The news caused a sensation in Jiangnan. To be precise, it wasn't just the common people of Jiangnan who were in an uproar, since for them, the news was less interesting than what new gadgets the academy had come up with. But for the scholarly families of Jiangnan, which had a history of hundreds of years, it was a cause for great excitement!
King Chen Qing of Qin has a polarized reputation in Jiangnan. Ordinary people admire him greatly. When Jiangnan was plagued by zombies, it was Chen Qing who led the Fighting God Army like a god descending from the heavens to save them from their suffering. It was also Chen Qing who rebuilt Jiangnan, ensuring that almost everyone had enough to eat and wear, and lived a life that even the rich could not have imagined before.
Who doesn't envy the lifestyle of people in Jiangnan these days?
In Jiangnan, even the rice and flour that people don't want after selling are in high demand elsewhere. The fine wines and teas that farmers in Jiangnan can afford are things that even spending money might not guarantee outside. Even the clothes worn by people in Jiangnan are so coveted that noblewomen in the capital would fight tooth and nail to get their hands on them. Nowadays, everyone in Jiangnan lives with their heads held high and lives with the utmost dignity. All of this is thanks to Prince Chen Qing of Qin. The reputation of Prince Chen Qing among the people is no less than that of any deity.
However, there was a group of people who were extremely dissatisfied with Chen Qing, and that was the scholar class who once held absolute power in Jiangnan!
Chen Qing brought a life to the people of Jiangnan that was far superior to that of other regions in the Central Plains, but the privileges of the scholar class declined sharply. The rise of Neo-Confucianism and engineering caused many scholarly families who focused on cultivating their descendants to fall behind and be trampled on by the peasants they once looked down upon.
The rise of array formations and engineering techniques has diminished the advantages of traditional families that inherited these techniques. Instead, many young men who managed household affairs or even from the common people have risen above them, transforming themselves into the most respected sorcerers in Jiangnan.
This caused great dissatisfaction among the former scholar class towards Chen Qing. They even gathered several times to complain and curse him. However, because Chen Qing had such high prestige among the people, even though these scholars were skilled writers and wrote eloquent articles to criticize Chen Qing, they were still despised by the common people and even physically attacked. Many scholars had experienced the iron fists of the common people. After several such incidents, no one dared to curse Chen Qing in public anymore.
Even so, there was still some resistance in secret. For example, some were initially unwilling to exert themselves or serve as officials, but later, unable to withstand the hardships of life, they reluctantly became administrative officials, thinking to Central Plains, "No matter how capable you, Chen Qing, are, you still need our help to govern the country."
But the harsh reality shattered their initial illusions; many only discovered after entering officialdom that the status of civil officials in Jiangnan was unprecedentedly low!
The common people admired soldiers and sorcerers more, but they didn't really look at these hardworking administrators with respect. They were all diligent in their pursuit of political achievements, but they didn't get the status they deserved.
The academy students who were chosen to replace officials were mostly people with poor aptitude for science and practical skills, who were forced to study management. To put it bluntly, they were the ones who were eliminated. If these people became the successors of civil officials, how good could the status of administrative officials be?
As a result, the former county officials became disheartened and resigned one after another.
The newly appointed regent, whose status was far inferior to that of the proper sorcerers in the academy, became increasingly less motivated.
Liu Xie was in this state as he walked down the street.
Liu Xie is now the governor of Luming County, Liuzhou. Since taking office, he has been very proactive, going to great lengths to bring in a female scholar specializing in species improvement to study the white deer unique to Luming County. Now, the newly produced forest white deer in Luming County have officially become the officially designated military cavalry breed. The income of deer farmers in the county has increased significantly, and the situation of poor farmland and low per capita wealth in Luming County has been resolved.
But when Liu Xie walked down the street, all he heard were praises for his senior sister, and almost no praise for himself. After accomplishing this great task, Liu Xie was confused for a long time and began to question himself: what was the point of running around as an official for a year?
In the past few months, he's started to slack off and become lazy. He figured no matter how well he did, no one would even notice, so why be so hard on himself?
The same thing happened again that day. He finished work early, bought a fresh fish, and planned to steam it at home as a side dish with his drinks. If he was quick, he might even be able to enjoy the sunset.
But as he was carrying the fish and humming a little tune on his way home, he saw his father, whom he hadn't seen for six months, and his uncles and aunts.
