Chapter 32: The Useless Teammate
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The registrar’s blunt, decisive kneeling left every official at the scene staring at one another in stunned silence, as silent as cicadas in winter.
The whole nature of the matter had changed in an instant.
From beginning to end, County Magistrate Wang had only intended to discipline the corrupt clerks beneath him.
The only thing he had meant to accomplish was recovering the grain, funds, and supplies that had been embezzled, so that the road could be completed without delay before the busy farming season.
As for someone in the registrar’s position, at most he had planned to make an example of him—to strike the mountain and frighten the tiger—in the hope that the man would learn some restraint.
He had never intended to topple him from office at this critical juncture.
But now the man had confessed his guilt in public. Even if they wished to let him off, how could they silence the murmurs of the crowd?
If he were dismissed, it would not be long before a new registrar took his place.
Who could guarantee that the new registrar would not line his own pockets just like this little old man?
And what if the newly appointed registrar proved even more corrupt, causing another upheaval and perhaps delaying the project?
For that reason, County Magistrate Wang had no intention of creating complications before the road was completed.
If the magistrate could think of all this, then the astute and crafty deputy magistrate had naturally thought of even more.
In truth, the deputy magistrate was even less willing to see matters come to this.
At present, the Yongshun County Office had only three official civil servants: the magistrate, the deputy magistrate, and the registrar. As an assisting official, the deputy magistrate naturally stood a rank below the magistrate.
If not for a registrar who was easy to manipulate, always obedient and forever cooperative, how could the deputy magistrate have stood on equal footing with him?
Thus, the moment the deputy magistrate saw the registrar pleading for mercy through his tears and mucus, fury surged through him so violently that a sweet, bloody taste rose into his throat.
The scene remained deathly silent, a silence that made the heart tremble.
Under the bewildered gazes of the crowd, County Magistrate Wang drew his brows tightly together. He said nothing, merely staring irritably at the registrar kneeling on the ground.
The deputy magistrate’s waxen old face had flushed the color of pig’s liver. The disgust in his gaze as he looked at the registrar was unmistakable.
If anyone had been able to hear their thoughts at that moment, they would surely have heard the magistrate and his deputy shouting inwardly:
“You swine-brained fool! Get up, now!”
Unfortunately, the registrar possessed no mind-reading ability. He could hear none of it.
He had already been scared witless.
Ever since accepting three hundred taels in bribes from the clerks, the registrar’s heart had known no peace. He had lived in constant fear and anxiety.
Now, kneeling on the ground, he trembled from head to toe, looking as though he might collapse at any moment.
The deputy magistrate urgently caught the eye of the petty clerk standing behind the registrar and gestured for him to pull the man up.
The clerk, inexperienced in worldly affairs, completely misunderstood the signal. He thought the registrar’s offense had already dragged him into the mire as well.
His knees went weak. With a loud thump, he knelt beside the registrar.
County Magistrate Wang: “...”
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The deputy magistrate: “...”
The noise made by the clerk seemed to remind the little old man kneeling on the ground that he still had a voice. He began crying out repeatedly, “I am guilty!”
The magistrate and deputy magistrate had now become thoroughly disillusioned with the registrar. Their eyes passed over him entirely. A few paces apart, they exchanged a hurried glance and gave one another the slightest nod.
No words were needed. The tacit understanding between the two seasoned officials was established in an instant.
The situation could not be allowed to worsen. Nor could the matter be made any more public. It would suffice to stop here.
County Magistrate Wang promptly ordered Zhao Jin to escort the people involved back to the county office, then urged everyone to get back to work.
As the laborers made their way to breakfast, they complained in low voices. They had thought they were about to witness a grand spectacle, yet somehow it had ended abruptly. One after another, they grumbled that they had not seen enough.
Only Chen Ping and Old Ye, who had genuinely taken part in the affair, had enjoyed the drama to the fullest.
Standing before the storehouse, Chen Ping silently patted his little hands together a few times.
The spectacle had been far more精彩 than expected. He had originally thought they were merely going to catch a few rats, but unexpectedly, the matter had reached into the interests of those at the top.
