Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 723 Step aside, it's time to show off!

The Ministry of Revenue was no fun. This was the conclusion Emperor Jingtai reached after working there for three days. He spent his days sitting in this small courtyard, and apart from handling some mundane official documents, there was basically nothing else to do. It was tedious and boring.

Xia Lin is actually doing alright. He still has a lot to do, such as reading cultivation novels or watching short videos. His life is peaceful and stable.

But as everyone knows, Emperor Jingtai was a restless person by nature, and he would never like to squat in such an environment, so this dog emperor once again came up with some tricks.

He swapped his and Xia Lin's positions with those of equal rank in the Court of State Ceremonial, meaning that the two unfortunate officials in charge of the Court of State Ceremonial inexplicably received a transfer order to the Second Department of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Granaries, without even knowing what had happened.

That afternoon, Xia Lin and Emperor Jingtai had already moved into the Honglu Temple.

This was a cause for great joy for the Ministry of Revenue. If they weren't worried about committing a serious offense of disrespect, they would have set off firecrackers to send away the plague god.

But now it was the Court of State Ceremonial's turn to feel uneasy. These two plagues had somehow ended up in their department, and they were already in minor positions.

The Court of State Ceremonial was different from other places. In places like the Six Ministries, many low-ranking officials did not recognize the emperor and Xia Lin. However, the Court of State Ceremonial was a place for handling diplomatic affairs, and one of their important tasks was to remember all the important political figures clearly.

Xia Lin may not be a high-ranking official, but he is certainly a political figure. As for the emperor, he is someone you would recognize immediately even if you dreamed of him at night.

Now that these two have arrived, they have to pretend they don't know each other. This feeling of knowing exactly who they are but having to pretend you don't know anything is worse than knowing nothing at all.

But it's too late to say anything now; they've already arrived.

The work at the Court of State Ceremonial was much busier than that at the Ministry of Revenue. Although the Great Wei had not yet fully recovered and could not reach the point where all nations paid tribute, it was still considered one of the strongest powers in the world, and envoys from various countries came in droves every day.

Therefore, the staff of the Court of State Ceremonial were quite busy every day. Some were responsible for receiving envoys from various countries, while others were responsible for maintaining the balance of power between countries. From the summit of envoys to a man in the capital who had sex with a Persian prostitute and refused to pay, the Court of State Ceremonial had to step in to handle all of these matters.

Xia Lin was very diligent at work every day, arriving very early. He was always the first to arrive at the government office, where he would start cleaning and boiling water. After finishing all that, he would usually stand in the courtyard and stretch his limbs, looking like a seasoned professional.

But Emperor Jingtai was different. He lived far away, and every morning he would take a carriage to this place. On the way, he had to cross the most bustling East Street, where carriages were prohibited, so he had to walk. Usually, when he arrived at the government office, the officials in charge would already be assigning tasks for the day.

Normally, if someone else were to be late like this, especially a newcomer, they would be severely reprimanded. But who would dare to scold the emperor? The only option was to pretend not to see him and silently watch as Emperor Jingtai took his seat.

"Today, I would like to trouble the two officials to have a discussion with the Japanese delegation. A few days ago, they submitted their letter of credence, hoping to become a vassal state of Great Wei for generations to come, and earnestly requesting His Majesty the Emperor of Great Wei to bestow a name upon them."

When he spoke the words "His Majesty the Emperor," his voice rose exceptionally high, and the obsequiousness in his tone was fully displayed.

"This actor's acting is a bit over the top," Emperor Jingtai said to Xia Lin in a low voice, turning his head. "It's too obvious."

"Hey, get this straight, it's your face that's too conspicuous. If I came alone, they wouldn't have acted like this. You should just stay in the Ministry of Revenue and do things peacefully, instead of trying to pull some tricks."

"That's different. I can't stand seeing you idle all the time."

"you……"

"If you curse again!" Emperor Jingtai reached out and pinched Xia Lin's mouth: "I am the Emperor of Swords and Horses, hitting you is no problem."

