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Chapter 290 The People Send Off the Old Dog
The day has come for Magistrate Lu to leave office in Hejiang County.

Logically, he should wait until the new magistrate takes office before he can hand over his seal and leave, but firstly, Hejiang belongs to Luzhou, and secondly, if he doesn't take office, Magistrate Jia can't leave either.

To fulfill Prefect Jia's filial piety, the Censor specially ordered Lu Zhaoye to continue serving as the magistrate of Hejiang County, so that he would not have to hand over the seal of office and could take office directly.

Lu Zhaoye has served as the magistrate of Hejiang County for thirteen years. While not unprecedented, it's hard to find another like him in the entire Ming Dynasty.

On May 26, after receiving instructions to take up his post at any time, he didn't want to stay a day longer and immediately set off to take up his post on May 29.

This exhausted the officers and sergeants, because with the magistrate's departure, there were still many elaborate rituals to perform, such as presenting umbrellas to the people and erecting monuments to his virtuous governance...

And most importantly, the final scraping, such as long-overdue taxes, protracted lawsuits, requests to change household registration... all sorts of matters that are usually difficult to resolve can be quickly settled at this time as long as you are willing to spend money.

There were also all sorts of shady customs and traditions that had to be settled with the magistrate. And then there were the expenses levied on the local gentry, the farewell banquets… everything had to be done to ensure the magistrate left satisfied.

This was the norm in county and prefectural officialdom, as a contemporary poem praised:
They came into the country desolate but left in abundance, sweeping away both the government's coffers and the people's wealth.

Only the landscape remains, and I will paint it before my departure.

After learning that his subordinates were scheming to extort money from the county, Lu Zhaoye summoned Magistrate Cao and Registrar Bao and gave them a good scolding: "I'm also serving as the Magistrate of Hejiang County, and you've created such a mess that I'll have to clean up your mess in the end!"

"Yes, yes. Didn't I want the Master, uh, no, my grandfather, to go to his post with full confidence?" the second assistant hurriedly said with a smile.

"No need, do you think I don't know what you mean?" Magistrate Lu snorted and said, "You're just using the guise of seeing me off to plunder the people's wealth, and then pinning all the messes you've made on me!"

"No, no..." Zuo Er hurriedly shrank his neck and said.

"Enough is enough! Even if I am promoted to Prefect of Luzhou, the people of Hejiang will still be my subjects!" Magistrate Lu declared righteously, "I will not allow anyone to exploit them under my name!"

"Yes, Your Excellency obeys." The officers reluctantly agreed.

"Remember, keep everything simple! A send-off is fine, but don't organize any thank-you banquets, 'umbrellas for all the people,' or 'merit monuments.' Not only will it be a waste of money and resources, but it will also only bring me criticism." Lu Zhaoye waved his hand to dismiss the crowd: "Get out."

After they had all left, Lu Zhaoye said to You Muyou, "You will stay in Hejiang and watch over the territory we have been managing for more than ten years."

“Yes, Master Dong is right.” You Muyou smiled and said, “A steady stream is the right way, while draining the pond to catch all the fish will only destroy our own Great Wall.”

"That's right, trying to use my name to seize my territory?" Lu Zhaoye snorted and said, "No way!"

~~
May 29th is an auspicious day.

Lu Zhaoye woke up at dawn and, with the help of his sixth concubine, washed his face, brushed his teeth, and dressed neatly.

Before eating, he first led his wives, concubines, and children to offer incense to Guanyin Bodhisattva, the Three Pure Ones, and Zhenwu the Great.

All the gold, silver, valuables, furniture, and decorations that were to be taken away have been packed up, transported, and loaded onto the ship. Only these three old men are left to stand their last shift.

After the four bows, Magistrate Lu personally wrapped the three statues tightly in cotton blankets, placed them in the box, and tied them securely.

Then he solemnly instructed his wife and two sons, "You don't need to do anything, just each protect one of the great gods. They will protect me so that I can be safe and sound and achieve great things later in life. I also need to invite the three of you to Luzhou to continue to bless me."

"Yes, sir, don't worry!"

"Don't worry, Father," Lu Zhaoye's wife and children replied solemnly. They had been secretly laughing at him for worshipping three different gods at the same time. Behind his back, they said that the reason their master couldn't get promoted was because "three monks have no water to drink."

Unexpectedly, Lu Zhaoye was promoted to prefect as if by divine intervention, and it was a rare promotion within the prefecture!
This really stunned them. They thought to themselves, "Are these three brothers sworn brothers in the Peach Garden?"

~~
After having his last breakfast at the county government office, Magistrate Lu took off his home Taoist robe and put on his worn-out green official robe for the last time. He also put on his black gauze hat with some tassels falling off, and walked out of the empty hall accompanied by his family...

In the backyard, the blue sedan chair that had been with him for thirteen years quietly awaited to carry him on his final journey.

Lu Zhaoye touched the sedan chair with emotion and said to those around him, his voice choked with sobs, "I really can't bear to part with this old companion."

"Dad, why don't we bring it along? Even if we don't ride it, we can still have something to remember it by," his son suggested.

"Get lost, you old bastard!" Lu Zhaoye glared at him, then turned and got into the sedan chair.

The sedan bearers quickly lowered the sedan poles, and after the master was seated, the attendant called out loudly, "Lift the sedan!"

Four sedan chair bearers steadily lifted the worn-out blue sedan chair, and led by the ceremonial guard, slowly drove it out of the yamen.

The wives and children also got into their carriages and followed behind.

~~
As soon as Lu Zhaoye's sedan chair left the yamen, it was stopped by a huge crowd on the street in front of the yamen.

"What's going on?" Lu Zhaoye lifted the sedan curtain.

