Chapter 17: Severely Beating

  On the official road outside the east gate of Luoyang, a horse-drawn carriage was moving slowly, accompanied by twenty knights on horseback, with ten riding in front and ten behind.

  Spacious inside the car compartment.

  Zhou Jianpi smiled and sized up Wang Quan, who was uncomfortable all over, sweating on his forehead. In his heart, he thought that the journey to Chenliu was five or six hundred miles away, and it would be good to get rid of him along the way, so as not to hinder his hands and feet when he took office.

  Killing and abandoning a body is a good opportunity, but killing Wang Quan won't solve the problem either.

  The county lieutenant is appointed by the imperial court, and who gets appointed is up to the imperial court to decide, the power of decision does not lie in his hands.

  There would be no Wang Quan, and the imperial court would still sell official positions.

  The only way is to let Wang Quan understand what should be done and what shouldn't be done by making him wear a name tag.

  Wang Quan shifted uncomfortably in his seat, secretly cursing his bad luck. He had come to Luoyang to buy an official position, but unexpectedly ran into a superior officer, which was truly unforeseen. Why did he always have such bad fortune?

  What's even more unbearable is that on this trip back to our county, which takes seven or eight days by road, we have to travel with the county magistrate.

  Wang Quan only felt that time was passing slowly, and the excitement he had when he first received his appointment as a county lieutenant's clerk had long since flown away to the ends of the earth.

  Zhou Jian's eyes gleamed as he sized up Wang Quan, and suddenly spoke: "A county magistrate's salary is no more than a hundred taels of silver per year, and in total it's just over a thousand taels. To be able to take out two million taels to buy an official position, County Magistrate Wang truly has a way with making money! I suppose you have some experience in accumulating wealth, County Magistrate Wang must have some insights, how about sharing some experiences with me?"

  "This..."

  Wang Quan wiped the sweat from his forehead and dryly said: "I borrowed it, all from relatives and friends."

  Zhou Jian revealed a meaningful smile and said, "Borrowed two million from friends, and owed the imperial court 2.2 million, with an annual salary of only 400 stones as a county lieutenant, how does Wang County Lieutenant plan to repay?"

  Wang Quan was drenched in cold sweat, constantly wiping his sleeves, and couldn't utter a word for half the day.

  Zhou Jian smiled and said: "What's wrong, is it very hot in the carriage? Do you want me to open the curtains?"

  "No, no..."

  Wang Quandou was almost stuttering and was on the verge of fleeing in a hurry.

  "County lieutenant's military strength is small, with a few hundred people in smaller counties and five or six hundred people in larger ones, sometimes even seven or eight hundred. Although my household has over 10,000 people, the number of soldiers will not exceed 800. The annual allocation of money and silver to the county lieutenant should be around 500,000, and the grain should not exceed 3,000 stones. Is this estimate roughly correct?"

  Wang Quan didn't understand what he meant, so he had no choice but to answer truthfully, "Not very big."

  Zhou Jian said, "If that's the case, even if you embezzle all of these, it still wouldn't be enough to pay back the money owed to the imperial court. Do you have some other way of making money? I'd like to learn from you."

  "This..."

  Wang Quan was drenched in sweat again, and he wished he could smash his head to death.

  Zhou Jian burst out laughing and patted him on the shoulder, saying: "Don't be nervous, I know that County Wei is clean and honest in politics, he won't embezzle public funds, right?"

  King Quan cursed in his heart, but on his face he had to squeeze out a smile and hastily nodded, "You are wise, sir."

  Zhou Jian smiled and said, "That's right! Although buying an official position doesn't sound good, I bought this county magistrate position just to do more practical things for the people. I absolutely won't embezzle a single penny from the people. I suppose County Wei has the same purpose, right?"

  Wang Quan didn't dare say otherwise and hastily nodded in agreement.

  Zhou said to Dao: "This is good, this is good! I hope the county magistrate will speak and act as one, and with this official, strive to do more good deeds for the people after taking office, promote good and eliminate evil, investigate and punish those who break the law, and let those corrupt officials have nowhere to hide."

