Daxing County on the outskirts of Beijing, Beizangyi.
Those who go north to Beijing by water must pass through Tongzhou Pier, and those who go north by land must pass by Beizangyi Station.
You Jingwu stood in front of the window of the post house, staring at the heavy rain outside and feeling worried.
This time, You Jingwu escorted Liang Bohong to Beijing. In order to ensure that nothing went wrong, he resorted to false and true methods.
On the surface, he claimed that he would enter Beijing by water and through the canal. After boarding the official ship in Yangzhou, he stopped the ship after traveling north for less than twenty miles. He brought fifty capable warriors in disguise and escorted Liang Bohong to take the land route.
As for the official ship, it still had two official signs: "Emperor's personal army" and "Escorted by order", and continued to sail north to hide from others.
Five days ago, You Jingwu received the news while he was on his way. The official ship had an accident near the Dezhou Pier. Water leaked from the bottom of the ship and sank. Several strong men were drowned. The remaining warriors swam to the shore to save their lives.
You Jingwu secretly rejoiced: Fortunately, he took the overland route instead. Otherwise, Liang Bohong might be buried in the belly of a fish.
Yesterday, You Jingwu and his party arrived at Beizang Station, which was only fifty miles away from the capital. It only took half a day to complete the errand.
Naihe encountered the damn weather. The autumn rain in the 18th year of Hongzhi's reign was not like a regular autumn rain, but more like the Pangbo rainstorm in midsummer. Smoke and rain kept falling. A flood occurred in Tutan Lake near Beizang Post, which destroyed the post road.
You Jingwu had no choice but to escort Liang Bohongku, the most critical figure in the Lianghuai Salt Case, to wait at this Beizang Station.
Mrs. Ninth's relative, Qianhu Basha from Fusi, North Town, came over. He lowered his voice and said: "The man named Liang has gone to bed. The four robes are watching him closely."
You Jingwu nodded. The rain outside the window splashed on his seventh-grade civil official uniform.
You Jingwu entered Beijing secretly. Passing by the inn all the way, there were county magistrates who were pretending to be full-term and came to Beijing to wait for the appointment of new posts by the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
Basha pretended to be his butler. The rest of the people pretended to be his servants, servants, and bearers.
You Jingwu complained to Basha: "It's been raining all day and all night, and it has no intention of stopping."
Basha said: "It's useless to worry. Let's have dinner first."
The two sat at the table and waited for the postman to bring them dinner.
Not long after, the postman came over with rice. He held a basket in his left hand, and in the basket were four black mixed flour cakes. The right hand holds a plate with shredded salted radish.
After the meal was served, Basha was displeased: "We in Yuzhi County are the seventh-ranking officials of the imperial court. According to the reception specifications at the inn, it should be two meat, two vegetarian, one soup and white rice."
You Jingwu lied about his surname being Yu. Therefore, Basha called him "Yuzhi County".
The postman turned around and left without saying a word.
Yi Cheng, who was in his sixties, came over. He sneered: "Ah, the seventh-grade magistrate is considered a local official. At the emperor's feet, he is at best an ant."
"Our Beizang Post receives more than a dozen governors, envoys, envoys, and governors who come to Beijing every year. What does it mean to be a seventh-grade official?"
The little ninth-grade Yi Cheng has a very loud tone. After all, it’s Mr. Jing.
You Jingwu squeezed the mixed flour cake with his hand: "It's as hard as a rock, and it smells a little rancid. No matter how young I am, I still have to give people something to eat, right?"
Thinking back to when You Jingwu followed his father to fight against the Japanese in Fujian, hard mixed flour pancakes were considered a delicacy to eat during emergencies.
But at this moment, he had to react as a Jiangnan magistrate should when facing Zamian Pancake.
The magistrate of the blessed land was fooled by the inn with mixed flour cakes. If the county magistrate says nothing but enjoys the meal, won't others doubt his identity?
The postmaster stroked his white beard: "Humph, you are still talking about it! The magistrate of the neighboring county came to Beijing to wait for a new position after completing his term, and he brought at most three or five followers. But you brought fifty with you. How can we have so much food for you at the post station? Those cows and horses you raise?”
