Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 172: Xun Yu is so worried that his hair is falling out
As the end of the year was approaching, it was impossible for Liu Bei to abandon the many affairs in Xuzhou and return to Pingyuan County.

He could only ask Xun Yu to take charge of the affairs of Qingzhou, and wrote a letter to his teacher Lu Zhi and his wife Yin Jun, reminding them to keep warm as the weather was getting colder.

He gave instructions to Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Qian Zhao, Jian Yong, Xun You and others.

Liu Bei transferred Man Chong to Pengcheng Prefecture as the Inspector, and stationed Gao Shun and Li Dian with troops in Guangling County to guard against a sudden attack by Cao Mengde.

After several verifications, the household registration, cultivated land, and money and grain entering and leaving the treasury recorded in the books of Pengcheng County were not consistent with those of Xuzhou Prefecture, and the numbers differed greatly.

In a rage, Liu Bei simply dismissed Xue Li, the prime minister of Pengcheng, and temporarily did not appoint a county prime minister, instead having the state government take over management.

He ordered Guangling governor Zhao Yu and Langya prime minister Xiao Jian to carefully check the taxes, household registration, cultivated land, grain and money in the treasury, and armor and military equipment in each county, and not to make false increases or decreases or cheat to avoid inspection.

At the same time, Liu Bei ordered Guo Jia and Mi Zhu to send many state officials such as chief clerks, recorders, principal officials, and chief recorders to Xuzhou and other places to check all the accounting books from county to county to ensure that no omissions were allowed. Once anyone was found to have committed fraud, except for the prefect and the county magistrate, he would be immediately imprisoned and held accountable regardless of his official position.

Clerks at all levels must check accounts, proofread texts, and examine accounts and assets.

Liu Bei thought that if it weren't for the end of the year and the officials in Qingzhou and Yanzhou were too busy to have any free time, he really wanted to transfer some officials from Xuzhou to the other two states to see how others did things.

It seems that a large number of officials will have to be transferred from various counties in Qingzhou to Xuzhou next year to teach these officials how to adapt to the new way of governing. The official system under Tao Gongzu's rule is not only inefficient, but also likes to falsify accounts and make up stories in order to make money. There are many capable officials.

Such officials are unable to help their ruler, and are unable to benefit the people. They are just sitting in their positions doing nothing.

How could Tao Qian tolerate these subordinates? If it were Liu Bei, he would have replaced all of them long ago.

Even if there is a rebellion, these people must be eliminated.

Look at the kind of people Tao Qian used, Cao Bao, Zuo Rong, Zhang Kai, Zang Ba, Chang Xi and others, none of them was not two-faced.

Tao Gongzu had been entrenched in Xuzhou for many years, but he never employed any famous people.

When Liu Bei thought about the mess in Xuzhou, he couldn't help but feel a lot of emotion.

Fortunately, Xuzhou, which had not yet been massacred by Cao Cao, was a wealthy place. When he captured and killed Zuo Rong, he saw that his house was full of gold and jade, and his rice was rotten in the warehouse. He could only be thankful that he led his cavalry to act quickly. If Zuo Rong had really taken away all these things, not only him, but also Xun Yu would have been heartbroken.

Xun Wenruo was extremely worried about the expenditure of the government treasury every day. He either conscripted laborers to dig canals, repair water wheels, reclaim wasteland, and build ponds, or he mobilized people to make military equipment, arrows, swords, bows and crossbows, lances, and various types of armor.

Especially with the increasing number of horses, they needed all kinds of beans, large and small, as well as wheat, millet, straw, rice stem, and alfalfa. The fine grains fed to one war horse and military horse were equivalent to those of seven or eight combat soldiers.

Duke Xuande led the cavalry in a battle with the Xiongnu Chanyu in Henei County, seized a large number of horses, cattle, sheep and other livestock, and then rode at full speed to Xuzhou, almost exhausting Xun Yu, who was dispatching food and fodder in Qingzhou.

These livestock all need to chew straw and forage, especially horses, which need to eat more roughage before winter so that they can gain weight and survive the cold winter.

