The carriage went all the way east, and there was no palace lantern booth outside the official hall, and there was no noisy drum music.

It's deserted, and there's not even a figure!

"Are all the people of Haixi dead?"

Xu Yi was furious, gritted his teeth and cursed.

According to the rules, outside each county, there will be an official reception hall, which is responsible for welcoming the incoming officials or sending off the departing officials.

Cao Peng had also heard of such a rule.

Looking at the deserted reception hall, he couldn't help but think: In later works, there are often ten miles out of the city to greet him, and there are also ten miles of long pavilions to send each other. Could it be that this ten-mile long pavilion originated from the official hall?

"Second brother, let's come over quietly, and we didn't notify Haixi County, they have no one to greet them, it's normal. Why be angry about this? I'd like to get there a little earlier now, take a hot shower, and get a good night's sleep...... Well, stop fighting yourself. ”

Xu Yi snorted, but didn't say anything.

So the convoy came to the gate of Haixi City in the cold and deserted, only to see the arrow tower towering in the clouds, and the city gate was indestructible.

Didn't you say that Haixi County was ruined and repeatedly plagued by bandits?

Cao Peng was stunned for a moment.

But then I thought about it, maybe it was because of the repeated bandits that I built this fortified city...... "Hu Ban, go over and call the door!" ”

Deng Ji gave an order in the car, Hu Ban agreed, and Pegasus came to the city.

The city gate, wrapped in iron sheets, with bronze bubble nails embedded in them.

Hu Ban stepped forward, raised the spear in his hand, knocked on the city gate, and shouted at the same time: "Haixi Order is here, open the city gate quickly!" ”

"What shouting!" For a long time, a small window was opened on the arrow tower, and a hoarse voice came from inside, "There is an order on the peak, the city gate will not be opened after nightfall, and it will be early in the morning." ”

Hu Ban was furious, raised his spear and struck again, "I heard clearly, it's the Haixi Order, the Deng County Order is here, open the city gate." ”

On the arrow tower, there was silence for a while.

Then the hoarse voice sounded again, "That Deng County Order?" ”

"Don't be wordy, the new Haixi Commander Deng County is here, and it is the imperial court's appointment, and the door is not opened quickly."

The window on the arrow tower slammed shut.

Dianman couldn't help but scold: "These lazy dogs, so arrogant!" ”

Xu Yi also nodded and said, "Yes, I know that the county order is coming, and I still look like this." This Haixi County really needs to be rectified. ”

Cao Peng didn't speak, sat upright on the horse, and quietly observed.

After a while, there was the sound of chains inside the city gate, and the heavy iron gate opened.

Next to the door, there stood several doormen in disheveled clothes and crooked armor, and the pockets on their heads were yellow and rusty, looking tattered.

The pawn was a little impatient, and urged the horse to rush forward.

He was so fast that he almost knocked the doorman down, and at the same time shouted and cursed: "Two lazy bones, don't open the city gate wide!" ”

The doorman looked at the domineering horse in front of him, and he was really angry in his heart.

One opened his mouth to talk back, and the other saw that the armor was bright, and the mount was a divine horse, and that extraordinary spirit was by no means an idle official.

Hurriedly grabbed his companion and motioned him not to speak.

"Hurry up and open the gates!"

At the same time, the man who looked like a man stepped forward and asked, "Dare to ask which one is the county commander Deng?" ”

Deng Ji got out of the car and nodded at the doorman, "I'm Deng Ji...... The court documents have already been sent, have you ever received them? ”

"Ah, it's been received.

Some time ago, Chen Taishou also sent someone to inform, but because he didn't know the itinerary of the county order, he didn't meet him from afar, and asked the county order to forgive him. ”

It seems that when such a new official takes office, he must first send an official document from the imperial court to the county governor.

After that, the county magistrates ordered people to inform the counties under their jurisdiction, so that the original officials could prepare in advance and the new officials were ready to be handed over.

However, Haixi County has not been governed for a long time, and the last time there was a county order was last year.

Therefore, Guangling County is too guarded by Chen Deng, and only needs to report the situation to the people in the county. If there is no one in the county office, there is a local gentleman who is responsible for greeting them. Generally speaking, everyone will try to do a good job in this kind of scene so as not to cause unnecessary trouble.

The situation in Haixi seems to be very special!

Cao Peng straddled Yebai, nodded with Deng Ji, and then waved his hand to signal the convoy to start.

