At dusk on the second day, Liu Daqiang and his companions drove a horse-drawn carriage and caught up with Zhu Ping'an and his companions. They had been traveling through wind and rain all the way, but the road was relatively peaceful. The Japanese pirates had just finished wreaking havoc, and the next wave was gathering momentum. This period of time was considered a lull in the Japanese invasion. On the morning of the sixth day, Zhu Ping'an and his companions arrived in Yingtian Prefecture safely without any trouble.
Zhu Ping'an was not unfamiliar with Yingtian. The imperial examinations and provincial examinations were all held in Yingtian. However, he was not a native of Yingtian after all. After arriving in Yingtian, Zhu Ping'an did not know where the Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office was.
Zhu Ping'an and his team asked three people on the street before they found out the location of the Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office.
Cross Moye Road and go north along Chuihua Lane to Dongshi Street. A yamen with awe-inspiring authority stands facing south on the street. In front of the yamen stands a huge stone tablet with the words "Zhejiang Tixing Ancha Si Office" engraved on it.
After finding the Zhejiang Provincial Judicial Inspection Office, Zhu Ping'an and his party found an inn nearby to stay temporarily.
After Zhu Ping'an took a bath in the inn, Hua'er helped him change into the official uniform of the Chief Justice.
"Hahaha... Clothes really make the man. Even a nerd like me who doesn't look good in photos can look decent to someone."
The demon girl Ruonan was just a bystander on the side. She held Zhu Ping'an's black gauze hat in her hand, and from time to time she reached out and pressed the hat brim twice to make it swing up and down. She circled around Zhu Ping'an, blinking her fox eyes and giggling.
Hua'er immediately glared at the evil woman Ruonan. What do you mean by not looking good? The son-in-law is so handsome, and the phrase "looking like a dog" doesn't sound like a good word.
Zhu Pingan reached out and rubbed Huaer's head, smiling slightly, "I don't make a living by my looks..."
Zhu Ping'an changed into his official uniform, settled Hua'er and others, and took Liu Mu and Liu Dadao downstairs to the Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office to take up their posts.
When the innkeeper saw Zhu Ping'an coming downstairs in his brand new official uniform, his attitude was so enthusiastic that it was hard to describe. Not only did he waive Zhu Ping'an and his party's room and meal expenses, but he also offered to upgrade their accommodation and meal standards free of charge. Zhu Ping'an repeatedly declined the innkeeper's kindness, saying that everything could go on as usual.
After bidding farewell to the enthusiastic shop owner, Zhu Ping'an brought Liu Mu and Liu Dadao to the Zhejiang Judicial Inspection Office again.
The Jiang Tixing Anchasi government office faces south and is very wide, more than twice as large as the Jingnan government office. Two towering trees with thick pillars stand on both sides of the government office, and the treetops cover half of the government office gatehouse. The gatehouse is tall, with flying eaves, and vivid roof beasts sitting on the ridge. Pieces of black tiles are inlaid on the top of the gatehouse like dragon scales, extending to the wall of the government office.
The main gate of the government office consists of three red-lacquered copper-nailed doors, and the door knockers are a pair of lions holding rings. In front of each door stands a pair of drum stones, with unicorns carved on both sides. In the ancient times when feudal hierarchy was strict, only government offices or residences with meritorious service could have drum stones.
On both sides of the gate are tall green brick walls, extending to both sides in an eight-shaped shape, giving off a majestic aura of Gao Ya.
"Sir, I didn't look carefully just now, but now I see that this Judicial Inspection Office is much bigger than our Jingnan Office. I feel a little scared standing in front of the door. If you weren't here, I wouldn't dare to stand in front of the door."
Liu Dadao stood in front of the gate of the government office, looking at the spacious and majestic yamen, and couldn't help but smack his lips in amazement.
"Nonsense, Jingnan County Government is a seventh-rank government office, and this is a third-rank government office, how can they be the same?" Liu Mu couldn't help but say.
"Haha, Dadao, you are officials now, so what are you afraid of?" Zhu Ping'an smiled slightly.
As he spoke, Zhu Ping'an climbed the stairs and took the lead to step forward.
Liu Dadao and the other man followed Zhu Pingan. Liu Dadao didn't notice the height of the threshold and stumbled. Liu Mu, who was standing next to him, caught him quickly. After he stood firm, Liu Dadao couldn't help but smacked his lips and said, "My God, this threshold is really high. It must be more than a foot high, right? With such a high threshold, aren't you afraid of tripping when entering the door?"
"What a loser." Liu Mu was speechless when he saw this.
"Ahem, the threshold is too high." Liu Dadao coughed and defended himself with a blushing face.
Zhu Ping'an and his party went up the stairs. A doorman at the gate heard the noise and came out to check what was going on. When he saw Zhu Ping'an in official uniform, he stepped forward and inquired about the situation. When he learned that Zhu Ping'an was the assistant magistrate of the Zhejiang Judicial and Surveillance Department and his immediate superior, he immediately became more enthusiastic and respectful.
When the other servants heard the news, they all came out of the gatehouse immediately to greet Zhu Ping'an.
They had known for months that a new assistant magistrate was coming to the government office, and they also knew that the new assistant magistrate was very young and a top scholar. So, when the doorman saw Zhu Ping'an, he knew he was right. He was so young and wore a fifth-rank official uniform, so he must be the new assistant magistrate.
"Please take a rest in the gatehouse for a while, sir. I will go inside to report." The first gatekeeper who came out invited Zhu Ping'an and his party into the gatehouse. "It's just that the tea here is a little bit crude, sir, please bear with it."
"No problem." Zhu Ping'an replied with a smile, "Please go and report it."
"Thank you, sir." Menzi was a little flattered and felt that this young sir was very kind.
When a doorman went inside to report, Zhu Ping'an chatted with other doormen without any airs.
During the casual chat with the doormen, Zhu Pingan intentionally learned about the situation of the Zhejiang Provincial Criminal and Provincial Surveillance Commissioner's Office. The doormen also told Zhu Pingan everything they knew. After a casual chat, Zhu Pingan had a certain degree of understanding of the government office.
At present, the chief officials of the Zhejiang Provincial Criminal Investigation and Supervision Office include one provincial prosecutor, two deputy provincial prosecutors, and three assistant officials. Of course, after I take office, there are four assistant officials. The provincial prosecutor, deputy provincial prosecutor, and assistant official are the "chief officials" of the provincial prosecutor's office. In addition to the chief officials, the office also has four "leading officials" including the experience officer, the governor, the examiner, and the inspector. The so-called leading officials refer to the leaders of the clerks, namely the experience officer, the governor, the examiner, the inspector, and the prison officer. The leaders are the experience department, the examiner office, and the prison officer. The experience department is responsible for collecting documents and investigating criminal names. It has one experience officer and one governor, and it has six offices under it: the household registration, the military, the criminal law, and the labor service. The examiner office is responsible for reviewing case files, and it has one examiner and one inspector. The prison officer is responsible for investigating prison affairs, and it has one prison officer.
The gatekeepers knew the number of clerks in the government office like the back of their hands. From their narration, Zhu Ping'an learned that there were 14 clerks, 28 clerks in the six rooms of the main hall, two clerks in the receiving and dispatching room, one clerk in the cabinet and warehouse, four clerks in the messenger room, one clerk in the experience office, four clerks in the grinding office, and one clerk in the prison office, a total of 55 clerks.
That is to say, there were more than 60 officials in the Zhejiang Provincial Criminal and Provincial Inspection Office. Of course, these did not include the doormen, jailers, and guards.