Chapter 20: The Way of the Inferior Man

  Just then, Ding Hao, who had rushed ahead to arrange for food and lodging in the town, heard the news and hurried over. Seeing that Ding Yulou was surrounded by a group of prisoners, he immediately shouted loudly and rushed forward, stretching out his hand to pull her behind him. "What are you doing?"

  That rascal had some tender feelings towards the beautiful Ding Yuluo, but he wasn't so nice to men. As soon as he saw Ding Hao blocking his way in front of Ding Yuluo, with a rough and common appearance, he scowled and sneered: "You little brat, where did you crawl out from? Are you this young lady's lover? Young lady, I think your taste isn't very good either."

  Ding Yuluo's face turned even redder with anger after hearing that, and if Ding Hao hadn't blocked her way, she would have lashed out without thinking of the consequences. However, Ding Hao wasn't annoyed at all. Unlike Ding Yuluo, who was a young lady from a good family, he had traveled extensively throughout the country, visiting famous cities along the borders, but every trip had been carefully arranged by his family, so he didn't have to worry about food, clothing, or accommodations, let alone deal with petty characters like these. Although she claimed to have gained experience from her travels, in reality, she still lacked a lot of experience when it came to interacting with people like them.

  Ding Hao was different, before he had dealings with were all some fierce and formidable characters. He deeply understood the saying "Yan Wang is easy to see, but small ghosts are hard to deal with". When in office, one has to consider their status, and generally won't do things that are too out of line. But it's different for small-time officials. Many things can't be done properly because they are ruined by the small-time officials who work under the big shots, often because of some trivial matters.

  Those who are stiff but not flexible will find it difficult to accomplish great things. People cannot be without principles, nor can they have too many principles. At present, the biggest difficulty for the Ding family is to transport military rations to Guangyuan. This is exactly when one needs to swallow their pride and humble themselves. Even if there's some resentment, one has to endure it. If one makes a big fuss over trivial matters, that would be asking for trouble.

  So after hearing the servant's insolence, Ding Hao remained calm and unruffled, with a faint smile on his face. He took a step forward, looked up at the sky with an air of arrogance, and said: "I am just a humble servant of the Ding family, indeed not worthy of mention. But neither are you people who can humiliate me at will. The old master of the Ding family is one of the top figures in the entire Baizhou City, and he is also a frequent guest at the governor's table. What is your surname and name, what kind of person are you, dare to block my Ding family's grain cart?"

  That official didn't know what the Ding family of Bashan was, but hearing him talk nonsense, he was also a bit shocked in his heart. For a moment, he couldn't figure out how big their background was, and his heart was slightly timid. However, facing so many brothers and prisoners, he put down his own face. Thinking that Bashan and this place were separated by one county and did not belong to each other, the official's arrogant air rose, and he coldly laughed: "What about it? My lord's errand is of great importance. Now your Ding family has startled our horses, injured our people, and collided with our carriage. This case will be taken to the Golden Hall, and my lord also occupies a word of reason. Are you afraid? Will you bring out the magistrate of Bashan to pressure me? You ask for my name, and I'll tell you. My lord's name is not changed, his surname is not changed. Listen carefully, Zhao Jia bao is the head of the light mouth prison, can you bite my bird?"

  Ding Hao was well aware of the psychology of these small characters who relied on bluffing, so he first pretended to be arrogant and suppressed his domineering atmosphere. If he knew it was difficult and retreated, then that would be the end of it. If he valued his face and didn't want to back down, and still refused to give up, he must have also had the idea of letting things slide in his heart, and his next move could be used.

  Now seeing this Zhaojia Fort, it really has some color and meaning, Ding Hao suddenly showed a face of surprise, and exclaimed: "What, you... are you Zhao Dage of Zhaojia Fort?"

  Zhaojiabao was stunned by his appearance, and the rogue look on his face disappeared. He hesitated and said, "You... do you know me?"

