Traveling through time and space to become a child, supporting the family by catching fish and shrim

After a cup of tea, Deng Jie left and returned.

Chen Lang asked hurriedly: "How? Can I take it out?"

Deng Jie nodded: "Yes, but Chen Caizi will have to pay a little."

Chen Lang asked: "How much?"

Deng Jie said, "Fifteen taels per person."

Chen Lang said: "As long as we can get the person out, money is not a problem."

Deng Jie said, "I can guarantee this. I'll pay you and get you back."

Chen Lang took out his purse, which contained only twenty taels of silver.

"I'll write you an IOU, and I'll send you the remaining ten taels of silver shortly." Chen Lang said, "I can't carry Chen Tao away by myself, I need help."

Deng Jie took the purse and patted his chest, saying, "Don't worry, Mr. Chen. We all trust your reputation."

Chen Lang returned to the shack and together with Sun Yuwei carried Chen Tao out of the market and rushed him to Pingzhilin.

Then he asked Sun Yuwei to go to the tofu shop and take the remaining ten taels of silver to deliver to the servants at the quarry.

As Xu Fei examined Chen Tao, he cursed, "These bastards are so ruthless."

"Several bones were broken and the internal organs were damaged. If it weren't for this brother's good foundation, someone else would have died on the spot."

Chen Lang said: "As long as it can be cured, money is not a problem."

Xu Fei examined the back of Chen Tao's head and exclaimed, "There's an old injury here."

Chen Lang took a look and said, "I got hurt when I was a kid. Someone hit me on the back of the head with a blunt object. Ever since then, my brain has been a little off."

Xu Fei sighed, "This brother has been through a lot. Okay, leave him with me. I'll send him home after he's cured."

Chen Lang bowed and said, "I'll take care of everything."

Xu Fei said, "You're still so polite to me."

After bidding farewell to Xu Fei, Chen Lang returned to the tofu shop.

Sun Yuwei also came back from the quarry, and Cuicui was hugging him and crying.

The little girl hadn't seen her father for a month or so. When they met again, she found that her father was so thin that only skin and bones were left. She was so heartbroken that she cried loudly in Sun Yuwei's arms.

Sun Yuwei also kept wiping away tears.

For ordinary people, serving in the army is no different from going through the gates of hell.

Originally, this service was relatively easy, but the new official made three big moves upon taking office, directly turning him from a menial job into a forced laborer. If Chen Tao had not stepped forward and Chen Lang had not happened to return and spent money to redeem them from the quarry, he would most likely have died there.

Chen Lang said, "Brother Sun, the rain has not stopped for a while. It's not safe for you to live in the village. Just stay in the tofu shop first."

Sun Yuwei knelt down in front of Chen Lang and kowtowed repeatedly: "Brother Erlang, thank you for saving my life."

Seeing this, Cuicui also knelt down and said, "Thank you, Master, for saving my father."

Chen Lang said: "What are you doing? Hurry up and get up."

Sun Yuwei choked up and said, "I heard from Xiaoqi that if you pull us out, each of us will get fifteen taels!"

"Brother Erlang, your favor is too great for me to repay."

Chen Lang said, "Let's talk about it after we get up. I don't want you to pay it back."

Seeing that Sun Yuwei refused to get up, Chen had no choice but to say, "If you really want to pay me back, you can just work for me in the tofu shop for free from now on. Is that okay?"

Sun Yuwei nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes."

Chen Lang said, "Okay, now that we've talked, stop kneeling on the ground and get up quickly."

"Xiao Qi, go get some food."

Xiaoqi took her sister straight to the kitchen.

Chen Lang asked Sun Yuwei to live comfortably in the tofu shop, while he returned to the Sheng Mansion.

"Teacher, do you know the new magistrate of our county?"

After seeing Sheng Chuliang, Chen Lang asked straight to the point.

Sheng Chuliang asked: "Why do you ask?"

Chen Lang recounted what happened today.

Sheng Chuliang was furious when he heard this and said coldly, "When he was the county magistrate before, he was still a very honest person. I didn't expect that once he got the power, he would do even more excessive things than the previous county magistrate."

