In a year of famine, an old man named Qin Fugui was caught and dragged to the county office for stealing a pork knuckle from Constable Zhang’s home.
The newly appointed county magistrate was harsh on petty thieves.
To avoid a beating, Qin Fugui said his granddaughter, Qin Wangshu, was a lovely girl and offered to send her to the constable.
Constable Zhang was drinking at Deyue Tower when Qin Wangshu’s mother went there to beg him.
“Spare my daughter. I’ll serve you instead.”
Constable Zhang hired a beggar to publicly assault her mother, killing her.
Qin Fugui felt no remorse. He told Qin Wangshu’s cousin, “Being an official really is great. A few words are all it takes to drive someone to their death.”
From then on, Qin Fugui desperately hoped his grandson would become an official, so he could throw his weight around too.
But when Qin Wangshu killed her cousin, went to the capital to take the imperial examinations in his place, and actually became the top female scholar in the capital, how come Qin Fugui couldn’t bring himself to smile?
