Chapter 1325 The unknown is the most terrifying
When Chenxi arrived at the Dehua County where the Jiujiang Prefecture was located, he did not enter the city at the invitation of the Jiujiang Prefecture Prime Minister Zhang Hang, but chose to move in at the official post near the river bank, which greatly disappointed Jiujiang officials and gentry.
The riverside inn where Chenxi stays is a riverside waterway inn, not within Jiujiang Prefecture City, and is about two miles away from the city wall.
The people who came to handle the orders in advance made a very careful arrangement. After Chen Xi moved in, many things were ready-made, the food and hot water were prepared, and the tables, chairs, benches, and even the bedding on the bed were all replaced... This trip to Chen Xi was the best reception, and no one dared to neglect it.
In this matter, the official who came to deliver gifts on behalf of the Nankang Prefecture Office outside the official post was blocked by Ma Jiu and his men.
When Ma Jiuda came back from sweating, Chen Xi was having supper at the dining table in the lobby on the first floor.
The official post is actually similar to the inn, but only past officials and scholars with great fame are qualified to check in. On that day, the Jiujiang Prefect's Office specially explained that except for Chenxi, the rest of the guests would all be transferred to other post stations, so there were no one else in Chenxi when they checked in, and soon the entire post station was filled.
Chen Xi raised his head and said hello: "Brother Jiu, sit down and have a meal together?"
Ma Jiu quickly saluted: "I dare not!"
Chen Xi smiled and said, "What's the matter? You and I met Weimo. What's wrong with getting together for dinner? No one else is there, Brother Jiu just let it go."
"We set out from the capital and walked for almost a month. We were about to arrive at Wuchang Prefecture. From Jiujiang Prefecture, the water flowed upwards, and it was difficult to rely on wind to sail. I was thinking, why not take the land next, which is more convenient and safer?"
Ma Jiu has no objection to the itinerary and will not comment casually.
Chen Xi asked Ma Jiu to sit down and asked someone to bring bowls and chopsticks.
Ma Jiu was a little confused, but he held the bowl but didn't put the chopsticks down. Chen Xi asked, "Brother Jiu, are you thinking about Sister Xiaoyu? I asked you to bring Sister Xiaoyu with me before, but you refused to agree, saying it would be better to stay in the mansion. Now I can't bear it?"
Ma Jiu came back to his senses and shook his head and said, "Master, you are so careless! The villain is just thinking, why did you also serve as governor this time, but it is completely different from the last time you went to Wuzhou to serve as governor of Fujian, Guangdong and Guangxi?"
Chen Xi smiled and asked, "Where is the difference?"
Ma Jiu looked confused: "Before you went southeast, no one paid attention to you along the way. The journey was very hard, and after arriving at the local area, the local government ignored you. Many times, no one contacted you when you went to the prefectures and counties, and no one came out to help. But now, even if it was not a place under the rule of the master, the officials were extremely enthusiastic. If the master had not insisted on not accepting gifts, I'm afraid we would have no extra people to transport our personal belongings now!"
Chen Xi got up and picked up chopsticks in Ma Jiu's bowl of braised pig ears, with a secret smile on his face. After sitting down, he said seriously: "Brother Jiu, you eat something to cushion your stomach first. Next, you must go out from time to time to deal with those who come to give gifts, and it will not be a good night's rest..."
Seeing Ma Jiu looking at himself with curious eyes while eating, Chen Xi had to explain: "So, this time I went to Huguang to take office, and there is a reason why local officials are afraid of being sluggish to me. Nowadays, fame and power are indispensable, otherwise even if you have a body of official skin, no one is afraid of you."
"Now my holy family is in full bloom, and I have real military achievements to defeat the Tatars, and I have a lofty prestige in the army. I am not only the governor of the two provinces, but also the Right Censor who supervises all officials in the world. It can be said that as long as I give orders, no matter whether it is Huguang or Jianggan or not, the local garrison will obey orders, so the officials along the way will flatter me, for fear of being unable to curry favor with me."
