Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 27

Chapter 27 Family with a Beautiful Wife (1)
Although Lu Zhen did not recognize any of the people in front of him, he could already determine a rough idea based on the positions of these people.

People always pay attention to seniority ranking, which is particularly prominent in the official circles. The position of attending the banquet, the sequence of walking, and so on, could fully reflect the identities of each person. Judging from the positions of these fellows, it could be inferred that the skinny man in his fifties was the second in command of the county government, Hou Xiancheng, and the black-faced man who was about forty years behind him should be Shen Zhubu.

“Sir, you’re back” A few officials in the county government cupped their hands in surprise, but Lu Zhen felt that it was a little strange.

As far as he knew, although Hong Wu had set up a system whereby officials were allowed to stay in the yamen when the country was founded, this was not in line with human considerations. Thus, Zhu Yuanzhang was deliberately ignored as soon as he was founded, and few people even mentioned him afterwards. But now, there were actually so many people in the yamen, and it was still in the middle of the night. It was really strange. But very quickly, he realized that it was the disappearance of County Magistrate Lu that caused everyone to feel uneasy, so they stayed in the yamen waiting for news.

Sure enough, after the greeting, the few of them welcomed him into the door and began to inquire and care about his situation with all sorts of tongue and tongue. Evidently, the disappearance of the magistrate of a dignified county for a few days was a huge matter for the people of this yamen.

Facing everyone’s concern, Lu Zhen merely cupped his hands and vaguely said, “Thank you for your concern. I … because my head was injured by the rocks, I’m still unconscious. There are many things that I can’t remember clearly.”

“Ah” Everyone was shocked when they heard this. Only then did someone discover the damage on Lu Zhen’s body with the little light of the lantern. They knew that he had encountered some difficulties, but they didn’t know how to greet him for a moment.

In fact, these people weren’t very familiar with County Magistrate Lu. He had only been in office for two to three months, and for some unspeakable reasons, there was still a big gap between them and this young County Magistrate. This time, it was only because the matter was too big that he had to pretend to be in the yamen.

In the end, only the county magistrate said: “The county magistrate seems to be really shocked, then let’s rest for a few days, when the body recovers, then it’s not too late to say anything else.”

“Yes, as long as the county magistrate can come back.” Shen Zhubu nodded and said. Seeing that the two of them had said this, the others could only nod their heads.

Although Lu Zhen felt that it was a little strange, he didn’t break it and said yes. In order to cover up the flaws in his body, he naturally kept a low profile as much as possible. He pushed some questions to the point of bruising his head, and then made a plan.

As they spoke, everyone walked around to the height of one person. It was about thirty feet long. On the side facing the door, there were a lot of notices posted. Lu Zhen glanced at them and knew that they were the sentences, notices, and even the official documents used by the government to inform the people below. However, it was not clear at night.

Bypassing the wall, there were two simple and crude pavilions on the left and right. There was also a monument inside each pavilion. Although he couldn’t read the words clearly, Lu Zhen knew their names very quickly based on his memories of history-the Declaration Pavilion and the Striking Goodness Pavilion. The former was used to punish evil, while the latter was used to promote good. The stone stele was inscribed with the name of the person who committed evil and did good.

Above them, there was a large arch. It was the Zhonglian Arch that was used to express the officials’ position. This was not a chastity arch that could be seen elsewhere. It was also the regulation of the county government.

Then, a grand hall appeared in front of Lu Zhen. This made his eyes light up. This was the main hall used by the county government to publicly hear cases.

Different from the plot shown in the movies and TV dramas in the later generations, the real people-friendly judge was not in the most dignified hall, but in the second hall behind. Only when they encountered serious cases or needed to educate the people under their control would the local officials open their ranks and try the cases in front of many people in the lobby. Generally speaking, such a case might not happen once every few months.

Lu Zhen was excited as he watched the details of the yamen’s architecture that he could only imagine through documents and materials appear in front of him, and his eyes were even more shining with excitement. Especially when they arrived in front of the Second Hall, they saw the piece inscribed with the instructions of the Great Ancestor, “Er Feng’er Lu, people’s fat and ointment; the people are easy to abuse, and the heavens cannot bully them.” He was even more refreshed when he saw the Ring Stone.

Everyone stopped and greeted Lu Zhen a few more times before they dispersed. This time, they did not return to the public house where they had been resting, but instead went home from the government office. Since the county magistrate had returned safely, there was no need for them to stay here any longer.

As they watched the others disperse, the footsteps of Hou Xiancheng and Shen Zhubu stopped. The two of them thoughtfully exchanged glances, and the latter whispered, “Has Lord Xiancheng seen anything?”

