Qing Yao

Chapter 260 The Most Capable Official in Liangjiang
The grain transport office was open to the public around the clock, and even the latrines inside the office were open to the public. This undoubtedly shocked the governor, who came from a traditional scholar-official background, and he also found it very unbelievable.

Since ancient times, government offices have been the seat of imperial authority, and officials have been symbols of the court. When officials of all ranks travel, gongs and drums are always used to clear the way. It is said that there are three gongs for prefectures and counties, nine gongs for circuits and prefectures, and thirteen gongs for governors.

Although the governor was an honest official, when he went out, he was carried in a sedan chair by eight men, with flags, umbrellas and fans, and a state of silence and avoidance. Thousands of armed officers made the procession stretch for several miles, so as to create the impression that thousands of people would give way.

The governor's office was heavily guarded, making it extremely difficult for ordinary people to even catch a glimpse of the governor.

Unexpectedly, this fourth-rank grain commissioner abandoned his official authority and disregarded the dignity of the imperial court, openly opening his office to the people. What kind of mentality is this?
Could it be that Zhao Youlu is truly a good official who wholeheartedly serves the people?

Do they only care about the imperial court and the common people?

Otherwise, how could such a thing be accomplished?
The governor fell into deep thought.

Teacher Lou was drawn to the couplets on the pillars on both sides of the yamen.

The first line says, "If you want to get promoted and make a fortune, go elsewhere." The second line says, "If you are greedy and cunning, do not enter this door."

The horizontal inscription reads "The people are paramount."

Looking at the common people coming and going from the government office, Teacher Lou couldn't help but admire Zhao Anlai. When that kid was a professor at Yangzhou Prefectural School, he painted the school motto "Enter the Wenhua Hall in life, enter the Ziguang Pavilion in death" on the school temple. Now he has written such a couplet at the entrance of the government office. Even if it is just for show for outsiders, this kind of thought is rare.

Because both the motto of Yangzhou Prefectural School and the couplet of the Grain Transport Office embody the spirit that the imperial court needs most.

Even if Zhao An did it intentionally, at most people would privately criticize him for being shameless, but they couldn't say that what he did was wrong.

If he can truly be consistent in word and deed, how could the imperial court not value him highly?
In fact, the imperial court was indeed giving this young man an important position; otherwise, it would have been impossible for him to be promoted ten ranks in less than a year.

In terms of officialdom alone, Professor Lou admits that he is far inferior to Zhao An.

On the surface, it seems like a clever trick, but the chicken was stolen in a completely upright manner, which makes people admire it.

"The people are of paramount importance."

The governor also noticed the couplet, and based on what he had seen and heard, he was somewhat shaken in his prejudice against Zhao Youlu, thinking that although this man was suspected of being a henchman of Heshen, he might not really be the same kind of person as Heshen.

"Perhaps it's just for show, to put on a show for others to see."

Teacher Lou was still worried that Zhao An was all show and no substance and felt it necessary to give his mentor a heads-up.

Unexpectedly, the governor remarked, "Even superficial efforts are better than no efforts at all."

"this?"

Teacher Lou carefully considered his mentor's words and found them increasingly reasonable.

How good can an official be if he doesn't even bother with superficial formalities?
"Let's go in and take a look."

The governor, his eyes wide with amazement, stepped into the grain transport office first. Before he could even look around, a friendly voice reached his ears: "Are you here on business? If so, please feel free to ask me anything you don't understand. If you're just visiting, please do as you please, but please don't disturb the normal work of our office."

"Work?"

Just as the governor was wondering what "work" meant, a young man who looked like a minor official walked over with a smile on his face, wearing a name tag that read "Guide Officer" on his chest.

"you are?"

The governor stared at the other party's name tag, completely bewildered.

The young man, unfazed, said, “I am Zhou Chaoshan, the clerk of this yamen, and also the guide on duty today. If you gentlemen have any questions about handling matters, you may ask me. I will guide you through them one by one, saving you the trouble of running around.”

"oh,"

Teacher Lou suddenly realized what was going on, and then stepped forward and whispered, "I wonder how much the door bag costs in the guidance office?"

"The door bag?"

Zhou Chaoshan quickly shook his head, "When Lord Zhao took office, he set a rule that no one should accept bribes. If I accept any bribes, you may not see me tomorrow."

for free?
Teacher Lou and the Governor-General exchanged a glance, both surprised.

It should be known that the "door baggage" custom was a legal income allowed by the imperial court for officials. Not to mention a fourth-rank circuit intendant, even a second-rank governor or a first-rank minister could accept this door baggage without question.

In wealthy areas, some county magistrates can earn tens of thousands of taels of silver a year from bribes, while even in poorer counties, they can earn a thousand taels a year.

This money isn't hot to handle at all.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Youlu didn't even take the money that wasn't too hot to handle, which really made people look at him in a new light.

