I, the son of Yang Guo, abducted Zhang Sanfeng across the heavens

Xuanzang could only obediently serve as the magistrate of Chang'an County.

To be honest, letting the top scholar be the county magistrate is really too much of an insult to him.

Normally, the imperial court would confer a sixth-rank official title to the top scholar after he finished the examination, but the position was not determined by the size of the title, but by the position. Usually it was an editor in the Hanlin Academy, a sinecure.

That is to say, you were allowed to read books in the Hanlin Academy and enrich your knowledge. Whether you were reading books or going out for fun, no one would bother you, and the court would still provide you with a salary.

If you have something to do, usually a senior official in the court will teach you how to be an official. The lowest one has to be a vice minister of one of the six ministries, and sometimes even the minister of one of the six ministries will teach you personally.

When I have nothing to do, I still read and play.

What did you do during this time?
Waiting for a seat.

When a suitable official position becomes vacant in the court and the original official in charge of this position has been promoted, or has retired, or has been dismissed from office, the position will be vacant and you, the top scholar, will be the one to take it.

Generally they are not too small. Even if some of them are not of high rank, they must have two characteristics. One is that they are in the central court and are directly under senior officials and can often appear in the emperor's sight; the other is that the path to promotion is smooth and the promotion cycle is short and fast.

Generally, the top scholar in the imperial examination would at least become a vice-minister of one of the six ministries, and a large number of the ministers of the six ministries were also the top scholar in the imperial examination that year.

This is the treatment of the top scholar.

Once every three years, the top scholar in the country deserves this treatment.

In the original 100-chapter version of "Journey to the West", there was no story about how Chen Guangrui was invited to marry by Miss Yin's bouquet, nor about him taking office in Jiangzhou, nor about the bandit Liu Hong pretending to be Chen Guangrui and serving as the prefect for more than ten years, nor was there any story about Tang Monk gouging out the liver of his enemy alive as a sacrifice to his father.

This is written in the "Appendix" added in the late Qing Dynasty.

Based on the fragmentary information in the original work, the first few difficulties of the 108 tribulations told in front of the Buddha, such as being killed at birth, being thrown into the river at the full moon, and finding relatives to avenge grievances, and Tang Monk's own account of his life experience from the Kingdom of Black Chicken on the way to obtain Buddhist scriptures, it can be pieced together that Chen Guangrui was killed by bandits, and that Tang Monk later found Yin Kaishan and sent troops to take revenge.

Although the story of throwing a ball to find a husband is nonsense, at least there is the story of Princess Jade Rabbit throwing a ball to find a husband later, which can be regarded as a connection. However, it is too unrealistic for the former governor of Jiangzhou and the pirates to pretend to be the governor for more than ten years.

According to the time when Journey to the West was written, there were about 200 prefectures in the Ming Dynasty. To let the top scholar be appointed as a prefect was a pure exile and humiliation. I'm afraid that this kind of treatment would only be received if he had offended a senior official in the court.

Normally, the top scholar should not be sent out to other places. Only those who have become third-rank officials or above in the central government may be sent to local positions to gain experience, and then come back to take over as the heads of the six ministries.

Chen Guangrui and his wife must have been sailing down to Jiangzhou for fun, or they were on a mission to fulfill the imperial court's orders, and were killed by pirates on the way. It is absurd that the governor of a prefecture was occupied by pirates for more than ten years.

If Li Shimin was really so incompetent, there would be no talk of the Zhenguan Reign and the prosperous Tang Dynasty.

Even the title of prefect was considered an insult, not to mention the title of county magistrate. Even though this county magistrate was the county magistrate of Chang'an, the so-called "number one county in the world", it was still a derogatory act.

But neither Chen Guangrui nor Xuanzang himself had any objection.

In the twelve years after his son was born, Chen Guangrui had long accepted the fact that his son would leave the Tang Dynasty to do great things, and Xuanzang was even more devoted to Buddhism. Although he was not seeking the Buddha, but wanted to become a Buddha himself, he still had no interest in worldly power.

As a county magistrate, it is enough if you can understand the sufferings of the people, feel their sentiments, and have certain administrative abilities and logical thinking.

Huayan, the teacher, had no objection, after all, this was arranged by Huayan himself. He planned to resign from the position of Grand Master and retire with his apprentice after Xuanzang finished his career as the magistrate of Chang'an.

The family members had no objection, and outsiders had even less objection. Especially those who took the same exam as Xuanzang, they wanted to worship Xuanzang.

