Ding Hao worked in the yamen for three days, combing through all the account books, marking the large transactions in all the account books, and arranging them in chronological order and patron identity. On the fourth day, he started transcribing them again.
When Ding Hao started copying the account books, he worked very hard and did not even leave the government office at noon. He ordered meals at several famous restaurants, and the restaurants would deliver them to his door every day at noon. Of course, all the food and drinks were
Having prepared two more portions, the two gatekeepers will naturally enjoy the meal along with them.
The delicious and delicious fish soup was spread on the crystal ice and snow, with only a thin layer of fresh and tender fish fillets. It was the first time in their lives for these two yamen cadres to enjoy it. I heard that just one dish costs fifteen ounces of money, two yuan.
When the officer took one bite, a heavy string of copper coins appeared in his mind. After finishing the meal, when he looked at Ding Hao, he felt as if he was looking at the God of Wealth in awe.
Ding Hao spent five days in the government office sifting through the account books, and the first batch of new account books had been transcribed. He notified Zhao County Lieutenant and asked Xu Muchen to come to the government office to review and confirm. Zhao County Lieutenant was impatient to wait.
Immediately send an official to Zhutou Lane to unload the treasury and bring Xu Muchen.
Xu Muchen doesn't have to go to the government office to report every day these days, so he has a lot of leisure time. However, because he can't interact with the adults who handle cases every day, he will inevitably feel suspicious and anxious, and his life will become even more difficult. On the surface, he doesn't
He said that all his worries were tied up in the government office. Upon hearing the news from the official, Xu Muchen couldn't help but be overjoyed, and immediately left the warehouse and went straight to the government office.
Xu Muchen entered the government office and followed the man who sent him straight to the West Crossing Courtyard. Halfway through, someone suddenly walked out of a room and stood there and said in a loud voice: "Is this the shopkeeper Xu from Zhutou Alley?"
The messenger stopped and turned his head to look. He said "Ouch" and hurried forward to greet him: "Cheng Yasi, you have good eyesight. This person is the shopkeeper Cheng. What are your orders, Cheng Yasi?"
Cheng Dexuan smiled and walked down the steps slowly. Xu Muchen looked at him intently and seemed to have some impression. I remember the last time Chen Kuan from Beijing brought him to court for questioning, this young man was standing on the side of the lobby, smiling.
They were all friendly and never said a word from beginning to end. It turned out that this person was an escort. Xu Muchen hurriedly stepped forward and saluted and said: "Xu Muchen, a common man, is here to meet the escort."
Cheng Dexuan smiled and said: "Shopkeeper Xu, how did you explain the bribery from Zhutou Lane Jieku to Magistrate Liu?"
Xu Muchen was shocked and said: "Why did Cheng Yasi say this? The property of the Ding family is the property of the Zhutou Lane. The Ding family is a country squire in Bazhou who sticks to their duties. How could they bribe officials and do such illegal things?"
Cheng Dexuan was not annoyed, he chuckled and said: "Whether you keep your duty or not depends on the evidence. The Ding family is indeed a well-known family in Bazhou. Over the years, all the grain they grow has been sold to the imperial troops nearby. If
If there is indeed no illegal behavior, then it is still a meritorious service to the court. However... if there is really something illegal... Shopkeeper Xu's..."
Xu Muchen hurriedly took a step forward, crossed his hands and said, "The common people are here."
"Shopkeeper Xu, you are just a person hired by the Ding family. The crime of bribery cannot fall on you originally. But if you insist on covering up for the Ding family and deceiving the government, once the evidence is caught, you will be an accomplice and cover up.
sin."
At this point, his smile was a little cold: "Your Ding family is a well-known family in Bazhou. We will not use torture to extract confessions without evidence, but you'd better not take any chances and think you can fool us." .Once we catch the evidence, the Ding family will not be able to escape, and you will not be able to escape either. Shopkeeper Xu, please don’t make a mistake."
Xu Muchen thought to himself: "If I could recruit him, I would have done it a long time ago. However, I took advantage of the opportunity of bribing the Ding family and did countless illegal activities in private. I pulled up the carrots and brought up the mud. This confession will definitely be concealed. If you don't stop, the Ding family will fall, and I will be doomed too. Is this Cheng Yasi a young man, and he thinks he can trick me into confessing truthfully with just a few words?"
