The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 185 They Ran Away
Yue Wenxuan laughed when he heard this: "Oh, the prefect ran away?"

Seeing that the True Lord wasn't angry, but smiled instead, the soldier, affected by his mood, suddenly calmed down and breathed more easily. "Brother Wu Zhan has always felt that there's something wrong with the prefect. He's always dodging and evading us, refusing to speak to us. He's even had a secret meeting with the Dengzhou prefect these past few days. I wonder what the two prefects discussed."

The soldier pulled out another letter and handed it to Yue Wenxuan, saying, "Master, this is a letter we found on the prefect's desk. We can't read, so we don't know what it says, but we think it's important news, so we brought it to you."

Yue Wenxuan unfolded the letter and saw that it was the news of the demise of the Wumashan rebel army in Hebei.

laugh!
Now it is very clear. The prefect of Dengzhou sent people to ask Zhao Gou for help, but Zhao Gou refused to come to help. At the same time as the news came back, the prefect of Laizhou received news that the Wumashan rebel army in Hebei was annihilated.

The two pieces of news combined together broke the camel's back.

The governor of Laizhou collapsed and just ran away.

Yue Wenxuan put the letter away and didn't intend to spread it to anyone so as not to affect morale.

Just as he was thinking about this, Ma Congyi also ran over and said, "Ah! Master Yue, I have something to tell you. The prefect of Dengzhou has disappeared. Some fishermen said that they saw the prefect going out to sea in a small boat, and it seems that he will not be coming back."

Yue Wenxuan laughed: "Oh? The governor of Dengzhou also ran away?"

Ma Congyi: "Yes?"

He was seven years old this year. He had experienced a lot in the past six months, which broadened his horizons and made him even more of a prodigy. His mind worked very quickly. As soon as he thought about the word "also", he immediately understood: "The Laizhou governor also ran away?"

Yue Wenxuan: "Yes! It seems that there are more than just the two of them who have escaped. Soon there will be news of other officials running away."

Yue Wenxuan asked them to seek help from Zhao Gou. His original intention was to save their minds and make them feel that "there is no way out, let's fight the Jin thieves." Unexpectedly, what they were thinking was "we can't win, let's run away."

Forget it, it’s better for the weak faction to run away early, leaving the position vacant for the hardliners to take over.

Yue Wenxuan turned to the little fat man and said, "Immediately send people to the two states and eight counties to go around every government office and count which officials have fled."

The little fat man responded and took action quickly.

The moment he turned around, there was no anger on his face, but a hint of joy.

The vacant official positions must be filled.

Then the scholars who stay will have a chance.

The inventory has begun...

Quite a few officials fled, especially the two prefectural yamens, which were almost deserted.

In addition, the magistrates of Laiyang County, Mouping County, Ye County, Penglai County, Huang County, Wendeng County... as well as the chief clerks and county lieutenants, also ran away in large numbers. It was as if these people had made an appointment to escape together by boat. I guess it was so that they could take care of each other on the road and run more safely.

Seeing this scene, Madam Gong Er couldn't help but sigh: "When the pseudo-Jin bandits attacked, these people didn't flee. Now that we've driven them back, they're safe. But when they heard that Zhao Gou wouldn't send reinforcements, they ran away. Is the court's influence on them really that great?"

Yue Wenxuan spread his hands. "Because the imperial court represents the orthodoxy. Last time they were able to hold on, it was because the orthodoxy hadn't yet expressed its stance. As representatives of the orthodoxy, they still had the responsibility to defend the territory. But now that the orthodoxy has made it clear that it wants to give up this territory, the representatives will naturally give up and run away."

As the two were chatting here, Yue Wenxuan suddenly thought of something and quickly turned his attention to what was happening with Wang Zhaoye...

As soon as I switched over, I heard the maid's call: "Prince, Prince! There are many people outside waiting for your words."

Yue Wenxuan's eyes turned: "Who are they?"

When the maid heard his reply, she almost burst into tears: "The prince is finally alive again. This prince is very scary. He would be in a daze for days at a time. It's very scary. But once the prince is alive, he is very gentle and easy to get along with."

It is said that this is the root cause of his illness after encountering a storm at sea!

The maid hurriedly said, "All the officials who haven't fled yet have arrived. They are all waiting for you to come up with a set of rules. There are also some wealthy gentry who are crowded outside."

Yue Wenxuan laughed in his heart: I guessed that this place would be crowded with people.

Now the two states and eight counties are vaguely divided into two groups.

One group is a group of heroes in the martial arts world. They all united around Madam Gong Er. When these people heard that the officials had fled, they naturally ran to Jiaoshui County to seek advice from Madam Gong Er and Master Yue.

The other group is composed of officials and gentry. This group of people prefers to be vassals of Wang Zhaoye. Whenever they encounter any problems, they want to come to the prince for rules and regulations.

Of course, there are also cases where both sides are inverted or attached.

For example, Ma!

Ma Congyi and Ma Sheng are now in Jiaoshui County, while several other Ma clan leaders are guarding the prince in Jimo.

Yue Wenxuan walked out of the palace slowly and immediately saw a large group of people guarding outside the palace gate. Standing in the front were Jimo County Magistrate Cui Weihua and County Lieutenant Wu Jialiang. Behind them were various county magistrates, chief clerks, county lieutenants, etc. They all left their jurisdictions and ran to the palace gate to wait.

Upon seeing Yue Wenxuan, the group immediately bowed deeply and said in unison, "Your Highness, many officials have fled. What should we do now, those of us who are unwilling to flee?"

"Your Highness, I am at a loss now. I will rely on Your Highness to make the decision."

"Your Majesty, the court no longer wants us. Now only you can take charge of the situation."

The officials were in a panic.

Yue Wenxuan raised his hands, and the group instantly quieted down, their eyes widening and their ears pricked up.

Yue Wenxuan stretched out his hand and pointed at Jimo County Magistrate Cui Weihua.

Cui Weihua was a little confused: Why is the prince pointing at me?
He stupidly stretched out his hand, pointed at his nose, looked left and right, and made an expression that said, "Me?"

Yue Wenxuan: "Don't look around. It's you, County Magistrate Cui. You've been promoted. I now appoint you as the Governor of Laizhou. You will take office immediately."

"Ah?" All the officials present were dumbfounded.

We were still waiting for the prince to bring the regulations, but the first thing he did when he came was to appoint and dismiss officials without permission. Does he think he is the emperor?
Yue Wenxuan chuckled, "I know what you're thinking. You're all thinking that my unauthorized appointment and dismissal of prefectural-level officials is truly treasonous."

The officials laughed awkwardly.

Yue Wenxuan said, "But, besides me, who else can appoint and dismiss officials? If there are no officials, who will manage the two states and eight counties? If there is no one to manage, we will be in chaos even without the Jin invaders coming."

This makes sense!

Everyone nodded.

Yue Wenxuan: "Since I have already privately held an agricultural examination, let's do something a little more unconventional. Pass on my order to hold another 'civilized examination' in half a month to select a group of new officials for the two states and eight counties."

(End of this chapter)