Qing Yao

Chapter 7 First Job

There is nothing to be surprised about. It is a tradition that officials do not build offices. Besides, the Ganquan County Taxation Bureau is just a "department-level" unit under Ganquan County. It can't be more luxurious than the county magistrate's office.

Small but complete.

Although the Taxation Department does not occupy a large area, from the registration room next to the main gate to the study and calculation room inside, as well as the patrol room, the custodial warehouse for storing tax silver, in addition to the internal canteen, the carriage stables and the ambassador's duty room, none of the ten or so rooms that Zhao An saw were empty.

"Old Wang, you're here so early!"

When entering the gate, someone called Wang Defa. He was in his thirties, with a handsome appearance, and had the style of a public servant in Zhao An's previous life.

Wang Defa nodded and greeted the man, then asked, "Is Ambassador Ding here?"

"Just arrived, I'm on duty now."

The middle-aged man was holding several stacks of account books. He looked like he might be the accountant. As he passed by Wang Defa and his father, he glanced at Zhao An curiously. Then he turned to Wang Defa, who was smiling, and asked, "Is this the cousin from Xinghua you mentioned?"

"Yeah, that's him."

Wang Defa patted Zhao An, who was standing there with an honest look on his face, and said, "This is Mr. Zhang, the housekeeper. Hurry and call someone."

"Hey!"

Zhao An hurriedly bowed to Mr. Zhang and said respectfully, "Uncle Zhang!"

There is nothing wrong with the etiquette. Bowing and kowtowing are common etiquettes in this era. Both are meant to show humility and courtesy and special respect to the other party.

"it is good."

Mr. Zhang smiled. Knowing that Wang Defa was anxious to take his cousin to see Ambassador Ding, he stopped being polite and went straight to the accounting office with the account book.

After the man left, Wang Defa whispered to Zhao An, "This Mr. Zhang is called Zhang Quan. He's the manager of the accounting department. When you join the company, you'll work under him. Don't offend him."

"Don't worry, sir. Your nephew will not bring shame to you, nor will he cause you any trouble."

Zhao An spoke very sweetly, but he was actually wondering why Mr. Zhang was a section chief, but his cousin, a clerk, seemed to be indifferent to others.

Little did people know that the position of manager Zhang Quan was not a fabricated one. He was in charge of counting rooms because the current ambassador appreciated him. If a new ambassador came, Zhang Quan might not be in charge of counting rooms.

Wang Defa had been working in the Taxation Department since the 20th year of Emperor Qianlong's reign. He was an old man with particularly long qualifications and rich experience in the department. No matter who became the ambassador or who was in charge of the study, they had to look up to Wang Defa.

In essence, there is no one who is superior or inferior between Wang Defa and Zhang Quan. If Ambassador Ding is happy one day and lets Wang Defa be in charge of the study or the accounting office, Zhang Quan will still not be too interested in Wang Defa.

Because the two are of the same nature, there is no interest relationship between them.

Wang Defa asked Ambassador Ding to find the job for his cousin, not Zhang Quan, so he was just polite at best and there was no fawning involved.

"It's good to know,"

Wang Defa nodded and glanced at the room in the southwest corner of the yard. "Come on, follow me to see Ambassador Ding."

Zhao An hurriedly followed behind, and soon the father and son arrived outside Ambassador Ding's duty room. After signaling his nephew to wait outside for a while, Wang Defa went in alone.

Ambassador Ding's full name is Ding Zhenglong, a native of Yangzhou. His ancestors had worked in the county government for generations. They were neither officials nor clerks. In his generation, he got a clerk position through unknown means, and later he used his connections in the government to be promoted to ambassador of the Taxation Department.

Although the ambassador of the tax department is just a low-ranking official, he is a very powerful figure in Ganquan County. No merchant under the jurisdiction of the county dares not to respectfully call him "Master Ding".

During festivals, the alley in front of the Ding family’s house would be blocked by merchants lining up to give gifts.

