Don't make trouble, let's build infrastructure!

After Xiaoman, the sky gradually became hotter. Yuan set off from Wanshi Township three days before dawn, and was already sweating by the time he arrived at the county seat.

After entering the city, he stopped, wiped off his sweat, straightened his collar, and hurried towards the county government.

He was originally the son of an ordinary farmer in Wanshi Township. Because he lived a good life for several years when he was a child, he went to a private school and could read and write. When he grew up, he often read and wrote letters for others.Later, through the way of being helpful to others, he accumulated a lot of righteousness. Three years ago, he was successfully promoted to the lower rank of the Huang rank, and he went to the county to seek a public position as a yamen servant.

Today he was originally from Xiumu, so he didn't live in the rented house in the county, but returned home.Yesterday he heard that Tian Yan Tong Ran became the county magistrate, and he will take office today, so he rushed here again.

In recent years, like other people in the village, his family's harvest has been decreasing day by day. Even though he still has a public job, the family is struggling year by year.After Tong Tianqian came, he vigorously promoted the method of composting and digging wells to irrigate the field. His family tried it dubiously, but unexpectedly the effect was outstanding, ushering in a bumper harvest that had not been seen in many years.

Yuan Sanjiao traveled quickly, and arrived at the gate of the county government office in a short while.

"Brother, is the county magistrate here?" He entered the door and asked the two chatting porters.

"No, the Tongzhi and the county lieutenant have just arrived. Don't go in, you'll be their cannon fodder carefully," a porter reminded.

The Tongzhi was in charge of civil matters, and the county lieutenant was in charge of military affairs. The two had been at odds for a long time. Yuan San had been in the county government for so long, and it was clear already.Today is a big day for the new county magistrate to take office, so it is normal for the two of them to gather together, but Mr. Tong is young, so I don't know how those two old fritters are going to give him a hard time.

"Deng Qi among the yamen servants has been pulled out, and most of the rest are under the command of the county magistrate. I bet a hundred coins that this time the county magistrate is in the pocket of our county magistrate Gao." One person said.

The other person shook his head and said: "Our county magistrate Gao is more than just, but he has no plans. The brothers are willing to follow him, but they can't help agreeing that he is good at flattering. I bet two hundred coins that the county magistrate may favor Gou Anna. What do you think, Yuan San?"

The two turned their heads to look at Yuan San, Yuan San hesitated for a long time and said, "Master Tong is not a flatterer."

"Then do you think Captain Gao is better?" said the previous bettor.

Yuan San hesitated for a moment, Gao Xianwei is the immediate boss of their yamen servants, he is highly skilled in martial arts and can convince the crowd, but in his heart he always hopes that Master Tong can be better, don't listen to Gou An's rhetoric, and don't be restrained by Gao Zhuo, Be a real magistrate.

But, it's so difficult.

Yuan San couldn't help shaking his head, and before he could say anything, there was a commotion outside, the sound of chaotic footsteps, and someone shouted occasionally, the magistrate has arrived.

Tong Ran carried the little tiger into the county government office, and Gou An, an acquaintance whom he met a few days ago, greeted him first, and said, "Master Tong, Wan An."

Tong Ran nodded: "Your Majesty Gou is so polite, let's go in."

Gou An respectfully led Tong Ran in all the way.Gao Zhuo, the county captain, was waiting in the hall, but did not come out to greet him. Several other yamen servants, his confidants, also stood behind him, looking at Tong Ran who was striding in.

"Hey, the county magistrate is here, why doesn't Mr. Gao go to greet him?" Gou An said with a smile, like a joke among old friends.After he finished speaking, he said to Tong Ran: "My lord, don't be offended. Mr. Gao is very skilled in martial arts, and it is inevitable for a capable person to have some temper."

Gao Zhuo snorted coldly when he heard this, and said to Tong Ran, "Xiaguan Xiaoguo County Captain Gao Zhuo, please see my lord."

"Master Gao is polite." Tong Ran said.

"I came to the yamen at the very beginning of the official hour. I don't want the county magistrate to arrive at three quarters. Now I have a backlog of official duties. I have to leave. Please forgive me." Gao Zhuo said, he spoke quickly, it was nothing Undulating, slightly chilly.

