After visiting the unfinished Xudu Palace, Zhuge Jin and Chen Deng strolled through a few streets and came to the original county prison, now Yizhou County Residence.
On the way, they also bypassed a government office where the imperial ministers worked, which showed that this place was very close to the political center of Xudu. It's no wonder that people who come to Xudu to seek official status gather around here.
It is estimated that before the imperial examinations in the Sui and Tang Dynasties in later generations, when scholars went to Beijing to find high-ranking officials and nobles to invest in banks to gain fame, the atmosphere was also like this.
After arriving at Yizhou County Residence, Zhuge Jin's first impression was that it was "crowded".
Because people from Yizhou will not come to the court, all the people living here are tourists who have no official positions and cannot obtain the status of regular envoys. They come from every state.
Just like when people went out in the 1980s and couldn't get a letter of introduction, they couldn't stay in state-run guesthouses, so they had to squeeze into small shops that didn't require letters of introduction.
Zhuge Jin spent a little money and ordered some wine and meat in the wine house attached to Yizhou County Residence. He listened to the chatter of others and wanted to see if there were any people who were unwilling to seek official positions.
But after all, celebrities are not so easy to meet. Zhuge Jin chatted with a few people casually and even treated them to wine and meat, but in the end, the people he met were all people whose names he had never heard of.
Even for such an unknown person, when Zhuge Jin tries to win over him by pretending that "my uncle is an official in Yuzhang and is in charge of a county, and he needs talented people to appoint subordinate officials", the other party will often give him a look and then quickly eat and wipe the food. Wiped his mouth and left.
"Today we know how much benefit Cao Cao gained from serving as the emperor. There are many people who are looking for an official position. They would rather wait in Xudu forever than go to the local area to become a county official."
After being fed and drank some meat and wine for free, Zhuge Jin shook his head helplessly and complained to Chen Deng while the freeloader left.
Chen Dengze said matter-of-factly: "This is Xudu! The people who come here have very clear purposes. Even if you use Xuande Gong's name to recruit, you may not be able to attract talents, let alone your uncle Yuzhang The prefect...it seems that he hasn’t given the actual teaching yet.”
Zhuge Jin couldn't answer the call, so he had to drink wine.
If his uncle's Yuzhang prefect was actually taught, would he still need to come to the court for activities?
Just as the two of them were recognizing the situation and drinking to think things over, there was a sudden commotion at the gate of Yizhou County Residence.
A man came in from the outside holding a talisman and made a loud noise, and then the crowd rushed up to watch, and then gathered around several of them to congratulate him.
Zhuge Jin was also a little curious, but didn't want to go over and join in the fun, so he glanced around the wine room and saw a square-faced middle-aged man in his early thirties, two tables apart on the left, still drinking there very calmly. .
Zhuge Jin estimated that this person must be a regular customer, so he was not surprised, so he came up to ask for advice and filled the other person's cup:
"May I ask what I call this brother? Do you know what happened there? I am Zhuge Jin of Langya. He is new here and is not familiar with the world."
The square-faced middle-aged man raised his eyes and raised his eyes, picked up the wine glass and said, "I'm calling Du Ji from the capital. Since you came to Xudu to seek an official position, you didn't even recognize the person who came just now? That's Cao Yu Geng Ji, an official at the Shangshu Desk. It must be him. Among all the people seeking official positions here, some were appreciated by Xun Lingjun and were finally recommended for military service."
Not long after Du Ji finished speaking, the crowd blocking the entrance of the county residence gradually dispersed and everyone came back to sit down.
Then Zhuge Jin heard a few casual remarks from others.
"I didn't expect that the imperial court would now focus on cultivating farmers and encouraging talents. There is really no fixed method for hiring people."
"Yes, I heard that Sikong was worried about Xu County's new capital and the insufficient supply of grain and grass in the surrounding areas. He adopted Zao Zhi and Han Hao's proposal to farm the land. The day before yesterday, he promoted Ren Jun to the rank of Dian Nong Zhonglang General. Today he also promoted the county official Mao Ji He was promoted to the post of governor of this county, and Bai Shen Guoyuan was promoted to the post of captain of the field. This is because he is crazy about money and food."
