nashuaworldcup Chapter 68: Serving as an Official
Chapter 68: Serving as an Official
Chapter 68 A Thousand Miles to Serve as an Official
The girls at Chunfeng Pavilion were all brought from Hezhou by the Four Great Talents, and about half of them didn't have proper citizen certificates. They didn't care about the meager daily income of a dozen or so coins.
Wang Wenzhou waved his hand and pointed at the girls without good citizen certificates, saying, "Take them away!"
"Lord Wang! I swear on my honor that they are not thieves!" Ma Deyun stepped forward.
"Hehe..." Wang Wenzhou laughed, "I know that these girls are all good girls from brothels. However, they don't have good citizen certificates. How about this, I will take them to the yamen first, and then you can find someone to go and process good citizen certificates for them one by one."
Ma Deyun was furious. "Wang Shazi, you're ruthless!"
"Mr. Ma, no need to see us off!" Wang Wenzhou said with a smile as he led his men away.
Yang Shan cupped his hands in apology to the guests and said, "Distinguished guests, I apologize. There was a slight mishap. Today, all purchases at Chunfeng Pavilion are half price!"
Liu Gangli finished dressing and was about to leave when he heard about the half-price discount. He moved his leg back; the top courtesan in the prefecture was indeed better than the old maids at Yanchunlou. Since it was half-price, he decided to go upstairs and continue riding.
Although there was a half-price discount today, half of the girls were taken away by Wang Wenzhou. Many customers, having lost their girls, no longer wanted to stay and went home dejectedly.
The four talented scholars hurriedly stepped forward to apologize. They absolutely hated Wang Wenzhou.
Wang the Fool has gone too far! The place was originally full of distinguished guests, but after Wang Wenzhou's disruption, most of them left.
Yang Shan said angrily, "Since that fool Wang is causing us trouble, we can't let him live in peace."
"Hmph! A mere county magistrate, bullying people with his power!" Ma Deyun cursed.
"In my opinion, we should file a complaint against him. Although no one in Hanshan County objects to the city entrance tax, it is not in accordance with the imperial decree!" Yang Shan said.
"Yes! I'll go write the complaint right now!" Ma Deyun said angrily.
"No!" Yang Shan shook his head and said, "Brother Ma, you don't need to personally intervene. Just find someone to write a complaint and submit it. Then, Brother Ma, inform your uncle privately."
"Haha...Brother Yang is absolutely right!" Ma Deyun laughed.
……
"Clap clap clap..."
As Liu Gangli galloped on his horse, engaging in a fierce battle with the girl for three hundred rounds, he suddenly heard a knock on the door.
"Open the door!" shouted the constables outside.
"Wait a minute!" Liu Gangli wiped the sweat from his forehead. Here we go again! Can't a person have some fun?
"Kick down the door!" Wang Qiang said.
A burly yamen runner kicked the door open.
Wang Qiang led three constables and swarmed in!
"Stand still and don't move!" Wang Qiang shouted.
"Young Master Qiang, it's me!" Liu Gangli said with a wry smile, wrapped in a blanket.
"Oh, isn't this Manager Liu? Excuse me, I'm here on orders from my superiors to check your good citizen certificates. Could you please show me your good citizen certificate?" Wang Qiang asked with a smile.
"Hehe..." Liu Gangli smiled bitterly, hurriedly rummaged through his clothes, took out his good citizen certificate and handed it to Wang Qiang.
Wang Qiang picked up the good citizen certificate, flipped through it a few times, handed it back to Liu Gangli, and said, "Manager Liu, please continue. Don't close the door later. I reckon someone will come to check the rooms again soon."
"Manager Liu, don't just stand there, please continue!"
After Wang Qiang finished speaking, he left with the yamen runners.
Liu Gangli wasn't stupid; he finally understood that Ma Deyun and the others must have offended Lord Wang. It seemed they could forget about ever coming to Chunfeng Pavilion again, or they might get sick from the fright—a lifelong matter indeed.
Thinking of this, Liu Gangli didn't want to continue fighting. He got dressed and walked out the door.
Liu Gangli walked up the stairs and found the four great scholars and Lord Wang huddled together, talking about something.
"Lord Wang! You just checked the good citizen certificate, why are you here again?" Lin Qing asked irritably.
"I'm also helpless! The thief hasn't been caught yet! I'm here to inspect for the good of you all. If the thief comes in and kills someone, that would be a huge disaster," Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, speaking in an official tone.
"Lord Wang, we're all honest people. Just tell us how much silver you want, and we'll give it to you!" Ma Deyun said angrily.
"Boss Ma, I'm not a corrupt official! You can't do this!" Wang Wenzhou rolled his eyes at Ma Deyun. Do you think I need your little bit of money? If I wanted some money, there are plenty of people in Hanshan County who would rush to give it to me. Why would I need to come here personally to extort you?
"Lord Wang, you are a magnanimous man. It was all our fault the other day!" Yang Shan cupped his hands and began to speak softly.
"I'm just doing my job! I have no other intentions! Don't worry, we'll leave immediately after checking your good citizen certificates. The yamen runners will absolutely not take a single needle or thread from you!" Wang Wenzhou said with a wicked smile.
The four talented scholars were furious! Today, Chunfeng Pavilion opened to great popularity; most of the people in Hanshan County who could afford to shop there came. The four scholars estimated that at this rate, they could earn at least several thousand taels of silver each month. But now, with Wang Wenzhou ruining everything, who would dare come again?
"Lord Wang, please, let us go! We brothers don't have it easy making a living!" Sun Feng said with a bitter smile.
"Four bosses, I've said it countless times, I'm really just carrying out official business!" Wang Wenzhou said solemnly.
"Your Honor! Inside Chunfeng Pavilion, all the good citizen certificates have been checked, and no suspicious persons have been found!" a yamen runner reported.
Wang Wenzhou cupped his hands in greeting to the four talented scholars and said with a smile, "My four lords, you are busy. I have official business to attend to. Goodbye!"
Wang Wen waved his hand, "Let's go!"
"Haha..." Wang Qiang burst out laughing as soon as he left Chunfeng Pavilion.
"Young Master, I admire you more and more! You're amazing! Ma Deyun and the others are so angry they've turned pale!" Wang Qiang said with a smile.
"To be an official, you must know how to use the power in your hands! Even the smallest bit of power, if used well, can make them suffer terribly!" Wang Wenzhou patted Sheng Liang on the shoulder and asked, "Xiao Liang, do you understand?"
"Hmm..." Sheng Liang thought for a moment, then asked, "Brother, why didn't you accept the money Ma Deyun and the others offered you?"
“Xiao Liang! You can’t just accept money just because someone gives it to you! If you think like that, you won’t last long even if you become an official, and you’ll end up in jail!” Wang Wenzhou said with a laugh.
"Why?" Sheng Liang couldn't understand why they wouldn't accept the money. Uncle, didn't you say that very few officials are truly dedicated to the people? Most of them are just bastards who travel thousands of miles to serve the people only for money!
“Those four idiots wish I were dead. If I had taken their money just now, they would definitely have sued me for extortion. Even if I really wanted to take money, I couldn’t just openly accept it from these people whose background I didn’t know,” Wang Wenzhou explained.
"Xiao Liang, you'll understand when the young master organizes another charity auction!" Wang Qiang said with a smile.
Wang Wenzhou laughed and said, "Xiao Qiang, keep an eye on the time. In an hour, take some men to check again. We'll stop checking whenever Chunfeng Pavilion closes down!"
"Haha... I understand, young master!" Wang Qiang laughed. His young master was really wicked. Anyone who offended his young master would be in big trouble.