  Wang Quan's heart sank, if it was like this, how would he repay the 2.2 million yuan he owed to the imperial court?

  Zhou Jian ignored him and continued, "You're familiar with the situation here. Tell me, which officials in the county government are honest and diligent, doing practical things for the people, and which ones don't follow the law?"

  "This..."

  Wang was taken aback and hastily said: "This official has been serving in the countryside all along and is not very familiar with the situation at the county government."

  "Really?"

  Zhou Jianpi smiled wryly and glanced at him without a smile, leaning against the soft brocade quilt, and didn't ask any further.

  Wang Quan felt his heart racing and his flesh trembling, he was restless and his six senses were in disarray.

  Originally, as long as the county magistrate also made a profit, he naturally had nothing to worry about. Everyone was in the same boat, all for the sake of making money, and there was nothing more to say. You're good, everyone's good, congratulations on getting rich is all that matters.

  But this young county magistrate looked like he was from a wealthy family and clearly didn't care about the few pieces of silver.

  If the county magistrate is not greedy and does not allow his subordinates to make money, this day will be a bit difficult.

  Originally, he was greedy for money and wealth, as long as his superiors didn't ask, nothing would happen.

  But if the superior really wants to take you down, even if the county lieutenant is appointed by the imperial court, as long as the county magistrate reports it up, the crime of corruption will be established, and without any background, this son will definitely not be able to sit securely.

  Wang Quanzhi's heart was burning with anxiety, and as soon as he thought of the 2.2 million yuan owed to the imperial court, his heart skipped a beat.

  Sneaking a peek at Zhou Jian, but seeing that he had already closed his eyes and was lost in thought.

  Wanting to say something, yet unable to find the words, it's as if one's heart is burning with anxiety and their spirit is restless.

  At nightfall, a group of twenty-two people rested at an inn in Gong County.

  Zhou Wu drew a blank and said to Zhou Jian: "Young master, there's less than 100,000 yuan left."

  Originally from Lujiang, when passing through Yuzhou and entering Sili, whenever arriving at a county, Zhou Jian would always ask about the local wealthy households that were not rich or benevolent, letting Zhou Wu and others follow him to do some risk-free business, plundering no less than 2,000 taels of gold.

  However, after spending a fortune in Luoyang, buying horses, giving gifts to Zhang Rang, and purchasing official positions, he had very little left.

  This time going to Chenliu to take office, there will definitely be many places where money is spent. Zhou Jian never exploited the poor people and could not buy officials in his own jurisdiction after taking office, but he had to think of a way as soon as possible.

  Zhou Jian thought for a moment and said: "The Si family is wealthy and prosperous. Go and gather some information, let's make a move tonight."

  Zhou Wu nodded and went to make preparations.

  Twenty years of following these people have not been idle, and they are familiar with the business without capital. They will not have any psychological burden.

  Fortunately, the defense and security in this era were not as strict as they would be in later generations, without the assistance of high-tech equipment. For Zhou Jian, a martial arts master, it was easy to sneak into a room unnoticed and steal some money.

  The imperial palace did not dare to say it, but some landlords and wealthy households were simply at his mercy.

  In the dead of night, at the end of the hour of the Ox, when people sleep most soundly.

  Zhou Wu brought nine followers and set out from the post house at night, marching nearly a hundred miles under cover of darkness, and plundered five nearby estates of local tyrants.

  At dawn, a group of ten people quietly returned to the inn and hid the gold and silver they had taken in boxes.

  As soon as it dawned, Zhou Jian and his group of over 20 people set off quickly. After leaving Gong County, they passed through Chenggao and Xingyang, and every night they would sneak out under the cover of darkness. By the time they were approaching Chenliu, the two trunks were packed to the brim again.

  Inside the carriage.

  King Quan was uneasy whether sitting or lying down, his mind was restless.

  Zhou Jian took out a package and opened it. Wang Quan stole a glance, and the bright golden light immediately dazzled his eyes.

