Lord: Start with a book of Water Margin

Chapter 548 Taking refuge
Three days had passed since the relocation. Zhao Zhen had submitted a memorial to the emperor asking for officials to govern the area, and the court finally sent the officials it had selected.

After sending the angel away, Zhao Zhen, Wu Yong and Pei Xuan summoned the eight imperial officials who were sent there. Seeing that half of the people at the bottom of the stairs were over fifty years old, Zhao Zhen did not despise them and talked to them one by one.

Six of the eight were officials who had experienced many years of ups and downs in the selection process, while the other two were Jinshi graduates of the first year of Xuanhe. They were Feng Cheng, Peng Bin, Hu Tianhui, Xu Heng, Xiong Tinglin, Xie Yu, Sun Di, and Zhang Tongqing.

Feng Cheng, Peng Bin, Hu Tianhui, Xu Heng, Xiong Tinglin, and Xie Qi, these six people, are well versed in the ways of being an official, and can make decisions on matters of all sizes. They handle official documents of the prefecture government in accordance with the rules and regulations without any mistakes or omissions. Of course, it is not known whether they are honest or not.

It was just that the Ministry of Personnel took advantage of the six people's age and the lack of arrangements, so they were selected and sent to Liangshan.

As for Sun Di and Zhang Tongqing, they were both Jinshi in the first year of Xuanhe. Their families were poor, and they had never been selected as officials since they passed the Jinshi examination, so they were just used by the Ministry of Personnel to make up the numbers.

At night, Zhao Zhen hosted a banquet for the eight people. The eight people also wanted to know more about Zhao Zhen, who rose from humble beginnings and seized the opportunity to rise to prominence. In the future, they would be under Zhao Zhen's rule, so they happily attended the banquet.

At first, the eight people were still alert. After three rounds of wine and five dishes, the eight people, especially Sun Di and Zhang Tongqing, who had never experienced officialdom, were already drunk. Under the deliberate investigation of Wu Yong and Pei Xuan, they could not help but become wild.

The two even cursed Cai Jing, who was in charge of selecting officials. Through their words, Zhao Zhen had some understanding of the eight people's situation.

On the afternoon of the next day, Wu Yong took the appointment documents to the temporary residence of the eight people and read them out. Sun Di was appointed as the county magistrate of Jimo County (Zhong) in Laizhou, acting in charge of Jimo County affairs, and Zhang Tongqing was appointed as the county magistrate of Linqu (Jin) in Qingzhou, acting in charge of county affairs.

After sobering up today, Sun Di and Zhang Tongqing thought of what they said yesterday and felt cold all over.

The two of them found Wu Yong at the same time and asked him to bring their families to Liangshan.

The other six people saw that the two men had scolded each other last night and were given an assignment today, and they had their own thoughts.

After congratulating the two, Feng Cheng asked, "Have you two thought it through?"

Sun Di smiled bitterly and said, "To be honest, we have not held any official positions since we passed the imperial examination. Last night, I spoke carelessly after drinking and offended the Grand Tutor. I am afraid that my official career is over. Please bring our families here so that we can serve you wholeheartedly."

Zhang Tongqing also said, "Yes, I am in such an awkward situation. If I hesitate, I will just have to wait for death. I have studied for many years and endured so much hardship before finally passing the imperial examination. How can I be content if I cannot realize my ambition? Now I can serve as the acting governor of a county and protect the people. It is not in vain that I have learned from the saints. All of you seniors have experienced many ups and downs in the officialdom, so you should make a decision as soon as possible."

Feng Cheng said: "The court is wary of Liangshan now, I'm afraid we will all have a bad ending in the future."

Xiong Tinglin said: "Hey, when I was choosing an official position, I was hesitant. I was reluctant to resign, but I also didn't want to make arrangements. Now I have no place to regret."

After saying that, Xiong Tinglin sighed.

He paused and continued, "In this situation, we have been forced into a desperate situation and have no choice but to follow. After listening to what you two young friends said, I have made up my mind to move my family here. My colleagues, please make your decision early."

After hearing this, Feng Cheng and the other five people looked unhappy.

