After this matter was settled, it was obvious that many ministers breathed a sigh of relief.
"Ah, finally got rid of that brat!"
"Who said it wasn't true? I don't know where you came from. Since he came, one thing after another has happened. Everything is so weird, and it makes people panic."
"Then why should he, a mere pen, trouble us ministers?"
"Yes! Why should he do that?"
"Maybe it's because he has very good relationships with Sima Junshi and Wang Jiefu."
"Now that things have come to this, why are you still talking about this? Those people in Hezhong Prefecture also like to make trouble, so just let them do what they want."
"Hezhong Prefecture?"
Meng Gansheng, who was leaving the hall, couldn't help but say, "This is too good of a bargain for that kid."
Xie Yun at the side asked: "Where does Director Meng want him to go?"
...
...
Meng Gansheng said: "It's better to go to Yanzhou, which is more dangerous."
Xie Yun laughed and said, "You still expect Dang Qiang to kill this guy."
Meng Gansheng laughed and said, "That's the best."
I feel happy just thinking about it.
"That's also difficult. If a fight really breaks out, that kid will definitely be the first to run away."
Xie Yun said: "Most of the officials who went to Yanzhou were promoted, but all the officials who went to Hezhong Prefecture were impeached. The reason is that Jiezhou belongs to Hezhong Prefecture, and the military rations and salt of Yanzhou are also closely related to Hezhong Prefecture. It is really a matter of one move affecting the whole body. No matter what is done, it is impossible to satisfy everyone. If Zhang San really wants to build a public security, procuratorial and judicial system there, it is simply wishful thinking."
"That's true!" Meng Gansheng nodded slightly, and then said, "Besides, I'm afraid that the local civil and military officials will not like his public security, procuratorial and judicial system. Haha, he will suffer this time. We must quickly contact the people in Hezhong Prefecture and tell them about Zhang San's situation, so as not to be caught off guard by Zhang San again."
Wang Anshi and Sima Guang, who came out last, watched them whispering to each other.
Wang Anshi couldn't help but laugh and said, "Why do I feel like you're going to push Zhang San into the fire pit?"
Sima Guang glanced at him unhappily, "If that's the case, then you also helped, so you should bear at least 30% of the responsibility."
Wang Anshi laughed and said, "To be honest, I don't object to him going to Hezhong Prefecture."
"Of course you don't object." Sima Guang said, "Zhang San has taken away all your limelight, how can you tolerate him?"
Wang Anshi frowned: "Am I such a narrow-minded person?"
Sima Guang asked: "Do you feel unhappy about this?"
Wang Anshi coughed and said, "Now that you put it that way, there is some truth to it."
Sima Guang snorted softly, implying, Don’t I know you yet?
Wang Anshi hurriedly said, "But what I want to say is that this kid is struggling in the capital, and it's all thanks to us protecting him. We have to let him go out and try his luck to see if he can shoulder the heavy responsibility."
Sima Guang frowned.
In fact, he still had some doubts about this choice. As Wang Anshi said, in Tokyo, he, Wang Anshi, and Xu Zun were protecting Zhang Fei, but once they went to Hezhong Prefecture, they would be out of reach!
Everything depends on Zhang Fei himself.
On the other side, Xu Zun hurried back home to inform Zhang Fei of the news.
"My brother-in-law is going to Hezhong Prefecture?"
Xu Lingxiao exclaimed, "That place is not good!"
Zhang Fei asked, "Brother, what do you mean by that?"
Xu Lingxiao hurriedly said: "My brother-in-law doesn't know."
Before he could finish, Xu Zun interrupted, "You know?"
Xu Lingxiao glanced at his father and dared not say anything.
Xu Zun frowned again and asked, "Didn't Scholar Sima discuss this with you?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "I mentioned it at the time, but I didn't know where to go, so it was useless to discuss it with me."
How could he know the specific situation in each state and county in the Northwest?
Seeing that he didn't know anything, Xu Zhiqian immediately asked, "You don't even know where Hezhong Prefecture is, do you?"
Zhang Fei said: "I know that. It is the area in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, hence the name Hezhong Prefecture."
In fact, it is the area of Yongji in Yuncheng, Shanxi in later generations.
"You are right."
Xu Zun nodded and said, "But that place is not so easy to manage. Although Hezhong Prefecture is not a border prefecture, it is located in the center of Chang'an, Luoyang and Taiyuan. It is a transportation hub, so it is also a logistics center for the Northwest Army. The key is that Jiezhou also belongs to Hezhong Prefecture. There are many troops stationed there, which also leads to a mixed bag of local forces. I have never been an official there, but I also know that the local salt officials are all tough guys."