Zhao An waited outside for only a few minutes before his cousin Wang Defa came out and let him in.

As soon as he entered the room, Zhao An knelt down as his uncle had instructed him to do, kowtowed, and said respectfully, "Disciple Zhao An pays respects to Lord Ding!" "No need to be so polite, please stand up."

Everyone likes to be flattered, and Ding Zhenglong is no exception. As a low-ranking official, he is not qualified to be an official, but he dreams of becoming an official. However, he is only a scholar and has no way to move up in fame, so he especially likes to be called "official" by his subordinates.

Pure psychological enjoyment.

Ding Zhenglong was particularly pleased to hear Zhao An address him as "Master Ding." He carefully looked at Zhao An and nodded slightly to Wang Defa. "Your nephew is quite a handsome man. He looks much more energetic than your uncle."

Wang Defa said casually: "Zhao An, the master is praising you, why don't you thank him?"

"Thank you for the compliment, sir!"

Zhao An was so smart that he quickly knelt down and kowtowed to Ding Zhenglong again.

Ding Zhenglong laughed heartily: "Okay, I think you brought the tribute permit, right?"

"Brought it, brought it,"

Zhao An hurriedly took out the diploma that Jiang En had gotten him and respectfully handed it to Ding Zhenglong. Ding Zhenglong took it, glanced at it casually, and then returned the license to Zhao An. He then waved to Wang Defa and said, "Okay, take the child to the accounting office to register, and have Zhang Quan handle the paperwork."

Ok?
Zhao An, who thought that the academic certificate had to be verified at least, felt a little jealous. This was too casual.

I couldn't help but think that if this was the case, I should find time to get the certificates of scholar and juren as well. I must not let my future be hindered by my academic qualifications.

I don’t dare to think about the Jinshi certificate, there’s no way, that thing is so powerful.

Before leaving, Ding Zhenglong, who was probably in his early thirties, said to Zhao An, "Young man, your uncle took great pains to get you this job. You must do your best to not let your uncle down, nor let me down for cultivating you. You must know that only those who endure the most hardships can become the best."

What he said sounded fine, but it sounded a bit old-fashioned.

Zhao An's reaction was to nod continuously, looking like a primary school student being taught.

After coming out, there were obviously more people in the office. Many rooms were unlocked and it was very lively with people coming in and out.

At the main gate, several men with the Chinese character "丁" (Ding) printed on their chests were harnessing carts. They were probably the tax collectors for the office. Wang Defa had said that these tax collectors were actually temporary workers, officially known as "patrol guards."

Some were replaced by fathers, sons and brothers, some were temporarily recruited, and some were assigned as conscripts. Their personal income was directly linked to the taxes collected.

Eat dry food when you are busy and drink liquid food when you are free.

However, no matter how unstable it is, there are still many people rushing to do it, and the reason is simple - who wouldn't respect you enough when you put on that skin?

Since Ambassador Ding had passed the test, the accounting department would definitely not make things difficult for him. After the manager Zhang Quan asked Zhao An's name, hometown, and age, he took a look at Zhao An's student certificate and directly registered Zhao An on the "employment list".

There is no need for the personnel or finance department to intervene, because from now on Zhao An will be the accountant, and everything will be handled by the accountant, unless Zhao An himself refuses to do it.

The process is quite simple.

However, Zhao An's student certificate was taken away by Zhang Quan and locked in the archive room of the accounting office together with the yellow slip he had just registered.

It should be an internal management need.

Everything went smoothly, which made Zhao An secretly happy. Unfortunately, he didn't have work clothes. The only thing that could prove his identity was a badge written by Zhang Quan.

It's made of wood and has "Count Thirteen" written on it.

For a long time, Zhao An didn't know what "Suan Shisan" meant. It was not until he found out that there were only thirteen people in the entire counting room that he realized that he was "Suan Shisan".

(End of this chapter)