Fengri City, Dongcheng Restaurant.
Today is a rare holiday. All the officials in the yamen, except those who need to stay behind, can have a leisurely rest.
As the Population Department, which coordinates all population-related affairs in the forty-three cities within the jurisdiction of Fengri City, it is rare for all members to take a break.
Today is the thank you banquet for the chief officer Zhan Wenlin Zhangluo.
Zhan Wenlin's mother-in-law passed away in her hometown ten days ago. Many people in the government office knew the news, including Zhan Wenlin's boss and colleagues, who all took the time to go there, delivered some funeral rites and burned incense.
It is a custom in Jingxi to thank guests, usually within one month after the old man is buried.
The boss's thank-you banquet was held yesterday, and one table was enough. Today, Zhan Wenlin arranged two tables, all filled with colleagues from the Population Department.
"Sir, Zhao Chongwu said that he was not feeling well today, so he went back first. You never returned to the dormitory before and couldn't find me, so you asked me to make amends for you."
Zhan Wenlin's rank is the sixth grade, so his subordinates call him "Sir".
"Haha, Team Leader Zhao isn't coming? It's okay. I'll treat him to a drink next time. You guys sit down, the food and drinks will be served soon."
After being polite for a while, everyone in the wing sat down in order of priority in a tacit understanding, with seventeen people at two tables.
Zhan Wenlin sat in the middle of the main table at the top, with adjutant Yang Kaishi on the left and squad leader Wang Da on the right. He was the one who just apologized to another squad leader, Zhao Chongwu.
"The old man in my family has passed away before. Your thoughts will be borne in mind by everyone in the family. Let's prepare some wine to express our gratitude. I'll do it first!" Zhan Wenlin raised his glass and stood up. After saying these words, he raised his head and drank the wine in one gulp. All. It's just that the small cups they use are five-cent wine.
Zhan Wenlin toasted, and the others stood up and drank their glasses, and then the atmosphere became lively.
Unlike other departments in the yamen, the Population Department does not have direct law enforcement power, only management power. Therefore, there is not much money and it is a relatively clear-water place. However, although the water is clear, the people who work there are much simpler than other places. Because there are few conflicts of interest, most situations can be dealt with calmly.
After drinking, the conversation started. Tomorrow is the vacation period. These people are not afraid of getting into trouble if they drink too much. Instead, they continue to chat about some sensitive topics that are rarely mentioned in daily life.
"There has been a lot of news about Black Flag Camp recently, have you heard about it?"
"Yes, the Xuanqing Guards must have turned upside down, right? All the rank of Xiaoqi Officer and above were raised by half a level out of thin air. How many people will be jealous of this?"
"That's not all. Although the Black Flag Camp is an internal part of the Xuanqing Guard, its scope of responsibilities is clearly divided into "internal" and "external". In my opinion, this Black Flag Camp can be regarded as a member of the Xuanqing Guard. Xuanqingwei."
"Haha, this is a very good statement. Xuanqingwei in Xuanqingwei, tsk tsk, so insightful! You should be enlightened!"
"Also, I heard that the Black Flag Battalion in Licheng, which was set as a role model, has been in the limelight recently. They have built a cabinet within their jurisdiction. Everyone can submit papers in it, and they can report it directly to the door. The general flag of the Black Flag Battalion is in front of you! Does this count as overstepping your authority?"
"Shh! Be careful! It's better not to say such things. And it's not called a pleading, it's a "report letter." I heard that many people with complaints are posting letters in it, but really speaking, their general flag I wouldn’t believe it if I could look at them one by one.”
The topic naturally slipped to Licheng Black Flag Camp. The Black Flag Camp is not only a topic among these people, but also in all places under the jurisdiction of Fengri City. Whether it is official or high-ranking merchants, the Black Flag Camp in Licheng is a topic in private.
"I can't explain it clearly. But when it comes to Mr. Shen, I still admire him very much. Which of you would dare to go against the Li family head-on? In the end, not only did the Li family be slaughtered from top to bottom, So far, nothing happened, but I have been promoted and made a fortune."
When it comes to the Li family matter, several people present have extremely unnatural expressions on their faces and sweat on their foreheads. When the Li family spread money throughout the official circle of Fengri City, even the Population Department, a place like Qingshui that was rarely visited, was taken care of. These people were really worried at that time, but the result was okay, Black Flag Ying obviously did not investigate further, and all the officials who accepted the Li family's money were not affected.
Calculating this, many officials in Fengri City still have quite good intentions towards the Black Flag Camp in Licheng.
"Okay, let's talk less about the Black Flag Camp. They are often unreasonable. And now that the Black Flag Camp is in the spotlight, it is easy to cause trouble. Let's have a drink!" Zhan Wenlin interrupted with a smile. The discussion was getting louder and louder, and he felt it was inappropriate to talk loudly to Xuan Qingwei in the restaurant.
Moreover, the waiter who was serving drinks in the restaurant was always in the side room. It was not good to talk about so many sensitive topics in front of this outsider.
"What the adults said is, drink and drink!"
"Yes, yes, drink!"
"I suggest that we have a drinking order. Each person has a poem. If you can't finish it or it's out of date and fruitless, you'll be fined three drinks. How about that?"
"good!"
A group of people all agreed. This kind of entertainment that uses poetry as a drinking guide is very popular in many places. For a while, the room was in full swing, and poems of different heights came out one after another. These people who were not good at drinking quickly became popular one by one. Drinking till I am red in the face.
"Man, go get two more jars of wine." Zhan Wenlin saw that the wine in the jar was about to bottom out, so he ordered the restaurant waiter who was waiting in the side room to bring more wine.
"Okay sir."
The drinking party continued into the night. These already drunken population officers came out of the restaurant arm-in-arm, blushing and swaying as they walked.
Both Zhan Wenlin and Yang Kaishi had servants at home driving to pick them up, and they had been waiting downstairs for a long time. The rest of the people could only go home together, and a few of the drunken ones were wondering whether they should go to the flower house for a change.
...
As soon as these drunken officials left, the waiter who had been waiting for them in the side room turned around and came out of the back door of the restaurant, and then walked quickly into a dark alley.
There was a tall, strong man standing at a corner in the alley.
"Brother Feilong."
"How's it going? Did you find anything?"
"Yes! I followed your instructions and smelled the scent of each of them carefully while I was pouring wine for each of them. It turned out that five of the seventeen people had the aroma of varying degrees of spiritual stone on their bodies. "
"Five?! Are you sure?"
"Of course! Brother Feilong, it's not like you don't know that my black dog's nose is famous for its sharp nose. I have one of the Baimei Pan, so I am familiar with the aroma of the Panling Stone. As long as it is attached to It won't dissipate on my body for three to five days, even if I take a shower or change clothes. But ordinary people can't smell this smell, but I can smell it, it's unmistakable!"
"Who are they?"
"Officer Zhan Wenlin, adjutant Yang Kaishi, and a squad leader named, yes, Wang Da, and the other two are named Cheng Xu and Wang Jingci."
...
