Chapter 95 Place
It is quite a long way from Chang'an to Zhuo County. Especially along the way, Li Jiancheng was almost always stopped and treated to banquets by old friends and acquaintances in every prefecture and county he met. If he had not had a deadline for taking up the post, it is likely that Yang Guang would have arrived in Zhuo County two or three years later while Li Jiancheng would still be on his way.

At the beginning, there were not many people who blocked the road to hold banquets, but after the news spread, it became more and more serious. Even local nobles who were not familiar with him would wait for him on the official road, giving him wine and gifts, just to meet him once.

There is a feeling that you don't have to worry about having no friends on the road ahead, because everyone in the world knows you.

There were clearly only dozens of carriages when they left Chang'an, but by the time they reached the border of Zhuo County, there were more than 200 carriages. They were equipped with everything needed for food, clothing, housing and transportation. The fur blankets for keeping warm alone filled seven or eight carriages.

Seeing their husband like this, the accompanying family servants were all proud of him. They held their heads high and looked very dignified. If they changed their clothes and were let out, they would probably be mistaken for the sons of a noble family.

Li Xiaogong rode back and said, "Brother, all the officials from Zhuo County are waiting in front."

Li Jiancheng nodded and said to Li Jin beside him: "Control the servants below, especially those who have just arrived, and don't let them handle important items."

"Yes, I will arrange it right away."

Some sent gifts, and of course some sent slaves. Because Xiao Chanyan was accompanying them, those people did not dare to send beautiful women, for fear of offending the Queen's niece. They only sent dozens of maids with good appearance and etiquette as a token of their appreciation, and the rest were male servants with some skills.

Some are good at cooking, some are good at brewing wine and making tea, and some are good at training dogs and keeping hawks. In short, they are not ordinary people.
Li Jin was the son of a high-ranking official in the Duke of Tang's mansion. His family had been loyal servants for four generations, so he was given the surname Li.

Four or five miles away, officials of Zhuo County, led by the county magistrate of Zhuo County, were waiting for the arrival of the new prefect, followed by many representatives of local wealthy families.

The lower officials ordered the servants to slaughter sheep and chickens, boil tea and make wine, and set up screens and couches. Whether the prefect would stop here to eat and eat was one thing, but if they did not arrange it in advance was another.

"Our new governor has made a lot of noise along the way."

"The noble son of Wuchuan Li, a trusted minister of His Majesty when he was in the palace, I don't know what he was thinking, he actually condescended to serve in our small place."

"Have you received the letter from Lord Dou?"

"I received it. The family elders also warned me repeatedly that I must be respectful and not be smart. If I displease the governor, he will open the ancestral hall and expel me from the family."

"I also received a letter, but it was not from Lord Dou, but from my uncle, saying that he and the governor were close friends and asked me to treat the governor as my own father."

After the communication, everyone knew that this was not an ordinary Liushui prefect, but a living ancestor.

Soon the grand carriage came into view, and everyone's eyes were mainly on the guards. After just a few glances, their waists bent a little more and the smiles on their faces became more humble.

Li Jiancheng and Li Jing rode forward, and the county magistrate Huang Ju led the crowd to greet them and salute: "We have been looking forward to seeing the governor and the commander for a long time."

Li Jiancheng dismounted and greeted them with a smile: "I have been delayed on the road for a few days. I am sorry to have kept you waiting for so long."

Everyone said they didn't dare, and then they came forward one by one to report their official titles and names. Li Jiancheng also had a general impression of them, and then he met with local gentry and elders, and was even more polite to them.

Their arrangements were not in vain, as they sat in the open air, chatting and drinking with everyone. Li Jiancheng pulled Li Jing and several older heads of aristocratic families to sit on the couch, while the rest of the people could only sit on the spot with some cushions.

He ordered his servants to take down a few jars of fine wine from the carriage and said to everyone with a smile: "Before I left, His Majesty specially rewarded me with two carts of royal wine. I had originally planned to get drunk with you all after I took office, but along the way, my close friends and confidants hosted banquets, so I had to share some. Now there are only a few jars left that I hid earlier, and I hope you all will not think it is too little."

An old man from the Fanyang Lu clan stroked his beard and said with a smile, "My dear, you are too polite. We are fortunate enough to have the honor of tasting the imperial wine today. How dare we complain about it being too little?"

After he spoke, everyone expressed their opinions one by one. The county magistrate, who was nominally second only to the prefect Li Jiancheng, only spoke in the middle. Obviously, this was the true status ranking of Zhuo County.

During the time of Qin Shihuang, the Fanyang Lu family had the famous Doctor of the Five Classics Lu Ao, and Doctor of Astronomy Lu Sheng. Later, in the Western Han Dynasty, there was Lu Wan, the Prince of Yan. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was Lu Zhi, who was respected as a model of scholars, the pillar of the country, and the Confucian master of Han. Many great figures emerged from the Fanyang Lu family, and each generation was a leader.

Of course, no matter how prominent a family was in the past, as long as it did not integrate into Guanlong in the Sui Dynasty, it would be severely suppressed. The Lu family was like other aristocratic families, and most of their children were farmers and scholars, and few of them took up official positions.

But even so, when Li Jiancheng, the local governor of Guanlong, arrived, the head of the Lu family had no intention of coming to greet him. He just sent an older man over to show his respect.

Moreover, he has never served in the government and only has a seniority, but the arrogance of his aristocratic family is clearly revealed.

Li Jiancheng was unhappy in his heart, but he did not show it on his face. Instead, he had a very pleasant conversation with the man.

In addition, there are the Zu, Liu, Dou, Cui, and Zhao families, who have been prominent and distinguished for hundreds of years, but are more disciplined than the Lu family. The people who come are either the patriarch or the eldest son of the main line.

She cut off a piece of roasted ribs that was emitting a charred aroma and had someone send it to Xiao Chanyan. She had also had a hard time along the way.

After eating and drinking, everyone took a walk in the woods, and waited for the servants to pack up before moving camp to Ji County, the seat of Zhuo County.

In fact, compared with Zhuo County, Li Jiancheng still prefers the name Youzhou, but unfortunately it is not his turn to make the decision now.

Ji County is far inferior to Chang'an and Luoyang, but looking at the world as a whole, it is still a big city with high walls and strong guards, but the city is rather dirty and messy.

But it was inevitable. Li Jiancheng was not picky about this. He just frowned as he looked at the ragged people in the distance. If even Ji County was like this, the situation in the other counties would only be worse.

Seeing Li Jiancheng frowning, the county magistrate began to complain. Things were originally relatively good, but since the start of conscription for labor service, the young and strong men in several counties were transferred away to dig canals. Without young and strong men to farm the fields, naturally everyone in the county had poor food and clothing.

Representatives of several major families also hinted that they could discuss with the court and, since the expedition to Goguryeo was not going to happen this year, slow down the progress and allow the young and strong to return to farm and support their families first.

Li Jiancheng shook his head and said, "To be honest, His Majesty has specifically instructed that the canal belonging to our Zhuo County must be dug on time."

"Hey."

After all, they are all local noble families, and they don't want to see such a situation both publicly and privately. How can they expect anything good when the common people can't survive?

...............

(End of this chapter)