Civil servants of the Tang Dynasty

As early as in Jinzhou, Tang Chengcheng had a habit of never showing it when he went home and faced his family members even if he encountered unsatisfactory things outside. Anyway, even if he told them, they would not be able to help. Things broke the mood of the family.It was the same when facing Li Yingwan and Lancao before, and it is the same with Zheng Lingyi now.

When Tang Cheng walked outside the door of the main room, he was not in a hurry to open the door and go in. He first raised his hand and rubbed his ugly face, and then tried to smile. The door went in.

"I'm back", seeing him coming in, Zheng Lingyi got up and greeted him.

"Pour two cups of hot tea." After Tang Cheng said something to Laifu, he looked at Zheng Ling who was scrutinizing his face carefully and said, "Why, what's wrong with my face?".

"No", seeing Tang Cheng touching his face and walking towards the bronze mirror, Zheng Lingyi couldn't help but smile, "I've met Niu Shijun, didn't he give you a look?".

"Huh?" Hearing this, Tang Cheng stopped, "How do you know his surname is Niu?".

"Laifu couldn't sit still and asked for some news. When I heard about it and wanted to find you, it was too late." Zheng Lingyi walked up to Tang Cheng gently and said softly: "I don't care if you have been wronged outside. Don't hold back, and your heart will be more open after you speak out."

"Well", Tang Cheng nodded absent-mindedly, and asked Lai Fu who was coming over with tea, "What did you find out?".

After Laifu said this, Tang Cheng finally understood where the inexplicable cold encounter just now came from. The reason was that Niu Shihuo was a pervert. He is really talented and learned, Xue Zheng pityed his poor family and knew how to work hard, so he gave him a place as a rural tribute student, but it was a pity that after he went to Chang'an with great ambitions to take the exam, he was ranked first every year, and the last time he passed the written exam of the Ministry of Rites However, he had no choice but to be deposed in the subsequent official interview. The reason was that he was ugly, and he didn't even pass the first of the four tests of "body, speech, writing, and judgment" in the official examination. .

After seven years of wasting time, prices in Chang'an were high, and he was a poor man. Needless to say, the bitterness of life during this period almost reached the point of relying on beggars for self-sufficiency. After crying and falling ill, he left Beijing angrily after burning a box full of poems and books.

He was ashamed to go back to his hometown, but he was also a ruthless guy, so he ran to the cold and remote Guizhou alone. His talent was quickly revealed in a poor place, and he was gradually appreciated by the governor at the time. The governor gave him a "excellence" to the official department, and then transferred from outside to inside with "official cadre", completing the crucial leap from official to official in life.

Most officials are reluctant to come to Guizhou, even if they have no choice but to come, they don’t want to stay for a long time. Thanks to this unique environment, Niu Shishi, who worked hard, rose rapidly, and was finally miraculously climbed by him. On the high position of envoy.

Speaking of his experience is quite similar to Tang Cheng, he is really an inspirational model, but the seven years in Chang'an were too deep, and after that, he was often ridiculed behind his back by other officials because of his ugly appearance when he went to the Daoya meeting. Therefore, once he ascended to the No.1 position in the state, he no longer needed to endure it, and his obsessed and paranoid temperament broke out in an all-round way. Reuse, even the servants used in his mansion are only picky, the uglier they are, the easier it is to gain trust.

After Tang Cheng heard the whole story, he was completely speechless. This is really a wonder in the world. When studying history in later generations, he also saw ancient officials who had body odor, so they relied heavily on promotion for subordinates who also had body odor. .However, Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty was so frugal to the point of being stingy, that he attracted officials of all sizes to wear patched clothes, so that every time the Great Court Meeting was held, there was a piece of tatters on the Golden Luan Hall, and the people jokingly called it a beggar in the court.In the past, when Tang Cheng read these records, he still couldn't help laughing out loud, but he didn't expect such a mess to happen to him today.

Who can blame this fucking appearance?You can't disfigure yourself just to please yourself, fuck me, Tang Cheng cursed fiercely from the bottom of his heart.According to his previous experience, no matter what level of yamen he worked in, he could always have a good relationship with the chief officer. This is also the most important reason for his smooth journey in the past few years.But this time it was completely hopeless.

The place is such a remote and dilapidated place, and there is such a perverted direct boss. Could it be that when he left Jinzhou, he didn't look forward to life, so that the evil spirits collided together?

