Chapter 520: Chapter 520: Squad Leader Luo
However, County Magistrate Xu was puzzled: "Why didn’t Ming Shaoqing take Zou Jiang away?"
Zou Jiang was the key witness in the Zou Youlian case, and should have gone to the Capital to await a summons.
He had asked Ming Shaoqing about it, but Ming Shaoqing said, "The crimes Zou Jiang accused Zou Youlian of did not involve colluding with river bandits. That issue arose only after the river bandits learned of Zou Youlian’s arrest and wanted to silence him. There is both human and material evidence available for this case, so there’s no need for Zou Jiang to go to the Capital."
Yet, County Magistrate Xu was still doubtful, for with Ming Shaoqing’s cautious nature, he should have taken Zou Jiang along.
Master Tian said, "In the Zou Youlian case, there are human witnesses from the river bandits, the administrative and subordinate officials of Linhe Prefecture, the administrative and subordinate officials of Jinling Prefecture, as well as several other accomplices. There is no lack of physical evidence or statements, so it doesn’t matter whether Zou Jiang goes to the Capital or not."
"Is that so?" County Magistrate Xu glanced at Master Tian with a clearly unconvinced look.
Zou Jiang also came to see off Ming Shaoqing. Hearing County Magistrate Xu whispering to Master Tian, he approached and said, "Your Honor need not be puzzled. It was I who asked Ming Shaoqing to allow me to stay. Ming Shaoqing understood that I am of advanced age and suffer from old and new ailments; it would be difficult for me to travel long distances, hence he didn’t have me accompany him to the Capital."
Then he asked, "Your Honor harbors such doubts—do you wish for me to drag my sick body to the Capital and then die in a foreign land?"
How could County Magistrate Xu respond to that?
He could only smile and say, "Old Jiang misunderstands; how could I possibly harbor such malicious thoughts?"
Upon hearing this, Zou Jiang laughed and walked towards the county government office with the others who had come to see off Ming Shaoqing.
County Magistrate Xu, seeing him, hurriedly asked, "Old Jiang, do you plan to return to Luchang County soon?"
His great vengeance had been achieved; he should return home to pay homage to his ancestors and enjoy his twilight years. Did he really intend to continue mooching off the government office, letting them pay for his medical bills? The government office wasn’t wealthy.
Zou Jiang replied, "My injuries have not yet healed; I need to stay in the government office for a while longer. I hope Lord County Magistrate will not be annoyed."
With that, he breezily entered the government office, chatting and laughing with several Government Officials nearby.
County Magistrate Xu glared at Zou Jiang’s retreating figure, feeling quite pained about the government funds.
County Captain Jiang, seeing that County Magistrate Xu seemed not to understand the intentions of Ming Shaoqing and Zou Jiang, straightforwardly approached him and said, "Lord County Magistrate, Zou Jiang is a talented man, courageous and strategic, and loyal. You might consider hiring him as your staff. If you rise in rank together, he will be extremely useful in the future."
A higher position meant facing even crueler situations in the future. Without a capable strategist to assist, a powerless and not very clever official like County Magistrate Xu would probably end up dead without a complete corpse.
Master Tian also nodded and said, "County Captain Jiang’s words are very true. Your Honor might consider hiring Zou Jiang."
County Magistrate Xu was startled and wanted to ask them, "Have you gone mad?" Suggesting he hire a madman like Zou Jiang as staff—wasn’t every task Zou Jiang undertook enough to get him beheaded several times? "You may not care about your lives, but I care about mine."
County Magistrate Xu was scared, waved his hands, and said, "Let’s discuss this matter later; I still have much official business to attend to."
Ming Shaoqing had given him a document yesterday, rapidly delivered by a messenger from Elder Shangguan, stating that he could sell Zou family’s properties in Tianfu County to compensate the victims with the money raised.
The money given to the victims a few days ago was from the government funds, and he needed to recover this expense.
"The Zou family doesn’t own much property in Tianfu County; most of their properties are in places like Jiangnan, Jianghuai, and Central State, with some even in the northeast Yangji Prefecture."