He faked a smile and responded falsely: "Yes, yes, Cheng Yasi's golden words will be remembered by the common people. However, what the grassroots did was pure and innocent. There really is nothing to admit, so I would like to ask Cheng Yasi to show his caution." "
Cheng Dexuan looked up to the sky and laughed, walked up to him, patted him gently on the shoulder, and said in a cold voice: "Good medicine tastes bitter. Shopkeeper Xu is a smart man. You'd better consider what I said carefully. Ben The police officer is on errands in Nanya, Kaifeng. I don’t have much free time to spend in Bazhou. You don’t want to test my patience.”
Xu Muchen secretly sneered, but his face was full of humility. He bowed and sent Cheng Yasi away very respectfully. When Cheng Yasi had gone far, the policeman shouted: "What are you looking at? Hurry up and leave."
Xu Muchen turned around and continued to follow him. When he arrived at the West Crossing Courtyard, he held his robe and crossed the high threshold. Xu Muchen suddenly thought deeply. He stopped and chewed Cheng Dexuan's words twice, secretly wondering: "It's strange. Well, this Cheng Yasi doesn't seem to be threatening, but seems to be emboldening me. Why did the Ding family collect and sell grain to the imperial soldiers and horses in Bazhou these years? If there is no illegal behavior, it is a meritorious service to the imperial court. . They will not use torture to extract a confession without evidence. What will happen once they catch the evidence? If I deliberately concealed it, listening to these words is not like taking a reassurance? Although Cheng Yasi He is a young man, after all, he is a police officer. These officials are more slippery than officials, so how can they be ignorant of what they say?"
The man in front took a few steps and turned around to see him twirling his beard and staring at the big vats in the corner. He didn't know what he was thinking, so he said angrily: "Why don't you stop?"
Xu Muchen quickly caught up and said with a smile: "Master, why are there four large vats in the corner?"
"This state government office was left over from the previous dynasty. Many houses have been decaying for a long time, and water leaks frequently. Without a few large vats, this state government office would have been burned to ashes." The man said, glancing at Xu Muchen. He glanced at me and said with a sneer: "You old man is quite interesting. You are in trouble yourself, and you still have time to care about such noisy things."
Xu Muchen chuckled and said: "I have no ghosts in my heart, so I am naturally at ease."
The man smiled "hehe" and stopped talking. He turned around and led him forward. Xu Muchen followed, thinking to himself: "I have heard people say that Zhao Guangyi and Zhao Pu of Nanya have always been at odds. Could it be that Cheng of Nanya Is the supervisor actually here to hold Chen Observer back and fight against Mr. Zhao?"
After careful consideration, the more he thought about it, the more he was right. Xu Muchen couldn't help but feel convinced. When he walked into the remote hut and saw Ding Hao wearing a waistcoat, sweating profusely and writing hard, Xu Muchen felt calm, as if he was watching A poor guy who is busy but accomplishing nothing, actually laughs...
"Shopkeeper Xu, you're here. Haha, this is the account book compiled by Ding during this period. I'd like to have it reviewed by shopkeeper Xu. If there are no mistakes, please sign and stamp it." Ding Hao was polite when he saw Xu Muchen.
He was so angry that he didn't seem to see the mocking smile on his face at all. He stood up, wiped his sweat, and handed over the copied account book.
Xu Muchen took the account book arrogantly, walked to the side and put it on the table. He raised his robe and sat down. Then he took the account book and opened it to look at it. When he opened the account book, Xu Muchen was stunned at first, and then laughed.
Got up.
Ding Hao stood next to him, like a shy primary school student, and said shyly: "I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed, Ding's handwriting is really ugly, and it made shopkeeper Xu laugh."
Xu Muchen couldn't help but burst out laughing. In fact, Ding Hao didn't know how to write many ancient characters. Fortunately, this was transcribing old accounts. If he didn't know the characters, he could just copy them from it. Occasionally, there were a few typos, and that was understandable.
