Strange Tales from the Northern Qi Dynasty

Chapter 103 Shameless person

Yao Xiong looked at Tian Zili, whose face was filled with anger, and slowly put down the jar of wine.

"Do you want to commit suicide?!"

Tian Zili spoke with gritted teeth, his whole body burning with anger, as if he wanted to chew Yao Xiong to pieces.

Yao Xiong still didn't react.

Kou Liu said softly: "The emperor has just passed away. If we drink at this time, it would be disrespectful."

Yao Xiong trembled all over, and immediately took out his sword and rushed out, "Brother helped that bastard, he actually wanted to murder us!!"

Tian Zili hurriedly stopped him and said, "If it weren't for the bandits, we wouldn't have known that the emperor had passed away. How could a casual official like him know?"

"Could it be that Zhao Kai was the one who ordered this?"

"But didn't this guy tell the monk that he would not murder us?"

Tian Zili stroked his beard and said, "He certainly didn't murder you. Did he give you wine or force you to drink it?"

Yao Xiong's face turned pale. "If you ask me, it's better to just kill this guy!"

Tian Zili was very disdainful, "Kill him? He is a county magistrate below the eighth rank. Da Qi ranks 30th. My brother ranks 29th and he ranks 24th!! There is a difference of five ranks!"

"If you kill him directly, that would be a crime."

Tian Zili suddenly stopped and looked up at Liu Taozi, "Brother, what Yao Xiong said actually makes sense."

Liu Taozi said, "Don't worry about it."

He looked at the many minions in front of him and instructed: "What we need to do now is to restore the county government to its proper capacity. Liyang County should have 53 official officials and 12 casual officials, a total of 65 people."

"First gather these officials together and let everyone do their job."

"Then, we'll discuss it."

"only!!"

Everyone saluted and Liu Taozi waved his hand, asking everyone to leave.

After walking out of the house, Tian Zili couldn't help but look at Kou Liu, "You are quite capable."

"Thank you, Tian-kun."

Before daybreak, Zhao Kai appeared at the gate of the county government office.

He was wearing mourning clothes, and was followed by more than 30 people, all of whom were strong clerks, all wearing mourning clothes. They broke into the county government office. The two people at the gate of the county government office were surrounded and could not help shouting angrily.

Zhao Kai walked very quickly. He was very familiar with this place. There were not many people in the county government office at the moment, but Zhao Kai walked straight to the gate of the county government office.

"what for?!"

Suddenly, he heard someone shouting loudly, and Zhao Kai felt a gust of wind blowing towards him. He stopped and the knife was swung past his face. The wind hit his face, and Zhao Kai shivered and hurried forward to draw his knife.

Zhao Kai's face flushed, he raised his head and looked at the person who was blocking his way.

He was a blue-eyed Hu man with a ferocious look, holding a knife in his hand and baring his teeth. The prefect's family had a mad dog, and this man looked similar to that mad dog.

Yao Xiong faced the crowd without any fear, holding a knife and confronting them, "Do you want to rebel?"

Zhao Kai spoke up, "I am the Liyang County Magistrate, call out your county magistrate."

Yao Xiong still did not put away his knife. He looked at the people in front of him arrogantly without bowing. He looked at the clerk beside him and asked him to report.

Soon, Taozi led everyone out. Only after Taozi came out did Yao Xiong put down his knife and stand aside respectfully.

Zhao Kai saw Liu Taozi coming out, looked him up and down, and suddenly felt a little disappointed, but still maintained a kind attitude, "My dear brother, you finally came out, something big happened."

His eyes suddenly turned red. He wiped his eyes and sobbed, "The emperor has passed away."

Hearing these words, the clerks behind him all made strange fake crying sounds as if they had heard some kind of spell.

Liu Taozi frowned and nodded.

"I am here to pass on the order. According to the will of His Majesty, officials must observe the mourning period for thirty-six days and strictly follow the funeral etiquette. Those who violate the rules will be beaten to death."

"My dear brother, please instruct your subordinates not to let the county officials make mistakes."

As Zhao Kai was about to say goodbye, Liu Taozi stepped forward and grabbed his wrist.

"Brother?!"

