Deputy County Magistrate Xiao and Registrar Zhan walked into the yamen with confused expressions. They didn't know why Zhang Zhong was looking for them. Their antagonistic relationship seemed to have been confirmed, but he still wanted to look for them. Did he want to cheat them again?
Just like that, the two of them walked to the signing room. They walked around but didn't see anyone. After encountering a bailiff, they found out that Zhang Zhong didn't do anything in front, but had run to the dilapidated area at the back.
The two of them looked at each other and walked back. They knew that Zhang Zhong was going to spend his own money to repair the house behind the yamen. Including today, it should have taken him two and a half days to repair it. They wondered if those messy things had been cleaned up.
Passing through a moon gate, Deputy County Magistrate Xiao and Registrar Zhan rubbed their eyes in disbelief. They couldn't reconcile the scene in front of them with the situation in the yamen before.
All the houses behind were gone, the potholes on the ground couldn't be found, and there were no weeds. The ground was covered with yellow sand and there were many piles of bluestone waiting to be paved. Dozens of people were digging the foundation in this yard.
Since they still couldn't find Zhang Zhong here, the two of them continued to walk in another direction. The two of them knew that the residence behind the yamen in Huayuan County occupied a large area. There were twelve courtyards connected together. If it wasn't for the official who built this residence being executed, the official who took office later wouldn't have gone outside to look for a place.
Ominous places were always taboo. They didn't expect that Zhang Zhong dared to live here and made a big gesture of building. Was he not afraid of this ominous house or did he not know about it?
Deputy County Magistrate Xiao laughed and walked to another courtyard. When he arrived at this courtyard, he found that it was no longer the dilapidated house. To be precise, there was no house at all. Hundreds of people were digging holes here.
They didn't know how these people were doing. The hole had been dug to a depth of 10 feet, but it seemed that it was not enough. They continued to dig, which made them wonder if the people who were executed buried something valuable here. Otherwise, why would they dig such a deep hole?
Following the small path beside the courtyard, the two of them arrived at another courtyard. Fortunately, there was no one here to continue digging. Instead, there were many wooden planks that had been transported here. Similarly, it was unknown what they were used for.
"Brother Buyong, why can't I see what kind of house the county magistrate wants to build?" Registrar Zhan said loudly on purpose. Not only for Deputy County Magistrate Xiao to hear, but also for the people who were walking back and forth. Otherwise, he wouldn't mention the county magistrate and just call him by his name.
What he didn't expect was that those people who were working didn't seem to hear him. They were still working very quickly and seriously.
Seeing that this method didn't work, Deputy County Magistrate Xiao directly asked a person who was hanging a wire there, "What do you want to fix here? Do you know us? "
"Yes, Deputy District Magistrate and Registrar General. We need to build something like a house here. Both of you are busy. I can't afford to waste any time here."
That person glanced at the two of them and continued with his work. The person beside him was also very serious, as if he didn't see the two of them.
This made Registrar General and Deputy County Magistrate Xiao puzzled. Since when did the people in Huayuan County become so serious? They glanced around and happened to see a yamen runner standing there. He also looked at them and waved his hand. The yamen runner ran over and said, "Deputy County Magistrate Xiao, are you looking for me?"
Hearing this address, Deputy County Magistrate Xiao felt a surge of anger. In the past, he was always called Deputy County Magistrate Xiao. Why did it become like this now? Of course, he should call him like this, but when he heard it, he didn't think it was appropriate.
Not wanting to fuss over the address, Deputy County Magistrate Xiao asked the yamen runner, "Why do the people here do things differently from what they did in the yamen before?"
"That's right. In the past, they didn't get paid for their work. After 20 days of work every year, not only were they not exempted from rent and transfer, but they also didn't get paid. Now, it's different. They get paid 30 coins a day. As long as they see someone not doing something seriously, they can go home immediately.
In addition to us yamen runners, the county magistrate's servants also come here from time to time. If we see someone not doing something seriously in the same place twice in a row, not only will those two people be driven away, but we will also be considered as dereliction of duty. "
While the yamen runner was talking, he didn't forget to stare at the people doing the work over there.
"30 coins? One day? Haha, County Magistrate Zhang is really rich. So what if you are derelict of duty? Will he not give you anything? Now you know that it's not easy to get things, right? "
Registrar General Zhan didn't expect that Zhang Zhong would give such a high salary to the people who were hired to work here. He also guessed something from the yamen runner's words just now, so he gloated and said.
The yamen runner shook his head and said, "Registrar General Zhan, you are wrong. His Excellency won't use this to blackmail us. If we don't keep watch, we will be arranged to go to the front and be replaced by other brothers. I don't want to be replaced. I can't afford to lose face. When the brothers in front ask me how I came back, how can I tell them?
