In the vast Anshui County, most people are busy.
In the academy, among a group of scholars of different ages, Xu Mo, with his tall and slender figure and swift, flowing pen, stopped writing and looked up at the east.
Inside the You Ran Ju restaurant, Zheng Ruqian, who was chatting and laughing with Manager Hao, paused and slightly turned his head as he sipped his tea.
In the small courtyard adorned with flowers, Fang Heng, along with eight servants, raised their wood-chopping knives, each strike swift and powerful, aiming directly east and cleaving fiercely.
Inside the Wen family clinic, Wen Zhiyun, who was welcoming the third guest, withdrew the three fingers he was using to take the pulse and glanced at the east gate of the prefectural city.
In the Wang family compound, during a long banquet where Wang Fufeng was playing chess, the most crucial move was made. He raised the corners of his mouth and said, "That's about it."
Just then, a servant came to report, "Master, the Prefect of Anshui has arrived at the east gate of the prefectural city. The Liu, Sun, Wu, Bian and other prominent families have already boarded their carriages to go and greet him."
Although it is said that even a powerful dragon cannot suppress a local snake, the common people do not fight with officials, especially the gentry families, who are generally unwilling to antagonize local officials.
Wang Fufeng had always looked down on such "collusion," but he still had to go today, not only for the sake of the Wang family, but also for his closest friends.
Without hesitation, the frail-looking young man stood up, flicking his sleeve with one hand, "Let's go, let's go and greet this Prefect together."
After taking a couple of steps, seeing that Chang Yan hadn't moved, he raised an eyebrow and asked, "What, scared?"
The ten-year-old boy immediately laughed.
With so many preparations underway, the brothers are ready to go; how could they possibly be afraid?
"I'm afraid my brothers will blame me for going to see the excitement alone." Changyan smiled and followed.
The carriage bumped along the way and soon arrived at the east gate of Anshui County. The local gentry and families were already waiting. When they saw the Wang family's carriage, some snorted and others curled their lip.
The Sun family reacted the most, initially glaring angrily, but after glancing at the gradually enlarging convoy, they became smug, like wild porcupines waiting for their master to back them up.
Wang Fufeng pretended not to see and had someone help him down from the carriage.
A long banquet followed immediately.
Just as their feet touched the ground, a tremendous tremor shook the east of the city, and a convoy of seven or eight carriages sped towards them.
Because the speed was so fast, when it stopped, all the local gentry present were covered in dust.
Wang Fufeng had the foresight to cover his face with his wide sleeves, and also helped Chang Yan cover up.
Once the dust settled, he winked at Chang Yan, "Don't forget to tell your older brother that I was the one who protected your mouth."
Long banquet, "..."
He turned his head speechlessly and looked at the carriage convoy that had revealed its presence.
The major families had already gathered around the first carriage, bowing respectfully in unison, "Your Excellency, Prefect, you must be tired from your journey."
However, there was no movement inside the carriage.
The major families exchanged puzzled glances and bowed again in greeting.
There was still no movement.
The Sun family couldn't stand it any longer. Relying on their complicated kinship ties, they carefully parted a corner of the carriage.
There was no imposing official robe of a prefect, nor a middle-aged man with a beard; there was only a chubby baby fast asleep, stretching out his lotus-root-like arms and drooling unabashedly.
The head of the Sun family trembled in fright and quickly withdrew his finger, his eyes repeatedly searching the other carriages.
A moment later, the third carriage finally made a sound, and a middle-aged man in his thirties stepped down from it.
He was dressed in the official robes of the Prefect of Anshui County. He was eight feet tall and had a handsome face, though his skin was slightly dark and his lips were covered with a short, stiff mustache, which made him look quite dignified and cold.
"Greetings, Your Excellency." The members of the prominent families bowed again.
The Prefect of Anshui did not speak, but nodded slightly, finally focusing his attention on Wang Fufeng, presumably wondering why this man did not show any respect.
The boy smiled gently, and with a graceful movement, he cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Greetings, sir. You must have had a long journey."
This formed a stark contrast with the burly, middle-aged and elderly head of the household next to him.
An Shuijun raised an eyebrow, shifted his gaze to Chang Yan, and suddenly frowned between his brows.
Wang Fufeng thought he was displeased, so he stepped in front of Chang Yan and explained softly, "My younger brother is young and doesn't know any better. Please forgive him, sir."
This was originally a form of address following Xu Mo's, but it led the Prefect of Anshui to misunderstand that "Changyan is a child of the Wang family."
The man's tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed, and he exhaled a breath of stale air.
He said that in this remote and impoverished Anshui County, there was a child who looked familiar, as if he had seen him before in Fengjing, but he couldn't remember the details.
It must be because I've been in the car for too long and it's making a mistake.
The Prefect of Anshui turned his gaze back to the other prominent families. “Gentlemen, there’s no need for such formalities. I’m new here, and I hope you will all cooperate with me for the next three years.”
They're all seasoned veterans; there's no need for cooperation. We all run into each other all the time in Anshui County, so we'll just do each other a favor.
The only one I'm looking forward to is the head of the Sun family.
He couldn't even wait to be alone, and stepped forward to say, "This humble one has booked a banquet at Youran Residence to welcome you and wash away the dust of your journey. I hope you will do me the honor of gracing us with the local specialties."
Prefect He paused for a moment, as if he was hesitating about something, but quickly made a decision, "Then I'll trouble you, Master Sun."
Other families were either shocked, annoyed by the Sun family's show of off, or simply watched from the sidelines.
Wang Fufeng whispered in Chang Yan's ear, "The Sun family can't wait any longer."
Prefect He also noticed this, so he hesitated slightly.
But he also accepted the Sun family's invitation to the banquet, which shows that he was also eager to get started.
They couldn't wait to... deal with Fang Heng.
Chang Yan raised the corners of his mouth and stood still without moving.
However, the He family's carriage convoy, as Prefect He slowly moved forward, allowed him to smell the scent of milk in the first carriage and the fragrance of cosmetics in the second.
Chang Yan stared at Prefect He's broad back and smiled thoughtfully.
Only members of the Sun family attended the welcoming banquet at Youranju.
It is unknown what they discussed, but all that is known is that the next day, Prefect He waved his hand and abolished many of the regulations left by the previous prefect, while adding some new regulations.
For example, the taxes that were waived for people entering the city in Xieyang County have been reinstated.
For example, the city has become increasingly strict in its checks on people entering and leaving. In the past, a glance at the place of household registration was enough, but now they also ask about three generations of ancestors and search packages.
The people dared not speak out, but in reality they were full of complaints, especially Bian Wenxuan, who was so angry that he almost jumped up and submitted applications several times to have a face-to-face meeting with Prefect He.
The prefect remained silent, neither agreeing nor refusing, and then turned and wrote a letter to the Bian family.
The poor magistrate finally showed his love for the people, but after being scolded by his parents, he gave up.
However, he was unwilling to see the county's population decrease, so he asked Wang Xi to approach Xu Mo and ask him to fulfill his previous promise.
“Our master said that Master Xu will not ignore the affairs of Xieyang County.” Wang Xi said with shame, “Xieyang County was originally poor. It was only because the tax exemption attracted many businessmen to settle down. Now that the tax has been collected again, many merchants are clamoring to move away.”
Consumption drives the economy, and the economy drives development.
Without these merchants, there is no attractive environment. Without an environment, there will be no residents. If this continues, Xiyang County will eventually become a poor county.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