"Lord County Captain is not in a hurry. Tong Ran encountered an incident on the road just now, so he was a little delayed, and it happened to be related to your lord, so I want to ask you a question or two." Tong Ran said, standing still in the middle of the hall.

When he went to Jiuxiang to teach drilling wells and irrigated fields, Tong Ran had heard about some things in the county government office, but at that time he only knew about it. Became their boss.

With such two powerful and experienced subordinates, it is really not easy to be the county magistrate of Xiaoguo County.

Tong Ran secretly had a headache, but his face was calm, he just said: "Just now when I came here, I passed Yangjiao Alley. No stalls are allowed outside of Xingde Street in West Market. This man was secretly selling sesame seed cakes at the corner of Yangjiao Alley, and was caught by the patrolling government officials."

As Tong Ran spoke, she pointed to the first pillar. Beside the painted red pillar stood a woman in her thirties. The woman was very thin, as if she would be broken at any moment.There was another yamen servant next to her, tightly twisting the woman's wrist. At this moment, Tong Ran pointed at the woman's knee, and he kicked the woman's knee. The woman fell to her knees uncontrollably. Lie on the ground, shoulders trembling slightly.

Gao Zhuo glanced at the woman and the yamen servant and said, "This kind of thing happens every day, don't bother the county magistrate, the subordinate officials will tell them to handle it fairly."

"The so-called fairness, how to do it?" Tong Ran asked again.

"Xiaoguo County has a decree that those who set up stalls anywhere will be punished with thirty sticks for the first offense and fifty sticks for the second offense, and one year in prison." Gao Zhuo said.

The torture sticks in the yamen are heavy and hard, and one stick can cut a person's skin to pieces, let alone thirty sticks.

The woman who was silent at first raised her head suddenly, her face was ashen and unrecognizable, she choked up and said: "Please forgive me, the bitch has a young child in her family, please forgive me."

Tong Ran didn't look at her, and said to Gao Zhuo: "The reason why I came late today is because I happened to meet this matter in Yangjiao Lane. As far as I know, the law Mr. Gao said was established at the beginning of the founding of the country. It's not the land of Dacheng, Xiaoguo County is often invaded by rebels, so it is strictly guarded everywhere, and the people who do business in the city are also restrained in many ways. But now Longyou is owned by Dacheng, and the country is stable, so there is no need for such strict control Take precautions, just set up a booth, why such a severe punishment."

Gao Zhuo was still expressionless, but his tone was extremely firm: "The law is the law, and the emperor commits the same crime as the common people if he breaks the law."

"I have a different opinion from Mr. Gao. Now that the world is stable, the criminal law should also change with the world. A law that is too strict will only endanger the normal life of the people and become a bad law." Tong Ran said.

"Yes, Mr. Tong said it well. It's just a stall. Thirty sticks are too much. Mr. Gao, please be merciful and let her go." Gou An took the opportunity to say.

Gao Zhuo put his hand on the saber around his waist and said, "I am a county captain, in charge of criminal law and order in a county. If I blindly favoritism and break the law without punishment, wouldn't Xiaoguo County be a mess!"

Gou An: "My lord has said that the punishment is too heavy, why don't you..."

Tong Ran raised his hand to stop Gou An's words.

"Lord Gao, don't worry." Tong Ran said, "I don't want you to be selfish, but this is an outdated method, and it's time to change it."

After Tong Ran finished speaking, the servants behind Gao Zhuo looked at each other in blank dismay.

Some of them have worked in other county governments, and there are some outdated rules in various places. Most county magistrates don't change them, they just turn a blind eye.The law in their Xiaoguo County has also been vacant for several years, and it was only activated after Gao Zhuo came, and it is now strictly enforced.

At first, the people in Xiaoguo County also protested repeatedly, but when Gao Zhuo publicly punished his relatives who violated the regulations for setting up stalls, everyone stopped talking.Although this Mr. Gao is not humane, he is very fair. When he enforces the law, he is not recognized by his relatives. This is why everyone is afraid of him, but he is also obeyed.

Gao Zhuo has been in Xiaoguo County for five years, which is longer than Deng Qi's tenure. Although Deng Qi was not less domineering when he was in office, Gao Zhuo never dared to touch things within the scope of his duties.

