Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 90 Don't Make Mistakes

When Lu Yao walked out from Gao Changgong, he was still a little confused.

Gao Changgong said something very gently that made him shudder.

Putting all these words together actually boils down to one sentence: If you can't do it well, die.

Lu Yao really didn't expect that the water in Cheng'an would be so deep, with a county magistrate who was so cunning that he couldn't see through his mind, a county lieutenant who pretended to be sick and didn't come to see him, a former county magistrate who showed his fangs but had a big smile on his face, oh, and a villain who killed people without blinking an eye.

This was a start that Lu Yao had never encountered before in his life.

Lu Qubing led Lu Yao out and said, "County Magistrate, many officials in the yamen have gathered in the lobby. Do you want to meet them?"

"Will it delay their work?"

"No, I've already arranged it."

Lu Qubing brought the county magistrate to the lobby, the lobby of the county government office. This was where the county magistrate usually gathered people to read out important matters. It was a spacious place that could accommodate many people.

Lu Yao sat at the upper seat, Lu Qubing sat on the left, and the strategist sat on the right.

Lu Yao lowered his head. In front of him, there were more than sixty officials sitting. It was a considerable number. If one counted the miscellaneous officials, township officials, village officials, county military officers, etc., the number would be even greater.

It is indeed a big county.

Lu Qubing stood up and said, "This is Lord Lu, the governor of Cheng'an!"

He introduced the new chief to everyone, and the officials hurriedly stood up and bowed in unison.

Lu Yao nodded, but his eyes searched among the crowd. After searching for a while, he still didn't see the patroller he wanted to find.

Lu Yao didn't care much about it. After Lu Qubing introduced him to several important officials, Lu Yao cleared his throat and spoke some official language, encouraging everyone and asking them to perform their duties conscientiously and be diligent and down-to-earth.

As Lu Yao was speaking, the door of the hall in the distance was suddenly pushed open.

Then he saw Yao Xiong pushing open the door and standing at the entrance, then Liu Taozi strode in, followed by Kou Liu. Liu Taozi led the two of them and strode forward. He straightened his shoulders, grasped his belt with one hand, and strode forward with sharp eyes. For a moment, the clerks in the hall bowed their heads in his direction.

Lu Yao's words were interrupted, and Liu Taozi walked to the front unscrupulously, saluted to Lu Yao, and then sat at the front.

Only after he sat down did the officials look up.

Yao Xiong and Kou Liu were sitting on his left and right respectively. Yao Xiong was very surprised to see the person above him and was whispering something to the person next to him.

Lu Qubing smiled and said to Lu Yao: "This is You Jiao from the county. His surname is Liu, his name is Taozi, and his courtesy name is Zhizhi. He is brave, upright, kind and generous. After taking office, he punished traitors and protected the good. He is deeply loved by the people in the city, and the officials also respect him."

Lu Yao looked at Liu Taozi who was staring at him and smiled stiffly, "I can see that. I can see that."

"Liu Zhizhi?"

"This word is strange, difficult to pronounce, and has no obvious meaning."

The counselor at the side suddenly spoke.

A clerk whispered to Taozi, "Brother, the county magistrate has just appointed this man as the county chief clerk."

Before Liu Taozi could say anything, Lu Qubing said, "This is the name that the county magistrate personally gave to You Jiao."

The chief clerk was about to say something, but at this moment he paused and lost his temper. "Actually, if you think about it again, it has some meaning and is easy to pronounce. Not bad. This word is really good."

Lu Yao didn't say anything more. He told everyone to do their job well, then he led the chief clerk and left.

Lu Qubing saw them off with a smile and then ordered the officials to leave.

Everyone said goodbye to Taozi and left one by one.

Liu Taozi walked a few steps to Lu Qubing's side and looked at the county magistrate's back together.

Lu Qubing put away the smile on his face and said, "I think the chief clerk was a little afraid of you just now, but now he is suddenly tough again. Did you offend him?"

"Something happened on the way."

"No wonder the county magistrate looks at you in a strange way."

"What do you think of this person?"

"I don't know." "Go and do your work first. Remember to go to the backyard later. The county magistrate has something to tell you."

"it is good."

At the same time, Qian Zhubu was following Lu Yao, looking unhappy and chattering non-stop.

"You see, this is a show of force! He is definitely backed by the county lord, otherwise, how could he, a mere ninth rank official, dare to go against you?"