"This time we arrived at the territory under my jurisdiction, officials at all levels were worried about the official hats on their heads, so they were more afraid of me, so they naturally acted more enthusiastic. Of course, we cannot bully others with power. Even if we know that officials are afraid of me, we cannot threaten the local area at will. We must pay attention to grasping the scale issue!"
Although Ma Jiu didn't understand it very well, one thing was clear. Chen Xi is now in Huguang and Jianggan provinces, and he is already a lateral existence.
The last time Chenxi went to the southeast was unknown. Even if the emperor and the border soldiers knew that Chenxi was capable, local officials did not know that. In addition, the three Fujian and Guangdong yamen had all the problems for Chenxi at that time, so prefecture and county officials did not dare to flatter Chenxi at all and avoided it.
But now the situation is different.
Chen Xi's status in the central government has risen rapidly, and its reputation in the government and the country is at its peak. Officials at all levels are afraid that Chen Xi will come to the local area to thoroughly investigate bad policies. In addition, they know that Chen Xi likes to rectify political enemies as an official. With the experience of the fall of officials in Fujian and Guangdong, local officials in Huguang and Jianggan can be said to be in danger of their own danger and are eager to show their hearts to Chen Xi to show their loyalty.
Chen Xidao: "Brother Jiu, before you officially go south to Guangzhou Prefecture, you must help me urge the people below. Don't touch the filial piety sent by local officials, let alone tell me about my own principles in front of me. If anyone's hand stretches out, don't blame me for killing it! I will not treat anyone who comes with me this time, but the premise is not to make mistakes!"
At this time, Ma Jiu had almost finished his meal. He quickly stood up and took the order and said, "Master, don't worry, the little man will explain to the people below immediately and will never cause trouble for you!"
...
...
As Chen Xi expected, those who came to the official post to deliver gifts that night lined up.
Jiujiang Prefecture is the first stop of Renxiazhou Prefecture on Chenxi's way. Because Jiujiang Prefecture Zhang Hang announced the news of Chenxi's arrival in advance, as soon as the ships Chenxi were on dock, people coming to the place to give gifts were endless.
Chen Xi came at the order of the emperor, but after making great contributions, he was ordered to go to Huguang and Jianggan. Local officials felt that this was a signal that the court wanted to rectify officials and a precursor to a major reshuffle of local forces.
A young minister like Chen Xi who has experience in leading troops came to perform his duties is likely to take advantage of his youth, motivation and courage to vigorously carry out local reforms, and find ways to make up for the shortcomings of the imperial treasury.
In fact, all these speculations come from the fear of local officials.
Although floods and floods have occurred frequently in the Ming Dynasty and the Jiangjiang area in recent years, only a few places have suffered from the disaster. As the granary of the Ming Dynasty, the overall local harvest is still good. Local governments have lived a prosperous life, and officials are all working hard, and they eat so much that they are full of energy.
During the battle against Tatars, the imperial court did not raise much money and food in Huguang and Jianggan. Now foreign enemies have retreated, and local officials are worried that the court will settle the accounts in the fall. It happened that the court appointed Chen Xi, the biggest hero in the battle against Tatars, to serve as governor of Jianggan and Huguang. Local officials would inevitably wonder if this means that the good days are over. The court will capture a group of corrupt officials to kill chickens and scare monkeys?
Local officials and gentry can see the changes in the court, knowing that the court may reshuffle local forces, such as tea and salt in various provinces, and policy changes must occur, and new merchants will be resolutely liquidated for families that bribe "corrupt officials" to make up for the shortcomings of the treasury...
On the one hand, local officials and gentry wanted to take advantage of changes in the court's policies to grow the family. Even without Zhang Hang's special reminder, there were endless people giving gifts, and some people even deliberately carried the prefect's office on their backs when giving gifts.
Because many people think that the reason why Chen Xi is so indifferent to Zhang Hang is because Zhang Hang himself has also entered Chen Xi's liquidation list.
************
Chapter completed!