Chapter 10

Shijuxian pulled several people, but none of them would come close. Only two young men, unable to break free, were dragged over reluctantly.

One of them shouted loudly, "Wang Tu first insulted Xu's mother, then knelt to beg Xu Zhong for mercy. How can such behavior be called that of a great man? Being killed is purely self-inflicted! What’s there to ask about?"

The other looked at Xun Zhen provocatively and said, "Xu Zhong ran away long ago. If you’re not afraid of dying, go and chase him!"

Xun Zhen thought to himself, "Judging from the恶劣 attitude of these two young men, Xu Zhong is indeed highly respected by the locals." He would not get angry with two young men who had not yet reached adulthood and asked gently, "Where did he run to?"

"East."

Shijuxian dispersed the crowd and interjected, "He should have gone to Xu County."

"Xu County?"

"Xu Zhong is originally from Xu County. His family moved to this area only in his father’s generation. He has many relatives in Xu County."

Xun Zhen looked eastward.

Shijuxian laughed and said, "Don’t bother looking. He’s long gone, and you won’t catch up even on horseback."

Indeed, it would be difficult to catch him.

After crossing over, Xun Zhen found that the climate was warmer than before, and the population was sparse. The local forests and marshes were not well developed, and there were many wild trees. Beyond the fields, there was a dense forest. Next to the forest was a small hill. A river flowed through the hill, and the grass was lush where the river bent.

In such a geographical environment, even if all the people in the town were sent out, it would be hard to achieve results in a day or two.

"Does he have any other family besides his old mother? Does he have a wife and children? ... Does he have an older brother?"

"Bozhongshujiji." "Xu Zhong" means "Xu the Second," so he must have an older brother.

Shijuxian replied, "Xu Zhong is not married. As for his older brother, he did have one, but he died early, passing away a few years after birth. ... He has a younger brother."

"A younger brother?"

"Yes. But his younger brother is different; he loves reading and is gentle. ... By the way, I heard his younger brother studied in the county, and his teacher was from the same clan as the town chief."

The Xun clan produced many wise men, and many people came to study under their name. In the county alone, at least half of the scholars were from the Xun clan. Apart from being a bit surprised that a "younger brother of a knight" was so devoted to learning, Xun Zhen was not particularly surprised and asked, "Where is his younger brother now?"

"He should be at home."

"Do you know where his home is in Dongxiang Town?"

"Yes."

"Then please trouble you to lead the way and take me to his home."

"Are you going to seize his property?"

According to the law, in serious criminal cases, the wife, children, property, and land of the criminal must be seized, meaning the wife and children are implicated, and the property is confiscated.

"Seizing property is the authority of the county, not a town chief like me."

"Then are you going to his home to catch him? He definitely won’t hide there!"

Regardless of whether Xu Zhong would hide at home, to investigate the case, he had to go to his home. Xun Zhen made up an excuse and said, "His son killed someone and fled. His mother probably doesn’t know. I’ll go and comfort her."

Cheng Yan found a wooden board in the market and called two people to help carry Wang Tu’s body back to the town hall. Hearing Xun Zhen’s words, he asked, "Xun Jun, do you want me to go with you?"

"No need. Just take Wang Tu’s body to the town hall."

The two young men who were caught earlier glared at Xun Zhen with resentment.

Xun Zhen smiled at them without any concern and mounted his horse.

...

At that time, there was no concept of "village." Below the county were the townships, and depending on the size of the township, each would have several towns.

The township mainly managed the household registration, while the town managed public security. There was no hierarchical relationship between the two, both were directly under the jurisdiction of the county.

Below that was the "li," the smallest administrative unit.

Xu Zhong’s home was in "Dawang Li" of Dongxiang Town. Since it was outside his jurisdiction, Xun Zhen first went to Dongxiang Town to greet the local town chief. Unfortunately, the town chief was on leave and had gone home.

The "Qiu Dao" in the town, surnamed Cheng, was originally very enthusiastic, but upon hearing that it was about Xu Zhong and that Xu Zhong had killed someone, his face immediately turned cold. He pretended to cooperate but kept making excuses and delays, refusing to take Xun Zhen to Xu Zhong’s home.

Shijuxian whispered to Xun Zhen, "Town Chief, Xu Zhong is well-known in the township. Old Cheng is the Qiu Dao of his town, and they have a deep friendship. You can’t expect him to cooperate."