"Brother, there is nothing in my county government storehouse. There is no food, clothes, swords, paper and ink. Even the clothes for mourning are missing. I hope you can distribute 65 sets of mourning clothes, four-season clothes for officials, swords, bows and crossbows, and some paper and ink according to the system."

When Taozi grabbed him, Zhao Kai felt a sharp pain in his wrist. He was shocked and angry. What did this guy eat to grow up?!
He replied: "My dear brother, the county government is the same. Besides, I have only heard of county governments offering gifts to county governments, but how can a county government give gifts to another county government?"

"The county government can't send it, so please give it to me, brother."

Zhao Kai's eyes widened. It was the first time he saw such a shameless person.

Why the hell should I give it to you?? What do I owe you??

"Brother, I am an honest person. How can I afford so much?"

"Brother, take whatever you can. Consider it your kindness."

Zhao Kai's lips trembled for a moment, and he looked at the clerk beside him, "What are you still standing there for? Didn't you hear what County Magistrate Liu said?!"

"Lead the people to donate the gifts to the county government right now!!"

Liu Taozi loosened his hand, and Zhao Kai rubbed his wrist calmly, then raised his head and looked at Liu Taozi, "My dear brother, since you have everything here, don't forget your own job."

"It's already October, but your county's tribute has not been collected yet, not even half. If you can't pay it, then I will be derelict in my duty. No matter how reluctant I am, I have to handle the matter impartially and report the truth to my superiors."

Zhao Kai wanted to laugh, but suddenly remembered that he was in mourning and forced himself to stop smiling.

"But don't forget it."

Liu Taozi looked down at him calmly, "Don't worry, County Magistrate. I will definitely collect them all."

"That's good, that's good."

Zhao Kai said this and led his people away.

Liu Taozi watched the other party leave, then waved her hand, "Everyone go and do your own things."

After everyone left, Liu Taozi ate something. Mourning clothes were soon delivered. Some of them did not fit her, so Liu Taozi put on the mourning clothes, walked out of her house, and walked quickly towards the house next door.

"Boom."

The gate of the house was pushed open roughly. It could no longer withstand such gravity and collapsed with a loud bang.

Then Magistrate Shi was seen running out of the mess at the back with his trousers in his hands, cursing as he walked: "This is lawless! This is lawless!!"

He rushed out and saw Liu Taozi in mourning clothes. He suddenly realized something and stood still.

Liu Taozi said, "The emperor has passed away."

County Magistrate Shi had a tense face and tried very hard to hold back some tears, but no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't squeeze them out, so he finally gave up.

He looked at Liu Taozi with a particularly unfriendly look.

"The Crown Prince is smart, and Prime Minister Yang is wise. Those of you who have bought official positions with money and stolen favors, just wait. Your death is coming!!"

"I killed Li Jun and others."

When Shi Yao heard this, he just stared at Liu Taozi vigilantly and said nothing.

Liu Taozi said again: "I have issued an order not to allow the city officials to do anything wrong. In addition, I have dismissed all the officials and am preparing to recruit new ones."

"Oh, do you think I will still believe it?!"

Shi Yao interrupted Liu Taozi and said angrily:

"Go back and tell your master! As long as I am alive, I will report him. I will report him over and over again. If you are capable, come and kill me. If you are not capable, let him report his crimes to the imperial court as soon as possible, so as not to drag down the clan!"

Shi Yao was extremely cautious and did not believe what Liu Taozi said at all.

Liu Taozi looked at him, but saw the figure of another person in him. Perhaps, this person was once like a certain chatterbox, full of ambition, but his enthusiasm and actions were only exchanged for humiliation and deception again and again, and finally, he became what he is now.

Liu Taozi shook her head, turned and left without saying anything more.

It was not until Liu Taozi left that Shi Yao saw the wooden door collapse with a loud bang, and he became furious again.

"Bandits!! Traitors!!"

He walked up to the wooden door and tried hard to prop it up several times, but he was a weak scholar and even if he tried his best, the wooden door did not move at all.

He tried to pry the door open with a wooden stick, but couldn't find a suitable stick. As soon as he found one, he applied force and it broke in half.

Shi Yao tried everything he could, but no matter what he did, the wooden door just lay there on the ground and wouldn't move.

