Chapter 302 True feelings revealed

Chapter 302 True feelings revealed

Chapter 302 True feelings revealed
coming!

Sun Xiaojun's heart skipped a beat.

He knew that what he had just said was just a prelude. This imperial envoy, who had used despicable means to trick them since they entered the city, was finally going to show his true colors.

"Please speak, sir. I will tell you everything I know." The dark and thin prefect in red robe had a serious look in his eyes.

Zhao Duan raised his hand curiously and drew a circle in the air in the courtyard:
"Since this place is so rich, why is the county government so plain? Since the county magistrate dared to be greedy, he must be a lavish person. It is hard to imagine that the government office is so shabby."

Sun Xiaozhun said seriously:

"The treacherous and evil people are just good at disguising themselves. Wang Chusheng has a simple style and has always been honest. That's why he has been hiding it until now."

You answered pretty quickly, you probably had a good idea in mind...

Zhao Duan stared at him, nodded slightly, and accepted the answer.

My eyes passed over the golden autumn chrysanthemums and fell on the two plump white geese under the tree, and I sighed softly:
"What the governor said makes sense. How could a truly poor government office raise such fat geese?

I once heard that to tell whether a person is loyal or treacherous, don't look at his clothes or appearance, but look at the people around him.

Gentlemen are close to gentlemen, and villains are close to villains. I just don’t know how many geese are fattened in the Taicang County Government Office. "

Sun Xiaozhun didn't say anything, but heard the hidden meaning:

"My lord, what you mean is..."

Zhao Duan suddenly said:

"Is Sun Futai from a poor family?"

The change of topic was so abrupt that Magistrate Sun was not prepared at all!
He was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said self-deprecatingly:

"The word 'poor family' is a bit of a compliment to me. I am just a small family."

A poor family is also a family... This statement may not be appropriate when applied to Dayu.

The fact that the country lasted for 600 years without any change of dynasty is almost a miracle.

But during these six hundred years, the powerful families in the dynasty have changed again and again.

It was a natural decline, but it was also intentional on the part of the Dayu royal family.

Some poor families with a long history have long since become as poor as ordinary people, without any connections, and only have the legend that "their ancestors were wealthy".

Sun Xiaozhun is a rare person from a humble family who rose to prominence through his political achievements.

The experience is not legendary, it is just steady and cautious.

If there is nothing special about him, it is that he is one of the rare officials who took the initiative to choose to serve in a remote and difficult county.

Because he was able to endure hardships, he was able to seize positions that were looked down upon by the children of powerful families and climb up through political achievements.

"Well, since he had experienced hardship, did Mr. Sun raise geese when he was a child?" Zhao Duan asked again.

Sun Xiaozhun frowned and answered truthfully:

"Not just when I was a child. When I was a county magistrate in Lingnan, my wife raised chickens, ducks, pigs, dogs and even grew vegetables at home."

What a miserable county magistrate... Zhao Duan said:

"When I was in Beijing, the Prime Minister told me a story. He said that when he was a child, he was a shepherd. He said sheep were interesting, but they followed blindly, so they needed a leader to lead them.

But I am curious, look at this flock of geese, there is no such thing as a leader goose.

Each one is about the same size, and when they gather together, they are like a cloud. When there is a slight disturbance outside, they will disperse like clouds and mist, making loud noises and fanning the wind to dazzle the eyes.

Sun Xiaojun was confused at first, but gradually, his expression changed.

Zhao Duan stood in front of a large field of brilliant golden chrysanthemums.

Reach out and pick the chrysanthemums.

But his sight went beyond the county government office and looked towards the towering red mountains in the south.

Yellow near, red far, like gold and fire...

Zhao Duan suddenly turned his head and said with a smile:
"But I think that there must be a 'leader' in the flock of geese, otherwise how can they survive? How do they determine the direction when they run? Where do you think the 'leader' is?"

Where is the head goose?
A question.

Sun Xiaozhun's heart skipped a beat, and he lowered his eyes and said:
"I think that sheep and geese are different. The former are powerful livestock, while the latter are weak beasts."

"Hmm, so the beasts are too weak, so they don't need a leader?"

"Since you can't see it, it must be gone."

"No, there is." Zhao Duan shook his head and said:

"The leader of the goose flock is the owner who feeds it. Do you know where its owner is?"

Sun Xiaozhun's forehead was covered with sweat again. He was silent for a moment, then shook his head:

"I don't know, please enlighten me, sir."

Zhao Duan stared at him deeply, loosened his hand that was inserted into the chrysanthemum, and let the petals between his fingers be blown by the wind and float in the yard:
"People raise geese for their eggs. So whoever gets the eggs is the owner."

"When people raise geese, they have to be on guard against them being stolen. So whoever stops me from catching the geese is the owner." "Sun Futai, is this right?"