When Zhuge Jin heard these complaints, he secretly thought that this should be a precursor to Cao Cao's "people-only policy". In order to recruit various practical economic talents and tide over the financial crisis, he led to those "well-educated celebrities" who talked about the classics and mysteries. dissatisfied.
These had nothing to do with Zhuge Jin, but he remembered that the old man Du Ji he had just talked to was probably a bit pragmatic, and he had served as Jing Zhaoyin's meritorious service in Li Jue's regime.
Zhuge Jin then reminded: "Brother Du, I think your resume is similar to that of Mao Jie, why not learn from him and let Geng Cao from Shangshutai know your talents and recommend him to Xun Lingjun?"
Du Ji and he were strangers, and their friendship lasted only for a glass of wine. They didn't want to talk to him in a casual way, so he said righteously: "I don't even bother to do such tricks!"
After that, he paid the bill and went back to the house.
Zhuge Jin didn't know that Du Ji had already made friends with Geng Ji, but he deliberately took the long term to catch the big fish and did not express his intention to seek an official position to Geng Ji. Just because he knew that Geng Ji and his boss Xun Yu were neighbors and lived very close to each other.
Recently, Du Ji has been visiting Geng Ji's house every night with good wine and meat, inviting Geng Ji to eat and drink while talking loudly. Just wait for Xun Yu next door to hear his eloquent talk and come to the door one day.
Being reported to Xun Yu by Geng Ji is the same as being discovered by Xun Yu himself!
…
However, not all of the job-seekers in Yizhou County who believed in their talents had Du Ji's ability and skills, nor did they all have the luck of Mao Jie and Guoyuan.
Today's round of recruitment recommendations is like a stone thrown into a pond, making the job seekers who had barely maintained their patience and calm become increasingly impatient.
The two lucky ones, Mao Jie and Guo Yuan, were like two barbs stuck in the hearts of other people who had not been conquered.
Just when Zhuge Jin and Chen Deng felt that they were almost drunk and it was time to pay and close the stall, they suddenly heard someone from a table at the door slamming the table angrily and yelling:
"Hmph, Xun Wenruo has no eyesight and does not know the great sages! But he only has a good skin, so he can only pay condolences and recite poems in vain!"
However, after this person finished cursing, the others did not argue with him, but instead paid their bills one after another, not sharing the same knowledge with him, as if they were avoiding the god of plague.
Even the well-informed Chen Deng was surprised and couldn't help but ask the next table: "Who is this? Xun Yu now holds the power of recommending conquests, how dare anyone dare to insult Xun Yu as well?"
However, Zhuge Jin felt that this person's insults were a bit familiar, and couldn't help but whisper to himself: "Could it be Mi Heng?"
The drinker at the next table saw that Zhuge Jin had already guessed it, so he casually echoed:
"Isn't it this guy? My dear brother has just come to Xudu and has heard of this guy's bad reputation? This guy wanted to beg the dignitaries in the court to be an official, but after several months of trying, he scolded the governor all over, saying All the ministers in the dynasty are stupid and blind people. Just because this man has some talent and reputation, the ministers are not willing to meet him in the same way."
After the drinker at the next table finished talking, he seemed not to want to cause any more trouble, so he just paid for the drink and left.
Zhuge Jin heard that it was indeed Mi Heng, so he teased Chen Deng:
"Brother Yuanlong, you said that Mi Heng is so hated by people and can't be avoided by dogs. If we refute it completely and spread it to Xun Yu's ears, will he be received in advance? Maybe we can complete Xuande earlier. The mission of Gong and Lu Bu."
Chen Deng looked like he was watching a good show and reminded him calmly: "I heard that you have a good relationship with Kong Wenju and Yang Dezu. If you embarrass him, won't it hurt Kong Wenju's face?"
Zhuge Jin nodded: "That's true. After all, Kong Wenju has a close relationship with Xuande. For his sake, we let this madman go."
The conversation between the two wasn't loud, but it wasn't too soft either. Mainly because there were so many people in the tavern just now and it was too noisy to say the least.
