Walking the Path of a Workaholic in Cliché Novels (QT) Chapter 89

On the official day of his resignation, An Yinong secretly packed his bag under the dark windy sky and wrapped himself in a thick coat. He had arranged an inconspicuous carriage and parked it in someone else’s backyard. Then he climbed over the wall, ready to leave quietly.

However, after he looked around and saw no one, when he carefully climbed over the wall…

“Mr. Magistrate! Mr. Magistrate is here!”

An old lady yelled, and within a few seconds more than a dozen people rushed over, and the number of people kept increasing, all holding torches, pushing An Yinong to the top of the wall, leaving him in a dilemma. He was so careless that he didn’t expect an old lady was guarding the door.

Gu Zhengzhong also stood on the wall, covering his face with a fan, with no intention of saving them. An Yinong laughed awkwardly: “It’s so late, everyone is still awake?”

“I knew that our master would definitely want to leave secretly without telling us.”

“Sir! Not only did you not allow us to hold the banquet, but how could you sneak away?” An old man said with great sorrow.

“That’s right, sir. You said you’ve been here for three years, how can you leave empty-handed? If you leave empty-handed, where will the face of our Dingsha County be? Others will think that our Dingsha County can’t even produce a decent specialty.”

“That’s right, you should lead the cow.”

“If not, lead the sheep.”

“My fellow villagers, don’t be polite. I have a salary.” An Yinong quickly refused. If someone didn’t know him well, they would think he was a bully who robbed the herdsmen because he was leading cows and sheep.

“Then take some meat with you. Look at your body, you are like a little chicken. You need to eat more meat and drink milk.” The old lady in the crowd shouted. They had selective amnesia and had forgotten the achievements of their own county magistrate in suppressing bandits.

An Yinong’s sneak attempt was ultimately unsuccessful and was condemned by the general public. They said that if the county magistrate refused to take away the gifts they had sent, he would never be able to leave Dingsha County.

Gu Zhengzhong, who was the one who should have protected him the most at this time, was standing in the crowd and laughing. Even the master Wei Menfang and Tian Shouwei were holding swords and watching him being surrounded by the enthusiastic crowd. As for the yamen runners…oh, let’s not talk about them anymore. They are helping the tyrant! In the end, An Yinong had to accept some fruits and vegetables, but not the herds of cattle and sheep.

There were also three umbrellas with names written all over them. He didn’t know what the umbrellas of other places looked like, but on this umbrella, the handwriting of each name was different, and many of them were obviously written by someone who had just picked up a pen for the first time.

Wei also said that there were some “green forest masters” secretly protecting them. These people admired the magistrate’s character and wanted to send him to Jiahu safely at all costs. An Yinong had a hard time persuading these righteous men to go back.

“Thank you, fellow villagers. Don’t see me off. Let’s go back now.”

The people from Dingsha County escorted him for three miles. After that, An Yinong hid in the carriage alone and did not let anyone in. He really couldn’t bear to see this scene. He was a tough guy and it wouldn’t look good to cry when he left, but he really couldn’t help it.

After calming himself down and casting a ‘healing halo’ on himself to erase any traces, An Yinong lifted the curtain and asked seriously how long it would take to get there. The coachman, the guard and the doorman pretended not to notice that his eyes had turned red just now.

“If you go directly, you’ll be there in three days.”

An Yinong returned to the carriage and took out several books from the box. They were maps of the climate and geographical conditions of several other counties in Xizhou, as well as some complicated power relationship maps in the local area. There were also notes from another person on the booklet, which were some situations that An Yinong had not noticed.

As his fingertips touched the familiar handwriting, a smile spread from the corners of his eyes.

“If you can exercise a little more restraint, it will be perfect.” He held his aching waist. Even the healing aura could not cure him. He was in such pain. Recently, An Yinong didn’t dare to flirt with Gu Zhengzhong. He was so scared.

The carriage moved slowly along the dirt road. There were no trees or farmlands on either side, only desolate land with no one cultivating it. The caravans passing by on the road had no idea that this simple team of only two small carriages was the new prefect’s team. They were all rushing to the center of Xizhou, hoping to get a place in the trade.

Each county in Xizhou also wanted to grab a location and hoped that the trade fair would be set up at their doorstep, and they were all trying to find people to build connections. The more they acted like this, the more cautious An Yinong became: the trade fair was a matter of great importance, he had to find the most suitable location and not be easily swayed by emotions.

“No one stipulated that I must complete the appointment within three days.” An Yinong, disguised as a traveling scholar, gently waved his folding fan. In this early autumn weather, in the northwest, only silly scholars from the Central Plains would wave their fans.

He served as a county magistrate for three years and was exposed to the wind and sand for three years, but he still looked like a fair-skinned scholar, and there was no sense of incongruity in wearing a turban and a blue shirt.

“I want to trouble Uncle Zhong to go ahead, and we will catch up later.” The carriage was carrying the umbrellas, several cages of rabbits, golden eagles, cats and dogs, and various local specialties. At first glance, he did not look like a traveling scholar, so he asked the coachman to drive a carriage over first. He also gave Uncle Zhong some documents proving his identity and taught him how to accommodate the animals in the car.

