The playboy county magistrate

These local gentry are adept at assessing the situation, seeking advantage and avoiding harm, and are even more skilled at enduring hardship and feigning submission. Today, their public admission of defeat, apology, and donation of money and goods to show weakness may seem like genuine repentance and submission, but in reality, it is the most shrewd and safest plan for self-preservation.

Firstly, it could wash away the guilt of spreading rumors, disrupting the government, and obstructing the new policies, thus stabilizing their family's foundation and preventing the government from taking the opportunity to settle scores. Secondly, it could completely paralyze the government, creating the illusion that the new policies in Fuyu County were unimpeded, the people were loyal, and the local area was stable, perfectly concealing the traces and delaying the time for their insidious and vicious scheme.

In particular, Diao Mao's previous expression of submission, which seemed sincere, was actually full of flaws. Instead of making Li Xuanzhi lower his guard, it completely confirmed all the suspicions in his heart.

The more docile, humble, and impeccable someone appears on the surface, the more ruthless and deadly their hidden killing moves will be.

Moreover, Diao Mao and his entourage were all top local gentry from the surrounding counties, and none of them were natives of Fuyu County.

How could a local gentry abandon what is near and seek what is far, going to a neighboring county to donate grain and goods to support the new policies? Such a seemingly selfless act is itself full of strangeness, absurd and laughable.

In addition, he understood the deepest fears of the imperial court.

Throughout history, emperors and those in power have been most afraid of local officials who control resources, artisans, and monopolize industries, forming their own independent entities and breaking free from the control of the imperial court.

Diao Mao spent his years mingling in local areas, seemingly unremarkable, yet his network of connections extended throughout the surrounding region. Moreover, he was favored by powerful figures and secretly instructed to make arrangements for them, which must mean he was well-versed in the rules of checks and balances in the imperial court and the constraints of the law.

This person disdains open conflict with him and only wants to use a lawsuit and a few ironclad laws of the court to take advantage of the state government's accountability and the court's suspicion, so as to uproot and completely destroy the foundation of Fuyu County that he has painstakingly built and is just starting out, without losing a single soldier.

This is no longer a simple power struggle between local forces, but a rule-based, dimensional-reducing struggle.

If it were an ordinary official, seeing through all these layers of scheming, he would already be filled with fear and in a dilemma.

Continuing mining and iron smelting, and pushing forward with the new policies, would solidify the charges of violating regulations and disrupting governance, leaving them to await accountability and punishment from their superiors. However, if they were to stop now, all their hard work would be wasted, the county's new policies would be abandoned halfway, and public morale would collapse instantly. At that point, these local gentry would surely seize the opportunity to retaliate, and not only would the county magistrate face a difficult situation for decades to recover, let alone the entire Fuyu County.

The other party wanted to use the rules of the imperial court to trap and strangle him.

He then seized the opportunity and launched a counterattack.

Li Xuanzhi's gaze was calm as he slowly spoke, his tone flat and unwavering, revealing no trace of joy or anger. He readily accepted the group's show of weakness: "You gentry have acknowledged your mistakes and are willing to donate funds to support workshops, infrastructure, and people's livelihoods. I have seen and appreciated your repentance and desire to do good."

Upon hearing this, the group of local gentry felt a slight sense of relief, secretly exchanging glances, their eyes filled with smug delight.

In their view, the young magistrate was still young and impetuous, and inexperienced. Seeing that everyone had bowed down and submitted and voluntarily spent money, he had already let go of his resentment and completely fallen into their trap.

Diao Mao lowered his eyes and bowed deeply, his tone becoming even more sincere and humble, feigning sincerity as he said, "Your Excellency's diligence in governing and love for the people has brought blessings to this region, which is a blessing for the people of Fuyu. We have come to our senses and will certainly follow Your Excellency's orders with all our might, fulfill our duties faithfully, and never harbor any disloyalty or cause any trouble."

"Very well." Li Xuanzhi responded calmly, his tone gentle yet carrying an undeniable authority, "Since you are all sincere in repenting and turning to good, and are willing to contribute to the development of the county."

He glanced at the entire room, taking in the slight relief on everyone's faces, and then calmly delivered his important instructions: "From now on, I will trouble you local gentry to take charge of the many complicated matters such as the guarding and patrolling of mines in the county, the daily supervision of government offices, the resettlement and dispatch of displaced people, and the transfer and storage of iron smelting materials. Each of you will be responsible for your respective duties and responsibilities, and work together with the government to manage local affairs."

