I Became the Eldest Daughter of a Fallen Family - Chapter 51

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 51. Paying Taxes (2)
“Well, it’s nothing serious.”
Wi Jung cleared his throat lightly.
“To ensure the safety of the drinking water source, I’d like to install reservoirs in each village using that Water Conduit System your household installed. I was hoping to adapt it, and I wondered if I might trouble you for some advice on the matter.”
He seemed to force a more relaxed expression, but his tension showed through—his fan moved constantly in his hands.
Yet from So Yeon-hui’s perspective, the request was simpler than she’d expected.
‘A Water Conduit System is just bamboo with holes drilled through it and connected together. Why would he need advice? Anyone could figure it out at a glance.’
But if he meant a Water Tap rather than the system itself, then the construction method became more complex and advice might actually be necessary.
Still, how could she refuse when he offered to solve their complicated tax problems? If the County Magistrate himself took the matter in hand, her father’s chances of being conscripted for corvée labor would shrink considerably.
So Yeon-hui carefully composed her expression and spoke.
“If it’s for the safety of the drinking water source, well, that’s hardly a problem.”
So Yeon-hui nodded plainly.
“I shall be glad to help.”
“You’ve made the right choice!”
Wi Jung’s face brightened with a smile as he continued.
“I shall ensure the So household’s taxes are arranged with the utmost care going forward, without a single discrepancy!”
Just then, servants appeared carrying stacks of Bamboo Records related to the taxes. Wi Jung promptly seized the seat where the junior clerk had been sitting.
“Ahem! My throat’s parched—bring me some tea. And fetch a chair for this young lady.”
“Yes, at once, Your Excellency!”
The junior clerk dashed away, visibly tensed.
In the meantime, Wi Jung unrolled the bamboo records and began scanning through the population register and tax accounts of Mangok Village. Soon his gaze came to a halt on one particular section.
“You truly paid the Communal Land Tax?”
“Yes, of course. The So household’s share of communal land was ten acres, and father began cultivating it immediately upon his arrival here. The entire village can attest to it.”
“And on top of that, you came here because you were told to pay an additional five measures of rice as Household Tax?”
“As you can see.”
Wi Jung’s expression shifted to something between disbelief and bemusement. So Yeon-hui felt a chill run through her—something was gravely wrong.
In the distance, a junior clerk came running with a teacup, and beside him, the Local Administrator Wang Saekbu hurried along, flustered.
So Yeon-hui pressed her lips shut. Now that she thought of it, Wang Saekbu and the village headman Wang shared the same clan name.
“My lord! How did such an esteemed official come to this humble place! Had you given word beforehand, I would have gone to greet you myself!”
Wang Saekbu bowed deeply, his hands clasped together in obeisance. Wi Jung looked down at him coldly.
“Inspections are properly conducted without warning. Otherwise, the records submitted above and the actual circumstances diverge.”
“Surely that couldn’t be the case?”
Wang Saekbu’s expression shifted, and he raised his voice as if to sound solemn.
“I, Wang, swear to heaven that I conduct all matters with absolute integrity and fairness!”
“We shall see what the documents reveal.”
Wi Jung turned his head away as if he had no need to listen, and fixed his gaze on So Yeon-hui.
“Miss So, according to the records, the So household owns no land in Mangok Village.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Wi Jung turned the bamboo record so So Yeon-hui could see it.
“Look here. This is the roster of all those who share the nine hundred acres of land in Mangok Village. At a glance, the So household’s name is nowhere to be found, yes? To pay the Communal Land Tax, one must own at least a single acre within the village. Since the So household owns no land in the village, there is no principle reason for you to cultivate communal fields.”
Then… who had her father been working for all this time?
Her head went blank. Wi Jung unrolled another bamboo record beside him and let out a scoff as if the matter were beneath contempt.
“I knew it. I knew something like this would happen.”
He gestured toward his guards.
“Seize Wang Saekbu at once, and send men to Mangok Village to bring the headman Wang here!”
“Your Excellency! How—why would you—Your Excellency!”
Wang Saekbu cried out in panic, at a complete loss.