It had been a rare lesson in government, one capable of exposing the ills of the times.
Old Ye naturally would not let such an opportunity for instruction pass him by.
He withdrew his gaze from the departing crowd and asked softly, “In your view, how many waves will this stone stir up?”
Chen Ping could not help sighing inwardly.
Teacher, isn’t this question a little beyond the syllabus?
The exchange of interests and power struggle between the magistrate and deputy magistrate were hardly matters that a seven-year-old child who had never even entered a county office could possibly discern.
Still, some things could be glimpsed from the smallest clues.
Chen Ping rewarded himself with a small piece of candied malt sugar before answering slowly, “I believe County Magistrate Wang has been thinking of nothing but the road. He will certainly use this incident to clear away every obstacle standing in the way of its construction.”
“First, the grain, money, and materials that were embezzled will all be recovered.”
“Second, the clerks managing the road project will be replaced with people he trusts, ensuring that construction proceeds on schedule.”
At this point, Chen Ping noticed that Old Ye was still looking at him expectantly and immediately realized that this was only the most superficial layer.
With such an excellent opportunity before him, would County Magistrate Wang truly seek only these results?
As the chief official of the county, he had devoted a considerable portion of his energy to the road project in recent years.
But that did not mean Yongshun County had no other problems requiring his attention.
Could he be planning to use this opportunity to gather up the grass and catch the rabbit as well?
Chen Ping scratched his little head, thought for a while, and ventured, “Could it be that County Magistrate Wang wants to use this matter to restrain the deputy magistrate?”
“Would that not be difficult?”
The deputy magistrate was no rootless idler. He was a direct member of the Huang family, one of the three most powerful clans in Yongshun County.
Deputy Magistrate Huang held only the degree of provincial graduate, yet he had still managed to become a powerful assistant official within the county office.
That was naturally due not only to his own ability, but even more to the influence and maneuvering of the family behind him.
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The Huang family’s interests within the county likewise depended on Deputy Magistrate Huang’s power for protection. They would never allow anyone to place him under constraint.
Old Ye neither confirmed nor denied Chen Ping’s guess. Instead, he told him to wait patiently for news from the county office.
...
The matter was handled far more swiftly than most people had expected, with a decisiveness as fierce as thunder and lightning.
In less than half a day, County Magistrate Wang had settled all the disputes and wrangling at the county office, then returned to the construction site with several attendants.
When he saw Old Ye and Chen Ping, he did not say much about what had happened that morning.
It was as though the incident had never occurred.
He simply picked up the various income-and-expense calculations Old Ye had redone and began comparing the money, grain, and materials required to repair the road with his earlier estimates, examining the discrepancies between them.
Seeing that they were all occupied with serious work, Chen Ping naturally did not wish to disturb them.
He could only return to his quarters alone and find a book to pass the time.
By sunset, when Old Ye took Chen Ping to dinner, the boy finally ran out of patience. The many questions weighing on his mind could no longer be held back.
He gazed at his teacher with anxious expectation and asked in rapid succession, “Teacher, how did County Magistrate Wang deal with the matter? Did it really just pass without a sound?”
“If so, did County Magistrate Wang not miss a perfect opportunity to eliminate a rival?”
“Judging by what he did this morning, he hardly seemed like a man without schemes.”
In response to Chen Ping’s questions, Old Ye merely smiled and did not answer directly.
Instead, he changed the subject and began discussing the practical details they had just handled.
For example, where should the new bricks, stones, and tiles be purchased?
Which blacksmith’s shop should be commissioned to make the new tools?
If the schedule became tight, how should they negotiate with the construction supervisor from the Road Administration?
If their funds and grain ran short, how should they deal with the letter to the Revenue Department’s financial director?
How should the payments handled by the Treasury Office be organized and entered into the accounts?
How could they prevent officials in the Directorate of Agriculture and other departments from lining their own pockets?
How should the accounts be audited to detect wasteful spending, embezzlement, or misappropriation?
Price comparisons, purchasing, transport, warehousing—Old Ye explained all these matters in an unhurried, flowing manner.
Chen Ping listened, utterly absorbed, and no longer pressed him for answers.
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