Chapter 125: The Donkey-Riding County Assistant

In the third month, Huating County was filled with intermittent drizzle.

The fine, continuous rain fell from the vault of the sky, stirring up shallow ripples on the bluestone floor.

Before long, the ground was shrouded in mist, merging with the gray, overcast sky into a single expanse.

On the street, pedestrians held oil-paper umbrellas, moving in a hurry, carving a path through the mist.

Just past the hour of Mao that day, a man wearing an official robe rode a donkey, holding an oil-paper umbrella, and slowly arrived at the County Government Office of Huating County.

He appeared to be about forty years old, of medium build, with a square face and a stern expression, his inner turmoil completely unreadable.

The official robe on his body was washed until the color had faded, and a pair of long boots had come unstitched.

Stepping on the ground, they were loose and dragged along.

This was none other than the County Assistant of Huating County, Li Liangcai.

In truth, given his position, he could have lived much better.

But he neither accepted invitations to dine nor extorted wealth, and he often provided relief to the impoverished commoners; relying solely on his meager salary, he was indeed stretched thin.

Helpless, he could only replace the sedan chair used by officials with a donkey.

Because of this, he earned a nickname within Songjiang Prefecture: "The Donkey County Assistant."

As soon as Li Liangcai dismounted, a Runner at the gate hurried up to him and said with a smile, "County Assistant Li, you've arrived a bit late today; the County Magistrate has been waiting for you inside for a long time."

"Oh, the County Magistrate arrived early today." Li Liangcai was taken aback.

"Not only did the County Magistrate arrive early today, but there is also great news waiting for you, County Assistant." That Runner was the type who would bark at anything that moved; once he heard a whisper of news, he couldn't help but blurt it out.

Li Liangcai had never liked such glib, oily talk, so he stiffened his face and barked, "What good news? You are a man without decorum; if there were good news, would I need you to tell me?"

Having said that, he picked up his pace and walked inside.

The Runner had intended to flatter him, but instead hit a sore spot; he shrank his neck, muttered a few curses, and returned to his original position.

Li Liangcai quickened his steps and finally arrived in front of a single-story house.

That was his office.

At this moment, the door was already open, and a Junior Official was beaming with joy, laughing as he moved things out.

As he moved them, the Junior Official's discussion rang out.

"Hey, that poor scholar has finally left; we'll finally have good days ahead."

"That's right. I've been a runner for eight or nine years, and it's the first time I've seen such a stingy official. You tell me, whenever a new official takes office in the past, don't they always give us some reward money?"

"Hehe... I heard that County Magistrate Wei was originally prepared to give us each one tael of silver as New Year's noodle money. But that poor scholar wouldn't agree and even said he would report it to the superiors."

"Damn it, I don't know which crotch didn't close properly to let such a thing out."

"..."

The sound of the insults was like piercing steel needles, stabbing into Li Liangcai's heart, making him turn green with rage.

He stood in the distance, stunned for a moment, then flicked his sleeve and headed straight for Wei Ming's office.

At this moment, Wei Ming was sitting inside with a Secretary; the office was about twenty square meters, with a dark square table placed in the center, accompanied by a yellow pear-wood Grand Tutor chair.

Beside the table in the room was a set of expensive furniture, and on the right were two pots of opulent peonies.

Wei Ming sat with his legs crossed, leaning back in the Grand Tutor chair, shaking his head, occasionally humming a few lines of soft Wu dialect.

The Secretary sitting on the left glanced at the County Magistrate and cautiously probed, "County Magistrate, it seems the superiors are going to make a big move in Songjiang Prefecture this time. The Shipping Commissioner is a position with great profit in the future; if you push that stubborn donkey Li up there, wouldn't that be doing him a favor?"

Wei Ming straightened his body, looked at the Secretary with a sinister smile, and said, "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. That Shipping Commissioner is not a good office; you just stay by my side, and I will ensure your wealth and honor."

"This humble one, this humble one didn't want to go to the Shipping Commissioner." The Secretary waved his hands repeatedly to explain.

"Sigh, Old Liang, you've been with me for four years now, haven't you? Don't you know what kind of person I am?" Wei Ming sat up from the chair, paced to the window with his hands behind his back, stared at the drizzle outside, and asked in return, "Tell me, when have I ever suffered a loss?"

Secretary Liang looked at his master's back, pondered for a moment, and shook his head, saying, "The County Magistrate has schemes in his chest, is clever and adaptable, and is well-versed in the ways of the officialdom; naturally, you have never been inferior to others."

"That's right, I have ten thousand schemes, but I just happened to run into such a stubborn donkey who won't take oil or salt!" Wei Ming gritted his teeth and said hatefully, "He said I am a parasite, so I want to let him see just how hot that seat is!"

Ten taels, twenty taels—you might not want them.

But what if it were a thousand taels, two thousand taels? Could you still keep your original heart and not be tempted?

Once the Shipping Commissioner of Songjiang Prefecture is established, it is foreseeable that the chief official of this office will be a highly sought-after figure in Songjiang Prefecture.

At that time, the money passing through his hands every day would be measured in the tens of thousands.

He didn't believe this stubborn donkey could still keep his original heart.

When he first heard about the establishment of this office, even he himself was a bit tempted.

But after a second thought, he dismissed the idea. His way of being an official was the two words "hide" and "endure"; this position was too flashy, and too many people were watching.

Being an official, one fears being watched all day; that feeling is so bad that one can't even sleep soundly with one's wife at night.

Wei Ming made a prompt decision and recommended Li Liangcai to Zhang Yunxiu.

