After reading the letter.
Wei Tu was somewhat surprised. Back then, the four sworn brothers had stood together against Prefect He and decided not to join Wu Yun Tower, weathering no small amount of pressure.
Now that they had already offended Prefect He, joining Wu Yun Tower after all... would inevitably seem rather unwise.
"Then why did Fu Zhizhou specifically mention this? Could it be because... the elders of Wu Yun Tower offered too high a price...?"
After turning it over in his mind, Wei Tu felt this guess was the most credible.
Each class of Martial Scholars was the cream of a county, with bright futures ahead. If Wu Yun Tower had not offered an exorbitant price, the other Martial Scholars would not have joined this great Martial Way sect and become thorns in the government's eye, flesh in its side.
"Those who sit on the fence will surely invite disaster. No matter how high Wu Yun Tower's offer is, I will refuse it without hesitation!"
Wei Tu steeled his resolve.
After reading the letter, Wei Tu pondered for a short while, then tossed the letter Fu Zhizhou had sent into the brazier and destroyed it on the spot.
The next day.
Wei Fei came to visit and conspired with Wei Tu for half the day.
First, the two aligned their stance on rejecting Wu Yun Tower. Then they discussed the matter of the "appointment certificate" for a while and decided to bring gifts together to visit Jian Liang, the clerk of the household registry office, and inquire into some inside information.
Seven or eight days had passed since the two had changed their martial registrations, yet they had still not received their "appointment certificates" from the County Yamen.
Compared to previous years, this was somewhat late.
When they were buying gifts, Wei Fei saw that Wei Tu was short on money. He suggested buying double the gifts himself this time, and once Wei Tu received his salary after taking office, Wei Tu could treat him to a fine feast and call it even.
Hearing this, Wei Tu did not stubbornly insist otherwise. After thanking Wei Fei, he went with him to the western market of the county town to buy gifts.
Thus.
The two each bought three jin of mutton and two jin of pork, carried several boxes of pastries, and went to Jian Liang's home to pay him a visit.
Seeing the generous gifts, Jian Liang proved very easy to speak with and immediately revealed why the County Yamen had delayed granting them official posts.
"Brother Wei is a Second-class Martial Scholar. By the usual practice of past years, he should be appointed as a Yasi. This is an unranked miscellaneous post, a civil position in the military, but it is still considered a good assignment in the garrison troops—safe from wind and rain..."
"And Brother Wei Fei is a Third-class Martial Scholar. Though the post granted to him would not be as good as Brother Wei's, he could still receive the position of a military envoy who rewards merit and punishes wrongdoing."
"But now..."
At this point, Jian Liang shook his head and pointed in the direction of the Prefectural City.
"Have you two brothers offended some great figure in the Prefectural City?" he asked in a lowered voice.
The clerks were forged from iron, while officials flowed past like water.
The Jian family had served as hereditary clerks in Qingshan County. Though they could not be considered a wealthy and powerful household in Qingshan County Town, their connections ran deep and tangled. They did not fear officials from the distant Prefectural City.
Thus, Jian Liang spoke with few reservations.
"Offended someone?"
"The two of us have never offended anyone."
Wei Tu and Wei Fei had already suspected that Prefect He was suppressing them before they came, so they had long prepared their excuse.
As they spoke, they played dumb.
Seeing this, Jian Liang immediately understood. He secretly nodded and pointed Wei Tu and Wei Fei toward a clear path.
"The garrison troops of Qingshan County are all temporarily overseen by County Lieutenant Xu. County Lieutenant Xu's wife has always been greedy for money. Brothers Wei and Wei Fei need only find Steward Liu at the Xu Residence and send some money."
"However, that money will only ensure that appointment certificates are issued to you two. Whether your actual posts will be Yasi or military envoy positions is hard to say."
He said.
Hearing this.
Wei Tu and Wei Fei immediately thanked Jian Liang. Wei Fei then took a silver ingot from his money pouch and pressed it into Jian Liang's hand.
"Many thanks, Brother Jian, for pointing a clear path out for the two of us."
