12 Malantou Pork Wontons
◎That's the owner of Ruyi Tower, Manager Chen!◎
When Ye Yunzhao rode his donkey to the Yuezhou government office again, his mood was much worse than last time.
The last time I came, I was happy to receive my salary, but this time I was worried about finding trouble.
Before Ye Yunzhao stepped in, he saw a fat man walking out. Three or four people who looked like servants followed him. Only one of them spoke.
"Sir, a few days ago, bandits were causing trouble outside the city again. I heard that several people were killed. What do you think of this..."
grown ups?
Ye Yunzhao scanned his eyes over him. Could this "sir" wearing a brocade collared robe be an ordinary minor official?
Her eyebrows twitched slightly, and she tilted her head and pinched her arm fiercely. Tears welled up in her eyes. She rushed forward, holding the donkey with her right hand, and grabbed the master's sleeve with her left hand, crying, "Master! You have to make a decision for me!"
The man seemed to have never encountered such a situation before. He stumbled backwards, and the person next to him immediately scolded him: "Let go! You offended the prefect, and you will be thrown into prison! If you have any grievances, beat the drum tomorrow morning!"
Mr. Prefect?
Upon hearing this, Ye Yunzhao held on even tighter, refusing to let go. He quickly explained, "Sir, I am Ye Yunzhao, the magistrate of Lingnan County."
"Oh? Are you the newly appointed female official this year?" The Yuezhou prefect waved his hand at the person beside him and asked, "What do you mean?"
"Sir, if I was forced into a desperate situation, how could I do this..." Ye Yunzhao pretended to be pitiful, "The vegetable seeds I received a few days ago were actually old ones."
"The tragic scene of people starving to death in Lingnan County last year is still fresh in our memory. What should we do if people starve to death again because of vegetable seeds?"
"Besides, the fertility of the fields in Lingnan County is extremely poor. Even new vegetable seeds can't produce a good harvest. Won't these old vegetable seeds be the death of the people of Lingnan?"
Ye Yunzhao talked a lot without leaving any room for others to interrupt.
She raised her hand in a false greeting, and said with admiration, "I have heard from the capital that the governor of Yuezhou is extremely talented, just and honest. Under your governance, Yuezhou has become a place of beautiful scenery, abundant resources and a prosperous people, showing a sense of peace and harmony."
"There is actually someone in the capital who knows me?" the prefect asked in surprise.
"Not only do they know it, but everyone admires you. I came to Lingnan County specifically to take up this position because of your reputation!" Ye Yunzhao lied without blushing or beating his heart, and his face was so sincere that people couldn't help but believe him.
"Ah--Ah--Ah--" The donkey beside them suddenly howled, scaring everyone.
"Look, even I, a donkey, agree with what I say!" There was no flattery on Ye Yunzhao's face.
No matter how many holes there are, flattery will never wear out.
In just a short while, the Yuezhou prefect was so delighted that he smiled happily, and there was even more appreciation in his eyes when he looked at Ye Yunzhao.
"Just now you said that the vegetable seeds you received were aged seeds?" He was also a smart man, so he could naturally hear that Ye Yunzhao had something to ask for.
"That's right. Please, sir, please help me and the people of Lingnan County!"
"Okay, I have some personal matters to attend to right now. Come back tomorrow at noon. Lingnan County is remote, and it's a good opportunity for you to take a look around Yuezhou..." The Yuezhou prefect said as he started to leave.
"I am very grateful for this opportunity, but it is the autumn sowing season now and we can't delay for a single day, sir." Ye Yunzhao hurriedly stopped him.
This action made the Yuezhou prefect a little unhappy. This man was too tactless! It was just that "autumn sowing is imminent" and the hat of "honesty and integrity" was put on his head. If he refused again, it would seem inhumane.
"Alright." Although the Yuezhou prefect had a smile on his face, his tone had become much colder as he said to the people beside him, "You guys wait here first."
After he finished speaking, he turned and walked towards the government office. Seeing this, Ye Yunzhao handed the reins to someone else and hurriedly followed him.
The two stopped only when they reached the house they had visited two days ago.
Ye Yunzhao took out the bag of vegetable seeds from the bamboo basket, placed it heavily on the table, bowed, and said with a smile: "I came to collect the vegetable seeds two days ago. You may have packed them wrong. Several kinds of vegetable seeds are old."
As she spoke, she opened the cloth bags of vegetable seeds one by one, and gestured to the Yuezhou prefect, letting the two of them take a look.
Now it was the man's turn to distribute the vegetable seeds and he was unsure. He had originally thought of throwing all these old vegetable seeds to Lingnan County. Even if he was discovered, would a little female official dare to come to him to exchange them?
I didn't expect that she would actually come, and even brought the prefect with her...
"What's going on?" The Yuezhou prefect spoke solemnly. With just a glance, he could tell that these vegetable seeds had not only been stored for a long time, but many of them were broken!
"Ah! It's all my fault for being so busy that I lost my mind." The man immediately tied up the bag, gave Ye Yunzhao a flattering smile, and said smoothly, "There must be too many people coming to get the vegetable seeds a few days ago, so I took the wrong one."
"Then why are you still standing there?" asked the Yuezhou prefect.
"Yes! Yes! I will change it immediately."
During this period, Ye Yunzhao just stood aside with his head down. She naturally did not believe this set of rhetoric, but since they were new arrivals and they were colleagues, it would be beneficial for both of them to give him some room to step aside at the right time.
