Chapter Twenty: Accepting Bribes

  The Eagle Guard was established at the beginning of the Great Yu Empire, and for two hundred years, it followed a system where sons inherited their fathers' positions. But... there's no birth control here! Although the average lifespan is short, in this world, getting married and having children at 15 or 16 is considered normal, and some even do so at 12 or 13. As of today, the Eagle Guard has grown to an enormous size, not only because it has a huge number of 23,000 people, but also because over two hundred years, generation after generation of Eagle Guards have branched out and multiplied, possessing potential power that is counted in tens of millions. Just in Luoyang City alone, there are countless families connected to the Eagle Guard! As a result, this has created a problem with filling vacancies - too many wolves and not enough meat! The Eagle Guard's reputation may be stinky, but it's still an official position, isn't it?

  The city's western hundred households, where Wu Fan was located, suffered the heaviest casualties in the war to eradicate the Maitreya teachings, with enough losses to fill 53 vacancies. In other words, there were also 53 vacancies left in the hundred households. With 53 vacancies, more than 300 people applied to become Eagle Guards, and this is just one day after the news was released. If we wait a few more days, I'm afraid there will be thousands of applicants. So, this is an unpopular job, you choose this, and you will inevitably offend that person.

  Wu Fan knew about this matter, otherwise he wouldn't have wanted to clear himself up and shift the blame to Qian Rui when Bai Hu Zhong Shu brought it up. But now there's no way out, he can only grit his teeth and go through with it. He still needs to think of a way to make it seem fair and just on the surface, so that everyone will think it's reasonable and won't have anything to say.

  But...

  Is it possible?

  It's absolutely impossible!

  Hiding in the hundred households to look at the name book, Wu Fan almost didn't tear his scalp off, really was worried about choosing which people.

  As the time approached dusk, Wu Fan's stomach growled with hunger, so he had to pack up his things, furrowed his brow and wandered home from the hundred households to prepare for dinner.

  As soon as the door opened, several of Wu Fan's former subordinates from his small flag days came over, with a look of embarrassment on their faces, almost as if they had written their thoughts on their faces.

  If Wu Fan still doesn't understand what's going on, then he really is brainless.

  Wu Fan waved his hand and spoke first, saying: "I know what you're thinking, but this kind of thing is not easy to handle! If something goes wrong, I'll be the one who gets stabbed in the back. You're all my old brothers, can't you show some understanding for my difficulties? As for the rest, I don't need to say it, you all understand, isn't our friendship still here? Isn't that right?"

  Yes! So many people involved with Eagle Wing, if not handled properly, would have a terrible impact. Not to mention being criticized and scolded, losing their official positions and even their heads is also possible!

  Several eagles were startled by Wu Fan's words and hastily nodded, swallowing all the prepared words back into their stomachs.

  Wu Fan sighed and said: "I'll go back first, wait for me to finish things up, and then we can drink together again!"

  Finally, he walked out of the gate of Baihu Suo, and as a result, a horse carriage suddenly came out from the oblique stab, and a fat man jumped out to block Wu Fan's way.

  "In the lower reaches of the An-yuan Mountains! The great shopkeeper of the Flower Moon Building in Luoyang's East City!" The great shopkeeper, dressed in silk and satin, had a fortunate appearance, with thick and sturdy hands clasped together in greeting, his posture very low: "I have seen General Wu!"

  Huā Yuè Lóu is a place that Wu Fan is all too familiar with, as it is one of the largest gold masters in Luoyang. It's a business that deals with flesh and skin, and also dabbles in gambling and food and drink. It's a place where all the high-ranking officials and nobles go to have fun, and every day they make a fortune. Huā Yuè Lóu makes so much money that it can't help but attract some jealous eyes, so every month they pay a large sum of protection money to the Eagle Guard. With the Eagle Guard's protection, who would dare to cause trouble for Huā Yuè Lóu again? It's like trying to get an old lady to eat arsenic!

  Wu Fan's face immediately put on a hypocritical smile, and he hastily returned the courtesy: "Oh, it's An Da Zhuang! I'm so sorry! I really am! What brings you here?"

  An Yuan Shan looked around, made a polite gesture with his hand, and smiled on his honest face: "This is not the place to talk, can I invite General Wu to take a step and have a chat?"

  Wu Fan hastily smiled and said: "As you wish, I don't dare ask! Since An the shopkeeper has given me face, how could I not take it?"