An Yinong did not take the dairy cows raised in Dingsha County with him, but had asked a caravan to transport them to Jiahu. The location was close to the largest freshwater lake here, with abundant resources, and the grass there grew well, making it very suitable for raising dairy cows. Dingsha had started to cultivate rubber grass in large quantities. The price of sealed cans would drop in the future, and then they will be able to produce some dairy products.

After Uncle Zhong left, there was only one car and three people left in the team. Master Wei the doorman said that he could temporarily take over the position of driver.

“Taking this route, we will pass through Pingqiu, Baisha, Zhanghua, and finally arrive at Kingswood City.”

He had a simple map of Xizhou in his hand. The whole area was in the shape of a long and narrow dough stick. Except for Jiahu, other areas had borders. However, he still had to investigate which place was most suitable for setting up a trade market.

“The trade fair is a node that must take into account national security, transportation convenience, supporting facilities, cooperation of local residents, etc.”

Security could be a secondary condition because Empress Qi has promised that she will send ten garrison camps after the establishment of the trade fair. So many garrisons required a lot of space, so the best place for trade was a county town that could produce a large amount of food and had sufficient land.

As a result, Dingsha County was the first to be eliminated. Dingsha County used to be the poorest place in the entire Xizhou because there was too little available land and food was always in short supply. That was why An Yinnong had to vigorously develop herbal medicine and rubber grass planting.

Second, transportation. Once the trade fair was established, merchants from the northwest, not to mention the whole country, would come to visit, so there needed to be ready-made convenient transportation. He couldn’t just build a road, how long would it take to build?

Although cement was now available, it was expensive and it was not realistic to build roads on a large scale. The ‘Pingqiu’ with inconvenient transportation was thus eliminated.

“The only ones left are Baisha and Zhanghua. Baisha is close to Tianze Lake, and Zhanghua has convenient transportation.” He couldn’t make up his mind for a moment, “It seems that I still need to conduct a field investigation.” Having made up his mind, An Yinong changed his route and prepared to visit all these counties.

His first stop was Pingqiu, which was similar to Dingsha County in terms of land area and population. He felt as if he had returned to when he arrived at Dingsha three years ago.

“If it is this kind of environment, we can follow the route of Dingsha County. The economic animal can be changed to the Rex rabbit, which can be used for meat and skin, and eats grass.”

After bidding farewell to Pingqiu, An Yinong went to Baisha. Like Jiahu, Baisha had a piece of land next to the largest freshwater lake in Xizhou, Tianze Lake, and was known as the land of fish and rice in the northwest.

Therefore, it was obvious that the residents of Baisha were much richer than those in other places. They could support themselves by fishing, farming, and raising livestock, and they had no sense of survival crisis. But also because of this reason, the proportion of businessmen in Baisha County was not high, and the locals were somewhat condescending and exclusive towards outsiders.

It’s would be fine to set up a trade market in such an environment, but it was still lacking in humanities. An Yinong turned his gaze to Zhanghua. Zhanghua’s jade mines and merchants were very famous. He didn’t know what surprises or shocks it would bring him.

There wer so many businessmen in Zhanghua that it could be regarded as a commercial city. The closer he was to Zhanghua, the stronger this feeling becomes. From time to time, he could see caravans on the repaired road, some with a dozen people or even more than a hundred people, with groups of camels and horses in the caravan.

An Yinong observed for a few days and selected a medium-sized caravan. This caravan had about 50 to 60 people, riding more than 20 camels and horses, and they were selling spices, dried fruits, meat, and furs. An Yinong stopped the car to ask them about their business, and asked in Mandarin if he could go with them.

He claimed that he was going to Zhanghua to visit relatives. An Yinong looked gentle and refined, his every move and gesture showed the demeanor of a noble man, and he was also a juren (as he called himself), so the caravan was willing to give him a ride.

“From the direction you came from, sir, you are from Baisha County?” The bearded businessman invited him to eat barbecue.

“You’re too polite, boss.” An Yinong took the skewer of barbecue. “I did come from Baisha County, but I didn’t go to Baisha County first. I went to Dingsha County first and tried the Dingsha Snow Beef.”

“Alas, it’s a pity that I didn’t get to eat it, but I did get to eat the discarded marbled beef, and it was indeed tender. I wonder how delicious the authentic marbled beef is.” An Yinong spoke as if it were true, with a look of longing in his eyes.

“What about Dingsha Snowflake Beef? What’s the difference between the original cattle in Dingsha County and our Zhanghua’s? It’s just that the current Snowflake Beef was made thanks to the Magistrate Tian who can turn stones into gold.” The businessman said sourly.

“Ever since the Dingsha Snowflake Beef came out, the cattle from Dingsha County have become 50% more expensive than ours. Humph, aren’t they the same cattle? Adding the three words Dingsha County makes them more valuable?”

“Yes! And succulents. Did the heroic sons and daughters of the desert specify the succulents from Dingsha County? What if he came to our Zhanghua to look for the ‘lover’s grass’? Why should the succulents from Dingsha be three cents more expensive?” The young man, who was probably the son of a businessman, complained while eating meat.

