Fu Shanhe

Chapter 15 Hot Potato
Gossip is always the best way to bring people closer together.

Make a pot of tea, gather a few colleagues together to chat and eat melons, and the day's work is over.

Compared to the days of cattle and horses before the time travel, this is real life.

It's not that Li Mu was derelict in his duty. It's simply the nature of an office like the Wucheng Bingmasi that dictates that the more free time he has, the better.

Daily street patrols and handling of civil disputes are the jobs of the younger brothers.

In the southern part of the city, as long as nothing serious happens, it's almost fine.

The reason why he, the official of a thousand households, was required to take personal action was either because a major case had occurred or because there was a fight among some playboys.

Most of the powerful and wealthy people live in West City and do not live in the same circle. There are very few playboys who go to South City to cause trouble.

Now all he needs is a legal advisor to draft official documents and handle miscellaneous matters for him.

These are all minor problems. The Dayu Dynasty lacks everything except people.

The imperial examination was like a thousand troops crossing a single-plank bridge. Except for a few lucky ones who could make it through, 99% of the students failed.

Knowing the difficulty of the imperial examination, those with quick minds would choose to take shortcuts and become officials' staff.

After working for more than ten or twenty years, if the benefactor you follow climbs up the ladder, you can get a government position along with your family members.

Even if the benefactor does not succeed, he can still use this platform to expand his network of contacts and earn a considerable commission.

In fact, Li Mu had already booked a legal advisor when he was in Hanzhong.

Unfortunately, the scholar was unlucky. His mother passed away just before he set out, so he had to stay in his hometown to observe mourning for three years.

The new advisor was recommended by his uncle's staff, a Shaoxing juren who had failed in the imperial examinations many times and was now on his way from his hometown.

In the Dayu Dynasty, as long as one passed the imperial examination, one would become a member of the ruling class and be qualified to be appointed as an official.

Under normal circumstances, it would be difficult for Li Mu to recruit juren given his current position.

People were willing to be recruited, not only because of the title of the Marquisate, but also mainly because it would facilitate the imperial examinations.

For children from poor families who lack connections, being able to be labeled as a member of a marquisate is also a valuable political resource.

The Dengwen Drum incident, in addition to providing fodder for gossip, also put an end to his welcoming banquet.

As an official under the emperor, it is always better to keep a low profile.

If you hold a grand banquet when the emperor is most worried, once it is reported to the omnipresent Jinyiwei, your future will definitely be bleak.

……

"Go and see what's going on."

Li Mu frowned and gave the order.

If he had encountered this kind of thing yesterday, he would have simply taken a detour.

But it’s not possible now. Once you join the Wucheng Bingmasi, you have to fulfill the corresponding duties.

"Sir, someone has posted a notice on the wall. The content on it is related to the Dengwen Drum incident that happened this morning."

Upon hearing the news brought back by his men, Li Mu's expression suddenly became serious.

Only a few hours had passed since the Dengwengu incident, and even those well-informed people in the yamen did not know the truth.

Now someone actually knows the inside story and announces it in such an extreme way. There must be someone behind it.

"Disperse the crowd!"

Li Mu gave the order decisively.

No matter who did it, since it appeared within his jurisdiction, emergency measures must be taken.

Even if the news spreads, remedial measures are still necessary. This is a matter of attitude.

"The Five Cities Military Department is investigating a case. All outsiders, please stay out of the way!" Li Mu walked forward along the path cleared by the soldiers. After seeing the content of the notice, his face instantly became gloomier.

I knew the party struggles would be fierce, but I didn't expect these guys to be so good at playing games.

According to the rules of the game, political struggles are played behind closed doors. How can one directly overturn the table?

Li Mu believed the accusations that the mining tax supervisor was greedy, levying heavy taxes, and plundering people.

It would be difficult to collect taxes if we go to the Qingliu Group's base camp to collect taxes without causing any trouble to establish our authority.

It's simply that these guys couldn't control their greed, didn't grasp the right degree, and messed up the tasks assigned by the emperor.

If you want to deal with them, you can collect evidence according to normal procedures and bring it to the court to impeach them, and you can bring them down.

Emperor Tianyuan appointed eunuchs to check and balance civil officials for the sake of the country.

Once eunuchs become parasites that endanger the country, they will be dealt with ruthlessly.

For the emperor, executing a eunuch was much easier than executing a civil servant.

But Qingliu did not play by the rules. He directly made the matter known to everyone by reporting it to the police.

The rules of the game are to protect all participants. When one group no longer abides by the rules, the next struggle is to see who has the lower bottom line.

For the eunuch group, this is certainly a political disaster at the moment, but while the Qingliu group is gaining the advantage, it is also offending Emperor Tianyuan.

Cracking down on eunuchs and criticizing reformists are all routine political struggles.

The Dengwen Drum is different, it will be recorded in history books.

For the emperor, even the slightest mishandling of the matter would be a clear political stain.

Unless Emperor Tianyuan makes concessions and meets the demands of the Qingliu Group, this incident will definitely be magnified by historians.

From the emperor's point of view, this is a naked threat.

If Emperor Tianyuan was someone who easily compromised, how could he have pushed for reforms under such pressure?

Li Mu vaguely sensed that something was wrong.

Using explosive means to intensify conflicts does gain an advantage in the grand scheme of things, but it does not bring any substantial benefits to the fragmented Qingliu Group.

Especially for those clean officials who hold power in the court, if they make things worse, they will put themselves in danger.

From now on, the party struggle will enter a white-hot stage, and there will be no possibility of easing between the eunuch party and the clean stream.

One side must fall for this struggle to end.

"What are you standing there for? Tear it off!"

"Pass the order down, order all the Qianhu officers to go out and confiscate these illegal items.

Tell the people that if they don’t want to go to the imperial prison, tear down any illegal objects on their walls immediately and don’t spread rumors.”

Li Mu didn't have time to find out the truth. He was the unlucky fish caught in the fire at the city gate.

The Wucheng Bingmasi had a very broad range of responsibilities, which also included combating rumors and maintaining social stability.

Once it is confirmed that the news came from South City, his tenure as a captain who had just taken office for one day would be over.

Fortunately, this is the South City, where most of the people living here are from the lower nine classes. The political status in Dayu is extremely low, and they are most afraid of getting themselves into trouble. The Five City Army and Horse Division has a strong deterrent effect here.

It may be difficult to control people's mouths, but it is still possible to ask them to help clean up the notices on their walls.

As long as things were cleaned up in time, Li Mu could pretend nothing had happened.

To track down the mastermind behind this, we should wait for the imperial court’s order.

Historical experience tells him that when it comes to party struggles, he should avoid getting involved if possible.

(End of this chapter)