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Jiangnan was stirred, but to be accurate, it wasn’t the common folk of Jiangnan that were buzzed; after all, for the commoners, news like this wasn’t as captivating as something new coming out from the academy.

However, for the scholarly families that had been in Jiangnan for centuries, it was seething excitement!

King of Qin, Chen Qing, had a polarizing reputation in Jiangnan—ordinary citizens worshipped the current King of Qin.

That year when Jiangnan faced the calamity of the living dead, it was Chen Qing who led the War God Army like godly beings descended from the heavens, rescuing them from dire straits.

It was also Chen Qing who rebuilt Jiangnan, ensuring almost everyone was well-fed and clothed, living days better than even the rich dared dream of before.

Now, who outside Jiangnan wouldn’t envy the life of its people?

The rice and flour that Jiangnan didn’t need were highly sought after elsewhere, the fine wines and teas that even farmers in Jiangnan could afford were not guaranteed to be available even for those who spent money on them elsewhere, and even the clothes worn by Jiangnan people were items that ladies in Capital City would fight over but not necessarily be able to acquire.

The people of Jiangnan now carried themselves with pride, living days of dignity—all brought by King of Qin, Chen Qing.

In the eyes of the commoners, Chen Qing’s prestige was second to none compared to any deity.

But a group of people were extremely dissatisfied with Chen Qing, and those were once the scholar class that held absolute discourse power in Jiangnan!

Chen Qing brought a living standard to Jiangnan far above that of other regions of the Central Plains, yet it was precisely the privileges of the scholar class that severely declined.

The rise of neo-Confucianism and engineering marginalized a large number of scholarly families that mainly focused on the study of the classics, now overshadowed by the so-called mud-legged peasants they once looked down upon.

The ascent of Array Studies and engineering techniques further diminished the once traditional advantage of the technique-inheriting families; instead, many who managed menial affairs, even commoners’ children, rose above them, transforming overnight into the most respected magician scholars in Jiangnan.

This caused former members of the scholar class to be extremely discontent with Chen Qing, and on several occasions, they gathered to gripe and curse him.

But because Chen Qing held such high esteem among the ordinary people, even though these literary individuals wrote eloquent articles condemning Chen Qing, which were beautifully crafted, they were scorned by the masses, with some encounters even leading to physical confrontation.

Several scholars tasted the iron fists of the commoners and after a few incidents, nobody dared to openly slander Chen Qing anymore.

Yet even so, there was still resistance in secret, like initially refusing to put in effort, refusing to take official positions, but later, unable to withstand a hard life, they grudgingly took up administrative posts, thinking inwardly, "No matter how capable Chen Qing is, in the end, doesn’t he still rely on us to help govern the land? "

But the harsh reality shattered their initial illusions—many who entered officialdom afterwards found... the status of an administrative official in Jiangnan was unprecedentedly low!

The common people admired soldiers more, as did they the magician scholars, but hardly gave their proper respect to these diligent administrative officials, who worked earnestly for political achievements yet didn’t receive the esteem they deserved.

The academy students who came to assist or replace officials were individuals who lacked talents in neo-Confucianism or techniques, forced to study management—put simply, they were the eliminated batch.

With these individuals as the successors of the administrative officials, how good could their status be?

And so... those old County Magistrates became disheartened, one by one they resigned.

The newly appointed Auxiliary Politicians also saw a sharp decline in enthusiasm due to a status far from comparable to those genuine magician scholars from the academy...

Walking down the street at this moment was one such individual, Liu Xie.

Liu Xie was presently the Governor of Lyuzhou’s Lumings County.

Since taking office, he had been vigorously active, sparing no effort to bring over a senior sister specialized in species improvement to study Lumings County’s unique white deer.

Now, the white deer newly produced by the forest of Lumings County had officially become the designated military mounts by the government, greatly increasing the income of the deer breeders in the county and resolving the issue of poor farmlands and low average wealth in Lumings County.

However, as Liu Xie walked down the main street, what he heard was praise for his senior sister, with scarcely any commendation for himself. After accomplishing this significant feat, Liu Xie spent a long time in confusion, questioning the meaning of his year-long toil in his official capacity.

In recent months, he started to slack and neglect his duties—after all, no matter how well he did, nobody seemed to notice him, so why be so hard on himself?

It was the same that day, finishing work early, he bought a fresh fish, planning to return home to steam it for a drink, and if he was quick enough, he might even catch the sunset.

