Upon hearing this.

"Too presumptuous!"

"How dare these county officials be so arrogant?!"

"I'm just a county official. What does it have to do with that troubled Zhu family? How dare I be so rude to Captain Wu?!"

"..."

Before Wu Liang could say anything, all the officers and soldiers of the Hu army began to express their grievances for him.

Now most of the soldiers of the Hu army have followed Wu Liang on the expedition. Wu Liang has always treated them well. Especially this time when he went to Yuzhang County, he would rather put himself in danger than the officers and soldiers like them.

Personal risk.

Therefore, these officers and soldiers have long become Wu Liang's die-hard fans, how could they see their idol suffering such cowardice.

"County magistrate, brothers, this is what the county officials mean. This villain is just a follower of orders and has nothing to do with this matter..."

Seeing the excited excitement among the soldiers, Wan Wu quickly wrinkled his face and took it out, fearing that he would be eaten alive by these soldiers if he was not careful.

"Brothers, please be quiet. Why are you so excited? Didn't they give me some gifts? If you keep this attitude, who will dare to give me gifts in the future?"

Wu Liang waved his hands with a smile, signaling everyone in the Hu army to calm down.

Then he bent down and picked up the small wooden box under the seat and put it on the desk. Then he opened the wooden box and looked at it in front of everyone.

What's inside is actually a small gold cake.

There are two rows in total, with five birds in each row.

"Look, isn't this person quite sincere?"

Wu Liang picked up one of the small gold cakes and weighed it. It weighed about two taels, or ten jins.

This is undoubtedly a huge sum of money for ordinary people.

But for Wu Liang... In fact, he couldn't catch his eye at all. Even the soldiers of the Hu army were a little disdainful. Although they didn't have so much gold, they were the ones who had seen the "Golden Mountain", whether it was the tomb of King Xiao of Liang or the

In the tomb of Marquis Haihun, much more gold passed through their hands than this.

Of course, the most important thing is.

What they want is an attitude. These county officials do not respect Wu Liang. No matter how much gold they send, they will not be able to win their favor.

But Wu Liang seemed very satisfied. He closed the small wooden box again and said to Wan Wu with a smile: "When you meet these county officials later, say that I have felt their care and thank them for me."

.”

"yes."

Wan Wu bowed his hands and saluted.

But there was also a hint of disdain for Wu Liang in his heart: The new county magistrate brought so many people here, so he thought there was something different, but that was all.

"One more thing."

Wu Liang then asked, "How many townships are there in Yongqiu County?"

"As far as the county magistrate is concerned, there are eight townships in total."

Wan Wu replied.

"Do all eight villages have three elders?"

Wu Liang asked again.

The so-called "three elders" are actually a kind of township official who is between the officials and the people. They are somewhat similar to the "township chief" in later generations, but they are not exactly the same.

The three elders of this era did not receive salary from the imperial court and were not considered official officials.

There are only two criteria for appointment to this position: first, one must be over fifty years old; second, one must have personal moral character that can serve as an example for the villagers.

Therefore, the responsibilities of the three elders are somewhat different from those of officials. They are similar to the "patriarch" of a township. Their main job is to mediate civil disputes between villagers. They are responsible for the education of villagers. They are also the other eyes of the court to facilitate the court to monitor the villagers.

Conduct a thorough investigation of the actual situation of the people to ensure that taxes can be paid in full.

Usually, the three elders are served by local elders who are relatively popular. In addition to maintaining stability, they can also ensure the implementation of relevant policies.

Therefore, the imperial court and local officials paid more attention to and treated the three elders with courtesy.

In addition to the stipulated exemptions and tax-free privileges, they are often given some food, cloth and even titles...

"Of course there is."

Wan Wu nodded and said.

"You have reported the names and addresses of the eight elders. It is now approaching the Three Dynasties, and all the three elders have been working hard for a whole year. I am new here and should send someone to invite them. Thank you very much. I will rely on their efforts in the coming year."

.”

Wu Liang said with a smile, "As for the other county officials, since they can't get away now, I can't force them, so I can only wait for three dynasties before we can have a good time."

"yes."

Wan Wu followed suit.

Soon, the information about the eight elders was passed on to Wu Liang.

"Um……"

Wu Liang took a look at the list and was not in a hurry to send someone to invite it. Instead, he put it aside and smiled at Wan Wu, "Do you have anything else to do?"

"No, no more."

Wu Liang asked suddenly, and Wan Wu didn't understand what he meant.

"Since there is nothing else, I will give you a few days off. Go back and have a good time. You will have enough energy to work hard in the coming year. Go ahead."

Wu Liang waved his hands and said.

"yes."

Wan Wu had this intention, so he quickly thanked him and retreated.

Until he watched Wan Wu leave the government office and walk away.

Yang Wanli and other officers of the Hu army came over and said angrily through gritted teeth: "Captain, these county officials are just a group of low-level officials who dare to be so rude to you. Why are you so rude?"

It's not like you at all to keep giving in, and I really can't understand it!"

"Not like me? Then what should I be like in your minds?"

Wu Liang asked with a smile.

"If it were normal times, the captain would definitely give these arrogant people some color and immediately let them know how powerful the captain is and how there is no room for their arrogance."

Yang Wanli and others raised their hands and said.

No matter when he faced the tomb keeper or the Yellow Turban Army, even if Wu Liang did not take action against him, he would treat him obediently and docilely without suffering any loss.

These things are seen by everyone, and they feel happy in their hearts.

Only what happened today made me feel very aggrieved.

"Don't talk nonsense! I am the kindest person, how could I be as violent as you say?"

Wu Liang smiled with his mouth full of white teeth, then threw the list of three elders into Yang Wanli's arms and said, "Yang Wanli, this list is left to you. You can make arrangements in advance and send someone the day after tomorrow.

Invite these eight elders to the government office."

"Why wait until the day after tomorrow?"

Yang Wanli said in confusion.

"Because you may not be able to invite any of these people today and tomorrow, but you should be able to invite them all the day after tomorrow."

Wu Liang laughed confidently and said something that made Yang Wanli and others even more confused after hearing it.

"Why is this?"

Yang Wanli and others looked surprised.

"Have you forgotten what I do? Just do what you want."

Wu Liang smiled.

In fact, he knows it better than anyone else.

Although these three elders were nominally representatives of the local public opinion, in reality they were agents who assisted the government and the gentry in controlling the common people, and played a role in maintaining stability and ensuring tax revenue.

Originally, Liu Bang, the emperor of the Han Dynasty, set up such a position for this purpose.

Therefore, Wu Liang can be sure that since the Zhu family has great hands and eyes in this area, and the county officials in Yongqiu County are all from the Zhu family, then these three elders must have a very close relationship with the Zhu family.

It's conceivable.

Without the approval of the Zhu family, these three elders would definitely use various excuses to avoid contact with him, the newly appointed county magistrate, to avoid getting into trouble.

But these three elders play a decisive role in the stability of a region.

At the same time, he has the most accurate grassroots information, which is very important for Wu Liang to implement the "farming system" in the future. Therefore, he must meet these three elders first, and then formulate more detailed plans after obtaining this information.

It was also because of this that Wu Liang deliberately showed weakness to the Zhu family in front of Wan Wu just now.
To be continued...