But what good were protests against an order already given? He was dragged away by the guards, each seizing an arm.
Even as he thrashed and struggled, he kept bowing—a pitiful sight that set the onlookers whispering to one another.
Wi Jung rose from his seat. He dusted off his sleeves lightly and turned to So Yeon-hui with a faint smile.
“It seems the processing of this matter will take somewhat longer. Shall we step inside?”
So Yeon-hui hesitated for a moment. But the bargain was already struck, and it was Wi Jung before her who now held the thread that would unravel her family’s tax troubles.
‘I should follow and see where this leads.’
She nodded quietly.
* * *
Wi Jung made Wang Chun-bae kneel beside the torture frame.
By fortune or misfortune, the village headman had been absent, so his son Wang Chun-bae had come in his stead. The young man seemed unaware that Wang Saekbu had been thrown into the lockup—he reeked of wine and trembled as he sweated profusely, as if he’d been dragged here while drunk and causing trouble somewhere.
His pathetic appearance was enough to turn anyone’s stomach.
So Yeon-hui stood at a distance, watching quietly, when Wi Jung finally spoke.
“So you are the son of Mangok Village’s headman?”
“Yes, yes! That is correct. I am Wang Chun-bae, son of the Mangok Village headman.”
“Nothing to be alarmed about.”
Wi Jung smiled slightly and lowered his voice conversationally.
“I have simply summoned you to ask a few questions. ……How many acres of land does your household possess in Mangok Village?”
“I believe it is around three hundred acres, Your Excellency. The three households of the Wang clan each cultivate one hundred acres.”
“Is that so?”
Wi Jung raised an eyebrow slightly.
“What I have heard differs somewhat. According to what I’m told, nearly half of Mangok Village’s land belongs to the Wang clan. If that were true, there would be at least one hundred fifty acres unaccounted for.”
Wang Chun-bae’s face went ashen in an instant.
“That couldn’t possibly be! We only cultivate the land granted by the state, and we… yes, that’s right! We simply reclaimed some barren land—untilled hills and such—to increase our yields. The state grants a three-year tax exemption on newly reclaimed land, does it not?”
“Is that so?”
Wi Jung’s expression grew brighter.
“You reclaimed one hundred fifty acres of barren land? What commendable industry. I should offer my praise.”
Wang Chun-bae quickly gauged the mood and gave a servile, nervous laugh.
“Well, yes, that… that’s correct.”
Wi Jung quietly unrolled a bamboo record.
Remarkably, the records showed the Wang clan indeed possessed only three hundred acres. They had never been in arrears on their taxes either.
He slowly scanned through the record as he continued.
“Yet I am curious about one thing.”
The sound of the fan closing was clear in the otherwise quiet office.
“A village should properly consist of nine hundred acres of land, with each household receiving one hundred acres. But Mangok Village has one hundred fifty acres of newly reclaimed land, and yet two hundred acres still remain unaccounted for within the village. How is that possible?”
Wi Jung looked up, his gaze bearing down on Wang Chun-bae. His lips curved upward, but his eyes remained cold.
“Do you know the reason?”
Wang Chun-bae’s face went white as paper.
The wine fumes seemed to drain from him as his eyes bulged, yet his lips remained firmly sealed—as if he had received prior instruction on what to reveal and what to hide.
It was precisely that attitude which aroused Wi Jung’s suspicion. His expression hardened.
“Speak truthfully.”
His voice dropped low and cold.
“To whom do those two hundred acres of unaccounted land belong? Are they truly vacant, or has someone else been cultivating them on your behalf?”
“That is… that is…”
Wang sealed his lips and fell silent.
All the while his eyes darted nervously around the room, rolling constantly as if searching for Wang Saekbu—another member of the Wang clan.
‘Ha. Even under direct questioning by the County Magistrate, he seeks a way out through his ally’s backing? Their corruption has been going on for far longer than a year or two.’
Anger kindled in Wi Jung’s gaze.
He gripped his goose-feather fan tightly and fixed Wang Chun-bae with eyes ablaze, before crying out in a voice thick with menace:
“Are you daring to lie to the state and conceal land, embezzling taxes!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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