Chapter 44: 44 Interviewing the Administration Officer

Chapter 44: Interviewing for the Government Official

With the addition of more than twenty servants, the Mountain Forest Fort began operating normally.

Rooney's daily life was temporarily freed from the previous hustle and anxiety, allowing him to spend more time practicing swordsmanship and magic.

The next morning, under the service of maid Bella, Rooney dressed in formal attire brought from Wu Mountain Fort.

Maid Bella behaved extremely reserved, not even daring to lift her head.

Although she had undergone Charles's training, it was her first time actually serving the lord, which inevitably led to some confusion.

Rooney didn’t show any unusual reactions outwardly, but having a woman assist him so intimately with dressing felt strange to him.

He wanted to do it himself, but unfortunately, he didn’t know how to handle this court collar attire very well.

"Don’t worry, Bella. You can relax a bit."

Rooney reminded her: "We have plenty of time."

"Yes, yes, sir!"

Bella whispered her response, her face flushed red. Her fingers seemed disobedient while handling the court collar, and her body seemed to grow weaker due to nervousness.

Fortunately, the clothing was almost done. After smoothing out a few corners of the garment, maid Bella could finally breathe.

She successfully completed her first service.

Rooney looked down at his outfit; the splendid attire paired with his tall figure looked quite handsome.

"Good job, Bella!"

The maid blushed and lowered her head, "Thank you for your praise, sir. Next time Bella will do better!"

"I look forward to it."

Rooney said, walking out of the dressing room.

Outside, male servant Gallon was waiting: "Sir, Charles has brought the applicants for the government official to the outer fort hall."

"Then let's go."

Rooney walked while asking, "How many people came?"

Gallon replied: "Three altogether."

"Only three?"

Hearing this number, Rooney didn’t know what to say for a moment.

Gallon explained: "At dawn, more than ten people came outside the castle, all wanting to become your government official. However, after Charles's screening, those who weren't capable were excluded, leaving only three."

After leaving the inner fort, Rooney arrived at the outer fort hall, a relatively spacious wooden room generally used only by Charles or Macon.

For instance, last night the steward taught newcomers etiquette here.

Rooney entered the room, and Charles approached him, "Sir, these are the three people after my preliminary screening."

The three men immediately bowed and greeted the lord as Rooney arrived.

From their greeting gestures, Rooney could tell that these three were freemen, not serfs, since the latter knelt before the lord.

"I am glad you responded to Mountain Forest Fort’s recruitment."

Rooney walked up and sat down, directly entering the main topic: "However, I only need one government official, so I need to choose one from you three."

All three felt nervous, but they had prepared for the competition.

"Let’s start with you."

Rooney pointed to the middle-aged man on the far left, "The remaining two go out first; we’ll proceed one by one."

The man who was designated to stay became nervous; he knew the real test was beginning.

"Now, two residents have a dispute over a fat duck; both claim the duck belongs to them, and each has gathered some friends, leading to a small conflict involving more than ten people."

Rooney presented his prepared question: "If you were the government official of Mountain Forest Town, how would you handle this situation?"

"Huh..."

This man froze; he hadn’t expected Rooney to ask such a question, and his mind buzzed momentarily, not knowing what to think.

In his heart, he shouted to quickly sober up and answer the question, but he just didn’t know how to start.

As the silence lengthened, sweat covered his palms, forehead, and back; his breathing grew rapid.

After waiting dozens of seconds without a response, Rooney asked again: "Tell me, how would you handle it?"

"I, I, I don’t know..."

This man slumped onto the ground, his voice trembling.

Rooney was speechless.

Even if he couldn’t answer, this man didn’t need to sit down in fear; was his psychological quality so poor?

"Next." He waved his hand.

Charles hurriedly ran over to pull up the collapsed applicant from the floor and helped him out of the hall.

Facing the same question, the second person remained comparatively calm.

"Sir, you are the lord of Mountain Forest Town. Everything here belongs to you, including the residents’ property and even themselves. So, I think their dispute over a duck’s ownership is pointless, because this duck belongs to you!"

This person answered firmly: "Thus, I would seize the duck they disputed and send it to the castle. This way, their dispute can be resolved, and the situation properly handled."

Rooney stroked his chin and thought, "Your reasoning has some merit. Go wait for notification first. Charles, bring the third person in."

Facing the same question, the third person also remained calm.

After brief consideration, this person presented his answer: "Sir, if I were the government official, I would handle this situation in several steps."

