Chapter 557

Ye Xiaotian busied himself until the wee hours of the morning. Only then did he drag his tired body back to his home. It was supposed to be a festive festival, but it was unexpected for something like this to happen. However, with the customs of the Gourd County, with so many people gathered together, it was reasonable for something to happen.

Duo Ni and Yaoyao were still waiting for him in the parlor. Because they had waited for too long, Yaoyao had curled up on the bed in the parlor. Duo Ni covered her with a thin quilt. Duo Ni was dozing off on the table and only opened her eyes when she heard Ye Xiaotian's movements.

"Brother Tian, you are finally back! Go and rest for a while. "

Ye Xiaotian yawned and smiled bitterly at her. "I am really tired. No wonder the imperial court has always banned people from gathering together. With so many people gathered together, they can really cause trouble. Fortunately, no one was killed and the situation is not serious. Duo Ni, you don't have to wait for me. Look, there is also Yaoyao. You guys … "

Do Ni wanted to carry Yao Yao up, but Ye Xiaotian stopped her. "Forget it. She's sleeping soundly. Let's just sleep here. She'll wake up again if we toss and turn."

Duo Ni said. "Fine. I will also stay here to accompany her."

Ye Xiaotian nodded. With Duo Ni's help, he washed up and returned to his room to sleep. Normally, the yamen would not open very early. But this was the first time after the new year. All the officials had to attend the yamen, so they had to wake up early.

Although Ye Xiaotian was sleeping soundly, his family had no choice but to wake him up. Ye Xiaotian hurriedly got out of bed, washed himself, and dressed himself. Then, he went down the mountain with his guards and hurried to the government office. By the time he arrived, all the officials and petty officials had already lined up inside and outside the main hall.

As soon as Ye Xiaotian arrived, the officials and yamen runners made way for him. Ye Xiaotian went into the hall and saw a few chairs on the left and right. Patrol Inspector Luo, Secretary Bai, Zhang Dianshi and others were sitting there drinking tea. When they saw Ye Xiaotian, they put down their teacups and stood up.

Ye Xiaotian hurriedly cupped his hands and apologized to the people in the hall, "County magistrate, colleagues, I'm sorry, I'm late."

Hua Qingfeng stood up and smiled. "It is okay. I have heard about what happened last night. Magistrate Ye, you must have worked hard. It is understandable that you are late. Did anything big happen in the street chaos last night? "

Ye Xiaotian said, "I don't know what happened last night, but the commoners suddenly had a conflict, and the Lantern Festival was ruined just like that. Fortunately, the patrol officers and constables arrived in time, so there was no big trouble. Some people were slightly injured and were sent to the nearby medical center for treatment. "

Hua Qingfeng said happily, "That's good. It is a festive festival. Don't make trouble."

Then all the officials lined up in order to pay their respects. Hua Qingfeng couldn't help but say some words of comfort. After the ceremony, everyone left. Hua Qingfeng invited Secretary Bai and Ye Xiaotian to sit in the second hall. He went straight to the point. "Now that the holiday is over, it is time to make some plans for the government affairs of our county this year. After the New Year, the first important thing is the relief funds allocated by the imperial court. In previous years, our county has received the least amount of funds in this area, but it is still barely enough. However, because of the change of customs last year, many of the commoners' money and grain have been exempted. This debt will have to be paid in cash this year, so if the funds are too little, I'm afraid there will be problems. "

Hua Qingfeng took a sip of tea, smiled, and said, "I have been here for two terms. At the end of this term, I will most likely be transferred. There is only one year left. If there is a mistake, the integrity of our county will be ruined!"

Hua Qingfeng made a joke, then turned to Ye Xiaotian and said, "This matter should be handled by Secretary Bai, but Secretary Bai is new to our county and is not familiar with the affairs. He is worried that there will be mistakes, so he suggested to me that Lord Ye go to Tongren to fight for the relief funds for our county. What do you think, Lord Ye?"

Bai Hong immediately turned his eager eyes to Ye Xiaotian. Ye Xiaotian had already talked to Bai Hong before, and this matter was related to Li Yuncong, so he must protect him. He bowed and said, "I dare not guarantee success, but I will not let you down. I will do my best."

Hua Qingfeng smiled happily and said, "That's good! Lord Ye, you have a teacher-student relationship with Magistrate Zhang in Tongren, so it is more convenient for you to speak in front of the magistrate. This matter concerns the interests of the people of Gourd County. I hope Lord Ye will do your best! "

…

Ye Xiaotian had already talked to Secretary Bai before, and he knew that Magistrate Hua had always been evasive and afraid of trouble. As long as someone was willing to bear the responsibility, he would never agree. So he had long been prepared. Magistrate Hua nodded, and Ye Xiaotian immediately handed over all the affairs to Zhang Dianshi.

He also knew that the earlier he arrived, the greater the chance of fighting for the relief funds, so he did not dare to delay. After the handover, he returned to the mansion and galloped to Tongren Province with the six guards who had long been prepared.

Magistrate Hua sent Ye Xiaotian and Secretary Bai away, and sat quietly in the Second Hall for a while. After finishing a cup of tea, he got up and returned to the Third Hall. The Third Hall was actually considered as half of the backyard, and it only received very private guests. Usually, he handled official business in the Second Hall, so it was very rare for him to return to the Third Hall at this time.

