A dazzling light pierced through the dark clouds and spread toward Cheng'an County.
The sun is shining brightly on the road.
The shadow and light of the city wall tore apart each other, and the man took a few steps forward sluggishly.
"Name."
the clerk asked.
The man recalled for a moment, his lips trembled slightly, "Badoroan."
"But where is Cheng'an from?"
"yes."
"Whose descendant?"
"The son of Podoluohun, the blacksmith in the south of the city"
The clerk shouted to the side, and someone immediately found a pile of household registration information. The clerk quickly found the family from the information.
"Poduoluohun, my wife is the Wang family."
"The eldest son Potarakhi has passed away and is gone."
"The second son Poduolo Le has passed away and is gone."
"The third son Po Duoluoping has passed away and is gone."
"The four sons broke into Duoluo'an and escaped at night from Tianbao's ninth year of labor service."
The clerk raised his head, looked at the guy in front of him, then picked up a pen, wrote a few words, and handed him a badge indicating his identity, "You can go home."
The man looked at the cards in his hand and stood for a long time, "Thank you."
The man walked into the city.
The city was really lively with people coming and going. As soon as he walked in, someone stood in front of him and said, "Do you want a place to stay? We can stay there for only five yuan a night. If you don't have money for the time being, you can get it on credit."
“We are hiring bricklayers here, they will provide two meals a day, accommodation, and wages will be paid daily!”
"Three grooms required!"
The man just pretended that he couldn't hear and continued to move forward. After passing the shadow of the city wall, he stood under the dazzling white light. The man couldn't help but reach out his hand to cover his eyes.
This familiar road remained unchanged. A group of people gathered at the gate of the city and were shouting hard.
From time to time, noises could be heard from both sides of the road. The big dog was lying at the door, sticking out its tongue, and started barking when the man approached.
A man walked out of the courtyard, pulling the big dog inside, and awkwardly nodded to the man as a sign of goodwill.
Several children rushed out from the alley, riding horses made of bamboo, shouting:
"The thief is committing murder, Mr. Mandrill!"
"Eat evil thieves and suppress evil thieves!"
The child rushed all the way and almost hit the donkey cart coming along the way.
The owner of the car yelled, "Whose child doesn't look at the road!"
The donkey cart was filled with all kinds of fruits and melons. It was so loaded that the children could not move because they could only look at the melons and fruits.
The man groped in his arms for a long time.
He took out a few dirty coins from his arms, bent down and gestured to the children a few times.
The children didn't dare to get close, they just looked at him warily.
"Buy melons and fruits to eat."
He said and put the money on the ground.
Most of these deceased people were rich, but after losing their identity, money also lost its use.
The owner of the donkey cart watched him go away, quickly picked up the money on the ground, looked up at the children, and took a few pears from the cart with a smile, "Come on, come on, take one each!!"
The man walked all the way to the most familiar alley.
Several dilapidated old homes were next to each other, forming a small crossroads. The man stood at the door, looking at the dilapidated mansion in front of him, his legs were trembling, and his heart was filled with unspeakable annoyance.
He stretched out his hand, but did not dare to knock on the door in front of him.
Although in his dreams, he has returned here countless times.
The door was slowly pushed open.
A little old woman walked out of the courtyard tremblingly, holding a basin in her hand. When she saw the tall figure outside, she trembled all over, "I have no money, no money."
The man stood still.
The old woman slowly raised her head.
Tears streaked down the man's face.
"mom"
A group of people rode horses and walked through the streets of Cheng'an.
Everywhere he passed, people were worshiping him.
Yao Xiong looked at Taozi and said, "Brother Taozi, Cheng'an is at peace now. Let me take care of such small things as patrolling in the future."
"You stay in the county government office and watch out for that man named Qian."
Liu Taozi did not speak. He was like a fierce tiger, patrolling his territory left and right, but his cold eyes reflected enthusiastic faces filled with smiles.
Kou Liu also looked around blankly and murmured: "This Cheng An has simply changed his appearance. I haven't seen such a lively Cheng An in many years."
Yao Xiong grinned, "The biggest villain in this city was killed. The four smaller villains were killed by this biggest villain. The rest of the villains were either killed by their elder brothers or were too scared to dare."