The county lieutenant holds the dispatching power of the county government servants and is in charge of the criminal law and security of a county.The yamen servants thought that this time Gao Zhuo would give the new county magistrate a warning, so that he would not dare to take care of the affairs in his jurisdiction. They didn't expect that Tong Ran was so young, and Gao Zhuo's warning was not in place yet. The first fire has already been burned - not only intervening in the security affairs of Director Gao Zhuo, but also directly declaring that the law should be changed.

Setting up a stall is a matter of the county, and the county magistrate has the right to change it, but this is a big matter. Most people are afraid of being reprimanded, and most of them are perfunctory. The law is so high.

"You lost." The man who had been suppressing Gouan in the concierge whispered.

Gao Zhuo's face was full of remorse, but after thinking about it, he said again: "Don't worry, Gou An didn't take advantage of it, you haven't won yet."

Gao Zhuo frowned, two deep lines like knife carvings stood between his brows.

The boy in front of him is only fifteen years old, and his righteousness rank is at the peak of the upper yellow rank. Although he has to admit that he is a genius at this age for a boy from a poor family, but no matter how talented he is, he can't do it casually.He wants to see, without his support, is this so-called reform possible?

"Your Excellency, you can change it if you want. The old injury relapsed a few days ago, and I'm not feeling well, so I'm leaving first." Gao Zhuo cupped his hands, regardless of Tong Ran's consent, and strode away with his people.

Gao Zhuo didn't give orders, and the yamen servant who twisted the woman didn't know what to do. He looked at Tong Ran and Gao Zhuo's back, gritted his teeth and let the woman go, and followed Gao Zhuo.

Tong Ran helped the woman up himself, and said, "You go back first, how to deal with this matter, someone will come to you in the future."

"My lord." The woman muttered, wanting to say something else, Tong Ran gently pushed her towards Qiu'er who came with her, and ordered Qiu'er to take her home.

Qiu'er sent the woman away, Tong Ran sat down on the official chair in the hall, Gou An gave him a wink, and someone immediately made hot tea.

"My lord, please use it." Gou An brought him the tea and said, "Then Gao Zhuo is such a donkey, don't be as knowledgeable as him."

Tong Ran picked up the tea but didn't drink it, and said gently, "Master Gou has worked with Mr. Gao for many years, so he must know him very well."

Gou An was worried that he couldn't put Gao Zhuo in front of Tong Ran, and when he heard him say that, he immediately got excited and talked about Gao Zhuo's troubles endlessly.

While listening, Tong Ran took a sip of tea from the county government office, and finally frowned slightly, and asked someone to exchange for a cup of boiling water, took out the tea leaves she had with her, and made tea for the little tiger herself.

The little tiger drank two mouthfuls of the first-class Dahongpao soaked by the little attendant, and lay on his lap to listen to Gou An's gossip.

Tong Ran patted the little tiger's back again and again. The little tiger used to hate being groped on it, but after a lot of times, he didn't resist too much. When he was in a good mood, he was willing to lick him twice.

Some of the things Gou An said before Tong Ran had heard of them, and some of them had not.

Previously, Tong Ran's news all came from the folks, so there were inevitably many rumors and inaccuracies.

Just now when he first arrived at the county government, Gou An greeted him attentively, but Gao Zhuo did not come. It can be seen that the two have different styles of handling things.After entering the main room, Gou An's words seemed to excuse Gao Zhuo and explain the reason why he didn't go to meet him; in fact, it implied that Tong Ran, Gao Zhuo has a stubborn personality and is not easy to manage.

If the new county magistrate listens to Gou An's words, he will have a bad first impression of Gao Zhuo, and he is likely to favor Gou An in his actions in the future.

Looking at Gao Zhuo's reaction just now, he should have heard Gou An's intentions, but he didn't speak out to refute.No words were spoken, but they were more powerful than words. The image of a county lieutenant who enforced the law impartially and did not want to join forces with traitors immediately stood up.

But are they, really?

The big drama just now was a test. They must not have expected such a big commotion on the first day they took office, and they must have been unprepared.But the officialdom is complicated, and Tong Ran is not in a hurry to make a conclusion.