After Laifu finished speaking, Tang Cheng thought about it for a while, then said in a deep voice: "Laifu, from now on you don't have to follow me anymore, use whatever skills you have, any useful news related to Longmen County and Niu Governor The more you inquire, the better, no matter how much you spend, I just want news, the sooner the better." Damn, since the situation can't be changed, you have to plan ahead and act first.

Damn it, Niu Zude, you old pervert!

Chapter 2: The Morbid Longmen County

Before taking office, he got the bad feeling of the chief officer, and this bad feeling can't be eliminated.Tang Cheng really didn't expect that the first boss he met after he became the chief officer was so perverted.After Fu Fang flew solo in the future, he was not in a hurry to leave, and after resting in Huairong City for two days, he set off to continue northward.

Hebei Road is originally a plain, but when Tang Cheng drove from Huairong to Longmen County, he felt that the terrain was gradually rising.

"This is the Great Wall that Emperor Qinshihuang enlisted millions of men to build?" Through the slightly opened curtains of the car, Zheng Lingyi looked at the Great Wall winding like a flying dragon on the ridge in the distance and exclaimed: "It's really spectacular! ".

Hearing this, Tang Cheng leaned over and looked out, only to see in the distance on the highest steep mountain ridge, the Great Wall from west to east is like a giant dragon that is about to fly high in the sky, the mountains are high and the sky is low. The Great Wall that stretches from east to west is becoming more and more majestic, and under the slightly dark sky, the winding black-gray Great Wall faintly exudes a kind of vicissitudes and thickness soaked by time, which makes people feel it. Spectacular, but at the same time there is a faint sense of coercion, as if the invisible city wall under the sky has life.

"It's really spectacular." Facing such a thick and vast Great Wall, the language was a little weak for a while. Tang Cheng looked at it quietly for a while and then stretched out his hand to pull down the curtains of the car. Then with a hook in his hand, Zheng Lingyi snuggled into his arms , "The Great Wall is so endless that it lasts for three thousand miles. The Great Wall is indeed magnificent, but every inch of the Great Wall is an inch of bone, and the magnificence in front of you is all piled up with bones."

Hearing this, Zheng Lingyi's body nestled in Tang Cheng's arms trembled slightly, and murmured in his mouth: "Drinking horses in the Great Wall Cave, the cold water hurts the horse's bones. There are many healthy and few in the border towns, and there are many widows in the inner houses. You don't see the dead under the Great Wall." The bones support the pillars!" The few words she whispered casually and what Tang Cheng said just now, "The Great Wall is so long, so long and it lasts for three thousand miles" are all from Chen Lin's representative work "Drinking Horses on the Great Wall Cave Tour" among the seven sons of Jian'an in the late Han Dynasty , After muttering, Zheng Lingyi, who was originally lazy and snuggled, stretched out his hands and hugged Tang Cheng's waist tightly. You and I leave the customs together, and if we want to come back in the future, we need to be together again, you must not send me away first, otherwise it will be difficult for me to stay in the customs for a long time."

Hearing this, Tang Cheng was moved and felt funny, "Where is the silly girl thinking, you and I are the same husband and wife, can I still let you go alone?" He patted Zheng Lingyi on the shoulder, Tang Cheng said with a smile : "One inch of the Great Wall and one inch of bone, from the first emperor of Qin Dynasty to the present, exactly a thousand years, from the initial construction to the subsequent repairs in the past thousand years, there are more than a million souls buried under the Great Wall? As for the cost of wealth, it is countless. The result is The enemy that should be blocked still failed to stop, not to mention, even more than a hundred years ago, the land of Jiangbei was still dominated by Hu people. Being massacred, didn’t these barbarians all come from the Great Wall? Thinking about the past, although the Great Wall in front of you looks magnificent, but if you think about it carefully, it’s not worth the loss. Chen Lin’s poem said it well, A man would rather fight to the death than build the Great Wall!"

"The barbarians are fast, and the force is strong...".

"The more this is the case, the more you can't just think about defending. If the two armies are facing each other, if you think about defending before the battle starts, you will never win the battle." After finishing this sentence casually, Tang Cheng smiled at himself He smiled, "I'm a civil servant, why are you saying such useless things?"

"It's not completely useless," Zheng Lingyi paused, "Husband, your Longmen County is outside the Great Wall."