  "I've long admired your great name, haha...!" Ding Hao walked up to him with a surprised look on his face. Zhao Da, the head of the Zhao family in Zhaojia village, was still in a daze when Ding Hao warmly put his arm around his shoulder and led him towards a small hotel nearby: "Haha, Brother Zhao, you're really something! We've made a big splash, just like a flood destroying the Dragon King Temple - one family member doesn't recognize another!"

  Zhaojiabao stuttered: "Uh... this brother... do we know each other?"

  Ding Hao entered the tavern, ordered a few dishes and a jug of wine, and pressed Zhaojiabao into his seat. With a warm smile, he said: "Brother Zhao, you don't recognize me, do you?"

  "Ah!"

  "But I know you, Shallow Mouth is under the jurisdiction of Fei Xiang County, and that county magistrate of Fei Xiang... Hehehe... Hahaha..."

  Zhaojiabao's buttocks tightened, and he quickly stood up, squeezing his buttocks and saying: "You... are you a relative of the county's Wudafu?"

  Ding Hao hastily pulled him down to sit, laughing: "Not so, not so, this Wu Daren... County Magistrate Zhao Jie of Linqing County, have you heard of him? Ah, haven't heard of him? No, no, the former County Magistrate has retired and returned to his hometown. Nowadays, the County Magistrate of Linqing is surnamed Zhao and named Jie. Mr. Zhao and I are on brotherly terms, just a few days ago, we drank together at the same table. My younger brother said that he wanted to send grain to Guangyuan, and Mr. Zhao specifically mentioned your county's Wu County Magistrate, saying that they were close friends who knew each other well. If I have any business, I can ask County Magistrate Wu to take care of it."

  Ding Hao continued, "Although Magistrate Zhao has just taken office, he is well-acquainted with the people of Feixiang because of his close relationship with the county lieutenant. At the banquet, he even mentioned your brother's great name, saying that your brother handled the Shallow Mouth case and the local villains fled in fear. He is a hero of the region, but unfortunately, there are no capable brothers under his command, which is a pity. I have always been fond of befriending heroic figures, and when Magistrate Zhao praised your brother so highly, I couldn't help but look up to him with admiration. As it turns out, my wish has come true after just a few days, and I finally get to meet your brother."

  "Oh......" Zhaojiabao forced a smile and smiled at him, suddenly his extortionist turned into his good friend and admirer who was infatuated with him, Zhaojiabao couldn't adapt to his new identity for a while.

  Ding Yuluo, a group of attendants and shallow mouthed jailers, stood shoulder to shoulder outside, looking at the two people clinking cups in the small wine shop with a puzzled expression, as if they were brothers who had been separated for many years. If it weren't for everyone knowing that Ding Hao had never left the Ding family's courtyard all his life, they would have really thought these two were long lost siblings.

  Ding Hao filled a cup of wine for Zhaojiabao and said with a smile: "This time, brother is sending grain to the Guangyuan army. If the grain is delivered late and misses the military's major event, brother can't bear it. Otherwise, I'd like to stay here with Brother Zhao for a few more days. Next time, next time there's an opportunity, brother will treat Zhao brother well, how can we drink in such a shabby place?"

  He took a glance outside and looked at the several knife-wearing runners, asking Zhao Jia Bao: "Brother Zhao, are those knife-wearing runners also regular constables?"

  The term "Jingzheng Zhengyi" was something he had heard from Zhao County Magistrate when he was in Qing Shui Town, and now it just so happened that he could use it to show off his familiarity with the affairs of the yamen. Jingzheng Zhengyi referred to the constables who were on the official payroll of the imperial court. In a county government office, there were three types of yamen runners: the "Zhuangban", the "Huangban" and the "Kuaiban". Among them, the real "constables" were not many. Generally, a real constable would be assisted by two deputy runners, each of whom had six or seven "helpers" and "assistants" under him. In total, a constable was in charge of over a dozen people, and such a constable was considered a Jingzheng Zhengyi constable.