If the top scholar doesn't become a Hanlin editor, doesn't fill those high-ranking officials or vacancies that are easy to promote, then wouldn't it be my turn? I heard that the runner-up kowtowed to Xuanzang's tablet at home every day. If it weren't for Xuanzang's devilish behavior, his promotion path would have taken at least five more years.

"Come on, bang bang, court is about to begin!"

On the first day Xuanzang arrived at the Chang'an County government office, he was directly summoned to the court.

Everyone was amused at the sight of this kid sitting in the hall and pretending to be so. But he was the superior, so he should be allowed to go to the hall.

"Mighty and powerful"

The three shifts of yamen runners, fast and strong, were lined up in an orderly manner, holding sticks and shouting in a show of authority.

"Come on, tell me what grievances this county has, and I will make the decision for him!"

Xuanzang imitated the legendary judge and planned to seek justice for the people first.

"Reporting to the master, no." said the lawyer.

"No? How could there be no!" Xuanzang was stunned, then suddenly realized and said: "Ah, I know, it must be you, the dog officials, who oppressed the people and destroyed the evidence, causing the sky of Chang'an County to be dark!"

"Reporting to the master, I would never dare to do that." The master said, and then called the captain to come up: "Captain Li, come here."

Several yamen runners came over carrying the case files, and the lawyer was talking while reconciling the contents of the case with those of Captain Li.

"On June 10, the eighth year of the Tang Dynasty, there was a dispute between the Zhao family in Xinhe Village and their neighbors... On December 24, the ninth year of the Tang Dynasty, there was a dispute between Shangtang Village and Xiahe Village over water... On February 6, the eleventh year of the Tang Dynasty, there was a murder case, the cause of death of the deceased... the murderer... the evidence... the fourteenth year of the Tang Dynasty..."

The lawyer and the captain of the police counted the case files one by one. The evidence was seamless, the time was careful, and the evidence was clear. They couldn't say that there was absolutely no trick, but at least from Xuanzang's perspective, they couldn't see any problems.

But this was awkward, "Ah this..." Xuanzang touched his bald head and said, "So what natural disasters are there in this county that require rescue and relief?"

"Master, please come here and do this..." The lawyer presented him with a few more files.

When Xuanzang opened it, he found that every detail inside was about the years when Chang'an County suffered disasters and the disaster relief situations over the years.

"That……"

"Hey, Master." The master stroked his goatee and whispered in Xuanzang's ear, "Think about where this place is before you ask, or we will easily embarrass Grand Master Huayan."

Xuanzang's face turned red.

When the master said this, he finally remembered where he was. Chang'an County! Under the emperor's feet, outside the imperial city, the best county in the world.

How many corrupt officials and natural disasters in ordinary documents and stories have not been dealt with?

Even if there are corrupt officials, they should hide themselves carefully and operate according to certain rules, so as not to affect the lives of the general public.

Otherwise, if the emperor goes out for a stroll one day and sees the behavior of the people under his rule, how many local officials will survive?
It was fine in the past, but under the rule of those aristocratic families, the common people were basically not considered human beings. They were all a community of interests for the vested interest class. The emperor would at most order these commoners to be dragged away and not be an eyesore.

but now?
Are you afraid that the sword in Huayan's hand is not effective?
Xuanzang stood up and bowed deeply to his master, "Master, please teach me."

"Oh, Master, you are embarrassing me. How capable can I be to teach you?"

The lawyer looked around, then leaned over and whispered, "Why don't you take a look at the local county annals first, then go down and visit for three to five days to understand the local customs and actual situation of the county, and then come up with a plan and implement it.

I have to say a few words. It is better to stay still than to move under the emperor's feet. If the master can't come up with a good new method for a while, we won't move. If the local officials can make the local government run smoothly and the people live and work in peace and contentment, this is already a great achievement.

You are the magistrate of Chang'an County, and you are also a disciple of the Grand Master. Under the feet of the emperor, are you still afraid that your merits will not be noticed by others and you will not be promoted? The people's livelihood here is not governed by mountains, rocks, or trees, but by real people. "

"Hey!" After hearing this, Xuanzang seemed to have suddenly realized something, and a new door opened in front of him. "Don't say it, don't say it!"

The more Xuanzang thought about it, the more it made sense. He asked again, "My dear senior, if I have an idea, how should I implement it? You also said that we are managing the people's livelihood here. It's easy for me to make a decision on the spur of the moment, but if I make a mistake, the people under my control will suffer."

