Shen Xi waved his hand, signaling Zheng Hongfang to stop trying to persuade him.
She asked him personally, "Gu Beitian, if you want to be my advisor, you'll have to have real skills."
Gu Beitian bowed confidently: "Sir, it is naturally because I believe in my own abilities that I dare to apply for the position of your staff."
Shen Xi nodded, showing neither joy nor anger: "It's very good that you have such confidence."
Gu Beitian's lips curled up slightly, clearly showing his inner joy.
Chen Xi showed no mercy: "However, you're applying for a low-level civil service position now. Do you know you've made a mistake?"
Gu Beitian was taken aback: "Commander, I just wanted to give myself a chance. Otherwise, I wouldn't even be qualified to see you."
Shen Xi admired him inwardly, but didn't show it on his face. Instead, he said, "Even so, a mistake is a mistake. You have already violated the rules of disrupting the recruitment of grassroots civil servants."
Before Gu Beitian could respond, Chen Xi shouted, "Guards, take Gu Beitian away and disqualify him from the job application. According to regulations, anyone who disrupts a grassroots civil servant applicant shall be given ten strokes of the cane as punishment."
Not only was Gu Beitian in trouble, but the examiners and other candidates were also stunned.
The staff responsible for maintaining order at the job application venue came directly to the stage and took Gu Beitian away.
The scene was completely silent.
I never expected that simply saying I wanted to apply for a position as a staff member of a high-ranking official and didn't want to be a low-level civil servant would result in my disqualification and a beating.
Zheng Hongfang looked regretful; he couldn't use such a talented person.
At that moment, dozens of ordinary people stepped forward and knelt down below the stage, pleading, "Please, sir, show mercy and don't hit Mr. Gu!"
"Mr. Gu is a good man, sir, please stop hitting him."
The man preparing to carry out the execution watched the scene but did not stop raising the board.
The fight started right there on the spot.
This is also to teach future applicants a lesson.
Without Chenxi's order, the beating would certainly not have stopped just because the common people knelt down and begged for mercy.
Gu Beitian gritted his teeth and let out a muffled groan.
It really hurts.
Could it be that I've made a mistake?
I think about how I am both literate and skilled in martial arts, and I have great ambitions, but I have no way to get started.
I couldn't help but feel grief.
He gritted his teeth and endured the second blow.
Shenxi above said, "It is only right that those who do wrong should be punished, but they should not be exempted from punishment just because they are good people."
"As for whether he has done many good deeds and whether he deserves praise, that's a matter for later. You can submit his achievements. If he has truly done many good deeds that benefit the country and the people, I will praise him."
“If he is truly talented, I will not waste his talent. He can recover from his injury and then take the next official selection exam. Talented people will definitely be given important positions by me.”
“He came here today to apply for a junior civil servant position, but he doesn’t want to be a junior civil servant anymore. He wants to come directly to my side as an advisor. He has already gone wrong in terms of procedure and disrupted the order. Of course, he should be punished.”
As each word reached Gu Beitian's ears, his grief subsided. He realized that there was still the official examination to come.
He regained his fighting spirit.
He endured all ten blows without making a sound.
Shenxi couldn't help but admire him secretly; this was a tough nut to crack.
The kneeling people remained kneeling, but now they faced Gu Beitian's direction.
Someone said directly, "Mr. Gu, even if you don't become an official, we will still respect you."
Shen Xi frowned and asked Zheng Hongfang in a low voice, "What is Gu Beitian's background, and what has he done to earn such respect from the common people?"
Zheng Hongfang replied softly, "This person has two identities. One is a scholar who once took the imperial examinations but failed to achieve anything. The other is a wandering knight who traveled all over the country and made many friends in the martial arts world."
Shen Xi frowned again: "How could someone like that not have the opportunity to see me?"
Zheng Hongfang smiled wryly: "Chief, you don't think it's easy for you to see me now, do you?"
A big question mark appeared above Chenxi's head. What? Didn't you see me easily in Yunnan yesterday?
Zheng Hongfang noticed Shen Xi's doubts and then explained, "Yunnan Ze was someone Ge Sishu specifically instructed me to do before he left. He said that if anyone named Yunnan Ze met with the leader, I must introduce him to him."
Shenxi couldn't help but ask, "Why didn't Ge Sishu tell Xiuwen and me this?"
Zheng Hongfang smiled bitterly again: "Ge Sishu dares not guarantee that Yunnan Ze will come, and even says that Yunnan Ze might not even bother to come."
Chenxi was annoyed. What did he mean by "disdainful"?
Zheng Hongfang was very perceptive. He knew he couldn't not say those words for Ge Sishu, but he also knew that saying them would upset his superior, so he quickly changed the subject: "It's Yunnan Ze's luck that Ge Sishu spoke up in advance. But Gu Beitian didn't have that kind of luck."
Shen Xi was still depressed. If Ge Sishu admired Yunnan Ze so much, why did she specifically send Zheng Anxiang to follow him?
People from Yunnan went directly to help Ge Sishu, but Ge Sishu was not happy to accept it!
Seeing that Shen Xi was still depressed, Zheng Hongfang guessed what was going on. He said very solemnly, "Chief, Yunnan Ze wants your people to go with him to find Ge Sishu, so that Ge Sishu will remember that you are backing him up."
Chen Xi sighed: "I never imagined that even talented people would find it so difficult to see me."
Zheng Hongfang said, "The safety of the leader is more important than a few talented individuals. If everyone claims to be talented and goes to see the leader, wouldn't that put the leader in danger?"
"But when Bai Qiao met me before, it was so easy for her, wasn't it?"
Zheng Hongfang, of course, knew Bai Qiao, and continued to explain: "This was an order personally given by the commander, allowing anyone who knew those craftsmen to come and see you directly. Besides, it was in the county town at that time, and your protection was very tight, so naturally you had nothing to fear. If it weren't for the commander's personal order, no one would dare to let strangers see the commander so casually!"
"The robbery and murder in Lingtou Township this time has made my subordinates even more terrified, and they dare not be negligent in the slightest."
"Gu Beitian was therefore not lucky enough to come and recommend himself to the leader."
Shenxi replied, "Fortunately, I now have an official selection system. In the future, truly talented individuals can shine through my ranks."
Zheng Hongfang immediately said, "This is the commander's wise decision."
The two spoke very quietly, and Ge Congshan, who was standing next to them, did not interrupt. Although he could not hear what they were saying, he guessed that it was related to Gu Beitian and that it was not appropriate to disturb them.
Zheng Hongfang then briefly recounted how Gu Beitian protected the people of several villages and helped them survive in the chaos of war.
Shenxi praised, "He is indeed a truly capable person."
At this moment, Gu Beitian's caning punishment was over. The kneeling people immediately got up, found a wooden board, and carried Gu Beitian directly to find a doctor.
At this moment, the people from Chenxi stopped them: "We have a doctor here, the famous Doctor Fang."
These people no longer trusted Shenxi's people. Even though they knew that Doctor Fang was a skilled doctor, their respected Mr. Gu had been beaten by Shenxi. Could they still rely on her people for treatment?
Just as they were about to take Gu Beitian to town to find another doctor, Gu Beitian said through gritted teeth, "Folks, wait."
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