CHAPTER 456: CHAPTER 456: INVESTIGATION

The county magistrate stood at a distance, watching the group with great interest, intrigued by the sudden appearance of these people, but he did not interfere with the grain-selling activity.

After all, it was a good thing for the people and also good for him. If the people had grain, they would be less likely to cause trouble. On the contrary, he hoped that this person could stay in the town for a few more days, so he could also relax a bit.

"My lord," the government official Hu Hu beside him cupped his fists and asked, "Shall I go and investigate?"

Such a person suddenly appearing with a large amount of grain was somewhat puzzling, even though what they were doing was good. Even though Hu Hu was just an official, he couldn’t help but think more about it.

Liu Yongping nodded, "Quietly, find out where these people came from."

"Understood," Hu Hu nodded.

"Leave a few to patrol, and the rest of you can go line up," said the county magistrate. The opportunity was rare, and he naturally didn’t want his subordinates to go hungry.

Hearing this, Hu Hu was delighted. He arranged for two people to stay and protect the magistrate, and four to patrol. The rest hurriedly went to line up.

When the people saw the government officers lining up behind them, they hurriedly tried to give way, but Hu Hu waved his hand to refuse.

"Everyone line up where you are, don’t mind us."

Hu Hu was a well-known figure in Shanggu Town. Everyone knew him. Although his appearance seemed stern and unapproachable, he was a good person who did not bully the people or abuse his power.

Seeing him say this, those in the front didn’t move.

Sure enough, after limiting purchases, they persisted longer than before. Although some still didn’t get their turn, more people were served.

After handing the bought grain to his family, Hu Hu, along with two others, kept a distant watch on the owner of the ox cart. When they left, Hu Hu followed them with his men.

By the time they returned, it was already dark. Ignoring his hunger, Hu Hu rushed to report back.

"Back already, sit down," said the county magistrate, gesturing to Hu Hu, who was dusty from travel.

"Don’t rush, eat something first." Seeing it was late when they returned showed how hard they’d worked, so he immediately ordered food to be prepared.

A bowl of meat and vegetable porridge, along with a big steamed bun, was considered good food, the meat purchased by the magistrate’s men from the ox cart owner’s stall in the afternoon.

Hu Hu was indeed hungry. Without any hesitation, he sat down obediently and gobbled it up quickly.

"Sir, you would never guess where the owner of the ox cart came from..." Hu Hu began eagerly, meeting the county magistrate’s gaze.

"Are you saying it’s Hua Village under Qinggu Mountain?" The county magistrate pondered for a moment and then spoke.

"If I haven’t mistaken, it should be," Hu Hu replied.

He said "should be" because he was truly astonished by the tall wall outside Hua Village. If he hadn’t confirmed it multiple times and even touched it with his own hands, he would have thought he’d seen wrong.

He’s been a government official in Shanggu Town for years and knows almost all of the villages here. Hua Village wasn’t unfamiliar; he’d even visited it before. Though the terrain had changed slightly due to flooding, its general location should not have been wrong.

But... originally, Hua Village didn’t have such a high wall. The appearance of the wall at this time was indeed baffling, prompting him to rush back without staying long.

"Explain in detail..." Liu Yongping straightened himself up.

"It’s like this, sir..." Hu Hu then described his findings without embellishment.

"A new wall... undoubtedly," Liu Yongping was also surprised.

"None whatsoever, I’ve seen it clearly with my own eyes and even touched it myself," Hu Hu confirmed with a nod.

"Someone, come here..." Liu Yongping called out towards the outside.

"Sir," a distant voice responded, and a clerk entered.

"Go and see if the clerk responsible for managing the population register is still here. If so, have them bring the register to see me."

"Yes..."

Liu Yongping glanced at Hu Hu again, "Do you remember if anyone from Hua Village came to collect grain seeds over a year ago?"

Liu Yongping was busy with many things and had entrusted Hu Hu to oversee this matter, so he genuinely didn’t remember.

Hu Hu thought seriously for a moment, then decisively shook his head.

"Sir, if I remember correctly, they did not come. Hua Village is one of the larger villages in Shanggu Town. Though it is somewhat remote, they generally live well and have a large population. If they had come, I would have remembered."

"Go... ask if anyone has been to Hua Village over the past two years."

"Yes..." Hearing this, Hu Hu quickly got up and headed outside.

There weren’t many government officers in the residence, so it wouldn’t be difficult to inquire. However, at this time, other than those on duty, everyone else had gone home.

Hu Hu went outside, called someone, and had them summon the government officers back to the residence.

In a short while, the clerk responsible for the household register arrived.

"Sir, the clerk has arrived."

"Come in..."

"Clerk Sun Shangcheng, at your service, sir."

If Qin Dagen was present at this moment, he would surely recognize this person as the scholar who had sought government support over a year ago when they requested disaster relief outside the government office in the town.

Because he was diligent and a scholar, Liu Yongping had kept him on.

Liu Yongping signaled with his hand to indicate they should skip the formalities. "No need for formalities. I called you here to ask you to look for any entries for Hua Village in the previous year’s register."

"Yes, sir," Sun Shangcheng accepted the order, although he frowned and promptly began going through the register.

Ironically, because the town had received news of grain being sold today, many from the village came over and bought some. Hearing the ox cart owner would continue selling tomorrow, he’d decided to wait at the government office and spend the night there, so he could take leave and line up early. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to manage his recruit duties today. However, Hua Village, it seemed he had some familiarity with.

If his memory didn’t fail him, he heard the cart owner was from Hua Village.

Sun Shangcheng quickly flipped through the pages. Although fast, he examined each page carefully. After going through the thick register once, fearing he had overlooked something, he reviewed it again. Only when he still didn’t find the expected result did he slowly close the register.

"Sir, there are no records of Hua Village."

"Are you sure?" Liu Yongping took the register himself to go through it.

"I’m sure," Sun Shangcheng was confident in his abilities. Though he stopped at the level of a scholar, his observational and memorization skills were good. It was his lack of a knack for studying that was his downfall, though his family’s financial strain was the primary reason.

Liu Yongping went through the register himself but found no records of Hua Village, indicating they hadn’t sought government aid over a year ago.

While contemplating, Hu Hu’s voice resonated from outside again.

"Sir, I’ve brought the people."

"Come in."

Then Hu Hu entered with two government officials into the magistrate’s study.

"Sir," Hu Hu bowed, "More than a year ago, Li Sanwei brought supplies when they went to Hua Village."

The county magistrate looked toward the tall and short officials standing by Hu Hu. They were now paying their respects as well.