Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 40 Quota
Snoring sounds were heard in the courtyard.

Everyone was fast asleep.

A figure with his back against the inner wall slowly stood up in the shadows.

I saw a black shadow jump up, grab the inner wall with both hands, and pull himself up nimbly.

When he flipped down from the other side, his hands kept him firmly fixed to the wall, and no sound was made.

He Xingseng has been in a very good mood recently.

That year, when he passed the exam, he was really happy.

He thought he could realize his ambitions and become a high-ranking official feared by everyone in the city.

But things were different from what he thought. The officials who passed the examination were only reserve officials. The number of positions for casual officials was fixed, and it was not his turn at all.

He began to be humiliated in various ways, became a slave of the officials, and suffered all kinds of torture.

Fortunately, he had an uncle who supported him and finally promoted him to a position as an official.

Later, his uncle turned a disaster into a blessing and got another chance for promotion.

He also changed his fate against all odds and became the head of the miscellaneous officials. He was very excited because there were still many vacancies among the officials at present. When his uncle took office, he would be promoted as well.

This official position is different from the casual officials.

If you have vacation, you can stay at home and come to the county government on time to wait for orders.

During these days, he had brought the clerks who had tortured him in the past into obedience, and he returned ten times and a hundred times what he had suffered to the new clerks.

Even in his dreams, he fantasized about becoming a superior person, traveling with those truly noble people, reciting poems and composing couplets.
"Raise a glass to honor the wise, and drink again to praise the holy words"

"Thank you very much, thank you very much, haha."

He Xingseng was talking in his sleep, and suddenly he woke up with a start.

When I opened my eyes, I saw a dark shadow.

"puff."

Something heavy hit He Xingseng's throat. At this moment, the severe pain made He Xingseng almost crazy.

He wanted to scream, but the pain became even more severe and he almost fainted.

Then came the second blow, this time hitting him on the temple.

He Xingseng didn't move.

Liu Taozi pulled him up. He Xingseng was such a little kid that Taozi could catch him with just one hand.

Taozi tucked him under her armpit and quickly disappeared into the house.

Under the cover of night, a dark shadow was slowly moving forward on the courtyard wall. Taozi lowered his body. He was holding someone with him at the moment and could not run as wildly as Kou Liu.

Patrolling soldiers could be seen everywhere inside and outside the county government office, which made the task even more difficult.

Taozi walked very slowly. The county government office was surrounded by soldiers and was not connected to the outer wall.

In the gap when the two groups of soldiers were handing over and leaving, Taozi jumped off the wall and ran away. With one leap, he hung on the opposite wall and pulled himself up with force.

He Xingseng slowly opened his eyes, the pain in his throat made him unable to speak.

It was extremely dark around him and he couldn't see anything.

However, a strong stench came towards him, causing He Xingseng to almost faint again.

His eyes were filled with fear as he looked at the person who had captured him.

The man was looking around.

He Xingseng didn't know who he was, where this place was, and he didn't know what had happened.

He wanted to ask, but he couldn't speak at all and the pain in his throat was getting worse.

He just whimpered, trying to get his thoughts across.

Taozi looked at him slowly. This guy woke up very quickly.

"The only requirement of the Sanli is not to speak."

Peach grabbed his throat and slowly lifted him up, then looked down.

He Xingseng finally realized where this place was.

This is a mess.

Taozi's hands gradually began to exert force. He Xingseng's face was full of pain. He kicked his legs and struggled hard.

As Taozi exerted force, He Xingseng's face became more and more ferocious, his eyes were wide open, and his mouth and nose were bleeding, like an evil ghost.

He stared at Taozi angrily, and finally, he stopped struggling.

Taozi turned him upside down and threw him down.

"Pfft."

His petite body easily passed through the gap and fell into the pit.

Taozi watched him fall, then picked up miscellaneous items from the surroundings and covered the top neatly with them.

Only then did he wipe his hands with the torn cloth and turned away.

The sky was no longer as dark as before, and some edges could be vaguely seen, and it seemed that it was about to get brighter.

Taozi clambered back into the courtyard the same way she came, leaned against the wall, and slowly sat down again.

"Brother Peach!"

Taozi turned her head and saw a person also clinging to the wall, staring at her with a gleam in his eyes.

Taozi recognized this person.

