I bring bad luck to my husband, you bring bad luck to your wife.

Two days later, the government officials and soldiers who came to confiscate the property returned home under the leadership of Military Advisor Sima.

These past two days, everyone in the government office has been keeping a low profile.

The Du family was small, so they filled two prison carts. The remaining servants didn't even get to ride in the carts and had to walk behind them.

As you walk through the market, it's inevitable that onlookers will gather.

Yang Tongchuan and his men were responsible for maintaining order.

His work was only finished when he escorted the person to the city gate.

After seeing off these high-ranking officials, the registrar actually invited Yang Tongchuan for drinks that evening.

And he told Yang Tongchuan some important news.

The new county magistrate has been appointed and will arrive soon. The position of county lieutenant has just become vacant, but it will soon be filled. After all, the situation of redundant officials is serious now, and any vacancy will be filled quickly.

As for the clerk, it's a pity he wasn't promoted; he'll continue as the clerk.

"If this hadn't happened, things would have been fine. But now that this has happened, I'll be stuck here for a few more years." The clerk's background is so ordinary that he's always been slow to get promoted. Now he'll have to work for several more years, and his prime years will be tied to Changxing County.

Yang Tongchuan felt a mix of emotions; it was truly a case of an ironclad camp with ever-changing soldiers.

I just saw off one old man, and now another one is coming.

The chaotic situation continued until the hottest days of summer in June, when a new county magistrate and county lieutenant took office.

The new county magistrate was appointed through family connections; he was all talk and no action, and his only redeeming quality was that he was relatively lenient with his subordinates.

The registrar is tired and has even more work to do.

The new county magistrate is a newly appointed scholar who has passed the imperial examination. He is ambitious, upright, and came here mainly to gain experience.

Upon arrival, they immediately gave the constables of the yamen a thorough reorganization.

Yang Tongchuan suffered a lot as a result.

The new county magistrate is named Zhou Yihong. He is nearly thirty years old, from an ordinary family, and has a widowed mother. Because he is focused on his studies, he has not yet married.

Not long after arriving in Changxing County

County Magistrate Zhou rented a small courtyard near the yamen and bought a maid in the area to serve his widowed mother.

Yang Tongchuan didn't dare ask why it was rented instead of bought, because this County Magistrate Zhou was a bit stubborn; once he made up his mind, nothing anyone else could change it.

He returned home that evening.

Yang Tongchuan was in a sorry state.

"Where have you been again? You're all sweaty." Xiangxi handed Yang Tongchuan a cup of cooled green tea to cool him down.

As the weather got warmer, Xiangxi noticed that Yang Tongchuan came home covered in sweat every day and had lost weight.

"As County Magistrate Zhou said, 'Practice makes perfect,' and today he led us in practicing swordsmanship all afternoon."

"He knows martial arts too!" Xiangxi was surprised that Zhou, the county magistrate, was also skilled in swordsmanship.

"No, County Lieutenant Zhou was just standing there watching us practice." Yang Tongchuan really couldn't understand this young county lieutenant.

You might say he's making things difficult for people, but he himself is also baking in the sun.

You might say he doesn't make things difficult for people, but by the end, while the constables were alright, County Lieutenant Zhou's cheeks were numb from the sun, his face was pale, and he almost fainted.

The next day, County Lieutenant Zhou still looked unwell.

Yang Tongchuan thought he had suffered from heatstroke from being in the sun yesterday and hadn't recovered yet.

Seeing that no one was around, County Lieutenant Zhou approached Yang Tongchuan and whispered his question.

"Officer Yang, it seems like our house is haunted. Do you know any Taoist priests or anything who can exorcise ghosts?"

"County Magistrate Zhou is joking. You are an official appointed by the imperial court, full of righteousness. Evil spirits and such things would avoid you. How dare they act so presumptuously in your house?"

