Chapter 305 - Three Years in Langye (V)

Chapter 305: Three Years in Langye (V)

Han Yu would not have backed down if he had not hit an obstacle. Wei Ci had provoked him a little and he was already stomping his foot.

However, Wei Ci did not continue to “bully” Han Yu. Instead, he sighed.

“The government now indulges the eunuchs in accepting bribery and conferring official ranks for money. They pretend to be ignorant about it. As for the relatives of the emperor, once a man gets a government position, all his cronies get in, too. The government is clearly trying to support the two forces. They’re rising in revolt against the aristocrats. There are two reasons why Feng Ren submitted his resignation notice. One of them is that he feels outraged by the injustice his son faces. Secondly, he figured out that Dongqing can no longer be saved.”

Cheng Jing continued, “Wen Bin’s temper can improve. He’s already so angry now. What should he do in the future?”

Feng Ren’s resignation was a signal. If the other aristocrats had foresight, they would either leave one by one or remain aloof.

The vacant, official position naturally became the prize that the eunuchs and the relatives of the emperor fought for. No matter who the winner was, the people assigned to the position mostly harbored evil intentions and only cared about their own interests. It would really be a miracle if the palace could still be saved.

Han Yu pouted his mouth. The two people in front of him echoed each other and seemed to show how immature he was.

“Shaoyin, don’t you have anything to say?” Han Yu turned to Lu Zheng for help.

Lu Zheng snorted. “I don’t have any ambition in life. I’m fine as long as I have food, clothing, and shelter. As long as I’m an official, I’m an official no matter what the rank is. It’s good to have an easy life and take care of the people. As for the rest, I’m unable to do it, although I want to. Let the capable ones do it.”

Han Yu was so angry that he almost fell backwards. He was not there to help Han Yu; he was an incompetent teammate instead.

Cheng Jing said, “Wen Bin, don’t get yourself into a dead end. Do whatever you should do. In this current situation, it’s indeed not good to become an official.”

Han Yu replied grievously, “Are the three of you here to ease my anxiety or anger me intentionally?”

Wei Ci blinked his eyes somewhat mischievously and said to him, “I didn’t say that I was here to ease your anxiety.”

Han Yu was speechless. Our friendship is over!

According to previous practices, the scholars who stood out in the assessment would receive the appointment letter from the palace within half a month and they would be appointed to various places.

Their abilities and family backgrounds would generally be considered depending on the appointments of the scholars. Although they were not high official positions, it would be very challenging for them and it would be easy for them to accumulate experience. They were given slightly higher official positions in the remote areas and lower official positions in the prosperous areas.

If one’s family offered bribes, the type of official position and the location of employment could be changed at the official’s discretion. That was very possible.

However, the court and the commonalty were currently in chaos. Many officials had tacitly forgotten about that. The emperor did not even mention it.

Yuan Jing and his students had stayed in Shangjing for half a month. Many of his students felt insecure for fear of any variables.

Wei Ci and a few others could hold it in. They were either quietly reading and writing, playing chess with their classmates, or reciting poems and writing couplets every day to pass the time.

Lu Zheng sat on the side of the chessboard, watching Wei Ci beat Han Yu in chess. With a supple mind, he suddenly said, “It’s been half a month already. If we’re not going back, I’m afraid that we’ll have to spend the new year here in Shangjing.”

Looking at the situation of the chess game, Han Yu was worried. “It’s not good to leave when the appointment letters have not been sent out from the palace yet.”

Wei Ci moved his chess with a smile, pushing Han Yu into a dead end. “Perhaps the appointment letters can’t be sent out yet.”

“Why do you say that?” Han Yu asked.

Wei Ci retorted, “All the vacant official positions may have been sold off already.”

Of course, it was impossible for all the vacant official positions to have been sold off.

However, the palace was busy preparing for the marriage of Princess An Yina and the second prince. Dongqing still wanted to dispute over trifles with the Northern Borderline.

Every single one of them was green with envy and wanted to have the benefits to themselves. Why would they care about the scholars?