.It’s just that...it was the first time in Xu Muchen’s life that he had written such ugly words.
The writing in Ding Hao's hand was miserable, and the line of words written on the white paper was crooked and awkward. At first, he even drew vertical grids on the white paper, but later he seemed to find it troublesome and did not draw the vertical lines.
Then the lines of words were like willow branches under the strong wind, suddenly floating to the left and sometimes swaying to the right, making people dizzy when they read it.
Not to mention, some of the characters he writes are big and some are small. One big character is enough to be worth three small characters. I am afraid that only a student who has just attended a private school for three days can write such a dog-like thing.
Come on. Isn't it ridiculous for such an ignorant and unskilled person to want to find evidence against Xu Muchen in the account books?
He laughed, and Ding Hao laughed too. He laughed, and Ding Hao laughed too. Ding Hao said he was ashamed, but he looked so smug, as if being able to write was already a great skill.
I'm really ashamed. Xu Muchen's smile fell away, his expression darkened, and he lowered his head to look at the account book. He ignored Ding Hao standing next to him. The two government officials at the door felt a little embarrassed when they saw Ding Hao being slandered like this.
He felt uncomfortable, but Ding Hao felt relieved and looked around for a while. Seeing that Xu Muchen was focused on the account books and didn't want to pay attention to him, he touched his nose and smeared the ink on his hand into a black nose, and then looked like a clown.
He returned to his seat as if he were a child, grabbed the brush, gritted his teeth and continued to splash ink.
Xu Muchen didn't believe that Ding Hao could find any clues from the account books, but he was afraid that Ding Hao would make a fuss in the account books. Although the ugly handwriting was really hard to see, he still read it word by word and refused to leave out a single line.
After reading this account book, Xu Muchen's head was as big as a bucket.
The handwriting was ugly, just torturing his eyeballs. But Ding Hao didn't even know how to phrase words and make sentences. The writing at that time had no punctuation marks. The lines were crooked, sometimes big and sometimes small, and the word order was sometimes reversed.
Looking at the account books, Xu Muchen felt dizzy.
After finally finishing reading, Xu Muchen threw the account books on the table and let out a long breath. God, if Chen Kuan, who was sent by Beijing to investigate the case, forced him to read three account books written by Ding Hao every day, he would really
I don't know if I will "give in" and readily agree to whatever crime he is charged with.
The account book was thrown on the table, and there was a bang. Ding Hao, who was writing furiously over there, immediately raised his head. When he saw Xu Muchen looking up to the sky and roaring, he quickly threw the brush "chirp" and greeted him happily.
The front man said: "Shopkeeper Xu, is Ding doing a good job in this account?"
"Haha, good, that's really good." Xu Muchen couldn't help laughing and nodded repeatedly.
Ding Hao was very happy, rubbed his hands, and then leaned closer with his black nose straightened out and asked: "So... is there any untruth in what was recorded?"
Xu Muchen smiled and said: "No."
"Haha, that's good. In that case, just ask shopkeeper Xu to sign and pledge it. I'm relieved. In order to clean up this messy account book, Ding's writing is as big as a bucket."
Xu Muchen said sympathetically: "That's for sure. The old man's head is as big as a bucket when he sees it."
Ding Hao didn't seem to hear the sarcasm. He excitedly held up the box of pen, ink and ink. Xu Muchen glanced at him, picked up the pen and dipped it in the ink. He opened the account book and began to sign page by page. He twisted a few fingers of his left hand.
Turning over the account pages, Xu Muchen held up his pen with his right hand, and wrote his name in the lower right corner of the page. The small handwriting of his hand was beautiful. There were dozens of pages of account books, Xu Muchen held up his pen with his right hand, turning the pages and signing in one go.
The stagnant, flowing movements have an indescribable elegance and beauty. This kind of skill cannot be practiced by someone who is not an old accountant for decades.
After Xu Muchen signed the account book from beginning to end, he took the stamp ink and stamped his fingerprints on each page. Then he pulled out a piece of paper, slowly wiped the stamp ink on his fingers, and said with a smile: "I saw you clean it up."
Only then did I understand what I meant by sending you here. Why are you willing to do this job? I also know clearly in my heart."