When you go out, you will naturally look different!"
"All evildoers, big and small, will be put to death, and peace will be achieved!"
"Then the chief secretary is still worried about the subjugated people doing evil! When the real evildoers do evil, they don't dare to step forward to stop them, so they just bully these subjugated people."
Kou Liu said: "Actually, the new county magistrate is not bad. Yesterday, he invited a dozen doctors from Yecheng and arranged them in the county government to prevent epidemics. Very few officials would care so much about civil affairs."
Yao Xiong's eyes widened, "Where are you from?!"
"Then the chief secretary has been keeping an eye on us these past few days. He is still staying in Youyou's Mansion today. He said he was conducting a thorough investigation of the past files. That's why he is here for my brother. Are you still speaking for them?"
"I'm just saying he's not too bad."
"They're not really going to find out anything, are they?"
Hearing Kou Liu's words, Yao Xiong couldn't help but laugh, "I'm not afraid that he will check, but I'm afraid that he will find out and be so scared that he can't sleep at night!!"
At this moment, Master Qian was sitting in Youyou Mansion, flipping through the files in front of him, while Tian Zili sat calmly in front of him.
Master Qian looked through it for a long time, then frowned, "There are some problems with the file. Many cases only have the testimony of a few of you, and they are still major murder cases. Logically speaking, when it comes to killing criminals, you must have
At least three unrelated people testified that you have killed more than 60 people in the past half month, which is simply ridiculous!!"
Tian Zili did not panic.
"My family has great achievements in traveling and is brave. He can be said to be the most capable official in the county government. I wonder why the county magistrate insists on dealing with him?"
Chief Qian was stunned for a moment and then put down the file in his hand.
"I know Youyou's talent and have seen his bravery, but that's all. Is your Youyou willing to bow his head, obey the county magistrate, and completely surrender?"
Tian Zili said calmly: "If the county magistrate can wholeheartedly serve the people and implement benevolent policies and good policies, why not?"
Master Qian smiled and said, "That's the truth. Lord, minister, father, father, son, ministers, do you still have to consider whether the order of the master can be implemented?"
"If you want to govern a place, if you can't even fully control your subordinates, then what's the point of governing?"
"The county magistrate is a generous and benevolent man, and You You is a brave and fierce man. I have no disrespect to You You, just for my lord!"
Tian Zili nodded and said no more.
Master Qian then stood up and left.
County government lobby.
Master Qian was holding a document and was reading loudly.
"Liu Taozi traveled around Cheng'an County and was imprisoned. He was cruel and inhumane. He immediately investigated the murder without asking the seriousness of the matter. He tortured excessively and had no evidence. He killed hundreds of people before and after."
The county magistrate Lu Yao was sitting in the upper position, and Liu Taozi was sitting among the officials. As Master Qian told the story, the officials were shocked, and the hall suddenly became noisy.
They looked at each other, and Yao Xiong and several other close associates looked even more angry at this moment.
Liu Taozi was unmoved and just looked at the other person's story.
Mr. Qian spoke in a long and lengthy manner. To sum it up, it was just one sentence: Liu Taozi is a cruel official.
In the end, he gave Lu Yao's order.
"To dismiss him as an official, all officials in Yougong Prefecture will report his dismissal."
The crowd was in an uproar.
Immediately, Recorder Shi stood up and asked: "Master Qian, I wonder what mistake Mr. You You has committed? Should he be dismissed?"
Master Qian pursed his lips and said, "What I just said are all his crimes."
"I only heard you talking nonsense, but I didn't hear any crime."
"You, you were also dismissed!"
Master Qian was merciless, and county officials did not have a temple establishment at all. They received county government salaries. The county magistrate was their monarch, and could be promoted and dismissed at will without asking anyone for instructions.
"Master, why don't you remove me as well?"
Lu Qubing stood up slowly, his cold eyes staring directly at Master Qian, who looked at the county magistrate.
Lu Yao said: "If Prime Minister Lu is not willing to be an official anymore, he can submit his resignation to me, and I can go to the temple and ask for approval."
"It's ridiculous, it's simply ridiculous. Those who have merit will be driven away, but those who are incompetent will talk nonsense!"
