Chapter 193 Just Call Me Mo Laojiu
After the men who were kicked down by Meng Huaining got up, they all glared at the Zhao and Zhou families.
It seemed to be saying - just wait for me.
Seeing the look in the eyes of the Cui family, the two villagers shuddered out of habit, and even the terrible scene of the Cui family bullying them appeared in their minds.
With the help of the light from several torches around, Meng Huaining saw the actions of the Cui family at a glance.
He gave orders to the officer behind him.
"Each of these men from the Cui family will be given ten lashes of the board. If they refuse to obey, they will be punished twice as much."
Among these officials, there were many who had followed Cui Wen's orders to put pressure on the Zhao and Zhou families.
At this moment, they were all feeling extremely guilty and were always looking for an opportunity to express their position to the new county magistrate so as to avoid being implicated by the Cui family.
Just as several officials were pondering countermeasures, the county magistrate ordered the Cui family to be beaten with a stick.
Now, their chance to show their abilities has finally come.
Several police officers who had been accomplices of Cui Wen ran out first, raised their sticks and attacked the Cui family.
The Cui family was no strangers to these officers, and when they saw them, they thought the beatings would be less severe.
The result was just the opposite. These officials were implicated by the Cui family, and now they couldn't even hate them enough, so how could they go easy on them?
If ten strokes of the board could kill someone, they would do it without hesitation.
The moment the Cui family felt the weight of the board, they started cursing.
"Your grandma Feng Laowu, we even had a drink together before, and you turned against me so cruelly."
Feng Laowu: You bastard, if you keep talking nonsense, I will beat you to death...
The same scene happened not only to this couple, but also to two other members of the Cui family who cursed loudly.
The result was that the boards that fell on their bodies almost broke their bones.
The ten boards were quickly beaten, and the Cui family members who were beaten finally realized how powerful he was. They no longer dared to say a word and begged for mercy from Meng Huaining with bared teeth.
Meng Huaining ignored them and ordered the officers to keep a close eye on all members of the Cui family from today onwards. No member of the Cui family was allowed to leave Xiling Village until Cui Wen's case was closed.
Immediately afterwards, Meng Huaining called the patriarchs of the Zhao and Zhou families.
"The Cui family has committed so many evil deeds that even if I stayed up all night, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to finish investigating them. Do any of your families have anyone who can read?"
Speaking of people who can read, everyone's attention fell on Zhao Zechuan.
Because of the Cui family's oppression, they lived in poverty. It was a luxury to not go hungry. How could they have the spare money to send their children to school?
The only exception is Zhao Zechuan.
Having suffered years of bullying from the Cui family, he wanted to stand out, unless someone with a higher official position than Cui Wen emerged from his family.
To this end, the Zhao family secretly decided to choose a smart boy to go to school, and the tuition would be donated by all family members.
Zhao Zechuan's intelligence was unanimously recognized by everyone.
Therefore, Zhao Zechuan was the only scholar among the Zhao and Zhou families.
As Meng Huaining finished speaking, Zhao Zechuan had already crossed the crowd and came in front of him.
"Sir, I, Zhao Zechuan, a humble student, am willing to write this petition."
Seeing Zhao Zechuan calling himself a student, Meng Huaining raised his eyebrows: "Do you have any achievements?"
Zhao Zechuan answered calmly, "I passed the examination and became a scholar last year."
Meng Huaining never expected that such a poor family could produce a scholar.
Moreover, judging from the other person's age, he looks no more than sixteen or seventeen years old.
The fact that he passed the examination for a scholar last year is enough to prove his excellence.
Thinking of this, Meng Huaining did not rush to talk about writing the petition.
"According to what your clan leader said, the Zhao and Zhou families are living in extreme hardship. It's really not easy for them to produce a scholar."
If what Zhao Hua just said is true, the lives of the Zhao and Zhou families have become a big problem under the oppression of the Cui family.
Meng Huaining himself was a scholar, and he knew that it would cost a lot to train a scholar.
If Zhao Zechuan cannot explain this problem clearly, it means that what Patriarch Zhao said is not entirely true.
Zhao Zechuan saw the county magistrate's suspicion, bowed, and then told him how the Zhao family had collectively supported his studies.
Hearing this, Meng Huaining had to give a thumbs up to the Zhao family for their unity and wisdom.