At this point, he looked worried, "Your main purpose of this trip is to build up the public security, procuratorial and judicial systems. I'm afraid you'll offend everyone!"
Because there is more than one warlord in the northwest, but the logistical support is very dependent on Hezhong Prefecture. The various armies are very powerful in the local area. There are also those big salt merchants and salt officials who represent local forces. The relationship is complicated.
If you put the public security, procuratorate and courts anywhere, who would like it?
Xu Lingxiao whispered, "That's what I wanted to say just now."
Xu Zun just glanced at him briefly.
Zhang Fei glanced at the father and son, and suddenly smiled and said, "If I really can't manage it, then...then I'll come back."
He knew very well what his advantage was, which was youth. Youth brought infinite possibilities, and he would never put everything on the line. Anyway, they asked him to go, not him, and they didn't issue a military order, so he was afraid of nothing.
Xu Zun warned: "That's not wrong. If it doesn't work, come back immediately, but you must also remember not to get involved with those people. They will do anything to achieve their goals, so you must protect yourself."
The salt profits are concentrated there, so you can imagine how corrupt the place is. Xu Zun is also very worried about this. Secondly, there is his life safety.
Where there have been incidents of thugs attacking officials.
Zhang Fei asked cautiously, "You won't send someone to assassinate me, right?"
Xu Zun shook his head and said, "Not necessarily. There are many desperate criminals over there who can do anything."
In a place with so many salt merchants and warlords, anything can happen.
Zhang Fei thought, I need to find a few more bodyguards, Guilong Wu is too unreliable.
Just at this time, Li Si entered the hall and Sima Guang arrived.
Xu Zun immediately asked Xu Lingxiao and Xu Zhiqian to step aside first.
As soon as the brother and sister left, Xu Zun invited Sima Guang into the hall.
After exchanging greetings, Sima Guang glanced at Xu Zun, then said to Zhang Fei: "Your father-in-law should have told you the whole story."
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "My father-in-law said that Scholar Sima helped me choose a good place."
"Stop talking nonsense!"
Xu Zun immediately glared at Zhang Fei.
"No problem! No problem!"
Sima Guang waved his hand and explained to Zhang Fei: "The reason why I let you go to Hezhong Prefecture is that if the public security, procuratorate and courts cannot control the salt administration, even if you establish public security, procuratorate and courts in Jingzhao Prefecture (Chang'an) or border counties, it will only be temporary. Only by establishing public security, procuratorate and courts in Hezhong Prefecture first and then going to border counties will you achieve twice the result with half the effort."
His personnel arrangements were far better than Wang Anshi's. It can even be said that Wang Anshi was just lacking a talent like Sima Guang.
Hezhong Prefecture is actually the heart of the Northwest Army. The salt and food in the northwest are directly or indirectly related to Hezhong Prefecture. If you control Hezhong Prefecture, those warlords will naturally be wary of you.
Jingzhao Prefecture is actually OK, but there are many royal relatives in Jingzhao Prefecture. After all, royal relatives are not willing to stay in Hezhong Prefecture, a place where all kinds of people mix. The difficulty is different from that in Hezhong Prefecture, so it is better to go to Hezhong Prefecture.
"I see."
Zhang Fei nodded and asked, "When should I go?"
“There’s no rush for this.”
Sima Guang hurriedly said, "It will take some time for Zhong Yan and Lu Shen to get to Hezhong Prefecture. You should prepare first and understand the situation clearly before going. If you need any help, just tell me directly and I will try my best to satisfy you."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Fei couldn't help but smile bitterly and said, "It seems that place is really a den of dragons and tigers."
Sima Guang sighed and said, "That's why I was very skeptical about this, but since you have decided to go, you might as well go all out."
The ruthless people are concentrated in Hezhong Prefecture. If you are in the surrounding counties, they will just give you a distance. When you leave, they will come again.
Zhang Fei hesitated for a moment and said, "For the procuratorate, I hope to send Su to prosecute, and for the police station, Cao Dongdong and Ma Xiaoyi."
As he spoke, he seemed to remember something, "Also, I have talked to Mr. Fu about sending a few students to assist me."
Sima Guang nodded and said, "Mr. Fu has also told me about this matter. This shouldn't be a big problem. As for Cao Dongdong, the government may have to make the decision!"
After all, the Cao family is an in-law family, and Empress Dowager Cao is still in the harem, so he dare not make decisions on his own.
Fortunately, Zhang Fei had already talked to Zhao Xu. Zhang Fei added: "In addition to this, I also need a detailed list of officials in Hezhong Prefecture, as well as their backgrounds, personalities, etc."
Sima Guang said: "In fact, the transport envoys are the most powerful over there, followed by the military commanders stationed there, and then the clerks. As for the prefects and county magistrates, it is not that difficult to deal with them."
Zhang Fei asked curiously: "Why is this?"
Sima Guang said: "Because the transport envoy is responsible for transporting salt and grain, which involves salt notes and military rations. At present, the transport envoy of Shaanxi Road has not been determined. I guess Wang Jiefu should recommend someone. And those prefects and county magistrates all rely on clerks to perform their duties. They serve for three years, and most of them will choose to protect themselves."
The county magistrates of the Northern Song Dynasty were replaced one after another. When it came to the dangerous and dangerous Hezhong Prefecture, most officials had the mentality of not seeking merit but avoiding mistakes.
Basically, they all follow the rules and will not easily come into conflict with others. This also leads to the fact that the clerks stationed in the local area hold real power.
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "It's really easy to see the King of Hell, but it's hard to deal with the little devil!"
"That's what happened."
Sima Guang nodded and said, "But it wouldn't be a bad idea to learn more about the local situation. I will try my best to give you the local situation."
Zhang Fei cupped his hands and said, "Then I'll have to trouble Scholar Sima."
Sima Guang said with a little guilt: "I am sorry for you this time!"
The original plan was to go to Jiangnan, but he suddenly changed the plan and went directly from the heroic difficulty to the epic difficulty. He felt very sorry for Zhang Fei.
Cao family!
"ah!"
When the sun was high in the sky, Cao Dongdong got up from the bed and came to the lobby in a daze.
"Dong'er, why didn't you go to the government office today?"
"The kid has a day off today!"
Cao Dongdong rubbed his eyes and said.
Cao Ping asked casually, "By the way, Dong'er, did Zhang San tell you about going to the northwest?"
"No!" Cao Dongdong shook his head.
Cao Ping felt a little relieved, but Cao Dongdong immediately said, "I mentioned it to him once, and I also want to go to the northwest."
Bang!
From standing up to slapping him, it happened in a flash, left and right, hitting Cao Dongdong without even moving his head.
Cao Dongdong woke up immediately, but was also confused. He covered his face and asked, "Daddy, why did you hit me?"
Cao Ping took a deep breath and said, "Let me ask you, did Zhang San agree to your request?"
Tears welled up in Cao Dongdong's eyes. It wasn't because he loved to cry, but because it really hurt. He shook his head and said, "No. But Daddy, I've been to many counties and cities in the Northwest. There's nothing to be afraid of."
Cao Ping glared at him angrily. "You went there for fun, so you can go there as you please. But if you are a royal police officer this time, then you are going to ruin people's money. I say, why can't you think clearly? Others can't hide from them, but you still go there."
Cao Dongdong said aggrievedly: "Daddy hits me on the head every day!"
"you!"
"Daddy, don't hit me."
Cao Dongdong was so scared that he was ready to run away.
For a moment, Cao Ping suspected that his son's head was damaged by him, so he put down his hand and said, "I tell you, no matter what Zhang San says to you, you can't go with him. Do you understand?"
The Cao family is also a military family and is closely related to the Northwest Army. Going there to be a policeman would just be ruining one's own business.
"I understand, kid."
Cao Dongdong nodded and thought, if Zhang San dares to go, why can't I go?
Just then, the old man came to the door and said, "Master, the government has sent someone to tell you to come to the palace immediately."
When Cao Ping heard this, his heart skipped a beat. Oops, I forgot that guy has a very close relationship with the government. But you can't always look for trouble with my Cao family. Can't you go look for the Gao family?
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. In a rage, he kicked Cao Dongdong to the ground and then walked out.
After Cao Ping left the house, Taozi hurried forward, knelt on the ground, looked at Cao Dongdong and said, "Yanei, are you okay?"
"fine!"
Cao Dongdong turned over and sat up, scratching his butt and face. After thinking for a long time, he suddenly said, "Taozi, tell me why Daddy kicked me the last time."
Taozi was dumbfounded, "How would this villain know?"
Cao Dongdong grinned and said, "Dad must have guessed that the government was going to send me to go with Zhang San, so he kicked me."
Taozi said: "But, Young Master, the master is so angry, it shows that it is really difficult to go there."
"That's interesting!"
Cao Dongdong jumped up on the spot, gesticulating with joy, "Being a royal policeman in the capital is really boring. Dad has to keep an eye on everything. Otherwise, there would be no point for him to be the tax commissioner. Humph, those tax police were all trained by me."
Then he instructed Taozi, "Hurry up and write a letter to ask Xiao Ma to come back. Don't forget your brothers when it comes to such good things."
(End of this chapter)
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