Qing Yao

Chapter 283 The common people are quite tired

In his previous life, Zhao An read fantasy novels, which mentioned the concept of a "half-step Nascent Soul," meaning someone whose actual cultivation level hadn't reached the Nascent Soul realm, but whose strength was stronger than a Golden Core cultivator at the Great Perfection stage, and only slightly weaker than a Nascent Soul cultivator.

The term "half-step Nascent Soul" is most fitting for Zhao An; it's practically tailor-made for him.

If the second rank is the standard for ministerial level officials, then the third rank is the highest level for department-level officials.

To act as the head of a province at the highest level (department-level), one must at least be at the level of an alternate member of the provincial committee.

With a little effort, you can be removed from the list of candidates; with even more effort, it's not impossible to get into the Bureau (Military Affairs Department).

If I try any harder, it's highly likely that the old man's words are too blunt and I don't like listening to them.

Although he knew that Zhu Gui couldn't bring him down, Zhao An was still very excited to ascend to immortality on the spot once again.

Well, I'm grateful for the old man's kindness, and I'm also grateful to every colleague and leader who has supported and helped me.

Of course, we should also thank the general public.

It was the support and love of the general public that elevated Zhao Doufu to the ranks of upright officials.

Without the halo of Qing Tian, ​​how could he have achieved the half-step Nascent Soul stage in just a few months?
Looking across the entire Qing Dynasty, was there any other near-big shot who was younger than him?
The saying goes, "When one person attains enlightenment, even his chickens and dogs ascend to heaven."

Now that he's acting as the governor of a province, the microloan sharks are bound to follow suit.

The Jiangsu governor, Fu Song, has made a recommendation for Lao Ding. Even without Zhao An's interference, Lao Ding can still be promoted this year. Moreover, Zhao An has a huge network of interests in Jiangsu, so he hopes that Lao Ding will continue to serve in Jiangsu.

A few days ago, while waiting for the provincial examination, he wrote a letter to Fu Song. In addition to mentioning the construction team of the canal gang entering the site, he also casually mentioned Lao Ding, saying that his achievements today were entirely due to the county magistrate's discerning eye.

Although he did not explicitly ask the governor how he should take care of Old Ding, Lord Fu must have a clear idea in mind.

If it weren't for Zhao An's ingenious idea, would Lord Fu have been awarded the double-eyed peacock feather?

How could Master Fu not repay this kindness?

Moreover, Zhao An has already temporarily taken over as the Provincial Governor of Anhui.

The "Five Blessings" trend is sweeping through Jiangning. Given the speed at which it spreads on social media in Shaoxing, it's likely that even the "Five Blessings" family has heard about it by now.

Then look at the result of the governor's ginseng-picking: "Five Blessed Sons" were promoted to acting provincial governors. Fu Song must have been confused too.

With this lapse in judgment, Lao Ding's promotion is a foregone conclusion.

After all, there's no smoke without fire, and these waves are really big and high.

Because of his low rank, even if Lao Song bought his way into office, his starting position wouldn't be very high; at most, he could only serve as a county magistrate, and most likely in Yunnan, Guizhou, or Sichuan.

Old Song may not be particularly talented, but his loyalty is absolute. Therefore, Zhao An needs to take advantage of the opportunity to act as the governor of Anhui to help Old Song and make the most of his position to resolve Old Song's work arrangements within Anhui.

Without anyone reminding him, Zhao An understood that the old master's decision to appoint him as acting governor of Anhui was actually a way of putting Zhu Gui in his place. Zhu Gui, in turn, saw him as a thorn in his side. Therefore, from this moment on, Zhao An, as acting governor, needed to adopt a sufficiently tough stance to create two distinct forces within the Anhui officialdom, rather than having Zhu Gui make all the decisions.

To create such a situation, Zhao An needed to find many "lackeys." More people meant more power; he couldn't deal with Zhu Gui by himself.

No matter how high-ranking an official is, if his subordinates don't respect him, not only will the governor-general have to step aside.

Zhao An planned to first appoint Lao Song as a prefect of a remote prefecture, and then help him become a prefect with real power after two or three years.

