Misty Rain of the Old Times

Chapter 282 Time flies
Shu Yao suddenly understood, his face lit up as he stepped forward and saluted, saying, "It's Brother Chen. Please forgive my poor eyesight. I haven't seen you for many years and you've changed so much that I didn't recognize you. I'm ashamed, ashamed."

He knew the reputation of the Gao family in Yang County and had planned to take some time to visit them, but he had just arrived and had not taken any action yet. Chen Xuan, as Gao Jingming's servant, had known him at Yushan School. Although they had only known each other for a few years, they had a good relationship. It was not surprising that they met on the streets of Yang County now. He was naturally happy to see each other again after a long separation.

The friendship they had in their youth had not become distant at all, but had become even closer. Judging from his words and actions, he was still as humble as he was back then, but there was a hint of complacency between his brows.

After greeting, Chen Xuan couldn't help but sighed: "It doesn't matter. You and I haven't seen each other for many years. It should be that we met but didn't recognize each other. Counting the time, you and I haven't seen each other for more than ten years. Now that you have achieved such a great ambition, I almost dared not recognize you."

"Brother Chen, you are embarrassing me. I haven't dared to put down my books for many years. I have achieved some success by chance, but it is not worth mentioning. I don't deserve the idiom 'ambition to soar to the sky'. I need to work harder to move forward in the future," Shu Yao said with emotion.

Looking back, he couldn't even afford the tuition fees, but the teacher took pity on him and allowed him to do some odd jobs in the school to earn money. Otherwise, he would not have achieved what he has today. He finally made it through.

Although he cannot be said to be deliberately low-key, he is indeed a bit modest. Being a county magistrate in his twenties is already a height that countless people can never reach in their lifetime, but for him, it may just be a starting point.

Although the county magistrate is just a small official in the eyes of many people, under his rule, he is like the sky and holds real power. How many people dare not call him "County Master" when they see him?

"It's a pity that I couldn't congratulate Brother Shu in person when he succeeded. I would like to express my congratulations here. I hope it's not too late," Chen Xuan said with a smile and bowed.

Shu Yao said cheerfully: "Brother Chen, a word is worth a thousand words. We should encourage each other. It's never too late."

While they were talking, the others waited quietly and didn't dare to disturb them.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Shu Yao realized that the street was not the place for conversation and that he had business to attend to. He pondered and apologized, "Brother Chen, we're meeting again. We should have been drinking and reminiscing about the past, but I've been tied up with other things. I hope you'll forgive me. Once I've sorted things out, I'll find time to invite Brother Chen upstairs to reminisce about the past."

"That's right. Brother Shu, your business is more important. Please," Chen Xuan said with understanding.

"I'm ashamed. I'll go ahead and punish that evil villain. Brother Chen, wait for my news." Shu Yao apologized and said goodbye.

After watching him leave, Chen Xuan continued to stroll. They had a good relationship back then. Anyway, he would stay in Yang County for at least a few years, so there was no need to rush.

This time when he went out for a stroll, in addition to looking around Yang County where he had left seven years ago, his main intention was to find a safe place to settle down. Some things will come naturally, and it is time to make preparations early.

But at this time, Chen Xuan was a little confused. He didn't have any goals that he had to achieve. What should he do after leaving the Gao family?
Forget it, why think so much, I'm just bored...

"Sir, who was that just now?" Shu Yao's follower asked in confusion on the way to the county government office.

He smiled and said, "We were classmates back in elementary school. We haven't seen each other for over ten years. I never thought we'd meet again just a few days after arriving in Yang County. This is truly a great blessing in life."

The relationships we make when we are young are the most solid. As we grow older, the people we make friends with tend to be more or less utilitarian.

"Is it?" Shu Yao's follower said in silence.

He is Shu Yao's follower, the one who takes charge of the military, and can be considered as his confidant. At the age of thirty, he has mastered quite advanced martial arts, and he took the initiative to surrender. After all, if he surrenders to a young county magistrate and performs well, he will have a bright future. As the saying goes, if one person succeeds, the whole family will benefit.

Nodding, Shu Yao said, "He wasn't a formal student at the school back then, but rather a companion to his master's young master. We became good friends, and I haven't seen him for many years. I never imagined he'd become such a distinguished person."

"So he is just a study boy. Why bother to care about him, sir? It is too much of a courtesy to him." The attendant said indifferently. His boss was the head of a county, but he treated a study boy with courtesy and condescension. He really lowered his status.

Upon hearing this, Shu Yao frowned slightly and said, "How can I neglect a friend from the past? Do you think that all these years of studying have been wasted on me?"

"Please calm down, sir. That's not what I meant," the follower apologized hurriedly in panic.

Shaking his head, Shu Yao's brows relaxed as he said, "You, too, are narrow-minded. Haven't you heard that there are always people better than you? You only know that he's a servant, and yet you think you're trying to establish a relationship with me?"

Isn't it? The follower muttered in his heart, but dared not say it, waiting for the next step. Then Shu Yao said: "Originally, sincerity is the most important thing in making friends with others, and nothing else matters. But now I have to remind you, don't underestimate anyone. Brother Chen Xuan may be just a servant, but you have to consider whose servant he is. He is the personal study companion of Gao Jingming of the Gao family. My position as a small county magistrate is actually nothing in his eyes."

