After leaving Zhang Di's residence, Yuan Mo was feeling gloomy. These days, relying on my tact with others and ruthlessness with others, I have prospered. Although Zhang Di is a low-ranking official, he is a well-known figure in Xin'an County. The only people I usually fawn over are county captains and bookkeepers, and even county magistrates are rare to see. How dare I look down on him?
Holding two boxes of snacks in his hand, Yuan Mo was thinking of a solution.
Zhang Di was extremely unhappy as he sent Mo Yuanwai away. I sat in the yard and drank two pots of tea. Seeing that it was getting late, I walked out of the yard.
When we got to the street, there was a lot of people and it was quite lively. There are many dumpling restaurants and noodle restaurants on both sides of the street, and there are many customers. Xin'an County is close to Luoyang, so everything is styled after Luoyang, including the food.
This street is obviously newly built, most of the shops are similar, and even the plaques are of a similar style. They always set up a watch in front of the door, with a white plaque on a black background behind it. The door is not tall, and it is very deep inside, making it look a little dark.
Zhang Di looked at it for a long time and always felt something strange. Later, when I thought about it carefully, hey, isn’t this the style of the underworld?
After passing many shops, Zhang Di really didn't want to go in. Unconsciously, I walked further and further, and when I almost reached the street, I looked up and saw a shop with an obviously different style.
A pavilion protrudes from the front of this shop, where some roast chicken and goose are hung. A large door is opened, and the entire front hall is unobstructed. Facing the counter is a counter. Behind the counter is a large pot selling ramen and the like.
Zhang Di said: "This store looks pleasing to the eye, why is there not a single customer?"
After looking around, I was really puzzled and walked into the store.
When the boy saw Zhang Di coming in, his eyes lit up and he hurriedly came to greet him.
Zhang Di said: "Seeing as you are selling ramen noodles, I wonder if you can do business now?"
The waiter hurriedly said: "It's done, please sit down, sir! Just order whatever you want to eat!"
Zhang Di said: "Then order a bowl of ramen, a roast chicken, and a dime of wine. What else do you have to eat here?"
The waiter said: "My guest has ordered enough. If I order anything else, I'm afraid I won't be able to eat it."
Zhang Di said: "No problem, I'll take it back and eat it slowly."
The waiter said: "There are also various kinds of braised food. You can order them slowly in the pavilion over there. There are also various kinds of cold dishes, such as crispy lotus root, leeks, bean sprouts, etc. There are all kinds of seasonal vegetables in this season." Just order whatever you want to eat."
Zhang Di said: "Then let's have a plate of beef with soy sauce and a plate of cold and crispy lotus root."
The waiter couldn't help but smile bitterly after hearing this: "Sir, there is indeed no soy sauce beef. We don't have many customers in this store, so we don't dare to buy beef for marinating. If customers want to eat meat, just order some roast chicken and goose. For example, beef, There really isn’t one in the store.”
Zhang Di shook his head after hearing this: "Looking at how big your shop is, why don't you even have beef? Forget it, tear up the roast chicken and I'll use it to drink."
At this moment, a young member of staff came out from behind. Seeing Zhang Di, he hurriedly came forward to say hello.
Zhang Di returned the gift and asked: "Master, it's dinner time now, why am I the only customer in your shop?"
The shop owner sighed: "There are too few pedestrians in Xin'an County these two days, what can I do? Besides, more and more restaurants are opening in the street now. My shop is located in a remote location, so naturally there are not many customers."
Zhang Di smiled and said: "Your store is in the ramen business, how can you do it just relying on outsiders? If locals don't come to the store, it must be because your store is not doing well."
The shop owner hurriedly shook his head: "I am a well-known conscientious shop in Xin'an City! The food I cook is absolutely delicious, so many people are rushing to eat it! Alas, if it was two months ago, the business in the shop would be so good! It’s just that now, it’s okay not to say anything——”
After saying that, I couldn't help but shake my head.
Zhang Di was surprised. Asked: "Why is this? If the food tastes good, there should be many guests."
The shop owner smiled bitterly: "Because two months ago, the county magistrate said that Xin'an County is on the post road, and there are too many merchants coming and going from east to west. The shop signs on the road are messy, and the current Xuanfu Xianggong likes to be neat and uniform. His idea is to ask all shops to change their signboards uniformly. The shops spend their own money, but they have to make it what they want. It’s just money, but when officials look at the signboards outside, they look like the underworld. Who is willing?"
Zhang Di nodded and said: "Indeed. Walking on this road feels like entering the underworld. It's very cold in broad daylight."
The shop owner said: "The magistrate was furious when he saw the store and was unwilling to do so. However, Xinan County is adjacent to the post road and not far from Luoyang, so the magistrate did not dare to act recklessly. I heard that he used shady means and was caught by Xuanfu Xianggong. He will be severely punished.”
Zhang Di said: "Xuanfu Xianggong cares about the people. As an official, you really can't do whatever you want."
The shop owner said: "So the county magistrate thought of a way. There is a Mo Yuanwai in this county, who is very capable of throwing away money. The magistrate asked Mo Yuanwai, a civilian, to get the matter done. As long as it is done, it will be done. It will do him a lot of good.”
Zhang Di laughed after hearing this and said: "I have seen this member Mo just now, and I don't see anything special about him. Why do people in Xin'an City say he is ruthless?"