After a while, the man came out holding a bulging cloth bag full of vegetable seeds. He opened the bag and said with a smile, "County Magistrate Ye, take a look at these vegetable seeds. What do you think?"
Ye Yunzhao took a quick glance at the seeds, and after confirming that they were correct, he tied the bag and said sarcastically, "What are you saying? The prefect is right here, can he still give me broken seeds? I thank you on behalf of the people of Lingnan County."
She turned to leave, clutching the bag, when the prefect suddenly spoke up, "Taxes in Lingnan County have never been paid on time or in full. Now that we have a responsible and kind county magistrate like you, I'm sure they'll be paid on time from now on."
"Hey..." Before Ye Yunzhao could say anything, the prefect walked away with big strides.
The audience had left, and it was time to dismantle the stage. Ye Yunzhao was too lazy to give a good look to the person behind him, and he turned sideways and gave him a fierce glare.
She walked out holding a cloth bag that was twice as big as before, thinking about what the prefect meant as she walked.
Everyone knows that the grain yield in Lingnan County is extremely low. Even with a three-legged plow, it is impossible to double it in one year. What's more, the fertility is extremely poor. It will take at least one or two years of rotation to barely improve it.
The governor of Yuezhou seemed to be a man who was easy to talk to, but Ye Yunzhao did not dare to take his words lightly.
This was ancient times, and quietly punishing someone was much easier than in modern times...
She put her mind at ease, as she had more things to do in the future and had to keep an eye on the growth of winter wheat and vegetables.
Ye Yunzhao walked out of the government office gate and glanced at the little donkey tied to the side of the government office. The little donkey was quite human-like. It blinked its big watery eyes and snorted. However, Ye Yunzhao was not affected by its cuteness at all. He turned around and left with the cloth bag in his arms.
She hasn't eaten a single grain of rice since she left home today. The most important thing right now is to fill her stomach.
Yuezhou City is truly rich. The more Ye Yunzhao walked around, the more impressed he felt. He wondered when Lingnan County would be able to become one-tenth as prosperous as this place.
"Wontons, wontons, a bite of wontons is like heaven! Wontons, wontons..."
"Auntie, how much are the wontons?" Ye Yunzhao was attracted by the hawking voices and asked tentatively.
"Ten cents a bowl," the woman replied with a smile, "Would you like one, young lady?"
Ye Yunzhao was stunned when he heard this. Why are the prices in Yuezhou City so high? A small bowl of wontons costs ten cents. You know, Aunt Hu’s pork belly costs only sixteen cents per pound!
The woman, perhaps sensing her hesitation, said enthusiastically, "My dear, my wontons are famous in Yuezhou City. They're delicious and plentiful. Look at them, each one is plump and filling. I guarantee you won't regret having them!"
Ye Yunzhao hadn't had a good meal since he came here, so he gritted his teeth and said with a pained look, "Auntie, give me a bowl so I can try it too."
"Okay, little lady, sit down and have some tea first."
The wonton stall was not big, with three small wooden tables. Ye Yunzhao sat down at one of them and happened to meet the eyes of a man at another table.
The man had calm eyebrows, a straight nose, and clear facial lines, with a hint of solemnity.
Ye Yunzhao shifted his gaze slightly and looked at the busy woman.
After a while, a bowl of steaming wontons was served.
There were nearly twenty wontons in the ceramic bowl, each one round and translucent, lying in the soup with oil and chopped green onions floating on the surface, which looked very appetizing.
Ye Yunzhao scooped up one, blew on it, and as soon as he bit through the skin, the delicious juice wrapped in the aroma of meat bloomed in his mouth. The bitter and tender taste of the amaranth softened the greasy fragrance of the meat. When he tasted it carefully, he found it very memorable.
These ten cents are well spent!
"My dear, my wontons taste good, don't they?" the woman asked with a smile.
Ye Yunzhao nodded repeatedly, unable to speak.
"Hey, have you heard? A female official has come to Lingnan County!" The man selling Hubing next to the wonton stall lowered his voice and asked the woman.
"I've never heard of her. She's actually a female official?" The woman asked in surprise.
Ye Yunzhao ate the wontons in silence, eavesdropping secretly with his ears perked up.
"I don't know why they sent a female official here. I don't think a woman who cries all day can be a good official." The man spread out a pancake and said, "Besides, Lingnan County is so poor that no matter how many officials are sent here, it won't help."
"What are you talking about? What's wrong with being a female official? Only those who are literate can become female officials. You can't become one even if you want to!" The woman snorted coldly.
"Hey, I wouldn't even want to be one. Being an official in Lingnan County is worse than selling Hubing in Yuezhou City!" the man argued. "People even starved to death in Lingnan County last year! You didn't..."
Before the man could finish, the man who had previously made eye contact with Ye Yunzhao suddenly stood up, took out ten copper coins from his purse, and said in a cold voice, "Pay the bill."
"Okay... Sir, take care." The woman, holding the copper coins and the ceramic bowl, said to the man making the pancake with a look of disapproval, "Stone father, you are so tactless!"
"The man who just left is from Lingnan County, the owner of Ruyi Tower! Manager Chen! Why did you bring up the starvation incident in front of him?"
"Ah? Why didn't you say so earlier?"
"What can I say! My face is almost twisted. Come on, from now on, Shopkeeper Chen..."
Upon hearing this, Ye Yunzhao turned her head to look, her posture straight and the corners of her green clothes fluttering. She remembered the story that County Magistrate Han had told her before.
It turned out to be him.
【Author’s words】
Can you guess which shopkeeper Chen this is?
～(￣▽￣～)
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