Li Xianzun put aside the invitation of the golden million and continued to inspect the county school. In this era, the pace of life is slow, and the more solemn invitations cannot, of course, be set without asking the next year and month as soon as they come up, but they must first ask for the opinions of VIPs, and then invite them again or even three or four times, so the invited Mr. Li does not need to reply in a hurry.

It was nearly noon, and the county school Pang asked Li Xianzun to stay for wine and dinner. Master Li had a good impression of this person and gladly accepted the invitation.

The group walked out of Minglun Hall and walked back along the road. When he arrived at the tattered school office where the teaching office was located, Li You caught a glimpse of the couplets on both sides and smiled dumbly. On the left it is written "There is nothing to teach", and on the right it is written "nine times out of ten is not like an official", which is half self-deprecating and half jailed, but it is hilarious.

Entering the house and sitting down, Li You pointed outside and said, "You are too resentful in front of the door." ”

Pang Jiaoyu smiled bitterly: "In recent years, this pair is very popular in front of the school office in Zuo Jinzhou County. This one in front of the lower official gate was also left by the previous teacher. ”

In fact, these two sentences are also appropriate, the county school and the like are indeed a clear water idle yamen. First of all, the students are more willing to recognize the county as a teacher, and secondly, the children are more willing to be qualified for the examination of talents, and the examination of students depends on the local officials and the promotion of the school officials, and the teaching can only be carried out in the name of the school officials to manage some chores, and the status can be imagined.

Li You commented: "The words are too straightforward, and they don't match the land of the Academy Palace. This official will give you a pair: the cold office is warm in spring, and the idle official is busy with wine. ”

"Good!" Everyone in the house applauded, and Master Cui praised: "The wind is elegant and elegant in the cold and leisure, and it is wonderful!" ”

Pang Jiaoyu was overjoyed and said: "The name of the county is the name of Jiangzuo, and with this joint gift, the next official is full of comfort." ”

After the idle talk, I didn't mention the wine and food.

In the afternoon, Li Xianzun returned to the county office, turned over the important official business, and convened the master in the back yahua hall to summarize the situation of the two days in office.

Zhou Jiexi, who was in charge of the money and grain warehouse, said: "In the next two days, I was busy handing over money and grain taxes with the former Jiangzhi County subordinates, and hastily checking the account books and checking the physical objects, and the others were okay, only the silver treasury had a deficit of 700 taels. ”

"So much? What did Master Jiang say? Li Xianzun asked. According to the system, officials must pay for any shortfall in public funds out of their own pockets.

"The curtain of Jiangzhi County said that they are short of money, and it costs a lot to leave office and enter Beijing, so please raise your noble hand."

Another master, Zhuang Chengxian, frowned and said: "In the officialdom, the predecessor is more like the predecessor, and the later is more like the junior. But the amount of seven hundred taels is not small, which makes him seem that the proprietor is young and easy to bully. Among them, please consider the proprietor. ”

More and less are relative concepts... Li You continued to ask, "Did Master Jiang explain what the reason was?" ”

Zhou Jiexi replied: "It's very strange, they can't explain clearly, they just ask the proprietor to raise his noble hand, there will be retribution, and nothing else can be said." ”

It is not surprising that officials use public funds in different ways and in office, and there are deficits, but it is strange that they have not been explained clearly when the handover is time.

To be honest, no one has three longs and two shorts as an official, you have to make things clear, and the successor may take care of it for you. But Lord Jiang didn't make it clear, and he refused to fill the gap, so how could he hand it over?

Even if Li You saw the face of his predecessors in the officialdom and let him go, how could he dare to bear the deficit of unknown origin? Who knows if this is a big pit that can kill people.

The specific reason Li You is too lazy to ponder, no matter whether his predecessor is corrupt or misappropriated, anyway, as long as he does not take over the deficit, he will not be responsible. He waved his hand and said, "Drag it first, the official is not in a hurry." He is the one who is in a hurry to leave his post and enter Beijing to elect officials, and if he does not leave, he will spend more money, and he will waste his time even more. ”

Master Li is really not in a hurry, as long as he, the successor, does not sign the "letter of guarantee" equivalent to the outgoing audit, and cannot prove that everything has been handed over clearly, then the predecessor Jiang Zhixian cannot leave.

