Chapter Three: Ruthless Villains Devouring Men

Gu Zhengchen was well aware that in a feudal dynasty, those at the bottom were nothing more than ants, and ants didn’t even have the right to struggle!

This was the Hongwu Dynasty!

To be a commoner?

One would face endless forced labor: building city walls, repairing rivers, transporting grain, countless taxes and levies. Even though Gu Zhengchen held the degree of a provincial graduate, exempting him from corvée labor, he could not protect himself, let alone his family!

To be a merchant?

Old Zhu despised merchants. At this moment, Shen Xiaosan was probably helping Old Zhu repair the city walls of Nanjing. In just a few years, this fellow would fall from grace, dragging along the wealthy gentry and landlords in droves.

Moreover, when the Guo Huan case erupted, those with abundant wealth and land were swept away completely. Being a merchant would be a perilous path...

If one wished to become a fierce beast capable of self-protection, the only way was to enter officialdom.

Gu Zhengchen gazed up into the vast sky, his face grave.

The official career path in the Hongwu era was nearly synonymous with a death sentence.

The infamous Four Great Cases of the Hongwu reign had yet to unfold, but within three years, the Empty Seal Case would ignite a bloody slaughter. To survive one bloody storm after another, amidst flashing swords and blades, required not only intelligence and skill, but also luck...

But could one truly rely on luck?

Though he was familiar with Ming history and could navigate its tides to avoid disaster, this was a dance on the edge of a knife—one misstep and one’s head would roll!

Yet, there was no other path. To avoid humiliation, one had to wield power. That was the sole rule of the feudal age!

Now, with the imperial examinations abolished, the only way to enter officialdom, shed the status of “half-commoner,” and step into the resounding officialdom of the Hongwu era was one:

To receive the “recommendation” of the county magistrate or the county school instructor of Teng County.

But Gu Zhengchen was a typical bookworm, taught by his father Gu Hui to read and write. He neither knew the instructor nor had he ever ingratiated himself with the magistrate. Passing the provincial exam was mostly a result of persistent attempts, a case of “filling the quota.” To gain the favor and recommendation of the magistrate or instructor was nearly impossible.

No way out?

Then he would have to blaze a trail through thorns and brambles!

But first, he had to settle his debts. With only seven days left, failing to repay meant a lifetime of farming the Wang family’s land.

Seven days, six guan of silver!

This was no easy task.

Gu Zhengchen bid farewell to the neighbors to avoid worrying his mother by returning home too early, then left with Gu Qingqing.

Dayan Village lay four li north of Teng County’s city. From Dayan Village, a footpath led to Sanli River. Crossing the bridge, they entered a broad but uneven official road.

Gu Qingqing glanced at Gu Zhengchen, who was staring at the road, and asked, “Brother, what’s wrong?”

Gu Zhengchen’s gaze shifted from near to far, frowning as he looked at the pothole-ridden official road. “I recall that as early as the first year of the Hongwu reign, the court began establishing relay stations and repairing official roads. Why is this road in such poor condition?”

Gu Qingqing looked down at the path and said, “The road has been repaired, but after rain it becomes muddy. With carts, horses, and pedestrians, potholes are inevitable.”

Gu Zhengchen nodded, a faint smile crossing his lips. “If only there were asphalt or concrete roads.”

“Asphalt? Concrete?” Gu Qingqing blinked in confusion.

Gu Zhengchen smiled and shook his head, pointing toward the distant county town. “Nothing. Let’s go into town and take a look.”

Upon the official road, villagers carried burdens, firewood, and baskets in and out of the city. Traveling merchants led small donkeys laden with goods traveling north and south.

Teng County was a small town, its one-zhang-high city wall worn with the weight of history. The patrolling soldiers were lenient. At this time, Old Zhu had yet to enforce the travel permit system, so entering and leaving the city was relatively easy.

“Brother, where are we going?”

Once inside, Gu Qingqing asked, observing the lively street.

Gu Zhengchen thought of Teng County’s layout, then glanced at the single copper coin in his hand and said helplessly, “Let’s find a tea stall to rest.”