Xun Zhen made a quick decision. Since Shijuxian knew where Xu Zhong’s home was, he was not afraid of getting lost and immediately took his leave.

...

Leaving the Dongxiang Town hall and walking on the road, Xun Zhen couldn’t help but sigh.

Since crossing over, he had seen the prestige of the knights many times. There were many young knights in the city, but none could compare to Xu Zhong. Counting Shijuxian, Cheng Yan, Chen Bao, the young ruffians, and the Qiu Dao of Dongxiang Town, everyone praised and submitted to him.

He sighed and thought, "The prestige of one man, from the common people to the town hall, a small knight in a small township has such power!"

Xu Zhong’s home, "Dawang Li," was right next to the Dongxiang Town hall. After getting off the main road and turning onto the township road, they soon arrived at a settlement surrounded by wheat fields and trees.

"Lis" were mostly rectangular, some were square. To facilitate management and prevent theft, they all had walls. In the countryside, some even had moats. With walls, there were also gates for people to enter and exit. Large "lis" had four gates, small "lis" had two.

"Dawang Li" was not large, with only two gates. Shijuxian led the way, and Xun Zhen followed with his horse. They entered through the gate.

Inside the gate, two men in black were squatting in the shadows chatting. Seeing Xun Zhen and Shijuxian, they both stood up, and one of them came forward, smiling and said, "Shi Lang, why are you here?" Clearly, he knew Shijuxian.

Shijuxian ignored him and said to Xun Zhen, "Town Chief, this is Dawang Li. He is the Li Jiamen."

"Li Jiamen" was responsible for opening and closing the gate, as well as supervising the entry and exit of residents and outsiders. His position was very low.

After introducing him to Xun Zhen, Shijuxian then said to the man, "This is our town chief, Xun Jun. Xu Zhong committed a crime and killed someone. Xun Jun wants to go to his home. ... Go and notify your Li Chang quickly!"

The man was startled and said, "Xu Lang killed someone? Oh, did he kill Wang Tu? I see, no wonder he took a knife when he went out this afternoon! ... I didn’t notice it at the time, he even smiled and chatted with me!" He kept lamenting, "If I had known, I would have stopped him no matter what!"

"How can you be so talkative! Go quickly, find your Li Chang. I and Xun Jun will go to Xu’s house first."

"Yes, yes."

Shijuxian led Xun Zhen into the "li."

This was the countryside, not the county. The roads in the "lis" in the county were all straight, leading directly from one gate to the opposite gate, with residents’ houses on both sides of the straight road, "house by house, row by row," arranged very neatly.

But the roads in "Dawang Li" were neither flat nor straight. The houses by the road were not neatly arranged, some protruding forward, some set back, and some had water splashed in front of their doors, making them muddy to step on.

There were about forty to fifty households in the "li," and most of the doors were closed.

Passing by two houses with open doors, one had an old woman sitting under a tree weaving with bamboo strips; the other had two children playing with water and mud in the yard.

Seeing this, Xun Zhen, inappropriately, thought of his childhood. He remembered that when he was young, he used to play with mud and sand with his friends. Walking quietly in the "li," with yellow walls and green trees, the elderly and the young were at ease, and the sun shone on his body, giving him a sense of time and space intertwining.

...

"Town Chief, this is Xu’s house."

Shijuxian stopped in front of a house.

From the outside, the courtyard was not only small but also dilapidated.

The earthen wall was not high, not plastered with lime, and the yellow mud was exposed. The two low wooden doors had not been repaired for a long time, weathered by wind and rain, with many fine cracks, and most of the paint had peeled off, leaving black and white patches, like a large flower face.

Xu Zhong, who was famous in the countryside, had such a poor home?

This was completely different from Xun Zhen’s imagination. If it weren’t for Shijuxian leading the way, he would have thought he was in the wrong place: "Xu Zhong’s home is so dilapidated?"

"Xu Zhong likes to help others. When he hears of someone’s difficulties, he will always help with all his resources. Whenever he gets money, he leaves only enough for his old mother’s living expenses and his younger brother’s education, and the rest he gives away to help those in need. Of course, he has no extra money to repair his home."

"I see."

