Chapter 8: Entrusting to an Unreliable Person

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  "Are you a seventh-rank county magistrate? No way?" Lu Haoshan, who was about to lift his leg and leave, suddenly stopped in his tracks, looking puzzled, and said: "You're an official, why aren't you staying at the post station, but instead ran to this small inn to stay, and even stayed in a place like this?"

  The relay station was specially set up for the imperial officials, and this poor scholar in front of him was actually the county magistrate. Why didn't he stay at the convenient and comfortable relay station, but instead ran to this broken inn to sleep in a thatched hut? Wasn't he asking for trouble himself? Lu Haoshan's first impression was that this person was a swindler, who, in desperation, was preparing to cheat him. In these times, for the sake of a meal, wives could be sold and children could be swapped, what couldn't be done?

  That scholar saw Lu Haoshan not believing, gritted his teeth, fumbled and took out a small brocade bag from under the pillow, handed it to Lu Haoshan with some trembling. Holding that brocade bag, a hint of pride appeared in his eyes, and a faint glow on his pale face. While handing it over, he said: "This is the appointment letter and official seal issued by the Ministry of Personnel, brother, you don't believe, can take a look."

  It wasn't a coincidence that he bumped into his colleague, Lu Haoshan muttered to himself as he took over the brocade bag. As soon as he did, he felt a weight in his hand. Upon opening it, his expression turned solemn. Inside the bag was an appointment letter and a large ancient bronze seal. After opening the letter, Lu Haoshan immediately confirmed that it was indeed an official document from the Ministry of Personnel. The letter stated that Lu Wenhua had been appointed as the county magistrate of Jiangyou County in Long'an Prefecture, with a deadline to take office before October. Additionally, there was also a bronze seal used by the county magistrate.

  According to the official system of the Great Ming, the official seal of the first rank is made of silver and has three pedestals. The official seals of the second and third ranks are also made of silver, with two pedestals. The official seal of the third rank, except for the Shuntian and Yingtian prefectures, which have silver seals, the rest are copper seals without pedestals. The length of the border of the first-rank official seal is 3 inches and 4 minutes, and the following ranks decrease accordingly. The small officials below the ninth rank who have not entered the mainstream are called "striped records", with the word "record" at the end of the seal, and the body of the seal is generally rectangular, with a length of 8 cm and a width of 4 cm. The official seal in Lu Haoshan's hand was cast in brass, exquisite, square, and strictly arranged, with the four characters "Jiangyou County Magistrate" engraved on it in intaglio. The whole seal is integrated, and under the candlelight, it emits a kind of unspeakable aura, which is absolutely the pinnacle of copperware in this era.

  Looking at the official documents and seals, this guy named Lu Wenhua is actually the newly appointed magistrate of Jiangyou County, Long'an Prefecture, Sichuan Province. How did a dignified county magistrate end up in such a sorry state?

  "It turned out to be Lord Lu, I am Liang Yuangao, a native of Guangzhou Prefecture. Ah, yes! How did you end up here, sir?" Lu Haoshan couldn't help but ask.

  As soon as this matter was mentioned, Lu Wenhua's face turned gloomy and he said angrily: "Those in power do not keep themselves clean, those in office follow the wind, and those who serve the people only have eyes for money. The hearts of men are no longer ancient, the hearts of men are no longer ancient... Cough, cough."

  Lu Haoshan hastily offered words of comfort, and after he explained the situation, it became clear that this down-on-his-luck county official had accepted his appointment documents and official seal from the Ministry of Personnel, but then took an extended leave before his term began. He was feeling carefree and wanted to visit Yangzhou before taking office. He had planned to borrow money from a friend after using up his own funds, but that friend had gone on a long trip and wouldn't be back for who-knows-how-long. Other acquaintances refused to lend him money when they heard he was heading to the remote and impoverished Shaanxi province. To raise travel expenses, Lu Wenhua sold everything he could, including his books and servants. However, after leaving Yangzhou, he fell ill and stayed at the Luohua Inn. It wasn't a serious illness, and he would have recovered in two days, but then an imperial censor arrived with his family, seeking lodging. The innkeeper, eager to curry favor with the censor, immediately kicked out Lu Wenhua, who was the lowest-ranking official staying there. With no one to appeal to and fearing ridicule, Lu Wenhua concealed his identity and took up lodgings at this Longfeng Inn.

