Chapter 60: Taking Office, Zhuniuji

Zhuniuji, in fact, should have been called Zhuniuji (Cattle Station Market).

Because there were salt mines nearby, a large amount of table salt needed to be transported, and many merchants would stop here to rest with their cattle and horses; furthermore, many merchants sold strong, young cattle and horses here, hence it earned the name Cattle Station Market.

It is just that for some unknown reason, it gradually came to be called Zhuniuji (Blessing Cattle Market) later on, and the local commoners also felt this sounded better, so it became fixed that way.

Because there were large numbers of cattle and horses needed to transport salt, Zhuniuji often had cattle and horses that had fallen to their deaths, died of exhaustion, or were too old and weak to work that needed to be slaughtered.

Moreover, mining salt from the pits also required a large number of cattle and horses to exert effort.

Because of these reasons, the price of local beef and horse meat was very cheap, even cheaper than pork.

The local beef soup noodles and horse meat sandwiches were a specialty, and they were quite famous throughout the entire Xingyuan Prefecture.

Firstly, the taste was good, and secondly, because salt peddlers from all over Xingyuan Prefecture would pass through this place, they carried this reputation out.

"Let's go to Zhuniuji first, buy a house, and settle down before anything else," Chen Mo said, keeping his horse parallel to the carriage as he turned his head to speak to Zhao Yu.

The military camp he was heading to was not inside Zhuniuji, but ten miles away.

Going to the military camp was not urgent; he was not alone, as Zhao Yu was following along, so he had to go to Zhuniuji to settle down first.

"Alright, I'll listen to you," she nodded obediently.

Before even walking into Zhuniuji, Chen Mo could already see several clusters of white smoke drifting from afar; those were the vapors rising from the beef soup pots in the market.

"Fifth Uncle, look, the one riding that horse must be a warhorse; I'd bet eight or nine out of ten that he's the new Salt Transport Commissioner we're waiting for."

A young man wearing a coarse cloth jacket and a melon-skin cap, with a slightly chubby and rather comical appearance, hurriedly called out.

The person he addressed as Fifth Uncle had dark skin, a rugged face, and wore a thick beard.

He had originally been sitting with his eyes squinted, but upon hearing the sound, he sat up from his chair with a start and gazed toward the official road ahead, searching constantly.

Only when he caught sight of Chen Mo's figure did he let out a long sigh of relief.

"You brat saw it right; that must be the new Salt Transport Commissioner. We just need to welcome him here," He Luoyun said, turning his face toward his own nephew.

"It's not that I'm complaining, Fifth Uncle, but don't you always say you know our prefecture's Salt Transport Chief Liu Mingqiao and often go to brothels with him?

With his connection, why do we still have to personally come to welcome a ninth-rank Salt Transport Commissioner, and why must we wear these laborer's clothes? It's making me so uncomfortable."

He Shicai looked full of confusion, straightening the collar of his clothes and trying his best to keep it from touching his skin.

He Luoyun's dark face first showed embarrassment, then he immediately scolded him.

"You brat knows nothing. A local official is better than a high-ranking one; if he can't punish me, can't he still investigate us? Once investigated, we have to stop work, and if we're investigated a few times in a row, we'll lose money.

Besides, although this Salt Transport Commissioner is only ninth-rank, his foster father is a high-ranking official of the Right Fifth Rank who guards our prefecture."

Having said this, he paused in his tone and adopted a lecturing posture, "And remember this: he is an official and a Scholar, while we are commoners. Of course, we could wear silk clothes in front of him, but what if he sees it and isn't happy?"

As a private salt peddler who had been active for many years, He Luoyun had dealt with countless officials.

Some officials were open-minded and didn't care about such things, but some would feel a bit of displeasure inside when they saw a merchant wearing clothes better than their own.

Not to mention going to the trouble of tormenting him, just moving a finger slightly would be enough to make him miserable.

After all, not all officials were capable; a considerable portion were there because they were born into the right family.

As Chen Mo rode his horse gradually closer to Zhuniuji, He Luoyun hurried up to meet him.

"May I ask, are you the newly appointed Salt Transport Commissioner of Zhuniuji, Lord Chen?" He bowed low, his waist bent extremely far.

Politeness costs nothing; before figuring out what kind of temperament this official had, it was better to be respectful.

"That is correct. Why, do you have business with me?" Chen Mo asked, staring at him intently.

"This humble one is He Luoyun. Thanks to the care of the previous Salt Transport Commissioner, I have some property here in Zhuniuji. Hearing that you have taken office, I came specifically to welcome you," He Luoyun said with a fawning smile.

"Oh!" Chen Mo became interested at once. His position as Salt Transport Commissioner was a military post and did not manage affairs within Zhuniuji.

If the other party were running a legitimate business within Zhuniuji, they should not have come to welcome and visit him.

