Chapter 250 The county magistrate is so generous?

Madam Cao apologized to them briefly, and then said, "It is only natural for Doctor Shen to need a rest. It is all my fault for being too anxious and worried about my useless legs, which led me to offend the divine doctor."

Cao Guanghu hesitated for a moment, but after receiving a look from Old Madam Cao, he immediately said, "Mother is right."

Then, he said to the old doctor at the clinic, "This money won't trouble this young master; the county magistrate will cover it!"

The crowd erupted in uproar. Had Magistrate Cao changed his ways?

In the eyes of the people of Haijin, this county magistrate was usually very arrogant.

Sheng Sheng, however, seized upon a unique angle: "His Majesty now emphasizes that officials must be honest and upright. Although the canal transport in Haijin is booming, the county magistrate's treasury is not Haijin's money bag. Does the county magistrate's treasury really have that much silver?"

Xie Yunqi realized what was happening and looked at him suspiciously.

These words startled Cao Guanghu, and he broke out in a cold sweat.

Cao Guanghu was glared at by Old Madam Cao, and he quickly changed his tune: "Of course not, uh, what I mean is... today's medicine expenses will all be paid by me, the magistrate of Haijin! Although our county government is not wealthy, the people of Haijin are my subjects, and the county government should naturally do something. However, if it's to cover everything, the county government obviously doesn't have the money, and I really have the will but not the means."

There was a chorus of boos from the crowd.

Cao Guanghu seemed afraid that the hissing would cause a misunderstanding, so his eyes immediately turned sharp and he said seriously, "What do you mean by this? Every year, I hand over all the taxes from Haijin to the capital and to His Majesty. Although my salary is very meager, I am willing to give it up for the sake of the people of Haijin."

Xie Yunqi snorted and didn't bother to say anything more to him: "Alright, then I'll trouble Magistrate Cao to pay for today's medicine. I'll cover the rest."

Cao Guanghu looked unwell, but he wasn't as impatient as before.

Shen Jiaqing knew that these two children were not short of money, so he did not ask whether Shengsheng and Xie Yunqi's actions were appropriate. He simply said to Shengsheng, "This Magistrate Cao seems suspicious. Keep an eye on him later."

A voice asked in confusion, "Hmm? Something's not right."

"He said his salary was meager, but a few days ago he came to my door seeking medical treatment. The first day he came, nothing special happened, but the second day he actually asked someone to bring me a thousand taels of gold, and even hinted outside the door that there were things I liked. I guess he thought I would ask for a high consultation fee before he would come for treatment. But I didn't even go out to see him. He probably didn't expect me to be observing him from the shadows, and thought I didn't know, otherwise he wouldn't have made such a boastful statement in front of me."

Shen Jiaqing recalled that Cao Guanghu was accompanied by four servants that day, each of whom was carrying a plate covered with a red cloth.

Through the crack in the door, Shen Jiaqing caught a glimpse of the reconciliation as the red cloth was lifted, and only then did she inadvertently discover that beneath the red cloth lay a wealth of gold.

Shen Jiaqing smiled and shook his head. "In my opinion, if he really lived on that meager salary as he said, he couldn't possibly have such a large sum of money, could he?"

Sheng Sheng was astonished. A thousand taels of gold—this was no ordinary gesture.

According to Shen Jiaqing, Cao Guanghu came to seek medical treatment without bringing anything on the first day, so he assumed that Shen Jiaqing was implying that he wanted money.

The next day, he brought money, but Shen Jiaqing still didn't see him. Cao Guanghu realized that Shen Jiaqing was impervious to reason, so he didn't just tie him up.

This left Sheng Sheng somewhat bewildered; he was arrogant, yet not entirely abusive.

I don't understand.

However, such a generous gesture was something Sheng Sheng had only ever seen when Xie Yuxiao bestowed gifts upon others.

Looking at Cao Guanghu's serious and righteous appearance, if Shen Jiaqing hadn't spoken up, Shen Sheng really wouldn't have guessed that Cao Guanghu could come up with so much silver.

Because neither Cao Guanghu nor his wife wore clothes made of the finest materials; they were the kind of clothes that ordinary nobles often wore.

Moreover, although Cao Guanghu was somewhat arrogant, he did not do anything excessive. Although he lost his composure due to the queuing issue, he still managed to save face by paying the people for a day's worth of medicine.

You really can't tell just by looking at it.

Sheng Sheng pretended to think, touched her chin, and secretly thought that she should tell her brother about this when she got back.

Amidst the noise, Shen Jiaqing finished the tea and snacks that Shengsheng and the other person had brought, and then continued to take pulses for the people in line.

Cao Guanghu rushed forward, stopping Shen Jiaqing in his tracks: "Doctor Shen, since I have already paid for the people's medicine for a day, could you please do me the favor of letting my elderly mother have her pulse checked first? My mother is old and has difficulty walking, you see..."

At this moment, Cao Guanghu was no longer acting unreasonably and became quite humble.

As the saying goes, "He who eats another's food is bound to him; he who takes another's money is bound to him." Since Cao Guanghu had given him money, the people naturally tolerated him and had no objections.

Shen Jiaqing glanced at him and said, "Alright, please invite the old lady over."

Cao Guanghu hurriedly helped Old Madam Cao over and took Shen Jiaqing's pulse.

Because of Shen Jiaqing's previous words, Sheng Sheng had been observing Cao Guanghu discreetly.

But even after Shen Jiaqing finished taking Madam Cao's pulse and the servant went into the clinic to get the medicine, Shen Sheng couldn't see anything else.

Moreover, Cao Guanghu accompanied her throughout the entire process, and even personally stood in line to get treatment for his elderly mother. He is clearly a filial son.

Sheng Sheng's first principle in life now is to never engage in internal conflict; if she can't figure something out, she simply won't think about it anymore.

As the saying goes, leave professional matters to professionals. The more contradictory and puzzling things Cao Guanghu has, the more it shows that there are problems with him.

Putting everything else aside, at the very least, there's definitely something wrong with that gold.

Although the county magistrate's salary was not low, it was absolutely impossible for him to have the confidence to spend thousands of taels of gold.

Surely it couldn't have been borrowed by him to pay for his mother's medical treatment?

Who would believe that?

The reason why Xie Yunchuan and Xie Yunyang didn't come out with Shengsheng and the others today is because the two of them, adhering to the principle of "since we're already here, we might as well go and make a private visit to the Grand Canal Bureau."

Because Haijin is adjacent to the capital and located at the intersection of three rivers, Haijin's canal transport led the Yu Kingdom.

The Grand Canal Transport Office was a department established by the imperial court in Haijin to oversee the transport of grain.

Unlike the county magistrate Cao Guanghu, if the county magistrate's office was in charge of the politics of Haijin, then the canal transport office was in charge of the economy of Haijin. It was equivalent to a small "Ministry of Revenue" in Haijin City, directly under the Ministry of Revenue in the capital.