"Well, since you asked, I will dare to say a few words." The master saw that Xuanzang was a man who took human life to heart and was not the kind of naughty kid who became famous at a young age and did not take others seriously. He was satisfied in his heart, so he said a few more words:

"Well, it's fine if you have an idea, but you don't know how to do it. Why don't you implement it in our government office first? It doesn't matter if we have to endure a little trouble, the key is to see the effect."

The master put his hands in his pockets and clasped his hands, "Then, I think you can spend some money to recruit places willing to participate in the experiment, open up a pilot village in our county, and give each household a certain amount of subsidy every month as compensation for their trial of the new policy.

If you have confidence in your abilities and ideas, most policies are good. By then, the pilot village will move forward step by step. In the future, even if there are no financial subsidies and policy preferences, there will be many people scrambling to get the household registration in a pilot village.

Then, in the same way, can we call some pilot schools experimental schools, and pilot medical clinics experimental hospitals? Then, the word "experimental" will become a synonym for good things that everyone is fighting for, and it will also become your political achievement, right?"

"Oh, Master, you are really great!" Xuanzang was convinced immediately and stood up and bowed deeply to the Master. "May I ask your name, senior, and what your background is? You are such a great talent, you shouldn't have fallen to the point of being a master!"

"What am I?"

The master smiled and waved his hand, "I was a clerk in the grassroots army of King Hou Tu. I was fortunate to have taken two classes from King Yang, the ancestor of our current Guo Dynasty and the master of the Grand Master, your master, and did some grassroots work.

Now I have been demobilized and come to the local area. I have not passed the imperial examination, so I will just work as a legal advisor. Anyway, the court provides various subsidies to civilians like us who have been demobilized from the army. It is several dozen taels of silver every month. No kidding, it is higher than your salary.

I don't have to shoulder the responsibility of a county, I don't have to work overtime, I drink and fish, play cards and brag on weekends, and go home to my wife and children at night. What else can I be dissatisfied with? Even if the court wants to give me a promotion, I won't do it. "

After listening to the master, Xuanzang's first thought was: So the master is so amazing; his second thought was: This master was a veteran in his life, and he had such profound insights after only listening to two of the master's lectures. My master takes one-on-one small classes with the master every day, is he crazy?

The third thought: Is it possible that my master taught me well, but I am not smart enough? The fourth thought: Why is the treatment of this master so good? What should I do if I suddenly don’t want to be an official?
But there was no other way. Since he had already become the county magistrate, although Xuanzang was young, he was a responsible child. Not only had he to continue serving, but he also had to be a good county magistrate.

"This kid is finally somewhat decent. He doesn't rely on his status to look down on other people's advice." Huayan nodded with satisfaction in mid-air.

Yang Gui, who was standing beside him, slapped him on the bald head and said, "I handed Xuanzang over to you, and this is how you taught me? Fortunately, he still had such a shining point today, otherwise I would have ruined your practice. You still want to be a Buddha, and you can go to the palace to be a eunuch."

"Then I'm thinking of letting him suffer a little loss, so that the experience and knowledge he gains in practice can be more firmly grasped!" Huayan said, covering his head with his hands in grievance.

"Your idea is good, but you have to have a backup plan. Otherwise, if you let this twelve-year-old kid mess around, how many lives can the local people have to endure this?"

Yang Gui said dissatisfiedly: "If he becomes a dog official, I will kill him directly and let Jin Chanzi reincarnate again. Do you believe it?"

"Wrong, wrong." Huayan shrank his neck in fear. He almost forgot that what his teacher hated most was the dictatorial dog emperor and the dog officials under his rule.

In this way, Xuanzang took root in Chang'an County, diligently visited and investigated, and managed people's livelihood. He gradually forgot his obsession with Buddhism. In his daily life, he thought more about the daily necessities of the people and how all living beings survived.

But what he didn't know was that while he was concerned about whether all living beings could eat enough and live well, his Buddhist practice, which he thought had reached a bottleneck, was making rapid progress.

He himself has not yet noticed the improvement in his cultivation, because all his Buddhist practice has been transformed into the merits of benefiting the people he governs.

The Tang Dynasty had inherited the destiny of human prosperity, and was digesting it. Now Xuanzang's actions in this "number one county in the world" were in line with destiny. With the merits from heaven several times greater, his practice and realm grew rapidly. (End of this chapter)