Chapter 44: Appointment of Military Officers (Please add to favorites and keep reading)

After reading the letter.

Wei Tu felt a sense of surprise. Back then, the four brothers had collectively resisted Prefect He, deciding not to join the Martial Fortune Pavilion, which had caused them considerable pressure.

Now that they had already offended Prefect He, joining the Martial Fortune Pavilion... would inevitably seem somewhat unwise.

"Then why did Fu Zhizhou bring it up? Could it be because... the elders of the Martial Fortune Pavilion are asking too high a price..."

After much deliberation, Wei Tu felt this guess was the most plausible.

Every batch of Martial Xiucai (military scholars) consisted of the elite of a county with bright prospects. If the Martial Fortune Pavilion weren't asking too high a price, other Martial Xiucai wouldn't have joined this great martial sect only to become a thorn in the side of the government.

"Trying to play both sides will surely lead to disaster. No matter how high the Martial Fortune Pavilion's price is, I will resolutely refuse!"

Wei Tu steeled his resolve.

After finishing the letter, Wei Tu pondered for a moment before throwing the letter delivered by Fu Zhizhou into the charcoal brazier, destroying it instantly.

...

The next day.

Wei Fei came knocking, and the two spent half a day plotting.

First, they unified their stance on refusing the Martial Fortune Pavilion. Then, they discussed the matter of the "Letter of Appointment" for a short while, deciding to bring gifts together to visit Jian Liang, a clerk in the household department, to inquire about some inside information.

It had been seven or eight days since the two had changed their military status, yet they had not yet received their "Letter of Appointment" from the county magistrate's office.

Compared to previous years, this timing was somewhat late.

While preparing the gifts, Wei Fei noticed Wei Tu's financial distress and suggested that he would buy both sets of gifts this time. Once Wei Tu's salary as an official was issued, Wei Tu could treat him to a grand feast, and they would be even.

Hearing this, Wei Tu did not insist on his own way. After thanking Wei Fei, he accompanied him to the West Market of the county town to purchase the gifts.

Thus.

The two each bought three catties of mutton, two catties of pork, and several boxes of pastries, and went to Jian Liang's home to pay a visit.

Seeing the generous gifts, Jian Liang was easy to talk to and immediately revealed the reason why the county office had been delaying their appointments.

"Brother Wei is a second-class Martial Xiucai. According to the custom of previous years, you should be granted the position of Yasi (Registrar). This is a miscellaneous official position, a civil role within the military that does not hold a formal rank, but in the regional army, it is considered a good post—one where you won't be exposed to the wind or the rain..."

"And Brother Wei is a third-class Martial Xiucai. Although the position granted to you is not as high as Brother Wei's, you will still receive a military envoy position for rewarding merit and punishing faults."

"But now..."

At this point, Jian Liang shook his head and pointed toward the direction of the prefectural capital.

"Have you two brothers offended some big figure in the prefectural capital?" he asked in a lowered voice.

Clerks are permanent, but officials are transient.

The Jian family had been hereditary clerks in Qingshan County for generations. Although they were not a wealthy family in the county town, their connections were deeply intertwined, and they did not fear the high-ranking officials in the distant prefectural capital.

Therefore, Jian Liang spoke without much hesitation.

"Offended someone?"

"Neither of us has offended anyone."

Wei Tu and Wei Fei had already suspected that Prefect He was suppressing them on their way here, so they had prepared their excuses in advance.

As they spoke, they played dumb.

Seeing this, Jian Liang immediately understood. He nodded secretly and pointed out a clear path for Wei Tu and Wei Fei.

"The regional army of Qingshan County is managed by County Lieutenant Xu. His wife has always been greedy for wealth. Brother Wei and Brother Wei just need to find Steward Liu at the Xu residence and offer some money."

"However, that money is only to ensure the two of you receive your Letters of Appointment. Whether the specific positions will be Registrar or Military Envoy is harder to say," he said.

Upon hearing this.

Wei Tu and Wei Fei immediately expressed their gratitude to Jian Liang. Wei Fei then took an ingot of silver from his pouch and pressed it into Jian Liang's hand.

