Be a small county magistrate in ancient times

When everyone sat down, Zuo Datou pushed the charcoal basin to his side again.

When the common people saw him coming out and sitting on the chair, they were full of questions. They couldn't help but talk to the people in front and behind him in a low voice, "Why haven't you seen this official before?"

Before they could reach a conclusion from their discussion, Zuo Datou said loudly: "Come forward one by one."

The one who ranked first due to luck and strength immediately took out his hand from his sleeve, bent down and walked into the shed, "Meet the official."

Before Qi Renli could say anything, he held up his identity tag with both hands and said, "The little man Ma Laifu lives in the county town not far away. Hearing what the police officers said, he came here to apply."

Qi Renli didn't see clearly what Malai Fu was holding in his hands. From his perspective, he could only see the wooden sign but not the words on it.

"What?" Qi Renli asked.

Zuo Datou took two steps forward and held the identity card in Ma Laifu's hand in front of Qi Renli. "Master Qi, this is his identity card."

"Identity tag?" Qi Renli looked surprised. He had never known that a commoner could have such a thing as an identity tag.

When he went to Beijing to take the exam, he was still guided by the Yamen. It was not until he was appointed by the Ministry of Civil Affairs that he had the official documents and seals to prove his identity.

"Yes." Zuo Datou explained, "The identity tags were originally given so that they could be easily distinguished when giving relief porridge. Later, they were also used to facilitate management. Gradually, the people got used to it and it has been used ever since."

Qi Renli turned the sign to the back and saw three big characters engraved on the sign: Malay Fu. The characters engraved below were relatively smaller and more numerous. They contained the person's facial features and residential address.

It's so detailed that it's not much different from the road guide.

Zuo Datou waited aside for a while, then reached out and turned over the ID card, taking this opportunity to introduce, "Sir, what you just looked at was the reverse side. In addition to your name, write down some important information. This is the front side. You have to turn it sideways. look."

"I just wanted to ask, what is the significance of this number? Why do you need to engrave it twice with numbers and abbreviations?"

"This is his ID number. In Mr. Meng's words, the number on it is unique.

In the future, there may be more than one person named Ma Laifu in Beishan County, but the numbers on the ID badges will not be repeated. This string of numbers refers to him.

In fact, the first-generation ID tags were much simpler than this one, and the number only had three or four digits. During the autumn harvest last year, your Excellency redid the population registration and replaced all the people with such ID tags, and the numbers on the tags also increased. to seven figures. "Qi Renli studied the numbers on the wooden sign, "These numbers seem to be disordered. I wonder if there are any rules for arrangement? "

"Of course there is." Zuo Datou said, "But I don't know the details. You can ask Mr. Meng or Captain Yang."

Qi Renli realized that he had been surprised by this identity card for long enough and it was time to get down to business.

His eyes finally fell on Ma Laifu and saw that he was not young and his back was not straight, "Have you ever practiced martial arts?"

"To tell you what, sir, I have never practiced martial arts." Ma Laifu's waist bent even more, but he didn't want to miss this opportunity, so he fought for it: "But I can read."

"Oh?" Before Qi Renli could say 'rare', Zuo Datou leaned into his ear and explained: "There are a group of people in Beishan County who came from exile. Many of them are literate, and so is this one."

"That's it." Qi Renli raised his voice and said to Ma Laifu: "I see that you speak well and are decent-looking, so you seem to be the kind of person I want. Then I will write down your name and you go to the side. Just wait, when I have selected ten people, I will give you orders together."

"Yes!" Ma Laifu agreed in surprise, took the sign that Zuo Datou had exchanged, and hurried to stand next to him.

The people outside the shed craned their necks to see what was going on inside. When they saw that Ma Laifu had been selected, they started talking in a low voice, "Is this it?"

Someone counted from front to back to figure out where he was in the ranking, and then he breathed a sigh of relief when he counted exactly tenth.

But the people ten years behind are very angry.

"Don't let me count before you reach me, right?" The further back the people go, the more worried they become.

Everyone wants a monthly income of 800 cash. With this money, it is not a problem to support a family of five. If the family members do whatever they want to supplement their income, they will live a comfortable life.

Not only are there tangible benefits in terms of money, but after all, the yamen servants are members of the yamen, who would dare to offend them?

"Next!" Zuo Datou shouted. (End of chapter)