“Is that so?” An Yinong tapped his palm with his fan. “What good things does Zhanghua have? To be honest, I came out to find my relatives and to gain more experience.”

One wouldn’t know it until they see it. It turned out that the merchants outside have been jealous of Dingsha county for a long time. The ‘culprit’ An Yinong looked ignorant and criticized the unreasonable pricing together with the Zhanghua merchants.

As the saying goes, ‘As long as you complain about Dingsha with me, we are half-brothers’. An Yinong was quickly accepted by Zhanghua’s caravan, and even the address was changed from ‘shopkeeper, sir’ to ‘Brother Hu, Brother Tian’. The merchant even took out his treasured wine and offered it to An Yinong.

He sat on the edge of the car with his legs hanging naturally, admiring the reed-like plants in the sunset and drinking wine, feeling a sense of freedom and happiness. An Yinong suddenly remembered the poem he had written called “Hometown in My Dreams”.

He found an ocarina from the carriage and started playing it. The sound of the ocarina was deep and long, with a hint of melancholy and yearning, and as free as the wind. The people in the caravan stopped and looked over here.

“What is that, brother Tian?” The businessman stroked his beard. “Even a rough fellow like me is confused by it.”

“Homeland.” An Yinong said with a smile.

After the businessman left, Gu Zhengzhong appeared beside him, spread out his black sleeves, and gently embraced him.

An Yinong leaned in his arms, sniffing the faint fragrance, closing his eyes: “It’s so good now, I have a cat, a dog, and a golden eagle. And you… I have everything I want.”

“There will be more in the future,” Gu Zhengzhong promised in a low voice.

The sun hung in the western sky like a huge egg yolk. The merchants were cooking dinner, and they also gave An Yinong a portion. He took it and glanced casually across the soup bowl, only to find a special vegetable.

“Is this beet?” He pointed at the red plant mass inside. Judging from the texture, it was clearly beet that could be used to make sugar.

“Beets? No, these are kohlrabi,” the soup man said. An Yinong’s heart was pounding. Beet was also called kohlrabi in some places. Its roots looked a bit like radish, fat and thick.

Sugarcane was a commodity he had wanted to try for a long time, as it had high profits and high consumption. However, there was no sugarcane in the northwest, and it was impossible to grow sugarcane, so all his hopes could only be placed on sugar beets. However, he had never eaten beets in Dingsha County for three years and always thought that this thing had not yet been introduced.

“Brother Hu, is this kind of turnip a unique vegetable in Xizhou?” He came to the merchant with a bowl of soup.

“Oh, it’s the big red head. That’s not it. Merchants from the northwest brought it here two years ago. We planted some because it tastes good and is easy to grow.”

“No wonder, I didn’t eat this kind of food in Dingsha before.”

“That’s right!” When the word Dingsha was mentioned, the merchant overreacted. “Dingsha County is just lucky, waiting for a good county magistrate. Its products are nothing compared to our Zhanghua.”

An Yinong just smiled and listened. It seemed that the rise of Dingsha County had brought a lot of pressure to the surrounding counties. Following the caravan, they arrived at Zhanghua County the next day. Zhanghua County looked much better than Dingsha County three years ago, and the gate was more imposing. However, the soldiers at the gate were lazy and looked listless.

An Yinong looked at them a few more times and said, “Brother Hu, why are the soldiers guarding the city yawning?”

“They went to gamble.”

After the businessman’s introduction, An Yinong realized that Zhanghua also had a big local family that could mobilize a thousand strong thugs at a single call.

“Shen is in the south, Zhao is in the north. The Shen family mainly deals in horses and spices, and they have close contacts with the foreign tribes. The Zhao family was originally a military one, and they run their own casinos and brothels. His family has a ‘Xiaoyao Pavilion’, which makes a fortune every day.”

“Horses and spices are fine, but opening a casino or a brothel requires a special license from the government, and ordinary places can’t even get one. Where did he get so many licenses?” An Yinong was very curious. Even if these two things were not completely banned like in modern times, they were still strictly controlled. How come they were so prosperous here?

“Whether there is a certificate or not, who would check it? Even the county magistrate doesn’t dare to do it. Not everyone is like the Dingsha county magistrate, who would not even raise an eyebrow when a knife is placed on his neck.”

The businessman looked around and reminded, “Brother Tian, you must be careful not to cause trouble on the Zhao family’s territory, otherwise, I’m afraid something bad will happen to you.”

“Is that so? Fortunately, Brother Hu reminded me, otherwise I would have gone in without knowing anything.” An Yinong said gratefully.

The businessman was embarrassed: “You are too polite, brother. Brother Tian is a juren. They dare not do anything to him.”

The two were talking and waiting to enter the city when they suddenly heard the sound of horse hooves.

“Make way.”

The people waiting to enter the city subconsciously separated to both sides, and the team became chaotic. An Yinong was pushed by someone and almost fell down.

“Whoa–” A black horse stopped in front of him. An Yinong looked up and saw a tall and thin young man standing against the light. Then a bent whip touched his chin and he looked at him without blinking.

“Hey, who is this handsome young man? Why are you going to the city? Do you want to visit my home?”