As he asked his soul three questions, Sun Xiaojun's head drooped little by little.

When he finished asking, this shrewd and powerful prefect suddenly appeared to be a head shorter than him.

Others may not understand these indirect criticisms, but how could Sun Xiaozhun not hear them?

Is Zhao Duan doubting him?

The incognito visit is suspicious.

As the chief official who indirectly arranged the investigation and obstructed the investigation by outsiders, it is undoubtedly difficult for Magistrate Sun to clear himself of suspicion.

Moreover, the list proposed by Song Tiju clearly mentioned that Prefect Sun had taken money from the Magistrate of Taicang County.

now.

Hundreds of cavalrymen blocked the county government office, and Prefect Sun was isolated and helpless. Zhao Duan exposed his true colors and interrogated him.

silence.

After a while, Sun Xiaozheng slowly raised his head, and his body, which had been shortened, gradually grew taller.

He no longer kowtowed, nor did he show any humility or flattery on his face. He just looked at Zhao Duan calmly and said:
"Master Zhao, I have been in office for less than two years."

Zhao Duan said softly:

"Three years as an official, ten thousand taels of silver. Two years is not short."

Sun Xiaozhun's chest heaved, as if he was trying his best to suppress his emotions. He did not blink:
"Sir Zhao, when I was the county magistrate, my wife not only raised geese, but also fish. At first, the fish she raised kept dying in the tank. I asked the fishermen for advice, and they said it was because my wife changed the water too frequently.

If the water in the fish tank turns green, sour, or smelly, the fish can survive. If you change half of the water, it will be fine. But if you change all the water, the fish will die. "

Tsk, I didn't expect he was a fish farmer...

Zhao Duan had no expression:
"If any of the fish die, they can be replaced with new ones. This is no reason to tolerate stinky water."

Sun Xiaozhun suddenly became excited:
"But between black and white, there is gray, Master Zhao!"

At this moment, the Taicang prefect, whose temperament was different from that of ordinary officials, seemed to be tired of the Buddhist way of communicating with witty remarks.

He poked through the window paper, stared at Zhao Duan, and said:

"Sir! You are an official in the capital, you should know that even under the eyes of the emperor, the officialdom is not clean!

Let’s not talk about anything else. Every winter and summer, officials from all over Dayu would send carts of gifts to the capital. What? In winter, they would send carbon as a tribute. In summer, they would send ice as a tribute. What kind of carbon or ice? They were all gifts of filial piety.”

"Who doesn't know this? You don't know, or the saints don't know? Isn't it a convention and tacit consent?

why?
I didn’t understand it when I was a county magistrate in Lingnan. Later I found out that as a local official, there are always various ways to make money and eat well.

But Beijing officials can’t do that!
The officials in the capital were crowded in the pond in the capital to grab food. Each of them had an incredibly big appetite. How could they get enough?
If the officials in Beijing don't have enough to eat, then when evaluating the local officials, there will be no mercy at all. Are the local officials afraid? How can they not be afraid? "

"Not to mention officials, even ordinary people, when they are sick and ask a doctor to treat them, they have to seal the package with red paper. If not for the sake of curing the disease, they are afraid that the doctor will be unhappy and treat you worse."

"This is to protect the official hat. Without a backer, who can feel at ease and sleep peacefully?
What about those who want to move up in career?
Not to mention, if you rely solely on your political achievements, no one in the capital will speak for you, and how would the emperor know you?"

Sun Xiaozhun spoke faster and said all this in one breath.

The words were extremely straightforward, without any concealment.

Zhao Duan was stunned.

It’s not surprising that these contents.

But he was surprised that the prefect was just throwing away all hope.
Or how:

"Sun Futai, you..."

Sun Xiaozhun waved his hand and interrupted him:

"Master Zhao, please listen to me first."

He took two steps back, with a look of self-mockery on his face:
"You must be wondering why I'm saying this. It's not that complicated. Wang Chusheng committed a crime and ran away. It seems he can't be found.

Then who will take the blame next?

It must be someone of some weight who can get the job done. Who is suitable?
After much thought, I think I am the most suitable one.

He is the immediate boss, but he has no big family as a foundation.

We can't let Gao Buzhengshi and Liu Ancha take the blame, right? If so, I'm afraid I won't be able to serve as the prefect for many days, so I might as well make it clear. "

He took a deep breath, his eyes almost red, stared at Zhao Duan, and said:

"Master Zhao, I know that since you dare to reveal your identity and directly dispatch troops here, you must have obtained some evidence. Yes, I did accept Wang Chusheng's gift, but who hasn't?"

After a pause, Sun Xiaozhun suddenly bowed and said sincerely:

"Master Zhao, we can't investigate! If we continue investigating, we will be unable to stop."

(End of this chapter)