Upon returning home, Zhen Niang couldn’t discuss the Du brothers’ matter in front of her sister-in-law. Instead, she quietly pulled her elder brother aside to tell him about Hai Rui’s arrival in Huizhou, warning him to be careful about the Du brothers.
“Magistrate Hai is an upright official. How could he possibly side with the Du brothers?” Li Dalang stared incredulously.
“While Magistrate Hai is indeed upright, he’s only just arrived in Huizhou. How could he fully understand the Du brothers’ true nature? Magistrate Hai champions the poor, but the Du brothers are far from destitute now. Our Li family is considered a major clan in Huizhou. In Magistrate Hai’s eyes, the Du brothers would appear to be the weak party, and supporting the weak would seem the right thing to do,” Zhen Niang explained.
In her previous life, she remembered reading that when Hai Rui arrived in Nanjing, he opened the doors wide for lawsuits. Nearly a thousand petitions were filed daily, and his subordinates didn’t necessarily follow his directives. With such volume, how could he thoroughly investigate each case? Most judgments were based on the idealistic assumption that the poor were right and the wealthy were wrong.
This situation had indeed allowed some scoundrels to take advantage.
After a pause, Zhen Niang added, “Of course, these are just my cautious speculations, not necessarily true. But it’s better to be prepared.”
“That makes sense. These next few days, I’ll visit those involved in the tung oil poisoning case,” Li Dalang nodded in agreement.
“Also, we should visit the doctors from the medicine halls who helped us treat the tung oil poisoning patients,” Zhen Niang suggested after some thought.
“Mm,” Li Dalang nodded.
They then returned to their respective rooms to sleep.
Sure enough, starting the next day, the entire Huizhou was bubbling like a pot of porridge. Everywhere, people gathered in groups of three to five, discussing plans to file lawsuits. In short, Huizhou was now busy with litigation.
At noon, Zhen Niang was at the ink workshop checking the final details for the tribute ink competition. Everything was largely in order, just waiting for the official competition day on April 2nd.
Just then, Xi’er came running in anxiously: “Second Sister, the Du family has brought people to make trouble at our house!”
“Is it about the oil workshop?” Zhen Niang asked. She had been anticipating this – the Du brothers were indeed such contemptible people.
“Yes,” Xi’er nodded angrily.
“Let’s go,” Zhen Niang immediately pulled him along.
“Zhen Niang, Xi’er, don’t worry. I’ll bring some people over to show our strength,” Uncle Jingming said from nearby.
“Good,” Zhen Niang nodded. After calling several master craftsmen from the ink workshop, the group hurried toward the Li family’s eighth residence.
Soon, they arrived at the entrance of the Li family’s eighth residence. They could hear a commotion. Onlookers had gathered three layers deep both inside and out.
Zhen Niang pushed through with her people and saw the Du brothers at their front gate with a menacing crowd. Madam Shen was holding a two-year-old boy while following behind the Du brothers, one hand clutching Du Da.
At the Li family gate, Li Dalang stood at the forefront, while Li Jingfu and Madam Zhao remained composed inside the gate. Madam Du glared at her two brothers with reddened eyes.
Madam Shen was pleading earnestly: “Dalang, Erlang, don’t do anything rash. You can’t cut off your sister’s livelihood.”
“Mother, don’t let a few expenses from them make you favor Sister completely. Don’t forget, we are your sons, and you’ll have to rely on us for your future. Now that Li Dalang has a livelihood, we’ve lost ours,” Du Da replied irritably.
“Pah! Rely on you? These years, if not for the monthly silver your elder sister gave me, Little Guan’er and I would have starved to death long ago.” Hearing Du Da’s words and realizing these two unfilial sons were determined to cause trouble to the end, Madam Shen recalled how she hadn’t had a peaceful day since these two prodigal sons returned. Now hearing such outrageous words from her son’s mouth, grief welled up inside her.