This was the man I met at the city gate today, his surname was Tian. He looked at Liu Taozi excitedly and lowered his voice, "I will look for you when I come back. If I can't find you, I know you won't be patient!"

"Where did you go? Did you go to the inner courtyard to kill Monk He?!"

The corner of Liu Taozi's left eye twitched and the other party grabbed Liu Taozi's hand.

"Brother Peach"

He was so excited that his hands holding the peach were shaking and his voice was trembling.

"This Hu people emperor is incompetent and cruel. He has seized our country and his ministers are his accomplices. The people are living in misery. Brother Taozi, lead us to start a rebellion!"

"I still have some money at home. We can win over some good people. We heard that a nobleman came to the county government, so we took him hostage and used him to clear the court! Kill Gao Wu."

Before the man could finish his words, Taozi covered his mouth.

For the first time, a look of surprise appeared in Taozi's eyes.

Even Taozi, who is well-informed, is a little uneasy at this moment.

The man was not afraid at all and looked at Taozi with fiery eyes.

"sleep."

Taozi spoke, then let go and sat down.

The man whispered again: "Okay, brother, take a rest first. Brother, I'll get some water for you to wash."

Taozi closed her eyes. The man ran over, got a bucket of water, placed it next to Taozi, and handed her some cloth.

The sky is getting brighter.

Everyone was exhausted, and no one had gotten up yet.

"Damn it! Where is the monk He?! Where is the monk He?!"

A man roared and rushed into the inner courtyard. This man was the one who organized the examinations for Taozi and others. He looked tired and his eyes were red.

He held a long whip and looked very aggressive.

Many officials in the inner courtyard were awakened immediately and ran out.

Nurxia appeared in front of him first, but before he could say anything, the man's whip fell on him.

"Crack~~~"

Nurxia had no choice but to endure it as the man whipped her wantonly. Several officials around her were beaten so hard that they felt severe pain, but none of them dared to resist.

"I ask you! Where are the others?! This bastard! How dare he look down on me by relying on He Ananda's power?!"

Nurxia said hurriedly: "Don't be angry, Lord Cao. Lord He has been working day and night. Maybe he is sick and didn't come to see me in time. I will go find him now."

"Pooh!"

The man spat directly on Nurxia, "Who is worthy of being called a prince? Go and call that bastard over here!!!"

Nurxia didn't dare to delay and turned around and ran into He Xingseng's house.

After a while, he came out again.

He almost cried, "Mr. Cao, Mr. Cao, he is gone, not in the house."

"Gone?!"

The man became even more violent and swung the whip in his hand again, making a series of cracking sounds. The scattered officials stood in front of him in an orderly manner, terrified but not moving a single step.

"Damn it! He left the county government office without permission. Even He Ananda can't protect him!"

"I will issue a wanted notice when I return. The crime of killing someone must be beheaded!!"

Nurxia looked horrified, "Lord Cao, he didn't go out last night, nor this morning. I don't know where he went."

The man sneered, "It doesn't matter if she ran away or died. If she's gone, she's gone. It's not worth mentioning. If she's gone, we can just find someone to replace her."

He pointed his whip at Nursha, "You will take over his job, follow me!"

Nurxia was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed.

"Thank you, Mr. Cao!! Thank you, Mr. Cao!!"

He had a smile on his face and had already forgotten about Monk He. He followed Cao Gong and left the place.

Many scattered officials looked at this scene in confusion, not knowing what to do.

After a long time, Nurxia came back again. He raised his head with arrogance in his eyes.

Some of the scattered officials were very disdainful in their hearts, thinking that they were just descendants of the Rouran people.

Nurxia looked at everyone and showed the paper in his hand, "These are the arrangements for today. I will tell you all the responsibilities."

He read out the many tasks for the day, assigned time, and everyone took their orders.

After finishing things here, he strode out of the inner courtyard and came to the front yard.

He kicked the deputy clerk who was lying in front of the door to wake him up.

"Everyone, get up! Everyone, get up!"

"Damn it, even the nobles don't dare to rest, and you guys still dare to continue sleeping here?!"

"From today on, I am the leader of the scattered officials. I am different from that monk He! Anyone who dares to neglect me will be executed!"

"You!! That idiot! Keep your head down!!"

Nurxia pointed at Liu Taozi and roared.

Liu Taozi lowered her head.

The corner of his left eye twitched, and a hint of ferocity flashed in his eyes.

(End of this chapter)