Be a small county magistrate in ancient times

Chapter 12 Which official is so unlucky?
"Can we go in?" Bafang asked.

Xi Bei raised her hand and knocked Bafang on the head, "How can I get in if the door can't be opened."

Meng Changqing got out of the car and saw that there were at least six or seventy people blocking the city gate. "Colonel Yang." She shouted to the people following the car.

Yang Zhengce immediately stepped forward and said, "Mr. Meng."

"Call a few people, lighten your gear, and quickly go around to the east and west gates of the city to check the situation."

"Yes!"

Yang Zheng tightened the reins and turned around. Among the 29 people, he picked five cavalrymen and galloped towards the city gates on both sides.

"Master." Bafang approached Meng Changqing and whispered, "Have you brought anything to eat? I'm hungry."

Meng Changqing asked him to get into the car and eat cake, while he got out of the car and took a walk.

Chu Mufeng and Xi Bei also got off their horses and followed Meng Changqing.

Meng Changqing looked at the group of refugees from a distance, "With so many refugees gathered here, there must be a disaster somewhere, but I didn't hear any reports of disasters from Liangzhou in the palace."

Chu Mufeng guessed, "Maybe the local officials didn't report it, and the Liangzhou magistrate didn't know about it either."

Xi Bei shook his head, "Liangzhou is different from other places. It is located on the border. It is common for people to be displaced due to war."

Looking at the group of zombie-like people, their clothes were in tatters, following one after another, either waiting or walking elsewhere.

Meng Changqing said, "Master, let's go over and ask about the situation."

"It's better not to go." Xi Bei didn't move. "No one can guarantee what they will do."

Meng Changqing listened to the advice. She stood in front of her horse and watched the situation at the city gate from a distance.

The big brown horse sprayed on Meng Changqing's head, and opened its big lips to bite her hair, but Meng Changqing hurriedly avoided it.

After Bafang finished eating the cake, Yang Zheng, who had gone to the east gate, came back with his people, "Mr. Meng, the east gate is also blocked, and there are more victims than here."

At this time, the cavalry who went to the west gate also came back, "Mr. Meng, the west gate is open, but when I came back, I saw refugees going to the west gate. I'm afraid the west gate will be closed soon."

Meng Changqing immediately jumped on the carriage and said, "Hurry to the west gate."

There are no roads close to the city wall. Horses can pass it due to their high agility, but there are some places where carriages really cannot pass.

Fortunately, there were so many people that the carriage could not pass, so the soldiers carried the carriage over.

By the time Meng Changqing and his party arrived at the west gate, there were already two or three refugees who wanted to enter the city but were stopped.

Xi Bei stepped forward to show the passage order, and the city guards immediately let them in.

After entering the city gate, Meng Changqing got out of the carriage, cupped his hands towards Chu Mufeng and said, "Sir Bai, please take Captain Yang and the others to the post house first, while I stay to inquire about the situation."

"Please pay attention to your own safety." Chu Mufeng left with the 30 people.

Meng Changqing walked back to the city gate and came to a man and a woman who were stopped by officers and soldiers.

The man and woman were skinny and skinny, their faces were bruised from the cold, their lips and cheeks were cracked in many places, and their hands were so cold that they looked terrible.

"Where are you from? How did you end up here?"

"Young man, we are from Liangzhou. We really have nothing to eat, so we came all the way begging for food." The man knelt down to Meng Changqing, "Please give me some food, young man."

The woman next to him also knelt down and kowtowed to Meng Changqing.

The officers and soldiers guarding the city blocked them from getting close to Meng Changqing, "Don't worry about these people. They are all from Beishan County. They are used to begging. Master Futai couldn't do anything about them and sent them back to their place of origin several times. But he came over again within a few days.

If you get caught by them, you won't be able to shake them off. "

Meng Changqing's facial features wrinkled together in an instant, "Beishan County?" A young gatekeeper said: "The young master is not a local, I am afraid he has never heard of that place."

Another person laughed and said: "Even the locals, few know about Beishan County. We have always called that place Yegou. It was only changed to Beishan County a few months ago."

The young gatekeeper said, "It's said to be a county town, but it doesn't even have a county magistrate."

Another person said: "It's not strange that there is no county magistrate. It's strange that the whole county is beggars. I heard from people above that a county magistrate needs to be sent from the capital. I don't know which magistrate is so unlucky."

Bafang stepped forward to support Meng Changqing, "Master, hold on!"

Meng Changqing: "I can't stand it, I'm going crazy."

It was the young gatekeeper who said, "Young Master, please go back quickly."

Meng Changqing's eyes fell on the man kowtowing outside.

These refugees are actually people under her rule!
There has been a child squatting behind the woman, and Meng Changqing noticed it just now.

The child was wrapped in a torn cotton-padded jacket. The cotton-padded jacket could not cover his calves, and the exposed skin turned black and purple from the cold.

Looking at it like this, I couldn't tell whether the child was a boy or a girl, nor could I estimate its age. I could just see him squatting on the ground, seemingly eating something.

"Is that your child? What is he eating?" Meng Changqing asked.

The woman turned around and seemed to realize that there was a child behind her, "She is not my child."

Living here, the adults still have nothing to eat. He is a child without parents to protect him. Where can he get food?
"Master." Meng Changqing turned to Xi Bei and said softly, "Please help me bring the child in."

Xi Bei took the order and went out. The man and woman kowtowed slowly and slowly, but they still hoped that Meng Changqing would stutter.

There were times when Meng Changqing couldn't bear it anymore, so he turned around and spent thirty copper coins to buy some dry food with the officers and soldiers who were guarding the city, and gave them all to the man and woman.

Looking at the refugees gathering in the distance, she said, "If you don't want to be robbed, hide somewhere else and eat." After saying that, she turned around and left, returning to the carriage.

The officers and soldiers guarding the city saw the number of refugees increasing and decisively closed the city gate.

On the side of the road, Xi Bei put the child on the carriage, hissing and gasping as he put him down, "This kid is eating mud. If I throw it to him, he will still bite."

Meng Changqing stepped forward and asked him, "What is your name? How did you get here? Are your parents still there?"

No matter what Meng Changqing asked, the child didn't respond at all, just biting the mud unconsciously.

"Let's talk about it back at the inn." Meng Changqing dragged the child into the carriage and wanted to find him a piece of cake to eat, but he didn't expect that the cake had been eaten up by all directions, without leaving even a crumb.

The carriage moved forward slowly, and Meng Changqing and the child each occupied a corner in the carriage.

Meng Changqing looked at the child and felt that it was troublesome. Why did he get him here when his head was hot?

Could it be that her father's blood was causing trouble and she wanted to take the child home when she saw it?

The child was chewing dirt, and the dirt was all over the car.

Finally arriving at the door of the post house, Meng Changqing jumped out before the car stopped, "Master, take the child down and find something to eat for him first."

Meng Changqing is now eager to complain to Wen about the emperor.

But Wen and Xiaodai were busy settling the thirty people that Chu Mufeng had brought back before. They were not in the lobby, and only Laicai was waiting for her.

"Master, Doctor Hu is not leaving!"

"Okay! You ask Doctor Hu to come and take a look at the child, and I'll go find the mother."

(End of this chapter)