Ding Hao blinked and said with a smile: "What do you mean, Master? What does Ding Hao mean?"
Xu Muchen balled up the paper in his hand and threw it on the ground, and said with a smile: "Last time, you wanted to find fault with me, but you were sent to dig rivers in the countryside. Maybe you have always been dissatisfied? Haha, Ding Hao, let's get to know each other, I
I have some good advice, but I wonder if you would listen to it?"
Ding Hao said happily: "Shopkeeper Xu, please give me your advice."
Xu Muchen raised his eyelids and said earnestly: "I advise you to go back and dig the river. If the river is dug and the ditch is dug, then that is the job suitable for you!" After Xu Muchen finished speaking, he put his hands behind his back.
, walked out proudly.
Ding Hao stood in the room, looked at his leaving figure, tilted his mouth, and said to himself with a half-smile: "What Shopkeeper Xu said makes so much sense. Am I not digging a ditch for you..."
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Xu Muchen walked out of the gate of the government office, and the carriage carrying Zhutou's warehouse rushed over immediately. As soon as the carriage stopped, the curtain of the sedan chair was lifted, and shopkeeper Wang Er came out from inside, and asked nervously: "Big shopkeeper, what about that?"
How's the accounting going?"
Wang Zhizhou was really worried and didn't know what Ding Hao was up to. So as soon as Xu Muchen left, he ordered the store to be closed. He hurried to the Yamen of the Prefecture. When he saw Xu Muchen's carriage, he went to wait for him in the carriage.
Xu Muchen got into the car and ordered: "Go back!" After saying that, he opened the sedan curtain and sneered: "Let Ding Hao check the account, and the more he checked, the more confused he became."
He thought for a while and found that Wang Zhizhou was his confidant. His biggest shortcoming was that he was timid. He had to try to stabilize him to prevent a fire in the backyard, so he told him about his "accidental encounter" with Cheng Yasi of Kaifeng Prefecture when he entered the government office.
After reading it once, he then said with a smile: "Are you relieved now? The higher-ups are also trying hard. Magistrate Liu has collapsed. Mr. Zhao wants to find some crimes against him as much as possible. He wants to make a name for himself so that no one will criticize him.
He was narrow-minded and wanted to avenge his personal revenge. The Kaifeng Prefecture sent people to try their best to stop him, just to think that the fewer charges would fall on Magistrate Liu, the better. Zhao Xianggong is now in the royal family, even if the Kaifeng Prefecture Yin is the current emperor's brother, he can't be brought down. Nan
This is a plan by the government to destroy the money accumulated and to grind away the bones by accumulating slander."
Wang Zhizhou excitedly clapped his hands with his fists and said repeatedly: "Okay, okay, I'm relieved. As long as we wait a little longer, these people from Beijing will get nothing, and they will have no intention of spending more time here. We will suffer this disaster."
Even if it's over. Hey! Ding Hao, this kid, is overestimating his abilities. He is a newly promoted manager who doesn't know how to behave with his tail between his legs. He dares to go against you, the old shopkeeper, again and again. He will have to be punished."
Xu Muchen snorted with a smile, covered his mouth and coughed, and said: "Go find some rogues, keep an eye on Ding Hao, take a chance, and teach him a lesson."
Wang Zhizhou was startled and blurted out: "Old shopkeeper, you mean... just these two days? Before the case is concluded?"
Xu Muchen smiled faintly, closed his eyes slightly, stroked his beard and said: "Yes, do as I said. Remember to tell them not to beat Ding Hao until he can't move. This account... I still want him to continue investigating."
Wang Zhizhou hesitated and said: "Old shopkeeper, I'm afraid it's inappropriate to teach him a lesson now, right? If we start now, everyone will guess that we have found the person, wouldn't that..."
Xu Muchen smiled and said: "I just want everyone to know that Ding Hao checked my account. I am a little scared, hehehe..."
Wang Zhizhou suddenly realized: "Yes, let them keep their eyes on the account books that can never find out the problem. Are we afraid that we will not be able to survive this level? The wisdom of the old shopkeeper, hahahaha..."