Acting provincial governor is still a provincial governor, and the provincial governor has the power to recommend someone to the court for a promotion beyond the usual ranks.

The position of prefect of a province with a rank of fifth grade is not within the red line of the fourth grade stipulated by the Ministry of Personnel. This means that as long as the local governor or provincial administration is willing to recommend the prefect, the Ministry of Personnel will generally not reject it.

In Jiangsu, it would be extremely difficult to recommend an eighth-rank instructor for the position of prefect. In the more than 100 years since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, apart from the current Governor-General of Sichuan, Li Shijie, who was exceptionally recommended from a ninth-rank patrol inspector to a fifth-rank prefect by the joint recommendation of the then Governor-General and Governor, there have been no other examples.

Because Jiangsu is a wealthy region, every position with real power is under intense scrutiny, and without a strong backing, it's impossible to rise to such a position overnight.

Anhui is different. It is extremely poor. When the Ministry of Personnel selects officials, no one wants to serve in Anhui. Moreover, Anhui is now suffering from severe disasters. It is like a big pot on dry firewood. As soon as there is a flame, it will boil over.

It's estimated that many officials in Anhui are now eager to leave this troublesome place.

Therefore, if handled properly, Zhao An could help Lao Song directly become the prefect.

They don't even look at virgins; they only care about the intensity of the situation.

In this way, Lao Song's desire for advancement was satisfied, a sum of money was saved from the Ministry of Personnel's donation, and the infiltration of the Anhui officialdom was achieved. It was a perfect win.

The problem was that Lao Song was an instructor in Ganquan County, Yangzhou, while Zhao An was the acting governor of Anhui. One was a minor official in Jiangsu, and the other was a high-ranking official in Anhui. By the system, it was impossible to directly transfer Lao Song from Yangzhou to Anhui.

Even temporary transfers are impossible.

After thinking for a moment, Zhao An directly instructed Old Song to resign from his post as instructor and then pack his bags to work under him, the acting provincial governor.

Under Lao Song's delighted gaze, he immediately made a decision: "After you come here, I will first appoint you as the Provincial Treasurer's Assistant. Help me with disaster relief first, and accumulate merit so that I can report it to higher authorities later."

The Director of the Bureau of Records of the Provincial Governor's Office was equivalent to the Director of the Provincial Governor's Office, responsible for receiving and sending documents, managing archives, and handling daily administrative affairs.

In other words, he was the chief secretary of the provincial governor.

This position was traditionally filled by a prefectural judge who was promoted to the rank of prefect, and if he performed well, he could be promoted to prefect or vice-prefect of a prefecture.

As long as the "old leader" doesn't fall from power, being promoted to prefect or provincial inspector is only a matter of time.

How could Lao Song, a mere scholar who had resigned from his teaching post, be directly appointed as the chief secretary to the provincial governor?
can.

If Zhao An says it's possible, then it is.

During the Qing Dynasty, the chief official of all government offices and local government offices was allowed to recruit their own staff.

The prerequisite is that you have the required educational background.

Old Song was a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations), an academic qualification that qualified him to serve as a sixth-rank official.

It was simply a case of someone suddenly appearing out of nowhere and squeezing out the person who was originally in that position.

There's nothing to complain about. Every new emperor has his own set of officials, and there's no reason for the current emperor to continue using the same chief secretary as the previous one.

Besides the Bureau of Records, the permanent departments of the Provincial Governor's Office also included the Bureau of Auditing Finances, the Bureau of Reviewing Criminal Cases, and the Bureau of Treasury Management.

Zhao An will definitely replace these key positions with his own people one by one, but he hasn't taken office yet, and the situation in Anhui is complicated right now. It's not appropriate to start a systemic purge as soon as he takes office; he has to do it slowly and not make any big moves. The prefecture that Lao Song has been internally appointed to is Liuan Prefecture. This prefecture is very poor, but it is an important transportation hub connecting Hubei, Henan, and Anhui provinces.

With the White Lotus Sect set to raise its banner in Hubei in just over three years, Zhao An had already planned to lay the groundwork in advance. Now that he had the position of acting provincial governor, when else would he wait to make arrangements?