County Magistrate Cao and others quickly stepped forward to explain, "These are the gentry and common people of the county. They heard that their elderly parents were leaving their posts, so they came together to see them off."

“Didn’t I say not to arrange these things?” Lu Zhaoye frowned.

"This wasn't arranged; it was all done spontaneously by everyone," Magistrate Cao hurriedly said.

Registrar Bao also said, "The Lord has governed Hejiang for thirteen years, and the people live in peace and prosperity. Even a stone would be warmed by his kindness." "Yes, people are not plants or trees, how can they be without feelings? Let them send it off!" the other officers and subordinates advised in unison.

The registrar was still gesturing vigorously to the crowd behind his back.

Several local gentry representatives quickly stepped forward, holding a large umbrella with many small silk strips attached to it, each bearing the name of the donor… Of course, everyone had to pay money.

"Please accept the umbrella of ten thousand people, Your Excellency! We thank Your Excellency for your protection over the past thirteen years!" The gentry knelt on the ground and presented the umbrella of ten thousand people.

"Thank you all for your trouble. I will accept this token of my appreciation." Magistrate Lu, moved, alighted from his sedan chair and took the umbrella, pretending to wave it. Unexpectedly, the umbrella handle was incredibly heavy, almost causing him to fall to the ground…

'I didn't expect it to be made of camphor wood...' He quickly gestured for his attendant to take it.

Two more gentrymen stepped forward, carrying a wooden plaque covered with writing, and said loudly, "Please accept the manuscript of this merit inscription, sir!"

"Time is too tight, the stele hasn't been carved yet, let's just make do with this for now," Magistrate Cao said in a low voice.

"That's good enough." Magistrate Lu's smile was somewhat faint. He waved his hand, and his attendant took it back.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, Registrar Bao quickly gestured with both hands behind his back, indicating that it was time to proceed with the 'stopping the sedan chair' part...

"My elderly parents can't leave!"

"We want you to stay..." Upon seeing the signal, the people shouted in unison, as instructed beforehand.

There were also pre-arranged shills crying out in the crowd, "Hejiang can't be without his elderly parents for even a day! You can't abandon us! Waaah, what will we do without our parents?"

“Alas…” Lu Zhaoye’s eyes reddened, deeply moved by the scene before him. He bowed deeply to the people and said:

"My fellow elders, I, Lu, am also reluctant to part with you."

"Ah, ah..." The people dared not utter a sound, fearing he would actually stay. This old dog was already universally disliked in the county; everyone wanted to try something new...

“But I am bound by the king’s orders and cannot disobey them.” Lu Zhaoye said, still moved, “Fortunately, I have been promoted to prefect, but I will still serve as the magistrate of Hejiang County for the time being, and I will continue to look after you.”

"Come back?!" The people were terrified.

"I will definitely come back. I still have to repair the river," Magistrate Lu said solemnly. "I guarantee we'll meet again soon!"

"Huh?" The common people were completely baffled. They thought they could finally get rid of this plague god, but they didn't expect him to come back for a visit.

"Alright, alright, everyone, are you all relieved now? Make way!" Magistrate Cao shouted.

In a flash, the crowd dispersed.

"Look, everyone listens to their parents more," said Magistrate Cao with an embarrassed smile.

"Hehe..." Magistrate Lu chuckled and sat back in his sedan chair. Surrounded by thousands of people, he left through the East Gate and arrived at the dock.

A sumptuous feast had already been set out on the dock.

After Magistrate Lu alighted from his sedan chair, Su Daji and the others knelt down, holding trays, and said, "Your Excellency, please have another sip of Erlang wine from our hometown!"

"Alright, I'll drink!" Magistrate Lu picked up the wine cup, offering one cup to heaven and earth, the second to the rivers, and the third to the people. After eating a few bites of food, he considered the banquet a success.

"Alright, fellow villagers, thank you for seeing me off. I will always remember you." Magistrate Lu bowed to the crowd seeing him off again, but his feet remained motionless.

Then two elderly gentry rushed forward, each grabbing one of his legs, and cried, "Father and Father, we really can't bear to part with you! If you really have to go, please take off your boots and leave us with love!"

This, along with presenting the "umbrella of ten thousand people," the "merit stele," and blocking the sedan chair, are all basic procedures for sending off officials.

Legend has it that during the Tang Dynasty, there was an upright official named Cui Rong who did many good deeds during his tenure. When he rode away from his post, the people were so reluctant to let him go that they tried to stop him, pulling and tugging at him until they accidentally pulled off his official boot. The people treasured this boot as if it were a precious gem, calling it the "Boot of Legacy of Love" and enshrining it in their honor.

Afterwards, the custom of "removing boots to leave behind affection" became a ritual for officials leaving office. Regardless of whether they were honest or corrupt officials, when they left office, the gentry and common people had to block their way and remove their boots as a sign of respect.

Some officials were so outrageous that they had to hire people to put on a show and get the job done.

Fortunately, Magistrate Lu is about to become Prefect Lu, so he doesn't need to hire anyone himself.

"Oh dear, I really can't do anything with you guys." He then lifted his leg and let the two old gentry take off his boots one by one.

Then another person presented a brocade box containing a brand-new pair of official boots. The two elderly gentrymen put the old boots on him and then put them back into the box, indicating that they would treasure and honor them.

After doing all this, Magistrate Lu boarded the boat and left amidst the tearful farewells of the people.

Once the official boat had sailed away, the weeping and wailing ceased abruptly, and the entire county breathed a sigh of relief; they had finally gotten rid of that old dog…

On the official boat, Lu Zhaoye watched the city of Hejiang gradually disappear into the distance and also breathed a sigh of relief.

P.S. Don't worry, brothers and sisters, I promise you'll see what you want to see tomorrow... Please vote for me!

(End of this chapter)