  "This..."

  Wang Quan's eyes widened instantly, and his gaze was filled with an insatiable greed that he couldn't conceal.

  Zhou Jian swept a glance at him and asked with a stiff smile, "How about it? Want or not?"

  Wang Quan subconsciously almost blurted out a "think" word, fortunately he came back to his senses in time, but was made uneasy by Zhou Jian's expressionless face, and could only force a few awkward smiles, desperately shifting his gaze away.

  These days, being bullied and oppressed by Zhou every day, Wang Quan was a little afraid of this young county magistrate.

  Zhou Jian asked: "Really don't want it? This is 500 taels of gold."

  Wang Quan's face twitched violently for a moment, and he hesitated: "What does your lordship want me to do?"

  "You don't seem stupid either."

  Zhou Jian revealed a serene smile, and only when Wang Quan's heart was racing did he say: "These five hundred taels of gold are enough for you to repay the remaining debt to the imperial court, and there will even be some left over. I have only one request, behave yourself as the county commander, don't do things you shouldn't do, don't interfere with things that aren't your business, and don't ask questions you shouldn't ask. This gold is yours."

  Wang Quan swallowed his saliva, but still retained a thread of rationality, and hadn't been dazzled by the gold. He carefully asked: "Sir's meaning is to let this humble official become a nominal county lieutenant?"

  "You don't even understand this, what an idiot."

  Zhou clenched his brows and scolded in discontent.

  Wang Quan's face looked a bit ugly, but he didn't dare to retort, and instead smiled awkwardly and turned his head away.

  "You just do your job as county governor, manage your own affairs and you'll be fine. Dealing with thieves, capturing bandits, and maintaining order are all your responsibilities, but don't engage in corrupt activities like embezzlement, bribery, or exploiting the common people. Otherwise... humph!"

  Wang Quan let out a sigh of relief and hastily said: "Your subordinate will definitely remember your instructions, sir."

  Zhou Jian pointed at the package, "This gold is yours."

  "Thank you, sir."

  Wang was overjoyed and hastily grabbed the package, clutching it tightly in his hand.

  He noticed Zhou Jian's sharp gaze sweep over and couldn't help but smile awkwardly, putting the package aside.

  "Remember, when you take office, do a good job and don't ask what shouldn't be asked, don't think about what shouldn't be thought about, and absolutely cannot embezzle government funds or extort money from the people. Got it?"

  "Your Honour, rest assured that I will serve with integrity and uphold the law, and carefully follow your orders."

  Zhou Jian's expressionless face nodded slightly, and after a moment of contemplation, he asked: "In the past half year, three county magistrates have died unnatural deaths in our county. What exactly is going on? Tell me in detail."

  "Wang Quan hastily replied: 'Your Honor, all three county magistrates were killed by Ren Xia's hands.'"

  "Chivalrous?"

  Zhou Jian furrowed his brow, having been in this world for almost eighteen years, Ren Xia of course knew that there were some similarities with the Jianghu knights-errant in martial arts novels, who called themselves chivalrous and didn't put officials in their eyes, often killing people in a fit of rage.

  They were just some fugitives.

  Wang Quan nodded and said, "In the county, there is a chivalrous person named Feng Xi, who is famous for his bravery. He has killed three county magistrates in succession while traveling between villages and towns. Although the government has issued several warrants for his arrest, he has connections with many village leaders and has people who inform him of any danger, so he has escaped capture several times and cannot be brought to justice."

  Zhou clenched his brows and said: "How could you even let a fugitive get away?"

  "Sir, you are unaware that this Feng Xi is exceptionally brave and a fugitive. Even ten or more county soldiers would not be his match. Moreover, he has dozens of thugs as his henchmen, making it truly difficult to apprehend him."

  Zhou Jian hummed and didn't say anything.

  He was just a fugitive who nobody had ever heard of, yet he managed to render an entire county powerless to arrest him and even got three magistrates killed. The hoodlums of this era are really not ordinary at all.

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