At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 102
No wonder these gatekeepers were so frightened.

If the county magistrate just came to take office, he was attacked, injured or died in front of them, regardless of whether it was their responsibility or not, several people would definitely be punished.

In light cases, he will be dismissed from office and fined, and in severe cases, he will be arrested and imprisoned.

The Han Dynasty was different from the later generations, especially in remote counties, they did not pay attention to the fairness of the law at all, and many times the local officials did what they said.

Even if the county officials want to shirk responsibility, they will definitely question these gatekeepers.

"clang!"

It has to be said that the gatekeeper reacted extremely quickly.

But Xiang Hong's knife was obviously faster, and the sharp stone had just arrived in front of Zhou Qi before it was chopped off by Xiang Hong.

Dian Wei also took out the small flying halberd from his bosom, stared sharply in one direction, and prepared to take the assassin's life.

"Wait a minute, Mr. Dian!"

Zhou Qi also came to his senses at this time. When he saw a very thin figure wearing tattered clothes, dirty hair, and hurriedly turned around to run away, he held down Dian Wei's right hand.

When Dian Wei heard this, he looked at Zhou Qi with some confusion.

However, Xiang Hong had already dropped his strong bow and rushed out, chasing the assassin.

It didn't take long for Xiang Hong to return a little annoyed. He cupped his fists and said, "I came to a forest within a short time after chasing him. The assassin was obviously very familiar with the terrain, and he disappeared soon."

"It's because I'm not good at arresting thieves, so I ask the county magistrate to punish me."

Zhou Qi waved his hand and said, "It's nothing important to worry about. We'll go back to the county office first."

But it was said that Zhou Qi and others had just arrived at the county government office, and the county magistrate and county lieutenant brought the county officials, big and small, to visit.

Zhou Qi only exchanged greetings with everyone, and then postponed the reception because he was tired from the long journey, and took Dian Wei, Xiang Hong, and Zhou Zhan to stay in the county government office.

In the study, Zhou Qi unconsciously tapped on the table with his right hand, frowning.

He looked up at Zhou Zhan and asked, "I just revealed my identity at the gate of the city today when I was suddenly attacked. What does Ziqing think about this matter?"

Zhou Zhan is indeed taciturn and not good at socializing, so he often seems very non-existent.

If Zhou Qi hadn't taken the initiative to ask, he might not have wanted to say a word at all.

However, since he had already been questioned, Zhou Zhan naturally could not continue to remain silent, and immediately said: "The person who attacked the county elder was unkempt, his clothes were ragged and thin, and he was thin. Judging from his appearance, he should be a local refugee, and he is not old."

"The weapon used to attack the county magistrate is a stone that can be seen everywhere. From this, it can be inferred that the attacker was definitely not premeditated, and it should be a temporary idea."

Zhou Qi nodded slightly when he heard this, obviously agreeing with Zhou Zhan's deduction.

He felt that there was something fishy about this matter, that the attacker did not intend to kill him, and that he looked like an underage child, so he stopped Dian Wei from killing him with a flying halberd.

Xiang Hong frowned when he heard this and said: "The county magistrate first came to Anfeng and has never offended anyone. Why was he attacked?"

Regarding this problem, not to mention Zhou Zhan and Zhou Ziqing, even Zhou Qi himself was puzzled.

Zhou Qi said: "Let's go and watch, if I can catch the assassin and ask him, it may solve the confusion in my heart."

Not long after Zhou Qi and others settled in, the county magistrate and county lieutenant came to visit again.

The county magistrate Zhu Bao said respectfully: "The magistrate of the county came to take up his post, and specially set up a banquet to invite the county magistrate to the banquet."

This Zhu Bao was not the prefect of Shu Han in history, but just the same name.

Zhu Bao, whose name is Wenxian, is a member of the powerful Zhu family in Anfeng County. He has served as the county magistrate in the county government for more than ten years, and sent off seven county magistrates one after another.

The so-called iron-clad county magistrates and flowing county magistrates are exactly like this.

No matter how the county magistrate is changed, Zhu Bao has the support of the family power. Although it is impossible to go further, he can always occupy the very important position of county magistrate.