The officer who assigned them the task was almost in tears. These two didn't hide anything from each other when they talked and chatted. Moreover, he really wanted to correct one point, which was, "Lord Xia, even without His Majesty, we all know you. This is the Court of State Ceremonial, and the first requirement for working in the Court of State Ceremonial is a good memory."

"Alright, that concludes the arrangements for today. Do you have any further questions?"

The officer's voice trembled as he spoke. He really didn't want to act like a superior, but the problem was that they had held a small meeting a few days ago and everyone agreed to treat it with a normal attitude. They absolutely couldn't let these two gentlemen see through their act, so everyone tacitly cooperated with them to put on a show.

“That’s all.” Xia Lin raised his hand. “Lord He, can I skip today’s negotiations with the Japanese pirates? I’m afraid I might lose my temper and beat them up.” “Then…then…then you…you…Lord Lin, it’s up to you. If you don’t want to, I’ll send someone else.”

"I'll go, I'll go!" Emperor Jingtai shouted. "What's the big deal? It's just a tiny place. Do you think they can eat me? Get out of here."

"Okay, thanks... no, I'll be going now."

The official fled in disarray, while Xia Lin turned to look at Emperor Jingtai: "He's your superior, how dare you speak to him like that? What do you mean by 'go down' and 'come up'? Change your lousy way of speaking!"

"I've really gotten used to it."

"Getting used to it won't work either. Either go back to the palace, bring your son back, and become emperor yourself, or calm down and settle your mindset! I'm here to work and earn money, what are you here for?"

"Look how much money you're making."

Xia Lin looked up and said, "Someone come here!"

The officer, who hadn't gone far outside, scrambled in, saying, "Yes...yes, I'm here."

"No, no, no, Lord He, I wasn't talking to you." Xia Lin quickly stood up and cupped his hands, saying, "I'm sorry, I was just asking my subordinates to do something."

"Oh, oh, oh... then Lord Lin, you're busy, you're busy."

After chatting with his subordinates for a while, he finally decided to endure his disgust and meet with the envoy of the Baka today. After all, who knows what trouble the Jingtai Emperor might cause if he went alone? It wouldn't be impossible for him to kill the Baka envoy in a fit of anger.

Although killing Baga's envoy is not a big deal, the problem is that Great Wei is currently negotiating with Baga to jointly suppress bandits. In recent years, banditry along the coast has become rampant again, and it is gradually starting to expand northward. Baga itself needs to come up with a solution to this problem. After all, there is no way to guard against bandits for a thousand days if you are a thief for a thousand days.

After dressing properly, the two went to the reception hall of the Honglu Temple, where seven or eight Japanese envoys were already waiting. Some of them were wearing long robes and others were wearing monks' robes, so it seemed like they were of a high rank.

Xia Lin and Emperor Jingtai took their seats, and the Baka envoys immediately began to discuss the matter. Several of them looked very unwell and even seemed flustered as they spoke with their envoy, Abe Hiroshi.

"You don't need to worry, I am not the emperor."

Xia Lin was desperately pinching Emperor Jingtai's thigh from below, but it was too late. The envoy had already knelt down first, followed by the entire delegation: "Long live the Heavenly Emperor! Long live the Heavenly Emperor! Long live the Heavenly Emperor!"

"All right!"

Xia Lin shouted, "Stand up!"

Everyone immediately stood up in unison. Xia Lin turned around and glanced at Emperor Jingtai: "Sit down!"

"Oh... I thought you wanted me to stand up too."

“He is not the emperor. If you continue to act recklessly, it will be a great disrespect,” Xia Lin said, pointing at Emperor Jingtai. “He only bears some resemblance.”

"Then...and you, sir, do you also bear some resemblance?" Envoy Abe Hiroshi said with a mournful face, "I wonder if you still remember me, sir? I saw you at the grand ceremony, and I will never forget your voice and appearance."

"Holy shit..."

Xia Lin muttered a curse under his breath, then said, "Fine, from now on, forget everything you heard and saw today. Do you understand what I mean? The people in front of you now are just two ordinary officials from the Great Wei. If you don't understand, then let's not talk today."

(End of this chapter)