming was running across the courtyard, his face flushed with excitement. When he saw Jin Fengju, he waved his hands and cheered, “Master! Tis a happy event, ah! The people south of the city encountered one of those Eastern Barbarians. That sword-wielding pirate was beaten to death by dozens of commoners with hoes, iron shovels and wooden sticks. Those commoners then dragged that mangled body to yamen. This servant just went to have a look. He had been beaten completely to death. Aiya, he looked so miserable with blood oozing everywhere…”
As Jin Ming continued to describe the gruesome sight delightedly, Jin Fengju was no longer hearing him. His thoughts had flown elsewhere: Those ruthless Japanese pirates were the coastal people’s greatest nightmare. Even when the Anti-Japanese Defence Force was first formed, they were more fearful than angry at these Eastern Barbarians. None of them were willing to fight at all when news of pirates landing at the shore was brought to them. Naturally, the commoners, who had suffered repeated slaughter at the hands of the Japanese pirates were even more fearful. To the point that the mere mention of ‘Eastern Barbarian’ was enough to make people turn pale and children stop crying from sheer horror.
Now, this Quanzhou City which had suffered repeated harassment and invasion by these heinous Japanese pirates after that horribly brutal massacre and plunder five years ago, these people had, by picking up simple hoes, iron shovels and sticks finally managed to beat a fierce Japanese pirate armed with a sword to death. This ending sounded like something out of a fantasy.
“Master… master…”
Jin Ming had to call Jin Fengju several times before he came back to his senses. He coughed and hastily asked, “Where is the body of that wretch? Lead me to it. Have you found out the details? Did the commoners really beat him to death? Were there any casualties?”
As Jin Fengju’s voice trailed off, a string of firecrackers could be heard in the distance. It sounded like someone was so happy they could not help but set off firecrackers to celebrate, a truly worthy occasion.
Jin Ming beamed throughout the joyous sound. Once it ended, he turned to Jin Fengju, saying, “Master, it is indeed true that the commoners beat him to death. At first, even I didn’t believe it, thinking some expert must have involved themselves somehow, but no! The commoners recounted the whole incident in great detail, and I had no choice but to believe them. Moreover, the root cause of this incident has to be attributed to Second Madam, the young masters and young misses. After the Japanese pirates who died in our hands were exposed on the streets the other day, the entire Quanzhou City was shaken. When the people heard that two Japanese pirates were bitten to death by a cat, the commoners all said that if a cat can kill a Japanese pirate, they must not invincible after all. Since even a cat can kill them, how could humans be weaker than a cat?
Therefore, when the commoners saw this Japanese pirate, they did not scatter in fear but banded together to overwhelm him. Despite wielding a Japanese sword, the wretch couldn’t use it effectively in the narrow alley, injuring a few people but ultimately being hit countless times with hoes, iron shovels, and wooden sticks until his life was taken here.”
“So that’s what happened.” Jin Fengju slowed his pace and sighed, “As the saying goes, ‘When paths converge, the brave prevail.’ Are Japanese pirates really that terrifying? No, they are just flesh and blood like us, and they are even smaller in stature than the people of the Central Plains. Why should we fear them? It’s just that the commoners are like sheep. They only hear about the brutality of the Japanese pirates and become timid, not thinking of resisting but only fleeing.
This is why a mere 12,000 Japanese pirates could rampage about this area and become a threat to our Great Ning Dynasty. Now that our people have lost their fear and rushed forward to face danger, the tide has turned. In the end, even with a sword in hand, a Japanese pirate on a rampage could still be trodden down and killed like any human.”
Jin Ming laughed and said, “Isn’t that so? Speaking of which, Madam really has foresight. [3] She was able to predict that exposing the bodies of Japanese pirates on the streets would dispel the fear in the hearts of the common people. This strategy is truly ingenious. Even I, as a servant, never thought it would be so effective.”
Jin Fengju coughed into his hand twice before saying, “Your Madam’s intelligence goes beyond this. Since I have come to truly know her, everything she has done seems incredibly remarkable. If she had not been such an intelligent woman, how could she live quietly and steadily in Night Breeze Pavilion for six years without receiving a single coin, yet still live so well?”
Jin Ming laughed again and said, “Madam is truly extraordinary. I still remember that first year she arrived, back then, she always tried to meet with Master. However, Master would… hei hei… who would have thought after that time she sought death and came back to life, she would suddenly change and never seek Master again? After that, everyone completely forgot about her existence. If Master had not accidentally left the garden that day and visited Night Breeze Pavilion, Madam would still be living there now.”
