Yinshan Record

Chapter 8 Self-Reflection
The moon hangs high in the sky at Mid-Autumn Festival, and the cups and plates are scattered everywhere.

The wine to welcome Su Che to his new post lasted until County Magistrate Jiang and Registrar Tian started discussing how to calculate their seniority before the party was considered over.

The Jiang and Tian families are both prominent clans in Shanyin County, with deep-rooted connections. Once the two of them have settled their seniority, there will be no need for sleep tonight.

Su Che's residence was located in the County Commandant's Hall within the county government compound.

Tian, ​​the registrar, was a meticulous man. Upon receiving news that a new county magistrate was about to take office, he ordered the place to be cleaned up in advance.

Su Che was sitting upright in his office, with a tall stack of files beside him, which were the files that Tian, ​​the registrar, had ordered to be moved over earlier.

Teacups were placed on the table, and Su Che raised the teacup to drink the fragrant tea inside.

Recalling the moments at the dinner table today.

This was a habit he had developed in his previous life: when no one was resting at night, he would review his actions for the day, making sure he did what he did right and making it a habit. As for what he did wrong, he would try to avoid making the same mistakes again.

This is the meaning of the Confucian saying, "I examine myself three times a day."

The families of Magistrate Jiang and Registrar Tian have already formed an alliance. The relationships between these landlords and powerful families in Shanyin County are deeply intertwined, and they have long since formed interest groups that I cannot shake with my current abilities.

We should cooperate with them if possible, but if there is conflict, we should avoid confrontation for the time being.

Although the county's instructors and geomancers were both outsiders and their abilities were limited, they were not to mention...

From their conversations, it became clear that they were all irresponsible people who preferred to avoid trouble and mind their own business. They were unreliable when problems arose.

However, they possess the county's archives, which contain a complete collection of various classic texts and materials.

This will make up for my lack of understanding of the world, and I will definitely visit more places in the future.

There are three urgent matters at hand.

First, take good care of your health and gradually embark on the path of spiritual practice. As for which method to practice in the future, you can write to Jiankang and ask them to help you find a solution.

With elders in the Su family of Duling holding positions in the palace, they certainly wouldn't lack such resources.

Moreover, he had made preparations in advance when he left the capital.

Secondly, he needed to establish himself firmly in Shanyin County. He needed to give an account to his superiors, and the best way to do that was to handle a few cases and demonstrate his value as a county constable.

However, it is important to strike the right balance and never confront those truly powerful demon kings.

On the other hand, one must establish one's own image and cultivate a few trusted confidants.

Everyone needs to carry the sedan chair; it won't do without help.

Su Che slowly gathered his thoughts, began to prepare the ink and brush, and started writing the letter.

Now that I've been given the privileged background of a playboy in this life, I should definitely make good use of it.

In the novel *Water Margin*, Gao Yanei sets his sights on Lin Jiaotou's wife. What is the first thing he does?

They were looking for Lu Qianhou, a man devoid of conscience and single-mindedly focused on climbing the social ladder.

Ximen Qing fell in love at first sight with Pan Jinlian after she smashed the window fork. Who was he going to make a move on?
Wang Gan Niang is sharp-tongued, knowledgeable, and tactful.

There are some things we need help with from Jiankang, and some things we have to do ourselves.

Su Che was deep in thought, pondering the matter.

Then a clueless guy came along and started causing trouble.

"Young master, the kitchen just made some fish slices and spicy soup for you to drink with, and asked me to bring it over."

The young pageboy was naturally not qualified to attend the banquet, but he hid under the kitchen and learned the skills from the chefs who came to cook.

He was naturally outgoing and good-looking. The chefs, mindful of his status, specially cooked several good dishes for him and ate and drank with him in the kitchen.

As the saying goes, even a three-year drought won't starve a cook. The young pageboy ate with a rosy complexion, feeling much happier than when he was in Jiankang.

This also evoked feelings of gratitude towards the people of Shanyin County.

"Young master, when shall we go and burn that withered forest temple to the ground?"

The young page watched as his master slowly blew the ink off the letter and solemnly sealed it in an envelope.