  He was infuriated by the greedy station master, his illness worsened, and in order to prepare for travel expenses and reduce expenditures, he sold all his maidservants, no one took care of him, and once he fell ill, he couldn't get up again. In the end, when his money ran out, he was driven into a thatched hut, and it became like this now.

  Lu Haoshan said curiously: "Didn't the shopkeeper just say that the master wrote a letter back home and sent someone to deliver money? How..."

  "What family?" Lu Wenhua shook his head and said: "Lu Mou has no elderly relatives, no wife or children, and has always been alone. Writing letters is just a temporary measure. Don't be fooled, Lu Tai, this heart disease is inherited from our ancestors. My grandfather had it, my father had it, and for three generations above me, there hasn't been anyone who lived a long life. Now...cough cough...I'm afraid it's my turn."

  Lu Haoshan finally understood why the county magistrate in front of him, who had not yet taken office, was so down on his luck. He wanted to borrow money, but his best friend was nowhere to be found, and he didn't know if it was because he was really absent or deliberately avoiding him. Other acquaintances also refused to lend him money, which seemed a bit unbelievable - an official who couldn't even borrow money? But that's the way it was. The salary of Ming dynasty officials was notoriously low. Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty, who came from a humble background as a cowherd, once said, "If you want to be an official and have a good time, and also make a lot of money, that's just a dream." So he made drastic cuts in officials' salaries, resulting in the lowest salaries for officials in any dynasty. Officials didn't even get reimbursed for their travel expenses when they took office, so it was not uncommon for them to borrow money to cover their travel costs. A seventh-rank county magistrate like Lu Haoshan only received a salary of seven stones and five dou per month, which had to be used for food, drink, and other necessities. It was just like the story of Hai Rui, a famous honest official who, because he didn't have any "gray income," had to cut off two jin of meat during his mother's birthday celebration, causing a sensation in the officialdom. This illustrated the difficult situation faced by Ming dynasty officials.

  By the end of the Ming Dynasty, a strange phenomenon emerged. When an official was appointed to a wealthy place, he would hold a grand banquet for his guests, and everyone would be happy for him. If he was appointed to a poor place, his relatives and friends would all sigh and lament, as if they were not worthy of him.

  In the eyes of Lu Haoshan, it is also reasonable that Lu Wenhua cannot borrow money. It's not because his official position is low and his salary is thin, but because he is stubborn and conservative, and will definitely not be corrupt. With his monthly salary of seven stones and five dou, who knows when he can repay the debt? Moreover, in many places in Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces, there is no rain throughout the year, and the people without a way out are either becoming bandits or turning into robbers. Who knows if Lu Wenhua will still be alive when he comes back? Nobody wants their money to be thrown into the water.

  Many scholars in the morning can become a county magistrate, that is to kill from thousands of horses and soldiers, can not help but make people envy. However, this Lu Wenhua can only be said to be a lucky unlucky person, who has not yet taken office and fell ill. As for Lu Haoshan, it can be seen from his face that he may not last long, now it's probably a flash in the pan.

  "Mr. Lu, don't worry, you'll be fine soon." Lu Haoshan didn't know what to say and could only comfort him.

  "No, it's not good" Lu Wenhua's face lost its previous spirit, and his eyes were somewhat dim as he said: "I know my own illness, I'm afraid I won't make it through tonight. I, Lu, was rash to call Brother Liang here, just because there's something that makes me uneasy, and I want to trouble Brother Liang with one thing."

  Lu Haoshan felt some sympathy for him, but didn't immediately agree, and instead said cautiously: "What is it, sir? Please speak."

