Shennong Dao Master
Chapter 327 - 10: I’m Really Busy, No Lie_2

Chapter 327: Chapter 10: I’m Really Busy, No Lie_2

"A small gesture, are these enough? If not, Mr. Zhao and I can add a few more for you!" Long Xiao laughed heartily, though his hands behind his back trembled.

"They are enough, they are enough." Ling Yuan hurriedly bowed and said, "I will not fail in my duty!"

"Let’s go." After Zhao Xing ordered the Flying Guardian Grassman, he steered the flying boat away.

The Middle-Tier Grassman Magic, especially the Protector Grassman, unlike the Initial Grassman Technique, had no distance limit; even in an "offline state," it could be used.

The Protector Grassman given to him by Old Chen originally could exist indefinitely, following him to the countryside; later, he even left it for Gui Niang to use.

Of course, if the distance was too great, Zhao Xing’s brain-machine couldn’t sense the situation of the Protector Grassman. Whether it was destroyed or still existed, he needed to get within a certain range to know.

"Damn it, I’m exhausted." Long Xiao quickly rummaged through a bamboo box to find a few fruits to replenish his primordial energy. "You kid, for showing off in front of others, you made me suffer. Summoning fifty Protector Grassmen almost drained me dry!"

Watching Long Xiao’s trembling hand, Zhao Xing couldn’t help but laugh, "Who was it just now, suggesting adding a few more?"

After eating a few fruits, Long Xiao let out a satisfied sigh and leaned against the box, "Once you spoke, could I say no?"

"Even if it exhausts me, I have to do it."

"Damn it, you’re harsher than Old Chen. At least he treated me like a person; you, scoundrel, treat me, a Valiant Captain, like a beast of burden."

Long Xiao cursed aloud.

He initially thought leaving Old Chen and becoming Zhao Xing’s protector would bring some relief.

To his dismay, it wasn’t easy at all.

"Calm down, don’t I see you as brave and mighty, fully capable of carrying this weight? Old Chen also said this is a form of training for you."

"Hmph, of course, I’m brave and mighty." Long Xiao boasted, "Do you think everyone is worthy of the title ’Valiant’?"

"As for training, well, maybe... it’s just a bit tough." Long Xiao sighed. Why couldn’t there be a way in this world to get stronger without exhausting oneself?

"Take your time to recover; we have to go to the county government tomorrow," Zhao Xing said.

"What are we going to the county government for?" Long Xiao asked.

"To get the people under Ling Yuan, the Workshop Chief, he has no other means. The only ones who can do it are the County Magistrate of Yun City and the County Magistrate. However, here, the County Magistrate also serves as the County Magistrate."

"Ling Yuan didn’t make it clear, but the meaning is obvious: the County Magistrate of Yun has diverted the people of the Heavenly Workshop for private tasks, and the materials entering and leaving Yun City all need the County Magistrate’s approval and signature. It’s very likely he’s embezzling."

Long Xiao said, "It’s bizarre; Yun City’s County Magistrate is often vacant despite the frequent wars, and the County Magistrate acts as both roles. Who knows how much he has embezzled to feed the people above and create a monopoly?"

Zhao Xing pondered, "It’s hard to say before seeing him, let’s return to the Minister of Agriculture Supervision, and visit this County Magistrate of Yun tomorrow."

.....

"The County Magistrate of Yun, named Shao Wanjie, is of the full seventh rank."

"He was originally a military officer, then transferred to a civil servant county magistrate."

"He took office in Yun City twelve years ago; at that time, the County Magistrate was not vacant, and he was only at a secondary seventh rank."

"However, he was promoted every three years, eventually reaching a full seventh rank."

After returning, Zhao Xing first chatted with Bao Wenshan.

As the saying goes, having an elder at home is like having a treasure. Bao Wenshan had stood guard in Yun City for over a hundred years and knew it inside out.

Hearing his introduction of Shao Wanjie, Zhao Xing couldn’t help but be curious, "Given Yun City’s situation, he could still get promoted all the way? Being promoted three times in ten years and also serving as County Magistrate, he’s almost a sixth rank, which is quite rare. Did he make some significant contributions to Yun City?"

Bao Wenshan sneered, "Contributions? He did make a lot of contributions, but they were all for those above him."

"As soon as Shao Wanjie took office, he began to gather money. Of the Five Departments of Yun City, except for the divine temple, there wasn’t a place he didn’t reach."

"Whether it was the quotas issued from above, or the taxes collected from below, he had a hand in everything."

"At first, it was minor embezzlement, but later it turned into major embezzlement, outright taking the majority!"

"He frequently reassigned personnel from various departments for private tasks, treating officials of all levels as his private soldiers!"

Zhao Xing flipped through the accounts submitted by Zhang Zhong, shaking his head as he read.

In Zhang Zhong’s notes of deficits, many accounts were very odd; on one page, it was full payment, and the next, it was deficit.

What was the reason?

The taxes collected by the Minister of Agriculture Supervision first had to be sent to the county government warehouse for storage, statistics, and rechecking, then transported to the Prefecture City at year-end.

But the county government warehouses caught fire, experienced earthquakes, and were flooded every year.

Well, the terrain of Yun City was perilous, so it could be explained. Considering this place could be breached occasionally, warehouse fires weren’t a big deal.

Then there was the river transport from Yun City to the Prefecture City. Shao Wanjie always sent people via water transport, and every year, there were shipwrecks.

Don’t ask; if asked, it was said that ships capsized on the Canglan River, causing heavy losses of money and grain. It was a natural disaster, not human error.

Though said so, claiming natural disasters and shipwrecks... wasn’t it subtly shifting the blame to the Minister of Agriculture Supervision and the Heavenly Workshop?

Thus, Ling Yuan, the Workshop Chief, who should have been at the seventh rank, was forcefully kept at a full eighth rank by Shao Wanjie’s manipulations. The Minister of Agriculture Supervision also primarily had eighth-ranking chief officers for several years.

Didn’t the previous Doushui Order and Workshop Director report this?

Reporting was useless; Shao Wanjie had strong backing, with a whole chain of interests behind him.