These days, apart from Feng Ren’s resignation, the other sensational matter was the resignation of the county chief of Hu County, Liu She.

As for the former, the emperor happily took back the position of the head of the secretariat and immediately promoted his confidant.

As for the latter, the emperor wanted to imitate what was done by others. However, Liu She submitted his resignation letter during the morning meeting. Someone immediately came out and said that Liu She had worked for the nation and had many great merits. Hu County, which he had been managing, was transformed into a county rich in grain production from a desolate and uninhabited county. His management had relieved the food shortage in the two neighboring states. He was a meritorious statesman of the society, and he was still young. If he resigned, it would be Dongqing’s biggest loss.

The words were said so vehemently that the emperor was ashamed to accept Liu She’s resignation. “If that’s the case, do you all have any good advice?”

Although the emperor was shameless, he did not want to be embarrassed in the morning meeting. He still had to cover himself.

Liu She took the opportunity to repeat his wish of resigning. Another official came out again and said no. If the emperor agreed to his resignation, would the people not say that the emperor was greedy over the resources in Hu County? It would have appeared as though he snatched the victory of others by taking the opportunity to discard Liu She once he was no longer needed.

Liu She was like a brick who was moved about when he was needed.

After an “intense” discussion, someone suddenly mentioned that Chongzhou still lacked a magistrate. A magistrate was ranked higher than a county chief. The former managed a state, whereas the latter managed a small county.

All of them had forgotten that Chongzhou only had Shangyu County and Changhe County. There were six cities in Shangyu County and three of them were still in the hands of the Northern Borderline. Its overall area was the smallest among the six states in Dongqing. Furthermore, its north was also bordered by the Northern Borderline. Who knew how long it would take for one to lose his head when he took office?

Although Hu County was just a county, its area was comparable to that of a state––not to mention that it was now a rich county under the governance of Liu She.

The emperor of Dongqing thought about it in his mind and gave the final verdict decisively. He insincerely expressed how much he valued Liu She. He also said that the world was in turmoil. If Liu She were to resign at that time, it would have been the loss of Dongqing and the pity of the people. He immediately appointed Liu She as the magistrate of Chongzhou.

Liu She looked as if he was somewhat tired and unwilling to accept the appointment, but he secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

He had legendary teammates by his side and foolish enemies opposite him. It was too easy and there was no challenge.

With a newly-appointed position as the magistrate of Chongzhou, Liu She left the morning meeting with an icy look on his face and ignored everyone.

“He doesn’t know how to appreciate what’s good. He’s been promoted to a state magistrate from a county chief, but he pulled a long face instead…”

“Tsk. Who doesn’t know that Hu County is now the best? It supports two states by itself. How much food does it have? In my opinion, Liu She did not intend to resign today at all. He was just pretending and hoped to stay in Hu County. Who would have thought that the government would transfer him to Chongzhou? What kind of a place is Chongzhou? Three wolves are glaring at it from the north and one can’t even sleep peacefully at night…”

“Huh? Isn’t he suffering a huge loss?”

“Cleverness may overreach itself. Who told him to be foolish?”

“I don’t know who should take over the position of the county chief of Hu County…”

“Anyway, it can’t be either one of us. We’ll just be onlookers. Everyone wants to have a slice of Hu County.”

The bits and pieces of the discussions around him vaguely drifted into Liu She’s ears. He still looked livid. After entering into the carriage, he swiftly smiled a little.

Who said that he was ruined by his own wisdom? Soon, everyone would know who the real fool was.

The carriage stopped moving. Liu She got out of the carriage. His confidant said to him, “Master, the person who Langjun wanted to look for has been found.”

Liu She was stunned and he quickly concealed his facial expression. “She’s been found?”

“Yes. She looks 70 percent similar to her!” His confidant made a gesture that showed ‘seven’ with his hand.

Liu She’s heartbeat accelerated; it was as if his throat and eyes were going to jump out of his body. “Very good.”