If Gao Zhuo was really upright and upright, why did Deng Qi not reveal it when Deng Qi was playing a big role in Xiaoguo County that day?

"My lord, that Gao Zhuo is not easy to deal with, you just put it aside and just be cold, you are the county magistrate, no matter how angry he is, he won't dare to get out of the sky!" Gou An said, "Today you are a new official, it's time to celebrate Why don't you go to Huai Tanglou at night, there are many wealthy businessmen in the county waiting to see you!"

Tong Ran paused while feeding the cub jerky, and gave it a new piece as if nothing had happened.

Collusion between government and businessmen has existed since ancient times. Deng Qi fell, and he was the next target of bribery.So what role does Gou An play in it?A bridge connecting rich businessmen and successive county magistrates?

Tong Ran remembered that Gou An was well-rooted and leafy in Xiaoguo County. He had been a co-prefect for six years, and his qualifications were even higher than the county captain Gao Zhuo.

What a hassle.

Tong Ran snatched the half-eaten jerky from the little tiger: "I can't eat it. If I eat more, my stomach will hurt." He was thinking about something just now, and he accidentally fed an extra piece. The cub is still young, and the jerky is not good It is easy to digest, so you can't eat too much.

"Wow!" The little tiger naturally refused, and wanted to jump up to grab the jerky, but was caught by Tong Ran's arms.

"We'll talk about the meal later, my cub is too delicate, I have to stay with him at night, otherwise there will be a fuss." Tong Ran said.

"Wow!" The little tiger was unconvinced, it was living well even as a tiger, when did it want someone to accompany it?Even if it's boring, it can go back and approve the notebooks!

Tong Ran pressed it down: "Look, it's starting to make noise."

Using the little tiger to block the dinner at night, Gou An probably felt that there was no hope, so he chatted with Tong Ran for a while, and then left.

There was a clerk and a yamen servant left in the hall, who belonged directly to Tong Ran.

Tong Ran beckoned them to come closer.

The official is a young man.The yamen servant looks like he is about [-] years old, and he calls himself Yuan San.Tong Ran looked at him a few more times, and felt familiar, and said, "Brother Yuan is from the stubborn stone township?"

"Don't dare to be the big brother of the county magistrate, just call me Yuan San." Yuan San said, "The young one is indeed from the stubborn stone township."

"No wonder I look familiar." Tong Ran said with a smile.At this moment, he finally relaxed a lot, and there was a smile in his eyes, and a small dimple appeared on his right cheek.

"Master County Magistrate, I'm also from Obanshi Township." The young clerk said immediately, he seemed to be in his twenties, and his words were a little out of character.

Tong Ran recalled it carefully, he had no impression of this young man at all: "What's your name?"

"The young one's name is Sang Le." Sang Le still looked a little shy, scratching the bridge of her nose unconsciously with the tip of her index finger, "The young one's aunt lives in Wanshi Township, and the young one is from the next county."

No wonder he didn't know him, Tong Ran was relieved.

"I just took office a few days ago, and I went to my aunt's house before I took office. The wind-powered waterwheel is amazing." Sang Le said, raising a thumb, "The little aunt said, with you as the county magistrate, The county will surely live a good life.”

Tong Ran smiled and said, "Thank you for your aunt's kindness."

Sang Le's duties are similar to the current secretary, helping Tong Ran with paperwork; Yuan San is like a bodyguard, Tong Ran can take him with him for protection when he goes out on business.If you want to be promoted or arrest criminals, Yuan San beside Tong Ran is not needed, but the yamen servants under Gao Zhuo's jurisdiction are in charge.

Afterwards, other civil servants in the yamen also came to meet Tong Ran one by one.

At the end of the day, Tong Ran also met all the people in the yamen.Before leaving, he asked Sang Le to find out the documents about setting up a stall and a map of the entire county.

Tong Ran rolled up the map, picked up the sleeping cub, and left the county office.

Seeing Tong Ran going out, the two betting people in the concierge stopped Yuan San who was escorting him out and said, "Who wins?"

Yuan San shook his head, Gao Zhuo was dissatisfied with the county magistrate's order, and went home because of illness; Gou An seemed slightly better, but the dinner invitation was lightly rejected by the county magistrate. .