  Zhaojiabao was fooled by Ding Hao's nonsense, and it seemed like there wasn't a single person in Feixiang County that he didn't know. Up and down, left and right, he could find connections everywhere, almost as if he was the honored guest of the county magistrate himself. Zhaojiabao nodded subconsciously while trying to digest Ding's words.

  Ding Hao beckoned with his hand and called out in a soft voice: "Xiao Luo, come over here for a moment."

  Several people outside were stunned, looked at each other after hearing this, and no one moved.

  Ding Hao shouted again: "Xiao Luo, I'm calling you, come in for a moment. Zhao is a straightforward and generous man, not a ferocious tiger that eats people, what are you afraid of?"

  Seeing him beckoning to himself, Ding Yuluo looked around in confusion, pointing at his own nose and stuttering: "He... who is he calling?"

  The little piggy said with a mouthful of food: "Big sister, Ah-Dai seems to be calling you..."

  Several staff members looked at Ding Yuluo. To their surprise, Miss Ding didn't blow up; she hesitated for a moment and then actually walked away obediently, leaving the staff members wide-eyed in astonishment.

  Zhao's eyes swept over Ding Yuluo, who was walking towards him with a slightly awkward expression, and he asked with a sly smile: "Who is this little girl to Brother Ding?" His eyebrows jumped up lightly after he finished asking.

  "He is my sister-in-law."

  "Ah!" Zhao Jiabao suddenly pulled back his flirtatious face, sat up straight and proper, looking even more solemn than the local earth god in a ruined temple.

  "Ah, Xiao Luo, this Brother Zhao is the one that County Magistrate Zhao mentioned. We're all our own people, so we won't hold any grudges over the slight misunderstandings from earlier. However, Brother Zhao's men injured a few of our brothers, and we can't make things difficult for him. Go fetch two silver ingots and let Brother Zhao buy our brothers a drink. The problem is... those several dozen jars of pickled vegetables that were smashed, I don't know if the small shops in this town have enough stock to replace them... it's quite a tricky situation..."

  Zhaojiabao hastily stood up and said with a smile, "Ding younger brother, aren't you making things difficult for me? We're all brothers, can't I handle such a small matter?"

  He picked up a cup of wine and drank it in one gulp, tightened his belt, walked out of the hotel with big strides, stood under the eaves, waved his hand and said loudly: "You bunch of thieving soldiers, what are you standing there for? Are you waiting for me to invite you to a feast? You should be eating 'dismissal rice' instead! Hurry up and pick up the salted vegetables, what will you eat when you're in prison?"

  Ding Hao gave Ding Yuluo a look, and Ding Yuluo understood. He took out two silver ingots again, and Ding Hao grabbed them, rushed to Zhao's house, and handed them over, saying: "I appreciate Brother Zhao's kindness. This silver is not for you, but for the officials who were affected by the accident. The Ding family has 200 large carts and thousands of people, and we still haven't found a suitable place to settle in town. I have to go back to town to take care of things, so I won't be able to host a banquet to apologize to the officials personally. Please help me host a banquet for them with this silver."

  "Look what you're saying, this...this...that brother is going to be in trouble." Zhaojiapu somewhat embarrassedly put away the silver and casually said: "This Huanshui Town is poor, but it's a big place. The huge mansion of Zhuang Baozheng's family, with thirty mu of land enclosed behind the house, can't even accommodate your two hundred carts?"

  Ding Hao sighed and said: "I've been to see Chao Baozheng, but he refused to lend it to me. Even if I offered him silver to rent it, he still wouldn't agree."

  Zhao Jia Bao burst out laughing, looking up at the sky, and coldly said: "Old man Chui has a big temper! Don't worry, brother will go with you to borrow. He'll have to lend whether he wants to or not, and we won't give him a single penny. If he doesn't agree, I won't leave today. We'll take these 110 prisoners to his house, eat at his house, drink at his house, and watch his family. Even if we don't kill them, it will still show off my brother's abilities!"