But when he arrived at the Third Hall, he turned into his own small study, and there was someone already waiting inside. The man was dressed in a green robe, about thirty years old, and his appearance and bearing were not ordinary. He was slowly sipping tea, and when he saw Hua Qingfeng coming in, he got up and said, "Your Excellency."

"Take a seat."

Hua Qingfeng walked over, sat behind the desk, and could not help but let out a sigh. Ye Xiaotian had never swaggered in front of him, but for some reason, when he faced Ye Xiaotian, he always felt a strong psychological pressure. At this time, he only felt relieved when he sat down, and his legs were slightly weak, as if he was climbing a cliff and looking down into the abyss.

The man in the green robe smiled and said, "Ye Xiaotian agreed to go to Tongren?"

Hua Qingfeng nodded and said, "He agreed!"

The man in the green robe happily clapped and said, "Very good, as long as he leaves, we can do whatever we want."

Hua Qingfeng said nervously, "Success or failure depends on this, and Ye Xiaotian has many eyes and ears in Gourd County, we need to be careful."

The man in the green robe said disdainfully, "His so-called eyes and ears are just a group of chickens and dogs, there is nothing to be afraid of. Moreover, Your Excellency, you are doing it in an upright way, not some shady plot. When he finds out, there is no way to resolve it. "

At this point, the man in the green robe smiled and said, "Moreover, do you think that no one will be dissatisfied with Ye Xiaotian ruining the road route? It is not convenient for some people to say anything now, but once Ye Xiaotian is in trouble, there will definitely be people who will hit him when he is down, and then … "

A smile finally appeared on Hua Qingfeng's face. The man in the green robe said seriously, "When that time comes, the merit of Gourd County will belong to you, Your Excellency. You have the credit and hard work, with a little bit of effort, even if you cannot be promoted by one level, you should be transferred to a first-class county and continue to be the Supreme Baili. You are a Jinshi, but this remote small county is located in the wilderness, and education is not flourishing, so it is not easy for you to display your knowledge. If you are in the Central Plains, where scholars gather, you will definitely be able to display your ambition. You are in the prime of your life, and you have at least thirty to forty years of official career ahead of you, and in the future, it is not impossible for you to become a minister. "

Hua Qingfeng also smiled and said happily, "If this matter succeeds, I will not let Mister Qiuchi down, and hope that you and I will be the host and guest for a lifetime!"

The man in the green robe stood up and said, "I am willing to serve Dongweng as my left and right hand!"

This man in the green robe was actually the famous litigation master Li Qiuchi who was invited to Gourd County by Meng Qingwei but did not have the chance to do anything before he returned in failure. Listening to the tone, the two of them were like tortoises looking at mung beans, meeting each other's eyes. Li Qiuchi planned to help Hua Qingfeng defeat Ye Xiaotian as a greeting gift, and become Hua Qingfeng's advisor.

For Li Qiuchi, who had no hope of becoming an official, this might be a way out. After so many years as a litigation master, he had earned enough money, but his status was not high. In this era, litigation masters really did not have much status. "If there were no such people in the world, there would be no need to set up a yamen", this was the mainstream view of litigation masters.

In the eyes of the scholar-officials, litigation masters were people who sowed discord and benefited from it. If this was in the Central Plains, Li Qiuchi's life would be even more difficult. In the Guizhou region, who was in the right and who was not in the right depended more on who had the bigger fist, and even less on the control of the law.

Li Qiuchi dealt with the situation and sued on behalf of others. He mostly used the various social connections of the plaintiff and the defendant, as well as the connections he had, and did not rely on the law to win the case. This really took up a lot of brainpower. Now that he had earned enough money, what he wanted was status and status.

This advisor was called an advisor by later generations, but it was not called this now. Instead, it was called an advisor or advisor. They handled matters such as punishment, money, and official documents for the officials. They were not officials, but they were more like officials. They were the shadows of the officials who hired them as advisors.

Advisor was said to be an assistant official, but to a large extent, it was a substitute official. Especially with Hua Qingfeng's personality, once Li Qiuchi was hired as an advisor by Hua Qingfeng, he would eventually become a substitute official. The higher position he could help Hua Qingfeng climb, the more power he could wield. Naturally, he was willing to be used by Hua Qingfeng.

The first time Li Qiuchi fought with Ye Xiaotian, it was because of money. The second time he fought with Ye Xiaotian, it was purely because he was not convinced. But this time, it was for his own bright future, so naturally he would go all out.

Qian Qingqing woke up early in the morning and began to dress up. She usually wore plain broth and fine noodles, and did not like to wear makeup, but she was sure that since Ye Xiaotian had understood her feelings last night, he would definitely find an excuse to get close to her today. So she skillfully dressed up, waiting for him to take the bait. She was quiet and elegant without makeup, but now that she had drawn her eyebrows and painted her eyes and lips, she looked tender and beautiful.

Who would have thought that this Ye Xiaotian would not come even after waiting for a long time, and Qian Qingqing was depressed. As the saying goes, a wife is not as good as a concubine, and a concubine is not as good as a mistress. He was young, and his temperament was not yet stable, how could he restrain himself? With his current status, if he did not go to the yamen for a day or half a day, presumably no one would find fault with him, right?

Qian Qingqing could not restrain herself, so she left her residence to find Duo Ni to talk. While chatting, she found out that Ye Xiaotian had already gone to Tongren. Qian Qingqing could not help but be stunned. What was going on? Could it be that Lord Ye wanted to play the trick of 'stealing is better than not stealing'?