Chapter Fifteen: Official Positions

  "Mother, my sixth uncle Zhou Quan is a trustworthy and honest man. He used to be the farm manager in a neighboring county for ten years, but was later forced out by his employer's younger brother and returned home to work on his own farm. We can hire him as the general manager of our estate; with him in charge, no one will dare to bully or harm us."

  Lu's mother nodded and said in a gentle voice, "Mei'er, after the matter at Tianzhuang is settled, you pay attention to whether there are any suitable kind-hearted orphan girls. Mother will help you buy a maidservant."

  Zhou Yue'er's body shook, and she looked at Lu Mu with a frightened expression. Lu Mu's eyes were gentle as she smiled and said: "Yue'er, you voluntarily wanting Ning Er to enter the house was actually unwise. Ning Er and Xiao Qi have had deep feelings for each other since childhood. Before you proposed it, she had already hinted to me that after the door was closed, she would return to Xiao Qi's room. I agreed at the time because I didn't want you to be embarrassed. I hope you won't blame Ning Er for this matter."

  Zhou Yue'er listened and couldn't help but understand that this was Lu Mu's kind mediation. If Ning Er had hinted at it beforehand, how could Lu Mu have smiled and agreed without hesitation at the time? She hurriedly said in a soft voice: "Mother, don't worry, Yue'er understands."

  Lu's mother nodded and said in a gentle voice: "You pay attention yourself from now on, I'll also help you find one."

  Zhou Yue'er's beautiful eyes welled up with tears as she choked out a "thank you" for her mother's concern.

  "Lu's mother said with a loving tone: 'You are the good daughter-in-law of the Lu family, I should care about you. Here is twenty taels of silver, take it and go to the market with Tianhua to buy a heavy gift for your parents, hurry up and come back soon.'"

  Zhou Yue'er nodded silently, took the silver and walked away with her head down. Watching Zhou Yue'er's departing back, Lu Mu sighed inwardly. In fact, she had originally wanted to marry Li Yiniang off to her eldest son as a concubine after she remarried, but Li Yiniang had refused Zhou Yue'er's enthusiasm in front of everyone. Lu Mu was very displeased with this, but thinking of her late husband's last words softened her heart, and she tolerated her displeasure and respected Li Yiniang's autonomy. However, as a result, Lu Mu had to spend silver to appease her daughter-in-law, which made her extremely reluctant, having experienced poverty herself.

  Lu Qi rushed out of the house and went straight to the county government, saying he was going to repay the official debt. In fact, the Shidao County city is divided into four major districts, each district is further divided into five fang, and each fang has a fangzheng officer responsible for collecting taxes, levying dings, and recruiting soldiers. Lu Qi should have gone to find the fangzheng of Changxing Fang where his family lives to repay the official tax debt, but instead he went to the county government which is out of order.

  He arrived at the county government office and met with Wang Zhubao. Wang Zhubao smiled and asked directly, "Lord Lu has come to ask me about the County Magistrate's affairs, I presume?"

  Lu Qi also smiled and said in a harmonious tone, "No, I came to see Lord Wang because I wanted to ask for a personal favor. My family owes the government 213 taels of silver, and I was wondering if Lord Wang could help me get an extension of half a year. I will definitely repay it after half a year."

  Wang Zhubo's triangular eyes stared blankly at Lu Qi, he didn't expect that Lu Qi would find him for this matter. He was stunned for a few seconds before stiffly smiling and saying: "Lord Lu, I have already used up all my words to beg for the position of Hu Jun County Wei for you, is it really because of official debt that Lord Lu has come to my door?"

  Lu Qi's expression immediately turned from a smile to a serious one, and he bowed respectfully, saying: "Thank you, Lord Wang. I have taken note of your kindness. My visit today is also related to the protection of the county lieutenant."

  Wang Zhubo smiled and reached back to take a three-inch black lacquer wooden box from the case, saying in a gentle tone: "Lord Lu, inside this wooden box are the county lieutenant's waist token and official documents for appointment to office. Please keep them well, Lord Lu."

  Lu Qi stretched out his hands respectfully to receive the black lacquer wooden box and expressed his gratitude. Wang Zhubo said seriously, "In a moment, I will take Lord Lu to receive his official uniform and weapons. From now on, Lord Lu must obtain permission from the county government whenever he leaves the city, and at any time, he can be found by the county government to perform official duties."

  Lu Qi Zheng said: "Yes, this official will fulfill his duties responsibly."

  Wang Zhuobo nodded slightly and said in a harmonious tone: "This month's 100 taels of silver salary will be paid to you by the official, your official debt will also be written off and doesn't need to be repaid. Your request to personally train 100 soldiers can be carried out. Tomorrow, Lord Lu himself will select and train them from among the 800 soldiers. Approximately six days later, Lord Lu will have a mission outside the city."

  Lu Qi and Sheng Dao said: "Thank you, Lord Wang, what is the task after leaving the city six days later?"