"Don't worry." Looking at Zheng Lingyi with a worried face, Tang Cheng smiled and comforted him: "Although the political situation in my Tang Dynasty has been unstable in the past few years, it is only a matter in the palace city, and the trend of the whole country is It's getting stronger and stronger. Those barbarians only hope that the imperial court will not move their minds to expand their territories, so that they can attack with all their strength? I'm afraid it will be impossible in three or 20 years. After all, it's the same sentence just now, A strong national power is much more useful than the Great Wall, which wastes money and people.”

"Of course I don't dare to invade from the whole family, but I am afraid that small-scale harassment will be inevitable every year, and there is no Great Wall in Longmen to defend it." Zheng Lingyi's worried expression remained undiminished, "My husband must not be careless."

Hearing this, Tang Cheng was shocked. He actually forgot about this. All previous judgments were made according to the general trend of history. In the next 40 years until the Anshi Rebellion, there will indeed be no large-scale invasion of foreign races, but the border Small-scale raids and lootings in local areas do happen every year, especially when the Shang Hu people suffer from snowstorms or something, although those hungry Hu people may not dare to attack Datang The county government is the symbol of the imperial court, but if the place is harassed and looted year after year, where does the construction and change start?

Unexpectedly, a few inadvertent gossips caused a big problem before he arrived at the territory under the jurisdiction of Longmen.

In order to build and change, a stable environment is an essential prerequisite, but for Longmen, how can such stability and security be guaranteed?

No one has arrived at the jurisdiction yet, and they don't know what's going on. It doesn't help that Ren Tangcheng thinks about it now, so he just shakes his head and doesn't think about it. Let's talk about it when we get there.

As the terrain gets higher and higher, the Great Wall is getting closer and closer. When Tang Cheng got out of the car and walked through the Suoyang Pass built at the pass of two mountains, after more than two months of long journey, he finally I saw my own jurisdiction with my own eyes.

Suoyangguan was built to control the mountains. Once passing through the deep and heavy city gate, the terrain in front of you clearly shows a trend from high to low. The mountains under your feet gradually transition to the flat land in the distance, but this transition It is not abrupt, and the undulating mountains and ravines are still clearly visible. On the undulating mountains and rivers and the flat land in the distance, three rivers run through the north and south. The entire terrain slopes down from the foot to the distance. In the end, it disappeared in a piece of withered yellow grassland beyond the horizon.

The Longmen County in front of us is just in the combination zone of mountains and grasslands, thus forming a rare landform that includes both mountains and grasslands within a county.

The nearby mountains and the distant grasslands, just as Tang Cheng was standing in front of Suoyang Pass and looking at the vast land below, a slightly hoarse voice sounded not far away: "Master Tang, Tang grown ups".

Turning his head in response, Tang Chengcheng saw a man in his fifties walking towards him following the guidance of the gate guard sergeant. The blue official clothes were bulging.

After the man got closer and saw Tang Cheng's appearance clearly, he was obviously stunned, and then he stepped forward with a smile on his face, "I got news from the state government yesterday, saying that the new magistrate of this county is a The new Jinshi who is as rich as jade is not false at first sight today."

After smiling and saying this affectionately, the man had already walked up to Tang Cheng, bowed his hands and said, "Xiaguan Longmen County Lieutenant Hu Lianghai has seen you."

This person is actually the county lieutenant who is the third in command of Longmen!

"Thank you Mr. Liang." At the same time as he bowed his hands and returned the salute, Tang Cheng had officially entered the role, and from now on he was the king of the county.

After taking a deep breath, Tang Cheng supported Hu Liang Hai who was slightly bowed with both hands, while watching the look on his face attentively.

Hu Lianghai has been smiling since the beginning, and no matter what Tang Cheng thinks of him, his smile is not fake at all, it is really a natural expression of sincerity.

This county lieutenant actually welcomed him sincerely. Although Hu Lianghai's performance surprised Tang Cheng, after all, every official hoped that there would be as few people on his head as possible. For a county lieutenant like him It is said that according to common sense, it would be better if the chief official who can't wait to be absent should never take up the post. The situation like this is really rare, at least according to Tang Cheng's experience in the yamen of all levels in Shannan Dongdao.

