Prime Minister

Chapter 116, Section 115: [Between Advance and Retreat]

Two days later, in the second hall of the prefectural government office, the magistrate was on duty.

When Wang Gui, the clerk of the grinding station, entered, Liu Rang was reviewing a fight case that had occurred a few days earlier.

Although he and a group of government officials had presented Xue Huai with a major problem, it did not mean that they could rest easy and watch the show. On the contrary, in order to prevent Xue Huai from finding a reason to lash out, they changed their usual laziness and became diligent and conscientious, with Liu Rang setting an example by example.

Wang Gui glanced outside and carefully closed the door.

Seeing this, Liu Rang frowned slightly and asked, "Why are you acting so suspiciously?"

Wang Gui sat down opposite him and said with a smile, "Brother Bo Xun, guess what Magistrate Xue has been doing these past few days?"

Liu Rang put down the dossier in his hand, picked up his teacup, and said calmly, "Speak plainly."

Wang Gui lowered his voice and said, "He locked himself in the duty room and spent two whole days studying those files. His face looked terrifyingly grim!"

Wang Gui, who was in charge of the government office's documents, had been sending many files to the Tongzhi Hall these past two days, so he roughly knew Xue Huai's condition.

Upon hearing this, Liu Rang couldn't help but smile slightly and said leisurely, "It's only been two days, and the Assistant Magistrate is already getting impatient? By the time he finishes reading those files, the flowers will have withered."

"you do not say!"

Wang Gui said smugly, "He still thinks this is the capital, and can act recklessly because of the high regard he has for the emperor? Brother Bo Xun only used a little trick to make it impossible for him to move an inch. In my opinion, the Assistant Magistrate will give up the struggle soon."

"We must not be careless," Liu Rang cautioned. "The more critical the situation, the more cautious we must be."

"Yes."

Wang Gui nodded and said, "Brother Bo Xun, don't worry, everyone is on high alert and no one dares to let their guard down. Speaking of which, we should also thank the Assistant Magistrate for his outburst at Yingyuan that night. If it weren't for that, many people would still be hoping that he came to Yangzhou just to bolster his resume. Now everyone understands that Assistant Magistrate Xue is not just going through the motions this time. He wants to establish his authority in Yangzhou. How can we sit idly by and wait for our doom?"

Upon hearing this argument, Liu Rang suddenly realized that he had overlooked some issues.

As Wang Gui said, Xue Huai could have continued to maintain the facade of being in harmony with the world, so why did he turn on everyone at the Shadow Garden banquet?
Aside from his desire to clarify his stance and win over allies, are there any other motives he might have?

Just then, there was a knock on the door, followed by a clerk saying respectfully, "Lord Liu."

Liu Rang gave Wang Gui a wink, and seeing the latter sitting upright and not smiling, he said calmly, "Come in."

The clerk entered, bowed, and said, "Lord Liu, the Chief Magistrate requests your presence at the Assistant Magistrate's Office."

Liu Rang narrowed his eyes slightly and said calmly, "I understand, you may leave."

After the clerk took his leave, Wang Gui quickly asked in a low voice, "Brother Bo Xun, what is he planning to do now?"

"Why are you panicking?"

Liu Rang stood up and said, "Be quick-witted in a moment and act according to the situation."

A moment later, the two arrived together at the Tongzhi Hall, where many government officials had already gathered. Basically, apart from those who were out on business, everyone else had been summoned by Xue Huai.

Xue Huai sat at his desk, with several stacks of files beside him.

He looked up at the two people who had entered, his gaze lingering briefly on Liu Rang's face before shifting to Wang Gui behind him, a gentle smile appearing on his face.

This smile startled Wang Gui, and a strange sense of panic welled up inside him.

He didn't understand why Xue Huai smiled at him, and more importantly, the smile carried a hint of friendliness. How would others perceive him?
Although he was only a member of a collateral branch of the Wang family, by clinging tightly to Liu Rang, he was now quite successful in Yangzhou City, and his status within the Wang family had risen accordingly.

If Liu Rang misunderstands that his relationship with Xue Huai is unusual, wouldn't that be the most outrageous situation?
Fortunately, Liu Rang wasn't that foolish, and Xue Huai didn't take any further action, which calmed Wang Gui down a bit.

"Please, everyone, there's no need for such formalities. Please be seated."

Xue Huai looked quite tired, which showed that Liu Rang and the others' methods had put a considerable burden on him.

He glanced at the files in front of him and said slowly, "I have roughly reviewed the files submitted by you all. To be honest, these backlogged official matters are indeed difficult to handle, and many of them are muddled accounts where right and wrong are hard to distinguish. Take the land case mentioned by Lord Zheng, for example. On one side are wealthy households with county government maps as evidence, and on the other side are twenty-five ordinary people with hundreds of witnesses. If it is not handled fairly, it is very likely to cause public resentment to boil over."

Zheng Xuan showed a look of guilt on his face, but inwardly he couldn't stop sneering.

Young officials like Xue Huai, who were transferred from the capital, may have powerful backgrounds and impressive titles, but it is difficult for them to subdue a group of deeply entrenched officials with intertwined interests in the local areas.

Thinking of this, he said, seemingly out of kindness, "Your Excellency, these cases are indeed quite troublesome. In my humble opinion, perhaps we should put them aside for the time being?"

"Isn't this inappropriate?"

Although Xue Huai politely declined, his attitude did not seem resolute.