But just as he was humming a tune on his way home with the fish in hand, he saw his father and various uncles whom he hadn’t seen in half a year...

He was suddenly startled; it was the first time he had ever encountered such a throng of relatives coming to his doorstep.

Initially, his family had opposed his decision to take up the post of Auxiliary Official, and after insisting on it and being scolded by his father, they had even stopped exchanging letters, so why on earth would they bring so many relatives with them today?

Could it be they were coming to expel him from the family records? Surely not?

After instructing the cook to take care of the fish, he quickly washed his hands and hurried to the main hall to greet his elders.

"Father, uncles, what brings you here today?"

The middle-aged men inside the hall exchanged glances, with their eyes finally resting on Liu Xie’s father, Liu Wenlong, who coughed lightly and bore a resemblance to Liu Xie.

"We came here to the Provincial Government Office, intending to first pay a visit to the County Magistrate, but upon arriving, we found out he has resigned? "

"Yes..." Liu Xie replied cautiously, "Mr. Mu resigned half a year ago, and I have been handling the affairs of Lumings County for this past half-year."

"Oh?"

"At this remark, all the elders’ eyes lit up, and a middle-aged man next to Liu Wenlong, who looked even older, asked, ’Then, nephew, have you replaced the County Magistrate?’"

Liu Xie was somewhat puzzled. Why were these elders suddenly so concerned about this?

Despite his confusion, he still replied honestly, "Reporting to my uncle, after Mr. Mu’s resignation, no new County Magistrate has been dispatched.

I have been handling all government affairs.

Last month, an official assessment was done, and my political achievements were rated excellent.

If nothing unexpected happens, I should be the one to take over as the County Magistrate of Lumings County. "

"Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!" Several elders laughed and clapped their hands upon hearing this news. Even Liu Xie’s typically stern father could not help but show a satisfied smile.

"Well done," Liu Wenlong said, giving rare praise.

"Father?" Liu Xie was somewhat flabbergasted. His family had been strongly opposed to him entering politics, especially after they had put great effort into sending him to the academy, only for him to be eliminated and choose the path of an Auxiliary Politician, surely disappointing his father.

But he had no choice. As for rationalism, if one did not have a knack for it, they just didn’t, and struggling would do no good. He could only give up and choose this path willingly. Knowing this, the elders had been utterly critical, and his father had been so angry that he nearly disowned him.

After taking office, he worked diligently, hoping to achieve something that would make his father recognize him.

Even though he had managed to achieve some political success after half a year of effort, the indifference of the people in Jiangnan towards government officials had disheartened him.

He was even ashamed to go home for the holidays, but to his surprise, a group of elders had come to visit and. .. praise him?

Seeing the confusion on his son’s face, Liu Wenlong sighed, realizing his foolish son probably hadn’t received the news yet. It was also fortunate that the silly boy was tenacious, otherwise how could their family have such an opportunity?

Thinking of this, he was filled with mixed emotions. From his son’s stubbornness initially, to his own frustration, and now this unexpected joy.

Then, the uncle who had asked the question earlier excitedly relayed the recent rumors.

Liu Xie almost lost his balance upon hearing them, staggering before his uncles hurriedly stepped forward to support him.

"Uncle... where did you get this news?"

"It’s being talked about everywhere!" his uncle replied excitedly. "You know Lord Wang is usually very strict about controlling rumors, but this time, he hasn’t made any move to refute them. This likely means that the rumor is true, eight or nine out of ten!"

"From now on, City Gods will be selected from among the civil officials with outstanding political achievements!"

"This... this..." Liu Xie was suddenly finding it hard to breathe.

City Gods – that was a department of gods of immense importance. Whether one worshiped the Mountain God or the War God, who would skimp on incense offerings to the City God?

After all, everyone eventually fell under the jurisdiction of the City God once they died!

"From the newly conquered territories in the Southeast, there are nine at the Provincial Government Office alone, and hundreds in the county cities. There’s a severe shortage of City God officials, and it’s said that in the next few days, officials from Jiangnan with effective administration are to be selected to govern the Southeastern City Gods! "

"But... I haven’t received any news..." Liu Xie said, now composed but still puzzled.

For such a major event, how could they be completely unaware?

Amid his confusion, there was the sound of a visitor at the door.

"Is the Lumings County Auxiliary Official, Liu Xie, present?"

Liu Xie was startled, then his heart raced to his throat!

He recognized that voice... he would never forget it.

It was the voice of Jiangnan Academy Dean: Chen Ying!