"In that case, I'll give you one day to write a complaint against the Cui family and submit it to the county government office."
Zhao Zechuan clasped his fists again and said, "Please rest assured, sir. I will submit the petition the day after tomorrow morning."
Meng Huaining looked at the sky and then asked the two clan leaders, Zhao and Zhou.
"Today, I am dismissing Cui from his position as head of the village. Do you two have any suitable candidates for the new head?"
Speaking of the position of the head of Xiling Village, the two clan leaders Zhao and Zhou never thought that as long as the Cui family was there, this position would not be theirs.
But things are different now. The county magistrate dealt with Cui Wen on the first day he took office. Presumably, without Cui Wen's support, the Cui family will be powerless to survive in the future.
Thinking of this, the two clan leaders felt a little restless.
Not to mention that they can get a salary of one or two taels of silver from the government every month, the clan members will benefit greatly from it.
The two clan leaders simply refrained from recommending themselves because they did not want to jeopardize their relationship with each other due to fighting for the position of village head.
Seeing that neither of them spoke, Meng Huaining guessed what was in their minds.
Fortunately, neither of them took the initiative to speak up for the position of village head, which shows that they still care about each other's feelings.
There is no doubt that the future head of Xiling Village will definitely be one of these two clan leaders.
He looked at the two of them and saw that their eyes were very clear.
"In that case, the future head of Xiling Village will be Chief Zhao!"
The reason is simple. Patriarch Zhao is younger and has a son who is a scholar, so it is convenient for him to record something.
Clan leader Zhou was stunned for just a moment, then bowed to Clan leader Zhao.
"Congratulations to Zhao Lizheng."
The surprise came so suddenly that Zhao Hua was a little slow to react when he received the congratulations from the Zhou clan leader.
He quickly returned the greeting and said some polite words. After all, the county magistrate was present and this was not his home ground. After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two men stepped aside.
Meng Huaining's gaze fell on the two of them again.
"I wonder if there is any idle yard in either of your two families?"
Upon hearing this, the two clan leaders' eyes fell on Mo Jiuye and He Zhiran, who were silent.
They all knew that the county magistrate asked this question because of these new arrivals.
Someone had already asked them today, but at that time, due to the Cui family, they did not dare to agree to it.
Now that the county magistrate has spoken personally, and after starting to punish the Cui family, they will naturally no longer refuse to rent the yard to those newcomers.
Patriarch Zhao was the first to speak: "Our Zhao family has two vacant courtyards, and both are quite large, so it's definitely not a problem to accommodate a large family."
The Zhou clan leader also said, "We in the Zhou family also have an idle courtyard. The main house and the side rooms together have ten rooms. We can rent them all out."
He Zhiran felt that they were really lucky.
The Mo family, the Xie family, and the Fang family, three families, just need three courtyards, and there are exactly three here.
While she was thinking, Meng Huaining had already turned around.
"Brother Mo Jiu, Madam Sister-in-law, since the two clan leaders can provide three courtyards, why don't you go and take a look now? If it's suitable, move in tonight to avoid freezing yourself sleeping outdoors."
Mo Jiuye and He Zhiran also had such plans.
"That's great." After Mo Jiuye finished speaking, he walked towards the two clan leaders.
"Two clan leaders, could you please take us to see those courtyards now?"
The two clan leaders agreed at the same time: "That's no problem, you can watch it whenever you want."
The most important matter that Meng Huaining came here for had been resolved, and it was getting late, so he ordered someone to take Cui Lizheng away from Xiling Village.
Mo Jiuye and He Zhiran sent him and the officials to the village entrance before turning back to find the two clan leaders.
When they returned to their original location, except for the Cui family who had been driven back home by the officials, people from the other two families were waiting there.
The two clan leaders were very polite to Mo Jiuye and He Zhiran.
Patriarch Zhao was the first to step forward and ask, "What is this young master's name?"
Mo Jiuye politely replied, "Chief Zhao, my last name is Mo, and I am the ninth child in the family. You can just call me Mo Laojiu."
Then, he introduced He Zhiran to them. After all, they would become neighbors in the future, so it was necessary for them to get to know each other.
The two clan leaders were indeed simple and honest. They simply called Mo Jiuye "Mo Laojiu" and He Zhiran "Laojiu's wife"!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
