Chapter Fifteen Waiting for Corruption

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  "Sir, are you feeling any better?" asked Zhang Yunhui, the chief accountant, with a concerned expression.

  The county magistrate fell ill, and no one dared to take it lightly. The big and small heads of the county government immediately brought gift boxes and fruit baskets to visit the unfortunate county magistrate. However, many people had a hint of schadenfreude in their hearts, secretly saying that he deserved it, and that this newcomer should be given a hard time.

  Now that's good, isn't it? Just relying on brute force. Alone, facing a mountain of work, not leaving the house for days, reviewing documents until deep into the night, even an iron man couldn't hold out. And yet, he managed to exhaust himself completely. Everyone can't help but look at County Magistrate Chen with admiring eyes, secretly thinking "well done". This was his idea, and without making a sound, he gave the new county official a big slap in the face.

  Still too young, compared with Chen Xiancheng, this old fox in the officialdom, it's really too tender, this is the cost of being young.

  Chen Gui also walked to the bedside, with a worried face and said: "Sir, you are the mainstay of Jiangyou people, the government can't do without you, you must get better as soon as possible."

  All the subordinates also expressed their condolences to the new county magistrate Lu Haoshan's illness. Although everyone didn't have much good feelings towards this sharp and arrogant new county magistrate, they still had to put on a good show.

  Lu Haoshan struggled to get up, and Liu Jinchu hastily added a cushion behind him, letting him recline comfortably.

  "Thank you all for your concern, I'm fine. I just saw Dr. Gu and he said this illness is due to exhaustion. As long as I rest for a short period of time, I'll be okay." Lu Haoshan said while rubbing his temples.

  Gongfang Sili Hu Ren said with a smile: "As soon as the adults took office, they worked too hard for the sake of Jiangyou's fellow villagers and parents, and were loyal to their duties. They are truly our role models."

  "I dare not, I have enjoyed your salary and borne your worries." Lu Haoshan said humbly while waving his hand.

  Household servant Zhou Dàyuān smiled and said: "Your Honor is young and robust, you will definitely recover quickly. The big and small affairs of this county government are still waiting for your decision."

  "Ow, my head!" Lu Haoshan rubbed his aching head and cried out in pain.

  The long-serving Liu Jinzhu beside him hastily said, "Young master, Doctor Gu said that you have overworked and injured your body, you need to take good care of yourself and not overwork for a while."

  Lu Haoshan nodded and turned his head to Chen Gui: "County Magistrate Chen."

  "Your subordinate is in"

  "I'm not feeling well and need to rest for a few days, so I'll have to trouble you with handling the official duties of the yamen."

  Finally, he spoke a human word. Chen Gui's heart was delighted, and he had been waiting for this sentence for a long time. Although his inner heart was greatly joyful, his face still pretended to be somewhat shocked and said: "Sir, this...this is not appropriate, you are the county magistrate, how dare I, a lower official, overstep my bounds?"

  "It's all right," Lu Haoshan waved his hand and said, "Before I took office, you were acting as the county magistrate, didn't you handle all the big and small matters in an orderly manner? In the past few days, I have also heard many praises for County Magistrate Chen. I believe that you will be able to handle these matters well."

  Since things have been said to this extent, Chen Gui is not really willing to decline. The power of governing a county has fascinated him. Upon hearing the words, he no longer declined and said with a "grateful" face: "Your Excellency attaches so much importance to the humble official, Chen Mou also respectfully obeys your orders, and will definitely do his best to assist Your Excellency in managing Jiangyou affairs. However, for major events, I still need to ask for Your Excellency's opinion."

  Chen Gui said this not to show loyalty to Lu Haoshan, but to put his mind at ease, making him feel that he was not seizing power, but assisting him in governing. As for asking for instructions, it was just an empty phrase - major matters required instructions, but wasn't it still up to oneself to decide what was major or minor? Moreover, there was another advantage: if there were any unpleasant or offending tasks, they would have to be instructed, and let this new county magistrate take the blame.

  The abacus was clicking away rapidly.

  "Then you handle it." Lu Haoshan said immediately after seeing that Chen Gui did not object.

  Chen Gui said respectfully: "Yes, sir."

  Because Lu Haoshan was "ill", everyone else didn't dare disturb his rest either, and they quickly bid farewell and left.

  "Haha, Brother Chen, your plan is really clever!" Cao Hu said to Chen Gui with a thumbs up: "In just ten days, you've got that little brat completely under control."

  Household servant Zhou Dàyuan also chimed in, "Of course! Director Chen is an old general coming out to battle, one can take the place of two. That young whippersnapper, his hair hasn't even grown yet, thinks he can fight with us? Too tender!"

  "It's better this way, Jiangyou County is still ours to command."

  "I told you he wouldn't be able to hold on, now you believe it."

  Everyone congratulated Chen Gui, and as a result, Chen Gui once again became the most powerful person in Jiangyou. In fact, everyone had long guessed that this new Lucheng County Magistrate was not an opponent of Old Fox Chen Gui. Think about it, the previous one was so clever, but still ended up being defeated? Not only was he removed from office, but also thrown into prison, and is probably still eating prison food now. This new county magistrate is just a greenhorn, how can he be an opponent for this old fox? As expected, he has already fallen down after making his first move.

  Although he was young and became a jinshi, he also got a county magistrate job. He lacked experience and training, but his luck was good.