Zhang Sunwei stood up at some point, no longer hiding the ferocity on his face, and spoke viciously.
The officials stood up one after another, and a moment later, Lu Yao was in front of a large group of people, all of whom were glaring angrily and at war with each other.
"Do you want to rebel?"
Master Qian loyally stood in front of the county magistrate and looked at everyone warily.
"Let's go!"
Lu Qubing picked up Liu Taozi and turned around to walk out. The rest of the people followed him. Soon, the lobby was empty. No one was left. Even the soldier at the door deliberately turned his head away.
, don’t look at this county magistrate.
Lu Yao watched everyone leave and looked at Master Qian's book faintly.
"Ziyi, is this the way you thought of?"
"In front of everyone, I directly fired Youyou without any reason and made everyone openly turn against me?"
Master Qian's face was solemn, "Don't be impatient, sir. He is in charge of all matters in the county government. There is no real evidence of the crime. The only thing I can rely on now is your identity. I can only use the general trend to suppress him."
"Nowadays, everyone is openly turning against each other, but not all of them are single-minded. There will always be people who are willing to submit. As long as you appease the first person to submit and divide them, you can make them lose power."
"You are the Lord of Cheng'an, how can you still be held hostage by these petty officials and subordinates?"
"Among all the people, the only one who needs to worry is the eldest grandson Kasyapa."
"This is a Xianbei barbarian through and through. There are many unruly people in Xianbei, and beatings of Han officials are common, and they will not be punished. The temple is very partial to them. As long as you keep an eye on him, the others will have nothing to worry about."
Hearing Master Qian scold Xianbei Hu, Lu Yao stopped talking.
Master Qian continued:
"If the situation becomes too urgent, I can go to King Gaoyang and Liu Taozi kill his subordinates."
"No!"
Lu Yao frowned, "Of course Liu Taozi wants to be driven away, but he must not collude with the clan. This clan fight is not something local officials can participate in. What's more, the King of Gaoyang is definitely not a good person. Let him come to Cheng'an.
Luring a tiger into the house will harm many people! Don’t ever say anything like looking for King Gaoyang again! Don’t even have such thoughts!”
"My subordinates will remember it."
Lu Yao suddenly remembered something and asked: "Whose bodies have been sent? What did the Prince of Gaoyang say?"
"King Gaoyang is not in Yecheng. I heard that he went to Jinyang with His Majesty."
"Jinyang?"
"It is said that His Majesty was unwell and led many members of the clan to Jinyang to recuperate."
"I see."
The mansion of Changsun Kasyapa was particularly lively at the moment. Everyone gathered here. Changsun County Lieutenant brought out the best wine to entertain everyone.
After everyone came out of the hall, Changsun Gong invited everyone to his house to have a drink.
He personally poured wine for everyone, not caring about the difference in status between them, which made the few clerks frightened.
Lu Qubing sat aside worriedly, but Changsun said with a smile: "What are you afraid of? Mr. Lu just eats and drinks, I just treat his words as farts!"
He personally drank wine with Liu Taozi, held Taozi's hand, and said cordially: "You, you were born in the wrong place. If it were over there in Jinyang, where would it be the turn of these cowards to speak, they are all us warriors."
In this world, no matter what the county magistrate is, it’s all nonsense. If he offends us, he will pull us out on the road and beat him up, and then escape back to the school grounds. No one can do anything to us. If I were thirty years younger, I would beat him to death.
head!"
Yao Xiong quickly asked: "Isn't it a felony to beat an official?"
"Oh, under the command of the Governor of the Six Prefectures, the military household is the boss, the official? What kind of official is he if he doesn't have soldiers in his hands?"
Lu Qubing took a sip of bitter wine and felt a little confused inside.
Not long ago, he was a staunch Yang faction official.
He hated Xianbei people like Zhangsun extremely, and believed that they were the root of the troubles in the world. He did not agree with their humiliation and abuse of officials. He always felt that the turmoil in Daqi was due to these Xianbei military households.
But in these days, he saw a lot of things.
He saw celebrities who were sanctimonious and inconsistent.
I saw a clan that didn't care about etiquette, but was petty and vicious at heart.
I saw the naked, mad emperor.
