Raising chickens and pigs and digging for wild vegetables, the county magistrate's promotion wa

Chapter 90 Wow, what a powerful official you are!

Ningyang County itself is not very large. Of the so-called eight communities and sixteen villages, only Xihe Village, which originally belonged to Dongzhang Community, was less affected. The remaining seven communities and sixteen villages were all affected, and the beans in the fields were almost completely soaked.

Fortunately, Magistrate Yang had already thought of how to deal with the beans when it started to rain. Even if the people wanted to get the beans out of the field, it wouldn't be easy; the muddy ground alone was troublesome enough.

But as the famous decadent writer Mr. Deng Dangshi said, it's good enough to keep some income, what more could you ask for?

Moreover, although the heavy rain ruined the bean harvest, it was not entirely without benefit to the people of Ningyang County. At least the Daming Lake, which was almost dry, and the newly dug Chengnan artificial lake were replenished once again. Even the water levels of the Dawen River and Guang River rose by more than a foot again. At least until next spring, there is no need to worry about drought.

The only one who was truly hurt was probably Magistrate Yang Shaofeng. In particular, every time Magistrate Yang saw the smiles on the faces of the people of Ningyang County, he felt a sense of frustration and resentment that he had nowhere to vent.

It wasn't until a rooster in the chicken farm became distraught over a broken heart that Magistrate Yang's wounded heart found some solace.

To comfort himself, and also to comfort the heartbroken rooster, Magistrate Yang first put a small spoonful of lard into the pot, then a large spoonful of soybean oil. After the oil was hot, he added several large slices of ginger, and then invited the heartbroken rooster into the pot as well.

When the chicken was fried until golden brown, the oil in the pan was slightly clear, and the chicken skin made a slight crackling sound, Magistrate Yang poured in more than half a spoonful of soy sauce along the edge of the pan.

Once the aroma of caramelized soy sauce filled the air, Magistrate Yang quickly added more water to the pot and then instructed the cook who was tending the fire: "Keep an eye on the pot. Once the water boils, add some salt. It's ready to serve when the broth is almost reduced."

After instructing the cook, Magistrate Yang Shaofeng went straight out of the kitchen and had someone summon Wang Mancang, the head of Jia Er Lü, to the county office: "I remember that when you were registering the household register, you said that you had learned how to brew soy sauce in Yanzhou Prefecture?"

Wang Mancang nodded, puzzled, but Magistrate Yang was overjoyed and immediately ordered, "That makes things easier. I'll have someone leave half of the soybeans for you to brew into soy sauce."

Upon hearing Magistrate Yang's request, Wang Mancang shook his head, somewhat amused and exasperated. "My goodness, soy sauce is easy to brew, but before brewing it, you need enough wheat koji."

“If there are a lot of wheat grains, you can dry them by roasting them, grind them into flour, and then mix them with steamed soybeans to ferment. But where in Ningyang County do we have so many wheat grains? Except for those left for seeds, they are basically all ground into flour. But if we use wheat flour, we have to wash out the gluten first, and then add yeast to ferment it.”

"Once the wheat koji grows white mold, it needs to be crushed with water and then placed in a cool, shady place to dry for about half a year—it's already the end of July, and winter will be here in a few months, so there won't be any way to dry it then."

Magistrate Yang Shaofeng was dumbfounded.

Damn it, I thought I could try to create Ningyang brand soy sauce, and I thought I had found another way to make money, but it turned out to be just wishful thinking!

After letting out a cold snort, Magistrate Yang's eyes suddenly lit up, and he asked, "If I have someone dry the soybeans, can we then use them to make soy sauce next spring?"

This time, Wang Mancang nodded without hesitation and agreed: "Okay!"

Yang Shaofeng was overjoyed, and his previous frustration vanished.

"Then go back and prepare. Once all the beans are dried, I will have someone set aside some. Tell me what you need to prepare, and I will have someone prepare it."

"And then there's the matter of brewing soy sauce. You should bring a few apprentices with you when you come back, and we'll try to brew a lot at once, and then sell this soy sauce to other prefectures and counties."

After Wang Mancang agreed to take his leave, Magistrate Yang muttered under his breath, "Damn it, I knew a smart man like me wouldn't be bothered by a mere downpour."

However, just as Magistrate Yang's mood improved, Lame Five hurriedly came over and whispered to Magistrate Yang, "Your Excellency, Magistrate Zhao from the neighboring Wenshang County has come to visit."

Yang Shaofeng was slightly taken aback. "The magistrate of Wenshang County? I don't know him at all. What does he want with me?"

Limpy Wu shook his head slightly, "Your Excellency, I don't know either, but Magistrate Zhao's expression wasn't very good. He looked like he came here looking for trouble."

Yang Shaofeng's curiosity was immediately aroused.

To be honest, Yang Shaofeng, the county magistrate, had already met Chang Yuchun, the Grand Councilor, Wang Qiong, a court official in the capital, and even Zhu Chongba, the emperor who impersonated Empress Ma's cousin. It would not be an exaggeration to say that he had a wide circle of friends.

However, Yang Shaofeng was practically invisible in officialdom. Not only did he not know the county magistrates in other places, but even his own superior, the prefect of Yanzhou Prefecture, was known only by name and never met in person.

Now that he heard that the magistrate of Wenshang County had suddenly come to see him, and that the magistrate's expression was not very curious, Magistrate Yang couldn't help but wonder if he had unintentionally offended someone in the past.

After thinking for a while without coming up with a solution, Magistrate Yang simply led the lame man to the front courtyard of the county government office. From afar, he cupped his hands and smiled at Magistrate Zhao of Wenshang County, saying, "I am truly honored to hear of Magistrate Zhao's visit.

However, Magistrate Zhao gave Magistrate Yang a forced smile and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Magistrate Yang. I apologize for this intrusion and hope you will not take offense."

Seeing Magistrate Zhao's behavior, Yang Shaofeng became even more curious.

No, where the hell did this guy come from? I've never even seen him before, let alone offended him. Who is he trying to impress with that sour face?

Unable to ascertain Magistrate Zhao's background or understand why he was behaving this way, Magistrate Yang smiled and said to Magistrate Zhao again, "This is not a suitable place to talk. Why don't you come with me to the back office for a chat, Magistrate Zhao?"

Magistrate Zhao gave a barely perceptible hum and then followed Yang Shaofeng to the back office.

Yang Shaofeng led Magistrate Zhao for a while, then suddenly stopped and instructed Lame Wu, "The yamen runners from Wenshang County have come a long way and have had a hard time. Lame Wu, why don't you have someone kill a chicken and buy some steamed buns and egg drop soup?"

As Yang Shaofeng finished speaking, Magistrate Zhao suddenly snorted coldly and said, "I have long heard that Ningyang County is extremely wealthy. Seeing it today, I can see that it is indeed well-deserved."

Yang Shaofeng was slightly taken aback, then retorted angrily, "Is there something wrong with Magistrate Zhao's eyes? Ningyang County is so poor it's practically bankrupt, where did Magistrate Zhao get the idea that Ningyang County is wealthy?"

Magistrate Zhao was furious and pointed at Yang Shaofeng, saying, "You!"

Yang Shaofeng snorted coldly and said, "What do you mean, 'you'? You're the magistrate of Wenshang County, and I'm the magistrate of Ningyang County. I'm just giving you some face, and you're acting all high and mighty. What, have you been promoted to prefect of Yanzhou? Or to provincial governor of Shandong?"

"Magistrate Zhao, what an arrogant official you are!"