The elite did not migrate south

Chapter 358 This is good

Chenliu State, Fengqiu.

As a large county, Fengqiu is quite prosperous and lively.

The previous rebellion did not have much impact on this area, and the people here have the most stable living environment in the Wei Dynasty.

At this moment, several officials rode their horses and galloped through the county like crazy. People passing by avoided them. Several people's stalls were overturned, and several people were accidentally knocked down.

But no one dared to shout or curse. They just knelt on the ground and explained in horror: We didn’t mean to block the road!

Fortunately, the officials had important matters to deal with at the moment and were in no mood to pay attention to these people who were maliciously trying to block them.

In fact, since the Western Han Dynasty, riding horses and carriages in the city has been illegal.

Only postmen have the right to ride horses in the city, and only in cases of urgent military information.

The rest of the people could only lead their horses forward, or ride on horses and be led by their own slaves.

Most nobles choose to ride in cars, but again, they must go slowly and not rush around.

But in today's era, the law is like waste paper to the children of wealthy families, civil and military officials, and even local officials.

They did not hide anything they did. The worst corrupt officials of the Later Han Dynasty, like the relatives of the Ten Attendants, did their bad deeds in secret, such as asking for bribes and robbing women, all of which they did secretly.

But nowadays, the rich live a bright and open life!
Everything we do is done in an open and aboveboard manner.

In the mouths of the people, this is called free and easy, open-minded, and heroic!
At this moment, these officials rushed towards the county government office with great heroism.

When they rushed to the door, several soldiers came to greet them, and the leader suddenly jumped off his horse.

"Where's the county lady?! Where's the county lady?!"

"In the courtyard."

The man pushed the soldiers away and led his men in.

The county government office was empty.

Few officials came to work, which shows why Sima Anshi, during the Taikang reign, dared to say that there were no poor people in the world and no unjust cases in the county government.

Indeed, if you have killed all the poor people, where are the poor people left? As for unjust cases, there is no one in the county government, so how can there be any unjust cases?

When these people rushed into the inner courtyard, a group of people were dancing wildly.

No one knew what kind of dance this was. It did not conform to any other dance in history. The magistrate of Fengqiu County was completely naked, and several officials and celebrities in the county who were accompanying him were also in disheveled clothes.

In front of them were various kinds of fine wine, cold food, and stone powder.

Obviously, these people had just been dispersed, and the county magistrate was still in a frenzy. He was shouting and yelling. There was clearly no music in the courtyard, and they were not singing, but he was dancing wildly.

It was as if there was some beautiful music playing in a continuous loop in his ears.

The performances of the other few people were also different.

The county lieutenant was following behind the county magistrate, dancing with him.

Several officials were still chasing in the courtyard, just keeping their heads down and hurrying along, round and round.

A famous scholar was hugging a tree in the courtyard and crying bitterly.

Upon seeing this scene, the county magistrate who came here felt a darkness before his eyes.

He hurriedly ordered the people around him: "Send them all back! Send them back! Let them wake up as soon as possible!!"

The people who came with him also knew the seriousness of the situation and rushed out to help those people.

The county magistrate personally went to the county magistrate and hurriedly stopped the wildly dancing county magistrate.

"My Lord, something terrible has happened! The Imperial Court Minister is here to inspect!"

But this county lady was so high in the sky that she couldn't listen to any of this.

Looking at the sweaty county magistrate in front of him, the county magistrate grinned, took his hand and started jumping again.

At this moment, the county magistrate almost collapsed.

It’s bad. What should I do?
If the Minister of the Interior, holding the imperial seal, saw such a scene, the County Magistrate would quickly order someone to bring cold water, and would not care about the County Lord's status, and would force the other person to sober up with cold water.

After being splashed with cold water several times, the county lord's body seemed to have returned to normal temperature. He shuddered and then looked at the county magistrate in embarrassment.

"how?"

"My Lord, the Minister of the Interior is here with his imperial seal and is about to enter the city!"

The county magistrate suddenly woke up and asked in astonishment, "That's not right. Didn't they say we were going to get rid of the sour jujubes?"

"Yeah, I was supposed to go to Suanzao, but for some reason, I ended up here!"

"Could it be an imposter?"

The county magistrate suddenly asked.

The county magistrate was speechless. Who was so audacious as to pretend to be a minister holding imperial seal?
It seems that the county magistrate is still not fully awake.

"My Lady, please change your clothes now. Don't delay any longer. The one who has come is Minister Zheng. His daughter is in the palace now, so don't offend her."

The county magistrate laughed out loud when he heard this.

“You don’t have to be afraid!”

"My eldest grandfather had a very close friendship with him in the past. I treat him as an elder. Everyone, make good preparations. I'm going to meet my second-in-command!"

The county magistrate looked up, extremely happy.

The county magistrate suddenly remembered that the great-grandfather of this county lord was the late Grand Coachman Guo Yuan, who had once studied under Zheng Xuan.

