yingchuan
Today was a big day, and the people of Yingchuan were shouting.
Because today, all the heads of the officials in Yingchuan, as well as some of the noble families and gentry who were usually not seen in their courtyards, had all come out of the manor gates. Moreover, they were lined up at the entrance of the county government. They had invited a guard of honor and arranged themselves into a battle formation, as if they were welcoming a certain important person.
The surrounding commoners had long been sent far away and were not allowed to approach the government office. However, they still gathered in a circle and looked at these important figures that were rarely seen from afar, discussing animatedly.
"Why are so many big shots here today? What day is it?”
"Looks like they're welcoming someone? A big shot has come!"
"I heard that today is the day that the Minister of Personnel, Cao Zhi, personally appointed the county magistrate of Yingchuan.”
"Young Master Cao Zhi personally conferred it? That's a sixth-grade official!"
.........
While the commoners were discussing animatedly, the officials and gentry waiting at the entrance of the government office were getting impatient.
According to common sense, the new county magistrate should have arrived four hours ago, but now it was delayed by four hours. How could they not be anxious?
Could it be that the new county magistrate was lost? That shouldn't be the case.
In the Han Dynasty, which placed great emphasis on etiquette, every official would have a special series of procedures for taking office. There would also be someone to guide the way for the official to take office. Generally speaking, every official would bring his family along when taking office. Other than Liu Biao, who rode into Jingzhou alone to hide his identity, the other officials had to go through a very complete welcoming process every time they took office.
But now, the county magistrate had not come, so everyone could only wait here.
However, just as everyone was getting impatient and was about to send people to look for him, they suddenly noticed a figure gradually appearing in front of them.
When the figure gradually became clear, everyone saw it clearly. It was a scholar in thin clothes who was slung diagonally on a horse.
The scholar rode his horse straight towards the crowd, getting closer and closer without any twists or turns.
This was the county magistrate?
But wasn't this a poor scholar?
The scholar in front of them was simply too different from the county magistrate in their impression, making them somewhat unable to believe it for a moment.
It wasn't until the scholar stood in front of everyone that they came back to their senses.
"Dare I ask…Are you the new county magistrate, Lord Zhou Feng?”Officer Zhang asked carefully.
"Who else could it be?" Zhou Feng looked at the person in front of him and felt that he was asking nonsense."Do ordinary people dare to walk in front of you?”
As he spoke, Zhou Feng took out a roll of paper and tossed it to the person in front of him.
When he took office, he always had to bring a copy of his predecessor's document for the Ministry of Personnel to check to ensure that no one was impersonating him.
After seeing the letter, Magistrate Zhang nodded and confirmed that the scholar in front of him was the new county magistrate. He was about to bow when Zhou Feng stopped him impatiently."Alright, alright, alright. I won't buy it. Let those guards of honor pack up and give some money to send them home. Now, this county magistrate is going to attend the court.”
The first thing he did after arriving was to ascend to the hall. This was really a strange story.
However, they did not dare to disobey, so they could only do as they were told.
He saw Zhou Feng sitting under the signboard hanging high in the mirror with a smile on his face. There was a scroll on the table.
Some bowed, some smiled, and some even smiled.
Zhou Feng said lightly," This county has just arrived here and has already handed over the title to the previous county magistrate. From today onwards, this county will be the official of this place."”
Everyone laughed.
Zhou Feng was silent for a moment before he said,"But since I'm here, I have to ask about the matter in the county. Who is Zhao Dai?”
As soon as he finished speaking, a person came out from below and bowed."This lowly one is Zhao Dai, the household official.”
The Department of Household Affairs is responsible for the management of household registration and people's livelihood in a county.
"Yes." Zhou Feng nodded and asked,""How many people does this county govern?"
"To answer the county lord's question," Zhou Feng said with a smile,"this county governs 103,625 households.”
When Zhou Feng heard this, he fell silent.
When everyone saw Zhou Feng's silence, they were all whispering to each other. They were all guessing what Zhou Feng wanted to do.
It was one thing for him to look like a poor scholar when he took office, but the first thing he did when he first took office was to ascend the hall and then inquire about the number of people.
Was there something wrong with his brain?
"Have you checked carefully?" Just as everyone was secretly suspicious, Zhou Feng spoke.
"Milord, this lowly one has carefully investigated. This lowly one and my subordinates have investigated every household in this population.”Zhao Dai patted his chest and promised.
"Is it true?" Zhou Feng suddenly smiled when he heard Zhao Dai's words. His eyes narrowed as he asked with a cold tone.
Zhao Dai felt Zhou Feng's gaze and his heart suddenly stopped. He felt that something bad was about to happen. However, when he looked at the people around him, his heart calmed down a little."Sir, this data is correct. I can guarantee that this is…"
"Good!" " Alright!" Zhou Feng shouted, scaring Zhao Dai. When he looked at Zhou Feng again, he realized that Zhou Feng had only said " alright " once before falling silent again.
When the onlookers saw this scene, they were all puzzled. They did not know what the new county magistrate was doing.
Just as everyone was secretly suspicious, Zhou Feng opened his mouth again. His eyes narrowed and revealed a fierce expression. He shook his head coldly and said,"No, the registered population should be 132,319 households. Compared to what you said just now, there is a difference of 30,000 households!”
"What?" Zhao Dai was stunned when he heard Zhou Feng's words.
Zhou Feng ignored him and stood up straight. He said sternly to him,"Do you still need the county to explain where the people you don't lack have gone? In order not to pay grain to the government, some local famous people set these people as their slaves and hid their household registration. In this way, they can profit from it. Hidden households are a big problem for our dynasty. As an official, how can you not know this? As for where these hidden households went, I don't need to say it clearly.”
As he spoke, his gaze swept across the people from the local aristocratic families below.
The people from the aristocratic families felt a trace of fear in their hearts when they were coldly glanced at by Zhou Feng. They quickly restrained their emotions and looked at Zhou Feng with fear.
These aristocratic families suddenly realized that this strange county magistrate was actually a little scary now.
How did he know so clearly?
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