After discussing the handover, Cui Zhenfei reported again: "Yesterday, the proprietor issued a ticket to recover the Jin family's salt class, but the official did not get it after he went with the ticket, and if he wants to come back to sell the ticket, will the proprietor allow it?" ”

The card ticket is issued specifically for something, such as recovering taxes and silver, locking up criminals, mediating disputes, etc., which is a certificate for the local yamen servants to do errands legally, and without this certificate, the people can not recognize it. Because of the large amount of oil and water when going out on errands, the officials were scrambling to grab the tickets, and even had to pay money to bribe the officials.

But it also depends on the person who is doing the errand. Li Xianzun said yesterday that the content of the card ticket issued was to go to the giant merchant Jin Million to pursue the salt class, and was weighed by the poor Annihilation of the money The difference between his own weight and the gold million was too far, and he really couldn't afford to provoke Master Jin, so he was not active, and he wanted to come back to sell the ticket after a while.

Some of the officials also muttered: "Li Xianzun is the legendary ancestor of our government servants, how can he be very inconsiderate of the suffering of the small servants and send such a brainless errand." ”

After listening to Master Cui's inquiry, Li You said categorically: "Continue to pursue it, you must not cancel the ticket, and dare to have a lazy and incompetent person waiting for a big board!" ”

Master Zhuang was puzzled by this, "The salt merchant is powerful, and the proprietor knows that he can't do it, so why is he so compelled to do it?" I'm afraid that the gains of provoking a strong enemy outweigh the losses. ”

Master Li explained: "This official is just to ask for directions for throwing stones, touch the foundation of Yangzhou salt merchants, try the depth of the water here, and measure their hardness. As for provoking a strong enemy, don't worry, this official has his own way to dispel it. ”

Master Zhuang didn't know about Jin Bao'er, so he didn't understand what the proprietor meant by the method of dissolution.

Master Cui reminded again: "It is said that it is a notice, the proprietor is sitting in the court for the first time to receive the complaint, and it is eye-catching inside and outside, so you must choose some cases to look good." ”

Nothing else, Master Li got up and returned to the inner office. But I saw several wives and concubines sitting under the willows of the pond, talking and laughing around two little dolls, a man and a woman, which was really an intoxicating scene of harmony.

Li You didn't enter the house, leaned over and sat down, and listened to Mrs. Liu say to him: "I heard that the northern suburbs of Yangzhou are beautiful in spring, and the concubines and others are very yearning, but now it is late spring. ”

Master Li nodded Xiaozhu and said, "It must be you who are talking too much to encourage everyone." ”

Xiaozhu didn't make trouble as usual, snorted angrily, turned his head sideways and ignored it.

Since returning from Jingshi, he has a good temper, Li You thought in surprise.

Jin Bao'er smiled and patted Xiaozhu, "Don't misunderstand, master, it was the slave family who brought up the trip." ”

"Actually, it's the slave family who first said that the spring outing with the old man..."Aunt Cheng said timidly.

Li You agreed, and said in a big way: "Why not, Master Ben will send someone to the river to levy a painting boat, and he can do it tomorrow!" It's just that I've just arrived and am entangled in official business, so I can't accompany you. ”

That night, there was a light rain in Yangzhou City, but it cleared up at dawn.

Li Xianzun was in good spirits and sat down in the flower hall, ready to be promoted to the director. But Zhang Sanfeng rushed in, and when he reached the master's side, he whispered: "There is a big matter!" The official of the mansion came to report that the predecessor Jiang Zhixian hanged himself last night! ”

What the? Lord Li got up in shock, so how could Lord Jiang hang himself, this psychological quality is too poor. In case it is going to spread out and say that he Li You is harsh and forced his predecessor to death, this reputation is not good.

(To be continued)