Xun Yu was so worried that he lost a lot of hair. Fortunately, there was still a lot of corn and straw in Xuzhou at that time, which could reduce the burden on Qing and Yan, and he felt relieved.

Touching the Liangguan on his head, Xun Yu was a little worried that one day he would be like the traitor Wang Mang and would need to wear a hat to cover his bald head.

Liu Bei was far away in Xia Pi, so he naturally couldn't guess Xun Wenruo's worries. After finishing his pile of affairs, he couldn't help but straighten his back and stretch.

Seeing that all the officials were still busy in the hall, even Lu Su couldn't stop, Liu Bei smiled.

It's a good feeling to finish my own work and then watch others busy themselves.

"Everyone, it's still early today. I'm going to take a walk in the courtyard. I've asked the cook to prepare food. You can go back after eating." Liu Bei stood up and said with a smile.

County officials in the Han Dynasty all lived and worked in more than ten courtyards in front of the mansion, and they were not allowed to bring their families with them because they were not single rooms.

Only the several courtyards at the back, separated by the Huangtang, were where the prefect and the county governor lived.

Liu Bei took Dian Wei out and walked through several courtyards. He happened to meet an official leading dozens of scholars who had just finished their examinations. So he asked the official with a smile, "Are there any talented people who were left out during the screening?"

No matter whether they were examining provincial or county officials, all the scholars had to go through the first two rounds of examinations before they could come before him for advice in the third round.

If you fail the first round, please go back to where you came from. If you fail the second round, you will have a second chance to retake the exam, and you will also have a second chance in the third round.

Only those who passed all three rounds could become officials. Liu Bei and his clerks would assess the talents of the scholars and recruit them to various government offices.

The official thought for a moment, bowed and replied, "Sir, there are three people who are so outstanding that ordinary officials cannot judge their talents."

Liu Bei asked casually, and seeing that there was someone more talented than him, he became interested and asked again: "What's your name and where are you from?!"

The chief official thought for a moment and said, "The first is Wei Jing, a native of Guangling, with the courtesy name Ziqi; the second is Bu Zhi, a native of Huaiyin, Xiapi, with the courtesy name Zishan; the third is Liu Ye, a native of Chengde, Huainan, with the courtesy name Ziyang. These three make up the remaining seventy-five."

After hearing this, Liu Bei's brows were filled with surprise. These were some big fish caught. Bu Zhi and Wei Jing, like Zhang Zhao, had not yet crossed the Yangtze River.

It’s a pity that I heard that Zhang Hong of Xuzhou crossed the river in his early years, and I’m afraid he has been employed by Cao Mengde now.

Liu Bei then said: "Has the second round of examination been completed by now?"

The chief official nodded and saluted, and replied, "Reporting to the envoy, the examination has been completed, and a total of 42 people have passed the first round."

"Well, in one hour, you will take the forty-two people who have passed to the courtyard in front. You don't have to wait another three days. Now I have time to take the exam."

"Yes!" The official bowed and left.

Liu Bei, who had not walked far, suddenly heard low exclamations from the scholars behind him, and many people gasped.

As soon as he came out, he ran into Lord Xuande. The third round of examination was about to begin. It was too fast.

The joy of the scholar who had just passed the test disappeared, and his face became visibly gloomy.

Not everyone can talk about the affairs of the world in public with Lord Xuande, speaking fluently and as if no one is around.

They did not go back to consider their words, for fear that they would not be able to speak properly when they met Lord Xuande.

Only those scholars who failed the second round and needed to retake the exam felt a little relieved. What the sage Lao Tzu said was right: Misfortunes often lie behind blessings, and blessings often lie behind misfortunes.

Everyone was whispering to each other, but Bu Zhi and Wei Jing, who were wearing Confucian robes and head scarves, remained unmoved. They had already been adept at handling their duties from state officials to county officials.

Bu Zhi noticed someone was looking at him, and when he turned around he saw a younger scholar who also looked pleased.

When their eyes met, the man bowed and said hello: "I am Liu Ye, Liu Ziyang from Huainan."

(End of this chapter)