Chapter 184: Enemies Meet Without Recognition
Though it was already a season when even water froze, the city gates were opened early in the morning, and Anqiu County gradually became bustling. Shopkeepers lowered their shutters early to start business, women carried baskets and haggled with early-market vegetable sellers, and those doing odd jobs stood in front of several restaurants on Hongwa Street, eagerly waiting for employers. The county government office also opened early, handling official affairs, receiving visits from local officials, listening to citizens’ complaints, and collecting autumn taxes—all in an orderly manner.
With the former deputy county magistrate Luo Wei and clerk Zhao Ming taken away by the Jinyiwei, the remaining officials naturally became quiet as mice. Seeing the young new county magistrate take charge firmly and efficiently, their tendencies to be lazy and deceitful gradually diminished. Over half a month, they noticed that Zhang Yue was strict only in matters of duty and often shared food and treats with them on holidays, so their attitudes softened, and they dared not plot anything against him.
The folk song that said “One case triggers ten more, one case spreads far and wide” was no longer sung by many. Instead, a few clever rappers composed new lyrics about the young county magistrate blocking thieves and the Jinyiwei arresting corrupt officials. Early that morning, a few leisurely tea drinkers in the teahouse enjoyed discussing various interesting stories from the magistrate’s trials and talking about the new county magistrate’s reputation, eventually expressing their admiration.
“Over the past few months, the county government has handled dozens of long-pending lawsuits. To be honest, most of them were fairly resolved—this is no small feat. I passed by the county office yesterday and saw those officials being polite, nowhere near their usual domineering behavior.”
“With Luo the Skin-ripper and Zhao the Bone-Beater both captured by the Jinyiwei, who could they be domineering over? My house is on the street to the left of the office; I hear the drums beating loudly every day, as if they might burst. With so many lawsuits, the magistrate’s evaluation might suffer—could there be any problems?”
“Ah, it’s not easy to find an honest official who doesn’t seek bribes. We hope this young county magistrate can stay in Anqiu for a few more years. If he gets promoted soon and another corrupt official is sent here, won’t we suffer again?”
At that moment, the tea drinker with a hooked nose sitting by the door suddenly heard horse hooves outside and leaned out to take a look. Soon, he saw a dozen riders speeding around the corner. He was surprised and quickly pulled back his head when he recognized them. The group arrived quickly and left just as fast, disappearing at the end of the street.
As he passed by, he couldn’t help but wonder, “Isn’t it time for the morning court session? Why has the county magistrate left the city with a group of people?” Although Zhang Yue was the local official in charge, not many people in Anqiu County had actually seen him before. However, many recognized his official robes, and almost everyone knew the officials following behind him. Thus, wherever he went, he attracted countless stares and discussions. When people saw him leaving the city with his men, it sparked even more confusion. Why was the county magistrate leaving the city so early without holding the morning court? Had something happened?
Regardless of others’ doubts, Zhang Yue was also filled with sighs as he hurriedly crossed the river on the stone bridge upstream of the Wen River. The assassination of King Han Zhu Gaoxu had caused a great stir among the higher-ups in Shandong. After Zhang Fu sent a message, Mu Ning also sent one later due to other matters. Over the past month, due to the emperor’s wrath, Shandong had been greatly shaken from top to bottom. Almost all the officials from the inspection department were arrested and taken to the capital, and the governor of Qingzhou was demoted and transferred as a consequence. Countless officials were punished. Zhang Yue had little interaction with his direct superior, so he didn’t feel much regret. He was going to Qingzhou for another important matter.
Eunuch Zhang Qian, ordered by the emperor, went to investigate King Han’s assassination and was now staying in Qingzhou Prefecture to oversee the Jinyiwei and various government agencies in handling the case. Although almost everyone thought there was something suspicious about King Han’s assassination, since it was an imperial order, no one dared to disobey. Therefore, that day, all the officials from Qingzhou Prefecture and its counties had to go and pay their respects, and he was no exception. After finishing all the urgent official tasks early in the morning, he left Ma Cheng in charge of the county office and hurriedly left the city with Peng Shisan and a few officials.
Qingzhou Prefecture was less than 200 li away from Anqiu County, but the route involved crossing several large rivers. Thus, it wasn’t until near noon that Zhang Yue finally saw the city of Qingzhou. Checking the time, he realized it was still early—only three periods left in the morning. With more and more people approaching the city gates, he ordered to slow down the horse’s pace and move along with the stream of people entering the city.
At that moment, a group heading out of the city came towards him on the road beside him—three black carriages and two large carts, seemingly belonging to wealthy families. Zhang Yue glanced at them casually before looking away. But as they passed by each other, he suddenly heard what seemed to be someone calling his name, which surprised him. Turning around, he saw the curtain of one of the carriages lifted, revealing a somewhat familiar face, leaving him stunned.
Seeing other people waiting to enter the city around him, he signaled Peng Shisan and the others, then rode over on his horse. Only when he reached the carriage did he call out softly, “Is the prefect leaving just today?”
