Chapter Twenty-One: The Unexpected Grand Minister of Agriculture

Chapter 20

The court ministers also fell silent. Among them were marquises of ten thousand households and men possessing fields by the thousands of acres, yet not a single one among them treated their tenant farmers as the Mo family did.

By rights, the Mo family could have simply ignored their tenants and lived well enough on their own stipends. With a harder heart, they could even have mercilessly squeezed their tenants. How could such a family have fallen to the point of selling fish to survive?

“Mo Lie is truly a man of righteousness!” Even Wei Zheng, proud as he was, could not help but nod in praise.

“In that case, Mo Dun leading the villagers of Mo Village to Chang’an to sell fish is indeed understandable.”

“Precisely.”

…

The ministers began to murmur amongst themselves. With a thousand households in Mo Village on the verge of starvation, how could anyone object to them selling fish to survive? There was simply no just argument against it.

“It is I who have failed Minister Mo,” Emperor Taizong said in shame. “Attend me! Immediately reward Mo Village with ten taels of gold and a thousand dan of grain.”

Censor Wang felt a pang in his chest. Your Majesty! Did you not hear what I just said? He has dared to wield weapons within the city of Chang’an—such a crime should bring a storm of punishment.

Qin Qiong shook his head with a smile. “Your Majesty, that is not necessary. For from this day forward, Mo Village will never be poor again.”

Emperor Taizong was taken aback. They had just been speaking of the village’s hardship, and now even the imperial reward was being declined! Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. “Is it the secret of keeping fish alive?”

“Exactly—the secret of live fish!” Qin Qiong nodded. “Mo Village, inspired by the catfish effect mentioned in Mozi’s secret writings, has discovered a method to keep fish alive out of water for a long time. Now, wealth flows steadily into the village, and its five thousand people have no shortage of food or clothing. Yet at this very moment, certain people coveted the secret. First, the city gate guards, acting under orders, forcibly searched their fish carts. Then, the Fish Guild kidnapped and tortured villagers from Mo Village, attempting to steal the secret. Only then did the villagers take up arms in Chang’an, compelled by the need to rescue their own.”

A cold light flashed in Qin Qiong’s eyes as he fixed his gaze on Censor Wang, his anger clearly kindled. He had not expected that a mere censor would dare to covet something belonging to a founding county lord of the Empire.

The court ministers suddenly understood—no wonder Censor Wang had been so zealous; he had set his sights on Mo Village’s live fish secret. Failing to seize it by force, he now sought imperial judgment.

Among those present were not a few marquises and lords of a thousand or ten thousand households. For them, the most vital possession was not their office, but their hereditary title—a guarantee of their family’s fortune for generations. Censor Wang’s actions now threatened everyone’s interests.

“I have a report to submit,” announced the magistrate of Chang’an County abruptly. “The Fish Guild runs rampant in the city, oppressing fishermen and attempting to steal Mo Village’s live fish secret. They even conspired to kidnap villagers from Mo Village. Last night, with the help of Mo Village, the Wannian County Office arrested more than fifty members of the Fish Guild and rescued Yu Er, a villager of Mo Village.” Since Duke Yi had shown his token last night and now openly argued in favor of Mo Village, it was clear where his allegiance lay—if ever there was a time to take a side, it was now.

“Such villains, daring to act so brazenly! Your Majesty, I implore you to punish these evildoers severely,” Wei Zheng said, righteous indignation in his tone. He spoke not for Mo Village’s sake, but from his own hatred of injustice.

“Granted,” replied Emperor Taizong, his voice calm and unreadable.

“Oh! Isn’t Censor Wang’s family the one that runs Wang’s Fish Shop? The Fish Guild wants the live fish secret, and now you come to bring charges—is it not because you covet the secret yourself?” a gruff voice suddenly interjected. At some point, Cheng Yaojin’s broad, dark face had appeared right in front of Censor Wang.

“That old rascal!” thought the ministers with some discomfort. Who didn’t know that Wang’s Fish Shop was the property of the Taiyuan Wang family? Still, as scholars, they had no reason to stick their necks out for the Mo clan.

Cheng Yaojin, apparently oblivious to the fire in Censor Wang’s eyes, continued, spittle flying: “But your dead fish really don’t taste good. If you ask me, there’s nothing better than fresh fish. I used to catch them myself in the river and eat them right after—now that’s fresh. Lately, the Mo family’s live fish method has made things much more convenient. No more trips outside the city for me!”

The more Cheng Yaojin spoke, the more the ministers turned a sidelong glance at Censor Wang, who was nearly in tears from his distress.

“I am wronged, Your Majesty!” he protested, trembling with rage. He had never imagined that a fallen noble house could command the support of both Qin Qiong and Cheng Yaojin.

“The reason I brought charges against Mo Village,” Censor Wang continued, “is because there are rumors that the secret technique they use is an adaptation of the catfish effect, substituting carp for catfish.”

“Carp?” At that, the court’s eyes involuntarily turned to Emperor Taizong himself.

Everyone knew very well what this meant: the word for carp was a homophone for the imperial surname.

“What nonsense! The Mo family’s live fish method is so closely guarded—how would you know anything about it?” Qin Qiong sneered.

“I have only heard it said,” replied Censor Wang stubbornly. After all, a censor’s duty was to report whatever came to his ears—there was little anyone could do to stop him.

“Oh, I’ve also heard that Wang’s Fish Shop often catches and kills carp,” Qin Qiong retorted.

Everyone knew that carp bred prolifically—nearly every pond had them, and those who fished regularly could hardly avoid catching some by accident.

“You!” Censor Wang had never expected the attack to rebound on himself.

“Although the carp is honored as the national fish, it is widespread throughout the land. After each fishing season, even if fishermen avoid catching them, many carp die off in the ponds, sometimes covering the entire surface,” said the Minister of Agriculture, Su Lingnong, with a single sentence that nearly made Censor Wang burst into tears—was he defending him or pushing him into the fire?

“Is this true?” Emperor Taizong asked, moved.

“It is, Your Majesty. Since you forbade the killing of carp among the people, their numbers have increased year after year, reducing the living space for other fish and causing a decline in overall fish production. The price of fish has been rising steadily as a result.” If Mo Dun had been present, he would have been deeply impressed—he never imagined that someone in the Tang dynasty would have such foresight. The unchecked proliferation of carp was disrupting the aquatic ecosystem, leading, as would happen in a future nation, to a biological crisis of carp overpopulation.

The Minister of Agriculture continued: “The excessive reproduction of carp, at best, makes fishing more difficult; at worst, they take over entire ponds, causing heavy losses for fishermen. Fearing the law, many can only let their ponds lie fallow. Worse, some fishermen, having accidentally killed carp during the fishing season, have been imprisoned by certain magistrates for this reason, their families ruined.”

His words brought a hush over the entire court. No one—not even Emperor Taizong—had realized that the protection of carp had such grave consequences.

Having finally spoken his mind, the Minister of Agriculture felt a weight lift from his heart. He had long been concerned about this issue, but, lacking real power, his words had gone unheeded. Today, thanks to the Mo Village incident, he had finally drawn everyone’s attention.