eurekapd Chapter 100 Let's take a look around the government office while we're there.
Chapter 100 Let's take a look around the government office while we're there.
"Wow—ya—oh~~~"
Having never experienced such stimulation before, He Yuejiao couldn't help but shout excitedly. She gripped the fish fin handholds in front of her tightly, her eyes constantly fixed on the clouds that they had left behind.
Wow, this time I really felt like I was in the sky. The white clouds were like giant cotton balls, so close that I could see them clearly through the transparent protective shield.
"The sky is so beautiful! Sister Bai, where are we going? Are we going to the government office?"
He Yuejiao discovered that with the protective shield inside, their speech and movements were completely unaffected by the outside world, giving them a strong sense of security.
"Yes, just before Steward He arrives at the yamen, I have some other things to take care of there."
So let's head over there now, and once I'm done with everything, I'll show you around properly~
As Bai Mengran spoke, she realized that her tone sounded like she was coaxing a child, and she couldn't help but find it amusing.
To be honest, having such a simple-minded, lively, and adorable girl as a companion on the journey has indeed made things much more lively.
Before long, Bai Mengran saw the familiar houses and buildings of Taoyuan Town appear below them. Their mounts did not slow down at all and went straight to their destination.
Upon arriving at the government office, the koi carp did not descend but hovered above the chosen destination, awaiting the command to "land".
"Jiaojiao, we've arrived. Get ready to land!"
Bai Mengran spoke up first to remind her, lest she be startled by a sudden descent.
"Ah, oh, good..."
Sitting in the back seat, He Yuejiao experienced a variety of emotions during the short few minutes that the mount was flying through the air, from amazement to doubt to daze.
From initial excitement to gradual doubt, she became unsure if she was dreaming and felt completely disoriented.
Hearing Bai Mengran's voice, she gradually regained her senses.
Ah, all of this is real; what she just experienced wasn't a dream!
Immediately, she felt her altitude rapidly decreasing. Although she could see them falling quickly, she felt no fear whatsoever, as if she were a light feather drifting down from the sky.
The feeling of dismounting was even more wonderful. After Bai Mengran chose a good spot and clicked "Dismount," the mount gently lifted the two of them onto the ground, saving them the trouble of climbing down from the mount themselves.
So the moment her feet touched the ground, the feeling of being grounded gave He Yuejiao a strange sense of unease, as if her feet, having been in the air, had become somewhat disconnected from reality.
The two instinctively started marching in place, and although no one was shouting slogans, their movements were surprisingly synchronized.
The two guards standing at the yamen gate were stunned. Why were these two girls suddenly training at the yamen gate?
Bai Mengran hadn't expected the two to react so perfectly in unison. The coincidence was almost embarrassing, so she quickly controlled her legs and pretended to walk a few steps casually.
Then, as if nothing had happened, he smiled slightly at one of the gatekeepers and politely inquired.
"Brother, I've come here to inquire about renting some public land in our town. I'd like to know what the procedure is and who in charge of this matter should I contact?"
Lu Wei was taken aback. This was the first time he had ever seen someone come to the yamen to inquire about this matter, and he couldn't answer the question for a moment.
He paused for a moment, then turned to another constable and asked, "Yuan Fang, what do you think?"
Caught off guard by the sudden onslaught of memories of her death, Bai Mengran turned her head to look at the yamen runner named "Yuanfang," wondering if this "Yuanfang" was the same "Yuanfang" as before.
The young yamen runner called Yuan Fang looked somewhat green and immature, appearing to be quite young and rather thin.
Seeing that Brother Lü and the two girls were all looking at him, Yuan Fang felt quite nervous.
He scratched his head, thought for a moment, and said, "We should first go to the clerk's office to find the clerk in charge of the relevant matters, discuss and conduct an on-site inspection, and then have the registrar record it, and then hand it over to the county magistrate and the county assistant magistrate for a decision."
Although Yuan Fang was not as physically imposing as Lü Wei, he was quick-witted and could be considered the "wise strategist" among the yamen runners.
Therefore, he was assigned to take turns standing guard at the entrance with Lü Wei, so as to answer inquiries from people who came to the yamen to handle business or resolve disputes.
Seeing that Yuan Fang answered so methodically, Bai Mengran couldn't help but glance at him again, thinking to herself, "Could it be that people who come up with this name are all a bit smarter...?"
He then politely said to Yuan Fang, "Then I'll have to trouble you, young yamen runner, to show me the way to the clerk's office."
Yuan Fang glanced at Lü Wei, and seeing that he gestured for her to lead them inside, she agreed and led the way.
Bai Mengran pulled He Yuejiao along and quickly followed.
The interior of the yamen (government office) was somewhat similar to a modern company office area, divided into different areas according to functions.
The outermost part consists of the main gate of the county government office and the screen wall in front of it. The screen wall is often used as a warning, while the main gate symbolizes the entrance.
After entering the main gate is the front area, which includes the ceremonial gate and the tax and labor service offices and the guest quarters on both sides. The ceremonial gate is usually closed and is only opened for important events such as the magistrate taking office.
The central area is centered around the main hall, which is the main venue for handling major cases and other official business. The six departments on the east and west sides of the main hall are responsible for different administrative functions.
The second hall behind the main hall was where the county magistrate conducted his daily work and heard general civil cases. The side courtyard to the left of the second hall was the office of the county assistant magistrate.
The three halls in the rear area were the magistrate's private residence and where he handled confidential and sensitive matters...
Bai Mengran opened the map and walked around, referring to it as she went, which also served as a side trip to visit the ancient county government office.
However, she didn't have a chance to go inside to the second or third hall. Yuan Fang led them to wait outside the clerk's office for a while, and then he went in first to greet the clerks on duty.
After hearing Yuan Fang explain the purpose of their visit, the clerk was also unsure what to do, so he invited Bai Mengran and the other person inside first and inquired about their intention to rent the public area.
When the clerk learned that she was going to launch something called "Shared Bicycles," he had never heard of it before, but his intuition told him that this was no small matter.
He then asked Bai Mengran and the other woman to sit down and rest for a while, while he hurried to the back hall to report to the two officials.
At this moment, County Magistrate Kong Wenfeng, County Assistant Shen Peian, and Clerk Xiao were discussing measures to increase revenue and benefit the people.
Every year, the imperial court conducts a detailed and rigorous assessment of each county, which is related to the ranking of the county magistrates, so that the county magistrates dare not be careless in their work.
Kong Wenfeng was also very troubled by this. Yongle County's ranking was always neither high nor low. Although it was not at the bottom and would be punished, he still hoped that it would be good to move up a little.
The three of them discussed the same old ideas every time, and couldn't come up with anything new.
Upon hearing that someone from the clerk's office had something to report, Magistrate Kong summoned him directly.