Finally, Shi Yao collapsed on the ground, holding his head and crying, his heart broken.

Yao Xiong rode his horse, shaking his head, walking on the street bored.

His face no longer had the enthusiasm of yesterday. Being alone and not encountering any traitors, this inspection was really boring.

He looked at the short houses on both sides, muttered something, and then sighed.

At this moment, someone suddenly rushed over.

The man covered his head, half of his face was red with blood. He stumbled in front of Yao Xiong and blocked his way.

Yao Xiong was shocked and quickly dismounted. He recognized the man in front of him as the waiter from the restaurant.

When the servant saw Yao Xiong, he burst into tears, "Mr. Yao! Help!!"

"What happened?!"

"Some officials were eating at our restaurant. My uncle asked them for money, and they surrounded him and beat him up. He was almost dying."

Yao Xiong was furious, "How dare you! Who dares to disobey my brother's orders?!"

He threw the reins to the servant, drew his knife, and rushed towards the restaurant.

The restaurant door was wide open and most of the diners were standing at the door, not daring to get closer, looking at each other with anxious expressions.

Yao Xiong pushed aside a few people and rushed to the innermost part.

I saw three people in mourning clothes surrounding the poor shop owner and beating and kicking him. They hit him so hard that he couldn't move anymore.

Yao Xiong yelled, "Stop it!!"

Hearing the roar, the three looked up in astonishment. Seeing Yao Xiong in front of them, the three looked at each other and someone stepped forward, "Who are you?!"

Yao Xiong looked at the three people in front of him. There were only a few clerks in the county government office now. He was very sure that these guys in front of him were not clerks at all.

"I am Yao Xiong, the Liyang patrolman! Who are you? How dare you pretend to be an official and commit crimes here?!"

Hearing this, the three of them were stunned, and then burst into laughter.

Seeing that they didn't take him seriously at all, Yao Xiong became even angrier. His whole body began to tremble with anger and his eyes were fierce.

A man came out, took off his badge and waved it in front of Yao Xiong.

"Who do you say I am? I am a county official!"

"So what if you're a vagrant? How dare you yell here?!"

"County official?"

Yao Xiong looked at the official badges in their hands and found that they were indeed genuine. He asked again, "The county government has posted a notice that officials are not allowed to abuse their power to bully people or oppress the people. What are you guys doing?"

Hearing this, those people burst into laughter again, rolling on the ground with laughter.

It was the same man. He stood up and looked at Yao Xiong as if he was a fool. "Let alone that we were just joking with the store owner, even if we really did it, what does your county government notice have to do with us? Can your county magistrate control the county officials? How did you become a patrol officer?"

"You know, we are your superiors, we are in charge of you. All you need is a word from me."

"Pfft~~~"

There was a flash of knife light, and Yao Xiong's knife had already cut into the opponent's neck. Yao Xiong continued to exert force, but the knife failed to cut off the opponent's head.

Yao Xiong was very surprised. It was clear that Brother Taozi had been beheaded with just one knife. He wanted to pull the knife out, but found that the knife in his hand did not move at all.

The other party was still talking, and in an instant, blood spurted out from his neck.

The diners screamed and stepped back.

The other two officials were also terrified at this moment, "Murder! Murder! Murder!!"

They shouted, and Yao Xiong couldn't pull out the knife, so he let go, walked forward, drew out the opponent's sword, and chased after him to chop the other person.

A moment later, all three of them fell to the ground. Yao Xiong was panting. Looking at the broken knife in his hand, Yao Xiong was confused. "Why can't I chop heads smoothly? The blade is broken?"

Yao Xiong changed the knife again, and took off the heads of the three people with great effort. He then put them into a string, and then looked at the shop owner on the ground.

The servant had already helped the shopkeeper to sit up, but the shopkeeper was still a little dazed and trembling.

"Don't be afraid. This county official disobeyed the order of my master and has been killed by me!"

Yao Xiong looked around, "Remember this! I am patrolman Yao Xiong! If anyone bullies you in the future, come and report to the authorities! No matter who it is, I will eliminate this evil for the people!!"

Yao Xiong proudly took the head and hung it on the horse. He followed Liu Taozi's example and quickly disappeared on the road.