"Yangji Prefecture is already at the northern border of Great Chu. This shows that Zou Youlian had already planned an escape route for the Zou family. In case his misdeeds were exposed, they would flee to Yangji Prefecture and then leave Great Chu from there."
"Unfortunately, his evils were numerous, and even God didn’t protect him, resulting in the destruction and demise of his family."
"County Magistrate Xu, being lenient towards his subordinates, saw that Luo Wu and the Qin Brothers had gained much merit, and Gu Jin’an had connections with the Zheng Family and Shangguan Family. Therefore, he specifically called Luo Wu and said, ’The Zou family has some fields and shops in Qingfu Town. Find some time to go home and ask around; if you or your neighbors are interested in buying, bring the necessary silver to the county government, and I will give you a discount."
"Luo Wu, intent on marrying Gu Jinxiu, was considering buying property in the county town. He asked County Magistrate Xu, ’Sir, the Zou family also has some houses and shops in the county town. My family is interested in buying one or two; could this be possible?’"
"’Certainly, I can reserve some well-located shops and houses for you.’ County Magistrate Xu didn’t mind as long as the Luo Family could afford it."
"Luo Wu was delighted; he knew that many wealthy families in the county town had their eyes on these Zou properties, and the Xu Family had already sent someone to offer a high price for the well-located Zou shops and houses. The words from County Magistrate Xu showed that he valued him."
"What pleased Luo Wu even more came next."
"County Magistrate Xu said to County Captain Jiang, ’Lord Jiang, since Luo Wu is here, there’s no need to hide the appointment letter anymore. Just give it to him directly.’"
"County Captain Jiang chuckled and nodded, handing a scroll of documents to Luo Wu and said, ’Take a look.’"
"Luo Wu, who had known he would be promoted to squad leader, replacing Squad Leader Zhu, was not surprised. He calmly took the documents, but when he opened them, surprise still surfaced in his eyes, ’Sir, this...’"
"The appointment scroll not only had the seal of Tianfu County Government but also the seal of Prefecture Government Office."
"County Captain Jiang smiled, ’Do not be surprised. This is what you deserve, and also the intent of Lord County Magistrate.’"
"Normally, the appointment of a new squad leader only needs approval from the County Magistrate and the County Captain. However, County Magistrate Xu would be transferred in a few months, and the incoming County Magistrate’s character was unknown; he worried that Luo Wu, being newly promoted, might be replaced. Therefore, County Magistrate Xu had sent the appointment letter to the Prefecture Government Office to have it sealed."
"This way, even if the new County Magistrate wanted to dismiss Luo Wu, he would have to go through the Prefecture Government Office."
"Luo Wu immediately knelt on one knee, ’Your humble servant thanks Lord County Magistrate and Lord County Captain for your efforts on my behalf.’"
"County Magistrate Xu smiled and asked Luo Wu to stand up, then mentioned, ’You still have injuries and should go home to recuperate. Also, now that you’re promoted to squad leader, this is a cause for great celebration in your household. If your family plans to host a feast, I can grant you a few days off.’"
"In the countryside, even becoming a Government Official at the government office is an event worth a village feast, let alone a squad leader, which is a significant position for a farming family, as there are only three squad leaders in a county."
"Thinking of Gu Jinxiu possibly visiting Granny Li at Huaiyu Embroidery Shop, Luo Wu shook his head, ’Your humble servant appreciates your kindness, sir, but the county government is currently busy. I wish to wait until after this busy period before requesting a few days off.’"
"In this way, he would have time to accompany Gu Jinxiu to Huaiyu Embroidery Shop."
"County Magistrate Xu, upon hearing this, became even more pleased and told Luo Wu, ’Alright, stay busy for a while longer, and when things settle down in the county government, go back to your village and celebrate properly.’"
"With that, he waved his hand to dismiss Luo Wu."
"But as soon as Luo Wu left the courtyard of County Magistrate Xu’s office, he encountered Squad Leader Zhu coming in with hostility at the gate."