Chapter 54: One Night in the West

"Light and beautiful, the southeast is the armor..."

Zhuo Siheng held his chin in one hand and turned the pages with the other. His patience was almost worn out by the "Qing Yi Lu" written by Tao Gu, a former dynasty man.

The book told many details about life in the South, but it didn't have the content he was looking for.

Jinzhou is located in the southeast corner. It once belonged to the ancient Dianyue Kingdom together with Leizhou and Wuzhou. Since the old dynasty unified the world hundreds of years ago, no matter how many dynasties have changed and how many surnames have changed in the world, the name Jinzhou has always been used to this day.

The emperor did find him a pretty good place.

The three southern states of Weizhou, Wuzhou, Leizhou and the four northern states are all extremely remote places. In contrast, the north of Jinzhou is the prosperous Jiangnan Prefecture. Although there are Xia Peng Mountain and the natural moat that are difficult to access by land, there are sea routes

It’s convenient and fast, but it doesn’t mean you have to cut a road through the mountains.

The state capital and seaport of Jinzhou are both located in Yongming City, and the Anhua County that Zhuo Siheng is going to is unfortunately located inland. According to the limited information he found, Anhua County is the poorest and most backward among the four counties in Jinzhou.

As a county, Chaoping County and Yongming County are close to the sea. Shipping is developed. Looking at the entire southern part of the country, it is a prosperous and peaceful land. Although Huyang County is not as famous as the first two, but as the name suggests, with the advantages of crossing the lower reaches of the river,

The superior geographical conditions of Lanxi Lake have also created a stable water and soil.

Only for Anhua County, there is not much information in the books. Most of the records in the past only mention that it is located at the "intersection of two mountains, a valley in the valley". The rest is that the mountains are dangerous and beautiful, and the water is beautiful.

The charm is natural, and the folk customs are ancient and simple, but these are words that have not fallen into practice.

The coarse porcelain from the clay kiln that the emperor rewarded was the only substance from Anhua County that Zhuo Siheng had come into contact with.

But Zhuo Siheng didn't blame the emperor for choosing this place for him. He was even aroused by his curiosity and desire to win. This was actually a very suitable foreign destination for him to display his talents and ambitions.

In fact, if the emperor wanted to embarrass him, Leizhou further south would be the perfect place for disgusting officials.

Leizhou is spread all over the world to the south, and it is difficult to cross. This place has been a well-known place of exile for hundreds of years, and is still known as the borderland of desolate miasma. It is also next to dozens of chieftain villages in Baiyue Jisuzhou. He was in Zhongshu Province

Every now and then, you can see petitions for appeasement from Leizhou. Although there has never been a war, small frictions have not stopped.

Therefore, although the location where Zhuo Siheng took office was not a prosperous land of plenty, it was not untamed. Compared with the three counties in the state, it was indeed a little more "far to the border, with wild lakes and mountains", but it was actually suitable for him to perform.

A great deed.

He may not be suitable for young officials to show their talents in those fertile lands of Fulize Guolun. You must know that most of these places are full of influence and have many connections. He has no internal roots and no family background to help him. To start from scratch, he must have a person.

The location and matching ambitions that can benefit one party.

Anhua County is fully equipped with sufficient conditions.

Zhuo Siheng's mental state transitioned from confusion to longing very smoothly. He bought a lot of geography and scenery books, which included official publications and personal notes. The more he read, the less Anhua County he could find, and the less he could find him.

The more excited you are.

Curiosity is always the Achilles' heel of a person who loves learning.

Zhuo Siheng returned home and immersed himself in the study. He also ate dinner alone in the study. Today happened to be the day when Xi Heng came back from college for a break. Ciheng was also at home. The two of them wanted to go to have dinner with their brother, but Hui Heng stopped them.

He continued: "The three of us just need to eat. My eldest brother seems to have bought a lot of books to read after he came back from the palace. Maybe it's official business."

"Second sister, do you know what kind of books my brother bought newly?" Xi Heng is always very keen.

"The books sent by the bookstore are all travel notes and a lot of local chronicles and geography." Huiheng looked through his memories and suddenly thought of another thing in common, "Also...these books are all about several southern states.

.”

On the quiet dining table were four meat and vegetable dishes and two hot soups carefully matched by Mrs. Chai Liu. However, only Zhuo Ciheng knew how to appreciate the delicious food and concentrated on eating. Huiheng and Xiheng did not move their chopsticks and remained silent with their thoughts.

language.

When Ciheng was satisfied and finished eating, he put down the bowl and said: "Chai Liusao's skills are getting better and better. If we don't go out and open a shop at our house, we will definitely become famous in the Imperial Capital! This time, the Shuilong Yuanzi was made fresh, smooth and chewy. It is really a masterpiece."

!Sister, I want to eat wontons with bamboo shoots and meat tomorrow."

After she excitedly expressed her passion for life and her vision for tomorrow, she was a little confused when she saw her sister and brother seemed to be silently observing a table of food.

"Is eldest brother going to be released?" Xi Heng suddenly said.

Hui Heng said sadly: "I'm afraid I'm going to the south..."

"The south is also divided into Jiangnan Prefecture and Lingnan Prefecture." Xi Heng is young and frowns, but he always has a sense of maturity that does not match his age. "Our family has no roots in the court, and no one can run for my brother.

, a good job in idle land is out of the question.”

"The three states in Lingnan are desolate and unbearably hot. My brother grew up in the north, how can he endure it?" Hui Heng's voice was worried.