If one wanted to do business in this market, they should go to the Market Master appointed by the Imperial Court or the head constable responsible for security within it.

Since the other party came specifically to welcome him, and in such a posture, his identity was very obvious: the so-called property that enjoyed the care of the previous Salt Transport Commissioner was, in all likelihood, the private mining and selling of salt near Zhuniuji.

"Why don't you dismount first, my Lord? This humble one will take you to see around the market, and I have also prepared some extra gifts for you," He Luoyun smiled very obsequiously, which, paired with his dark face, was undeniably comical.

"Then I shall take a look?" Chen Mo did not refuse this; the act of accepting bribes from private salt peddlers was something that, throughout the entire Salt Transport Department, he was by no means the only one doing.

More accurately, everyone from top to bottom, including the Salt Transport General Commissioner and the General Manager of the Salt Transport Department, accepted money.

It would be inappropriate for him not to accept it.

Moreover, the salary the Imperial Court gave officials was not very high; as a Right Ninth Rank official, Chen Mo's monthly salary was two taels of silver.

The salary was not small, but it was certainly not much; it was enough to eat, but if one wanted to eat better or let their family live more comfortably, they needed to find ways to generate more income.

With various bribes being sent continuously, very few officials could withstand the temptation.

Furthermore, since everyone from top to bottom was accepting, not accepting would instead lead to being ostracized by colleagues.

"Why haven't you brought the horse stool for Lord Chen yet!" He turned his head and barked at his nephew.

"No need," Chen Mo said as he flipped off his horse. A horse stool was something only scholars who didn't practice martial arts would use.

As a martial artist, he had no need for such things.

Upon hearing this, He Luoyun felt a weight lift from his heart; at the very least, looking at it now, this newly appointed Salt Transport Commissioner did not seem too difficult to get along with.

As a private salt peddler, he had encountered all sorts of difficult officials over the years; some, let alone using a horse stool, would even step on his shoulders to dismount.

Yet he could do nothing about it; since ancient times, the poor do not fight the rich, and the commoners do not contend with officials.

For the sake of his family's livelihood, even if someone stepped on his shoulders to dismount, he had to endure it.

"Who is the person behind you?" He Luoyun took the initiative to help Chen Mo lead his horse, then glanced at Zhao Yu and asked tentatively.

"My wife," Chen Mo said in a calm tone.

"Oh, so it is your lady," He Luoyun nodded repeatedly and gave his nephew a look, signaling him to take the carriage.

Zhuniuji was quite lively; people came and went on the bluestone path, merchants stopped to rest with their cattle and horses, and the workers at several beef soup pots were shouting at the top of their lungs to solicit customers.

Passing through the market and walking toward the center of the town, the surroundings became much quieter, with bluestone houses and thatched cottages scattered about.

This was where most of the local commoners lived; compared to the bustling market outside, it was quite peaceful here.

"Knowing you have just taken office, I figured you likely do not have a house in the collection district yet, so I dared to prepare one for you in advance, my lord." He Luoyun led the horse for Chen Mo the entire way, bringing him to a path in front of a bluestone courtyard.

Pushing open the courtyard gate, the entire residence had been cleaned quite thoroughly; a water well had been dug in the yard, and a small pavilion had been built, where one could enjoy the Wind and escape the heat during the summer.

The entire courtyard was constructed of bluestone, and a few of the bluestone slabs paved on the ground were clearly visible as having been replaced just a few days prior.

He Luoyun began to introduce the small courtyard to Chen Mo in great detail; the residence was not small, with a full seven or eight rooms, much larger than the thatched cottage where Zhao Yu had previously lived.

The main hall, the bedrooms on the left and right sides, the kitchen, the dining room, the servant quarters, and the latrine were all fully equipped.

There was also a large open space in the backyard; besides a Stable that could fit two carriages, there was a small garden, though it had not yet been planted with flowers or grass.

Chen Mo pushed open the lacquered wooden door and walked into the main hall; on the table in the main hall sat an object covered by a red cloth. Lifting the red cloth, inside were twenty ingots of silver gleaming with a silvery light.

Judging by their weight and quality, each piece should be ten taels of Official Silver, and what was before him was a full two hundred taels.

Chen Mo covered it with the red cloth again and turned to look at He Luoyun, who had already walked into the room and closed the door.

Although everyone did the business of bribing officials, it was ultimately not a good thing, so naturally, it could not be proclaimed loudly.

"Speak, what exactly is it you want from this official?" Chen Mo actually knew the other party's goal; the reason he asked this way was to see what price the other party was willing to offer.

The risk of corruption and bribery was not great, because many officials throughout the Imperial Court did the same; if he did not do so, he would appear strange instead.

But even if one were to accept bribes, one had to see if the price offered by the other party was worth it; it was impossible to let himself take risks for just a little bit of money, even if there was only a tiny bit of risk.

(End of this chapter)