Hearing this, the follower hissed in his heart and said quickly: "It is my subordinate who is blind. You know, sir, I am just a rough man. Don't blame me, don't blame me."

How powerful was the Gao family? How could the attendants who followed Shu Yao to take office not know this? And what kind of person was the personal tutor of the Gao family's successor? To be frank, even visiting the county magistrate's home was like being a guest of honor. It was too easy to manipulate a mere county magistrate.

Mr. Gao is the governor of a state, and he has an even more powerful princess, Gao Jingyu. With such a background, even though Chen Xuan is just a book boy, who dares to look down on him?
When the two returned to the county government office, Shu Yao immediately set about dealing with the evil teahouse owner. As an official, it was his right to deal with evil people. He would not abuse his power and deal with them arbitrarily just because they contradicted him. Otherwise, he would be branded as a vindictive person.

The matter of the five copper coins was just an inducement. After the person was put in jail, Shu Yao sent people to investigate his past illegal deeds. Such people must be thoroughly investigated and severely punished, otherwise, who knows how many more people will be persecuted in the future. In comparison, what are the mere five copper coins?
The evil owner of the teahouse had a long history of bad deeds. In the past, many people dared not speak out, but an investigation was shocking. He relied on the protection of a brother constable to protect him. In addition to oppressing the good, he also robbed and forced women into prostitution. All these crimes added up were enough to deserve death.

As the saying goes, a new official has three major things to do when he takes office. If someone happened to run into him, wouldn't Shu Yao know how to use this opportunity to significantly boost his reputation? He could also use it as a chance to pressure the entire county government and firmly grasp power in his own hands.

This is how officialdom works.

It was originally just a matter of five copper coins, but due to Shu Yao's actions, it turned into a serious crime to punish the most treacherous and evildoers.

Even if the evidence is conclusive, this matter still needs to go through several days of procedures. Since it involves a serious crime punishable by beheading, it must be reported to the superiors for review. Anyway, the first thing Shu Yao did when he returned to the county government office was to remove the brothers of the evil teahouse owner from their positions as captains of police and put them under investigation. He has the right to send them to jail directly once he has the evidence.

However, Shu Yao had climbed up from the bottom of society after all. His family was not rich when he was young, and he knew very well how difficult it was to be at the bottom of society. Therefore, before handling the case, he asked someone to send five copper coins earned from selling charcoal to Su Roujia. This money would definitely be paid by the evil boss later. One thing is fair, and that is what we call justice.

In addition, he also sent some food and oil gifts worth not much money to convey his apologies for the poor performance of his rule. Even though he had just arrived, this incident happened during his term of office and was his business.

Whether Shu Yao can be a good official, the public will judge him in the future, but as a person, there is nothing wrong with him at the moment...

Chen Xuan strolled around the county town for a day and returned to Gao's house in the evening. He noticed two places where he could live, but he was not very satisfied with either of them. However, he had not finished looking at Yang County yet, so he was not in a hurry.

He had lived in Yang County for several years, but he had been following Gao Jingming almost all the time. He was familiar with the place, but he didn't know every corner of it by heart. Moreover, seven years had passed, and many places had changed, so he had to get to know them all over again.

He didn't have a clear idea about where to live yet, so he just went with his feeling. If his feeling was right, any place could become his safe place.

After returning, Gao Jingming didn't know what he was busy with, and no one told Chen Xuan what to do, so he was happy and relaxed.

Lying in bed late at night, Chen Xuan recalled his day's experiences. He did nothing but wander around aimlessly.

Chen Xuan spent the next few days like this, leaving early and returning late, wandering around the county looking for a safe place to live. After Gao Jingming returned, there was an endless stream of people visiting him every day, and he was very busy. Chen Xuan didn't need to worry about these interpersonal relationships.

During the process, Chen Xuan occasionally heard about Shu Yao's subsequent handling of the incident. The evil boss of the teahouse was guilty of serious crimes and could not avoid going to Caishikou. His crime had been reported to the higher authorities and he was only waiting for approval to be executed in the autumn. The evil boss's brothers, the captains of the police, had protected him for many years. Although they did not personally participate in some major cases, they knew that breaking the law could not be forgiven lightly, so they were stripped of their positions and sentenced to exile for three thousand miles. They were not allowed to return home without pardon. This was no different from a death sentence. In addition, some of his followers were also severely sentenced, with the minimum sentence being three years in prison, and the maximum sentence being that they could prepare for their funeral after they were released.

As soon as the news came out, Shu Yao, the new county magistrate, became famous. He dealt with a group of bullies with swift and decisive actions. For a while, the common people felt that justice had come.

In addition, Chen Xuan also learned a little about the situation of several familiar people at that time. Zhou Lin went to another place with his father, Deng Lingfeng had begun to take over the family business and went out to escort, Tian Xueyu went out to study and had not returned yet, Luo Taiyun gave up the imperial examination and had begun to take over the family business. He was still in the county and had visited the Gao family, but Chen Xuan was out for a stroll at that time and did not meet him.

Time flies. The former "Five Tigers of Yang County" have now gone their separate ways. When will they reunite?

No matter what, the friendship we had back then will not change, it will only become stronger and stronger.

That day, Chen Xuan arrived at a remote part of the county town. There were piles of weeds and no houses within a few hundred meters. In an inconspicuous corner, beneath a pile of rocks, the soil was moist. There must be groundwater. After a quick look, he thought to himself, this must be it...

(End of this chapter)