Not long after Zhang Jian and Ximensong left the door, there was a bustling noise outside. Chen Xiaomu slowly walked out of the official room door with his hands behind his hands. He saw a large group of people standing darkly in front of the official room door. However, To his surprise, there were about a dozen women mixed in with this large group of strong men.
Seeing Chen Xiaomu come out of the house, Zhang Jian, who was standing in front of the crowd, raised his hands and shouted loudly: "Quiet, quiet! Now let's ask our old chief, Mr. Chen, to give you a lecture."
The crowd instantly fell silent amidst Zhang Jian's shouts. Zhang Jian first stood at attention in a military posture facing the crowd, then turned around and jogged all the way to Chen Xiaomu. He bent down and clasped his fists and said: "Zhang Jian, Ximen Song." The veterans of our unit respectfully request Mr. Chen to give them a lecture."
Chen Xiaomu waved his hand and said with a smile: "General Zhang, don't make everyone nervous. Let's just talk to each other?"
''No, Mr. Chen please. "Zhang Jian agreed, then moved to the side and stretched out his hand to make a gesture of invitation."
Chen Xiaomu walked to the front of the crowd and saw everyone looking at him nervously. Chen Xiaomu joked: "Everyone is looking at me like this, I will be nervous!"
"Pfft, hehe, haha." As soon as Chen Xiaomu finished speaking, the crowd couldn't help but let out various kinds of relaxed laughter, and the tense expressions on everyone's faces relaxed.
Next, Chen Xiaomu said bluntly: "Dear veterans, judging by your age, the youngest may be over 30 years old. I would like to first thank you for your great contribution to this country!" After saying this, Chen Xiaomu straightened his clothes and bent his head. He lowered his waist straight and made a series of remarks to the veterans in front of him.
"This...!" The eyes of the veterans instantly turned red. They had never received such careful courtesy. Not to mention Chen Xiaomu, a high-ranking official of the court, even the most ordinary people in this country looked down upon them and called them military households. , as if their lives are inherently cheap, and it is natural for them to fight to the death on the battlefield!
Then Chen Xiaomu's words completely reassured the veterans. He said: "Just now, General Zhang and General Ximen came to find me and said that the veterans encountered difficulties in making a living after returning home from the army. What should I say? I only have one sentence, Veterans are welcome to join the government team to ensure the safety of the country and continue to contribute to the country of Zheng!"
Now the veterans couldn't stand it anymore. You know, big-headed soldiers can be looked down upon by others. Who dares to look down on these officials? Even if you have reached a certain status in society, you don't dare to neglect them at will, otherwise he can take you down. Small things turn into big things, and then I find a reason to arrest you. As the saying goes, people have two fears: there is a patient at home and there is a relative in prison! Switching from the status of a top soldier to a Yamen official is like being promoted to three levels in the officialdom! At that moment, the veterans knelt down in a large area with a roar.
Chen Xiaomu felt sad, and immediately raised his hands and shouted to the veterans: "Everyone, get up quickly, there are some who are kneeling and chatting with the superior!"
When the veterans heard this, it made sense, and they all stood up one after another. Chen Xiaomu changed the topic and said seriously: "Anyone among you who knows more than 300 words, please come forward and show me."
There was a commotion in the crowd, and then six men and women walked out in twos and threes. Four of them were women. The two men looked like they were in their early fifties. It seemed that they must have been the ones who saw the notice outside the government office in the morning. One of the old men.
Chen Xiaomu was stunned and thought to himself: "What's going on? Are these two old men and four women the only ones among the more than a hundred people who can read?"
At that moment, Chen Xiaomu decided to try again and asked the six people: "Do you know anyone with more than 500 words?"
The six people looked at each other and took a step to the side.
"Oh!" Chen Xiaomu's confidence was suddenly boosted. You must know that there are much fewer characters in ancient times than in later generations. In addition, official documents are basically written in classical Chinese, with fewer words and less uncommon characters. Unless Those old scholars in the court who like to talk about words like to use uncommon words that are not commonly used to show their knowledge! But those are obviously too far away from these low-level government officials. The arrest warrants, beheading orders, and government notices that government officials often deal with are all simple and easy to understand. Knowing 500 words is enough for a government official!