For one thing, if this guy did a good job and was upright, then he, Wei Ming, would have the merit of recognizing talent and recommending him. If this guy couldn't hold his bottom line and was really dragged off his horse, hehe, then don't blame him for beating a dog in the water.

Another point was that with this guy not staying by his side, he would find it much more convenient to handle his own affairs.

Thinking of this, Wei Ming stroked his beard lightly, quite pleased with his plan of killing three birds with one stone.

"Bang."

A sound arose; the door to Wei Ming's office was rudely pushed open, and a gust of cold wind poured in. Wei Ming and Secretary Liang turned their heads together to look at the entrance.

Li Liangcai stood at the door, aggressive; he glared at Wei Ming and demanded, "County Magistrate Wei, I ask you, why were those Junior Officials moving my things out when I passed by the office just now?"

"And saying what, that I am leaving soon?"

"Oh, I was just about to tell you about this." Wei Ming's ability to maintain his composure was superb; he smiled and pulled Li Liangcai to sit in a chair. "It's like this: our Songjiang Prefecture Shipping Commissioner is about to be established."

"The superiors asked me for a person, and said this person must be upright and not bow to the powerful; I thought of you, Brother Li, first."

"What do you mean?" Li Liangcai asked with a stern expression, on guard.

"Brother Li, you have been promoted; go prepare for the Shipping Commissioner now. This is a position of the minor sixth rank." Wei Ming stated directly, "You don't need to come to the County Government Office these days; just get some good rest."

"Is there an imperial document?" Li Liangcai stretched out both hands and shouted.

"The imperial court's official document will be down shortly." Wei Ming accompanied this with a smile, replying nonchalantly.

"Since there is no official document from the court, I am still the County Assistant of this Huating County. For Magistrate Wei to have someone move my things away, isn't that being a bit too autocratic and overbearing?" Li Liangcai's eyes were blood-red, and as soon as he spoke, his voice sounded like a great bell.

At this, the smile on Wei Ming's face instantly froze.

He forcibly suppressed his anger, flicked his sleeve, and snorted: "Since Brother Li wants to perform his duties, then just perform them. However, Secretary Liang, tell the people below to put all of County Assistant Li's things back!"

"Ah, yes." Secretary Liang nodded, clutched his crotch, and ran out of the office.

Li Liangcai cupped his hands in a salute and followed him out of the office.

After a busy day, by the end of the Shen hour, Li Liangcai rode his donkey slowly into his own small courtyard. Before he had even entered, he saw it was piled full of all sorts of gifts.

A young woman of about thirty years old stood among them, looking distressed.

That was Li Liangcai's wife.

Li Liangcai walked in quickly and closed the half-open wooden door.

At this moment, Madam Li also heard the commotion and looked over from the door. The two met eyes, and Madam Li teased: "Look, in just half a day, this small courtyard has been packed full."

"Wouldn't it be fine to just return them all?" Li Liangcai scanned the area roughly and walked straight toward the main room.

Madam Li followed behind, knitted her brows, and pouted as she chided: "You make it sound so easy. There are too many people; if we go to each family to return them, wouldn't we walk our legs off?"

"Madam, don't forget what you promised me back then: no accepting gifts." Li Liangcai stopped in his tracks, turned his head to look at his wife, and said sternly.

"And you don't forget what you promised me: if you return one gift, you have to help me wash one load of laundry." Madam Li covered her mouth and laughed, pointing at the two basins of laundry by the water pool, saying, "Look, the laundry that has piled up this time has finally come in handy."

"Madam, you really are calculating." Li Liangcai gave a sheepish smile.

"That's right. Since I'm not happy without the gifts, don't you think about being happy either."

As Madam Li spoke, she pulled her husband to the water pool and sat him down.

The County Assistant was helpless; he rolled up his sleeves, picked up a piece of women's clothing, and began to scrub it carefully on the washboard.

Beside him, Madam Li sat in a reclining chair, with pastries placed on a small table next to her.

As she ate the pastries and watched her husband do the laundry, she teased: "You, you're a government official of some standing after all. Why don't you just accept these gifts and be done with it, so you don't have to suffer like this."

"A gentleman loves wealth but obtains it in the right way. As for ill-gotten gains, I won't take a single cent!" Li Liangcai said quite firmly.

"Tsk tsk, with that stubborn temper of yours, I really don't know how I took a liking to you back then." Madam Li pouted, then added, "Magistrate Wei's four concubines are all dressed more gaudily than the last."

"We've heard that even his toilet is made of red sandalwood. You tell me, we're both officials, why is the gap between us so big?"

"Those are base people; I disdain to associate with such people."

"But they are higher-ranking officials than you, live more comfortably than you, and hold their positions more securely than you."

Li Liangcai was stunned at these words. He paused, then placed the beaten and washed laundry into clear water to rinse.

Smiling and shaking her head, Madam Li said with a mix of frustration and affection: "You, you're just a donkey. Now that you've been promoted to this new post, who knows how many people you'll offend again."

"I'm like a louse that doesn't fear being bitten." Li Liangcai chuckled.

Madam Li was amused by her husband's anger; she stood up, moved with lotus steps to Li Liangcai's side, snatched the laundry club, and chided: "Alright, alright, look at how clumsy you are. Who knows when you'll finish washing at this rate."

"Go help me wash the vegetables."

"Madam, I really cannot accept those gifts. Not only can I not accept them now, I won't be able to in the future either." Li Liangcai said earnestly.

Madam Li glared at her husband and said huffily: "Do you think this is the first day I've known you, you stubborn donkey? Go, go, go, don't get in the way of my work."

"Many thanks, Madam." Li Liangcai shrugged and smiled.

(End of this chapter)