To a certain extent, Zhu Bao, the county magistrate, possessed even more power than the airborne magistrate himself.

As long as Zhu Bao's consent is not obtained, the decrees of the previous county magistrates will not even get out of the county government. This is why Zhu Bao can still stay in the county magistrate's position even after seven county magistrates.

Those county magistrates may not want to promote their cronies. Unfortunately, the Zhu family is the most powerful in Anfeng County. Without the support of the Zhu family, it will be difficult for the county magistrate to gain a foothold in Anfeng County, and he may even be in danger of his life.

It should be noted that during Zhu Bao's tenure as county magistrate, three county magistrates died for no apparent reason.

The county captain Huang An also said with a smile on his face: "In the future, the county magistrate will have to deal with these big clans when he governs the region. Since they took the initiative to invite them, the county magistrate should show his face and go to the banquet."

Huang Anbiao is on business, and the situation is similar to Zhu Bao.

Zhu Bao and Huang An were both civil and military, with the support of their respective families. They were also married to several other wealthy families, and were able to almost completely control the entire Anfeng County.

Seeing that the two were very respectful, Zhou Qi couldn't refuse, so he immediately took Dian Wei and Xiang Hong to the banquet.

This banquet.

In addition to the county magistrate Zhu Bao and the county captain Huang An, there are also Zhu Li, the head of the Zhu family, Huang Zheng, the head of the Huang family, and Peng Zun, the head of the Peng family.

The three of them are powerful patriarchs in Anfeng County, except for Peng Zun, the patriarch of the Peng family, the patriarchs of the Huang family and the Patriarchs of the Zhu family are all over [-] years old.

Seeing that the other party was an elder, Zhou Qi took the initiative to go forward to salute, but the several Patriarchs did not dare to neglect and returned the salute.

Everyone exchanged cups and cups, the Patriarchs were willing to flatter, and Zhou Qi was also good at accidents, so the guests and hosts had a good time during the banquet, and the Patriarchs' originally raised hearts were slightly relieved.

Zhou Qi's reputation has already spread to Anfeng County. These people know that Zhou Qi is not a good person, and now he is also a student of the Yuan family.

Unless they had to, they would never be willing to be on the opposite side of Zhou Qi.

It was precisely to test Zhou Qi's attitude that they made great efforts to get Zhu Bao and Huang An to invite Zhou Qi to the banquet and entertain them grandly.

Three rounds of wine, five flavors of food.

Zhou Qi suddenly said: "Since I entered Anfeng County, I have seen many people inside and outside the county who are not hungry and have no clothes to cover their bodies. Even in the coldest month of winter, they are still wearing tattered and thin clothes."

"If there is no relief, I am afraid that many people will die this winter."

"When I came here for the first time, I don't know much about the situation. You are all respected elders in Anfeng County. I don't know if you can clear up my doubts."

Zhou Qi did not exaggerate.

Although the people are living in dire straits now, from Luoyang to Anfeng County, he can clearly feel that the life of the people in Anfeng County is miserable, even far exceeding that of other places.

It was almost the end of the new year, and there were still many people in poor clothes, including the assassin who attacked Zhou Qi at the gate of the city.

If the government does not provide relief, many people will freeze to death after the snow falls.

After everyone in the room heard this and looked at each other, the county magistrate Zhu Bao finally sighed and said: "To be honest, the previous county magistrate looted so much that the barbarians in the territory continued to rebel, mountain bandits and water bandits were rampant, and the people were in dire straits."

"Before the former county magistrate left, he swept away all the money and food in the treasury, which led to famines and refugees everywhere."

"Although we have the intention to help the victims, there is no money and food in the government, and it is really not enough to rely on a few families to contribute money."

Hearing this, Zhou Qi's eyes flickered.

He learned from the water bandit Zhou Jin that the former county magistrate colluded with local tyrants, oppressed the people, and searched for their favor.

After the previous county magistrate left, these people took care of everything.

If it's other things, let it go. Since Zhou Qi is the head of Anfeng County and intends to make this place his base camp, he will never watch those people freeze to death or starve to death.

So although he didn't want to be an enemy of these powerful tyrants, he still had to do something.

