C18 The Flowers Had Withered away Last Night and the Strings Were Broken but the Song Was Still in t
The Rage Bar is an essential Divine Artifact. If it's boosted by 100%, then I could use it indefinitely, right? The system seems to take its role seriously, training the host to be an effective Captor. But is this system good or bad? If I fail a mission, I lose access to the system altogether. How am I supposed to get by then? It's not doling out any Righteousness Coins, which suggests this mission isn't exactly noble. At least they're not stingy with the money." Jia Jiucheng pondered.
The system showed no signs of releasing its grip on Jia Jiucheng.
Before long, the village official scurried over to inquire about the situation, which Worker Zhang promptly clarified. Subsequently, the villagers assembled in the central playground.
"The new decree calls for the strictest laws, standards, supervision, punishments, and accountability," they announced.
Jia Jiucheng thought, "What a load of hot air. Even advertisements wouldn't dare to claim 'the most' anymore. Yet the laws of the Song Dynasty have the audacity to use that term."
"Under the strictest pharmaceutical law to date, Article 1891, any employee involved in producing counterfeit medicine will be fined ten times their monthly wage. If the amount is less than 10,000 yuan, the fine will be rounded up to 10,000 yuan. This represents the harshest penalty for counterfeit medicine."
"It has been confirmed that last year, Rejuvenation Hall in Dingyuan's West Market was operating with expired credentials. They failed to renew them but continued to manufacture drugs, which constitutes unlicensed production and is illegal.
During the operation of their medicine production, you continued to supply them with herbs. Even though you never visited the West Market, Rejuvenation Hall's contract for purchasing your harvested herbs, which you also initially processed, makes you complicit as their employees. Therefore, you are subject to a fine of 100,000 yuan. We discussed this with you six months ago, and recently, county officials also clarified this matter to you."
An elder in the crowd, dressed in a traditional long robe, spoke up: "How could that cursed Zhou Fu operate without a license? When we first partnered, he presented valid documents. We had no idea they had expired. How can you hold us responsible?"
"We conduct our business with integrity, never once deceiving anyone throughout the generations. Our noble deeds involve selling medicine to heal the sick. Why then are we facing such misfortune?" Many in the crowd voiced their agreement.
"How could I possibly know if someone's certificate has expired if they don't show it to me? That's not within our purview!"
Worker Zhang remarked, "In recent years, the pharmaceutical sector has been plagued with major issues, constantly facing scrutiny. The reforms by Prime Minister Wang Anshi and Great Official Fan Zhongyan had little impact. The current Prodigal Prime Minister, Lee Bangyan, has openly shared his life's dreams: to appreciate every flower under the heavens, to kick every ball in the world, to serve in every official capacity, and to enact the strictest laws."
Worker Zhang continued, "To eradicate the sale of counterfeit medicine, we must implement the strictest standards, systems, supervision, and punishments in history! We should err on the side of caution, even if it means punishing a thousand innocents rather than letting one culprit go free. This will put an end to the counterfeit medicine trade! These are the words of the Prodigal Prime Minister, and I have faith that his vision will come to fruition. Remember, you work for your employer and get paid, but you're not held liable for their actions. It's up to you to be vigilant and to report any wrongdoing!"
Upon hearing this, Jia Jiucheng reflected on the age-old issue of fraud, which wasn't limited to the pharmaceutical industry. If someone during the Northern Song Dynasty had actually accomplished such a feat, it would have been a truly singular achievement. Yet no historical record of such an event exists. Ultimately, whether the standards and systems are the best in history is a matter that goes unexamined. By shifting the burden of oversight to the artisans and the common people, lawmakers and enforcers have cleverly reduced their own responsibilities while adding to the public's. It's a clever move indeed!
Worker Zhang added, "You've been made well aware of the new law's objectives. You didn't take it seriously when we emphasized the importance of cracking down on this issue. While Boss Zhou Fu may pay you, he won't be held accountable for your actions, nor will he pay your fines or serve your jail time. Therefore, it's essential that you monitor the situation closely and report any infractions promptly. I've mentioned this to you several times before."
"The aim of the new law is to spur everyone into action, ensuring that we can completely eradicate fraud. Have you complied? No? Then it's only fair that you face the consequences!"
The elder from Changsha pressed on, "Isn't this just a blatant scam? You officials recruit people, but do you really think your subordinates can investigate their superiors? And report them? If someone were to do that, would you ever allow them to hold office again? Reporting must be done in person, and once it's done, you always seem to leak the information. The whole world finds out, and that person's career in public service is over. Worker Zhang, who would hire such a person as a captor?"
Another man from the crowd spoke up, "You officials preach loyalty and filial piety first, but then you expect us to supervise, investigate, and report. The laws you enact are heartless. You impose on us what you wouldn't want for yourselves. If we don't comply, we're hit with exorbitant fines. Instead of addressing the root of the problem, you offload the burden of oversight onto us. The common folk are kept in the dark, and those in the know are too scared to speak up because of confidentiality agreements and the requirement for real names. How can we jeopardize our livelihoods and our futures?"
"Whether we go left or right, it's a dead end. Why must you corner us ordinary citizens like this?" someone in the crowd exclaimed in frustration.