Although the accident was unexpected, Tang Cheng was still happy after the brief accident. For him, the county magistrate, the county magistrate and the county lieutenant are really his right-hand men. If these two people can work together, it will be natural It is twice the result with half the effort. If the two of them refuse to cooperate, it will grind people to death just in terms of personnel, let alone work.Since the county captain Hu Lianghai in front of him has such an attitude, it is a good thing no matter what.

Thinking of this, the expression on Tang Cheng's face became more and more warm. After getting into the rather old carriage he brought, Tang Cheng talked and laughed warmly, and was very affectionate to Hu Lianghai.

After exchanging pleasantries, Tang Cheng, with a smile on his face, inadvertently asked the county magistrate of Longmen. Since he had already received the news of his appointment, and the county magistrate had come to welcome him, according to normal official practice, the magistrate also There's no reason why it won't come.Now that his person has not come, it is not a good sign.

"My lord, I don't know when I first came to the post. The county magistrate has been vacant for nearly ten years, and the official department has never supplemented the transfer." At this point, after a few dry coughs from Hu Lianghai, he was quite dissatisfied. He continued with embarrassment: "Your Excellency has just arrived in office, and it is inappropriate to say something now, but the document approved by the Ministry of Officials has arrived, but I have to say it."

Hearing that the magistrate of this county is vacant, Tang Cheng is still happy. This is a good thing. Without such a second assistant in the middle, it will be more convenient for him to be the county magistrate. Because of this, he is really in a bad mood. Bad, heard the words and nodded with a smile: "What's the matter with Lieutenant Huliang County, but it's okay to say."

"Xiaguan is a native of Cizhou, Hedong Road. There is still an old mother in her [-]s who lives in the ancestral house and is taken care of by her wife. More than three months ago, the dog sent a letter from her family, saying that the old mother is getting older. The body is also getting weaker and weaker." Hu Lianghai lowered his head when he said this, his voice was choked with sobs. I am really ashamed of my kindness to my relatives. Because of this, the lower official submitted a letter to the Ministry of Officials shortly after receiving the letter from the family, requesting to be an official. It is enough for adults to countersign."

As Hu Lianghai talked more and more, the smile on Tang Cheng's face became less and less. For him, the county magistrate, it was a good thing that the county magistrate was vacant, but it would be a shame if even the magistrate left together. It's funny, the county magistrate, county magistrate, and county lieutenant all perform their own duties in a county. Now one is missing, and the other has to run away. What's the matter with leaving him as a polished commander who just arrived Son?

What the hell is this Longmen County? Why are all the officials so desperate to run away?

Seeing that Tang Cheng's face darkened but he didn't speak, Hu Lianghai's voice became colder and he said in an even more mournful voice: "Filial piety is the first thing to do, and it's a great grief for a son who wants to support him but refuses to be loved. Mr. Tang fulfills the heart of filial piety in all subordinates." When he said this, Hu Lianghai didn't care that he was still in the car, and he wanted to salute as soon as he raised his waist.

Seeing Hu Lianghai's hasty expression on his face, he wanted to leave, Tang Cheng didn't reach out to stop him from saluting, and leaned his body firmly on the pillow before saying calmly: "Officials below the sixth rank are promoted and transferred. The Ministry made a decision in one word, Master Hu Liang wants to become an official, and the Ministry of Officials approves it, so what else do I need to sign?".

"There is a vacancy in this county's county magistrate, and the adult is also the first to take office. The Ministry of Officials means that if the adult needs to step down from the official to stay as an assistant, the subordinate will have to stay in the post again. If the adult thinks that the subordinate can go, then the subordinate can become an official."

Tang Cheng also spent a lot of time in the yamen at all levels in Shannan Dongdao, and it was the first time he heard such a reply from the official document of the Ministry of Officials. These slickers really know how to kick the ball!

After listening to Hu Lianghai's words, Tang Cheng pondered for a while and then asked aloud: "How long has it been since Master Hu Liang took over as the county captain of Longmen?".

"Seven months and 23 days", Hu Lianghai's voice was no longer sad, but rather weak.

Even the specific number of days is so clearly counted. It seems that Hu Lianghai really lives like a year in Longmen County. Tang Cheng became more and more curious about where Longmen County is. Now it seems that not only the local officials are unwilling to stay, I'm afraid that other officials are not willing to come, otherwise why would the Ministry of Officials give such absurd reply.

