Frost for a Thousand Years

Chapter 49 Going Against the North Wind, Establishing Merit

"This humble official is willing to serve as a county magistrate."

When asked about it, Sun Qian gave a fairly direct response.

This surprised Ouyang Ke somewhat.

He originally thought that this young master Sun Qian would stay in the capital to take up a post, after all, this person's goal was to pass the imperial examination in three consecutive years.

Although the middle one is broken, becoming the top scorer in the exam is still the ultimate goal.

However, he wanted to start as a local official.

Could it be that he also wants wealth and status?

No, he's not after wealth and status.

He was born into wealth.

In response to this, Yu Xiu asked, "Is there a place you'd like to work for?"

The next in line after Ya Yuan is a substitute, but Ya Yuan is number one, and there's no problem for him to directly become an eighth-rank county magistrate, even without Sun Situ's arrangement.

"Wherever the court needs me, I am ready to go," Sun Qian said humbly, just as his name suggested.

Of course, this kind of 'humility' is only reserved for superiors.

Flipping through the records, Yu Xiu asked Ouyang Ke, "Minister, there is still a vacancy for the position of County Magistrate in Zhang County, Qiuping Prefecture, Sizhou. It will be temporarily filled by the Ninth-Rank Registrar."

"How competent is this chief clerk in implementing policies?" Ouyang Ke asked.

"Mediocrity, nothing particularly outstanding."

Upon hearing this, Ouyang Ke stroked his beard gently, lost in thought: "Then, let's examine that clerk further."

This is politics.

With a single sentence from the superior, a veteran clerk who had probably waited more than a decade for this position, finally found a vacancy and became the acting county magistrate, was dismissed with the word "mediocre." He was expected to be promoted from the ninth rank to the eighth rank once he passed the assessment period.

Is he really mediocre?
What kind of political achievements can an acting county magistrate, who is not even the chief administrative officer, possibly make?
This is a double standard.

Some people are promoted only if they have outstanding achievements.

Some people are promoted simply because they don't cause any major trouble while in office.

"Do you have any objections to the words of the County Magistrate of Zhang County?" Yu Xiu asked. "In other words, are there any difficulties regarding your personal reasons?"

In ancient times, becoming an official wasn't simply a matter of the imperial court assigning you to a position.

There are still many issues to consider.

They generally won't be working in your hometown.

After all, the bandit faction was already powerful, and if they set you up at the respawn point, wouldn't that make them local tyrants?

But it won't be too, too far from home, that would be too inhumane.

In ancient times, transportation was inconvenient, and going home was a great hassle. If someone in the family was seriously ill and the distance was too far, such as several different states, the food would be ruined by the time they got back.

“I have no objection,” Sun Qian said.

Nodding, Ouyang Ke said, "Then let's record it like this: Sun Qian, Assistant Magistrate of Zhang County."

After writing it down as required, Yu Xiu said, "Then Sun Qian, you may leave."

"Your Excellency, Eunuch Chen, and the Physician, I shall take my leave."

Slowly, Sun Qian left the place.

"This young master of Lord Sun still needs to be properly trained and tested," Eunuch Chen said with a smile.

“Father-in-law is right.”

Ouyang Ke smiled and nodded, then picked up the scroll, flipped through it, and said, "Oh, I just discovered that the magistrate of Zhang County will retire in six months. Young Master Sun Qian is indeed a man of great talent and ability, and deserves to be nurtured."

It wasn't just discovered.

The county magistrate is acting, and the county magistrate is about to retire. So this position is carefully selected, based on the best potential for development.

As long as nothing untoward happens during your term of office, such as bandits taking over a village or rioters tearing down the gates of the county prison and scattering the prisoners inside like stars in the sky, that's the fastest you can rise from the eighth rank to the seventh rank.

There are a few of these positions each year.

What's left are naturally those with the strongest backgrounds.

This is quite reasonable, and it doesn't even qualify as an exchange of power and resources. After all, it's meant to be given away anyway, so of course, the best candidates will be chosen.

The same applies to other Asian members; they were allocated gradually, not entirely based on academic performance and talent, but also according to family background.

Fan Wuji (third) went to the army and became an eighth-rank official.

Gao Yunyi (fourth) was appointed as the county magistrate, a position of eighth rank.

Of the rest, two became scholars of the ninth rank. The rest remained in the ninth rank, waiting to be appointed, with no official position available.

Of course, within a year, one can generally be placed in a position.

Right now, I'm just staying home and receiving a basic salary, and then waiting for the shortage to occur.

This way, I can also prepare for next year's imperial examination.

Many people would be quite willing to accept this.

As for the other ordinary graduates, their positions had been arranged a few days ago. Most of them were assigned to be clerks, while a few with strong family backgrounds, or even the eldest sons of the main branch of the family, like Song Ce, were able to obtain a ninth-rank or lower-rank position with no real power.

So, if you can get a high score, try to get as many as possible.

It really works.

After completing today's appointments and removals, Eunuch Chen's supervisory work will be finished.

"Then, Eunuch Chen, the appointment memorial from the Ministry of Personnel should be submitted to the palace by tomorrow afternoon at the latest," Ouyang Ke said.

"Please hurry," said Eunuch Chen.

"Is it urgent?" Ouyang Ke asked.

At this moment, Eunuch Chen smiled and reminded them, "The army heading to Shuofeng will set off the day after tomorrow morning."

"...Yes, yes, yes."

Ouyang Ke then realized what was happening and gave an awkward laugh.

Although the Imperial Secretariat suggested sending Song Shi'an to a county in Yizhou, he himself expressed a different opinion. If the emperor agreed, he would have to go with the army to Shuofeng, and given the difficult times, there was certainly no energy to escort him to the battlefield alone.

"Then we'll take our leave."

"Please take care, sir."

And so, they watched as Eunuch Chen departed into the distance.

Ouyang Ke's smiling expression gradually turned relaxed and peaceful, and he sighed, "If Song Shi'an were to return alive, he would be unstoppable in the officialdom."

"My mentor, will he be able to come back alive?"

Yu Xiuxun asked curiously.

Ouyang Ke looked at him and asked, "What do you think?"

After a moment's thought, Yu Xiu shook his head: "No, it's a death sentence."

.........

"The bright moon rises over the Tianshan Mountains, amidst the vast sea of ​​clouds. The long wind blows for tens of thousands of miles, passing through Tongmen Pass."

After reviewing Song Shi'an's original work during his report, the emperor gave an approving evaluation: "When I visited Northern Liang years ago, it was exactly as he had imagined."

"With such talent, he could certainly be a military poet."

After a casual laugh and a sigh, the emperor said to Chen Bao, "In that case, let him go."

The issue of land reclamation has already been discussed in that article.

As for who can undertake the land reclamation, that's fine, as long as they have the ability.

The reason why Song Shi'an was needed was simply because, as the author of the "Tuntian Strategy," he possessed some special "legal principles."

“Your Majesty, this servant believes that Song Shi’an has understood Your Majesty’s favor,” Chen Bao said softly.

"Of course he understands, he just thinks the promotion is too slow."

The emperor had already seen through everything and said quite calmly, "If you want to die, so be it. I don't care. I wouldn't even spare my own son..."

Before he finished speaking, the emperor's eyes narrowed slightly.

For some reason, suddenly, the image from that dream flashed through my mind.

(End of this chapter)