The Daily Life of a Rich Peasant's Boy in the Imperial Examination

Chapter 1252: Lantern Festival Thrills (3)

Sun Shan was relieved to confirm that no civilians were injured.

So he said, "Move most of the men to the city gates and conduct a thorough inspection before letting them pass. The remaining men will continue patrolling to prevent the three thieves from having accomplices."

As for the three thieves who were caught, due to lack of manpower, they will be detained first and will be tried tomorrow.

Although the inspection office's functional positioning is subordinate to the county government, in actual operation it has both local security management and military functions and has a certain degree of autonomy.

It is usually held by local powerful people and can also be hereditary.

What ordinary people and businessmen fear most is the Inspection Office.

If you offend the county magistrate, the worst that can happen is that you behave yourself for a few years and outlast this term's magistrate, and your mission will be accomplished.

But if you offend the inspector, you will be in trouble. Not only will you suffer for the rest of your life, but your descendants will also have to suffer.

Inspector Liang was the local tyrant in Yuanlu County, second only to County Magistrate Wang.

Sun Shan initially thought about how to divide the power of the two people and prevent them from colluding with each other.

However, for some reason, the fact is that Sun Shan and County Magistrate Wang are in cahoots with each other, and Inspector Liang's voice is greatly reduced.

He usually asked Inspector Liang to do things actively, fearing that Sun Shan and County Magistrate Wang would plot against him.

Inspector Liang is very responsible in daily patrols during major holidays.

On the contrary, Xia Dianli and his subordinates gave Sun Shan even more headaches. Their fighting ability was even inferior to that of the Sun family guards.

Originally, Sun Shan’s right-hand man should have been Xia Dianli, but now it is Liang Xunjian.

Whenever there are any public security incidents, Sun Shan usually relies more on Inspector Liang.

Inspector Liang immediately accepted the order: "Yes, sir, I obey your command."

So Inspector Liang quickly arranged personnel, with some yamen runners and fully armed soldiers patrolling, and most of the yamen runners and fully armed soldiers guarding the city gates.

As for the Sun family guards, they were transferred to the prison to keep a close watch on the three thieves.

Master Zhang stepped forward quietly and whispered, "Master, why don't you go to the city gate too? The people will feel much more at ease with you around."

Master Zhang did this to strengthen Sun Shan's role as a "stabilizing force" in the hearts of the people.

Now that they are in danger, the county magistrate has stepped forward to share the difficulties with the people. This will greatly enhance Sun Shan's prestige and make it easier for him to do things in the future.

As an official, if you don’t market yourself, how can you let the people know that you are a good official?

The style of working hard and doing things in obscurity is no longer popular. You must leave traces so that the people know clearly what you have done.

At this moment, the people are in a state of panic, and the master should stand upright like a pine tree so that the people can rely on him.

Sun Shan frowned. He had thought about this problem a long time ago, but he had always been afraid of death. It would be unreasonable to lose his life just to show off.

We have discovered three thieves now, and maybe we will discover three more thieves later.

What if you are killed by a thief’s knife during a fight?

If he were an ordinary official, he might not be so unlucky, but Sun Shan, who was poisoned by eating crucian carp, felt that he might really be chopped.

For safety reasons, Sun Shan was not willing to share the joys and sorrows with the people.

Because it was the middle of the night, Master Zhang couldn't see Sun Shan's expression clearly.

He continued to weigh the pros and cons, saying, "Tonight is the Lantern Festival. The people are usually happy, but encountering something like this will surely cause them to panic. Master, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You standing there will be like the dazzling moon in the sky, calming the people's anxiety."

Your prestige will reach an unprecedented height, and selling guano fertilizer in the future will also be easy. Master, you must become the golden signboard of Yuanlu, letting the people blindly follow you, so that you can do things well. "

This is the truth, and Sun Shan understands it.

But it’s really dangerous outside. What should I do if I get hit by a thief when I go out?

Sun Shan thought about it for a long time and hesitated.

When he met Master Zhang's eyes, which were clear yet cloudy, he felt inexplicably guilty.

He had no choice but to say, "Master Zhang is right. It is indeed time for me to show up at this time."

Zhang, the lawyer, was overjoyed and said excitedly, "Okay, Master, let's go quickly. Otherwise, if we're late, the people will misunderstand you as a coward."

Sun Shan: ...

When Sun Dali and Gui Ge'er heard that Sun Shan was going to guard the city gate, they immediately arranged for security, sending seven or eight guards to surround Sun Shan tightly.

Sun Dali said solemnly and seriously, "When we leave the government office, you must closely protect the master's safety. If necessary, you must block the knife for the master. Do you understand?"

The Sun family guards immediately shouted, "Captain, we heard it."

Sun Shan said, "Da Li, go and knock out the three thieves in the prison, so they can't escape while we're outnumbered."

Who knows who these three thieves are? What if they can escape underground? What if they take advantage of the shortage of manpower to escape?

To be on the safe side, it’s better to knock the three thieves out first.

As for accidentally killing someone, just kill him.

How can a person who carries a knife and injures a yamen runner be a good person?

Sun Shan had already decided in his heart that these three thieves were unforgivable criminals.

So Sun Dali led Big Head Dog and others to the prison and knocked the three thieves unconscious.

He said to Big Head Dog and the others, "You must keep a close eye on them and not let them escape."

Big Head Dog raised his rolling pin high and said, "Uncle Dali, don't worry, we will keep a close watch on you."

Nanny Wang and Madam Xia each held a large pot and spoon high in the air, confidently saying, "Don't worry, Dali! With us here, those three thieves won't be able to escape!"

Due to the shortage of manpower, the kitchen was also requisitioned.

Nanny Wang and Mrs. Xia were on high alert, thinking that if the three thieves woke up halfway, they would hit them with a pot and spoon, causing them to remain unconscious.

As for Master Zhang and Steward Wang, one was lame and the other had back pain, so they both went away. Coming here would not only be of no help, but would even make things worse.

Sun Shan hurriedly led his guards to the city gate, and sure enough, it was a mess.

Crowd A shouted loudly: "I want to go out, I want to go out, I want to go home, if I don't go back, my father and mother will come looking for me."

It's obvious that he is the treasure of the family. It's rare for him to go out alone, but he encountered such a thing. His family must be very worried.

Crowd B followed suit and shouted, "Sir, please let me out! It's dangerous in the city. I don't want to stay here."

Even though I didn't know what happened, I knew from seeing the chaotic escape just now that I couldn't stay here for long and I had to leave.

Crowd member C continued to shout, "Open the door quickly! I don't want to die. I don't want to be chopped to pieces. There are bandits in the city. I don't want to stay here."

Witnessing the process of the yamen runner being hacked by the thieves, the people's heads were buzzing. Fortunately, they ran fast, otherwise they would have been hacked by the thieves as well.

The crowd cried out, "I don't want to die. I want to go out. Old man, if you go early, I can't die..."

There were waves of shouting, one after another, mixed with the crying of the little boy and the little girl.

There was a commotion at the city gate, which made everyone even more panic-stricken.