In this Qing Dynasty today, there are very few officials who do not accept bribes.

Even the governor could not do that.

"How many are there?"

Another person came through the gate, and Zhou Chaoshan had no choice but to ask a question. If the people weren't on business, he would have to go and greet the newcomers.

There was no way around it; the new Lord Zhao had set too many rules. If these subordinates didn't follow the rules, they would be fined at best, and dismissed at worst.

To keep their jobs, everyone had no choice but to endure it for now.

However, there was one good thing about Lord Zhao: although he prohibited this and that, he still increased the salaries of all staff members in the government's directly affiliated agencies by 30%.

Although the 30% wage increase was much less than the benefits they usually received, it was "legal" income after all, so they felt at ease taking it.

Moreover, thanks to Lord Zhao's actions, the Grain Transport Office has become a well-regarded office among the people of Jiangning, who treat its staff with utmost courtesy.

The people in the grain transport office could feel that heartfelt respect and courtesy, so much so that they always stood up straight when they went out, feeling extremely honored.

Teacher Lou hurriedly explained that they had come to inquire about rice stickers.

"Then go to the second guard room on the east side, the people inside will tell you."

Zhou Chaoshan smiled and nodded, then went to "greet" the newcomers.

I don't know why Lord Zhao likes to refer to the common people as the masses.

In several meetings, I emphasized to them that no matter is too small when it comes to the people.

Teacher Lou accompanied the Governor to the office where the rice allowance was processed. Upon entering, they found two clerks working inside. Before they could even ask, one of the clerks stood up and warmly greeted them.

He had a smile on his face from beginning to end.

After the consultation, the clerk actually took out a form and asked the group to "rate" it, saying that ten points was the highest and one point was the lowest.

"The higher the score, the more satisfied you are with our service. The lower the score, the less satisfied you are with our service. In that case, we need to make improvements and strive to satisfy you very much next time."

The governor gave Teacher Lou a look, and Teacher Lou immediately filled in the character "拾" on the form, indicating that he was very satisfied.

He thought that would be enough, but the clerk then asked Teacher Lou to leave his work unit, address, and contact information, saying that the higher-ups would conduct spot checks and follow-ups later to ensure the scores were accurate and valid. In short, the governor was dumbfounded, never expecting that Zhao Youlu could come up with such methods to control his subordinates.

I must say, it works very well.

In the past, when ordinary people went to the government office to handle matters, the first step was to hand over a door bag, and the second step was to hand over the money for paper and pen. Only after paying twice could they get their business done. During the process, the people were like submissive wives, not daring to even breathe loudly, and everything was decided by the clerks.

Now, the government and the people are truly on equal footing, and this attitude alone is worth learning from.

If all government offices in the country operated like the Jiang'an Grain Transport Office, the people would not complain about the government no matter how much they suffered. In that case, how could they possibly be bewitched by the White Lotus Cult and become enemies of the imperial court?

Subconsciously, the governor wanted to promote the advanced experience of the grain transport office to rectify the increasingly bad officialdom in the Liangjiang region.

After coming out, the governor was again attracted by the small wooden sign hanging next to the door of the duty room.

There were no words written on the wooden sign, just five small labels that looked like smiley faces.

Looking at the other duty rooms, some had three flowers pasted on them, and some had four.

There's still one room where no flower has been pasted.

Feeling puzzled, I went over to investigate. Before I even got close, I heard someone inside scolding: "The magistrate has repeatedly asked you to serve the public with a smile. Why don't you follow his instructions?"
Are you rebelling against the governor's regulations, or are you dissatisfied with the masses? If this continues, not only will you not receive your performance bonuses this month, but I think you might as well quit your jobs.”

Upon closer inspection, the three clerks stood there, their faces flushed, heads bowed in remorse. Then, in unison, they loudly recited: "Those who receive public salaries should think of the hardships faced by the common people."

The entire text, less than a hundred words long, revolved around the word "common people," and the governor-general was thoroughly disturbed by it.

This touches the heart more than catching ten or a hundred corrupt officials.

"Teacher, look over there?"

Teacher Lou pointed to the grain transport hall in the distance, where some people were gathered around something, and it was quite lively.

"Go and see."

The governor immediately moved over, and was stunned when he arrived at the place. It turned out that there was an iron coffin in the hall.

The coffin was inscribed with the nine large characters: "Corrupt officials, we swear we will never coexist with them!"

The onlookers, standing outside a red cloth-covered "warning line," couldn't help but sigh, saying that the newly arrived grain commissioner was a rare honest official and that the people of Anhui were blessed.

The governor nodded slightly, but Zhao Youlu was nowhere to be seen. He then asked Teacher Lou to stop a yamen runner and inquire. The runner explained that today was the day the grain commissioner served the people, so the governor had gone out to do his work for the people.