Jin Fengju’s smile was a little stiff as he said, “As the saying goes, ‘After death comes rebirth like a phoenix.’ I also felt that Qiuning has changed completely since the time she sought death. Perhaps it was at the moment of death that she saw through everything and thus became clear-sighted. It is with such insight and her original intelligence that she was able to undergo such transformation. I should… thank heaven for not letting me guard this priceless gem in ignorance, and allowing me to have such a wonderful person in this life…”
Master and servant both sighed with emotion. Although it was for different reasons. By now, they had left the yamen and spotted a large crowd of people in one area of the street. Several officials from the yamen saw Jin Fengju come out and hurried over to squabble for the opportunity to report the details of the incident. Everything they said mostly corroborated with Jin Ming’s report. Meanwhile, some people carried thick red ropes of firecrackers in and started lighting them in front of the yamen again. More cheers of excitement happened, again.
Not one to lose an opportunity to give a rousing speech for the sake of the Great Ning Empire, Jin Fengju stood before the crowd and gave a strong speech about how the Japanese pirates were not to be feared, as the body lying on the street was proof. The people united to defeat the enemy. That there were still two or three remaining Japanese pirates in the city, and everyone should not only rely on the official forces but also unite for self-protection. That everyone should gather together at night to prevent the desperate actions of the pirates breaking in, etc.
Jin Fengju was very eloquent, he spoke with great passion and stirred up the crowd, earning a tide of applause. Because everyone knew that he was the newly appointed prefect, highly esteemed by the emperor, and had personally fought against the Japanese pirates on the coastal battlefield, the sense of reverence and gratitude was overflowing, and they gathered in front of the yamen for almost half an hour, praising Jin Fengju as if he were a god and chanting slogans like “Down with the Japanese pirates.” Eventually, after a long time, the crowd dispersed.
Several officials in the yamen then invited Jin Fengju to the government office, most of these people had followed him out of the city to resist the Japanese pirates, with only a few minor officials remaining. Now that Jin Fengju had returned, there was naturally some handover work to be done. After looking through the case files and listening to detailed reports from the minor officials, Jin Fengju found that although these people held small positions, they handled things very competently, so he praised them sincerely.
As the sun began to set, Jin Fengju smiled at the people in the yamen hall and said, “It’s almost evening, everyone should go home and have dinner. Although the Japanese pirates have suffered a heavy blow, they have not been completely eradicated yet. It’s still too early to celebrate. When the threat of the Japanese pirates is completely eliminated, I shall invite everyone for a drink.”
Several officials in the hall quickly stood up in agreement. Jin Fengju waved for them to sit back down and continued, “Since I took office, one thing after another has kept me busy until the Japanese pirates attacked. Now I finally have time to sit down and talk with you all. Those troublemakers that had you moved out of your homes without my knowledge have all been severely punished by me…”
Before he could finish speaking, an official named Bai stood up. He happened to be the husband of Bai-Zhang’shi said with a smile, “Sir, how can Your Excellency say that? In fact, what Xu and Liang said was correct. Your Excellency is a nobleman…”
Before he could finish, Jin Fengju raised his hand again and said sternly, “What is wrong is still wrong. Although I have been granted the title of Marquis by the emperor, what am I here for? Does Quanzhou need a pampered Marquis? No, I am here to serve as a magistrate and bring peace to the people. Therefore, do not treat me as a Marquis. As my colleagues, you should treat me as a fellow official. Back then, when you moved out, my wife was the one who reported the situation to me.
I was shocked and angry to hear of the trouble you must have encountered. Those troublemakers have all been punished by me. Those people thought they were doing me a favour, however, all they did was alienate me from the people and cause division between us. As fellow officials, we are supposed to work together to bring peace and prosperity to our people. How is that kind of move be anything but bring harm to our cooperation?!”
When they heard this, everyone quickly stood up and expressed their apologies. Jin Fengju sighed and stood up. As he walked down the steps slowly, he said in a solemn voice, “After feeling angry, I felt a sense of pride and bitterness for all of you. I have travelled far and wide in the past few years, thanks to the emperor’s favour. Even so, it is officials like you, who served and looked after one location who are the Great Ning’s blessing.
Aside from myself, who is a newcomer to this Quanzhou yamen, are already a great blessing. In our Quanzhou yamen, apart from me, most officials, from the prefectural governor to the minor officials, are all kind-hearted. It’s no wonder that Quanzhou, which faced the Japanese disaster five years ago and is still under threat from Japanese pirates, remains prosperous. This is all thanks to your hard work. I admire you all and I am proud to be among you.”
[Gumihou: I know that this was supposed to be an uplifting ‘yay commoners’ chapter, but all I’m getting here is the fact that a bunch of people mobbed one guy and beat him to death. Like, wow, how amazing]
[1] Reword things to show JFJ being regretful, instead of JFJ being ‘oh, well you should have told me~’ [2] Have the maids be the ones to suggest all the pampering instead of Qiuning. [3] A modern day woman suggesting such a vicious tactic? That’s even more unlikely than cats scratching people to death. Make it so that it was all JFJ making up lies and stories just so that AR Qiuning could look good.
Come join kitchennovel’s subscription!
Or, you can still support us through Patreon or tip us via Kofi~!
Although… it’s, um, you only get half the benefits… but, the decision is in your hands!
Do also comment at Novelupdates and raise our ratings!