Neither of the concierge won the bet, and the two of them killed some time, and went back when they were on duty.

After Tong Ran became the county magistrate, he couldn't always live in the village. He rented a small courtyard in the county town, which had two rooms and a kitchen. main house.

It was dusk when Tong Ran returned to the small courtyard, and Qiu'er had prepared dinner.

After eating, Tong Ran asked Qiu'er to bring out a few more candles, opened the map of Xiaoguo County brought from the county government office, and studied it carefully.

Candles were placed on the four corners of the long table. On the table, the map of the county was spread out. The little tiger walked from the upper right corner of the table to the upper left corner on his short legs, scanning the map into his eyes.

Before the recovery of Longyou, Xiaoguo County used to be an important military town, so a strict curfew was implemented here, and there were many restrictions on setting up stalls and doing business.Later, when Longyou was recovered, the curfew of Dunan Road was lifted, and the restriction on setting up stalls was a matter within the county. The county magistrates of Xiaoguo County did not change in the past dynasties, and it has always existed.

Tong Ran took a piece of paper and sketched out the map of Xiaoguo County in proportion. He dipped a quill pen in red ink and drew a frame. Inside the frame was Xingde Street, the only place where stalls can be set up for small businesses. .

Tong Ran studied the map for a while, narrowed his eyes, and moved closer.

The little tiger was a little curious and leaned over.

Tong Ran was looking at the map, but a shadow came over him.He raised his head: "Zai Zai, you are blocking my light." He wrapped his arms around the little tiger and carried him into his arms.

"Wow!" The little tiger fluttered in his arms.

Tong Ran ignored it, and skillfully pressed it into her arms: "Stay obediently, my brother will sleep with you after working for a while."

"Wow!" I don't need it!

"Good boy." Tong Ran patted its tiger's head, coaxed absently, and continued to look at his map.

The little tiger lay on his lap, tried to climb up to look at the map several times, but was easily suppressed by Tong Ran, and finally got angry, closed his eyes, and went back to the palace to read the notes.

Tong Ran studied the map for a while, only to realize that the little tiger had fallen asleep again.

He shook his head helplessly, put the sleeping tiger cub on the bed, and covered it with a quilt.This little brat is obviously hairy, but I don't know where the obsession came from. He must cover himself with a quilt when he sleeps.

After setting up the little tiger, Tong Ran returned to the table.

The piece of paper just now was written and drawn many times by him, and it had been thrown aside. He picked up another piece of paper, also outlined the outline of the county map, and wrote and drawn on it.

After critiquing papers for the night, the little tiger opened his eyes before dawn, and the quilt around him was in order. Tong Ran lay on the desk with the back of his head facing it, as if he had fallen asleep.

As soon as Tong Ran opened his eyes, he saw a pair of green eyes.

He stepped back sharply, bumping his back against the back of the chair.After stepping back, his field of vision expanded, and he saw clearly that it was the little tiger standing on the table.

"Zai Zai, you scared me to death." Tong Ran said.

The little tiger glanced at him, then went to look at the map, but before his eyes touched him, Tong Ran picked him up again.

"Zai Zai, are you worried that I will die?" Tong Ran asked.He remembered that he had seen this saying somewhere: when the owner does not move for a long time, the pet will suspect whether he is dead, and will come to test it.

"Wow." Fool.The little tiger replied lazily.

Tong Ran knew that the little tiger didn't understand, but he still took it as a recognition, hugged the little tiger and said with a happy face: "Zaizai will care about me now."

Little Tiger:……

After Tong Ran finished washing up, Qiu'er had prepared breakfast, and he was about to leave after eating. The little tiger caught up with him and bit the corner of his robe.

"Good boy, my brother is going to do business in the yamen, can you stay at home?" Tong Ran knelt down and patted the little tiger's head.

The little tiger shook his head violently, shook off his hand, kicked his hind legs, and jumped into the arms of Tong Ran who was crouching down.

The little attendant just folded up what he drew last night and hid it in his bosom. It didn't have time to see what he drew clearly last night, and it was interrupted in the morning, so it will follow him to the county government office if it says anything today. , such an important thing, how could it not know!