Joy of Life: Starting from Teacher Fan Xian

When the day breaks, the dock at the crossing is filled with the bustling atmosphere.

A group of officials gathered at the dock just like they did yesterday, their enthusiasm undiminished.

The servants held bronze drums, waiting for the imperial envoy to come down, and then the deafening sound would be heard.

Below the deck, a festive thick cloth was spread, and a young official from the official ship came down with a team of guards.

Xue Qing, the governor of Jiangnan, was about to step forward to say hello, but after taking a look, he stopped abruptly.

The person coming down is not the imperial envoy. The rank shown by this official uniform is too low.

Xue Qing maintained a gentle smile and continued to wait quietly, but some officials behind him had lost their patience and looked extremely panicked.

They stared at the deck in amazement as teams of guards came down with exquisite gifts and threw them rudely on the side of the dock, piling them up next to the officials.

Xue Qing couldn't help but wonder, and asked bluntly: "I wonder what the Imperial Envoy means?"

Mu Tie bowed and said, "The boat is small, and my master thought these gifts took up too much space, so he asked us to throw them down."

Xue Qing had already guessed what was going on when he heard this. He turned around and saw many officials avoiding his gaze. He felt embarrassed and angry, so he pretended to be ignorant and asked, "So that's how it is. I wonder where these gifts came from?"

"It was delivered by servants from various government offices yesterday. I can't remember which officials they were from." Mu Tie said respectfully:

"But my master said that he appreciates the kindness and asked me to express my gratitude here, but the things must be returned in full. The master does not like to take advantage of others."

Xue Qing frowned. Although he had given a reminder two days ago, there were still many people who didn't believe it and thought they were taking advantage of a loophole.

Holding back his anger and secretly cursing at these stupid fellows, Xue Qing said in a deep voice, "Who sent it on purpose? Since the Imperial Envoy has made it clear, why don't you come and take it back?"

The officials in the field looked at each other in amazement, and no one dared to stand up. Wouldn't that be exposing one's own identity and giving others a handle against them?

They were panicked and extremely angry, wondering how someone dared to break the unspoken rules in officialdom. If they didn't want the gift, they would have refused to accept it yesterday. But now they had to tear down the bridge after crossing it. This was an extremely unkind thing to do.

If he had retreated forcefully, officials would have secretly admired his integrity, but taking the benefit and then humiliating others in this way would make people hate him for no reason.

This slight action of the imperial envoy has already angered many officials. Even those who were cautious and did not give any gifts, besides gloating over his misfortune, did not have a good impression of him.

"The origins of these gifts are marked on them. Since you gentlemen don't come to claim them, we can only distribute them here one by one." Mu Tie picked up one at random and was about to read the name on it.

Before he could say anything, an official who was tactful ran out and snatched the gift away, saying, "I'm ashamed, this is from you."

Once someone took the lead, many officials took courage and rushed out, vying to take their gifts.

Xue Qing became more and more annoyed as he watched. He waved his sleeves and thought that this young imperial envoy really showed no mercy to anyone. Even if he wanted to teach them a lesson, there was no need to be so ruthless and humiliate them in order to appease them.

You can just scold them, throw the gifts away, and let the officials take them back privately.

By doing this, they have no intention of establishing good relations with the bureaucrats in Jiangnan.

In the silent and strange atmosphere, after all the gifts were taken, a young man in purple official uniform and with extraordinary appearance walked down from the boat calmly.

After confirming his identity, Xue Qing took two steps forward and raised his hand to bow: "I am Xue Qing, the governor of Jiangnan, and I, the leader of all the officials of Jiangnan Road, would like to greet the Imperial Commissioner." The officials looked unhappy and were resentful in their hearts, but they still bowed obediently and greeted the Imperial Commissioner who came from the south.

Lin Ruo looked at these unfamiliar officials and responded with a smile, as if what had just happened had never happened.

The officials who had originally wanted to strike up a conversation and get close to the imperial envoy now became speechless. Who knew what the consequences of speaking would be? In short, they could not be false in front of the imperial envoy. It would be better to just keep their mouths shut. What's the point of talking?

Jiangnan Governor Xue Qing was walking and chatting with Lin Ruo, followed by a group of taciturn bureaucrats, which was surprisingly quiet.

The incense table was set up, the imperial edict was requested, the swords were displayed, and the emperor's grace was returned. All the officials bowed and after a set of complicated ceremonies, the drama of welcoming the imperial envoy came to an end.

As for what kind of big trouble the young imperial envoy would cause in Jiangnan in the future, this was something that all officials dared not think about, especially after experiencing the gift farce just now.

In short, it will be difficult for Jiangnan to have peace in the next few months.

"Governor Xue, you should know why I came to Jiangnan."

Xue Qing certainly knew about it, but that didn't mean he had to help or get involved, so he said, "Of course, everything is up to your command, sir. As long as it's within my responsibility, I will do my best to do it."

Lin Ruo understood the meaning behind his words and replied, "This time I am in Jiangnan, I will only investigate the deficit in the inner treasury, and will not trouble the governor with any extra information."

Xue Qing was secretly surprised by the direct words, thinking that this imperial envoy was not the kind of person who liked to beat around the bush.

The deficit in the inner treasury could be big or small, and who knows how far the investigation will go. Xue Qing couldn't help but worry, but he also thought that if the matter got serious, the people who would be most responsible would naturally be the ones who caused the trouble.

Xue Qing didn't want to care what the imperial envoy wanted to do or who he wanted to oppose in Jiangnan. He had turned a blind eye to the situation over the years, and his relationship with the Ming family was not bad, but naturally not very good either. No matter what happened, it shouldn't affect him as the governor of Jiangnan.

As for the officials below, if anyone is caught with evidence, they should just consider themselves unlucky.

Lin Ruo smiled and said, "Then I'll trouble Governor Xue to have the Ming family send all the bills of the inner treasury in recent years by tomorrow. I will have to take a close look at them and then consider the consequences."

Xue Qing nodded and said, "Don't worry, sir. I will send someone to the Ming family to urge this matter."

"By the way, there will be a welcoming party at Huamanlou tonight. My lord, please don't refuse." Xue Qing added. This was the traditional rule and it was not something he had any idea about.

Of course, if the Ming family wanted to take advantage of tonight's opportunity to pay a visit, Xue Qing would not stop them.

"I have already arranged your residence. Many salt merchants in the city are willing to provide you with houses. You can decide where you want to live."

There are more wealthy businessmen in Jiangnan, and the bureaucrats have also benefited from this blessing. Giving money and wealth as gifts is a daily routine for the wealthy and powerful, and Xue Qing was just delivering a message.

Lin Ruo smiled lightly and politely declined: "That's not necessary. I have already booked a place to live, right by the West Lake in Suzhou."

He could scold officials, but he could not scold these rich families, because they would always find excuses to sympathize with the officials.

"The West Lake is great, it's the best place to cultivate one's temperament. Lord Lin has good vision." Xue Qing, who knew the whole thing, smiled faintly.

(End of this chapter)