I, Sun Shan, and the Imperial Examination

After hearing the love story of Li Si and Miss Zhang, Sun Shan couldn't help but sigh that there really is such a thing as "fate" in this world.

Everything seemed predestined, a series of coincidences, and the two of them got married, ending up as a perfect couple.

Granny Wang said with a smile, "Master, Li Si sent over an invitation, saying that you are his matchmaker with Miss Zhang, and he hopes you can come and have a drink."

Having a drink is out of the question.

Sun Shan and Li Si were not acquainted at all, so he wouldn't go.

After thinking for a moment, he instructed, "Sister Yun, I won't go. Prepare a small gift for Li Si and wish him and Miss Zhang a long and happy marriage."

Sister Yun nodded: "Brother Shan, I understand. Their marriage is somehow related to you, hehe, maybe it will become a beautiful story in the future."

Upon hearing the words "a good story," Sun Shan became convinced that the story had been distorted beyond recognition over time.

Perhaps the local chronicles of Yuanlu County would record it like this: Magistrate Sun cleverly judged the case of Lady Ding's cloth, and betrothed Zhang San's sister to Li Si, thus resolving the feud between the two.

After Li Si and Zhang San's sister got married, they had many children and grandchildren and enjoyed both happiness and longevity.

After telling the story of Li Si, Granny Wang continued with the story of Wang Wu.

They embellished the gossip they heard throughout the day.

Sun Bomin, Su Shi, and Yun Jie listened with great interest, wishing that Granny Wang could squat in the market all day to collect gossip.

Uncle Sun rolled his eyes, completely baffled as to why Sun, a dignified county magistrate, was so fond of gossiping like an ordinary commoner.

Shouldn't officials be aloof and detached from worldly affairs?

If Sun Shan knew what his third uncle was thinking, he would definitely lock him in a dark room again.

Bah! What do you mean by being high and mighty? He's very approachable and has always followed the mass line, showing concern for the people and being with them.

A few days later, the summer harvest in Yuanlu County officially ended, and Sun Shan's heart finally relaxed.

Then came the important moment of paying taxes.

For this moment, the entire government office was on high alert, wishing they could move all the people's grain into the office's warehouse.

Speaking of the granary, Sun Shan summoned Magistrate Wang again: "Lord Wang, has the granary been cleaned up?"

Magistrate Wang rushed in, cupped his hands in a respectful bow, and said, "Your Excellency, everything has been prepared. We guarantee that the grain will not get damp or be eaten by insects or rats."

He then said with difficulty, "Sir, this year the grain tax has increased, and our granaries may not be enough. There is no allocation for building new granaries, so what should we do with the surplus grain?"

When it comes to this issue, the government departments collectively made a mistake.

They were so caught up in the joy of the bumper harvest that they completely forgot to build more granaries to store the grain.

No, perhaps someone is aware of this but chooses not to say it, to embarrass Sun Shan.

Or perhaps the slush fund is empty, and there's no money to repair the granary if it's mentioned, so they simply prefer to avoid trouble and let Lord Sun discover the problem himself when it happens.

Sun Shan was taking office for the first time, so he didn't consider all these things.

Upon hearing Magistrate Wang mention the granary was insufficient, the man's slanted, triangular eyes widened, and he preemptively questioned, "Magistrate Wang, you've always been in charge of tax collection, why are you only bringing this up now?"

It was not that Sun Shan wanted to deny it, but rather that the county magistrate, as the assistant official to the county magistrate, was responsible for matters such as the collection of grain, horses, taxes, and other duties.

This is the duty of Magistrate Wang.

If we're talking about responsibility, County Magistrate Wang bears primary responsibility, while Sun Shan bears secondary responsibility.

Magistrate Wang repeatedly protested his innocence, forcing himself to say, "Your Honor, I couldn't recall it at the moment. And since you didn't give any instructions, I certainly can't remember."

Damn it! What a cunning Magistrate Wang! Is he trying to shift the blame onto himself?

If it were an ordinary county magistrate, he would definitely argue with Magistrate Wang. But Sun Shan was a second-rate county magistrate who valued "performance-based governance" and knew that it would be pointless to pass the buck to Magistrate Wang.

Let's solve the problem first, and then we can talk about other things later.

Sun Shan said angrily, "Leaving aside other matters, the important thing is to solve the problem of the granary. There is no time to build a new granary now, so we will use the makeshift granaries for now."

Magistrate Wang asked in confusion, "Sir, what does a simple granary look like?"

Sun Shan rolled his eyes at Magistrate Wang and said speechlessly, "First, make cylindrical granaries out of straw mats, place them in a high place, make sure they are well-ventilated, and especially keep them dry and insect-proof."

The government office's granary was mainly built using traditional materials such as bluestone, wood, and rammed earth; there's no time left to build such structures nowadays.

They had no choice but to use straw mats to enclose the area and make a large round barn for the time being.

Afterwards, arrangements were made for people to sell the grain as soon as possible to prevent it from being damaged due to improper protection.

If the food spoils because it wasn't stored properly, who can you complain to?

County Magistrate Wang nodded and bowed, immediately accepting the order: "Yes, sir, I will take care of it right away."

After saying that, he scurried back to the county magistrate's office like a mouse.

Sun Shan was speechless as he watched Wang, the county magistrate, disappear in a second.

Having been in Yuanlu County for over a year, Sun Shan already knew the most distinctive characteristic of the people of Yuanlu: they were always on the run.

When faced with danger, they run away without a second thought, their speed so great they seem to disappear into the ground in an instant.

County Magistrate Wang is a typical example of a Yuanlu native.

He ran away with the same ferocity as the ordinary people on the street, a perfect example of Fan Paopao (a notorious figure in Chinese folklore known for running away during the Cultural Revolution).

After running out of the county magistrate's office, Magistrate Wang wiped the sweat from his forehead, patted his chest, and gulped down a large cup of tea before calming down.

Speaking of the granary, Magistrate Wang had completely forgotten about it.

Just two days ago, Sun Shan ordered the granary to be cleaned, and County Magistrate Wang assigned his underlings to do the work.

While they were working, one of the underlings suddenly asked, "This year's grain harvest is bountiful, the yamen will definitely collect a lot of grain, hehe, will Lord Sun give us extra money?"

Then he asked, "After the grain tax is collected, won't the granaries be full and not enough to hold everything?"

With just that one sentence, Magistrate Wang shouted: "Oh no!"

I knew I had failed in my duty.

When Magistrate Wang made a mistake, his first instinct was not to make amends, but to severely berate his subordinates and shift all the blame onto them.

Of course, this is just talk; in front of that old fox Sun Shan, it's obviously not feasible to let his underlings take the blame.

The next thing to do was to hide and wait for Sun Shan to summon him before raising the issue. Since he had already made a mistake, he figured he might as well avoid it for as long as possible and not want to be scolded.

County Magistrate Wang breathed a long sigh of relief and said to his page, "Lord Sun didn't curse anyone, thank goodness."

The page frowned, forcing a smile as he replied, "Master, Lord Sun doesn't have time to scold us now. But when he does have time, perhaps he will..."

Magistrate Wang's face fell. He exclaimed, "Oh dear!" and belatedly realized, "I almost forgot! Sun Shan is the kind of person who loves to settle scores later and likes to take your life when you're off guard! Oh no, what should we do?"

The pageboy quickly reassured him, "Master, don't worry. Lord Sun is extremely greedy; nothing can be done without money. You can easily pay him off."

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Wang winced in pain: "Money, money, money, money again! I knew Sun Shan would want money. Damn it!"

Only after a series of indescribable outbursts did Magistrate Wang's heart attack not flare up.