At this moment, many diners started talking, and more and more people gathered here.

"Are you crazy?!!"

Tian Zili almost pulled his beard out when he looked at the string of heads that Yao Xiong brought.

"These three people bully the people and deserve to be killed!"

Tian Zili's eyes went dark, "These three are damn county officials!"

"So what? If county officials do evil, can't they be killed? Didn't my brother kill four of them yesterday?"

"How can they be the same? They were county officials, and you could have dealt with them at will. But these are county officials. Even if they committed a crime, they should be dealt with by the county government. How could you kill them?"

"You... Yao Xiong! Yao Xiong!"

"I knew I couldn't keep you!!"

Tian Zili's mouth was so angry that it was crooked.

Liu Taozi sat in the upper seat and didn't say a word.

Yao Xiong raised his head stubbornly, "When I was out, my brother told me to patrol the city and the surrounding areas. If I encounter criminals, no matter who they are, I will kill them without mercy!"

"I have already done it, and I have no regrets. If the county government asks for punishment, then I will send my head over there!"

"My life was originally given by my brother, so what if I return it to him?!"

Tian Zili was about to speak when someone walked in quickly and bowed to everyone.

"Lord!!"

Liu Taozi looked at him, "What happened?"

"Some people came from outside, saying they were here to take the county official examination."

Tian Zili was a little confused, "Could it be that Zhao Kai arranged for him to come here?"

Liu Taozi waved his hand and said, "No problem, I told you not to pay attention to him, just recruit officials and restore the county government to normal. Tian Lu Shishi."

"The subordinates are here!!"

"Yao Youjiao has killed three county officials who disobeyed orders and attempted to kill him. Please record this as his merit."

Tian Zili raised his head suddenly, "Wei!!"

Yao Xiong was overjoyed and bowed to Liu Taozi, "Thank you, brother!"

Soon, three more heads appeared at the city gate.

A row of heads floating in the wind has become a rare sight in Liyang. Many people gather here just to see the heads.

Liyang is different from Cheng'an. Human heads are relatively rare here. The ferocious beasts here are more docile when eating humans, but they also chew the most fragile things.

This incident quickly caused an uproar in Liyang, and the crowd who watched that day spread the news throughout the entire county.

There were more and more people who knew how to read queuing up in front of the county government office, which was something Tian Zili had never expected.

Tian Zili decided to set questions for these people himself. He used the same questions that Lu Qubing had used to test them. On the first day, he recruited twenty-nine people.

If the salary can be paid on time, being an official is still very popular, at least you won't be bullied easily.

The dilapidated county government office gradually became lively, and the official doorman appeared at the door.

It was just dawn that day.

Several county officials danced and said these most obscene words, walking slowly towards the city gate.

As soon as they reached the city gate, they saw two clerks sitting at the gate, checking passers-by.

The men were stunned and walked forward cautiously.

"Guys, what does this mean?"

One of them stood up and said, "We are the gatekeepers of the county government, and we are here to do our job."

Hearing this, the faces of the county officials turned black. One of them was about to curse, but subconsciously looked up and saw the floating heads. He slowly closed his mouth, one of them went back to inform, and the other two sat opposite.

Many people came into the city. There was a long queue in front of the county officials, but there were only a few people in front of the county officials.

They didn't care, they just looked up and looked at the lowly guys opposite with disdain.

Suddenly, several carriages drove over, loaded with things. Leading the way was a foreign monk. When the county officials saw the people, they hurriedly stood up, greeted them with a smile, and let them pass.

Just as the carriage was about to enter the city, two county officials blocked the carriage.

The county official was stunned. "What does this mean?"

The county official smiled and said, "This carriage has not been checked yet. Besides..."

"When goods enter the city, they have to pay a tax on goods entering the city, which is 1 in 17. When horse-drawn carriages enter the city, they also have to pay a tax on carriages and boats, which is 300 coins for a large carriage."

"The law is like this, don't blame others."

ps: I have a big framework in my mind, and I want to write a lot of things. This book will probably take a long time to write. Although the first order is not satisfactory, fortunately, the average order has increased sharply in the past few days. I hope it can continue to increase! !

thanks for your support! !

(End of this chapter)