  Wang Zhubo's expression turned serious as he said, "This is an official secret document. All I know is that six days from now, a high-ranking official from Kyoto will be passing through here. At that time, I will dispatch 200 government soldiers and the brave warriors you have personally trained to provide protection. You must ensure that this official is not harassed by rioters or assassins. As long as he can safely pass through Shitou County, it will be a great achievement."

  Lu Qi Zheng said: "This official understands, will never leak secrets, and will never disappoint Master Wang."

  Wang Zhu Bao looked at Lu Qi deeply and smiled meaningfully: "It's good that Lord Lu understands, this official has paid a lot for Lord Lu."

  Lu Qi smiled and said: "Mr. Wang's efforts will definitely be rewarded." Wang Zhubo nodded calmly.

  Li Mou left the county government office and rushed to East Main Street. He didn't wear his official uniform or make a show of himself, but instead found the shop with the sign and threw down 200 taels of silver as a deposit. They agreed that within three days, the original owner would clear out the shop and formally hand it over after paying the remaining silver. If either party failed to fulfill their obligations, they would have to pay a penalty of 200 taels of silver. The shop owner repeatedly nodded in agreement, looking anxious to make the sale.

  Lu Qi booked a sedan chair and hurriedly hired a horse-drawn carriage to return home. His mother had already invited a younger member of the family to watch the house, so three women carrying gifts got into the carriage. Lu Tianhua sat at the front of the carriage, while Lu Qi left his official uniform inside, taking only his long knife and county lieutenant's waist token as he rode off on horseback.

  A family bustled out of the county town, and outside the county town was a rural area. Shizhai County has four major rural areas under its jurisdiction. Wangjiangpo Township is located in the northwest of the county town, covering an area of 50 li around, with its most distant territory bordering the Yangtze River. Dongliu Township also borders the Yangtze River and is located due west of Shizhai County Town.

  The other two major rural areas are Shitan and Qili. The Shitan area is located in the northeast of Shi'e County, adjacent to Guichi County. The Qili area has many mountains and is located in the southeast of Shi'e County. The Qili area was originally the county seat of Shi'e, but later Chi Prefecture became Kanghua Military Prefecture, causing Shi'e County to expand westward along the Yangtze River, while its original eastern territory was largely assigned to Taiping County.

  According to the Tang system, under the county is the township, and the township official is called the elder. Under the township is the village, and the village official is called the village head. The village head's subordinate is the baochang, and the baochang's subordinate is the lowest village chief.

  Wangjiang Slope Township is under the jurisdiction of Shiguan County, and it has many townships and village administrations. The township officials are very powerful figures, mostly large landowners or government officials who have taken on the role. For ordinary villagers, the elderly and Li Zheng are great officials, and they are the local emperors who intimidate the area.

  Zhou Yue's hometown is only fifteen miles away from the county town, and it can be reached quickly by horseback. Lu Qi wore a bright blue round-necked robe, riding on a tall military horse with a majestic spirit, jogging slowly alongside the carriage on the right side.

  He turned his head to see his brother staring blankly, Lu Qi understood that his brother was unwilling to go to his in-laws' home, and was always ashamed to see people for his own incompetence, this kind of depressed state of mind is not a good sign.

  "Brother, I've taken over that shop." Lu Qi spoke up to shift his brother's attention.

  Lu Tianhua was shocked and quickly turned his head towards Lu Qi, exclaiming: "Little Seven, what did you just say?"

  Lu Qi smiled and took the contract, handing it over to her brother. Lu Tianhua unfolded it and looked at it, immediately showing a surprised expression. He turned his head excitedly and said: "Little Seven, you really did buy out the shop."

  "Of course it's true, the day after tomorrow I'll hand over the shop to you, and when I do, brother, you take good care of it. Six days later, we brothers will go transport some medicinal materials back and open for business." Lu Qi said with a smile.

  Lu Tianhua's eyes lit up, and his depressed expression was swept away, as if a drug addict had just gotten another fix. He nodded eagerly and excitedly said: "Alright, let's go to Ma Guan to transport the medicine and open for business."

  Seeing his brother's energy, Lu Qi's mood also brightened. Suddenly, Zhou Yue'er poked her head out and asked softly: "Second Brother, has the shop you mentioned been bought?"

  Lu Tianhua quickly turned around and nodded, joyfully saying: "Yue'er, it's true." As he said that, he handed over the letter of appointment. Zhou Yue'er took the letter of appointment and returned to the car.

  A moment later, Zhou Yue'er stuck her head out and handed the letter to Lu Tianhua, then said to Lu Qi: "Little Seven, when we arrive at your sister-in-law's hometown, don't mention that your brother has opened a shop and is doing business. My father doesn't like it that your brother gave up his studies to go into commerce."

  Lu'er was taken aback and smiled: "Sister-in-law, don't worry, I'll tell her that brother is studying for the exam." Zhou Yue'er nodded gratefully and returned to the carriage.

  Lu Tianhua was holding Wen Yue's letter and reading it carefully, when the coachman suddenly said in a low voice: "Two gentlemen, are you buying a house on East Street?"

  Lu Tianhua was taken aback and turned his head to respond in a low voice: "Yes."