Qingxi County is located in the east of Nanxia County. It is a major commercial route in Nanxia County. It is very close to Lingchuan Port. It only takes one day to ride there. Therefore, Qingxi County is considered a relatively prosperous county in Nanxia County.

Before Lu Zheng went, the appointment documents from the Ministry of Personnel had already arrived in Qingxi County through the post station. Therefore, as soon as they arrived in Qingxi County, they went directly to the county government office. Who would have thought that after arriving at the county government office, they had to wait for half an hour before a man who looked like a teacher showed up.

"Student Fu Zhiyi greets the county captain. You have worked hard on the journey." Master Fu was a man of medium height, about thirty or forty years old, with a pair of slender eyes and a short beard on his chin. He smiled warmly as soon as he arrived, and asked about the identities of Bao Zheng and others before leading them to the back court.

After settling down a little, Lu Zheng said, "I wonder where the county magistrate is? Is it convenient for me to go and pay him a visit?"

"Oh, what a coincidence." Fu Zhiyi immediately showed an embarrassment, "Several village gentry have invited Lord Ma, and he has gone to keep an appointment. I'm afraid he can't come back today."

"Oh." Lu Zheng said again, "What about the county magistrate?"

"This..." Fu Zhiyi saw Lu Zheng frowning, and said, "It's the farming season recently, and Lord Jin has gone to several farms. I'm afraid he is not free."

Lu Zheng did not say anything. If he had any doubts before, now he was sure that the county magistrate was trying to intimidate him. His appointment document had arrived a long time ago, and he would arrive in the next few days. Even if the county magistrate had an urgent matter, he should at least leave the county chancellor behind. Letting a mere master to receive him was like a slap in his face, wasn't it?

Bao Zheng and the others hadn't thought about it that deeply, but You Xiaowu only glanced at the expressions on Fu Zhiyi and Lu Zheng's faces and knew what was going on. He smiled and stood up: "Master Fu, my master rushed here in a hurry, and I'm afraid that things will be delayed. The appointment document from the Ministry of Personnel states that the handover must be made within half a month. Now the county magistrate and the county chancellor are not here. Can Master Fu make the decision?"

Fu Zhiyi's face changed.

Lu Zheng secretly gave You Xiaowu an admiring look, and then slowly said: "Both adults have things to do, and this official can understand, but the law of the court cannot be violated. This official has arrived on time. If there are any mistakes in the handover, this official can only report to the Ministry of Personnel truthfully, but I don't know if Master Fu can take this responsibility."

Fu Zhiyi's face was already very ugly, and he hurriedly said: "Master Lu, please forgive me, I will go to find Master Ma and Master Jin immediately, and I dare not delay the handover time." After saying that, he hurriedly said goodbye and left.

Although Fu Zhiyi was driven away, Lu Zheng's expression did not improve. He knew very well that the attitude of this County Magistrate Ma was so unfriendly, and he was afraid that his life would be difficult to be peaceful in the future.

Liu Zhi has already started to pack up things neatly. The environment of the county government office is naturally not good. Because of the rotation of terms, the county magistrate generally does not renovate the county government office. Even if they do, it is only the main hall in the front. They themselves will not live in the back government office. Not to mention that there are luxury houses given by local gentry as "landlord friendship", even if they do not accept it, they will buy or rent a house outside.

Lu Zheng did not care much about the place to live, and he found out later that although no one had lived there for a long time, the back government office was still clean. Bao Zheng climbed up the beams to check and found no rats or anything. It just looked very empty. It is understandable that there would be no furniture in this place since no one lived there.

Lu Zheng and his team walked around the back yamen and chose a relatively large courtyard. In addition to the three houses in the front, there were two rows of side rooms on the left and right. There was also a well in the courtyard. Beyond the screen wall was the main hall of the county yamen.

Although they encountered unpleasantness as soon as they arrived, they quickly adjusted themselves. Bao Zheng was good at martial arts and climbed onto the roof to check the tiles to prevent the house from leaking when it rained; Liu Zhi led Tiedan and Shihu to clean the house, leaving only You Xiaowu and Lu Zheng. The former was lazy and the latter was directly forbidden to work.

Lu Zheng walked around the yard twice, pointed to an empty space and said, "You have to plant flowers here. There's no need to plant any expensive flowers or plants. Just find some that are easy to grow and care for." "

Yes, yes, yes." You Xiaowu nodded repeatedly behind him.

"Build a rack here and plant grapes. You can enjoy the cool in the summer and pick grapes in the fall."

"That makes sense."

"Put some tables and chairs here, the kind carved out of wooden stumps, and you can drink tea and admire the moon here. Oh, you can also hang a swing between the two big trees, and Willow Branch and Iron Egg can play with it."

"You are so far-sighted!"

Lu Zheng couldn't go on. He turned around and looked at You Xiaowu speechlessly: "Old Youtiao, you have nothing to do, right?"

Old Youtiao was the nickname they unanimously agreed to give to You Xiaowu. Although You Xiaowu complained a few words, he finally accepted it with a grumble.