Lu'an was the gateway that blocked the White Lotus Sect's northward expansion, and it was also the base where Zhao An "stirred up trouble".

The old master's decree stated that disaster relief was important, but preventing chaos was even more crucial.

Zhao An, a member of the White Lotus sect in Anhui, had to be eradicated because the old master was watching him. However, he didn't intend to kill all the members of the White Lotus sect; instead, he drove them to Hubei.

Zhao An didn't know much about the White Lotus Rebellion, nor did he know the extent to which the White Lotus sect had developed in Anhui in history, or what role it played in promoting the later White Lotus Rebellion. In any case, sending people to Hubei was definitely the right thing to do.

Whether it's a gathering of elites or a meeting of crooks, just don't cause trouble in Anhui.

No need for words of gratitude, Old Song happily returned to Yangzhou to complete his resignation procedures. Zhao An was not idle either, and convened an emergency meeting of the Grain Transport Office that very day.

The meeting had only one theme—disaster relief.

"As you all know, the drought in Anhui is severe. The court has appointed me as the acting provincial governor of Anhui and ordered me to go there immediately for disaster relief. At this moment, I feel no joy at the prospect of promotion, only deep concern for the disaster and the people."

Zhao An held three official documents in his hands: one was the Ministry of Revenue's urgent dispatch of the "Disaster Relief Regulations" sent along with the decree of his promotion; another was the "Disaster Relief Regulations" he had recently written; and the third was a map marking the prefectures, counties, and districts of Anhui as severely affected, moderately affected, lightly affected, and unaffected.

"All granaries under the jurisdiction of the Grain Transport Commissioner's Office located in severely affected areas, whether they are ordinary granaries or water storage granaries, should distribute grain locally. The Grain Transport Commissioner should send special commissioners to coordinate with local officials to distribute the grain together. When distributing grain from the granaries, it is necessary to prevent clerks from fraudulently claiming it. Disaster victims can be asked to provide mutual guarantees."

"In areas affected by moderate or minor disasters, soup kitchens should be set up in prominent locations outside the city. Soup kitchens should also be set up at key waterways and wharves. In addition, this year, grain transported by grain will no longer be sent north; grain will be sourced locally."

"."

After providing a series of instructions on disaster relief work within the grain system, Zhao An rose with deep emotion, looked around at the staff, and bowed deeply: "The lives of more than 20 million people in Anhui depend on you all. I hope you will prioritize the interests of the court and the people, and cooperate with me to win this crucial battle against the disaster!"

Seeing this, no one dared to remain seated. They all stood up and pledged to live up to the governor's high expectations and to put their utmost effort into implementing the governor's instructions.

Zhao An was satisfied. After his months of reforms, the bureaucratic style of the Jiangning Grain Transport Office had significantly decreased, and its work efficiency had also improved considerably.

No matter the year, efficiency is the most important thing in disaster relief.

Given that he was to go to Anhui to provide on-site guidance for disaster relief, Zhao An entrusted the overall responsibility for the grain transport office to his father-in-law, Ding Tai.

Ding Tai only had the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations) and had only been a grain transport official for a few months. Even if his son-in-law was promoted to acting provincial governor, it would be difficult for him, as the father-in-law, to immediately transfer from a minor official to a higher one.

Zhao An would definitely take care of his father-in-law.

Having his father-in-law oversee disaster relief efforts within the grain system at the Grain Transport Office was also a stepping stone for his future promotion.

Once the disaster subsides, he can recommend his father-in-law for his meritorious assistance in disaster relief, and add his father-in-law's name to the list of those who have made meritorious contributions to disaster relief. This way, he can at least get a position as a county magistrate.

However, to get the staff of the Grain Transport Office, a department-level agency, to fully dedicate themselves to disaster relief, bowing alone is not enough; additional incentives are needed.

Zhao An's provocation was: "In this disaster relief effort, anyone who performs exceptionally well in this office will be given a special position without hesitation."

Specifically, clerks were promoted to administrative staff, and administrative staff were promoted to official positions.