Wei Fei bowed in thanks.
With someone in the yamen, matters were easier to handle.
Without the path Jian Liang had pointed out, even if the two brought gifts, they would have struggled to find the right door.
"We are all colleagues. I help you two today, and you two will help me in the future." Jian Liang chuckled and returned the silver ingot in his hand to Wei Fei.
"I'll accept the gifts. There's no need for the silver."
He added.
After leaving the Jian residence.
Wei Tu and Wei Fei decided that sooner was better than later. They hurried without stopping to a jewelry shop in the county town, selected suitable gifts, and headed to the Xu Residence, where County Lieutenant Xu lived.
After settling matters with Steward Liu of the Xu Residence, Wei Tu and Wei Fei had Steward Liu deliver the gifts they had selected to County Lieutenant Xu's wife.
That very afternoon, the two received definite word. Madam Xu told them to wait at home; before long, the County Yamen's appointment certificates would arrive.
Thus.
The next day.
Wei Tu, who was practicing Stance Training at home, received an appointment certificate delivered to his door by a garrison soldier.
He opened it and looked.
The certificate bore three large characters: "Capital Military Envoy."
"The appointed post has dropped by one grade. This should be the County Yamen's response to the Prefectural Yamen. They cannot truly ignore Prefect He..."
Wei Tu pondered.
Only Third-class Martial Scholars would be granted a martial post at the level of Capital Military Envoy.
He was a Second-class Martial Scholar. The martial post he should have received was at the level of Yasi.
"The official post is secondary. The County Yamen cannot delay forever. Prefect He's true suppression of the four of us lies in promotion..."
Wei Tu sighed inwardly.
For Martial Scholars like them, who had taken the martial examinations and earned their titles, the local garrison troops considered them prized morsels. After being appointed to miscellaneous posts, their advancement was not slow.
Within ten years, they had hope of becoming ninth-rank officials.
Within twenty years, they had hope of becoming eighth-rank officials.
But because of Prefect He's interference, unless they found an opportunity, they could only remain at the bottom of the garrison troops until death, with no hope of advancement.
Even if Prefect He were transferred away from Qing Feng Prefecture a year later, it would still be of no use.
Within the system, if one did nothing, one made no mistakes.
There were still Prefect He's old friends and former associates in Qing Feng Prefecture's officialdom. Thus, even if people left and the tea grew cold, his remaining trace of influence could still suppress Martial Scholars from poor households like them, ensuring they would never rise above the crowd for their entire lives.
"But... I am different."
"As long as I place on the next provincial martial examination and become a Martial Graduate, Qing Feng Prefecture's officialdom will no longer be able to hold me down!"
A sharp light flashed in Wei Tu's eyes as he struck the willow tree planted in the courtyard with one palm, snapping it in two.
When provincial martial examinees were granted official posts.
A Martial Arts Examination Top Scholar would receive a seventh-rank martial post, equal in rank to a county magistrate.
Those in the top twenty would receive eighth-rank posts, equal in rank to the assistant officials of a County Yamen.
Once his Health Cultivation Technique reached perfection, allowing him to cultivate inner qi from the outside in and enter the Qi Sensing Realm, placing within the top twenty of the martial examination would be no difficult task.
"First, endure for three years."
Wei Tu entered the house and had Xinghua carefully put away his appointment certificate.
"Capital Military Envoy..."
"Brother Wei, you've finally risen above the crowd."
Xinghua's reaction upon seeing the appointment certificate differed from Wei Tu's. She did not understand all the twists and turns behind martial official appointments.
"Yes, I've risen above the crowd."
Seeing the smile on Xinghua's face, the gloom in Wei Tu's heart abruptly dispersed by more than half, and his state of mind returned to calm.
Yes, Prefect He had suppressed him.
But compared to last year, his status and social standing had already risen by a great deal, while his life had undergone earth-shaking changes...
There was no need to take such small matters too much to heart.
After all, he bore the Late Bloomer fate. In a few years, he would be able to turn things around once more. Dwelling on such trivial matters would serve no purpose except to make himself miserable.
Before you continue