Qingfeng County Government Office, in the side hall behind the main hall, there are four middle-aged men sitting at the moment. Three of them are richly dressed and paunchy. They are sitting at the bottom and left, looking quietly at the person sitting at the main seat who is drinking tea. Your Majesty the County Magistrate, wait for your Majesty the County Magistrate to speak.
The county magistrate's surname was Pei. After putting down his teacup, he looked at the first three owners of grain stores in the county carefully, "Have you dealt with everything?"
"Everything has been taken care of." The man sitting at the front of the three people answered with his hands, "If you are worried, sir, just send someone to check."
Although the other two did not answer, they nodded in agreement.
"I will naturally send my confidants to check." Magistrate Pei nodded imperceptibly, "It's not that I don't believe you, but this matter is very important. If the news is leaked, I can still escape, but you may not be sure. .”
The three people's hearts sank, and they all understood.
Whether they emptied the granary in a collusive manner, or sent people to attack the granary and set it on fire to cover up their crimes during the disaster, if one of them is leaked and someone is in charge of the county magistrate, they can still run away and deal with it for a while, or at worst they will be dismissed from office and exiled, but they If you don't have an official status, you will inevitably end up with your home confiscated and executed.
This flood came at the wrong time, but it also came at the right time.
It's wrong because there is no food in the granary and the government cannot open a granary to provide relief to the victims. No matter how they make up for it now, the court will definitely send people down after the disaster.
That's right. Rather than being afraid of being discovered by the imperial envoy, it is better to turn from passive to active and take the opportunity to burn down the granary and claim that it is a riot. Even if the state government and the court will be suspicious, as long as no substantive evidence can be produced Come, they will have more room to move.
Of course, this plan will undoubtedly transfer all the pressure to the county magistrate. At least one accusation of lax governance cannot be avoided. But who knows, it has always been the county magistrate who has taken the lion's share. Now that he has reached out, he must be prepared to wipe his butt.
However, County Magistrate Pei was not without a back-up plan. I heard him say again: "In addition to this matter, I have come to you for another matter. I hope that after you step out of the county government gate, tomorrow's food prices will not change." Up."
The expressions of the three grain merchants changed. The one sitting at the front of the three grain merchants said in a deep voice, "Sir, is this inappropriate? When we discussed it yesterday, you never said that we couldn't raise the price of grain."
He is the owner of Chen Ji Liang Store and the current head of the Qingfeng Chen family. The imperial power did not go to the countryside, and county magistrates governed the local areas, relying heavily on them, the local gentry and wealthy families.
The Qingfeng Chen family is a local wealthy family in Qingfeng County, and his younger brother also serves as the county captain in the county government, in charge of the security of the county. If he really wanted to have a head-on confrontation with the county magistrate, he would be honest.
Nowadays, farmers are not the only ones affected by disasters in various parts of the county. The wealthy families control a large amount of land. If you really count, the losses can be said to be heavy. If they don't take advantage of this opportunity to fight back, they will miss the opportunity when the food from the state capital arrives. There is even a possibility that the state government will order the purchase of food from them at a low price.
Ask them how they can agree.
"Everyone, please be patient." Magistrate Pei was calm and calm, with a smile on his face, "This morning Linhu County sent people to inform us that yesterday's heavy rain caused the water level of Jinjiang to rise. I think the focus of the prefect's attention now is not on our clear water. In Feng County, even if there is food transferred, it will definitely not be much. You can keep the current food prices and wait and see for a few days, and then make plans, so that the people can buy more food, and I will go back to the prefect. How about saying yes?"
At this point, his face suddenly darkened, "If you don't listen to my advice, don't blame me for being unkind."
The three grain dealers immediately understood that the county magistrate wanted to take credit for suppressing the rise in grain prices and try to offset the impact of the charge of "lax governance" on him.
When it comes to his future, there is no room for negotiation on the price of food.
That's all, after all, they just waited and watched for a few days. The three grain merchants hesitated for a while and could only agree. They did not dare to report and expose the matter. Even if the court dealt with it strictly and the county magistrate lost his life, they would not be able to escape death.
Magistrate Pei was confident, but not complacent. After hitting him with a stick, he gave out sweet dates, "Don't worry, everyone, as long as you pass this level safely, are you afraid that you won't have the opportunity to make money? Even if I am transferred in the future, You don’t need to worry, you can still do what we did before.”
The three grain merchants wiped away the bitter looks on their faces and nodded in agreement.
The Dajing Dynasty stipulated that the term of local officials ranged from three to five years. Magistrate Pei had been in Qingfeng County for three years and could be transferred at any time. They have been worried about this for more than half a year. Young master, if the county magistrate who takes over is an upright official, then they will have no chance to reach out.
Now Magistrate Pei's words gave them reassurance. Magistrate Pei came from a prominent family and had connections in the court. Qingfeng County was just a lower county. If he had connections in the court and intervened, arranging a county magistrate would be nothing more. Just a few words.
After the business was finished, the four of them chatted. Magistrate Pei suddenly remembered that during the plan to burn down the granary, a household clerk surnamed Chen died on the spot, so he casually mentioned it and asked Mr. Chen to take care of the aftermath. .
"He's just a kid from a side branch. He's not worthy of the county magistrate being so worried about." Mr. Chen raised his hand indifferently, "I'll just ask the housekeeper to send some food later. Now, even if you have money, you can't buy a lot of food." , I guess they have to be grateful to the Zhengzhi."
Magistrate Pei pointed at Mr. Chen and laughed. The other two grain merchants also laughed and agreed.
At this moment, the county magistrate hurriedly came over with an anxious look on his face. He cupped his hands to Magistrate Pei and said, "Sir, Linhu County has sent a horse to report that they have received a report from the sheep that the water level in the upper reaches of Jinjiang River has surged. The embankment near the lake may be in danger of bursting, so let us evacuate the people as soon as possible."
Magistrate Pei was shocked, "Then what are you waiting for? Send someone quickly to inform the people!"
Although he is greedy for money, he also knows the seriousness of the matter. He can still deal with the corruption through connections. But now Linhu County is about to report it. If the embankment in Linhu section really breaks, if he does not deal with it in time, it will lead to serious consequences. If the casualties among the people are too great, then a disaster is imminent.
The county magistrate took the order and left in a hurry, and the three grain merchants also hurriedly said goodbye. They still had clansmen living outside the city, and they had to arrange for someone to bring them all to the city.
If the Jinjiang River is really in danger of bursting its embankments, then it is safer to live in Qingfeng County. The power of the flood will naturally weaken after being buffered by Linhu County. After being blocked by the city wall, the city will naturally have peace of mind.
At this time, the sky was already dark and night was about to fall. A dozen fast horses rushed out from the city gate. The government servants on the horses held torches and beat gongs in different directions to tell each other.
On the mountain behind Xiaochen Village House, the villagers were arguing about whether to go down the mountain and go back to their homes.