Menbo told the doorman to get out of the way and lead the way. As the group drove into the city, they saw a desolate scene in the market with black lights and blind fires. The hour has not yet come to an end, and the big shops and shops on both sides have been closed. Only a few vendors remain...... On these bleak winter nights, there were hardly any pedestrians. So the vendor was also deserted, and there was not a single customer in sight.

When the new county commander arrived, the civil and military affairs of a county were all hidden, and the township eunuchs were all hidden.

This Haixi County really has a surname!

knew that Shangguan was coming, but he only sent his doorman Zhang Luo...... This Ma Wei is really powerful!

The corners of Cao Peng's mouth curled slightly, and he sneered in his heart.

The more this is the case, the more it shows that the problem in Haixi County is not small?

He turned his head to Wang Mai and said, "Brother Hutou, how do you feel like our Zhongyang Town?" ”

"Damn, it seems like I'm dying, it's not as lively as Zhongyang Town."

Xu Yi reined in and waited for Cao Peng.

"Ah Fu, the people here don't seem to welcome us."

"It's not seeming, it's just ...... But it doesn't matter, since we're here, we always want to see the mystery in it. ”

"Oh?"

Xu Yi was stunned for a moment, and seemed to understand the meaning of Cao Peng's words.

He's a little reckless, a little tiger...... But after all, he is a child of a big clan, and he knows more or less about some of the yin owl tricks.

"Ah Fu, what do you mean ......?"

Cao Peng put his finger to his lips and shushed.

That means: you know, I know, you don't have to explain!

Xu Yi suddenly nodded, and said no more.

When the chariot walked over an arch that had been crossed, he saw that the street was divided into two sides, the left and the right, along a high wall. However, the walls were broken and collapsed in several places. Standing outside the wall, you can see the situation inside the wall at a glance. It is a mansion with a central hall and a wing room, as well as two cross-courtyards. Beyond the building inside the wall, faintly, you can see a tall gatehouse, and the shadow is longing.

Here, it should be the back wall of the county office!

One line turns right and follows the high wall to the east, north, and west...... Walk up to the head of a black-lacquered gate, and above the lintel hangs a wooden plaque that has been eroded and peeled by the weather.

The plaque is a little crooked, and there are still the words of Haixi County Ya.

Uncle Menbo bowed down and said, "Deng County Order, this is the county office." ”

Is this the county office?

Deng Ji and Pu Yang Min stepped out of the carriage, stood at the foot of the doorway, and looked up.

The lintel was covered with cobwebs, and the ground was so dirty that I couldn't tell how long it had been since it had been cleaned. The bolted horse pile on the side was broken in half and was basically useless. And the black-lacquered gate, closed, was silent behind the gate.

"Call the door!"

Deng Ji's face became more and more gloomy.

Zhou Cang didn't say a word, and rushed up the steps with three steps and two steps, swinging his fist and buckling heavily.

"Who, who!"

The door opened.

Out of it came a man of five short statures, with an eagle nose and harrier eyes and an unkempt beard.

He held a candle in his hand, looked Zhou Cang up and down, and scolded when he opened his mouth: "You black guy doesn't know anything, don't you know that this yamen has always been closed?" Someone died in the family, or the daughter-in-law ran away with the person, knock, knock, knock your mother! ”

What is Zhou Cang's surname?

Straight and violent!

I have been a yellow scarf and a bandit...... Because of following Deng Ji, he changed his temper a little.

But when he had been humiliated in this way, he was furious. Stretched out his hand, grabbed the collar of the doorman's clothes, and then with a force on his arm, he picked up the doorman, and hit the doorpost next to the black lacquered gate more than a dozen times, "The dog said that the cheap species, if you dare to speak disrespectfully, Lao Tzu will screw your head off." ”

Mending cried and begged for mercy, and Zhou Cang gave up.

Cao Peng was on the horse, and he didn't go over to stop him, but just watched coldly.

His gaze wandered, as if he was casually looking around. In the distance, around the corner of the street, a figure flickered, but there was no movement.

smiled coldly in his heart: It seems that the water in this Haixi County is muddy enough!

He turned over and dismounted, and shouted: "Uncle Zhou, don't talk to him, go in first." ”

"This is the county government, you ......"

"Blind thing, the new Deng County Commander is right in front of you, why don't you open the yamen immediately for me and invite someone to come to see it?"

As he spoke, Zhou Cang pushed the black lacquer door.

Who knew that he didn't use any force at all, and the gate collapsed with a bang.

"This ......"

"Forget it, let's go in and talk about it."