The moment the words left his mouth, the atmosphere in the hall froze.

Diao Mao's body stiffened abruptly, his bowing motion halted on the spot, and the sincere smile on his face froze instantly.

The other local gentry also instantly changed their expressions, their hearts sinking as a strong sense of foreboding swept over them.

Their visit today is to feign weakness to lull their opponents into a false sense of security and to secretly lay traps, not to serve the government or help their opponents consolidate their new policies!

But the words have already been spoken and the promise made. If one were to refuse or decline in public now, all the previous act of humility, repentance, and sincere submission would be rendered meaningless. Not only would it be a waste of effort, but it would also leave one with solid evidence of "feigned submission, ulterior motives, and deceiving the government," completely handing the enemy a handle against them.

Caught between a rock and a hard place, the group could only suppress their frustration and panic, and bow their heads with stiff, hoarse voices: "We... obey your command."

His lowered eyes were filled with unconcealed regret and remorse.

On the main seat, a barely perceptible glint of cold light flashed in Li Xuanzhi's eyes, disappearing in an instant, while his expression remained calm and composed.

Do you want to feign submission, secretly observe, and wait for him to break the law and fail?

In that case, he first bound this group of scheming gentry firmly to the new political chariot of Fuyu County, making it impossible for them to extricate themselves!

From now on, every new policy measure, from mining to workshop operation to ironware mass production, will be personally supervised and endorsed by these gentry families.

When new policies benefit the people and the county prospers in the future, they will be the local worthies and meritorious officials who will benefit from the situation.

But once a storm breaks out and the higher-ups hold them accountable, they will be seen as accomplices who participated in the whole thing and were complicit in the chaos, and they will not be able to escape their crimes!

A group of cunning old foxes who tried to watch from the sidelines and use others to do their dirty work. They thought they had figured out human nature and understood the rules perfectly.

Today, we must make them carefully consider whether they have the ability to remain uninvolved and contend with him.

He wanted to see for himself whether these local gentry, who valued their lives and property and had been entrenched in the area for generations, valued their family's accumulated wealth more, or whether they were determined to take the risk and help outsiders suppress the new policies of Fuyu and overthrow him, the county magistrate.

With his mind made up, Li Xuanzhi remained expressionless and calmly raised his hand to signal, "You may all step down."

The local gentry felt a tightness in their chests, filled with resentment but unable to refute it, and could only suppress their scheming thoughts.

The crowd maintained a respectful posture, bowed in unison, and walked heavily out of the county government hall.

Only after stepping out of the vermilion gates of the county government and escaping the oppressive aura of Li Xuanzhi did everyone completely shed their humble pretense, their faces turning grim and tense.

A gentle breeze swept by, and everyone felt a chill in their heart, a nameless panic and lingering fear rising within them.

The more they thought about it, the more frightened and frustrated they became.

It was clearly a meticulously planned scheme, a deliberate attempt to trap Li Xuanzhi. How did they end up following the other party's rhythm step by step, walking right into Li Xuanzhi's pre-prepared snare, and needlessly putting themselves in the eye of the storm?

Inside the lobby.

Magistrate Cao stood to one side, hesitating repeatedly, but finally could not suppress the worry in his heart. He quickly stepped forward, lowered his voice, and cupped his hands in greeting:

"My lord, I dare to speak frankly. These local gentry have always been driven by profit and extremely selfish. Their current submissive and obedient behavior is highly unusual and may conceal something extremely suspicious."

He paused, his tone growing increasingly serious, as he revealed his deepest concerns:

"Furthermore, operating mines and manufacturing ironware privately are ultimately against the old laws. Now that the local gentry are acting covertly, if the prefectural government receives false accusations and takes the opportunity to pursue the matter, how will you, sir, extricate yourself? I am truly worried!"

Having followed Li Xuanzhi for some time, Magistrate Cao had long been impressed by the young magistrate's magnanimity, courage, and concern for the people.

He deeply admired Li Xuanzhi's reforms and hoped that Fuyu County could completely escape poverty.

What I fear most is that this good official, who is wholeheartedly devoted to serving the people, will ultimately fall victim to rigid old rules and regulations and the machinations of petty people.

Li Xuanzhi slowly raised his eyes, gazing at the clear sunlight outside the window. His expression was calm and composed, without a trace of panic in his eyes, and his tone was firm and steady: