Chapter 72: Autumn Wind (Part 2)
When County Magistrate Lu heard Huo Chong's purpose of coming, his expression already showed the demeanor of a county magistrate, Bailihou.
Fortunately, Huo Chong was a candidate for the sixth rank anyway, so even when he met a first rank official, he would just bow and kowtow. Since he was not going to court, he naturally sat with Magistrate Lu. However, seeing Magistrate Lu's expression that everything was under control, Huo Chong became a little alert.
With an air of presiding over the situation, Magistrate Lu spoke up, "Brother Huo, those people accused you of hiding stolen goods. But where did the horse come from?"
"Someone pawned a horse to a pawn shop, and the pawn shop first placed it in my yard."
"That doesn't mean..."
Before Magistrate Lu could put the hat on Huo Chong's head, Huo Chong immediately interrupted him and said, "Brother Lu, it is still unknown whether this is stolen property. Have you already made a decision on the case?"
Magistrate Lu put away his smile and sneered, "Haha. Brother Huo, are you going to take over my case?"
Although Magistrate Lu's voice was not loud, his attitude had made Huo Chong suddenly understand that the magistrate was the Marquis of Baili. In his small piece of land, his words were binding.
The county magistrate is not as good as the current manager, not to mention that the current manager is the county magistrate. Huo Chong immediately smiled and said, "Brother Lu, I was mad at those people just now. If I offended you, I hope you won't take it personally. I was just mad at those hooligans."
"Brother Huo, matters like this will be judged fairly after they are thoroughly investigated. It's not decent for you to come here and say these things!" Magistrate Lu said in a tone with hidden meanings.
Huo Chong was stunned. He probably had never offended Magistrate Lu, nor had any public conflicts with him. What did Magistrate Lu mean by this?
After thinking for a while, Huo Chong simply said, "Brother Lu, what did I do to make you unhappy? Please give me some advice."
Magistrate Lu pondered for a moment, put away his oppressive look, and sighed, "Brother Huo is also a noble man who forgets things easily. Did you meet the magistrate of Mouping County in Jinan a few years ago?"
"yes."
"Are you saying that you want to buy some land in Mouping County and open a livestock farm?"
"yes."
"The New Year has passed, but the county magistrate of Mouping County has not seen you, nor received your letter. So he wrote a letter to me. The letter was very polite, asking me if I didn't want you to go to Mouping County to buy property. Since he wrote a letter to me, I think he is angry with me. Brother Huo came to me to complain about his injustice, but where can I go to complain about my injustice?"
After saying this, County Magistrate Lu stared at Huo Chong with a reproachful look, which made Huo Chong feel very uncomfortable.
Of course he had to go to Muping County, but not now. Huo Chong didn't have the energy to care about such a faraway place at this moment.
But Huo Chong was a little puzzled by what Magistrate Lu said. This was the Qing Dynasty, not the era of attracting investment at the end of the 20th century. Why would the magistrate of Mouping County be so anxious?
Thinking of this, Huo Chong told Magistrate Lu about his meeting with the county magistrates of Mouping County and Mengyin County. When Huo Chong mentioned the magistrate of Linzi County, Magistrate Lu showed a mocking smile on his face.
Huo Chong was touched by this and stopped his narration. He asked, "Brother Lu, did the two county magistrates write a letter to the magistrate of Linzi County first, blaming him for not helping?"
Magistrate Lu looked as if he was asking, "You already know everything, why are you still asking me?" He said, "Brother Huo, you can find out if you go to Linzi County in person."
Huo Chong thought about it and realized that it would take him a while to go to Mouping County. Suddenly, he felt something was wrong. What Magistrate Lu said would not be meaningless. He mentioned Linzi County, so he was probably referring to this. So he asked tentatively, "If I go to Linzi County, Brother Lu, is there anything you want me to bring with you?"
The condescending feeling on Magistrate Lu's face disappeared, and he sighed normally: "Brother Huo , those people were able to run here from Linzi County. If no one guided them, they probably wouldn't dare to do so. Didn't you think of it at the time? Besides, it's better not to forget what you promised to the magistrate."
Huo Chong nodded repeatedly. Although he looked down on the Qing officials as a whole, he felt so uncomfortable when these officials made a slight move. Huo Chong had already understood that the so-called "prefectural governors who wiped out the whole family and county magistrates who ruined the whole family" was no joke. Even though he had the protection of an official and had not directly offended them, the situation was still like this. If the two sides really quarreled, who knows what would happen.
Now that he knew the reason, Huo Chong immediately set off for Linzi County. When Magistrate Wu of Linzi County saw Huo Chong coming to pay a visit, he did not deliberately ignore him. He invited Huo Chong to sit in the living room, and Magistrate Wu sighed, "Brother Huo, you are making it very difficult for me to do this."
"I will definitely go to both places, but it's just after the Chinese New Year and I can't leave yet. Brother Wu, please give me some advice on how to keep those two at bay."
Seeing Huo Chong's humble attitude, Magistrate Wu thought for a moment before answering, "Why not send someone to open a shop and pay some taxes to the two county magistrates? This matter will probably be over then."
If what Magistrate Wu said could solve the problem, Huo Chong would not care too much. However, Huo Chong was still unsure, so he asked, "How much do we have to pay to satisfy the two county magistrates?"
"Ha. Why are you talking nonsense, Brother Huo?" Magistrate Wu showed an unhappy look.
"I don't know what they are thinking, so I asked this question."
"Brother Huo, you paid 1,000 taels of silver in taxes in Zibo County every year, and all the other counties are envious. No matter how much you pay in those two places, no one will think it's too much. In that case, why are you in such a hurry? Send someone to tell the two county magistrates that you will definitely go there before July this year."
Huo Chong felt relieved when he heard that County Magistrate Wu actually gave him some advice. So he talked to County Magistrate Wu about the breeding farm in Linzi County. County Magistrate Wu was not very interested in this either, but just told Huo Chong that he would have to pay taxes soon, and asked Huo Chong to pay attention to it and "not to delay the business in Linzi County."
Although Huo Chong was beaten up by the officials, he still felt relieved. At least these people were only after tax revenue, and the Qing court's priority for all regions was also tax revenue. If that was the case, the two sides would have a basis for cooperation. Perhaps this small conflict could open up a situation for cooperation between the two sides.
Sure enough, the matter was resolved quickly. When Huo Chong finished his work in Linzi County and returned to Zichuan County, the magistrate of Zichuan County, Lu, had sentenced the gang of hooligans to ten strokes of the cane each and chased them away.