Rooney gestured for him to continue.

"First, I would notify the castle guards to arrest all the troublemakers."

"Second, I would attempt to judge them, determining whom the duck truly belongs to."

"Third, I would punish this group. The false claimant would be convicted of a serious crime, sentenced to flogging and fines; his accomplices I would punish with labor and fines."

"For the other side, I would impose warnings, labor, or fines based on the conflict's cause and severity."

After this explanation, even Charles standing nearby cast an admiring glance at him; it seemed the government official position would belong to this person without surprise.

Rooney was evidently quite satisfied with this answer.

"Explain how you would judge them and determine the duck’s ownership."

This person pondered again, saying: "The false claimant is clearly a low-born person; we need no pity for such individuals. I would use verbal warnings and flogging warnings to elicit honest confession from them."

Rooney wasn’t very satisfied with this answer, "This way, the duck’s true owner might be mistakenly harmed."

"But I restore his innocence."

This person firmly stated: "I believe he will ultimately appreciate me."

Rooney shook his head, "I approve of your previous answer, but I disagree with your judgment method. If the duck’s owner fears your threats and admits falsely, it means you let the false claimant off."

Hearing such criticism, the applicant paled. Being denied by the baron likely meant he had no chance anymore?

"My apologies, sir, I have disappointed you."

He bowed slightly, "Perhaps there is a better method, but I must admit, I have not conceived one."

"Then you may think it over slowly when you have time later."

Ronin curled his lips slightly and stood up slowly, "Tell me your name."

The man below paused for a moment, then revealed a look of surprise.

Just a moment ago, he thought he had been eliminated, yet he unexpectedly passed the next moment.

"Sir, I am Wilson!"

"Congratulations, Wilson. From now on, you are the administrative officer of Mountain Forest Town. I will pay you a salary of 10 copper coins per day, and I hope you will serve me well."

Though his answer did not entirely align with Ronin's ideas, being able to answer the earlier steps demonstrated a certain logic and orderliness in his thinking.

Moreover, of the two others...

The first was not worth mentioning, his psychological resilience was too poor; should any major event occur, he likely would have no sense of conviction;

The second, the other's answer seemed suspicious of loophole exploitation, and moreover, would Ronin resort to seizing someone else's duck over such a matter? That would only undermine his positive image.

Thus, with only three candidates available, Ronin chose the third.

"Thank you for your recognition, sir!"

Wilson knelt on one knee, speaking excitedly, "Wilson will do everything in his power to assist you in governing Mountain Forest Town!"

In this remote place, earning a salary of 10 copper coins per day was something Wilson never dared imagine.

Applying for the position of administrative officer became the most significant choice he had made in his life.

Ronin raised his hand, signaling the man to rise.

"Then, your first assigned task is to conduct a census of Mountain Forest Town."

Ronin began to assign the first task, "I want you to record, by household, each person's gender, age, profession, and special skills."

"Additionally, artisans require your special attention!"

Understanding the population structure of Mountain Forest Town would assist Ronin in subsequent development, and was also a crucial step toward achieving the achievement "Population Prosperity."

To accomplish this achievement, the territory's population needed to reach three thousand people, duly registered.

Even if Mountain Forest Town did not currently have so many inhabitants, conducting a census was imperative.

"Sir..."

Chahar hesitated beside him.

"Speak directly, Chahar."

The new steward voiced his concern, "Sir, there are only 83 sheets of parchment in the castle. Using them to register the citizens' information seems somewhat wasteful?"

Parchment was not cheap; a sheet with 40 lines sold for around 10 copper coins.

Purchasing it in large quantities would incur a considerable expense.

As the newly appointed steward, Chahar’s immediate consideration of parchment consumption indicated he had assumed his role well, which was commendable.

"Your concern is reasonable."

Ronin nodded slightly, though the population registration task was essential for him.

"The town's population is not large; even if all are recorded, it likely will not consume much. Moreover, I will visit Horse Pasture City in a couple of days and procure a bit more then."

The parchment issue reminded Ronin of a technology—paper-making.

Only by producing cheap paper could information be disseminated more conveniently, thereby enriching various "design" talents within the territory.

Aside from white liquor, paper-making technology could also be introduced and applied in Mountain Forest Town.

"However, this matter cannot be rushed; one can first explore the manufacturing method and promote it when the timing is right."

Invented items also require the ability to safeguard them.

(End of Chapter)