"Although Longmen County is employing people, since Mr. Huliang insists on leaving, I have no reason to forcefully stop him." It's gone clean, this is Tang Cheng's idea long ago.Having said that, Tang Cheng, who was sitting upright, leaned forward and stared at the happy Hu Lianghai and said in a deep voice: "But before I can countersign the official document, the captain of Huliang County still needs to write down all the documents in this county. It’s better to clarify the situation one by one.”

"That's it, that's it", Hu Lianghai clapped his hands over and over again with a happy expression on his face, "Thank you, my lord, thank you very much".

After the two sat down again, Tang Chengcheng didn't speak any more, and leaned on the pillow with his eyes slightly closed to listen to Hu Lianghai's words.

It was through Hu Lianghai's introduction that Tang Cheng knew that in terms of area alone, Longmen County, which has mountains and some grasslands, is actually larger, or even much larger, than many upper-class counties in the inland areas.In terms of population, Longmen County, with a population of nearly 5, is not too bad. After all, at this time, many counties in the south of Lingnan and even the border areas of Yunnan and Guizhou in later generations had only [-] people.

However, the composition of the more than 4 people in the territory of Longmen County is actually a bit complicated. Among them, most of them live in the mountainous areas are Tang people, and among the more than 2 Tang people, there are not many local people. In addition to officials and their families, there are more black households from the inland areas.The land granting system adopted after the Tang Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty, and the Dingding Dynasty was adopted, that is, land was granted to the common people according to their heads, and then rents and taxes were collected accordingly.After the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the population decreased, and the land grants were sufficient at the beginning. Now, after 70 years of peace, with land mergers and population surges, the imperial court has less and less land, and the land grants are naturally less and less. The agricultural technology in this era is far from developed. As a result, many people have too few fields and too many people to eat enough to eat. Therefore, many people are willing to risk being arrested by the government as refugees and go to this sparsely populated area. Come to live in the frontier.The mountains in Longmen County are barren, and these people barely have enough to eat after they came here. Looking at the entire mountainous area, the Tang people are really barren.

In addition to this half of the people, another large population is the Xi people on the grassland. It is said that these Xi people should be under the jurisdiction of the Raole Dudu Mansion in the north of Longmen County. After all, the Raole area is the five Xi people. The governor of Raole is the king of the Xi clan recognized and rewarded by the court. The area of ​​Raole area is about the same size as the "Tao" in the Central Plains, and its specific governance is similar to the autonomous regions of later generations.

This part of Longmen County lived here for many generations. As early as the early Tang Dynasty, a rare heavy snow disaster occurred, which made the life of the family no longer possible. At that time, the old generals who first raided and plundered the world were conquered by Emperor Taizong. The one who beat the bag retreated in defeat. In desperation, he had no choice but to apply for "inner attachment" to the Tang court for disaster relief and survival, and thus merged into the jurisdiction of Longmen County.Later, when Emperor Taizong defeated the Western Turks and was revered as the "Tian Khan" by all ethnic groups, and then established Rao Le, Song Mo and other autonomous Hu nationality governors, this Xi people and their grasslands still belonged to Longmen County jurisdiction, with the passage of time, the original tribe of nearly 2 people has grown to the scale of more than [-] people today.

It's just that although these Xi people belong to Longmen County under the direct jurisdiction of the Tang court in terms of administrative division, they are actually closer to King Xi of Rao Le Dudu Mansion because of their ethnicity, blood relationship, and common totem worship.This has brought about a very direct problem. Although Longmen County has jurisdiction over it in name, it actually has no control over it.These Xi people usually obey the orders issued by King Xi, but when they encounter a famine, they reach out to Longmen County for relief money, food and fodder animals.Because of his strong folk customs and many people, he has successively served as the magistrate of Longmen County, the governor of Guizhou, and even the observer of Hebei Road.In the long run, the little wealth accumulated in the already barren Longmen County will not be enough to invest in this bottomless pit, so there is no room for construction.

This side does not pay taxes but does not forget to ask for money and food relief, while the household department over there collects taxes based on the total population of Longmen County, including Xi people. The difference between this back and forth is like two big saws grinding Longmen back and forth Although there are Guizhou Prefecture and Hebei Road Observer Yamen in the middle to help fill the gaps, the life of Longmen County itself is really extremely sad.In this way, the officials who work here have suffered a lot. There is no oil and water at all. The pain of tax collection during the year is simply indescribable.

The problems caused by the special population and ethnic composition are far more than these. For example, public security, the Longmen County Government can’t control people who commit crimes, or they are unable to manage them. What is the use of more than a dozen tolerances in the yamen?It can't be solved here, and the victimized Tang people over there are naturally dissatisfied. They can be suppressed once, and they can be suppressed twice. In the long run, the entire county government has no prestige anymore, and the officials have become a punching bag. cursed.

All in all, Longmen County, which has a special geographical location, is an abnormal and special place. Once the officials came, they started to have a headache, and then tried their best to find a way to leave. Of course, those who can be transferred are good, and those who cannot be transferred would rather Zhishi also doesn't want to do this kind of errand again.Even if it is really impossible to go, I only hold a firm mind, as long as nothing happens, and let's endure it.

This is Longmen County, where Tang Cheng came to take up his post full of ambitions. A county magistrate has already left, and the county magistrate also desperately wants to escape. It is a sick place with a special location.

Chapter 221 What to do?

The former county magistrate of Longmen was sick and resigned. After hearing the news, Hu Lianghai only hated himself for being too stupid, running too slowly and becoming the bottom of the list. To get out of the life-threatening sea of ​​bitterness, now that Tang Cheng had agreed to let him go, he naturally knew everything and talked all the time, so he walked all the way and said that when the carriage arrived in Longmen County, Tang Cheng The overall situation of Longmen County has been roughly outlined.

Hearing that he had already arrived in Longmen County, Tang Cheng moved his numb body a little, then opened the curtains of the car and looked out. Originally, after hearing Hu Lianghai's introduction, he thought that the county was exhausted, but it was beyond his expectation. What's more, the city wall of Longmen County seen from the car window is very good. Although it is far from the word "Xiongcheng", the word "strong and thick" is well-deserved. I saw such a city in a poor county. The walls of the city are indeed beyond expectations.

"Almost all the county's annual corvee quota is used for this," Hu Lianghai saw Tang Cheng's surprise and explained: "Other official affairs in the county may be slowed down, but the previous county officials have paid attention to the repair of the city wall. But it never slackens.”

There is no need to call Liang Haiduo to say that Tang Cheng can understand the reason. Hearing this, he smiled silently. It became more and more obvious that although there was still some distance between them, because of the downwind, the voice of shouting and rolling the dice from the tolerance pile had been carried by the wind, and it was very clearly audible.

The on-duty errands yelled and gambled together during the on-duty time. Seeing this scene, Tang Cheng didn't know much, and Hu Lianghai couldn't bear it. After all, he was a county lieutenant, and these errands belonged to him. It's in charge.

After lifting up the window on the other side and explaining a few words to the accompanying Tolerance, the Tolerance immediately rode his horse and ran towards the city gate. Hu Lianghai turned his head and said in embarrassment and helplessness after finishing his order. One sentence, "The lower officials are not strict in leading their subordinates, adults will laugh at them."

The gate of the city is a large place where people come and go, but these people are wearing official uniforms to gamble here. The nature of it is just like the traffic police of later generations wearing police uniforms and playing mahjong with tables on the bustling roadside. Although he knew that Longmen County was sick before, the scene in front of him made Tang Cheng intuitively feel the extent of Longmen County's sickness. With the current state of the Tang Dynasty, the government is far from the corruption of the late Tang Dynasty. Not to mention that he couldn't see such a thing in Yunxi and Jinzhou, he just couldn't think of it.

Regarding the scene he witnessed with his own eyes, except for frowning at the beginning, Tang Cheng didn't say anything with his expression unchanged, and he didn't look like he was going to get out of the car or lose his temper at all.

Hu Lianghai was a little surprised by Tang Cheng's behavior like this. He thought that Tang Cheng was young and a freshly-learned Jinshi, so he must be arrogant and arrogant, so he even prepared to listen to it a few times. Mentally prepared for an ugly sentence, who would have expected that the young new county magistrate could hold his breath so calmly, not only did he not say anything ugly to him, but now he didn't even seem to change his face, "This Tang Cheng looks like he is young, The city mansion is not shallow!".

After Hu Lianghai muttered something in his heart, he looked at the distance between the carriage and the city gate, then poked his head out and said loudly: "Bring the gong, and light up the county magistrate's flag."

