After a conversation with the county magistrate, Zhu Yunwen realized that being a county magistrate in this place was indeed not easy.
As an official from out of town, he sometimes had to issue orders that required the local clerks in the county government to carry them out.
But if these minor officials don't listen to him to begin with, and instead unite to oppose the magistrate, then the magistrate is helpless.
After all, these constables, clerks, and yamen runners had stable jobs in this area.
However, if the county magistrate has any problems, he will be dismissed from his post directly.
Therefore, under such circumstances, the local constables, clerks, and yamen runners would inevitably unite and become a group of people who could do whatever they wanted in the area.
Thus, even the county magistrate could not control them.
Anyway, as long as they unite, no matter how many county magistrates come, they can't do anything to them.
As for the county magistrate, he would fall from power if he had any problems, but the officials and their subordinates, because they protected each other, lived in peace.
Furthermore, considering what the magistrate said earlier, these clerks, constables, and yamen runners might even have connections with those who share the same fate.
This led to a situation where the local gentry and landlords bypassed the county magistrate and instead cultivated good relationships with the locals in the county government.
By isolating the county magistrate, an outsider, everything became decided by the local gentry and the locals in the county government.
It's easy to imagine how difficult it would be for this county magistrate to implement policies; he was completely sidelined.
This also explains why the county magistrate had already guessed that the local patriarch, Mr. Sun, was the mastermind behind the frequent thefts of sweet potato and potato seeds.
But even though they knew the reason, they dared not speak out, not even in front of the other officials in the county government.
Because if he were to reveal it, the officials would likely immediately inform the Sun family patriarch.
That's why he wanted to talk to Zhu Yunwen about these things alone.
The fact that these constables, yamen runners, and clerks were united already made it difficult for the county magistrate to move an inch.
These people have also established long-term relationships with the local gentry and landlords. If the gentry and landlords want to stop the planting of sweet potato and potato seeds, these locals in the county government will definitely cover for them.
The magistrate's helplessness in this matter is evident in this very situation.
He knew who it was, but he was powerless to do anything about it.
He wanted to capture Old Master Sun to solve this problem.
But the people in the county government would never obey his orders.
They might even tip off the magistrate and team up with Old Master Sun to turn against him.
This is indeed a difficult problem. Even for Zhu Yunwen, he couldn't think of a solution in a short time.
Just as Zhu Yunwen was thinking this, the county magistrate spoke again:
"Actually, I have done a very good job. Do you know what I encountered when I was transferred here to be the county magistrate two years ago?"
Zhu Yunwen shook his head slightly, and the county magistrate sighed and said:
"On my first day here, a mountain of silver appeared in my room. Stacks of silver were piled up in my room. I glanced at it and there were at least five hundred taels."
Five hundred taels! That's more than I've accumulated over ten years, and my salary doesn't even cover it. Your Highness, what would a normal person think if faced with so much silver?
Faced with something that would take more than a decade of hard work to acquire, now easily within reach, who can remain true to themselves?
I managed to hold out, and I immediately ordered my trusted men to move all the silver out. Of course, I didn't know who sent it, so I distributed the silver directly to the poor people right at the county government office.
The people thanked me, and I thought I could take this opportunity to deflate the arrogance of those local powers, humiliate them, and gain some goodwill from the people.
However, I was wrong. After this incident, my wife suddenly disappeared, and my daughter also disappeared.
I ordered the constables from the county government to investigate, but guess what? They spoke to me so readily, made all sorts of promises, and guaranteed that they would find my wife and daughter.
But what happened? Several days passed and there was still no clue. In the end, it was one of my more trusted subordinates who brought him over from somewhere else.
He reported to me that the constables in the yamen had not searched for my wife and daughter at all, but were instead eating and drinking in brothels.
When I was there, it was like a bolt from the blue. I never imagined that they were local constables.
As the county magistrate, when my wife and daughter went missing, I asked them to investigate, yet they were all so indifferent and hypocritical.
It was from that time that I realized that these local officials were in cahoots with those people. Why would they investigate this matter? They might even be accomplices.
Later, I gave in and personally went to Old Master Sun's residence to pay my respects. Although I distributed all the money to the poor, I also said that I would accept the money and that I would definitely help the Sun family if they ever needed anything in the future.
Grandpa Sun was quite satisfied at the time, so the next day, my wife and daughter suddenly returned. They didn't even know who had kidnapped them.
Zhu Yunwen nodded slightly and said:
"Although this situation is also quite unfortunate, you promised to help the Sun family in any future endeavors. How do you plan to reconcile this with that?"
The magistrate smiled and replied:
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