The path pointed out personally by the County Magistrate himself was one Zhao An had to walk; he had no choice in the matter. It was better to make the artisans suffer a bit than to let the County Magistrate suffer.
After all, a couple of silver taels would at most cause an artisan a period of heartbreak and distress, but if the County Magistrate were to lose his official post, he would surely hang himself, dragging a whole crowd of subordinates down into the river with him.
When human lives were at stake, what did a conscience even matter?
Chapter 26