Han officials

Chapter 53
Gongsun Zhao is an ambitious man!

After reading the account book, Wei Zhe had this thought in his mind.

However, Wei Zhe admired his ambition.

After all, who among the officials doesn’t want to climb up the ladder?

But being able to control your desire for wealth is in itself a pretty good advantage.

Perhaps because his family was about to fall into poverty, Gongsun Zhao did not have the arrogance of an ordinary son of aristocratic family.

This is quite good.

Wei Zhe also understood that it was one thing for him to like to use the children of poor families and the rich and powerful, but it was impossible for him to use only them.

At a time when the aristocratic families controlled most of the social resources, he would sooner or later have to use the children of the aristocratic families.

After all, "Mao's Dragon-Slaying Technique" teaches us that things should be done step by step.

In the early stages, you still need to accumulate strength and make friends so that you can gain a firm foothold.

Friends and enemies may be different at each stage.

And each stage has its own tasks, so you can't be impatient or anxious.

So Wei Zhe now has only one question left:
Do you want to accept Gongsun Zhao's offer of allegiance?
Yes, when Gongsun Zhao handed the account book to Wei Zhe, his meaning was very clear.

Although according to the Han system, the county lieutenant was required to obey the orders of the prefect, he did not have to do so to this extent.

For example, when the former Lelang prefect Zhang Qi was in office, Gongsun Zhao only gave some advice and stopped there.

……

In the big tent, Wei Zhe's silence soon led to a dead silence.

Seeing this situation, Gongsun Zhao's nervousness was beyond words.

You have to know that he was taking considerable risks by handing the account books over to Wei Zhe and even exposing the county army's secrets.

But after thinking it over again and again, he still did it.

The reason is simple, just because he wants to be one of his own, Wei Zhe's "one of his own"!
Although Gongsun Zhao didn't know the emperor's thoughts or the eunuch's hints, he was betting that a hero like Wei Zhe would not be satisfied.

After all, Wei Zhe's background is worse than his, so he must want to establish merits and rise to the top.

In this case, the Three Kingdoms of Korea can be said to be the most likely choice.

It can be said that Gongsun Zhao went to great lengths to catch this opportunity to achieve great things.

Of course, he had no choice, because Wei Zhe had no shortage of elite soldiers and generals under his command.

In terms of military prowess, he was not as good as Taishi Ci;
In terms of closeness of relationship, he cannot compare to a close confidant like Zhong Hu.

In this situation, Gongsun Zhao could not think of any other solution except to be honest with him.

Fortunately, Wei Zhe didn't keep him waiting for long.

Just as Gongsun Zhao was lost in thought, Wei Zhe finally spoke.

"Resolve the issue of the county soldiers as soon as possible!"

"Understood. I will clean up the mess within half a month."

Seeing Gongsun Zhao agreed without hesitation, Wei Zhe nodded.

Although he didn't understand why Gongsun Zhao was so active in approaching him, he naturally would not refuse the county lieutenant's offer of service.

Of course, it is still a long way to go to get the same treatment as Taishi Ci and others.

Not to mention anything else, he can't compare in terms of trustworthiness alone.

Moreover, disciplining the county soldiers is part of their job, and it is not really a test.

Just when Gongsun Zhao was about to breathe a sigh of relief, Wei Zhe said:

"In half a month, the Inspector will need help to patrol the county, so I'll leave this matter to you."

Gongsun Zhao didn't understand what Wei Zhe meant at first.

It was not until Wei Zhe said that he needed "two thousand" guards that he was suddenly shocked.

There's no way. There's obviously some other purpose behind mobilizing such a large force.

Is it to deal with the powerful people in the county, or the officials in the counties?
Gongsun Zhao didn't want to understand for a moment.

But he was very clear about one thing: this was the real test. Thinking of this, Gongsun Zhao gritted his teeth and immediately bowed his head to accept the order.

"Don't worry, my lord. I will lead the elite troops of the county and accompany you personally."

Hearing this, Wei Zhe nodded slightly.

After all, political statements cannot be made with just a few words; actions are always more convincing than words!

That afternoon, Wei Zhe heard the news that Gongsun Zhao was carrying out drastic reforms to the county army.

For a time, there was widespread resentment within the county army, and some people even had the power to file a complaint against him.

Wei Zhe was very pleased about this!
After all, with Gongsun Zhao taking the initiative to be the bad guy, it would be much easier for him to rally the troops later.

To be honest, sometimes even Wei Zhe despised himself because his methods were too sinister.

I thought he was a sunny and cheerful boy back then, but I didn't expect that he would be corrupted like this not long after becoming an official.

Whenever he thought of this, Wei Zhe couldn't help but scold himself.

And then... continue doing so, just do it.

Of course, this time he didn't need to use all kinds of tricks like he did in Daifang County.

Because the main duties of the governor are three:

Encourage agriculture and provide disaster relief, promote education, and suppress the powerful and arrest thieves.

In this political context, it was extremely easy for Wei Zhe to do things.

……

The next day, at the prefectural government office.

Wei Zhe looked at the five people in front of him and said, "Do you know why I transferred you guys here?"

Hearing this, several people looked confused.

However, the fake Sima Kuangsheng of the Haiming Camp thought for a moment and immediately replied, "I've heard that the duty of the Inspector is to supervise subordinates, investigate criminal cases, and investigate illegal activities. We will enforce the law impartially and not let our lord down!"

Wei Zhe burst out laughing when he heard that.

That’s right, although the rank of the Inspector is low, with only a hundred stones and a copper seal and yellow ribbon, his powers are great.

It can even be said that he inspected all counties and was in charge of everything, which was a typical example of a person with a low position but great power.

Precisely because of this, the governor’s confidants are basically in charge of the affairs.

For example, Wei Zhe, who was appointed as the Inspector of the East, West, South, North and Central regions, directly transferred five fake Simas from the military settlements in Fang County.

After all, these people have experienced displacement and tasted all the sufferings in the world.

Not only does he hate the powerful and corrupt officials, he also has certain governance experience.

For example, Kuang Sheng, who once served as the head of the Anqiu County Police Station, knew best the dirty tricks in the countryside.

The same was true for Xu Kuan, who had even been a minor official in the county.

If he had not been persecuted by local tyrants, his family would not have been broken up, and he would not have joined the Yellow Turbans and become a refugee.

The other three were similar, and they had all suffered at the hands of corrupt officials and powerful people.

But these are secondary.

The most important thing is that they are Wei Zhe’s trusted team.

In this way, they are the perfect candidates for the post of Inspector.

Therefore, Wei Zhe did not speak in an official tone in front of them, but said directly with a solemn expression: "During this county inspection, your target is not only the county officials. If there is any lawlessness in the local area, it must be collusion with the powerful."

Seeing that the five people seemed to be thinking about something, Wei Zhe continued, "Don't worry, I will dispatch county soldiers to accompany you. Five hundred soldiers per group will be enough to keep you safe."

If there is any bold enough guy who wants to test his strength, Wei Zhe can definitely attack him.

After hearing this, Kuang Sheng, Xu Kuan and the other four immediately understood everything.

So they all accepted the order without any fear.

……

(End of this chapter)