She grabbed Du Da’s arm tightly, glaring at him: “Favoritism? Yes, I showed favoritism! When you were young, whenever there were good things to eat or drink at home, didn’t everything go to you two? Did your elder sister ever get to taste anything good? Even for her marriage, her dowry came from her savings from needlework, yet I still forcibly held back her dowry to spend on you two. If that’s not favoritism, what is? Yes, I showed favoritism, but who did I favor?”
These two sons had blackened hearts, and she regretted it deeply.
The onlookers hearing Madam Shen’s words shook their heads. Everyone knew about Madam Shen’s favoritism toward her two sons. Before Du Lüniang married, she had suffered greatly at home. It wasn’t until she married into the Li family that she finally had a comfortable life. Those who knew the inside story sighed – Madam Shen had raised two ungrateful wolves.
As people thought this, they looked at the Du brothers with complete contempt.
Du Da, exposed by his mother’s words, felt he had lost face and angrily waved his hand: “Mother, what nonsense are you speaking? Stop making a scene here, go home, this matter doesn’t need your involvement.” With that, he pushed her hard, causing her to roll far away onto the ground.
“Grandmother, Grandmother!” The two-year-old Little Guan’er was frightened and burst into tears.
“You beast! How dare you strike your mother – are you even human?” Li Dalang at the Li family gate shouted angrily. Beside him, Madam Du, seeing Madam Shen fall, quickly went to help her up, then turned to glare fiercely at Du Da and Du Er: “Second Brother, Third Brother, gods are watching above – aren’t you afraid of divine retribution?”
Du Da was even more displeased: “Pah, what should I fear? Elder Sister, stop pretending to be good. Back then, when we saw you had no support in the Li family, we gave you some shares in the oil workshop. But you conspired with the Li family, deceived our mother, bribed the former county magistrate, and deliberately created a tung oil poisoning incident to steal our oil workshop. You even caused us brothers to wander as outcasts these years, living less than-human lives. We must seek justice for this wrong!” Du Da declared self-righteous.
After Du Da finished, Du Er shouted at Li Dalang: “Li, our Du family affairs are none of your business. Let me tell you, the oil workshop belongs to our Du family. If you’re smart, you’ll return it now. Considering your management these past years, we’ll give you some dry shares. If not, now that the upright Official Hai is here, we’ll seek his justice. Then you won’t even get dry shares.”
“That’s right! That’s right! Quick, return it!” The mob of thugs shouted in unison, creating quite an imposing atmosphere.
Hearing her second and third brothers’ black-hearted words that turned the truth upside down, Madam Du trembled with anger.
Li Dalang, also red-faced with anger, rushed forward and punched Du Da: “I’ll kill you two black-hearted thieves!”
Being inarticulate, he couldn’t express much else, so naturally resorted to his fists. There was no use reasoning with such people – only fists would do.
Du Da hadn’t expected his brother-in-law to attack directly. Caught off guard, he fell to the ground and immediately started making a scene: “Murder! Li Dalang is committing murder!”
Meanwhile, Du Er waved his hand, and the mob of thugs surged forward. However, the Li family had more people – servants from several branches plus the ink workers all wielded arm-thick clubs. The thugs were merely putting on a show and didn’t dare fight.
This situation left Du Da in an awkward position – standing up would lose face, but sitting on the ground was unseemly. He only resented that his second brother lacked awareness and didn’t help him up.
Du Er angrily shouted: “Let’s go file a complaint against the Li family! The Li family are bullies who abuse their power!”
“Go ahead and file your complaint – when has the Li family ever feared complaints?” At this point, Old Man Jingfu stepped forward slowly, glaring fiercely as he retorted. He then instructed Madam Du: “Take your mother home.” With that, he beckoned the household members to return inside, then told the servants and ink workshop workers: “If these people make more trouble, beat them. Once they’re down, fork them out and throw them in the outer pond to feed the fish.”
Zhen Niang, standing at the side and equally furious, took the opportunity to kick Du Da hard: “If you want to file a complaint, go ahead. Even if you don’t, our Li family will be filing one.”