"Speaking of which, a magistrate with fifty followers should make a lot of money in the south. If you want to eat well, you can just spend some money."
Officials of the Ming Dynasty all rely on the mountains to rely on the mountains, and rely on the sea to rely on the sea. Yi Cheng relies on Yi Zhan to eat Yi Zhan.
What do you mean by being a county magistrate? When the governor moved into the inn, he was rewarded with dozens of taels of passing silver.
You Jingwu smiled and said, "I told you I wanted some money, so I settled. After all, I have been a county magistrate in Jiangnan for three years, and I can always get dozens of taels of silver."
After saying that, You Jingwu took out a fifty-tael silver note from his sleeve and said, "Give me and the butler some good dishes, and boil a pot of wine to warm yourself up. Give my entourage some white-flour steamed buns, too. Three taels of wine per person.”
Yi Cheng put away the banknotes and shouted: "Okay! Serve some good dishes and boil a pot of wine! The rest of the entourage will also treat me well!"
Looking at Yi Cheng's face, he doesn't look like a ninth-grade Yi Cheng. He is clearly a snobbish waiter in a restaurant.
Not long after, the postman brought food to You Jingwu again. The four dishes are soy sauce pork, fried chicken legs, pickled wild rice, and fennel beans. The soup is bone tofu soup.
You Jingwu did not move his chopsticks, but called a cat beside him: "Rabbit, come here!"
The cat named "Rabbit" took three steps at a time and ran into You Jingwu's arms.
You Jingwu took some vegetables from each of the four dishes, grabbed a piece of steamed bun, and placed it on the stool. "Rabbit" lowered his head and feasted.
Don't underestimate this cat. He has a position in Jinyiwei, and is jokingly called the "Poison School Lieutenant" by the robes.
When Jinyiwei goes out on secret errands, if he is afraid of being poisoned, he must bring a "poison-testing captain" with him.
There are more than twenty such school captain cats in Fusi, Beizhen.
Silver needles can only detect arsenic, but cats are much more reliable than silver needles in detecting poison.
When Yi Cheng saw this scene, he said, "What a sin! You gave fifty taels of silver in exchange for the food, and you ruined it for this little beast?"
You Jingwu stroked the cat's head and said with a smile: "Don't you understand this? This is the lucky cat I raised. I stayed in Jiangnan for three years and was able to bring fifty followers with me when I came to Beijing. It's all thanks to I’m looking at this lucky cat.”
"I think you can keep one too, and I'll make sure that all the passing officers you meet in the future are as generous as me."
Yi Cheng said: "You are quite interesting. That's all. I'm busy with official duties, so I won't chat with you here!"
After speaking, Yi Cheng walked to the wood-burning stove in the distance, lay down on the deck chair and took a nap.
After a while, the "rabbit" finished eating the vegetables and was fine. Only then did You Jingwu and Basha start eating with confidence.
Seeing You Jingwu and Basha moving their chopsticks, the other captains and warriors also began to eat steamed buns and drink wine.
After eating, Basha said: "I have found out everything in the post station. There are six post soldiers in total, and there are seven people including the post Cheng. There are no Lianjiazi in the temples. They are all lazy post bugs."
Lianjiazi's temples are usually bulging.
You Jingwu said: "Liang Bohong sleeps in the suite room. Remind the brothers who are closely guarding them not to take a nap at night."
Basha said: "Don't worry. These brothers all followed Madam Ninth from Xiangxi Lane and are extremely reliable. Liang Bohong's life is related to Mr. Chang's future, and no one dares to slack off."
At this moment, the door of the inn was pushed open.
Several people came in.
One of them, like You Jingwu, was wearing a seventh-grade official uniform and was in his forties. The others looked like they were his followers.
The seventh-rank official shouted: "Where is Yi Cheng?"
Yi Cheng stood up from the recliner in a hurry. After seeing that the person who came to the post was a seventh-grade official, he lay down lazily and said, "What are you shouting? You scared me."