  Such things, can't be casually agreed to. If it's about taking care of someone who is inconvenient for life or repaying debts on their behalf, it's better not to get involved. Lu Haoshan thought he wasn't a bad person, but deep down, he didn't dare to think of himself as a good person either.

  Lu Wenhua pointed to the seal in Lu Haoshan's hand and said weakly, "Now... what I'm most worried about is this seal issued by the Ministry of Officials. I won't make it, and this seal can't be returned to the Ministry of Officials. If the official seal falls into the wrong hands, there will be endless troubles. Please, Brother Liang, return it to the Ministry of Officials for me. And, whatever you do, don't give it to the people from Luo Hua Inn, they're selfish."

  After finishing, he added with great effort: "Those selfish and deceitful people are not trustworthy. Just now, Brother Liang... spoke righteously and his words were full of justice. These important letters can only be handed over to you, sir, and I can rest assured."

  At this time, Lu Haoshan only noticed that the face of the seventh-grade county magistrate in front of him had lost its previous flush, his eyes were even more dull and gray, his complexion was as pale as paper, giving people a feeling like a small flame flickering in the wind, flashing and flashing, which would go out at any time.

  No wonder he called himself in the middle of the night, it turned out that he felt he was no longer able to do it, and before he died, he wanted to entrust his last wish to him, he didn't look for the shopkeeper but looked for him, I guess the shopkeeper has always been very selfish, he subconsciously doesn't believe in him, but earlier when entering the woodshed, his action of stopping the shopkeeper from carrying him out moved him, at that time Liu Jinzhu said he was a scholar, Lu Wenhua heard that he was a scholar, originally had a few more points of good impression, and then heard him speak up for him, so subconsciously believed in him, and entrusted this matter to him.

  "Alright, I agree." Lu Haoshan fell silent for a moment before nodding his head.

  After agreeing, Lu Wenhua did not respond for half a day. Liu Jinzhu walked closer and exclaimed in surprise: "Shan Ge, this man, he's stopped breathing."

  Lu Haoshan nodded and said: "If you're dead, then you're dead. What's the big deal?"

  "But Shan Ge, we have a murder case on our hands. If we send these things to the government office now, aren't we jumping into the net ourselves?" Liu Jinzhu said with some concern, earlier when he heard that this person was a county magistrate, he was so scared that his face changed color on the spot, although it was just a dying patient, but he was still scared and retreated to one side, not daring to make a sound.

  "Who said we have to return it to the Ministry of Revenue?" Lu Haoshan's eyes gleamed with a hint of inexplicable excitement, and he suddenly smiled slightly, turning his head to say meaningfully to Liu Jinzhu: "Jinzhu, haven't you always wanted to be an official?"

  Liu Jinzhu was startled and said nervously: "Shan Ge, you mean..."

  Lu Haoshan nodded, his eyes shining with intelligence as he said: "There's no truth to it, we can still deceive people and pretend to be something we're not. What's more, since we have the real thing in our hands, being a county official is much better than running around and hiding all the time. The mountains are high and the emperor is far away, so it's just right for us to do something big."

  Since Wang Er led hundreds of peasants to rebel, Lu Haoshan knew that it was just the beginning. It wouldn't take long for people like Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong to emerge, and the Later Jin would become even more rampant. The Ming dynasty would be caught off guard, and heroes would rise in the chaotic world. He could seize this opportunity to quietly establish his own strength, with a solid foundation in hand, he could live better in the chaotic world without relying on others.

  This is simply a windfall.

  Lying on the ground, Lu Wenhua had no idea that after decades of hard study, he ended up being a substitute for someone else's wedding dress. He never dreamed that the upright and righteous reader in his eyes, the person he might entrust with his life, turned out to be a hypocrite. Before his body was even cold, they were already plotting something sinister.

  If he were still conscious, he would definitely shake his head and sigh "the hearts of men are no longer ancient".

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