After rubbing his beard, Hou Xiancheng said, “This county magistrate is indeed a bit strange. Although he looks like our county magistrate Lu, his hesitant and concealed appearance is worth pondering.”

“Missing for three days is no small matter. What do you think we should do?”

“Let’s wait and see. The current situation in the county is better with one more thing than one less thing.”

Shen Zhubu furrowed his brows in frustration, but he still nodded in the end, “Just like Lord County Cheng said, pretend you don’t know anything.”

Accompanied by the two servants, Lu Zhen, who continued to walk inside, did not know that he had been noticed by others as soon as he arrived and was still smiling proudly. At the same time, thoughts flashed through his mind. What could he do to truly make everyone accept the somewhat different county magistrate Lu?

Thinking of this, he had already passed through the office area of the Second Hall and arrived in front of a one-man high courtyard wall. This was the boundary between the front and back offices. As a county magistrate, he naturally had to stay in the yamen all the time, so he set up a back office to accommodate himself and his family.

Lu Zhen didn’t have any doubts about this, but strangely, a handyman handed over the lantern in his hand and said, “Eldest Master, take your time. The little one will go back now.”

“Huh?” Lu Zhen glanced at each other strangely. He didn’t understand why the two of them didn’t send their magistrate back to his room.

Just when it was strange, a light lit up in the darkness. Then, a charming-looking girl of fifteen or sixteen appeared in front of him. “Master, you’re back …” Although her face was filled with joy, her tone was very calm.

Lu Zhen was stunned again, and then he realized that there were other women in the back office, so the two servants didn’t dare to approach casually. This man and woman’s defense was highly valued among the people, let alone within the government.

However, Lu Zhen had a headache at this moment. He didn’t know the relationship between this girl and the county magistrate Lu. How could he get along with her?

Just as she was hesitating, the girl said, “Master, what’s wrong with you? Madam is waiting for you inside. You haven’t come back these three days, but you’ve made Madam very anxious.”

“Ah …” Hearing her say this, Lu Zhen felt even more panicked. This county magistrate Lu actually had a wife? This matter became even more difficult to handle!

Because he was a transmigrator, his idea was always to preserve his knowledge after several hundred years. He believed that since this county magistrate with the same name and surname was about the same age as him, it was naturally impossible for him to have any wife or children. However, he had clearly forgotten that the ancients married much earlier than the people of later generations. Normally, they already had wives at the age of fifteen or sixteen. How could he still be single in his twenties?

In this world, apart from parents and children, the husband and wife were the closest people. No one could fool the eyes of their closest relatives. Not to mention that Lu Zhen knew nothing about County Magistrate Lu, he only knew a little. As long as he came into contact with his wife, the other party would be able to see through the flaws.

This knowledge made Lu Zhen unconsciously think of running away, so his footsteps naturally stopped.

The girl, who was leading the way with a lantern, noticed that he hadn’t caught up. She stopped and turned around strangely, “Master, what are you doing?”

“I thought it was so late, so I’d better not disturb madam.” Lu Zhen had no choice but to find a lame excuse. In fact, there was already a flaw in it. No matter how late the husband and wife were, they wouldn’t be disturbed.

However, the young girl did not seem to notice the problem. She only said, “Madam has just received the news. She is waiting for Master inside. You should hurry up and come in.”

“Alright … Alright.” Lu Zhen sighed helplessly. He had no choice but to follow behind the other party and walk in. However, his footsteps became heavier and heavier. He did not know what to do at that time.

Once his identity was exposed by the wife of County Magistrate Lu, the trouble that followed would be too great. At this moment, Lu Zhen truly regretted his previous plan. How could he come up with such a bad idea?

However, even if they were to hesitate any longer, it was only a few steps from the courtyard gate to the inside. Very quickly, they arrived in front of a wing door. The young girl immediately stepped forward and greeted, “Young miss, Master, he is back.”

Due to guilt, Lu Zhen stopped in front of the half-closed door and didn’t say anything. He didn’t know what to say or do.

At this moment, a sweet voice came from inside, “Then let him in.”

“Master, hurry up and come in.” The girl also urged.

Lu Zhen took a deep breath and stepped into the room. He raised his eyes and looked ahead, his heart trembling violently, his eyes turning a little straight.

Because in the chair in front of him, there was a beautiful woman who was enough to make many men’s hearts race …

@ @ @ @

Passersby know that some students have some unspeakable special hobbies, so they have prepared such a plot for everyone. How about it, aren’t we considered to be considerate? Shouldn’t I show you something? ? ?