Jinjiang City, government office.
Zhang Hao, the prefect of Quanzhou, stayed in the back house, staring at a bamboo forest beside the courtyard wall in trance.
Seeing that the tea had gone cold, Mrs. Zhang brought new tea and said softly: "Since the court has appointed a new prefect, why should I have another dispute with Tang Xian and those people? They want to recruit people to build water conservancy projects. Let them go, there is no way to stop them."
Zhang Hao glanced at Mrs. Zhang and shook his head bitterly: "What do you know? The construction of water conservancy projects sounds grand, but when the people are recruited, who will provide the money and food? This is a pretext, a pretext to divide the spoils! They want to take advantage of it Before the new prefect arrives, divide the money and food in the treasury again!"
Zhang was helpless and sat down: "The general judge is in charge of water conservancy. He proposed it, and other officials in the government also supported it. Only the master objected and refused to approve it. Doesn't this mean blocking their way to make money? I'm worried. They will be detrimental to the master."
Zhang Hao stared at Mrs. Zhang and asked coldly: "I'm not afraid, what are you afraid of?"
Mrs. Zhang was so aggrieved that she picked up her handkerchief and cried softly: "Yesterday when the master was out, Mrs. Tongpan came to the house to reminisce about the past and made some threats. If the master doesn't nod..."
Zhang Hao didn't expect that the other party would actually reach into the back house, with a gloomy expression on his face: "So what if you don't nod?"
Mrs. Zhang was a little afraid: "Mrs. Tongpan said that there are many venomous snakes in Quanzhou Prefecture, and they need to come out to look for food before hibernating."
"That's unreasonable!"
Zhang Hao was so angry that he picked up the tea bowl and threw it to the ground.
Mrs. Zhang is afraid of venomous snakes. It’s scary to think about it. If she is fed by a venomous snake during the night, she may not be able to wait for the doctor to come to treat her.
The people here are so cruel that my husband can't fight them.
Zhang Hao finished venting and found that there was nothing he could do.
The officials here have long become a party. When they say something, they all nod in agreement, but no one follows it.
Tang Xian said nothing, as the prefect himself was just a decoration.
This group of local snakes has endless tricks, meticulous work, well-informed, and huge power. In front of them, they are completely powerless, and they have even reached the point of being at the mercy of others.
Tongpanzhai.
Zhang Jiujing walked into the study with a smile. He smelled the faint sandalwood and felt relaxed physically and mentally. When he went to the desk, he saw Tang Xian carefully carving a blue jade pendant. He couldn't help but praise: "My master's stone carving skills are superb and ingenious."
Tang Xian took a breath and put away the carving knife: "Stop complimenting me. Tell me, what's the matter?"
Zhang Jiujing leaned slightly: "Two pieces of good news."
"Oh, it's so rare."
Tang Xian leaned on the back of the chair and stretched his arms.
Zhang Jiujing hurriedly walked behind him, stretched out his hands to massage, and said, "The first good news is that Magistrate Zhang has approved the water conservancy project and allowed the Magistrate's Yamen to recruit 5,000 people to dredge the Jinjiang River."
Tang Xian closed his eyes and said slowly: "There is no need for a person who is leaving to fight us to the death. He is a person who understands current affairs. You should let the governor Yang Zaoduan be responsible for this matter and remove the money and food from the treasury as soon as possible." I will separate them and tell everyone that after the Double Ninth Festival, everyone must restrain themselves and not cause trouble. If someone does evil and is caught by the new prefect, in order to protect everyone, I will let him Shut up forever!”
Zhang Jiujing nodded repeatedly.
Before you have a clear idea of the new prefect's attitude and abilities, you still need to be careful.
Zhang Jiujing continued: "The second good news is that the miracle doctor Ding Zhang has seen Mr. Tang again and said that he is recovering well. In another month, he may be able to regain his virility as a man."
Tang Xian didn't answer.
What's the point of a man being masculine or not? After all, both things were broken and cut off by Ding Zhang. Now Tang Hu is already a de facto eunuch, he just keeps something.
Tang Xian shook his head and asked, "Is there no news about Zhang San and Xiao Cheng yet?"
Zhang Jiujing shook his head: "On August 25th, they boarded the ship in Luoyang Jiang. It was the last time they appeared. Ten days have passed. Our people have been looking for them, but there is still no trace of them. Master, after so long, they He probably left Quanzhou Prefecture and went to Guangdong."
Tang Xian stood up, walked a few steps with his hands behind his back, and said in a deep voice: "It's only a day's journey from Luoyang River to Jinjiang. If they come, they should show up. Since they didn't show up, they probably left Quanzhou Mansion and took back Let’s use our manpower.”
Zhang Jiujing recognized Tang Xian's judgment.
Be it Zhang San or Xiao Cheng, these are two nosy guys. They also care about the trivial matters in Shuangxikou. They even went out of their way to kill Shi Ruji with a carbine, almost frightening Shi Ruji to death.
If they came to Jinjiang, they would probably have made a fuss all the way to the government office, and they wouldn't have tolerated it for so long without taking any action.
Tang Xian thought of something and asked: "The Double Ninth Festival is approaching, have you prepared any gifts? Although it is inconvenient for me to be here in person for Old Man Changyuan's sixtieth birthday, the gifts cannot be too light."