"This county magistrate has big plans. He has colluded with the wealthy families in Cheng'an and wants to undermine the government!"

The two of them returned all the way back to their residence. As soon as they walked in, the chief clerk closed the door and hurriedly sat down in front of the county magistrate.

"Mr. Lu, why don't we withdraw?"

"There are refugees gathering outside the city, the wealthy families in the city are violent, the chancellor is corrupt, and the royal family is interfering in the affairs here. It's too dangerous. In my opinion, it's better to find a way to leave."

“How can this be possible?!”

Lu Yao frowned and said seriously, "Prime Minister Yang trusted me and asked me to come here. If I just ran away like this, what would Prime Minister Yang think?"

"What will my elders think? How can I face people in the future?"

The chief clerk pondered for a moment, tugging at his beard, "Since you can't leave, then find a way to take back the power. You are a fifth-rank official, not to mention the county magistrate, even the governor and the governor dare not act presumptuously in front of you. When the county magistrate leaves, there will be plenty of opportunities to take back the power."

"It's just that this Lu Qubing is extremely cunning. He seems to have many flaws, but it's hard to reprimand him. He's really hard to deal with."

"Maybe we can start with the minions around him."

Lu Yao glanced at the chief clerk helplessly, "Prime Minister Yang sent me here to appease the locals, not to confront these people. Don't think too much about it. Get familiar with the locals first. Take your people to various places tomorrow and find out the internal and external situations. There is no need to rush for other things. They can be solved slowly."

It was getting dark and a cold wind was blowing.

The backyard was brightly lit.

Gao Changgong sat in the upper seat, while Lu Qubing, Changsun Jiaye, Liu Taozi and others sat on his left and right.

There were drinks and delicious food in front of everyone.

Gao Changgong looked at everyone, with some reluctance in his eyes.

"The new county magistrate has arrived, and I will be leaving tomorrow. Although I have not spent much time with you, I feel very close to you. I have already regarded you as my confidants."

Lu Qubing wiped his tears gently and said, "We are also unwilling to leave the county lord. The county lord is the most wise chief official I have seen in these years."

The other people also nodded.

Gao Changgong said seriously: "Don't worry, everyone. Although I am leaving, I will still keep an eye on the situation here. If anything happens, you can send someone to let me know."

He looked at Zhang Li standing beside him and said, "If you feel it is inappropriate to write to me directly, you can also write to Mr. Zhang. He will stay with me in the future."

He looked at Lu Qubing again and began to instruct him, "Rong Zu, you are a righteous man, but you are too strong-willed and don't know how to be patient. This is the emperor's feet. Such behavior will bring disaster to you. You must be careful."

He looked at Changsun Jiaye again and said, "Zhangsun County Commander, you are a general who walked out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood. How can you be afraid of ghosts?"

The eldest grandson looked pale and nodded reluctantly. Gao Changgong sighed and said, "During this period of time, the county and the outside world will not be peaceful. This is when we need you. I hope you can recover soon."

Finally, Gao Changgong looked at Liu Taozi, with some guilt in his eyes.

"Zhizhi, I promised to ask for an official position for you. When I submitted a petition to the imperial court to recommend you as a lieutenant of the Seventh Department, there was no reply. I don't have many friends in the imperial court. Although I have established a government, the officials under me have to rely on the imperial court's approval."

"Your reputation in the temple. Well, I will find a way."

Liu Taozi shook her head and said, "Thank you, Lord County. If it doesn't work, there's no need to force it."

"No, I will do what I say. I will definitely help you get this official position! But you have to wait for some time."

The banquet continued, everyone ate, drank and had fun. Liu Taozi sat there grimly, somewhat out of tune with everyone around him. Lu Qubing sat next to him, fearing that he would be unhappy about the appointment and dismissal, so he explained for him: "Brother Taozi, clerks and officials are completely different. Officials in Da Qi are almost all from the Confucian classics, or have made great contributions. If you are an official, it is easy to make a further step, but it is really difficult to go from a clerk to an official."

"Don't worry too much, there will always be a way."

As Lu Qubing was speaking, he suddenly remembered something and reminded him, "You are from Cheng'an. You can only be an official in Cheng'an, not an official. You must not think of artificially creating a vacancy in an official position."

(End of this chapter)