However, Chen Xiaomu's curiosity was aroused and he couldn't stop, so this time he asked directly: "Is there anyone who can recognize more than a thousand words?"
I thought that no one would respond anymore. In this era, if you know more than a thousand words, you are considered a scholar. Have you ever seen a scholar who is willing to be a leader? I didn’t expect it! I didn’t expect it! It was completely beyond Chen Xiaomu's expectation. This time, among the four women, there were actually two more fair-skinned women around thirty years old. Although they looked a little thin, their clothes were very shabby and they were beaten. There are a lot of patches, but they are neatly tidied up, showing a sense of literati style.
"Okay!" Chen Xiaomu clapped his hands and said excitedly: "What are your names?"
"Report to your lord." The two women put their hands on their waists and wished Chen Xiaomu a long blessing. The taller woman said: "The name of the civilian girl is Gao Xiaochun, and the sister of the civilian girl next to her is named Gao Xiaoqiu."
"Oh!" Chen Xiaomu wondered: "So you are two sisters. How did you come to the army, and how did you know so many words?"
"This...!" Gao Xiaochun was speechless when asked. He might have something to hide. He faltered for a long time without saying the reason. Chen Xiaomu smiled and said warmly: "It's not convenient to say, so just don't say it!"
"Yes, thank you sir!" When Gao Xiaochun heard this, her heart trembled. She had never seen such a reasonable official. The two sisters once again wished Chen Xiaomu a long blessing.
Then, Chen Xiaomu turned to the crowd of veterans in front of him and said: "Starting from today, the government office will open two literacy classes for you new yamen cadres. Normally, all yamen cadres who are not on duty must go to the literacy class to learn literacy. If anyone is absent without any reason, ten cents will be deducted from the monthly salary every time it is found. The two literacy classes will have two monitors and four deputy monitors in charge of teaching."
As soon as Chen Xiaomu finished speaking, the veterans began to talk in all directions. Because there were too many people talking in all directions, Chen Xiaomu couldn't hear what they were saying at all. He only heard the chatter of words, so he had no choice but to talk to the people next to him. Zhang Jian winked. Zhang Jian immediately raised his hands and shouted: "Do you still want to do it? Shut up and listen to Mr. Chen!"
Don't tell me, Zhang Jian's voice really worked. Everyone immediately stopped talking and returned to the previous silence. Chen Xiaomu took a step forward and said slowly: "You have been soldiers for so many years, how come you don't understand any rules? Shangguan. Is it ridiculous to speak at the top while you chatter at the bottom? If you have different ideas, you can nominate a representative and raise your hand to speak."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw an old man in the crowd with a short goatee and over fifty years old raising his hands impatiently, with an anxious look on his face. Chen Xiaomu looked at him and said with a smile: "Old man, don't worry, what's the matter? Speak slowly."
The old man walked out of the crowd, cupped his hands to Chen Xiaomu and said: "My lord, my name is Sun Shuxian. He is already fifty-six years old. He has been working as a gang leader in the army for nearly thirty years. Now his brain no longer has the aura he had when he was young. He is still in his prime. I am so forgetful, please allow me not to go to the literacy class to learn Chinese characters!"
Chen Xiaomu waved his hand and said categorically: "Old man, since you have such a long military service, we will give you some consideration in terms of salary, but as long as you live and learn, you must go to literacy classes. This matter is non-negotiable!"
"Oh! I obey, little old man!" Sun Shu heard it first, with a disappointed look on his face, and retreated into the crowd in frustration!
At this time, another strong man in his thirties with a dark face raised his hand and asked to speak. Chen Xiaomu nodded to him: "What's the matter? Tell me."
The strong man excitedly squeezed out of the crowd, came to Chen Xiaomu, bent down and clasped his fists, and said, "Excuse me, sir, how much is the monthly salary for us new yamen cadres?"
To be honest, Chen Xiaomu really didn't have time to think about the salaries of these government officials at the moment. However, referring to the old government officials' monthly salary of two to three taels of silver, he felt that it would be better to set the monthly salary lower so that there would be room for improvement in the future. , pondered for a moment, and replied in a consultative tone: "Do you think a monthly salary of one to two to five dollars is enough?"
The black-faced strong man seemed to be relieved and nodded repeatedly: "That's enough, that's enough. Thank you, sir." After saying that, he turned around and left.
