The cheerful Zhao Erlang had just caught a theft gang and threw them into the jail. He headed straight for the cafeteria at the county government.
Zhao Zheng had just returned from outside, holding a big bowl of food and eating. When he saw the County Magistrate nod at him, he ducked into the kitchen. Shortly after, he brought out a basin of steamed buns and a bowl of vegetables.
He placed the basin and bowl on the railing, sat down astride the railing, and began eating quickly, holding a steamed bun in one hand and chopsticks in the other.
Zhao Zheng silently watched him, seeing him bite through a big portion of a bun at once, then stuff his mouth full with vegetables, quickly chewing and swallowing it...
Zhao Zheng suddenly felt even hungrier, but fearing that Zhao Erlang might choke, he handed him a bamboo tube of water first.
Zhao Erlang didn’t want to drink water, but since his cousin handed it over, he took it and reluctantly sipped a bit, then put it down to continue eagerly eating the steamed bun.
Zhao Zheng asked while eating, "Didn’t you have lunch?"
Zhao Erlang found time to reply with a "Hmm."
His follower, Lv Hu, also came out of the kitchen and explained upon hearing this, "In order to ambush that gang, we didn’t even dare to drink much water, fearing that we’d miss them if we took our eyes off them for a moment."
While speaking, the government officials and personal guards who lagged a few steps behind Zhao Erlang also hurried back, all squeezing into the kitchen to get food. The small side courtyard of the county government instantly became crowded with people.
Zhao Zheng had eaten meals squatting on the edge of fields and on the roadside, even gnawed on pancakes under the public eye on the streets, but eating squatting in the county government still felt unfamiliar to him.
They clearly had the means to sit and eat, so Zhao Zheng urged Zhao Erlang, "Didn’t I give you the report on adding tables and seats at the county government long ago? Why hasn’t it been approved yet?"
Zhao Erlang replied, "I did approve it."
Zhao Zheng turned to look at Yu Zhubu, who was not far away, engrossed in eating, "Yu Zhubu, then why hasn’t it been purchased?"
Yu Zhubu looked up, expressionless, and said, "There’s no money in the warehouse."
He tried to hold it in but couldn’t help it, so while gripping his chopsticks, he restrained himself and said, "There are too many notes approved by the County Lord, and they’re currently queued according to their priority. The note for adding tables and seats to the county government is at the end."
Actually, Yu Zhubu himself very much wanted to handle this matter immediately, as it was primarily to improve the conditions of the county government. He couldn’t keep letting the County Magistrate and County Officer eat with them squatting, right?
But every day, when he took the sorted notes to Zhao Erlang for confirmation, he always removed this one, saying, since there’s no money, these non-urgent matters should be put on hold.
So it was kept on hold, while many other notes approved after it moved ahead, leaving it and the note for repairing the county government’s roof at the end.
By the way, originally, there were tables and seats for the County Magistrate and County Officer to sit and eat, but due to recent external activities, such as matchmaking events, selling shops, houses, and land within Luoyang City–especially the recent rush to buy and consult about the ruins in the inner city, which clogged the county government and occupied a lot of its office space, making even the people who needed to conduct basic business at the county government hesitate to enter.
So Zhao Zheng asked to move these matters outside to the plaza, and the stalls almost circled along the walls of the county government. They lacked enough tables and benches, so the tables and seats originally used for dining were also taken outside.
Once they’re moved outside, moving them back in becomes difficult again.
So, for over a month, Zhao Erlang and Zhao Zheng have been eating with the government officials in the side courtyard of the county government.
Zhao Zheng took a deep breath and asked Zhao Erlang, "Since funds for this can’t be allocated, why did you approve the note?"
"Sister said, anything that should be done, approve a note for it," Zhao Erlang took a bite of the bun. After thinking it over, he added, "But Sister also said, county matters should be prioritized by urgency; those concerning life and death of civilians come first, then livelihood, followed by economy, and self-needs last, so it’s ranked last. It’s not me being reckless."
He seemed very reasonable and well-justified.
Zhao Zheng let out a deep sigh and said, "Alright, we’ll set aside the matter of tables and chairs for now, but shelves and book boxes can’t be delayed any longer. County government documents are increasing, and now there is no place to store them. It takes significant time to find old cases each time, so we need shelves and book boxes for categorization."
Zhao Yong said, "I’ve approved the note for that too."
Yu Zhubu clutched his chopsticks, gritting his teeth, "There’s no money in the warehouse~"
Zhao Zheng told Zhao Erlang, "You shouldn’t have handed all the tax collected by the county government to the Great General; we had indeed agreed to set aside some for our own use."
Zhao Erlang was guilty, "But Sister is having a hard time; she’s almost brought to tears."
Zhao Zheng was frustrated, would Zhao Hanzhang cry?
Even if she cried, would it be over money?
That’s all deceit, County Lord, can’t you be more mature?
Zhao Zheng silently stared at him, and Zhao Erlang, feeling uneasy, said, "Then, then shall I go back and ask Sister to allocate some money?"
Zhao Zheng finally smiled, "County Lord knows the bigger picture, so we’ll wait for the good news from you."
Yu Zhubu also let out a breath.
Zhao Erlang felt an immense pressure; the bun in his hand no longer tasted good.
Seeing his bun-eating speed decline sharply, Zhao Zheng felt balanced and cheerfully said, "County Lord, you should have the Great General appoint a County Magistrate, you’re the County Magistrate now, how can you handle the responsibilities of a County Magistrate too?"
Beside him, Yu Zhubu nodded in deep agreement.
Zhao Erlang ignored him; he very much liked the work of a County Magistrate and once considered handing the position of County Magistrate to Zhao Zheng, then becoming the County Magistrate himself, with Yu Zhubu as County Magistrate.
But he knew that was impossible. His sister would never agree, and if she found out he was shirking county affairs onto Zhao Zheng...
Zhao Erlang shuddered, recalling the faint pain of being thrown down by his sister last time.
Seeing his silence, Zhao Zheng turned to Lv Hu and said, "I left the documents the County Magistrate needs to handle today on the table; make sure to read them to the County Lord."
Zhao Erlang: "It’s already time to leave the office; I... I have to go home and accompany Mom for dinner."
Zhao Zheng’s gaze fell on the basin in front of him, then to the bun in his hand.
Zhao Erlang finally couldn’t eat anymore, set down the bun and said, "I was just tasting and padding my stomach, the people we caught still need to be interrogated."
Zhao Zheng grinned at him, "No problem, I have to work late tonight anyway, we can do it together."
Why does the county government provide everyone with dinner?
It’s not because the county government has great benefits, but because it’s too busy. Only by providing meals will everyone voluntarily stay and work overtime.
Yu Zhubu had finished eating and got up, leaving expressionless.
This wasn’t his first time in office; during Emperor Hui’s time, he was the Chief Clerk of Yongzhou. However, due to the famine in Yongzhou, life was unbearable there, and he resigned and returned to Luoyang.
The Yu Family wasn’t large but was still considered an aristocratic family. His rank back then was set at sixth tier. Therefore, after some planning when he returned to Luoyang, he found a small official post. Later when Luoyang fell, he was one of the minor officials left behind with the former emperor to defend the city. He didn’t move with the former emperor when the capital was relocated, staying behind until Zhao Hanzhang appointed him as the Chief Clerk of Luoyang County.

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