Regardless of the five people's expressions, Xiong Tinglin hurried out to meet Wu Yong, who was hosting them, to express his wishes.

Wu Yong was also delighted when he heard this, and took Xiong Tinglin to see Zhao Zhen.

Xiong Tinglin let down his guard and opened his heart. He not only told him about his own situation, but also told him what Feng Cheng and the other five people knew.

These people were not recruited to be spies, they were just frustrated. In fact, the one with the best family background was Xiong Tinglin. His family was also a family of officials, and their ancestors lived in Jianyang, Jianzhou. In his generation, in the third year of Daguan, four people from the Xiong family were listed in the imperial examination.

Xiong Anshang was the first in the military examination in the Jichou year.

The uncle and nephew passed the civil and military examinations together, and Emperor Huizong even wrote a poem for them: "An Yuanqi of the Jin Dynasty reported victory, and Yu Tingyuan Kai were both promoted."

The civil scholar was Xiong Tinglin, who was in front of me. There was also Xiong Yuanhui, who had resigned from his official position due to his frail health and long-term illness, and set up a clan school at home to teach the younger generation. The other two were military scholars, one was called Xiong Yuanxing, and the other was called Xiong Anshang.

Xiong Yuanxing died early, and among the four uncles, nephews and brothers, only Xiong Tinglin and Xiong Anshang are still involved in officialdom.

Xiong Anshang was promoted to the position of military commander of Xinde Army, with the power to judge military and state affairs. However, his uncle Xiong Tinglin was still struggling in the election and was now sent to Liangshan to fend for himself.

Xiong Tinglin also held his breath. Although he was more noble in literature than in martial arts, compared with Xiong Anshang, he was over fifty years old and had not yet escaped from the sea of ​​selection.

I didn't feel anything at first, but today, after hearing what Sun Di and Zhang Tongqing said, I was really enlightened.

I am over fifty years old and I am being plotted against. I am like being exiled. I might as well give it another try.

The world is in turmoil now, so taking advantage of this incident, we can move a group of people here to reproduce and thrive, which can also be regarded as preparing a retreat for the Xiong family.

When he met Zhao Zhen, Xiong Tinglin immediately expressed his intention to surrender. Zhao Zhen did not refuse and immediately promoted Xiong Tinglin to the position of magistrate of Changyi, Wang County, Weizhou.

Unlike Sun Di and Zhang Tongqing, Xiong Tinglin and others have been in the officialdom for a long time and are naturally familiar with the old customs and practices in the officialdom. However, Liangshan is different from other places. Not only are the land taxes different, but the government orders are also different.

The county government's public money system was abolished, and correspondingly, the salaries of officials increased significantly.

There is no such thing as valuing civil officials over military officials. Civil and military officials restrain each other.

Therefore, although Xiong Tinglin and the other two had their positions, they could not take up the posts immediately. They, along with Feng Cheng and others, were sent to the Liangshan County government office to stay for a month to familiarize themselves with the Liangshan policies before taking up their posts.

These people had not expected to be of any use, but they did not expect that the eight people sent by the court were all capable. For example, Peng Bin, who was only good at talking, was more than qualified to be a county teacher. Now that the three of them had taken the lead in surrendering, Zhao Zhen also wanted to buy horse bones for a huge sum of money, so the three of them actually took up the position of Baili Hou when they first arrived.

Of course, lack of manpower is also a factor.

Zhao Zhen thought he could find a few useful prisoners on Shamen Island, but the result was disappointing.

After the group of people went ashore to rest for a few days, Zhao Zhen sent someone to take the list and check them one by one. The few civil servants who were there all died on the island.

They had to endure hunger every day and work at sea, and those who could survive were mostly strong and healthy.

Among those who came ashore, quite a few had committed evil deeds, and a small number of them were skilled in martial arts.

Unfortunately, these people had been on the island for too long and believed in the law of the jungle. Just three days after landing, some of them tried to escape. Ruan Xiaoer killed more than 20 troublemakers before they stopped. They had to be separated and sent to several mines to work.

(End of this chapter)