Deng Ji and Puyang Min walked in side by side, and Cao Pengdian was full of Xu Yi and others, following closely.

Forty servants immediately dismounted and lined up outside the yamen. There were also more than a dozen entourage slaves bought from Xiapi, under the command of Hu Ban, unloading carts and horses and carrying luggage...... In front of the deserted county yamen of Haixi County, it suddenly became lively, and it was particularly noisy in this deserted county.

Zhou Cang and Xia Houlan found torches and lit them.

By the light, Deng Ji looked around the courtyard and stopped in the front yard of the flower hall.

The windows of the opposite hall were closed, and the window paper was tattered and unorthodox. In the courtyard, the hall was pitch black, and no one was seen.

Deng Ji suddenly had an irritable mood lingering in his heart.

He asked Zhou Cang to bring the doorman over, looked at the doorman with a gloomy face, and didn't say a word.

Under the lights, Deng Ji was one-armed and his eyes were cold.

Mending only felt a chill rush in, and quickly knelt down.

"Who are you?"

Mending stammered and replied, "The villain, the villain's name is Mai Cheng." ”

"Mai Cheng, what do you do?"

"Little ...... The villain is the head of this ya's cell and the forbidden son. ”

"Why is this county government so dilapidated?"

"Hui, back to the words of the lord, this yaya has not been used for many years, so that it is ......"

"Where is the county seal ribbon?"

"My lord, the whereabouts of this Ya seal ribbon were unknown three years ago, and the adults after that were all appointed by the state pastor and the Taishou, so there is no need for a seal ribbon."

In other words, in the past three years, this county government has basically been abandoned.

"What about the errands?"

"The errand officer, the errand officer is long gone......

"Bastard thing!" Deng Ji was furious, "According to what you say, in the entire Haixi County, you are the only one who can do your duty?" ”

"Ah......h

"Where is the servant? What's wrong with the book? And where are the patrols? ”

"This ......"

"I haven't been conscripted for two years, and I haven't had a book. As for the patrols, there were originally. However, after the earlier soldier Cao Peng Shi Feng Chao left, the patrol was also disbanded. In this county office, I am indeed the only one left to take care of now. ”

Deng Ji sneered, "But he is a loyal person." ”

He turned his head to look at Pu Yang Min, and saw that Pu Yang Min didn't speak, only nodded at him.

"Someone, put him in prison first, what is the matter again, this official should find out, and then deal with it......"

"Whoa!"

When Mai Cheng heard this, he was shocked.

"My lord, I was wronged, I was wronged......"

Zhou Cang went up and slapped him, "If you dare to make noise again, I pulled out your tongue." ”

Mai Cheng faced the fierce and vicious Zhou Cang, swallowed his saliva, and didn't dare to speak again.

"Let's go, go to your prison, and lead the way."

"Hold all those thieves together."

"Whoa!"

Cao Peng stood at the door of the county office, and suddenly turned his head to the doorman and said, "Are you very idle?" ”

"Huh?"

"Go ahead and tell your master what happened here...... In addition, I helped to bring a sentence, just say that this Haixi is the territory of the Han family. ”

When the doorman heard this, his face suddenly turned pale.

He glanced at Cao Peng, suddenly turned his head, and ran away.

Dian Man looked at the back of the doorman in amazement, "Ah Fu, you mean ......?"

"There are no county orders, no civil and military officials, no subordinates, no scholars, no patrols...... But there are still doormen? Cao Peng smiled and said, "Third brother, if no one gives you money, are you willing to do such things?" There are no fools in this Haixi County! ”

"And the same is true for Mai Cheng?"

"Anyway, it's not as simple as he says."

Just imagine, a company has gone out of business, and even the boss is gone. However, there are also employees who are conscientious, if they are not fools, then they have other schemes. Cao Peng can figure out the reason for this, Deng Ji and Puyang Min, naturally there is no reason not to see it.

The left compartment of the front yard is the lower room where the patrolmen and officials live, and it is empty.

Behind the lower room, there was the cell, which was also empty. Needless to say, the cell had not been used for a long time, but the door was still strong.

"Ah Fu, let's go to the lobby and the government hall to have a look."

"Good!"

Cao Peng took the torch from Deng Fan's hand, followed Deng Ji and Puyang Min, and came to the door of the lobby.

Pushing the door open, the rusty hinge creaked. When I came to the hall, I saw drawings everywhere, and cobwebs covered the walls. The scarlet tablecloth covered with the public case also faded in color. When Cao Peng walked over, several black mice suddenly burst out, startling Cao Peng.