Taking advantage of the situation, Liu Rang said, "Your Excellency loves the people like your own children, which I admire greatly. However, such difficult and complicated matters exist in various places, and they are time-consuming and laborious to handle. In fact, Your Excellency had temporarily put them aside before."

The expressions of the people in the hall varied.

They were well aware of the difficulty of those twenty-odd files; any one of them would give the experienced clerks a headache, let alone Xue Huai, who was new to the job and not good at administrative affairs.
From any perspective, Xue Huai's temporary postponement is understandable. However...

If Xue Huai really does this, his influence in the government office will be greatly reduced in the future. After all, it is difficult for a superior who goes back on his word and is two-faced to gain the respect of his subordinates.

Xue Huai did not make a hasty decision. He calmly observed the reactions of the crowd before turning to Liu Rang and saying, "Does the Prefect believe that I should retreat in the face of adversity?"

"This humble servant had no such intention."

Liu Rang was naturally not fooled and calmly said, "This humble servant will completely obey Your Excellency's decision. Whether it is temporarily shelved or we rise to the challenge, this humble servant will do everything in my power to support Your Excellency."

In his view, this was a dead end. If Xue Huai chose to give up, he would lose all his prestige. If he chose to continue, he would be wasting his time and energy. So what was wrong with him saying a few polite words?
However, Xue Huai smiled and said with great satisfaction, "With the magistrate's promise, I am relieved."

Before Liu Rang could explain, Xue Huai said to everyone, "After much consideration, I believe that the way of an official is to report to the country and bring peace to the people. Since there are many unresolved matters in my jurisdiction, most of which are related to the vital interests of the people, I have no reason to back down."

Everyone exclaimed in unison, "Your Excellency's insight is truly remarkable!"

Since Xue Huai insisted on going his own way, they were happy to see him suffer a crushing defeat.

"I have spent the last two days organizing the jurisdiction of these files."

Xue Huai remained calm and unhurried as he said, “Among them, there are six cases in Jiangdu County, four in Yizhen County, two in Taixing County, three in Baoying County, two in Xinghua County, five in Rugao County, and one in Haimen County, involving various county and prefectural governments and departments. If we were to handle these cases according to the old rules, each one would require a large amount of manpower and resources, which is obviously an impractical arrangement. I believe you all understand the difficulties involved.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. Liu Rang said, "What you say is absolutely right. The government office is already short-staffed, and the responsibilities are not clearly defined. It's not that we are not working hard enough in many cases, but there are too many obstacles that make it difficult to work together."

"The prefect's words hit the nail on the head. He is indeed a highly trusted assistant to the prefect and myself."

Xue Huai gave him an approving look, and then said, "After much deliberation, I have decided to change the old practice in order to solve these problems. From today onwards, the government will handle these problems on a case-by-case basis. Without affecting the operation of various departments and offices, I will select some capable officials to form a special department."

Upon hearing this, the hall fell into an instant silence.

Liu Rang's lips moved, but he couldn't think of a way to dissuade him.

Xue Huai wouldn't give him any more time to ramble on, and simply pointed directly at him: "Wang Gui."

"The humble position is here."

"You are the first talent I have selected. Would you be willing to accompany me to resolve the backlog of difficult official matters in the government office?"

"Your subordinate..."

Wang Gui hesitated, forcing himself not to look at Liu Rang's expression.

He never expected Xue Huai to have such methods. In the rush, it was difficult to understand the other party's plans and intentions. He only knew that once he agreed, he would inevitably be seen as hesitant and indecisive by others.

Xue Huai stared at Wang Gui's face and raised his voice slightly: "Is it that you are in such a difficult position? Is it that Clerk Wang is unwilling to relieve the people of Yangzhou of their worries? Or do you look down on me and disdain to assist me in my work?"

"How dare I!"

Sweat beaded on Wang Gui's forehead. He knew that if he continued to hesitate, Xue Huai would definitely make an example of him. He could only agree for now, believing that Liu Rang and his colleagues would understand his predicament.

He said respectfully, "It is my honor that Your Excellency values ​​me so highly. I am willing to follow Your Excellency in your work and will do my utmost to serve you with all my heart and soul!"

"You don't need to sacrifice your life."

Xue Huai softened his tone and said, "As long as Wang Dianli does his job well, I guarantee you a bright future!"

Wang Gui was momentarily dazed upon hearing this.

He suddenly realized that the young prefect in the hall was not the old and senile prefect Tan Mingguang, but a rising star in the officialdom of the Great Yan.

The other party has inherited the family fortune, enjoys the emperor's favor, is valued by important officials, and has a reputation for integrity that seems to protect him. If he can truly gain Xue Huai's support, he might really have a chance to rise to prominence...

and many more!

Wang Gui bit his tongue lightly, forcing himself to calm down.

He hadn't forgotten his position, and he was well aware of the situation he was in. How could he be so distracted and daydream for a moment?

If Liu Rang and his colleagues had discovered what he was thinking just now, where would he have a place in Yangzhou?
Therefore, Wang Gui simply lowered his head and calmly said, "I will always remember your kindness in helping me, Your Excellency."

Xue Huai understood the reason for his expression, so he stopped pressing him and simply glanced to the side as if it were nothing.

As if by chance, his eyes met Liu Rang's.

Xue Huai smiled slightly. Liu Rang appeared respectful on the surface, but secretly clenched his hands in his sleeves, forcibly suppressing the unease and disgust welling up in his heart.

(End of this chapter)