Great Song Dynasty Writer

Chapter 190 The Minister of Love and Sex [Seeking Monthly Tickets!]

He spent six copper coins to buy a small piece to taste.

It was about the same size as deep-fried small yellow croaker. After taking a bite, he found it to be crispy and had a slightly sweet taste, probably because some flavoring herbs or fruits were added during the marinating process.

Several constables dressed in dark brown uniforms, with knives at their waists, scanned the crowd with sharp eyes, maintaining order at the massive dock.

"Gentlemen, the gate to the city is just ahead."

The boat captain pointed to the huge arched gate under the city wall not far away: "The entertainment district inside the city is lively and the food is exquisite. The shops at the dock are cheap, but a bit noisy. If you want to hire a boat to go north to Bianjing, there are also large merchant shipping companies there. You can inquire about them tomorrow."

"Thank you for your guidance, boatman."

Cui Wenjing bowed and thanked him, then said to Lu Beigu, "Brother, it's getting late. Why don't we find a clean inn near the dock to settle down and freshen up? We can go into the city to look for merchant ships tomorrow. The fish soup here is quite delicious; we should try something new."

The plan was sound, and Lu Beigu nodded in agreement.

The two arrived at the city gate, took out their official documents, and prepared to enter the city.

The so-called "official pass" was a travel permit issued by the Song Dynasty. It was required to apply for a permit from the local government. This document would contain detailed information about the traveler, including their name, physical characteristics, age, occupation, place of origin, departure time, return date, and the quantity of livestock and goods they were carrying.

However, this kind of thing relies too much on textual descriptions and is difficult to trace and verify, so it doesn't play a significant role in the actual verification process. In fact, it can be said to "guard against honest people but not against scoundrels." For people with real connections in the underworld, it's easy to pay someone to forge one.

Generally speaking, the gatekeepers responsible for inspections are not too serious; they only need the information to roughly match.

But today is a bit strange.

The clerk examined their official documents several times, turning them over and over, and then looked at their faces.

"They won't mistake us for fugitives, will they?"

Lu Beigu felt a little uneasy under his strange gaze.

At this moment, the clerk spoke up: "I see that your official documents say 'going to the Ministry of Rites for the examination,' so you are both candidates who are going to the capital to take the imperial examination?"

“That’s exactly right,” Lu Beigu replied.

"that would be great."

Before the two could react to what he meant, the clerk pulled them aside and said, "Tonight, Prefect Wang is hosting a banquet for Scholar Song, and someone needs to accompany him. Please come with me. He will arrange for you to stay at the prefectural office. Food and lodging are free, and you can leave tomorrow morning."

This is outrageous.

Logically speaking, no matter who the prefect of Jiangling was hosting, he could easily gather one or two, or even a hundred or two, scholars from the local academy to accompany him with just a word. Why would he need to invite these two scholars from out of town?

Moreover, they specifically emphasized that food and lodging are free. If it were really such a good thing, why would they get to be the ones to receive it?

Cui Wenjing also sensed something was amiss and quickly bowed, asking, "May I be so bold as to ask Prefect Wang's name?"

"Wang Kui".

Upon hearing this name, Lu Beigu felt a wave of dizziness. He finally understood why such a good deal of free food and drink had fallen into the laps of two passing scholars.

Wang Kui, courtesy name Zhongda, was a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) in the third year of the Tianxi reign of Emperor Zhenzong. He initially served as the Military Advisor of Guangji Army, and later as the Proofreader of the Secretariat and Magistrate of Wannian County.

From the reign of Emperor Renzong, he served as prefect of various prefectures including Chuzhou, Fuzhou, Qianzhou, Chizhou, Yangzhou, and Hongzhou. After the failure of the Qingli Reforms, his official career began to flourish. He was first promoted to Transport Commissioner of Jiangnan West Circuit, and then transferred to Transport Commissioner of Huainan. Around last year, he was transferred to the position of Prefect of Jiangling and concurrently Military Commander of Jinghu North Circuit.

The secret to Wang Kui's meteoric rise to power is simple: he was Chen Zhizhong's "front man."

As a master at making money, Wang Kui was sent to lucrative regions like Jiangnan West Road and Huainan to fill the national treasury's deficit. He excelled in this task, earning the high regard of not only the prime ministers but also Emperor Renzong.

However, Wang Kui's practice of exploiting merchants, farmers, and even landlords and literati indiscriminately quickly provoked a strong backlash.

When Wang Kui was serving as the Transport Commissioner of Jiangnan West Circuit, Bao Zheng impeached him several times. Emperor Renzong and the chief ministers tacitly turned a blind eye to this and simply let Li Daoning, the then Judicial Commissioner of Jiangnan West Circuit, handle the matter. But how could the Judicial Commissioner, who was subordinate to the Transport Commissioner, possibly deal with Wang Kui?

In reality, this was just Emperor Renzong placating Bao Zheng.

Bao Zheng persisted in impeaching the emperor, which angered Emperor Renzong.

Not long after, because the Wuman rebellion in Luzhou required a capable minister to handle it, Li Daoning was transferred to serve as the prefect of Luzhou. Yes, he was the prefect of Luzhou before Liu Yong, the one Lu Beigu had previously heard of who was promoted for his meritorious service in quelling the Wuman rebellion.

After Li Daoning was transferred, Emperor Renzong simply put Wang Kui in charge of the affairs of the Jiangnan West Circuit's Judicial Bureau.

It would be a miracle if you could find any problems by investigating yourself.

Later, Bao Zheng clashed with Wang Kui, impeaching him seven times in a row, each time with increasing force. Because Wang Kui had been too greedy for money during his tenure as the transport commissioner of Huainan, it provoked an even stronger backlash. So, when Bao Zheng impeached him for the seventh time, Emperor Renzong transferred Wang Kui to Jiangling Prefecture.

The underlying meaning is, of course, primarily protection.

The power struggles within the court involved here are extremely complex and cannot be explained in just a few words.

However, one thing is certain: Wang Kui had a very bad reputation among scholars.

The "Young Scholar Song" mentioned by the minor official, based on the information Lu Beigu already knew, was undoubtedly the womanizing "Red Apricot Minister" Song Qi, who should be on his way to take up his post as the prefect of Chengdu and happened to be passing through Jiangling Prefecture.

Upon hearing the name "Wang Kui," Cui Wenjing's expression changed slightly.

The name of this Prefect Wang, along with his remarkable "achievements" that drew the attention of scholars, had already spread throughout the land following Bao Zheng's repeated impeachments.

He instantly understood the source of the official's relief at "finally catching the person"—it was clear that Prefect Wang's reputation was so bad that the local gentry and scholars with any standing avoided him like the plague, and Jiangling happened to be a major transportation hub, so the prefectural government simply "waited for the rabbit to run into the tree stump" at this port where people came from the south and north, specifically targeting out-of-town candidates like them who were going to the capital for the imperial examinations!

"I am truly sorry." Cui Wenjing suppressed his worries and cupped his hands again. "We two are weary from our journey and look quite disheveled. We fear we might offend the Prefect's eyes. Please allow us to leave."

"Oh, it's alright, it's alright!"

The minor official seemed oblivious to the evasion in Cui Wenjing's words, or perhaps he simply didn't care.

"Prefect Wang is known for his easygoing nature, and Scholar Song is a renowned figure of refined taste; why would they care about such trivial matters? Besides, the banquet is held in the back hall of the prefectural government office, not in the main hall. You two can simply go without worry. As I said before, tonight's food and lodging are free, and you may leave tomorrow morning. It will not delay your journey at all. Please—"

(End of this chapter)