Liu Haojia didn't take a few steps when he saw the county magistrate coming over with some people. This made him feel less angry! He looked up and saw that the county magistrate was in his forties, but he had a look of vicissitudes of life, unlike an ordinary county magistrate.
Liu Haojia has read his resume. His name is Meng Jitang. His evaluation is fair, but his official career is not good. Whenever the promotion assessment is about to take place, there will be some natural and man-made disasters under the rule! So he has moved to several counties in succession without getting promoted.
When Liu Haojia saw him approaching, he stood still, waited for them to come forward, saluted and said, "Your Majesty, Zhang Meng Jitang, respectfully welcomes the angels!"
Liu Haojia accepted his salute calmly and then asked them to stand up. Then he found that almost all the officials in the county who could speak to him were there, and there were also four people dressed as gentlemen, so he said: "Mr. Meng, we see that there are many people here, but are they discussing something?"
Meng Jitang said: "We are indeed discussing something. Ever since smallpox was eliminated in the county, money and food have been flowing like water, and we have been unable to make ends meet! So I specially invited four local respected gentry to donate some money and food!"
Naturally, Liu Haojia would not ruin this matter. He immediately raised his hands to the four gentry and said, "I see, I am here to thank you on behalf of the people of the county!"
The four people looked at each other and smiled bitterly, knowing that this time they would definitely bleed! Maybe the deputy imperial envoy who came here at this time was in collusion with the county magistrate! But they still had smiles on their faces and said words like "It should be!"
At this time, Meng Jitang said: "Angels have come a long way to work hard, please come to the back hall to serve tea."
Liu Haojia followed him to the back hall and sat down, and everyone else also sat down to accompany him. When the tea was served, Liu Haojia was too lazy to talk nonsense with him. Anyway, they had already broken up with each other, so there was no need to worry about his face anymore, so he asked directly: "Master Meng, please introduce the situation in your county."
Meng Jitang knew that he had offended the other party, otherwise the other party would not even have a polite word. But things are arranged by oneself, and the bitter fruit can only be eaten by oneself! So he shook his head secretly and sighed in his mind before starting to introduce the local situation to Liu Haojia.
Liu Haojia asked questions from time to time while listening to his introduction. For a while, there were only two people talking in the whole room, which made other people extremely embarrassed!
However, Liu Haojia could see from Meng Jitang's story that this person was quite capable in his work. Otherwise, the areas where smallpox occurred could not have been blocked so quickly. I just don’t know why this person is neglecting me?
However, Liu Haojia has no intention of making amends with the other party. Since they are already enemies in the officialdom, there is nothing more to say. They can only fight to the death! Only those who can grow up are called talents, and the rest are useless!
After listening to Meng Jitang's story, Liu Haojia closed his eyes and thought, sorted out the whole situation, and then handed over his hand and said: "Thank you, Mr. Meng, for your help! But these days, the Japanese officials want to go down and visit and see how the situation is in these villages?"
Meng Jitang said hurriedly: "This is not necessary! Because these villages have already been sealed off by soldiers and horses, and no entry or exit is allowed. Moreover, the imperial envoys and imperial doctors are about to arrive, so it is better for you to rest in peace in the county."
Liu Haojia sneered and said, "Why, Master Meng wants to put me under house arrest in the county?"
Everyone present knew that Magistrate Meng broke the official rules and did not go to greet Liu Haojia. Although everyone finds it strange, they all know that Meng Jitang is not an unwise person, so there must be a reason for this. So everyone was a little cold towards Liu Haojia. But they didn't expect Liu Haojia to break out and point out the matter directly!
Something is wrong! Isn’t it important in officialdom to smile on the outside but use a knife behind your back? This is the official rule! Just like although Magistrate Meng did not go to greet the deputy imperial envoy, his excuse was enough! It seems that Liu Haojia is a fool, stay away from him!
In fact, this is Liu Haojia’s purpose! He is now on Meng Jitang's land, and he can't avoid him in anything he wants to do. So he simply broke up and let the people in the county stay away from him. Meng Jitang would not dare to intervene even if he saw him doing something, otherwise he would really fall into Liu Haojia's mouth! Otherwise, it would be bad if Liu Haojia joins him. After all, it’s too easy to find fault with the eggs!
Meng Jitang's expression changed when he heard this, and he said hurriedly: "I don't mean that by the official! It's just that the flower is too dangerous, and I'm afraid that angels will get it! So it's better not to go to that kind of place. If there is any situation, the official will report it in time .”
Liu Haojia stood up and said, "I don't need to worry about it, Mr. Meng. I have my own arrangements! I just hope that when my people buy something in the county, you won't hinder me!"
After speaking, Liu Haojia walked directly out. Meng Jitang also looked crestfallen when he saw Liu Haojia's behavior, but he still got up and led a group of people who looked frightened and puzzled to send Liu Haojia out of the county government office.
After sending Liu Haojia away, Magistrate Meng gathered his energy and led everyone back to the back hall, where they had a hasty discussion about donating money and food. The four gentry had already discovered that the relationship between Liu Meng and Liu Meng was not good, and also heard that the county magistrate had not gone to greet Liu Haojia, so they knew that there must be a reason for this! But they didn't want to get involved, so they simply threw out a lot of money and left the county government as soon as possible.
After everyone left, Magistrate Meng sat alone in the back hall and thought silently. The old servant who had been standing by the family stepped forward and said, "Sir, this Liu Haojia looks young, and he is extremely reckless when doing things. Do we still need to treat them according to the requirements of the capital?"
Magistrate Meng sighed and said: "What else can I do? I thought that as a deputy imperial envoy, he would not rashly betray his face! But I didn't expect that this person actually revealed the matter in public, which caught me off guard. We can no longer interfere with his affairs!”
The old servant said: "But I don't know if it's worth doing this? Can the people in the capital keep their word?"
Magistrate Meng said helplessly: "Otherwise, who can I rely on? You know that my official career is not good and I have no backer. It's not easy for someone to show their favor to me. I must seize this opportunity!"
The old servant said: "But Mr. Li looks very young. He must be a powerful person in the family. Does offending him do more harm than good?"
Magistrate Meng shook his head and said: "This is nothing. After all, the civil servants have the final say in the court now. He comes from a noble family, so he can't say anything!"
The old servant said: "In that case, what about the people outside the inn?"
Magistrate Meng waved his hand and said: "What else can be done, just withdraw it all!"
The old servant sighed and went to do his errands. Only Magistrate Meng stayed in the room to figure out the next step of the matter. But he knew that when things got to this point, he could only trust his colleagues in the capital!