Chen Xiaomu quickly stopped him from behind and asked, "What's your name?"
Hearing this, the strong man had no choice but to turn around and clasp his fists again: "Return to your lord, the common man's surname is Zhang and his name is Heiniu."
"Well, Zhang Heiniu, right?"
Zhang Heiniu bent down: "Exactly."
"Then do you plan to go to a literacy class?" Chen Xiaomu asked him.
"Hehe" Zhang Heiniu stretched out his hand and scratched his head, and said with an embarrassed smile: "Sir, to be honest with you, I just asked about the monthly salary because I wanted to know if you would have enough money left after deducting ten cents a day. One month’s expenses for a family of four!”
"Ah!" Chen Xiaomu immediately couldn't laugh or cry when he heard this, and couldn't help but said angrily: "Zhang Heiniu, is there a murder knife in the literacy class? Why would you rather be fined than go?"
Zhang Heiniu was stunned for a moment, and then said sarcastically: "Sir, you are wrong. The common people have had headaches since they were young when they saw the square characters piled up like branches. They really can't learn it!"
Chen Xiaomu ignored him, raised his head and shouted to the crowd: "Who among you is like Zhang Heiniu, who would rather be deducted money than go to a literacy class? Raise your hand and let me see it."
As soon as Chen Xiaomu finished speaking, there was another commotion in the crowd, and then many arms stood up. Chen Xiaomu counted roughly and found that there were no less than sixty people who were unwilling to go to the literacy class to learn to read, accounting for almost half of the group. Facing these rough men in front of him, Chen Xiaomu sighed unconsciously and thought to himself: "It seems that the police rank system used by the police in later generations must be used to establish a personal sense of honor and disgrace for this group of people! He knew that even if In later generations with highly developed civilization, it cannot change the characteristic that the lower class people value face more than life!
Thinking of this, Chen Xiaomu asked the group of people to put their hands down, and then ordered Wei Yuxin to bring a large piece of white paper and a large wolf hair brush from the office room behind him. Then Chen Xiaomu asked Zhang Jian to stick it to the wall of the office room. , holding up the white paper high, he raised his hand and pen to draw a "V"-shaped symbol with a big arrow pointing downward on the paper, and then asked the curious veterans below: "Does any of you know what this symbol means? What do you mean?"
The veterans looked at each other, confused by the question, and one of them whispered: "Who knows what you mean by drawing such a pointed head? Isn't it a magic talisman?"
At this time, Gao Xiaochun hesitated and said: "Reporting to my lord, you drew this like the tip of a sword and the arrowhead of a bow. I wonder if the folk girl is right?"
Chen Xiaomu smiled and said: "Yes, that's not right. The shape does look like the sword head and arrowhead you mentioned. But in fact, this symbol will be with you in the future. From today on, our Xinjingfu Yamen All of them will implement a differential grade system, which is divided into three and nine levels in total. The sign I drew now is the lowest grade in the yamen, and the name of the differential grade is called third-level and third-level patrol!"
After saying that, Chen Xiaomu used a brush to add another V mark on the "V" sign: "Did you see it? This is called the third-class and second-class patrol!" Then he added a V on top: "This is called the third-class and first-class patrol. It is the largest first class among the third classes, and the next one is the second class!" Chen Xiaomu used the brush in his hand to draw three three-shaped horizontal bars on the white paper. He pointed at the three horizontal bars and said: "Second Class The lowest level among the ranks is a second-class and third-class police officer with a horizontal bar, which is one level higher than the largest first-class patrol officer among the third classes. The one with two horizontal bars after it is a second-class and second-class police officer. , a second-class and first-class detective with three horizontal bars.
After explaining the first two levels, Chen Xiaomu once again used a brush to draw three stacked arrows on the paper, a ∧-shaped sign, and said to the veterans below who were listening attentively: "Everyone, please pay attention, this is the first level. The three levels are the first-class and third-class assistant chief catchers, the first-class and second-class deputy chief catchers, and the first-class and first-class chief catchers. Only those who have made great achievements will be reported to the government office for approval by the Ministry of Personnel. For real imperial officials, the assistant chief officer is the ninth rank, the deputy chief officer is the ninth rank, and the chief chief officer is the eighth rank."