With that, she pulled Xi’er inside. Before entering, Xi’er also gave Du Da two kicks.
Du Da had just gotten up when he unexpectedly received these kicks from the siblings and fell again, this time for real. He angrily shouted: “What are you all looking at? Want money but won’t fight for me?”
“You want to fight? We’re game,” Li Lijin growled menacingly at the thugs at the gate.
With that, he raised his club first and swept it toward the thugs, who scattered with their heads covered.
Earlier, if anyone else from the Li family had made such threats, these thugs might not have taken them seriously. But Li Jingfu had once been one of them, and many had suffered at his hands before. Now hearing his words, they became fearful, and seeing the Li family members ready to use real force, they quickly fled. In no time, the mob of thugs dispersed.
The group headed toward the magistrate’s office to file their complaint.
…
The Du family had sued the Li family again, accusing Li Dalang of stealing the oil workshop. Du Da had put considerable thought into this lawsuit, even implicating former Magistrate Wei, claiming the Li family had bribed him.
“Excellent, this is perfect! With just two days until the tribute ink competition, the Li family has caused such a scandal. Brother, have someone spread the word that the Li family bullies others and steals private property. Such evil deeds should disqualify them from participating in the tribute ink competition,” Tian Ronghua said at the Tian residence, her lips curling into a smile upon hearing about the Du family’s lawsuit against the Li family. This was truly as refreshing as sour plum soup on a summer day.
“Good, I’ll have Wang Decai arrange it,” Second Master Tian said excitedly. Madam Su’s husband had arrived a few days ago and had been offering many suggestions. This kind of task was perfect for him.
“Brother, why do you have him arrange everything?” Tian Ronghua frowned. Her second brother was truly hopeless. This time, she had to help him compete for the tribute ink rights only because of the marriage alliance with the Xu family. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have bothered.
“That fellow is very capable, and he hates the Li family. He’ll succeed at this kind of task,” Second Master Tian grinned.
Only then did Tian Ronghua remember that Wang Decai had once been a son-in-law of the Li family. Her brother’s arrangement was indeed excellent.
Back then, the Cheng family had taken advantage of her family’s troubles to seize their tribute ink rights.
Now, she would take advantage of the Li family’s troubles to seize their competition rights. It could be considered using flowers borrowed from others to make an offering.
In the evening, at Luo Village.
Luo Wenqian was chatting with the Luo family’s Third Grand Uncle.
“Third Grand Uncle, the tribute ink competition is in just a few days. Afterward, could Third Grand Aunt discuss the wedding date with the Li family?” Luo Wenqian asked.
“Don’t worry, I’ve already discussed everything with your Third Grand Aunt. We’ll go after the tribute ink competition ends,” Third Grand Uncle Luo said.
“Good, then I’ll trouble Third Grand Uncle,” Luo Wenqian nodded.
Just then, Luo Ping’an rushed in: “Third Grand Uncle, Wenqian, the Du family has sued the Li family!”
“Sued for what?” Luo Wenqian stood up abruptly.
“It’s about that oil workshop matter again,” Luo Ping’an said.
After becoming engaged to Li Zhen Niang, Luo Wenqian naturally paid more attention to Li’s family matters. He hadn’t known about the dispute between the Du brothers and Li Dalang before, but after the Du brothers returned and caused trouble once, he inquired about it more thoroughly.
“Hasn’t this case been tried before? These brothers even had arrest warrants. If not for the new emperor’s ascension, they couldn’t have returned. What’s the use of suing again?” Luo Wenqian frowned.
“It’s different this time. The Du brothers are determined now. They’ve even implicated former Magistrate Wei, claiming the Li family bribed him to deliberately create the tung oil poisoning incident to steal the oil workshop.”
“The Li family is in trouble this time.” Hearing this from Luo Ping’an, Luo Wenqian muttered to himself. The cases Magistrate Hai had handled in Nanjing hadn’t all been satisfactory – some ruffians filing false accusations had caused legitimate businesspeople considerable losses.