Zhou Qi put down the wine glass in his hand, looked at Zhu Bao, the county magistrate, and said, "The money and food in the county government treasury belong to the imperial court. The previous magistrate took all of it away. As the county magistrate, why didn't you stop it?"

Zhu Bao's face darkened slightly, knowing that the new county magistrate was probably trying to cause trouble.

Seeing this, Zhu Li, the Patriarch of the Zhu family, hurriedly smoothed things over, complaining: "That county magistrate has a background in the sky, we can't afford to provoke him, we can only watch him do whatever he wants."

The rest of the people also said: "It's the extreme, it's the extreme."

Zhou Qi sneered and said: "No matter how deep your background is, if you dare to do these things, I will act as a letter to Duke Yuan and report to the court to seek justice for the people."

He put his eyes on the county magistrate, and said: "Tomorrow, you will sort out all the household registration, account books, and documents in the county government, and I will investigate them one by one. If I can find out the criminal evidence of the previous county magistrate, I will never stop. !"

Seeing that Zhou Qi was determined to check the old account, the county magistrate, county lieutenant, and several family heads all felt slightly depressed.

They knew that there was going to be another huge wave in Anfeng County.

After sending Zhou Qi away, the heads of the family did not leave. The head of the Huang family, Huang Zheng, stood up and cursed: "Zhou Qi and Zhou Ziyi, who don't know the heights of heaven and earth, are treated warmly by us, but he is so disrespectful. "

"Check the account books carefully, you are determined to be our enemy."

The head of the Zhu family, Zhu Li, also sneered and said: "When we come to Anfeng County, the dragon has to be coiled and the tiger has to lie down. If this person doesn't know the signs, he will die inexplicably at an unknown time."

The Patriarch of the Xu family persuaded: "There is no need to go to that point."

"In recent years, three county magistrates have died in Anfeng County. If there is one more person, the higher-ups will really have to send someone to investigate carefully, but it will not be easy to handle."

"Besides, Zhou Qi is backed by the Yuan family, and his subordinate Dian Wei is not a good person. Unless it is absolutely necessary, he must not do this."

When everyone heard the words, they were all silent.

These years they have indeed been a little too arrogant, if they don't know how to restrain themselves, it may really lead to a fatal disaster.

It should be noted that officials are not that easy to kill.

Even if the power is as powerful as the Zhou family of Pei State, they will be very taboo about killing officials, and will never go to that step unless they have no choice.

What they rely on is simply that Anfeng County is too remote, and those who can come here to serve as county elders do not have a great background.

It is for this reason that several big families dare to act recklessly.

The county magistrate Zhu Bao heard everyone's conversation, but he smiled and said: "Since Zhou Qi wants to play, let's play with him first. Only by letting him know our methods will we be restrained."

"Didn't he want to check the account books, documents, and household registration? If these things are gone, how can he check them?"

When everyone heard this, they were a little stunned at first, and then they all burst out laughing.

　Except for Zhou Qi, Dian Wei, and Xiang Hong, the rest are all brothers, some of whom have changed their origins and some have changed their surnames.

　　I have been thinking about this plot for a long time, and it will definitely be very exciting.

　　I will regard Anfeng County as a microcosm of the entire Han Dynasty. I will describe many of the problems that existed in the late Han Dynasty through the struggle in Anfeng County and try my best to write them out in a point-blank manner to lay the solid foundation for the protagonist.

　　At that time, everyone, don’t feel that you are out of the main plot. I think that writing historical novels doesn’t have to be about fighting for hegemony.It is more difficult and refreshing to write about such neglected issues as the strong historical charm and the writing of the late Han tyrants, refugees, hidden farms and households, social atmosphere, and land annexation from all aspects.

　　When I planned to write this book, I was also influenced by "The Silk Case of the Ming Dynasty under the Microscope". I wanted to write about a different Three Kingdoms and a different history.

　　The brothers who can insist on reading here should also be very thoughtful book friends. If you have any good suggestions, you can write them in the book review area. I like copying book reviews the most.

　　Of course, if something is not well written, it should be criticized. I will correct it if it is not correct and encourage it if it is not.

　　Last but not least, please subscribe. Brothers, please try not to jump to bed.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)