Now, You Xiaowu showed his signature sly smile: "They all have to work, and I have to follow you, my Lord. For example, if you want to drink water, eat snacks, go shopping, etc."

Lu Zheng rolled his eyes. As soon as You Xiaowu said this, he knew what he wanted to say.

"If you want to go shopping, go by yourself. I'm not holding you back."

"That's wrong. Am I that kind of person? I'm always trying to figure out your intentions!" You Xiaowu said righteously.

Tiedan, who was cleaning the window, sneered: "Come on, you usually just try to figure out the intentions of the girls in the brothel."

"Pah, pah, pah, what are you talking about?" You Xiaowu glared at Tiedan, "Do your job well!"

Tiedan gave him a look of contempt and ignored him.

"Okay, okay, since we are new here, we have to check out the local customs and culture, and also buy some things." Lu Zheng said. He was no longer the young man who had just arrived, so he knew that the first thing he had to do was to buy some servants.

You Xiaowu followed with a smile: "I will clear the way for you."

"What way? Just ask for directions."

The two of them came to the street, and saw that the street was clean and tidy, and the shops on both sides were very busy. The people who came and went also showed that they lived a rich life and had peaceful faces. Although the whole street was not as prosperous as Yanjing, it was already a very good appearance among the county towns they passed by.

After reading it, Lu Zheng was also somewhat surprised. He actually changed his opinion of the county magistrate Ma. No matter what, he was at least a very capable official.

There was no slave market in the Great Xia Dynasty, but there were human traffickers. And not just anyone could be a human trafficker. They all had documents certified by the government, just like modern brokers.

Lu Zheng and You Xiaowu asked for directions and soon arrived in front of a courtyard. This courtyard was also owned by the government and was called a "yahang". The people living in it were all bought by human traffickers from all over the place. For every servant sold, the government would collect 50% of the money, and the remaining 50% belonged to the human traffickers. Although it was a bit expensive, meals were provided here and some basic etiquette was taught. In addition, since it was the government's territory, no one would dare to cause trouble. Therefore, most human traffickers still kept their people here, at least they would not worry about the people running away.

Lu Zheng was a little speechless when he knew this. He didn't expect that the Great Xia Dynasty was quite advanced in this regard.

As soon as he knocked on the door, a human trafficker came up and introduced himself with a smile: "My humble name is Fang Yuan. Are you two gentlemen looking to buy someone?"

Lu Zheng still found it hard to accept what he said, but You Xiaowu at the side adapted well and said in a loud voice: "That's right. What good stuff do you have here?"

"Are you looking for a maid or a servant?"

"Give me two of each..."

"Ahem!" Lu Zheng interrupted him hurriedly and glared at him to prevent him from getting more outrageous, then said to Fang Yuan, "Mr. Fang, we need a maid who can cook. A doorman will be enough."

Fang Yuan's expression did not change at all, and he still smiled and said, "It just so happens that there is a woman who cooks very well, but she is only good at cooking Nanxia dishes. I heard that your accent seems to be from the north, I wonder if you can get used to this taste?"

Because Nanxia is humid and hot, chili peppers are added to the dishes here, and Lu Zheng was from the north in his past life and this life, so naturally he is not used to this taste.

Seeing his hesitation, Fang Yuan said quickly, "If you are not used to it, I have another one. Her ancestral home is Yunzhou. I think she is more suitable for your requirements, but she is not good-looking and has a big mole on her face."

Lu Zheng was not a member of any appearance association, and the people around him did not have any special requirements for appearance. They asked the woman to come out and take a look and agreed. Later, he bought a servant under Fang Yuan's introduction.

After buying it, Lu Zheng paid the money and asked Fang Yuan to send the person to the county government.

Fang Yuan's eyes moved slightly, and his smile deepened a little: "I really don't know the real reason. The county lieutenant employed people, which is simply flattering me. I have endless blessings in my life, and I can only show my filial piety. How dare you ask you to pay for it yourself?" Then he put the money into Lu Zheng's arms.

Lu Zheng hurriedly refused, and Fang Yuan said again: "You sympathize with me, and I should return the favor. The two people in your yard are not enough. Two more maids and two servants will be my filial piety to you."

Lu Zheng refused again and again, and finally sent him away. Then he left the pharmacy with You Xiaowu in a sweat.

After seeing the troubles brought by his official position, Lu Zheng didn't dare to buy any big items anymore. He just bought some small things and prepared to go back. Who would have thought that when he took out his bag after buying something, he was stunned.

You Xiaowu's face changed: "It was stolen?!"

Lu Zheng shook his head and took out a banknote from his pocket with a complicated expression. There was no doubt that Fang Yuan must have forced it in when he was collecting money. I don't know how he trained to be so nimble. Why does it feel like he used to be in the same industry with You Xiaowu?

You Xiaowu understood as soon as he saw the banknote, and he actually admired Fang Yuan.

"This kid is good and has a future!"