The two families do have some connections, and perhaps, as the county lady said, it won't be too difficult.

The county magistrate finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The county lady quickly tidied her clothes, hurried out, and led people to greet them.

But when they were halfway there, they encountered the troops brought by the minister.

Seeing the minister chatting with some common people in the distance, the county magistrate felt his scalp tingling.

Because these people were the ones he had just knocked over.

One of them seemed to be injured and was helped up by several people.

Zheng Xiaotong came here without informing the local authorities in advance, nor did he allow any officials to clear the road. He just broke in directly and saw the mess on the road.

But when faced with this majestic and serious official, the common people stammered and were unable to speak. When asked, they said that he had fallen accidentally and did not dare to mention the knights just now.

The officials of the Wei Dynasty, especially those nowadays, really cannot be trusted.

They are like snakes and rats in the same nest, and officials protect each other. They have long lost the support of the people.

"Father Zhong!!"

The Duke of Guoxian walked over quickly and excitedly bowed to Zheng Xiaotong, interrupting his question.

After hearing this, the people were even more frightened, fortunately they were not deceived.

Zheng Xiaotong's face suddenly turned dark.

"I hold the title of King of Arms, how dare you address me like that?!"

The county magistrate reacted and quickly saluted again, this time in a much more formal manner.

Zheng Xiaotong frowned, and the county magistrate and others beside him did not dare to speak at all. The difference in their ranks was too great. The county magistrate dared to speak to others like this because the two of them knew each other. Otherwise, he might not even have the qualifications to speak.

Let alone these people.

Zheng Xiaotong said seriously: "I am here under the order of His Majesty to investigate the grievances of the people and the talents and behavior of the officials. I have no ties to anyone at this time!"

The county magistrate did not dare to say anything more at this moment, and nodded his head.

Zheng Xiaotong asked those people to leave, and then followed County Magistrate Guo towards the county government office.

"Master Zheng, is my brother okay?"

Zheng Xiaotong looked at the county magistrate Guo who was standing beside him. Of course, he knew this man. His great-grandfather Guo Yuan was his own great-grandfather's favorite student. He used to visit him often and was very kind to Zheng Xiaotong.

Guoyuan was a serious person, who spoke sternly, dared to speak out, and was upright and resolute. He once wrote a letter to promote the military farming system, fully exerting his management skills, balancing policy pros and cons in many aspects, distributing the land for military farming to the people, and arranging officials to follow up according to the proportion of the people. He also listed various implementation measures for military farming. In just five years, the country's granaries were full and the people were able to live and work in peace and contentment.

What is admirable is that Guoyuan was honest, simple and poor. Even though he served as one of the Nine Ministers, he still wore cloth clothes and ate vegetarian food. He distributed his salary and rewards to his relatives and friends, while remaining humble and frugal.

As for his son Guotai, he had no talent at all, but like his father, he dared to speak the truth, so he was appointed as a counselor after Guoyuan's death.

As for his grandson, he inherited neither talent nor morality, and became nothing.

Zheng Xiaotong felt a little sad, but so did he.

His son had no talent in either the study of classics or government.
Zheng Xuan’s Confucian classics tradition is about to be broken.

Interestingly, the most powerful inheritor of Zheng Xuan’s Confucian classics today is the current emperor.

Zheng Xiaotong saw the red eyes of County Magistrate Guo and the way he pulled his collar from time to time, as if he understood something.

But when they arrived at the county government office, the county was still empty.

"Sir, you may not know that the county's government affairs are in good order. Officials are busy and diligent in various places. I have sent people to call them back from all over the place."

Zheng Xiaotong ignored him and directly asked for the local performance assessments and files from recent days.

The county officials were in a panic.

Just as Zheng Xiaotong was carefully checking these files and various documents, County Magistrate Guo couldn't help it. He became hot all over again and his eyes became more and more blurred.

His medication process was forcibly interrupted and he did not seem to be truly awake.

Suddenly, he roared, began to tear off his clothes, and then rushed away quickly.

Upon seeing this scene, the county magistrate's legs went weak.

Zheng Xiaotong slowly put down the file in his hand, his eyes becoming extremely cold.

"Mr. Zheng! Mr. Zheng! Please don't be offended!"

"Governor Deng Gong once dismissed many people in Yanzhou. The administration here is the best, and no major incidents have ever occurred. Therefore, officials often engage in elegant activities."

The county magistrate stepped forward helplessly to explain. At this point, he no longer cared whether his status was worthy of speaking to the minister. If he didn't speak up, everyone would be doomed together.

Zheng Xiaotong's eyes became extremely sad.

Because what the county magistrate said was even the truth.

Deng Ai governed Yanzhou well. He dismissed many incompetent and mediocre people, rectified the officials, and brought the level of administration in Yanzhou to a relatively high level within the Wei Dynasty.

But this is also the reason why Zheng Xiaotong feels sad.

This is actually a good official.

Can this kind of official behavior really be rectified?
(End of this chapter)