"When did I ever say I was going to burn down that Kulin Zen Temple?" Su Che glanced at the hot and sour soup that the page boy had brought, which looked quite appealing and smelled delicious. He then told him to take it and drink it slowly.

The kitchen staff also put in a lot of thought, specially making two pancakes, which are called "youmo" in Yuzhou dialect, and then finely cutting them into strips, which are perfect for soaking in sour soup.

"Although I didn't linger at that table for long, I could tell that those officials were all lazy and didn't like to get involved. With so many monsters in Shanyin County, aren't they all waiting for you to take action?"

"Who told you I was going to make a move?"

"That's what the cooks all say. They say that the reason why there have been so many strange occurrences in Shanyin County in recent years is mainly because the imperial court has not sent a county magistrate. The officials in the county have been passing the buck, which is why things have turned out this way. The imperial court sent you here because they know about the situation in Shanyin County and want to take strong action."

"How come I didn't know about this?"

The hot and sour soup was delicious. Su Che dipped the shredded pancakes in the soup twice and then slowly chewed them in his mouth.

"We haven't even arrived yet, and the whole county is already talking about it," the young page suddenly said mysteriously. "And there's something very dangerous going on..."

"It's dangerous," Su Che looked at him. "Someone has taken a liking to your charming eyes and wants to find out what's going on with you."

"There are people in the county who are in league with demons, they're colluding with those monsters..."

"It would be strange if there were no people in Shanyin County who colluded with monsters, just like there were people in Guobei County who slept with female ghosts."

"The one who colludes with demons is a high-ranking official; many people say that the county's high-ranking officials are in league with demons." The young page said very solemnly, "That is to say..."

The young page's implication was very clear: the person who could communicate with demons was at today's banquet.

“There are no high-ranking officials in this county.” Su Che smiled. “Think about that old Zhou you saw last night. Has he colluded with any monsters?”

"Old Zhou?" The young page suddenly thought of a possibility. "As expected of the young master, the Little Tyrant of Danyang Iron Whip, his methods are indeed ruthless."

What are you talking about? Su Che had actually noticed that the group of herb gatherers were unusual when he was at the Kulin Zen Temple, but it wasn't until he got to the banquet that he realized something he had been overlooking.

The area around Shanyin County is teeming with demons, making it extremely dangerous to venture into the mountains to gather herbs.

The villagers of this county are naturally aware of the problems with Kulin Zen Temple.

To go into the mountains to collect herbs and then bring everyone back out, one cannot just have courage; otherwise, one would have died in the mountains long ago. Only a leader of herb gatherers who is both bold and meticulous can accomplish these tasks.

Despite knowing that there were problems at Kulin Temple, he still insisted on taking everyone there to spend the night and rest.

Isn't that incredibly foolish and reckless?
The probability of having two completely different personality traits, boldness and meticulousness, and foolishness and recklessness, in one person is extremely low.

Therefore, Su Che has a simpler deduction.

Old Zhou had connections with the monsters in the surrounding mountains.

It was because of their friendship that he was able to go into the mountains to "collect" medicinal herbs.

The medicinal herbs might have been given to him by the monsters.

It was precisely because of their friendship that Lao Zhou dared to take everyone to spend the night at the problematic Kulin Zen Temple.

It seems I should find another opportunity to meet with this old Zhou.

"Young Master's idea is to lie low for a while, wait until you have a good understanding of the monsters in and around the county, and then wipe out the surrounding area with overwhelming force. As expected of Young Master, all the heroes in the stories do this. This vicious plan even has a name."

The young page hummed twice: "It's called 'pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger'."

"Do I have a grudge against you?"

"Why do you say that, young master?"

Su Che said irritably, "My major tendons are injured and many of my meridians are broken. You still want me to fight a bunch of monsters whose strength I don't know? You're really something."

"Ah, young master, you're just a show-off, all looks and no substance?"

"I don't even have a silver sample, just a broken candle that's about to go out. You can look at me if you can."

Su Che waved his hand.

"Alright, pack your things and get back to sleep."

(End of this chapter)