"How does Lord Zhao serve the people?"

"Did you see that stinking ditch near the yamen when you came?"

The constable pointed outside and laughed, "Our Lord Zhao is leading the dredging of that stinking ditch."

"Oh?"

Teacher Lou was shocked because he had only "broken up" with Zhao An for an hour, and this kid had already gone to clear the silt.

Did he foresee the governor's secret visit, or did that kid truly consider serving the people as his official principle?

Otherwise, they would have started fighting in the blink of an eye?
The situation was immediately reported to the Governor.

"A high-ranking official of the fourth rank leading the clearing of silt?"

The governor's two guards questioned whether this Zhao, the grain commissioner, was just putting on an act to gain fame, and that he might only be there to make an appearance without actually doing any work.

Teacher Lou remained silent, because she wasn't sure either.

"Whether it is or not, you'll know once you see it."

The governor chuckled and, driven by curiosity, led the three to the dredging site.

Zhao An wasn't a god, so how could he know that no sooner had he left than the Governor-General came to conduct a surprise inspection? After seeing Teacher Lou off, he came to participate in the dredging, because today was not only the day the grain route served the people, but also the start day of the stinking ditch renovation project.

Many officials from Jiangning Prefecture and Shangyuan County came, and there were also a lot of onlookers. How could Zhao An not take advantage of such a great performance opportunity?

Upon arriving at the destination, without saying a word, he rolled up his trousers, picked up the iron shovel prepared by his subordinates, and led the way into the stinking ditch amidst the astonished gazes of the officials from Jiangning Prefecture and Shangyuan County. He waded through the knee-deep sewage, shoveling out the silt and piling it into bamboo baskets.

Although it was springtime and flowers were in bloom, the temperature was still relatively low. You can imagine what it was like to stand barefoot in the stinking mud.

However, Zhao An never frowned throughout, nor did he simply dig a few shovelfuls and have his subordinates do it for him. Instead, he worked silently like a diligent old ox.

He ignored the astonished expressions of the Jiangning Prefecture officials and the excited gazes of the onlookers on the shore, and simply worked silently.

They never think about what the focus of the scene is.

Because the focus was on him, who was wearing a yellow jacket.

The officials of Jiangning Prefecture and Shangyuan County were embarrassed by Zhao An's posture. It would be improper for them to jump down and fight together, but it would also seem unreasonable for them to stay on the shore.

In addition to the laborers organized by Shangyuan County, many residents living near the stinking ditch also spontaneously participated in the dredging. Zhao An's leading role made the relationship between the cadres and the masses on site extremely harmonious and full of enthusiasm.

"My lord, the people are all giving you a thumbs up, saying that you are the best official in Jiangning City who loves the people the most."

Baili Yunlong, who was in charge of carrying mud, secretly reported the hot topics of public opinion to Shaojun.

“Ah, I was just doing what I could, and it doesn’t deserve such praise from the people. Besides, I did these things not for the people’s approval, but to fulfill my duty as an official.”

Zhao An didn't look up to "enjoy" the admiring gazes of the people. He simply wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve, took a deep breath, and forcefully plunged the shovel into the mud. Just as he was about to lift it up, the crowd on the shore suddenly stirred, as if something had happened.

Zhao An thought that the large number of people would cause a stampede, and in his anxiety, he was about to order Baili Yunlong to take people to maintain order when he saw a familiar figure appear on the shore.

Who else could it be but Fu Chang, the governor of Jiangning!

The governor must have arrived in a hurry. He didn't care about the officials from Jiangning Prefecture who rushed over to pay their respects. He rolled up his trousers on the spot and jumped into the stinking ditch amidst everyone's shocked gazes. He walked with difficulty to Zhao An and snatched the shovel from him: "Brother, you take a break first. Let me do it for a while."

Before Zhao An could react, Fu Chang snatched the shovel away.

"."

Zhao An felt like a million grass mud horses were running through his mind: Damn it, Fatty Fu, how dare you steal my thunder!

He couldn't lash out, but he couldn't really rest either. So he waved to Baili Yunlong to give him the carrying pole, and together with Fatty Fu, who was dressed in the official robes of a second-rank provincial governor, they put on a show of doing things for the people.

With the provincial governors all out working, which official on the shore would dare to stand still?

Like dumplings being thrown into boiling water, the prefect of Jiangning, the magistrate of Shangyuan County, and all those with flowers on their shoulders, whether officials or clerks, all jumped into the stinking ditch.

Cheers erupted from the crowd!
This is what a good official should do for the people!
Not far away, the governor, dressed in plain clothes, trembled slightly at the sight: In the more than one hundred years since the founding of this dynasty, when has there ever been such a good official!
Zhao Youlu should be considered the most capable official in Liangjiang!

(End of this chapter)