"I didn't expect Haixi to be so dilapidated!"

Pu Yang Min couldn't help but let out a sigh.

Here, is it really still the Han family?

He was about to express his emotion, when he suddenly heard a commotion and scratching in the front yard.

"What's going on?"

Deng Ji turned around and looked outside.

At this time, I saw Xiahou Lan hurriedly running in, "My lord, the leader of the thieves who cut the path before, shouted to see my lord, saying that there is something important to report. ”

"Oh?"

Deng Ji couldn't help but be stunned, and some couldn't understand what this thief had to say.

"Brother-in-law, it's too ...... here Let's go to the room and talk. I just looked at it, and in that room, you can still settle down. ”

"That's all it takes."

Deng Ji once thought about the various situations that would occur after he came to Haixi.

But he never expected that it would be such a state...... When I talked to people in my own county office, I didn't even have a place to talk, but I had to go to the lower room where the officials lived to meet others.

Thinking of this, Deng Ji couldn't help but smile bitterly.

"Mr. Puyang, let's go together, shall we?"

Pu Yang Min smiled: "I also have this intention. ”

Cao Peng accompanied the two of them, walked out of the yahall, and went straight to the wing.

As soon as he entered the house, he saw Wang Mai and Deng Fan looking at a young man with fierce eyes. The young man, dressed in black, knelt on the ground. His hair was in a messy bun, and there was a black bruise on his forehead. Seeing Deng Ji and his party coming in, the young man seemed to be very excited, and he was about to stand up. Wang Mai's eyes were quick, he stepped forward and grabbed his shoulder, and shouted coldly: "Be honest, otherwise you will look good!" ”

"I'm not a thief!"

The youth shouted.

Deng Ji sneered: "Shearing the path of the hair thief, what is it if you are not a thief?" ”

"I'm not a thief, I'm really not a thief...... In this Haixi county, the real thief is not me, but someone else! ”

The young man shouted loudly and struggled desperately.

Wang Mai and Deng Fan held him down, and scolded him again and again.

Deng Ji frowned, looked at the young man, and didn't speak for a long time.

And Cao Peng, since he entered the house, stood by and observed the young man. Seeing that the young man was so excited, he walked out of the room, had a scoop of well water scooped up, walked up and splashed the well water on the young man's face. The young man shuddered, gasped, and stopped struggling.

"You...... Is it Feng Chao? ”

"Huh?"

The young man was shocked and looked up at Cao Peng.

He couldn't help but be surprised, even Deng Ji and Pu Yang Min were a little inexplicable.

Feng Chao, who is it?

Cao Peng took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "Feng Chao, Haixi County soldier Cao Pengshi." I just heard Na Mai Cheng say that you disappeared mysteriously before...... Hehe, look at you, although you have changed your clothes, your hands are very neatly groomed, and you are wearing black shoes, which is not something that ordinary thieves can wear...... Brother-in-law, I don't think he's a thief, including those who have been cut off...... They're county patrolmen, right? ”

Feng Chao looked at Cao Peng in horror and was speechless for a long time.

"You are not thieves, you are robbers...... Bandits dressed as patrolmen! ”

Deng Ji's eyes narrowed, and a cold glow flashed.

Cao Peng smiled: "You don't have to deny it, in fact, if you want to prove it, it's very simple...... As long as I pull Mai Cheng over, he will be honest.

Oh, I suddenly remembered something.

Two years ago, there was a county magistrate in Haixi County named Feng Zhan. This person was the Xu Duren clan, and he was also the last official sent by the imperial court. It's a pity that this Feng Zhan Feng County Commander only served as a county order for two months, and then encountered bandits attacking and plundering Haixi, and was killed in the chaos...... He seems to have a son who came with him to Haixi County. He hasn't been heard from since......"

Deng Ji clapped his hands, "That's right, there is indeed such a thing." ”

Cao Peng looked at the young man with a smile, "Feng Chao, Feng Bing Cao Pengshi!" Okay, now let's talk about it, if a good official doesn't do it, why bother to be a thief? ”

Feng Chao's cheeks twitched violently, looked at Deng Ji and the others, and was silent for a long time!

———————————————————————————— story of Haixi County is about to begin.

Many friends said that Deng Ji was always a little uncomfortable standing at the front desk.

In fact, all kinds of things in Haixi County are still Cao Peng's first. At the same time, he will soon receive a knighthood, gradually coming to the surface.

(To be continued)