In Xun Zhen’s eyes, Xu Zhong’s image gradually became fuller.

"Valuing promises, filial and benevolent, well-known in the township, and quick to help those in need. Although he is just a rural knight, he cannot be underestimated. If given the opportunity, he might achieve something great." He came to Xu’s home to gather information, but now, connecting the information he had heard about Xu Zhong along the way and thinking about his grand plan, a vague idea began to form in his mind.

Shijuxian knocked on the door, and after a while, a man’s voice asked from inside, "Who is it?"

Shijuxian knew Xu Zhong and had been to his home, so he also knew his younger brother. He whispered, "This is Xu Zhong’s younger brother, Xu Ji." He then answered loudly, "It’s me, Shijuxian."

The door creaked open, and a young man came out.

Xun Zhen observed him and saw that he was about fifteen or sixteen years old, pale-faced, very short, and extremely thin. He wore a loose black scholar’s robe, and in his left hand, he held a bamboo scroll, which he had probably been reading.

"Is it you, Shi Jun? My brother is out and hasn’t returned yet. ... Who is this?"

"This is the new town chief of our town, Xun Jun. We came to see your brother. He killed Wang Tu!"

"Ah?"

"Clack," the bamboo scroll fell from Xu Ji’s hand: "Killed, killed, killed Wang Tu?"

The courtyard was too small for the horse to enter, so Xun Zhen handed the reins to Shijuxian and told him to tie it outside. He said kindly, "You don’t need to be afraid. I didn’t come to investigate the case, but to visit your mother because I heard she is old."

Xu Ji regained his composure and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Xun Jun."

Xun Zhen held him and, while bending down, picked up the bamboo scroll. A line caught his eye: "Qian: Yuan, Heng, Li, Zhen."

This was the first line of the "I Ching." He felt a sudden surge of emotion and said with a smile, "Are you reading the I Ching?" He pointed and read, "Yuan, Heng, Li, Zhen. My name is Xun Zhen, and this ‘Zhen’ comes from here."

Xu Ji, who spent most of his time in the study, was not good at socializing, and was even more flustered after hearing about his brother’s crime. He took the bamboo scroll and nodded nervously.

Xun Zhen looked at him for a moment and said, "I heard you studied under the wise men of my clan? Who was your teacher?"

"Mr. Erlong."

"Erlong" was Xun Zhen’s uncle, Xun Gun.

Xun Gun had eight brothers, all of whom were talented and were known as the "Eight Dragons." Xun Gun was the second eldest, hence he was respectfully called "Erlong." Currently, he was the most respected in the Xun clan and had the most disciples, some of whom were close students, while others were just listeners. Although Xun Zhen lived in the same "li" as him, he did not know all of his disciples. He smiled and said, "Erlong is my uncle. So, you and I are not strangers."

Xun Zhen looked around the courtyard and asked, "Is the old lady at home?"

"Yes."

"Please lead me in to meet her."

Xu Ji’s teacher was Xun Zhen’s uncle, so he could not refuse this request and had to open the door.

The courtyard was small, with three earthen houses. In the corner by the toilet, a small vegetable patch was planted, but it had not sprouted yet, and it was unclear what was planted.

The left door was half open, and there was some movement inside.

Xu Ji hesitated and said, "My mother is old and cannot bear to be startled. Xun Jun, please do not mention my brother’s matter for now. If you have any questions, ask me, and I will answer truthfully."

"Alright, alright. Don’t worry, I won’t mention it."

Xu Ji asked him to wait in the courtyard and went into the house. After a moment, he came out and invited Xun Zhen and Shijuxian in.

Xun Zhen stepped over the threshold and entered the house. It was cool inside despite the warm weather outside.

He closed his eyes to adjust to the dim light and then looked around.

The room was narrow, with a black earth floor and no tiles. It was uneven, with a wooden bed and a simple table. On the table was a pottery bowl with a broken edge, containing half a bowl of water.

There was nothing else in the room. It was truly a bare home.

An old woman was sitting on the bed, with a needle and thread and a short coat beside her. Seeing Xun Zhen and Shijuxian enter, she tried to stand up.

Xun Zhen quickly walked forward and held her down, smiling, "I am a young man, there’s no need for you to be so polite." He glanced at the needle and thread and the short coat and asked, "Are you mending clothes? The