“Tea?” Gu Qingqing winced. This was the two-fen coin their mother had given her when Gu Zhengchen passed the provincial exam. Now her brother was going to spend it on water? Such extravagance...

Gu Zhengchen didn’t want to, either. But he had no knowledge of Teng County’s prominent families or their preferences; how else could he court wealthy households and earn six guan silver?

Later market wisdom told him:

To succeed, one must research thoroughly to target precisely.

To prosper, one must cater to their tastes.

The first step to making money was gathering information.

On the street, many laborers and porters stopped by tea stalls to rest and quench their thirst with a cup of tea.

In the fourth lunar month, the weather was growing warm.

Gu Zhengchen chose a spot inside to sit. Gu Qingqing, unwilling to spend a single coin on tea, sat quietly watching.

“This tea’s been steeped too long; it tastes bitter.”

Gu Zhengchen sipped silently.

The chatter revolved mostly around mundane family matters. To their surprise, some spoke of the Battle of Lingbei, stirring sighs among the crowd.

The Battle of Lingbei occurred last year, the fifth year of Hongwu, later called the Second Northern Expedition of the Hongwu Emperor by historians.

Zhu Yuanzhang had dispatched generals Xu Da, Li Wenzhong, and Feng Sheng, each commanding fifty thousand cavalry, attacking the Yuan court on three fronts. The emperor hoped to crush the enemy in one decisive battle and secure the northern Mongolian deserts forever. But in reality, Xu Da’s main central force was utterly defeated; Li Wenzhong’s eastern army met mixed results; only Feng Sheng’s western army claimed victory.

Xu Da’s defeat cost over ten thousand lives and many horses, forcing Ming into a defensive posture. For the next eight years, they had to lick their wounds and rebuild strength.

“I heard the court might require commoners to raise horses…”

“How could commoners possibly raise horses? If they die, won’t they have to pay compensation?”

“Shh, be careful. Court matters are not for us to discuss. Have you heard? The Liang family elder recently celebrated his sixty-sixth birthday. The opera troupe performed for three days straight, and he even took the stage himself to sing, ha ha…”

“An opera fanatic?”

Gu Zhengchen held the tea bowl in his left hand, his right hand resting on the table. When he heard about the Liang elder’s antics, his right middle finger tapped twice swiftly on the table.

Gu Qingqing, bored, watched her brother’s right hand tapping and silently counted, “One, two…”

The townsfolk’s gossip was endless: how Master Sun could not be happy without sweets each day, how the widow of the Wang family stayed at home, the Sun family arranged a marriage, or how the Hu family butcher sold a few pounds of meat...

“Has the Gu family been kneeling outside the Zhao family’s door for two days now? That old Zhao is so heartless, not even letting them in. Bah, what kind of in-laws are they!”

“They’re not really in-laws yet. Gu Zhengchen only promised to marry the third Miss Zhao; the wedding hasn’t happened.”

“Does the Zhao family dare to break the engagement?”

“So what if they do? I heard Gu Zhengchen, the provincial graduate, has gone mad. If the Zhao family breaks the engagement, it’s just fifty lashes and some money. Even those fifty lashes can be waived...”

Gu Qingqing looked at Gu Zhengchen, whose face was as dark as stormy water, and softly called, “Brother.”

Gu Zhengchen narrowed his eyes slightly, handed the copper coin to the clerk, pocketed the change, and stood. He said, “Sister, have you heard this poem? ‘One must not act with a dishonest heart; gods watch from three feet above. If evil deeds go unpunished, the world becomes a place where monsters devour men!’”

Gu Qingqing shook her head, never having heard it, but she could feel her brother’s deep anger.

After Gu Zhengchen and Gu Qingqing left the tea stall, a refined middle-aged man stared after Gu Zhengchen’s departing figure and asked the white-bearded elder before him, “‘If evil deeds go unpunished, the world becomes a place where monsters devour men!’ Such fierce words... Instructor Xu, do you know who that man is?”