Worker Zhang interjected, "Enough arguing, let's not talk anymore."
Seeing the situation, the eldest senior brother, Geh Yuanliang, added, "I'm sorry, but ignorance doesn't absolve you of responsibility! The law is clear, and today we're merely here to enforce it."
"Official, this is unjust! We don't have that kind of money, not even if we sold our children!" The residents of Sunny Wind Village might have had modest savings, but 100,000 was an astronomical sum. In those days, money was valuable, and the cost of living was low. A rural house could cost a few thousand, and with tens of thousands, one could buy a decent four-courtyard home in Dingyuan. Jia Jiucheng's current residence was worth between 20,000 to 40,000, and a new one would likely cost between 50,000 to 60,000.
Rejuvenation Hall functioned much like a modern-day factory, requiring vast quantities of medicinal herbs. Consequently, each family had a contract with them. Unlike contemporary Western medicine, these herbs needed to be processed promptly to retain their potency, employing a variety of techniques such as steaming, frying, grilling, calcining, refining, boiling, simmering, burning, chopping, grinding, mincing, pasting, washing with wine, decocting with wine, boiling with wine, soaking in water, washing with soup, scraping the skin, removing the core, trimming the wings, plucking feathers, and drying with water.
If the herbs weren't processed timely, it was difficult to obtain high-quality materials. The desired effects varied, and each hall's formulas were closely guarded secrets, hence the contracts. A slight increase in payment was customary, but poor performance could lead to deductions. In this way, every household became "helpers" in name for Rejuvenation Hall.
Yet, in Sunny Wind Village, with its hundred-plus households, no matter how little one earned, fines were calculated as if one made ten thousand, with a tenfold penalty. This meant each household could owe a hundred thousand, amounting to a staggering ten million in total. This was, by far, the strictest law in history; not even selling off all of Sunny Wind Village's land would cover the debt.
"Sir, we've been wronged. We'll have no more dealings with him."
"We don't have that kind of money! Can't you lessen the fine a bit?"
The villagers began to plead en masse, with over four to five hundred people throughout the village imploring for leniency.
"Enough with the excuses. We are here to carry out the law. Anyone who interferes is committing an act of rebellion, and rebellion is punishable by the execution of one's entire family."
The villagers looked on in stunned silence at the five Captors, too afraid to speak. The women started to weep, their sobs echoing through the air, while the children, seeing the adults cry, joined in with their own cries. The men, heartbroken yet unable to voice their distress, knew that these five Captors represented the might of the Imperial Court. To defy them meant ruin and devastation. Tears welled up in their eyes, but they fought to hold them back. Some turned away, discreetly wiping their eyes.
Worker Zhang had summoned fifty Village Soldiers to collect money and keep the accounts. They searched each house, seizing any money, valuables, and essentials like firewood, rice, oil, salt, and medicinal herbs from both inside the homes and the outdoor stalls.
Some men barred the doors, refusing entry, but upon seeing this, Worker Zhang commanded his men to attack with iron rulers and wooden clubs. The men twisted and writhed on the ground, howling in pain.
"You can't take everything! What will we have left to eat?" a woman cried out, clinging to a rice jar. Bamboo Leaf Qing ordered her men to pry her away, but she held on tight until her fingers were struck with the iron ruler, eliciting screams of agony.
"What will we live on?" The air was filled with lamentations, as each family grappled with their suffering.
The Captor's insults, the Village Soldiers' cries, the women's and children's wails, and the men's angry groans merged into a cacophonous symphony that pierced every nerve in Jia Jiucheng.
The people's despair, their outrage at the devouring law, the callousness of the law enforcers indifferent to human life, the children's and women's cries, the men's eyes filled with loathing—all fueled a raging fire in Jia Jiucheng's heart.
After the looting, Xiao Shaomei led fifty Village Soldiers to report back to Worker Zhang.
"How did it go?"
"We took everything that could be taken, pricing it all at the market's lowest rates. We seized money, grain, household items, and more, but it's still not enough. Some only had twenty to thirty thousand, far from the hundred thousand needed."
"Master, I call you master! Have we been too cruel? We've taken everything. How will the common folk survive?"
"The law dictates that enforcement is carried out without the people's consent, seizing all private property for debt repayment."
"We didn't write the law; it was the scholars. We are merely the executors. We follow the letter of the law. To do a job, we must do it well."
"Demolish the house, strip away the wooden planks. Regardless, we must enforce the order. We'll seize as much as he owns!"
The third senior brother glanced at the dazed new Captor and scolded, "Jia Jiucheng, you good-for-nothing, why are you just standing there? Either get to beating people or start demolishing the house. Take down those wooden planks and sell them off!"
"To tear down or not? To smash or not?" He was torn between two thoughts. Demolishing the house would leave the common folk without shelter or money, unable to rebuild, exposed to the elements day and night. The thought of the elderly and children suffering was even more heartbreaking.
But if he didn't follow through, he wouldn't last in the yamen. Without his job, he'd be cast aside by the system. How would he survive, let alone think of the future?
Now, even with some strength, faced with the harsh reality and the overwhelming presence of the government, if the Ogre Empire invaded like the Jin Country did in history, Jia Jiucheng would be as insignificant as an ant in the face of greater calamity, powerless to resist.
So...