Ciheng looked at his sister and brother, got up and went out in one go. He walked straight to Liangge's study, pushed the door open without saying a word, grabbed Zhuo Siheng who was bending over the desk and said hurriedly: "Brother! You are going to be released."

No! We still have to go to a less populated place like the three states in Lingnan, right?"

Zhuo Siheng looked up from the pages of the book with a surprised face and said, "Who told you?"

"My sister and brother said it!"

So, the four brothers and sisters gathered in the study, and Ciheng almost moved his vine behind Zhuo Siheng to avoid the sharp gazes of Huiheng and Xiheng.

Zhuo Siheng already knew the cause and effect. He was amused when he saw Ciheng's pitiful appearance. He said softly and helplessly to her: "As long as you listen carefully when you eat..."

Ci Heng habitually wanted to talk back, but when Hui Heng looked at him, he immediately realized his interest and calmed down.

"Instead of making blind guesses, why don't you come and ask me directly? As a family, I don't tell the outside world because I have some scruples. You are my younger brothers and sisters. However, the matter has not yet been determined. The emperor only told me an idea. The specific matters are still to be determined.

The exact official document will not be released until the term expires at the end of the year." Zhuo Siheng is always very patient and patient with his family.

"If I go to Lingnan, I won't worry about my brother going alone."

This family meeting was unexpected. Xi Heng, who had never talked much, was the first to express his opinion.

"Me too!" Ciheng said immediately.

Zhuo Siheng said before Hui Heng could speak: "I will consider whether our family will stay or go, but that is a story for another day. We can still reunite during the Chinese New Year this year. We will talk about other things later."

In fact, he had an idea in his mind and planned to leave Hui Heng to talk alone. Unexpectedly, Ah Huan suddenly sent word that a guest was outside the door and asked Mr. Zhuo to receive the message.

Zhuo Siheng thought to himself that it was already dinner time, who picked this time to come? He was stunned when he took the post and looked at it. He didn't care about anything else and said to his sister and brother: "I'm going out for a while. I'll just go there."

Return."

When he reached the door of the house, he turned back and smiled at his family: "Don't think too much about others in advance. Let's live our lives well now." After that, he left.

The person who sent the post to Zhuo Siheng was none other than Tong Shipei.

The post was not written according to the format at all. It was in the style of Uncle Tong who would faint after reading it. It only said: If you want to go or stay, come to my house as soon as possible. Urgent!

The word "urgent" written by Tong Shipei was indeed very anxious. He ran out of ink and half of the pen was wasted, but there is a bit of a connotation of insanity and arrogance in it.

What Zhuo Siheng didn't expect was that Tong Shipei actually knew that he might be released. Could it be that Uncle Tong got the news?

When the carriage arrived at Tong Mansion, there was indeed a servant waiting outside, who led Zhuo Siheng to Tong Shipei's study.

There was more than one person inside.

Zhao Ting'an was walking back and forth, looking extremely anxious, while Tong Shipei was leaning against the bookshelf with his arms folded, his brows tighter than his arms.

Seeing Zhuo Siheng's arrival, they both hurriedly gathered around them. When only the three of them were left in the room, Tong Shipei asked anxiously: "Are you really going to go out to Jinzhou?"

"We can't go to Jinzhou!" Zhao Ting'an said before Zhuo Siheng could answer.

Zhuo Siheng smiled and was about to speak, but was cut off by Tong Shipei: "Everything is good in Jinzhou, but the state capital is not!"

"Do you know who the governor of their state is?" Zhao Ting'an also stepped forward to ask.

"The name of their governor is Wang Botang!" Tong Shipei immediately answered.

"Do you know who Wang Botang is?" Zhao Ting'an continued to ask.

Just before Zhuo Siheng was choked to death by the two men, the study door suddenly opened.

Tong Duo stepped inside with a cold, livid face.

Tong Shipei and Zhao Ting'an immediately regained their composure, each talking about their own affairs.

"Shibo."

"Father."

Zhuo Siheng also saluted and said, "Uncle Tong is well."

Tong Duo didn't even look at his two children. He just nodded to Zhuo Siheng and went straight inside to sit down.

"You two, get out."

Tong Shipei and Zhao Ting'an did not dare to disobey. They were as obedient as two rabbits with droopy ears and left their study quietly.

Tong Duo looked at the backs of the two of them. He couldn't say he was angry or angry. He just shook his head helplessly. Seeing that Zhuo Siheng was still standing, he asked him to sit closer.

Then, he slowly whispered: "Wang Botang is Tang Lingxi's son-in-law and Tang Qifei's brother-in-law."

Zhuo Siheng's first reaction was: They have so many daughters.

But what he really cares about is not who his immediate boss will be in the future, but other issues.

"Uncle Tong, please forgive me for being rude, but Fang Ze and Boying must have known about this from you." Zhuo Siheng asked sincerely.

Tong Duo had always liked him, so he was not angry when he was asked this question. Instead, he smiled and said, "After all, I have spent most of my life in the court. I have a few old friends in the official department who can ask for some news. They told me that the emperor specifically asked for this year's empty ceremony."

The general magistrate of Anhua County in Jinzhou should be kept, and there is no need to propose a candidate. Thinking about Qiu Lie, I knew that the emperor wanted to send you out of the center..."

"Uncle Tong has a keen eye for fire." Zhuo Siheng admired the old retired cadre in front of him from the bottom of his heart. "There is indeed a vacancy for general judges in Anhua County, but after all, the junior's three-year term has not expired. The emperor has the intention of this matter, but he still has not
To be continued...