"The new county magistrate is called Shi Liguo, and he has a very powerful background."

Through Sheng Chuliang's narration, Chen Lang gained a preliminary understanding of County Magistrate Shi.

Shi Liguo had the support of the Shi family of Qinzhou Prefecture. This family was extremely powerful, and several of its ancestors had become prime ministers. At the same time, several of the family's female relatives had entered the palace and became imperial concubines.

The Concubine Jing who is now beside the emperor is a member of the Shi family.

In addition, the prefect of Qinzhou also had the surname Shi.

Chen Lang frowned and said, "With such a strong background, why was he only a county magistrate before?"

Sheng Chuliang said: "Shi Liguo should not be considered a direct descendant, but a side branch."

"Large families have always arranged this for their offspring. They won't serve as the leader of a local government, but as the second or even third in command. This way, risks can be kept to a minimum, and the pressure to get promoted won't be too great."

Chen Lang said, "This guy is levying heavy taxes and levying heavy levies. I'm afraid the lives of the people in Nanhe County will become even more difficult."

Sheng Chuliang said, "The main problem lies with the current County Magistrate. He's a former judicial official, so he's already inferior to a purely civil servant. Furthermore, since he's been assigned to a higher position, he doesn't dare to go against the County Magistrate."

"Power needs to be checked and balanced. When the second-in-command of a place cannot pose a threat to the leader, then the leader is bound to get out of control."

"This is just the beginning. Who knows what tricks Shi Liguo will come up with in the future."

Chen Lang frowned and fell into deep thought.

The county magistrate's residence.

The newly appointed county magistrate, Fan Cheng, called his confidants to inquire about the latest situation of the government office.

Since being promoted to the position of county magistrate, Fan Cheng has placed himself in a very low position and rarely interfered in the affairs of the county government.

He wanted to use this gesture to let Shi Liguo convey a signal that he would never go against him. From now on in Nanhe County, he, Shi Liguo, would be the absolute authority and his words would be final.

But a gesture is just a gesture, and it does not mean that Fan Cheng is really willing to give up all the power that he deserves.

After all, officials in the world will try their best as long as there is a slight possibility of climbing up.

A more accurate description of Fancheng’s current situation would be that it is gathering strength.

Shi Liguo has a strong background and will not be able to work in Nanhe County for many years. If he really ignores the affairs of the government office, he will not be able to become the county magistrate when Shi Liguo is transferred in the future.

Therefore, when necessary, we still have to make our own voice heard and show our presence.

Just like the ceremony prepared before, the ceremony to welcome Chen Lang's return was organized by Fan Cheng alone.

Welcoming the first top candidate of the prefecture is what the county magistrate should do, and Shi Liguo could not find any fault with it.

But the continuous heavy rains ruined Fan Cheng's plan. He was very upset about this and often cursed God at home.

In recent days, Shi Liguo has been running around everywhere, and no one knows what he is busy with. Fan Cheng is worried that this is a trap set by Shi Liguo, and wants to see if he will do something in the county government office while he is away.

So Fan Cheng simply didn't even go to the county government office and just stayed at home.

After the confidant arrived, he gave a detailed report on what had happened in the recent period.

"Sir, the county magistrate's new corvée regulations are too onerous, and the people are extremely resentful. If this continues, there will probably be big problems," the confidant said worriedly.

Fan Cheng snorted, "So what? In Shi Liguo's eyes, these common people who are doing forced labor are just a bunch of untouchables. Their death is not a pity."

The confidant said cautiously: "How about reporting it to the higher-ups?"

Fan Cheng rolled his eyes at him and said, "The officials in the government office are just like us. They are all new officials and have a lot of things to deal with. How could they possibly care about such a trivial matter?"

"If they send him back to his country of origin and conduct their own investigation, wouldn't that completely offend Shi Liguo?"

The confidant broke out in a cold sweat and said, "Your Excellency's words are reasonable, but I am short-sighted."

Fan Cheng pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, "By the way, is Chen Lang back?"

The confidant said, "He's back. He even went to the quarry today, spent dozens of taels of silver, and rescued two people."

Fan Cheng suddenly became interested: "Tell me in detail."