The seventh-rank official walked up to the postmaster and took out the postcard: "I am Wang Yi, the magistrate of Zhuqiao County, Laizhou Prefecture, Shandong Province. After completing his term, he will return to Beijing to wait for his post and stay in your post office."
Not everyone can live in the inn. Post coupons are certificates issued to civil servants to stay in post stations during the Ming Dynasty. This thing was called "Chuan Fu" in the Qin Dynasty, "Fu Guan" in the Han Dynasty, "Guosuo" in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, "Yi Guan" in the Song Dynasty, "Zha Zi" in the Yuan Dynasty, and changed back to "Yi Guan" in the Ming Dynasty.
The post ticket corresponds to the "fire ticket", which is issued by the Ministry of War to the cavalry who report urgently. Only one person and one horse are allowed on the train tickets, and the inn will provide catering and horse-changing services.
The postmaster looked at the post coupons and ordered a postman: "Arrange a residence for this Wang Zhixian."
Wang Yidao: "Can you give me some clean clothes? We have been on the road for a day and have been soaked to the skin. The clothes in the box are also wet. In addition, we can prepare some hot meals and preferably a few pots of hot wine."
Yi Cheng half-squinted his eyes: "There are quite a lot of things. Our post station only provides food, but not clothing."
Wang Yi seems to have heard about the aggressive nature of these post bugs in the suburbs of Beijing. He took out a ten-tael silver lock from his backpack and put it on the table: "It's not easy to travel a long way back to Beijing to report on your work. Please take care of it."
Yi Cheng took the money and thought: The poor officials in Shandong are not as generous as the rich officials in Jiangnan.
But even though flies are small, they are still meat. The postmaster took the money and ordered the postmaster: "Do as he said."
When Wang Yi was talking to Yi Cheng, You Jingwu kept scanning the area with the corner of his eye vigilantly. There are too many people who want Liang Bohong to die mysteriously. Since the escort can dress up as a local official, the assassin can also dress up as a local official.
Wang Yi followed the postman upstairs and changed into clean clothes. After a while, I went back again and came to the first floor. It was a rainy night, so he took the initiative to sit at You Jingwu's table and started chatting: "Who is your brother?"
You Jingwu handed over his hand and said, "I am Yu Zhuangjing, the magistrate of Cixi County, Ningbo Prefecture, Zhejiang Province."
You Jingwu had already made up his identity and resume and memorized it very well.
Wang Yidao said: "It turns out to be Mr. Yu. I have admired you for a long time. I am Wang Yi, the magistrate of Zhuqiao County, Laizhou Prefecture, Shandong Province."
You Jingwu cupped his hands and said, "It turns out to be Mr. Wang. I'm disrespectful."
The first meeting of a civil servant is similar to the first meeting of a local ruffian in later generations. They have to talk in circles.
The local gangsters would say something like this when they meet: "I'm with Brother Dongxing Crow, where did you come from?"
"Ah, Dongxing and I are so smiling. It turns out we are good brothers from the same club!"
Civil servants also have to interrogate. We should also ask each other where we are from and who the boss is.
Wang Yi asked: "Which Jinshi list is Mr. Yu? What's his ranking? Who is the master?"
You Jingwu lied without changing his face: "I am the 67th person in the top three in Hongzhi's fifteenth year, and my master is Wang Hua."
Wang Yi smiled and said: "I am the 33rd in the top two in the twelfth year of Hongzhi, and my master is Cheng Minzheng."
You Jingwu had always been on high alert, and he heard something was wrong from Wang Yi's words: "Master Wang is ranked at the top of the second class, how come he is still the magistrate of the county after being an official for six years?"
After finishing the calf, You Jingwu showed his timidity! In the twelfth year of Hongzhi's reign, he was still in Yongning Guard with his father You Tianjue. He didn't hear what was going on outside the window, and he only focused on beating dogs and Japanese pirates. How could he know about the imperial examination in the twelfth year of Hongzhi's reign? I don’t even know what happened to Wang Yi’s disciple Cheng Minzheng.