After hearing this, the shop owner sighed: "Mo Yuanwai is always polite when meeting foreigners or people in official circles. And he is also quite kind to local people, unless there is a conflict of interest with him. But if there is a conflict with him, then any means will be used. How can Yuanmo not take it seriously when he took over the job assigned by the county magistrate? He told the shops along the way that if they don’t change their signboards, they won’t have to do business. Put this The street was divided into five sections from the inside to the outside. The shops in the innermost area were cleaned up first. If the signboards were not changed, he would instruct his disciples to block the doors of the shops and prohibit business. If they were not obedient, urine and feces would be splashed on the shop fronts. Smashing the facade, any means can be used to get out. Opening the door to do business, who can bear this? If you report it to the official, the official will not say anything. Just do these things, Mo Yuanwai secretly instructs his subordinates to do it, and even his subordinates do it It was done at night, so what can the government do? In less than a month, most of the shop signs have been changed."
Zhang Di felt vaguely that something was wrong, and said to the shop owner: "Then why haven't you changed the appearance of your house?"
The shop owner said: "I originally wanted to change, but Quanzi didn't agree. Da Lang was stubborn and Erlang was fearless, so he refused to change. Because my home was in the outermost section, Yuan Mo did not come to see us. Until the end It was only then that Mo Yuanwai's subordinates came to the door. My two dogs were on duty in shifts at night, and I brought a few servants with me, but Mo Yuanwai couldn't take advantage of it. "
"Hey -" At this point, the shop owner shook his head.
Zhang Di asked: "Finally——"
The shop owner said: "What can we do in the end? Mo Yuanwai is still a famous figure in Xin'an City. My two dogs fought against him, and they were killed by him in the end. Dalang didn't have any when he was on duty at night. He was seen and drowned in the valley water. Erlang did not believe in evil and patrolled at night. As a result, one night when he was alone, he was trampled to death by a cow. The old man's two sons were both dead, and no one saw them. How can I swallow this breath?"
Zhang Di said: "The reporting officer! Don't you think the reporting officer doesn't care?"
The shop owner smiled bitterly: "Didn't the officials hear that? When they died, only one of them died, and no one else saw them. One drowned in the river, and the other was trampled to death by cows. What's the use of reporting it to the officials? Why would the officials care? Such a thing?"
Zhang Di opened his mouth and looked at the shop owner. He couldn't think of a way to deal with it for a long time.
Yes, people die on their own, so what does it have to do with the government? Once the government found out how a person died, they naturally left it alone. If you go to the government to make trouble again, someone will be arrested.
After a long time, Zhang Di asked the owner: "What does the owner want now? It is really difficult to deal with such methods."
The shopkeeper said: "I only have two sons, and they are both dead. How can I give up? All three daughters are married. Now I have adopted this young man as my son. I am just trying to resist Mo Yuanwai to the end. We are both the same." We go in and out at the same time, never alone, so that Mo Yuanwai will not have a chance. Either Mo Yuanwai will kill all of our family, or my store will be opened here, so that he will not be able to get what he wants!"
Zhang Di sighed and said: "This is too pitiful. Is Yuanwai Mo just watching like this?"
The owner of the shop said: "Mo Yuanwai has a way. Guest sir, you are the only customer in my shop for a long time. How can I do business? Mo Yuanwai has spoken. As long as the local people enter my shop, they are against him and must be dealt with." Now the store can only handle business from out-of-town customers, but the location of the store is not good."
The waiter tore up the roast chicken and brought it over. He drank another dime of wine, took a cup, and asked Zhang Di to drink by himself.
The shopkeeper stood up, shook his head and sighed, and walked back.
Zhang Di was drinking and thinking about what happened just now.
As ordinary people, there is really nothing we can do when encountering this kind of thing. Two sons are dead and reporting it to the authorities is of no use at all. The key point is that what the government does is reasonable and reasonable, and you can't find fault with it. The following officials, Mo, were forced to change the plaque. On the face of it, no illegal means were used. As long as the government cooperates a little, ordinary people will be helpless.
It's useless to report this kind of thing to the higher authorities. When we arrived in Henan Prefecture, even after checking, Xin'an County did not use illegal means. The so-called persecution by Yuan Mo can be said to be the delusion of the shop owner. How much is delusion worth? It is impossible for the government to decide a case based on delusions.
In the final analysis, if the government cannot truly treat the people as relatives and consider them in everything, all systems and regulations will be in vain. There are always too many loopholes in the system that can be caught at will. It is up to the government to check and fill these loopholes. If the government doesn't check for leaks and fill them up, the common people can only suffer.
Local officials, in order to promote their own policies and create their own political achievements, naturally have a tendency to become alienated from the people. What to rely on at this time? Rely on the conscience of the local officials? If conscience cannot be regulated and corrected from time to time, is it still conscience?
Why did Wang Xiaolie ask Caifeng and officials like him to come to the place? In the final analysis, it was because the local officials had different ideas from those above, so officials had to come down to restrain them.
This job cannot be done by relying on special agents such as the secret police. Local officials have their own goals, why don’t the secret police have their own goals? The official job of collecting style officials is not to supervise officials. Only in this way can we truly supervise officials.
Zhang Di remembered that when he sent out officials to collect folk stories, Wang Xiaolie had said that he would publish two books of Legends and World Affairs in Luoyang. Isn’t the Mo Yuanwai he met just like the story Shiqing told? The fact that he can't be caught will not prevent similar stories from happening in Zixu Country's Wuyou Township.