The county magistrate is good to us, so we have to be more careful. Otherwise, the next time he gives us something, we won't have the face to accept it. Er Qiangzi, you have been moving the plank for a while. Why are you dawdling? Do you think I can't see you? "
While the yamen runner was talking, he suddenly pointed at the person moving the plank and questioned him. Others had moved three times, but he only moved one time. It was very slow for him to go back and forth.
"Sir, please don't chase this lowly one away. This lowly one thought of something just now, that's why this lowly one was a little slower. This lowly one was thinking, should we get someone to draw some things on the houses after the construction is done? This lowly one has a cousin's family. He has been doing this for generations and his skills are not bad."
Er Qiangzi was shocked. He was reluctant to give up the salary. The money he earned from a day's work was more than what he could earn in a few days. Besides, there was also food here. At noon and at night, there was at least one meat dish for every meal. It had been like this for two days. Today, he was going to eat again.
If he ate more here, his family would save money. If he was driven away, he would have nothing. He explained and moved faster.
"Well, I heard that someone has a relative who can draw? Which one is it? " At this time, a servant of the Zhang family came in from another small door. He heard Er Qiangzi's words and asked.
"Him." The yamen runner replied and pointed at Er Qiangzi. Er Qiangzi thought he was going to drive him away, but when he heard the question, he was relieved and said, "It's me.
My cousin's family has been doing this for generations. His craftsmanship is good. He can draw and carve. In the whole Huayuan County, no one can compare with him. Oh, except for our top scorer, what can't he do? "
The servant of the Zhang family heard Er Qiangzi's words. He thought for a while and said, "Well, is it far away? If it's not far away, you can go and find him now. Find all his family members who can do this. We can have lunch here at noon. If they do it well, I will give you an extra 200 coins. "
"Really? It's not far, not far at all. It's just two streets away. I'll go there right away. Well, can I ask if I can find such people and get more money? " Er Qiangzi didn't expect such a good thing. He was confident in his cousin's craftsmanship. When he was going to find him, he asked.
"Yes, as long as they are useful and recommended, we will get some money at once." The servant of the Zhang family said with certainty.
Er Qiangzi shouted happily and strode to the back door. They all came and went from the back door. The front door was the yamen, so they couldn't go back and forth.
Deputy County Magistrate Xiao said at this time, "You are just a servant. How dare you make decisions? Are you lying to them? "
The servant of the Zhang family couldn't not know Deputy County Magistrate Xiao. He said to him, "Deputy County Magistrate, you may not know the affairs of the Zhang family. The servants of the Zhang family are different from those of other places. Those who can be brought out to do things are naturally trusted by the master. As long as they think it's good for the master, they can make decisions."
"Oh? What if they make a mistake? "Registrar Official Zhan asked at the side.
"If you make a mistake, you should think about what you did wrong. Next time, try to do the same thing. Don't give up eating for fear of choking." The servant of the Zhang family said with a trace of pride.
He was qualified to be proud. Which family's Zhuangzi could be compared with the Zhang family's? Which family's servant could be treated like the Zhang family's servant? The master believed in any servant. As long as they worked hard for the master, it was okay even if they did something wrong. According to the Little Childe, ability was not a problem. Attitude determined everything. As long as they were not fools, they could be cultivated slowly.
Deputy County Magistrate Xiao and Registrar Official Zhan couldn't say anything after hearing the words of the servant of the Zhang family. They could only think that Zhang Zhong was crazy. How could he give this kind of power to his servant?
The two of them didn't want to stay in the wooden yard anymore. They walked to the next yard. They even forgot to ask the servant of the Zhang family where Zhang Zhong was.
The two of them continued to look and walk. The courtyards were totally different from the ones before. They couldn't guess what was going on in one of the courtyards.
When the two of them turned to the eleventh courtyard, they finally found Zhang Zhong. The eleventh courtyard was also the biggest one. There was also a digging pit here. The pit was bigger and deeper than the second one.
Zhang Zhong stood at the edge of the pit and looked at it. He roughly looked at the courtyard. There were about 300 people. A smaller courtyard couldn't fit them all. There were two yamen runners and a scribe beside Zhang Zhong. They talked with him from time to time.
Registrar Official Zhan and Deputy County Magistrate Xiao looked at each other and walked to the side of Zhang Zhong. Registrar Official Zhan said, "County Magistrate Zhang, are you looking for us?"
"You're here? That's great. Yes, I'm looking for you two. You came from the front, right? How is it? Do you have any ideas on your way here? What did you think of? Tell me. "
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