Following his order, the carriage slowed down immediately, and the escorts who were originally riding guards on both sides of the carriage rode forward. After a while, the flag board with Tang Chengcheng's rank and surname was raised high, There was a bang bang bang when the gong sounded, and the sound of the gong had to be knocked all the way from the city gate to the county government office. After the match, the announcement was issued to inform the whole county that the new Tang Xianzun had officially arrived at the government office.

As soon as the flag was lit and the gong sounded, the people from the front of the carriage to the city gate followed the sound. Afterwards, the originally noisy official road and outside the city gate gradually quieted down, and the people also consciously avoided to both sides of the road. .

Although the procedure of quiet avoidance was achieved, what Tang Cheng noticed was that the expressions and eyes of these common people were very indifferent when they looked at his car.

As a local citizen, it is common sense that when meeting a new chief official for the first time, there should always be some reactions. Expectations, disappointments, and even contempt are all normal. After all, the quality of this person's governance and even personal likes and dislikes will directly affect their Personal life, this is not only in the Tang Dynasty, but also in later generations. When a new mayor or county magistrate or something is changed in a place, the common people like to discuss after dinner, but these should be normal reactions to the people of Longmen County. But they couldn't see it at all, as if Tang Cheng, the newly appointed magistrate of Longmen County, had nothing to do with them.

what does that mean?

According to the usual practice, Tang Cheng, the new county magistrate, should lift up the curtains of the car and smile at the people on both sides of the road when the flag is lit. Yes, this will not only allow the common people to get to know their parents better, but also the new county magistrates can use this to make a good impression on the common people.But Tang Cheng didn't follow the usual practice, he gave up the idea when he saw the indifferent expressions of the common people. Although the curtains of the car were still raised, he leaned back.

Hu Lianghai was very puzzled by his uncharacteristic behavior, "My lord?"

"Let's go", Tang Cheng waved his hand without explaining anything, "Go into the city".

When the car arrived at the gate of the city, the errands who had gathered together finally formed a fairly neat formation and saluted in unison: "See Mr. Tang."

Tang Cheng stretched out his hand out the window and waved it. Without saying a word, the carriage went straight to the city gate without stopping for a moment.

"What... what does this mean? When the previous county magistrates passed by the city gate when they took office, there were people with smiling faces, and some with black faces and losing their temper. I have never seen such a person like this before!", Tang Cheng's As soon as the carriage left, the standing postures of the tolerances immediately returned to the three-hanging posture. One of the tolerances who was rolling the dice bent down and looked at the back of the carriage that was about to pass through the city gate. Is he here to be angry with us?"

"He's an idiot, but I'm still pissed!" After hearing this, the tolerance officer standing next to him snorted disdainfully, "Our county government is an old brothel, and these county magistrates come and leave like clients. Hurry up, maybe this can last for a few days, he is just angry and has another thing to do, let him turn around every day, come on, what should we do, let's continue to play."

"Old Qian, didn't you hear what Jia Lao Er came to report to? This new county magistrate is very young. He was in his twenties when he was full of anger, and he was still an official Jinshi. Maybe he is the same as the previous ones. no the same".

"Qiu, this is Longmen County! Don't say he's just a Jinshi, even the grandpa from the imperial city of Chang'an can't handle it when he comes here..." When the Tolerance said this, he suddenly stopped talking, and he didn't care at all. His face suddenly darkened.

His change came suddenly, and the tolerances next to him immediately asked, "Qian Sanba, what's wrong?".

"It's a bad thing!" Qian Sanba looked at his colleagues with a worried expression on his face and said: "This new Tang Danhui is so young, he is probably Er Bulang who is the first-time official, if he is stunned You got into a fight with those barbarians, brothers, do you still have a day to live?".

As soon as Qian Sanba's words came out, the faces of the other tolerances changed a little after they were stunned. It's really hilarious. The young new Jinshi who became an official for the first time is just like a young chicken who has just arrived in a kiln. It's a brute force, so what skills do you need to pay attention to?It's okay if it's in other places, but in Longmen County... Oh, if he really does this, these tolerances really can't live, those "barbarian" titles are not given for nothing of.

Compared with the revolving officials in the Longmen County Yamen, the iron-clad and flowing soldiers, these native-born tolerances are iron-clad camps. After so many years, they don’t care who is the county magistrate, anyway. When they are all in the same ball, like those Longmen people, they don't have any hope for the new county magistrate, just because of their duties, they hope that the new county magistrate must not be a second-hander, otherwise This bowl of rice is not considered delicious, but I really can't eat it.