"Thank you, Brother Jian, for pointing us toward a clear path."

Wei Fei bowed in thanks.

Having someone in the yamen made things easier.

Without the path Jian Liang pointed out, even if they had sent gifts, they would have struggled to find the right way in.

"We are all colleagues. Today I help you two, and in the future, you will help me." Jian Liang laughed and pressed the silver ingot back into Wei Fei's hand.

"I will accept the gifts, but there is no need for the silver," he added.

...

Leaving the Jian residence.

Wei Tu and Wei Fei decided not to delay. They hurried to the jewelry shop in the county town, selected gifts, and then arrived at the Xu residence where County Lieutenant Xu resided.

After bribing Steward Liu of the Xu residence, the two of them had him deliver their selected gifts to the Lieutenant's wife.

That afternoon, they received confirmation. Madam Xu told them to wait at home, and the Letters of Appointment from the county office would be issued shortly.

Thus.

The next day.

While Wei Tu was practicing his post-standing exercises at home, he received the Letter of Appointment delivered by a soldier of the regional army.

He opened it to look.

The words "Military Commander" (Dujunshi) were written in large characters on the letter.

"The appointed position has dropped by one level. This must be the county office's response to the prefectural office; they cannot truly ignore Prefect He..."

Wei Tu mused.

Only a third-class Martial Xiucai would be granted the rank of "Military Commander."

He was a second-class Martial Xiucai; the position granted to him should have been at the "Registrar" level.

"The appointment is secondary. The county office cannot delay indefinitely. Prefect He's true suppression of the four of us is regarding our promotions..."

Wei Tu sighed inwardly.

For those like them who participated in the military examinations and achieved academic merit, Martial Xiucai were highly sought after in the local regional army. Once appointed as miscellaneous officials, their promotion speed was not slow.

Within ten years, one could hope to become a ninth-rank official.

Within twenty years, one could hope to become an eighth-rank official.

But because of Prefect He's interference, if they had no other chance in this lifetime, they would be stuck at the bottom of the regional army until death, with no hope of promotion.

Even if Prefect He were transferred away from Qingfeng Prefecture a year from now, it would be of no use.

In the system, if you do nothing, you cannot make a mistake.

There were still old acquaintances of Prefect He in the Qingfeng Prefecture officialdom. Therefore, even if Prefect He's influence faded after his departure, the little remaining prestige he held could still suppress Martial Xiucai from humble backgrounds like them, preventing them from ever rising to prominence.

"But... I am different."

"As long as I pass the next provincial military examination and become a Wujuren (Military Graduate), the officialdom of Qingfeng Prefecture will not be able to suppress me!"

Wei Tu's eyes flashed with brilliance as he struck a willow tree in the courtyard, splitting it in two with a single palm strike.

The provincial military examination grants official positions.

The top scorer of the military examination is granted a seventh-rank military position, equal to the rank of a County Magistrate.

The top twenty are granted eighth-rank positions, equal to the rank of an assistant official in a county office.

Once he perfected his Life-Nurturing Skill and cultivated internal qi from the outside in to enter the Realm of Sensing Qi, ranking in the top twenty of the military examination would be no difficult task.

"I will endure for three years first."

Wei Tu walked into the house and asked Xinghua to carefully preserve his Letter of Appointment.

"Military Commander..."

"Brother Wei, you have finally made something of yourself."

Seeing the Letter of Appointment, Xinghua's reaction was different from Wei Tu's; she did not know the intricacies of military official ranks.

"Yes, I have made something of myself."

Seeing the smile on Xinghua's face, the resentment in Wei Tu's heart vanished by more than half, and his mindset returned to calm.

Yes, he had suffered suppression from Prefect He.

But compared to last year, his status and class had clearly leaped forward significantly, and his life had undergone a heaven-and-earth change...

There was no need to dwell too much on these small matters.

After all, he possessed the "Late Bloomer" destiny. In a few years, he would be able to turn the tables again. Dwelling on these trifles would serve no purpose other than to cause himself distress.

(End of Chapter)