  As he got on the luxurious carriage with Anyuan, Wu Fan, that poor devil, finally saw the demeanor of a rich family. Good fellow! The carriage looked ordinary from the outside, just slightly bigger than usual, but inside it was a different story altogether! Snow-white cashmere cushions woven from mountain goat wool worth hundreds of taels of silver were used merely to rest his feet on! Not to mention other things, Wu Fan felt as if he had entered a pile of gold and silver.

  It's said that when you give gifts to others, you must have ulterior motives. But this thing also depends on the circumstances. Take An Yuan Shan for example. Obviously, he is a very astute person who is easy to get close to. He doesn't rush to reveal his true intentions, but instead talks about topics that Wu Fan is interested in, chatting with Wu Fan about the interesting rumors and stories of Luo Yang City, making Wu Fan feel good.

  The horse carriage swayed forward, Wu Fan glanced out of the window and occasionally lifted the curtain blown by the wind to judge where he was. As a result, unlike what he thought, this An Da Zhuang's boss did not take him to Hua Yue Lou, but instead headed in the direction of Wu Fan's residence, making Wu Fan extremely disappointed... uh, extremely puzzled.

  After a while, the horse carriage stopped, and An Yuanshan smiled: "We've arrived, Mr. Wu, please get off!"

  Wu Fan got off the bus at the foot of An Yuan Mountain, and what caught his eye was a vermilion gate with two majestic stone lions. Inside the gate were a main house with green tiles and blue bricks, two side houses, and a spacious courtyard paved with bluestone slabs. What's strange is that no one lives here, and judging from the dust, it's been a long time since anyone lived here.

  "Master An, I don't know what this is..."

  Wu Fan asked with some doubt.

  An Yuan Shan chuckled and rubbed his thick, beardless chin, saying: "I won't hide it from General Wu either! It's like this, my son has been mischievous since he was young, neither literary nor martial, as a father I'm quite anxious, but I only have this one son, can't bear to hit him, scolding doesn't work, really leaving me at a loss. Just heard that General Wu's camp is still short of a errand boy, don't know if my son would be so lucky..."

  As he spoke, An Yuanshan slowly and respectfully presented a blank deed with both hands, his eyes revealing a pleading expression.

  Is it also for Ying Yang Wei to fill the quota? Doesn't make sense!

  Wu Fan turned his eyes, took the deed and looked at it for a few moments, then measured the house around him. Compared to this courtyard, his own small broken house was simply a pigsty. But...this gift was not easy to accept. An Yuan Shan was one of the big gold masters of Luoyang Qianhu, with a deep relationship with the thousand households, deputy thousand households and two commanding officers. If it were just to get his son into the Eagle Guard, it would be easy, but he had bypassed those big figures and directly found himself, this small figure, why?

  "It seems that Boss An has a good understanding of me! ", Wu Fan measured the house deed with a chuckle, but smiled and said: "Unfortunately, I don't dare to accept it!"

  An Yuanshan smiled and rubbed his hands together, saying: "Director Wu is worrying too much. Indeed, I have some connection with the Thousand Households Department. However, as the old saying goes, 'it's better to ask for help from those in charge'. I will naturally go and inform my superiors again, but I just want to ask Director Wu for a promise! Moreover, Director Wu's performance in recent days has been outstanding, making people take notice. Placing my son under Director Wu's command is also to let him hone his skills!"

  An Yuanshan's words were sincere and to the point, Wu Fan was already somewhat moved.

  "General Wu, this is just a place to live, no need to think too much about it?" An Yuanshan continued to persuade: "Besides... I also know that General Wu's recent situation has been difficult, his wife at home complaining constantly, otherwise he wouldn't have thought of buying this house. You are now the general, a big official, but not so big that you can ignore the needs of those below you, and there are many places where you need to spend money, how long will it take for your salary to buy a house? How long will your wife complain at home? Why not just... hmm?"

  How embarrassing! How did this kind of thing get out?!

  Wu Fan secretly sighed, and on the surface, he also gritted his teeth and stomped his feet, as if it was very difficult to put the house deed into his sleeve, with a "I'm a good person, but I was forced to accept the bribe" look.

  An Yuan Mountain burst out with a big smile, patted his hand to signal something to the groom, and then smiled at Wu Fan: "Today, Mr. Wu has met my son, so that he won't mistake him for someone else in the future."

  Soon, an unwilling young man came from outside the door.

  After seeing him, Wu Fan suddenly thought of a classic phrase in his heart...

  ……

  PS1: Seeking collection, seeking recommendation votes, seeking likes, seeking everything, rolling on the ground for it.

  PS2: Adjusting update time, may be fixed in two days.