Fortunately, Wang Yi didn't seem to notice that You Jingwu was a coward. He explained with a smile: "Who asked me to be my tutor? Cheng Minzheng. Something happened during the examination that year, and Cheng Butang was later ordered to retire."
"In the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty, the master is the backer. My backer falls too fast, so I naturally can't rise."
You Jingwu nodded: "Ah, that's right."
Wang Yi smiled and said: "You are different from me. Your master, Wang Hua, was promoted to the left minister of the Ministry of Rites this year. It is said that he is very likely to join the cabinet in the future."
"With a future elder as your backer, Mr. Yu's future career will naturally be smooth sailing and he will rise step by step."
You Jingwu smiled and said: "Where is it? My ability is limited. I will return to Beijing after my term of office to take office. Don't be transferred to the lower county to serve."
Counties in the Ming Dynasty were classified according to the amount of money and grain paid. The one who pays 100,000 shi of grain is the upper county, the 60,000 shi is the middle county, and the 30,000 shi is the lower county.
Wang Yi was full of New Year's greetings: "Your Excellency, you are too modest. You are in charge of a job in the south of the Yangtze River. You should have brought a lot of money when you returned to the capital. And your teacher Wang Butang will help you. I think Gao Sheng is nailed down from the sixth rank. Promoted to the sixth rank or maybe It’s not impossible to stay in Beijing and join the ministry.”
When civil servants of the Ming Dynasty chatted privately, they did not shy away from words such as "fat" and "silver".
In the eyes of most civil servants, being an official is like doing business. Ten years of hard work is the principal, and the money earned while serving as an official is the interest.
You Jingwu smiled and said, "Then let me borrow Mr. Wang's good words."
Wang Yi asked: "I've heard about Cixi, Ningbo. It's a good place with great wealth. The county's taxes should be quite high."
You Jingwu said perfunctorily: "Ah, Cixi produces silk and tea. There are a lot of taxes."
You Jingwu could not tell the specific amount of taxes in Cixi.
Wang Yidao: "Zhuqiao County, where I work, is much worse. There is no other specialty in this county, the only specialty is thieves! I have been an official for three years, and I have only been busy dealing with thieves."
"That damn place is so poor that every mouse passing by would have tears in his eyes. I really envy you Jiangnan officials!"
You Jingwu was afraid that if he continued to talk, his secret would be revealed, so he winked at Basha.
Basha said: "Master, it's getting late. It's time for you to rest."
You Jingwu nodded: "Okay. Mr. Wang, I will go back to the room to sleep first. Let's talk tomorrow when we are free."
At this moment, the door of the posthouse was pushed open again. A tall, thick-set man came in. The man wore a raincoat and a bamboo hat. There is a waist knife hanging on the waist.
You Jingwu looked at the man. I saw that he was wearing a guard uniform under his raincoat.
The man walked up to Yi Cheng and said, "I am from the 100th household of Dusi Yamen in Shandong Province. I came to Beijing to send 400 miles to urgent military information."
After saying this, the man took out the ticket and handed it to Yi Cheng.
Receiving a soldier who has been rushed for four hundred miles is not a reception for a civil servant, so we must not neglect it. If you delay the urgent paperwork, you will be stuck in a hurry.
Yi Cheng looked at the tickets and asked, "Lu Dahu and Lu Baihu? Do you want to change horses and drive all night?"
Lu Dahu cursed: "Damn it! I just came back from near Dantan Lake in the north. There was a flood and I changed my horse to another horse, so I had to go all the way! The post roads were all washed out!"
When a scholar meets a soldier, there is no reason to explain. Qiu Ba like Lu Dahu is not used to post bugs like him.
Lu Dahu said: "Hurry up and prepare food for me!"
Yi Cheng asked: "Do you want anything else?"
Lu Dahu said loudly: "I also want a girl who is both messy and ugly. You must have one here too!"
When Lu Dahu walked to You Jingwu, he glanced at You Jingwu.
This glance didn't matter, Lu Dahu actually shouted to You Jingwu: "Hey, I didn't expect that this person in the wilderness would meet an acquaintance!"
(End of chapter)