"Damn it, why do you think so much? If he is really a second-ball, brothers peel this piece of skin and go home to eat themselves." A tolerance next to him waved his hand carelessly, "One day counts as one day, fuck these trivial things. My heart is dry, come, come, let's continue to play."

"What the old cow said is good, what the hell, come on."

"Come on", the tolerance officers gathered together after a few words of discussion, and immediately someone shouted: "San Scar, why are you in a daze, dice!".

A cry made Qian Sanba react, and he put the dice in his hand, "It's no fun to play, I sit in the bank, so I bet that Tang Bihui will not stay in Longmen for a year." With a snap, Qian Sanba's hand It slapped heavily on the dice table, shaking a bowl of dice, "Willing to bet, place a bet".

……

When a new gambling game was opened at the gate of the city, Tang Cheng also officially entered Longmen County. Compared with the rather atmospheric city walls outside, the inside of the county is much shabby. The streets look narrow, dirty and broken, and the air is The smell of fishy smell and the smell of livestock dung are much heavier than that of Huai Rong. Although it is broad daylight, there are not many pedestrians coming and going on the street. The reaction of these few pedestrians to the flag board and the sound of the gong It's exactly the same as those common people outside the city. They should avoid and be quiet, but their faces are indifferent.

Rao Tang Cheng had already been mentally prepared from the moment he received the appointment letter from the Ministry of Officials, but after he arrived at Longmen today, what he heard and saw was really sorry for his enthusiasm, no matter what he did I never expected that the place where I took office would be so rotten!In fact, if the place is rotten and the conditions are poor, it’s okay to say, what place was not built by people?The most terrible thing is that from what I have heard and seen so far, not only has the yamen lost the slightest authority in this ghost place, but the common people have also entered a state of collective indifference. They neither believe in the yamen nor believe that life can be changed in any way. Yes, this discovery is what makes Tang Cheng feel powerless the most. Speaking of which, he, the county magistrate, is the leader of the Longmen County team, but he took over such a team whose hearts have long been scattered to the point where grief is greater than death. It's all gone, how can the team lead?

"The reception banquet will be skipped." With Tang Cheng's current mood, he didn't have the heart to go to any reception banquet, so he directly rejected Hu Lianghai's proposal, "I'm tired from the journey, so go straight to Yamen."

The yamen is a place of flowing water, and there is no habit in the officialdom that the predecessor repairs the yamen for the successor, and Longmen is a poor place to dump scum, so it is reasonable for the county government to be dark and old. Seeing Tang Cheng get off the bus After looking at the county government office, he frowned, and called Liang Hai to take a step forward and said, "The internal government office is much better than the one in front of it. Why don't your lord and wife settle in the Longmen Inn in the city first, so that the officials can punish the county government officials?" It won’t be too late for your lord to move in after the Yamen is cleaned up.”

Tang Cheng looked at the gray and old main hall of the county government without any solemnity, and then looked up at the plaque covered with a thick layer of gray on the official case in the main hall, "How much money is there in the county government's account?".

"Just after the tax collection for Xiaqiu, there are now more than 6000 yuan in the account, but some of them have to be paid to the prefectural households Cao before the end of the month."

More than 6000 yuan converted into the money of future generations is only a little over 200 million at most. A majestic county government with nearly 5 people has only such a small amount of money, and part of it will be released soon. Hearing this The numbers are really speechless. Longmen County is not only poor, it is already bankrupt!

"Trouble Huliang County Lieutenant, please take some time to worry about it." Tang Cheng looked away and stopped under the dusty "Diligent Government and Love the People" plaque, "Just clean the inner office behind the courtroom, The point is here."

Tang Cheng nodded to the main hall standing under his feet, "Everything arranged here will be replaced by new ones, and the walls will also need to be plastered again, especially this plaque, which is carved out of the best wood with lacquer gold. In short, it is just a sentence In other words, the yamen has to be seen as a yamen, and it looks like a yamen! Let it go, don’t spare money on this matter.”

After finishing speaking, Tang Cheng walked out, and the stunned Huliang County Wei just stepped up to follow, Tang Cheng's voice sounded: "The official of Longmen Inn will go by himself, Huliang County Captain will start this matter immediately " After finishing speaking, he waved his hand back and he was out of the hall.