San’an returned to relay the news to Qin San Lang, whose expression finally eased a bit.

Hmph, Zhou Erlang got off easy. If it weren’t for being tied down now, he would definitely give him a lesson himself.

Bang, bang, bang!

Bang, bang, bang!

"Open the door quickly, we want to see Lord County Magistrate, we want to see Lord County Magistrate!"

"Wuu wuu wuu, Lord County Magistrate, you cannot ignore us, we truly do not have enough silver to pay the tax, give us a way to live!"

San’an was stunned by these voices and asked, "Master, have all the villagers arrived?"

When he left, no one was beating the drum to complain.

Qin San Lang nodded and instructed, "You go back to the village first, follow Brother An in the meantime, and ensure his safety." 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

As for Xiao Yu, he had already arranged for You An to take people back to protect her; even if surrounded by villagers, Xiao Yu would remain unharmed.

And with You Ping’s group by his side, it was enough.

Though San’an didn’t want to leave and wished to stay to help Qin San Lang, he knew the importance of Gu Jin’an. If something happened to him, the Gu Family would be doomed, so he clasped his fists and said, "Understood."

After speaking, his figure quickly disappeared.

...

At the entrance of the county government, countless villagers were kneeling, at least a few hundred, with more reportedly flooding into the county city to seek justice from Lord County Magistrate.

The villagers were mostly the elderly and children, and some families even brought coffins and grass mats, with people wearing mourning clothes and having white cloth wrapped around their heads...

Luo Wu frowned tightly; the villagers came with a determination to die to plead with Lord County Magistrate.

He recalled the time in the Northwest when there was a drought, grain yields were nonexistent, and even getting water became difficult. The elders of the village, along with those from the nearby villages, also brought children to kneel in the county city, begging Lord County Magistrate for survival.

He had also followed his father, Third Grandpa, and Third Grandma, but couldn’t proceed before reaching the county city, stopping in front of a vast crowd. Everyone was so starved they looked like skin-wrapped bones, with many fainting due to dehydration, and some elders and children dying of thirst directly on the road to the county city.

However, Lord County Magistrate did not see them but ordered the gates closed, preventing them from entering the county city.

But Third Grandpa and Third Grandma refused to give up, saying that Lord County Magistrate would care for his reputation and upon seeing so many elders and children seeking help, he would meet them for his reputation and offer a word of hope.

Unfortunately, the County Magistrate of Gaoshui County in Northwest Long’an Prefecture was a coward, lacking the courage to come out to see the villagers.

A few days later, they heard the news that Lord County Magistrate resigned to return home with his family... He was so frightened that he directly resigned and fled.

The people of Gaoshui County despaired, knowing that with the County Magistrate fleeing, staying meant a dead end, prompting them to flee famine.

Their village, too, under Village Chief Gu, embarked on the long journey of escaping famine.

With a bang, Qin San Lang’s hand forcefully landed on Luo Wu’s shoulder, saying, "Brother Luo Wu."

Luo Wu snapped back to reality from the slap, wiped the sweat off his face, looked back at Qin San Lang and said, "Don’t worry, I won’t lose my mind."

After arriving in the county, the first thing San Lang did was not to see County Magistrate Zheng, but to find him and say a few words.

Luo Wu remembered and promised him that he wouldn’t act impulsively for his family.

At the time, San Lang nodded and said, "Since Brother Luo Wu says so, I’m relieved... Remember, this isn’t your fault, it’s just being compelled by the circumstances. Don’t see it as a bad thing because if we don’t handle this matter, someone else will, and others might be even more ruthless. By doing it ourselves, we can still protect the villagers somewhat."

This situation could be adaptable; they could fulfill their duties while assisting the villagers.

"Company Commander Qin, it’s Company Commander Qin!" The villagers, upon seeing Qin San Lang, all gathered around him, crying out, "Company Commander Qin, you have to speak to Lord County Magistrate for us; otherwise, we’re doomed!"

Qin San Lang was different from Luo Wu; he was a ranked Company Commander, already considered an official, so the villagers, upon seeing him, approached him eagerly, as if seeing County Magistrate Jiang, to plead with him.

Qin San Lang’s expression remained unchanged as he addressed everyone, "Fellow villagers, Lord County Magistrate has been busy dealing with tax matters lately and has no time to see you. You’d better return for now, and when the new bank opens in a few days, you’ll be able to borrow silver to pay the tax."

The news that the county was opening a new bank specifically to lend money to farmers for paying tax had spread almost everywhere after a day and night of dissemination.

However...

"Pah! What new bank, just trying to eat up our interest!" An old man stood up, spat toward Qin San Lang, and said, "We came today to have Lord County Magistrate revoke the decision, not to wait around to borrow money to pay the tax. One tael of silver for Kangrong tax, how dare you even think of it? We won’t pay; we’d rather die than pay!"

The old man was Elder Shi from Shishan Village in Xianggui Town. His family was not struggling financially, with thirty acres of dry land, twenty acres of paddy fields, and a general store, making them well-off.

The reason they were causing trouble at the government office was to avoid paying the tax while profiting from the situation.

Upon Elder Shi’s words, a group immediately stood up, pointed at Qin San Lang and cursed, "Yes, we won’t pay. Why should we pay such high taxes? One tael per person, they might as well kill us directly!"

Bai Changfu, living outside the county in Bai Village, questioned, "Ha, claiming it’s Lord Emperor’s order, I suspect it’s Lord County Magistrate’s own intention, collecting so much silver; Lord County Magistrate could pocket quite a bit!"

He then pointed at Qin San Lang and his group, saying, "And you, the county’s lackeys, you definitely stand to gain as well!"

Their words immediately incited the remaining hundreds of villagers, who all erupted, looking at Qin San Lang and asking, "Company Commander Qin, is what they’re saying true? Is it really just Lord County Magistrate trying to get rich by purposely imposing such high taxes?"

Fools!

The word surfaced in Qin San Lang’s mind as he glanced at the agitated crowd of villagers and then looked away, pointing at Bai Changfu, who was speaking, as well as Elder Shi who spoke initially: "Arrest both of them and bind them to the stone pillars at the government gate for public display!"

What?

Elder Shi and Bai Changfu were frightened, and upon reacting, they pointed at Qin San Lang and cursed, "Qin, what right do you have to punish us?!"

They then shouted to the surrounding villagers, "Villagers, save us; this government lackey Qin is trying to punish us illegally, intending to silence us for revenge!"

No matter how they shouted, Qin San Lang remained unmoved, staring at them coldly, and as they shouted boisterously, he added a sneer, "Ha."

It’s laughable to try to stir up trouble with such petty tricks. If they succeeded, he wouldn’t need to remain as Company Commander.