The journey of the only child of a peasant family to take the imperial examination

After a while, the maid brought back the washed fruits and distributed some to everyone.

It is indeed very thirst-quenching, with a natural fruity aroma that makes your mouth water.

After resting for a while and eating some dry food, they set off again.

The rest of the journey went smoothly.

In the afternoon, when the sun sets, people can see the city wall of Ci County from afar.

"Master, we're here!" Chibao said excitedly, pointing to the front.

Zhang Pingan raised his hands in front of his eyes, looked ahead, and said loudly: "The Shili Pavilion in Ci County is ahead. Let's rest in the pavilion first!"

After everyone entered the Ten Mile Pavilion, a servant came forward and bent down to ask, "What can you, the guests, do for a living?"

Zhang Pingan said calmly, "Let your pavilion chief come over."

"This... I don't know what this is about?" the servant asked hesitantly.

Zhang Pingan took out the imperial edict from the Ministry of Personnel and placed it on the table with a thud. He said in a deep voice, "I am the new magistrate of Ci County. I want your captain to come and see me immediately!"

"Hey, hey, it turns out to be the newly appointed county magistrate. Please sit for a moment, I will go and inform him right away," the servant nodded hurriedly and responded in a meek manner.

Then he threw the towel over his shoulders and ran to the backyard.

After a while, an old man with an unshaven beard came out quickly.

He knelt down on the ground with a thud, kowtowed, and said, "County Magistrate, I am the local headman, and I hope you will forgive me for not welcoming you from afar!"

Zhang Pingan said calmly: "Get up!"

"Thank you, County Magistrate," the old man stood up.

"Send someone with my entourage to the county government office to inform them and ask them to send an assistant official to welcome us," Zhang Ping'an ordered.

After saying that, he took out his business card and handed it to a young man in his twenties named Gousheng among the group of people from Heifengdu. He was the grandson of the village chief.

Through two days of observation, he found that although this man looked dull, he was very perceptive and meticulous. If he was trained well, he would have no problem becoming a team leader in the future.

When dealing with people from the county government for the first time, you have to send someone smarter.

"As you command, I'll send someone right away," the old pavilion chief replied with a bow.

Looks like a well-behaved person.

After a while, Gousheng took the business card and followed the people sent by the old pavilion chief to the county government office.

The rest of the people stayed where they were to rest.

Now these people in Heifengdu are temporarily managed by Chibao.

After settling down in the county, he would train these people well and make them his own confidants in the future.

Zhang Pingan couldn't help but think that he didn't know when Green Bean Eyes and Hua Wanli would arrive in the next two days.

The main reason was that Green Bean Eye wanted to go out for drinks, and there were too many servants and luggage to carry, so he couldn't go with us.

Zhang Ping'an simply let the two of them set off together later.

This was his advance preparation for taking office.

Green Bean Eyes comes from a family of royal merchants. He is proficient in general affairs and is particularly good at taking inventory of money, grain, warehouses, and documents.

He is also a smooth and sophisticated person, good at playing the pig and eating the tiger, and can help him with social activities besides official duties.

Although Hua Wanli failed the exam this time, he was a juren, had solid knowledge and a promising future. It should be no problem for him to check household registration, criminal case files, etc.

The day after he received the imperial edict, he persuaded the other party to temporarily serve as his advisor and assist him.

It just so happened that Hua Wanli also wanted to come out for some fresh air and gain some experience, so he agreed without hesitation.

Having said that, we can only say that this group of students is unlucky.

According to past practice, if a juren failed to pass the imperial examination, he would take advantage of the three years before the next imperial examination to travel and study for a period of time.

After all, reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles.

Most people who are good at reading are not nerds.

Traveling is so important that many scholars even invite each other to travel all over the country!

At the same time, you can also gain some experience for yourself.

But the world is not in a good state now, and it is obviously not suitable to travel.

Both of them have time.

They are all people Zhang Ping'an trusts and have no vested interests involved. They are the best candidates to assist him in taking over the position.

He didn't tell anyone about this beforehand, otherwise his fifth brother-in-law would have found a way to make a fuss.

He knew that his fifth brother-in-law was a man of many thoughts and had connections with all kinds of people. He was a useful person, but not a trustworthy one.

Moreover, his fifth sister was pregnant, and he didn't want the couple to be separated.

All in all, considering all factors, it is not appropriate to bring him along during the handover!

Just as Zhang Ping'an was lost in thought, the old captain ordered the servants to bring up a lot of food and drinks and fill the table.

Even the followers of Heifengdu who followed him were given white flour buns.

After eating, I couldn't help but look over.

Zhang Pingan nodded and said, "Let's eat. Everyone should be hungry!"

The old pavilion chief rubbed his hands, bowed and said with an apologetic smile: "County magistrate, I don't have any good things here, just some simple tea and rice, but at least it's hot, please eat it!"

"It's okay," Zhang Ping'an waved his hand and said with a smile.

Zhang Laoer and Xu are not particularly particular people. They have both experienced hardship, so this meal with both meat and vegetables is great!

Qian Youyi did not get off the carriage, and Nanny Rong brought a portion to the carriage.

After a while, it was brought back basically as it was, with little action.

Zhang Pingan frowned after seeing this. He ate too little. He thought he would have to find some recipes to stimulate his appetite.

After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the two people who had gone to the county government office also returned.

There was a group of people following behind him.

Judging from their attire, they are the magistrate, lieutenant, chief clerk and registrar of Ci County.

Basically everyone with some status has arrived.

The county magistrate was a middle-aged man in his thirties, a little fat and plump.

Seeing Zhang Pingan from afar, he quickly walked a few steps to approach him, bowed and said, "I am the county magistrate of Ci County. My surname is Yu. I didn't know that Master Zhang was coming. I hope I will forgive you for not coming to greet me."

Zhang Pingan put his hands behind his back and said calmly, "Ignorance is not a crime. County Magistrate Yu, please stop being so polite!"

Then the others followed suit and saluted.

Yu County Magistrate was a very perceptive person. After paying his respects to Zhang Ping'an with his entourage, he paid his respects to Zhang Laoer and Xu again, and was very considerate in his etiquette.

Afterwards, he arranged for the accompanying yamen runners to help drive the carriage.

Escorted Zhang Pingan and his party to the posthouse in the city.

Zhang Ping'an could only move into the back house of the county government office with his family and servants after he had completed the handover with the previous county magistrate and successfully assumed office.

As the carriage slowly drove into the county town, Zhang Pingan couldn't help but secretly look at the county layout and the appearance of the people without making any expression.

Judging from the words and actions of the soldiers guarding the city when we entered the city just now, there was nothing wrong with them.

But to truly understand the economy and public security of a county, one must mainly look at the food, clothing, housing, transportation, and mental outlook of the people in the city.