Zhang Jiujing promised seriously: "Don't worry, sir. The envoy from the occupation brought a piece of rare ambergris. We intercepted it and kept it still. Giving this thing away will definitely make Old Changyuan happy."
"Ambergris, it's indeed a big gift. Although I'm reluctant to part with it, I still give it to you."
Tang Xian sighed.
Zhang Jiujing smiled and said: "A piece of ambergris can keep us safe and sound. It's worth it."
Tang Xian nodded slightly.
Yes, things are dead after all, and preserving glory, wealth and power is the most important thing.
In Jinjiang City, Hailou Inn.
Xiao Cheng walked in, closed the door, walked to the table, and whispered to Gu Zhengchen: "Qin Song, Mei Hong and others have not arrived in Jinjiang yet. It will take some time to arrive. Zhang Pei lives on the next street. No one is suspicious at Fushun Inn, should we summon him?"
Gu Zhengchen shook his head: "Let him stay outside for now. What news did he find out this time?"
Xiao Cheng glanced at Li Chengyi.
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said: "He is my master now, there is no need to avoid him."
Xiao Cheng nodded and said, "There are three pieces of news. One is that the government has posted a notice asking for 5,000 people to be mobilized for 20 days to dredge the Jinjiang River."
Gu Zhengchen's brows moved slightly, but he didn't say anything, but motioned for Xiao Cheng to continue.
Xiao Chengdao: "Secondly, Magistrate Zhang has not left the government office for some time, and the court hearings are mostly handled by the general magistrate. Thirdly, recently, officials and wealthy households in the city have been preparing gifts for the sixth birthday of the old man Changyuan." Preparing for my tenth birthday.”
"Old man Changyuan, which yuan?"
Gu Zhengchen frowned.
Xiao Cheng pointed to the north and said with a stern face: "Yuan of Yuan Ting."
Gu Zhengchen looked at Xiao Cheng and said softly: "The Yuan court has been driven outside the pass to graze their cattle. It has been seven years since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, and there is still a man named Changyuan. He is really courageous. Changge, have you heard of this? people?"
Li Chengyi shook his head: "I know more about the news in Luoyang Town and Hui'an County, but I don't know much about things in Jinjiang City. My father has never mentioned Old Man Changyuan."
Gu Zhengchen said to Xiao Cheng: "It seems that you still need to work hard to make the officials aware of the news. The person who brings gifts to congratulate is not a simple person. Find out who this person is, where his family is, what he does for a living, and what his ancestors are." .”
Xiao Cheng reluctantly agreed.
He was obviously a bodyguard, but all he did was run errands and find out information. Fortunately, there was no danger to Gu Zhengchen staying at the inn.
After Xiao Cheng left, Gu Zhengchen looked at Li Chengyi: "The government is recruiting people to do corvee service. What do you think?"
Li Chengyi picked up a book and sat down: "We heard the news from the restaurant that the imperial court has appointed a new Quanzhou magistrate, who will take office on September 28th. And the government government's recruitment of people's power this time is just With a twenty-day construction period, it can be completed before the arrival of the new prefect and the people can be sent home."
"This shows that people in the government office want to take advantage of the opportunity of dredging the river to share part of the money and food privately. It also shows that the government office is a little wary of the new Quanzhou magistrate, or does not know his details, so he chose to stabilize the situation before he takes office. .”
Gu Zhengchen nodded: "Then Magistrate Zhang never leaves the government office?"
Li Chengyi thought for a while and speculated: "Zhifu Zhang doesn't leave the government office for two reasons: he can't get out, and he doesn't want to go out. It's unlikely that he can't get out. He is the prefect after all, and no one can stop him from going out. . If he doesn’t want to leave, it only means that he doesn’t want to be a director and just wants to leave office quickly.”
Gu Zhengchen was very satisfied with Li Chengyi's analysis. He stood up and moved for a while, sighing: "There are many problems in Jinjiang City. Business is in decline and the people are in poverty. Many fishermen have been moved into the city and have no means of making a living. Some families actually They were reduced to begging and selling their sons and daughters. There are also some officials who disobey the court's orders and live outside the government offices. That's all. They even dare to occupy people's houses."
Li Chengyi put down the scroll, hesitated, and asked again: "Who are you, and why are you so concerned about government affairs?"
This question has puzzled Li Chengyi for a long time.
Gu Zhengchen smiled and said, "When the time comes, you will naturally know."
Li Chengyi sighed helplessly, knowing that this was the answer. He looked around the room, spread out his hand and asked, "How long will we stay here, and when will we get the file?"
Gu Zhengchen walked up to the anxious Li Chengyi, took away the book in his hand, and said seriously: "Confucius is not enough to help you with the current predicament. You need to learn to find more problems from the details. Just come to the drug store opposite. Look, in the past half day, how many people have entered the store, how many people have left with medicine bags, how many people have left empty-handed, how many men, how many women, and how many children have come to prescribe medicine."
Li Chengyi's heart was shaken, and he seemed to understand something.
Gu Zhengchen walked to the window, looked at the drug store with people coming in and out, and said softly: "If you want to understand the sufferings of the people, you can't just go to the government offices or the bustling streets. The government can truly represent the suffering of the bottom class. It’s a place where people don’t come easily.”
Li Chengyi was a little shocked.
Indeed, officials will not appear in the drug store. They have servants, but the common people do not.