"Seriously, this house isn't clean. I always hear noises under the bed. At first, I thought it was rats digging in their holes, but even after putting out rat poison, it didn't work. Sometimes, the digging sound seems to be mixed with a strange noise."

"County Commandant Zhou, is the wall too thin? The sounds of your neighbor's loving couple at night are reaching you here," Yang Tongchuan joked.

"The sounds are different," County Lieutenant Zhou denied immediately.

He hadn't been renting the house for long. When he first moved in, he was busy during the day and slept soundly at night, so he didn't pay attention to any noises. But recently, the noises have been getting more and more eerie at night, and he's starting to get scared.

[You're not married, how do you know if the situation is the same or not?] Yang Tongchuan thought to himself.

"The broker who rented this house to you knows you are a county magistrate. Even if he had a lot of guts, he wouldn't dare rent you a dirty house."

"There really is some noise. If you don't believe me, go listen tonight. It's especially noticeable in the second half of the night." The more County Magistrate Zhou thought about it, the more frightened he became.

[Ugh~] Yang Tongchuan felt a bit disgusted.

Which animal would willingly go to its boss's house in the middle of the night to exorcise ghosts for them after get off work?

Despite the complaints, this "ghost" still needs to be caught.

That evening, after finishing dinner at home and almost going to bed, Yang Tongchuan changed into his uniform and prepared to go out.

"Are you going on patrol tonight?" Xiangxi hadn't seen Yang Tongchuan go out on patrol at night for a long time.

"No, something came up at County Magistrate Zhou's house. He asked me to go check on it; it seems like his house has been infested with rats."

"He made you catch mice for him in the middle of the night? That's outrageous!"

"Whether it's excessive or not is just a matter of words. I won't be back until the middle of the night. After I'm done, I'll just go to the yamen and have a quick meal before dawn."

"Okay, if we can't catch it, that's fine. I'll borrow a cat from Meng Dongqing. He has a big black cat that's really fierce. Let it go and catch it."

"Okay, I know. Go to sleep now."

Yang Tongchuan dared not tell Xiangxi that he was going to "catch ghosts," otherwise he would be too scared to sleep at night.

Arriving at County Magistrate Zhou's house, the courtyard was quite old.

Logically speaking, a county magistrate's monthly salary shouldn't be enough to live in such a place. Is this genuine poverty or feigned integrity? Yang Tongchuan was somewhat puzzled.

When County Magistrate Zhou saw Yang Tongchuan arrive, he was very happy and quickly led Yang Tongchuan into his bedroom.

"It's right here. I heard it very clearly when I was lying in bed at night," County Lieutenant Zhou said, pointing to his wooden bed.

Yang Tongchuan moved the bed aside and searched carefully underneath, but found no mouse holes or snake nests.

"There really was some noise; we could hear it in the middle of the night."

Well, Yang Tongchuan can only wait it out inside.

County Magistrate Zhou was lying in bed, while Yang Tongchuan was sleeping on the floor.

Yang Tongchuan still felt a little awkward with two grown men in the same room and couldn't sleep, so he could only close his eyes and rest.

In the latter half of the night, Yang Tongchuan, who was lying on his side, indeed heard some rat gnawing noises.

"Officer Yang, did you hear that?" County Lieutenant Zhou's sudden voice startled Yang Tongchuan.

"I heard it, it must be a mouse." But there was clearly no mouse nest under the bed.

Yang Tongchuan followed the sound carefully and found that it was coming from the corner of the wall.

"It sounds like the noise is coming from next door. What room is next door?"

"It's a cellar, but it's too hot to use now, so it's just sitting idle." The Zhou County Magistrate's family only has three people, including the maid, so they can buy food as needed. This cellar has been sitting idle, and they plan to clean it in winter.

"I suspect the grain in the cellar has attracted rats. I'll go check it out."

Yang Tongchuan arrived at the cellar. As soon as he opened the door, he saw ashes everywhere, illuminated by the candlelight.