  Among the flattering voices of his colleagues, Chen Gui smiled and said: "This is only temporary, I will still rely on you all in the future. I, Chen Mouren, am still the same, with wine to drink together, with meat to eat together."

  "Still Brother Chen's righteousness" Cao Hu responded first: "Brother Chen, rest assured, I, Cao Hu, said it, you point east and absolutely not west, the county magistrate's words are not as good as yours."

  "Definitely, definitely."

  "County Magistrate Chen is too polite."

  "From now on, you have to take good care of yourself."

  Chen Gui made some polite remarks and dispersed the crowd, after all, he still had to deal with official business. However, before dispersing, Chen Gui used his eyes to signal for his two trusted aides, Cao Hu and Zhou Daxuan, to stay behind and discuss countermeasures.

  Facing his two trusted aides, Chen Gui nodded secretly. These two men, one in charge of the three shifts of yamen runners and the other leading the household department, could be said to hold the most powerful and lucrative positions, both under his control. They were not outsiders. Chen Gui spoke straightforwardly: "Alright, let's get down to business. Although the new Magistrate of Lu County is bedridden with illness, he's still in his prime and it's not a serious illness, so he'll recover soon. The problem is that by the time he takes office, he might have to step down again before he's even warmed up his seat. Think about it, what can be done?"

  Cao Hu's face twitched, and he lowered his voice: "We'll either do nothing or not stop until we're done. Let's find an opportunity to get rid of him and then frame the nearby mountain bandits for it, so that no one will know what happened."

  "Use your brain, don't always think about that matter." Chen Gui said somewhat gloomily: "Chen Mou doesn't want the higher-ups to send an official oil son to take office, or we'll be passive. This new county magistrate is actually not bad. Don't say this again in the future. If the county magistrate is killed, it will be a shocking event for the imperial court. For the time being, we can be executed with our whole family."

  Chen Gui thought clearly, he was just a Xiucai, not even a Juren, let alone a Jinshi. This shows that the position of County Magistrate was already at its peak for him, and there was no way he could sit in the big chair of the county official. It's better to have someone like Lu Haoshan who is inexperienced and easy to control and deceive. When necessary, he would also protect him, as for getting rid of him and taking his place, it never occurred to him.

  Those Jin Yiwei are not to be trifled with, once they set their sights on you, nine lives won't be enough to die.

  "Sir, life is all about fame and wealth. To be more specific, it's about money and women. Our new Lord Lu has only one attendant by his side, not even a personal maid. He's probably from a humble background or a declining family, and hasn't experienced the pleasures of life yet. Sir, you can tempt him with beauty, entice him with wealth, and treat him with kindness. He'll definitely be at your service."

  "Yes, young people are impulsive and lack perseverance. I think Zhou's plan is feasible." Cao Hu also nodded in agreement.

  "Not bad," Chen Gui nodded and said: "This idea is great, now that he's fallen ill, it's a perfect opportunity to win him over. However, being too obvious isn't good either, it might trigger his resistance. We can only proceed gradually. Dà Yuān, you're meticulous and prudent in your thinking, and stable in handling matters. This task will be arranged by you."

  "Yes, sir."

  After instructing Zhou Dayuan, Chen Gui turned his head to Cao Hu and said: "Cao Hu, tell your men to keep a close eye on things. The current situation is not good, those refugees are starving and will do anything. We must be vigilant against strangers making trouble in our Jiangyou area. If something happens elsewhere, we can't control it. This one mu three fen land in Jiangyou County is our rice bowl, our foundation. When you have time, patrol around more often and also instruct the village heads to keep a close eye on things. Don't let those people with ulterior motives stir up trouble here. If something happens, neither of us will be able to keep our heads."

  "Yes, Brother Chen, I understand." Cao Hu also knew that the situation was serious and nodded solemnly with a straight face.

  From the Taizu Emperor onwards, the treatment of officials was not ordinary strictness. Apart from meager salaries, there was no leniency in punishment. At the slightest mistake, they would be executed without hesitation. The most notorious example is the "Dai Zui Xing Zhi" (戴罪行职), which occurred after the four major cases of "Kong Yin An" (空印案), "Guo Huan An" (郭桓案), "Hu Wei Yong An" (胡惟庸案), and "Lan Yu An" (蓝玉案). After these cases, many officials were left vacant. When an official committed a crime, they would not be killed or imprisoned immediately. Instead, they would be put under surveillance by the Jin Yi Wei (锦衣卫) and forced to wear handcuffs and shackles while performing their duties. During the Hongwu era, it was common for officials to be tortured to death while still being required to sentence others to death. The current emperor, Zhu Zhen, is extremely suspicious and paranoid. At the slightest incident in any region, he would indiscriminately execute a large group of people like cutting scallions.

  It's said that I'm not afraid, but that's absolutely a lie.

  Just as the three of them were discussing how to deal with Lu Haoshan, Lu Haoshan was still half-reclining on his bed, savoring a good pre-rain Longjing tea and eating the exquisite pastries sent by officials, looking carefree and without any hint of worry.

  Liu Jinzhu, who was standing beside him, was happily arranging the gifts and whispered: "Shan Ge, this illness is also pretended, what to do next?"

  Lu Haoshan smiled slightly and said with some profound meaning: "There's no need to do anything, just wait for corruption."

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