"Writing supplies? Brother Mu, are you planning to study and become a Scholar?"
"What's this about becoming a Scholar? I'm just learning to read a bit, that's all."
Chu Mu waved his hand dismissively. His gaze drifted to Xu Yuan's rather ill-fitting Inspection Armor, and he frowned. "I remember you're not even fifteen yet, right? Didn't the Inspection Office say you could hold onto the post?"
Hearing this, Xu Yuan's expression fell. "Brother Mu, it's not like you don't know what my uncle is like. If I left the post open, wouldn't he be constantly scheming for it…?"
Chu Mu froze for a moment as memories quickly surfaced. 'A compulsive gambler… and… an addict?'
'They have drugs in this era?'
Chu Mu raised an eyebrow as more memories surfaced.
His thoughts churned, but only for a moment before Chu Mu reined them in. Even in the world he came from, gambling combined with drugs basically meant a person was beyond saving. Having a relative like that…
Chu Mu couldn't help but feel a bit fortunate. Luckily, his body's original owner didn't have any troublesome relatives. Otherwise, it would have been a real headache.
"By the way, Brother Mu, how come you haven't gone to the Inspection Office yet?"
"Me? I've had some things to take care of these past two days."
"I'm planning to report for duty tomorrow. Are you off duty now?"
"Yeah, I'm off. I only reported in the day before yesterday. Haven't been assigned any real work…"
Chu Mu nodded. An idea struck him, and he said:
"Perfect. Come have a simple meal at my place. You can tell me about the situation at the Inspection Office, so I'll know what to expect when I report in tomorrow."
"Sure!"
Xu Yuan didn't refuse. He nodded and walked beside Chu Mu. The two of them ambled down the street, chatting idly.
Of course, it was mostly Chu Mu asking the questions and Xu Yuan answering. Although the body's original owner had some memories of the Inspection Office, it was a government entity, after all. The original owner had been young and reclusive, so he didn't know much.
With a "friend" who had already been working at the Inspection Office for a few days, Chu Mu naturally had no reservations and asked all sorts of questions.
As they walked and talked, it wasn't long before Chu Mu had a clear picture of everything Xu Yuan had seen and heard at the Inspection Office over the past two days.
Combining this with the original owner's memories, Chu Mu finally had a complete understanding of the Nanshan Town Inspection Office.
The Nanshan Town Inspection Office was subordinate to the Qinghe County Inspection Department. The difference was like that between a central police headquarters and a local precinct in his previous life.
Qinghe County had an Inspection Department. The South City, North City, West City, and East City each had their own Inspection Office under the County Inspection Department's jurisdiction. The surrounding towns also each had an Inspection Office, responsible for local security and maintaining law and order.
Among these, the Nanshan Town Inspection Office was somewhat special compared to the offices in other towns.
Its uniqueness lay in its size. According to the original owner's memories, an ordinary Inspection Office usually had only fifty or sixty people. To reach a hundred, a town had to be quite large. The Nanshan Town Inspection Office, however, was several times larger than any other.
The Nanshan Town Inspection Office had nearly five hundred Inspectors in total, and the one in charge was not an ordinary Hundred Households, but a Vice Thousand Households.
The reason the Nanshan Town Inspection Office was so special was, of course, the Nanshan Iron Ore. After all, the Nanshan Inspection Office was responsible for the Forced Labor in the mines, as well as the safeguarding and transportation of Ore Materials. With such heavy responsibilities, its size and staffing naturally far exceeded that of other Inspection Offices.
According to Xu Yuan, after receiving his post as an Inspector, his daily duty was to stand guard and patrol the mines. They worked in two shifts a day. Since he was new, he was assigned to the daytime patrol…
"On my way back just now, I saw a procession of new Forced Laborers. If I remember correctly, aren't they rotated every six months? It shouldn't be time for a new batch yet, right?"
As they reached his courtyard gate, Chu Mu seemed to remember something and suddenly asked the question while pushing the gate open.
"The prefecture issued an order to increase production at the mine… so the county ordered an increase in Forced Labor. There have been a ton of new people at the mine these past few days… I heard they're going to conscript another batch of Forced Laborers soon, at least a thousand of them…"
Chu Mu was taken aback. "They're conscripting even more?"
"That's what the Squad Leader said. It should be true."
Xu Yuan replied with certainty.
Chu Mu frowned and fell silent for a moment. In the end, he didn't say anything more and walked through the open gate.
"What's wrong, Brother Mu? Why'd you go quiet?"
Xu Yuan scratched his head and followed him in, blissfully unaware.
"It's nothing. Just thinking about what to make for dinner."
"You rest for a bit. I'll go make some food."
Chu Mu gave a casual reply, setting the bag with his writing supplies down by the door before heading to the kitchen.
Xu Yuan watched Chu Mu's retreating back as he entered the kitchen and couldn't help but scratch his head again. But with his youthful disposition, his attention quickly shifted elsewhere.
'Forced Labor…'
Inside the kitchen, Chu Mu pondered for a moment before pushing the thought down. 'If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. I'm just an Inspector who hasn't even officially started yet. Why should I worry about it!'
He started the fire, washed the rice, and set it to cook in one smooth motion. After busying himself for a while, Chu Mu finally had a moment to look outside. He saw Xu Yuan in the courtyard, also busy, holding a broom and finishing the big clean-up that Chu Mu hadn't completed the night before.
'Having a childhood friend around isn't so bad.'
His gaze lingered for a moment, and he shook his head with a small smile. He had just arrived in this world, and everything was still a mystery. Having a reliable person by his side was better than going it alone.
"Brother Mu, the plaster on this wall is peeling off! Why don't you hire a craftsman to fix it?"
Before Chu Mu could think further, Xu Yuan's voice interrupted his thoughts. Looking over, he saw Xu Yuan standing by the bedroom window, pointing at a bulging, peeling section of the wall and shouting.
"It's fine. We'll deal with it when I have time."
Chu Mu waved his hand dismissively. The house was old, and the original owner's father had never been one to take care of it, so it was natural for it to be a bit dilapidated.
Minor repairs would be pointless, and a major overhaul would cost a lot. Right now, money was only flowing out, not in. Although he had some savings, Chu Mu didn't dare to spend them recklessly.
Hearing Chu Mu's response, Xu Yuan mumbled an acknowledgment and said no more.
Chu Mu turned back to the stove, picked up a spatula, and began to cook.
With a guest in the house, Chu Mu wasn't going to be as casual as when he cooked for himself. He prepared a dish of greens that looked like the baby napa cabbage from his previous life. However, its taste was the complete opposite—it had a rich aroma and a soft, sticky texture like a soy product, hence its name, "Bean White."
Next was a plate of pickled vegetables, the kind Chu Mu usually made do with. It wasn't a vegetable he recognized from his past life either; it was shaped like bamboo twigs and had a crisp, refreshing taste, earning it the name "Bamboo Vegetable."
There was also a meat dish, which was identical to the pork from his previous life in taste, appearance, and even name.
The final dish was a bowl of corn soup. This corn, however, was clearly a size larger than the corn of his past life; the kernels were nearly the size of a thumbnail.
As for the seasonings, they were more or less the same. After all, the basic flavors of sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy were universal…