Upon hearing this, all the grain transport workers present were invigorated. They naturally thought that with the promotion of the grain transport official, he would definitely need to transfer some people from the grain system to help him. Wouldn't this be a great opportunity for them to change their personal destiny?

Besides the microloan party and the education party, we also need a food party.

Zhao An had only one principle—that in any unit he worked for, all the staff could benefit from his success.

Therefore, it is planned to allocate five to eight county magistrates to supply grain to the system.

Since it's a disaster relief effort, some local officials will certainly perform well, while others will perform poorly.

As the person in charge of disaster relief and prevention appointed by the old master, wasn't it Zhao An's job to report on several county officials who were ineffective in disaster relief and prevention?

Because the old man insisted on going to Anhui immediately, Zhao An could not stay in Jiangning any longer and planned to travel lightly to the disaster area the next morning.

That night, he chaired a family meeting, calling both Chunlan and Wanqing, who were pregnant, into a room and asking them to demonstrate their abilities.

Chunlan was quite enthusiastic and took the initiative to speak without being told.

Wanqing was stunned, but when she thought of her husband, who was now a third-rank acting governor, she dared not let Chunlan be the only one to be beautiful, so she quickly squatted down.

The next day, before dawn, Zhao An set off.

He only brought Liu Xiaolou, Baili Yunlong and other bodyguards, as well as a dozen or so constables from the grain transport office. They all traveled by carriage, and their destination was Fengyang, because they needed to first hand over the reins to Jing Daoqian, who had been dismissed from his position as acting governor in Fengyang.

The provincial governor's office was located in Anqing, as was the provincial governor's office.

As soon as the carriage started moving, Zhao An picked up a pen and began writing something, mainly about the arrangements for measures to prevent unrest.

Zhao An was currently unaware of the extent to which the White Lotus Sect had developed within Anhui Province. He had only heard from Teacher Lou that the White Lotus Sect in the Fengyang area had colluded with local salt bandits, and that the Fengyang prefect had sent troops to suppress them, only to be soundly defeated by the salt bandits. This incident demonstrated the poor fighting capacity of the Anhui Green Standard Army.

Therefore, we cannot rely solely on the pro-independence camp to prevent unrest; we still need to form another team.

Heaven gave them an opportunity. More than two months ago, Zhu Gui, the governor of Anhui, issued a document in his capacity as governor to various regions, requesting the formation of local militias, with the aim of preventing the disaster from causing civil unrest.

When Zhao An first learned of this, he couldn't help but think that Emperor Jiaqing also relied on local militias to deal with the White Lotus Rebellion. Now that he thought about it, it was clearly Zhu Gui's idea.

Furthermore, considering that Zhu Gui would later become Jiaqing's most trusted confidant, it is easy to guess that Zhu Gui gained experience in organizing local militias in Anhui, which he then used to deal with the White Lotus Rebellion.

However, Zhu Gui's idea was undoubtedly beneficial to Zhao An. Before setting off, he sent a message to Ding Jiu in Yangzhou, asking Ding Jiu to select 2000 strong and capable canal workers to gather in Tianchang, Sizhou, under the pretext of transporting disaster relief grain.

Zhao An planned to convert these two thousand men into a local militia, placing them directly under his command as the acting provincial governor, since he also held the responsibilities of the military commissioner of Huizhou, Chizhou, Taizhou, and Ningzhou.

It can be used to train troops and to manage troops.

As they were writing down the measures to prevent chaos, the convoy ahead suddenly stopped. Lifting the curtain, they saw a dense mass of people inside and outside the city gate.

The people of Jiangning had heard that Fu Tou, the upright official, had been exonerated and was going to Anhui to take up his post, and they spontaneously came to see him off.

The scene is very touching.

Elderly people offered wine, young children presented flowers, women wept with emotion, and some chased after the carriage, reluctant to leave.
After driving for a long time and seeing no more people, Zhao An's excited heart slowly calmed down. He then instructed Liu Xiaolou: "Remember to settle all the people's accounts. We can't shortchange the people for their hard work. Oh, and those women who chased my carriage for miles, give each of them an extra tael of silver. They must have been exhausted from running that far."

(End of this chapter)