But at this moment, most of the others had dispersed for fear of causing trouble, and the wine house was quieter than before.
Zhuge Jin and Chen Deng continued to talk at the same volume, and Mi Heng was a person with very sensitive ears. When he heard this, an evil fire suddenly rose up.
The main reason is that he is used to being scolded behind his back, so he pays special attention to whether anyone says bad things about him.
Mi Heng rushed to Zhuge Jin's case with the wine bottle in hand and pointed at him:
"What a crazy person, talking about others behind their backs is so shameless! You sycophants, in order to please Xun Yu and Sima Lang, you want to inform and flatter! I'm not afraid of you!"
Zhuge Jin didn't want to cause trouble, but Mi Heng got into trouble. He also knew that Mi Heng had no background and only had a mouth, so he was certainly not afraid of trouble.
Zhuge Jin took some time to dust off his clothes and said calmly: "We say we are ours, so what do you do? We are from Xuzhou to perform pilgrimage, and we are not just looking for official positions. What kind of flattery should I show you? Your Excellency, you are so If you have the guts, why bother wandering around Xudu every day, even if your famous thorns are worn away, you still can’t bear to leave."
There is an allusion to Mi Heng in history, saying that he had "a stab in his heart", that is, he secretly hid a wooden business card and wanted to deliver it after he came to Xudu. As a result, because no one asked him to do anything, he kept his reputation for too long and the handwriting was worn out.
It's just like future generations of job seekers who submitted the same resume over and over again until all the words were gone.
Mi Heng has only been in Xudu for two months now, and the writing on the tattoo in his arms has not been erased.
But Zhuge Jin's words immediately made the other drinkers who had not dispersed burst into laughter.
Everyone is eager to see the joke of this hypocrite who wants to beg for office, but also wants to put on airs and let the superiors beg him.
When Mi Heng saw the crowd making noises, he became even more angry. But the other party made it clear that he was not here to seek an official position, and his position was higher than that of Mi Heng.
Mi Heng lost his cool and said angrily and helplessly: "Who said I couldn't bear to leave! I didn't come to Xu County to ask for an official position at all! Only dogs ask for an official position! Although you are not asking for an official position for yourself, you are definitely asking for an official position for your boss. Officer! You are the lucky one!
This kind of mediocre and corrupt court, with its top and bottom officials in disarray, is simply a rotten tree serving as an official and a beast eating its salary! I won’t even do it if you give it to me for free! "
Zhuge Jin didn't want to have a formal debate with the other party, because he knew that this guy must be messing around and would change the subject if he couldn't get his point across.
Moreover, the other party is barefoot and is not afraid of wearing shoes. Debating on the topic chosen by the other party would be too disrespectful.
So he decided to seize an obvious loophole in the other party's words and quickly convinced the other party without giving him a chance to ramble:
"There is a lack of moral integrity and disorder at the top and bottom? Your Excellency dares to criticize the current imperial court in this way. Do you miss the time when Dong Thief and Jue Si were in power? Or do you think there is another wise master in the world?"
Mi Heng was stunned for a moment, but he didn't dare to directly give someone a leg up and say something even more rebellious.
He only wanted to say that Cao Cao did not distinguish between fools and wise men, but he never wanted to say that Dong Zhuo, Li Jue and others were better than Cao Cao, let alone Yuan Shu, who now took in other generals who returned to the East and were expelled by Cao Cao, was better than Cao Cao.
Zhuge Jin took advantage of him being at a loss for words, and once again took advantage of the victory and pursued the victory: "It can only destroy but not establish, it is nothing more than a waste! It's just a frog in the well. It doesn't even know what 'virtue' is, and it dares to falsely claim that the imperial court is immoral and corrupt. It's so shameless!"
——
PS: This chapter is over 3,000 words long... I can’t break it off, so let’s leave it at that. Alas, I hope it doesn’t reach 200,000 words in less than 30 days, causing it to be forcibly excluded from the new book list in advance.
There will be another update after 12 o'clock in the middle of the night, to catch up on the new week's updates and new book lists.