The current county magistrate, if it had been earlier, Lu Qubing would have had great respect and love for him, but now, he always feels that something is wrong, even Mr. Yang in the temple.
He himself couldn't explain why, he just felt that these people were not as good as he thought.
Even if people like Changsun Kassapa are dead, and there are people like Yang and Lu in Daqi, can the country become better? Can the people live better?
Cheng An's appearance changed immediately, but this was definitely not because of the appearance of people like Yang and Lu, it was just because Tao Zi had almost killed all the evil people in the city.
Lu Qubing fell into deep thought and began to reflect and dissect his past thoughts and concepts.
County Captain Changsun seemed drunk at the moment. Strictly speaking, he and the county magistrate were not in the same system.
The county lieutenants in Daqi are different from those in the past. Changsun County Lieutenant should be more appropriately called Changsun Qibu Lieutenant. There are only seven county lieutenants in Daqi, responsible for the seven counties around the capital and guarding Yecheng.
He is one of the seven lieutenants in Daqi who are responsible for the security of the capital, rather than the head of the local military force. His rank is two levels higher than Lu Qubing.
Lu Qubing is from the ninth rank, and he is from the ninth rank.
Of course, ordinary county towns would not arrange a Xianbei building to guard it, and would usually use ordinary foreign troops.
At this moment, Changsun took Liu Taozi's hand and said with a smile: "Don't worry, with you as a wanderer, I feel relieved. If there is an edict, it is a county magistrate. Someone must obey to be a county magistrate."
"We will ignore him from now on and see if he can still sit still!"
"If someone secretly surrenders and accepts his kindness, I will find a way to arrange some life-threatening errands. Then Lu Yao is a kind person, but I am not."
Changsun amplified his voice, as if he wanted to tell everyone.
In the next few days, Liu Taozi was still touring various places, and Lu Qubing was still busy settling the refugees.
There are not many dead people left outside the city, and this general amnesty has effectively changed the atmosphere in the county. The people have begun to trust the government.
After all the evil spirits were killed, Cheng'an naturally returned to a normal county town.
On the streets that were originally filled with ghosts, the laughing and running children drove away the dead atmosphere. In the lively two cities, merchants shouted loudly, and hawkers could often be seen walking on the streets carrying burdens. The ghost town was once again visited by people.
occupied.
Even those petty officials who were waiting to die felt inexplicable feelings in their hearts after seeing the changes in the county.
On this day, the city gates were wide open, and people entering and leaving were lined up.
The sound of horse hooves was heard, and the violent knight waved his whip to drive away the people in front of him. Under the angry shout of the knight, everyone gave way, their eyes filled with fear.
Several knights rushed to the city gate, a nobleman raised his head, and the clerk hurriedly came forward to pay his respects.
The man lowered his head and threw the pass out of his hand, "Have those who hold the same pass entered the city?"
The clerk picked it up and looked at it, and found that it said "Linzhang, He family."
The clerk pursed his lips and looked at the nobleman in front of him, looking a little uncomfortable.
The noble man saw the strange expression on the young official's face, and the riding crop in his hand almost hit his face, "Answer truthfully! Where are they now?!"
The clerk slowly raised his head.
The noble man was stunned for a moment, then raised his head following his gaze.
A long row of heads hangs on the city gate, their eyes closed, swaying gently with the cold wind.
The noble man opened his mouth wide, his eyes finally locked on the two heads, and the next moment, he burst into tears.
"Second child!! Third child!!"
"My brother!!"
"Who did this?!"
"Get it for me!!"
The nobleman roared, and the knights he brought hurriedly dismounted and got ladders from the county soldiers, who took off the two heads.
The two heads had shrunk at the moment and seemed to have been treated. The noble man stretched out his hand and wanted to touch it. His whole body was trembling. He suddenly turned his head and looked in the direction of the county government office, "Ah!
!!”
He mounted the horse like crazy, and everyone else got on their horses one after another, and the group of people ran wildly in the direction of the county government office.
They just ran rampant along the road, and the people on the road screamed, quickly grabbed the children, and fled back to the house in embarrassment.
The vendors were lying on the roadside, leaning against the wall, not forgetting to protect their goods and shivering.
The group of people rushed to the gate of the county government office.
"Lu Yao!! Come out!!"
Chapter completed!