“County Magistrate Zhang has the wrong title; I’m not a prefect anymore.” Yet the middle-aged man by the carriage window was indeed the former high prefect. He smiled slightly and said, “Compared to the officials from the inspection department being sent to the capital, it’s already a great fortune for me to be able to leave unharmed. I never expected to run into you by chance. But you’ve come rather late—most of the county magistrates from other places rushed here last evening and are now waiting at the prefect’s office for Eunuch Zhang. You, on the other hand, seem quite leisurely.”
Before Zhang Yue could speak, he waved his hand and said, “Of course. I suppose Eunuch Zhang won’t blame you for this. I know you’ve had an excellent reputation as an official in Anqiu County since taking office. You must have been busy with official duties and didn’t have time for these things. Being an official means handling arrivals and departures—just as no one pays attention to me when I leave office, while Eunuch Zhang is surrounded by many waiting for him. That’s just how it is. I’ve been demoted to become the prefect of Chuzhou, which brings me closer to your father. Is there anything you’d like me to convey?”
In total, Zhang Yue had only exchanged a few formal words with this prefect since taking office. There was no deep relationship, not even a superficial one. Now, such advice from him, even out of consideration for his family background, was truly valuable. So, upon hearing him mention his father, he quickly thought through what to say.
“Thank you for your kindness, sir. If you see my father, please convey that I’m doing well here.” After saying this, he paused briefly, then took out a folding fan from his sleeve and handed it to him with a smile, adding, “I learned today that you’re leaving, so I didn’t have time to prepare a proper gift. This fan was painted and inscribed by me when I took office, but the poem was written by Lord Du. It’s a memento for you as you head to the south.”
The former high prefect had spoken a few extra words out of impulse when he met Zhang Yue before leaving. Now, upon receiving the fan, he was surprised. After bidding farewell to Zhang Yue, he lowered the curtain and opened the fan again—his eyes gradually lit up. People rise high while water flows downward; sudden demotions and transfers, even to prosperous places like Huaiyang, couldn’t bring him joy. He hadn’t expected Zhang Yue to be smarter than he thought. This fan not only left room for future encounters but would also be very useful for him to settle in his new place.
With this reminder, Zhang Yue headed straight to the prefect’s office as soon as he entered Qingzhou City. Sure enough, although it wasn’t yet noon, there were already many carriages and horses parked at the main gate, but no palanquins in sight. The servants in charge of the carriages and horses, seeing them arrive at top speed, paid them little attention. After all, there had been a steady stream of visitors all morning, including people from the military headquarters; the leader of this group seemed to be just a county magistrate, far inferior to the officials inside. The prefect’s office in Qingzhou was naturally much more magnificent than that in Anqiu. Zhang Yue walked past the large screen wall, and ahead was a bluestone road. Past the main gate stood a neatly arranged drum tower. On either side of the drum tower were two pavilions: the Shenming Pavilion on the left and the Jingshan Pavilion on the right. Upon entering the ceremonial gate, the security became noticeably stricter. The men standing there, fixed like stakes in the ground, were not the local guards but soldiers in the imperial army’s uniforms, staring straight ahead. Recalling his own two encounters with the emperor in disguise in the capital, Zhang Yue found it nothing strange. After all, this time Zhang Qian was coming to Shandong on behalf of the emperor. Seeing more people arrive, several county magistrates who had been in Shandong for years glanced at them and began whispering to each other. “That seems to be the county magistrate of Anqiu. What an arrogant attitude! He said he’d arrive at 3:30, yet he’s only half an hour early.” “What do you know? We still have to treat our own deputy magistrates with courtesy, yet this young man is ruthless—he seized those two officials’ weaknesses and overthrew them. Now his county office is as impregnable as an iron barrel!” Hearing this, Sun Lianggan, the county magistrate of Le’an, who was standing nearby greeting Zhang Yue with a humble expression, almost spat fire from his eyes, eager to shout at the envious and jealous officials around him. “If you had such prominent family connections, even if it weren’t an iron barrel, it would be a gold barrel!” Sun Lianggan had once tried to challenge Zhang Yue in a tavern with two companions but ended up saying the wrong thing and causing a joke, resulting in a rather poor reputation. He had spent a lot of money trying to secure a good position, only to be left waiting. By chance, he ended up in Shandong. In Shandong alone, the Han King’s faction had one prince, one crown prince, and eight county kings. Being a county magistrate in these princely territories was naturally extremely difficult, and he happened to be in Le’an, where the Han King resided!
Thinking of how he had been left kneeling there for half an hour on his first visit to the King of Han, and how his position as county magistrate never allowed him to leave the county office, with even the officials ignoring him, while Zhang Yue managed his territory like an iron fortress where no one dared defy him, filled him with shame and anger. His gaze toward Zhang Yue grew increasingly resentful, as if all his misfortunes were caused by him.
Zhang Yue, however, was completely unaware that someone was staring at him. He had only met Sun Lianggan once before and had long forgotten him by now. As a newcomer with few acquaintances, he greeted them briefly and then stopped moving around.
After a while, a thudding sound came from inside. Soon, a young man dressed in a bright red brocade robe with golden dragon patterns, covered by a brocade cape adorned with golden dragons, and holding a horsewhip, rushed out and down the steps. Seeing the officials outside stepping aside, he grew even angrier. He scanned the area, his eyes passing over Zhang Yue before finally recognizing Sun Lianggan. With a cold smile, he stepped forward and whipped out his whip without hesitation.