He was taken aback. This was the first time he had ever encountered such a large group of relatives visiting. His family had opposed his taking the position of regent, but he insisted on coming. After being scolded by his father, they stopped exchanging letters. Why was he here today with so many relatives?
Are they trying to expel themselves from the family register? Surely not?
After instructing the cook to put the fish away, he quickly washed his hands and hurried to the main hall to pay his respects to the elders.
"Father, uncles, what is the occasion today?"
The middle-aged men in the hall exchanged glances, their gazes finally settling on Liu Xie's father, Liu Wenlong. The man who bore a striking resemblance to Liu Xie coughed lightly and said, "We came to this county government hall intending to pay our respects to the county magistrate, but we've learned that he has already resigned?"
"Yes," Liu Xie replied cautiously, "Mr. Mu resigned half a year ago, and my son has been handling the affairs of Luming County for the past six months."
"Oh?"
Upon hearing this, all the elders' eyes lit up. A middle-aged man who looked even older than Liu Wenlong asked, "Then, nephew, have you taken over the position of county magistrate?"
Liu Xie was somewhat puzzled; why were these elders suddenly so concerned about this matter?
Despite his doubts, he honestly replied, "Uncle, after Mr. Mu resigned, no new county magistrate was appointed. I have been handling all the government affairs. Last month, a special person came to assess my performance, and I received an excellent rating. If nothing unexpected happens, I should be taking over as the magistrate of Luming County."
"Good, good, good!" Several elders clapped and laughed upon hearing this, even their usually stern father couldn't help but show a satisfied smile.
"Well done," Liu Wenlong rarely praised.
"Father?" Liu Xie was somewhat bewildered. His family had been strongly opposed to his entering politics. After all, they had gone to great lengths to send him to the academy, only to have him eliminated and choose the path of a regent. How could he not disappoint his father?
But he had no choice. The study of Confucianism is something that you can't master if you don't study it thoroughly, no matter how hard you try. You can't just keep struggling with it. In the end, he had no choice but to give up and choose this path. When his elders found out, they criticized him harshly, and his father was so angry that he almost kicked him out of the house.
After taking office, he worked diligently, hoping to achieve something and gain his father's approval. However, after half a year of hard work, although he had made some achievements, the current social atmosphere in Jiangnan and the lack of respect for officials left him disheartened. He was even too ashamed to go back home for the New Year. Unexpectedly, a group of elders came to see him personally and praised him.
Seeing the confusion on his son's face, Liu Wenlong sighed, knowing that his silly son probably hadn't received the news yet. Fortunately, the boy had a strong will, otherwise how could his family have had such an opportunity?
Thinking of this, he was filled with mixed emotions. His son's stubbornness back then, his frustration at his son's lack of ambition, and now this sudden joy, all evoked extremely complex feelings in him.
Then, the uncle who had just asked the question excitedly recounted the recent rumors.
Upon hearing this, Liu Xie nearly lost his balance. He staggered, and his uncles quickly rushed forward to support him.
Uncle, where did you get this information?
"It's being spread everywhere!" Uncle exclaimed excitedly. "You know, our Lord King of Qin is always extremely strict about controlling rumors, but this time, he hasn't come forward to deny it, so it's probably true!"
"From now on, the City God Underworld will be selected from among the outstanding civil officials of various regions!"
"This... this..." Liu Xie stammered, finding it difficult to breathe.
The City God Underworld is a very important department of the Divine Path. Whether one worships the Mountain God or the Battle God, who wouldn't offer incense and candles to the City God?
After all, everyone who dies falls under the Underworld!
"The southeast has just been conquered, with nine prefectures and hundreds of counties. There's a severe shortage of Underworld to govern the underworld. It's said that in the next few days, capable administrators from Jiangnan will be selected to go to the southeast to govern the Underworld!"
"Coco, I haven't received any messages," Liu Xie said, puzzled after calming down.
How could those directly involved be completely unaware of such a major event?
Just as I was wondering about this, I heard a call coming from the doorway again.
Is Liu Xie, the assistant administrator of Luming County, here?
Liu Xie was stunned for a moment, then his heart jumped into his throat!
He recognized the voice; he would never forget it.
That was the voice of Chen Ying, the dean of the Jiangnan Academy!