I am a temporary worker in Jinyiwei, how did I become a powerful official?

Chapter 86: Watching Turtles at Taiye Pond

Emperor Jiajing was really angry tonight.

Lü Fang lifted the green gauze curtain. Emperor Jiajing said angrily, "Lu Bing, since you got the news early and knew that Shen Lian wanted to impeach Yan Song, why didn't you stop him?"

Lu Bing kowtowed and replied, "Shen Lian is a foolish, honest, and loyal man. His impeachment memorials are all hearsay, but they are almost all true."

"During the Gengxu Rebellion in the 29th year of the Jiajing reign, Yan Song was indeed a figurehead, sitting back and watching the Tartar soldiers trample on Ming territory without saying a word."

Emperor Jiajing sneered, "Oh, there is no need for you to list all the things mentioned in the memorial. My mind is as clear as a mirror."

"But I want to use Yan Song right now. Shen Lian submitted this memorial. Should I kill Shen Lian or not?"

"I know Shen Lian is a loyal minister. Is he forcing me to be branded as a murderer of a loyal minister?"

"Xu Jie's people will also make a big fuss about this memorial."

"What I want is balance and stability in the court. Not an unmanageable mess!"

Emperor Jiajing was a very cunning emperor. He always used riddles to express his intentions to Yan Song, Xu Jie and other foreign ministers. He never spoke much.

Only to his confidant Lu Bing, he spoke one word after another.

Lu Bing kowtowed: "It's all my fault. I didn't stop my best friend."

Emperor Jiajing sighed, "Alas. Go to the Northern Pacification Prison as soon as possible and persuade Shen Lian to write a quick defense. I will take advantage of this opportunity to banish him to the frontier."

"Hurry up and get this source of chaos out of the capital. This will prevent others from taking advantage of this situation to make trouble."

Judging from what Emperor Jiajing said, he actually admired Shen Lian quite a bit and wanted to save Shen Lian's life.

Lu Bing cupped his hands and said, "Yes, I will do it right away."

After Lu Bing left, Lu Fang offered Emperor Jiajing a cup of fragrant tea: "Your Majesty, please calm down and have some tea."

Emperor Jiajing took the tea and said: "It's hard to be a human being. It's even harder to be alone. Alas."

At the same time, at Xu Jie's residence.

Gao Gong, Zhang Juzheng and Zou Yinglong were having a secret meeting with him.

Xu Jie said: "I have read Shen Lian's memorial impeaching Yan Song and his son. Every word is brilliant and thought-provoking."

"We have to protect this person. We can't let the Yan Party take the lead in everything."

Gao Gong said expressionlessly: "In addition to criticizing the father and son of the Yan family, Shen Lian also criticized you in his memorial, saying, 'As the second assistant minister, you don't know how to expose the evil of the traitors to the emperor.'"

Zhang Juzheng continued, "This is good news. It proves that Shen Lian's memorial was not instigated by Prime Minister Xu. Prime Minister Xu is right. We must protect this man."

"If Shen Lian is killed, those indecisive people in the court will definitely side with Yan Song."

Xu Jie looked at his student, the Imperial Censor Zou Yinglong, and said, "Yun Qing, tomorrow you will contact your colleagues in the Censorate and the Six Departments. Submit a joint petition to protect Shen Lian."

"If the emperor doesn't allow it, you can go and kneel down to make a protest. Remember, your goal is to protect Shen Lian, not to impeach Yan Song."

"The Yan Party is powerful. Now is not the time to fight them to the death."

In the imperial court, a political upheaval is about to hit.

The turbulent political tide seemed to have nothing to do with Lin Shisan, a small salaried official.

It just seems.

The next morning, in the bedroom of Yongshou Palace.

Emperor Jiajing was reviewing several important memorials.

Emperor Jiajing did not attend court, but he definitely did not ignore government affairs. If he really did not care about government affairs, the power of the court would have been stolen by those jackal-like civil servants long ago.

He will become Emperor Xian of Han.

Lu Fang said, "Your Majesty, today is a good day. You have been in a bad mood these days. Why don't we go boating at Taiye Lake?"

Emperor Jiajing said: "The golden turtle has not been out of the water for a long time. What is the fun of boating?"

Lu Fang lied, "Your Majesty, the Imperial Astronomical Observatory has calculated that today is an auspicious day. It is auspicious for the dragon to appear. I think the golden turtle will definitely come out of the water to pay a visit to you."

Lu Fang was not only the prime minister of the Ming Dynasty, but also the personal servant of Emperor Jiajing.

Servants always try to find ways to please their masters.

If the master is happy, the servants can do their job more easily.

Emperor Jiajing said, "Well, you decide." Lü Fang smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I will go and arrange for the Anfu Imperial Boat. It will be ready in about half an hour."

Emperor Jiajing said nothing and just concentrated on reading the memorial.

Lu Fang walked to the palace gate and whispered to Huang Jin, "The emperor will arrive at Taiye Lake in half an hour. Can the official who delivers the salary be trusted?"

Huang Jin said, "Don't worry, Second Senior Brother. Gao Zhong's greyhound and Wu Chengen's monkey were both found by that man. He is an expert in finding and playing with pets."

At the beginning, Mai Fu, Lu Fang and Huang Jin served the Crown Prince Zhu Houcong in the Prince Xing's Palace, and they were close brothers.

In terms of age, Mai Fu is the oldest, Lu Fang is the second oldest, and Huang Jin is the third oldest. Therefore, Huang Jin calls Lu Fang "Second Senior Brother".

Lu Fang nodded: "Yes. You should go to Taiye Lake first. First, prepare the Anfu Imperial Boat. Second, inform the salary-transmitting official that everything is ready."

With the support of Chen Ju, Huang Jin moved his fat body in two steps at a time and walked out of Yongshou Palace and went to the Taiye Lake.

Lin Shisan had been waiting there for a long time.

Huang Jin said: "Lin Shisan, hurry up, the emperor will be here in half an hour."

Lin Shisan pointed to a small boat beside him and said, "I dare to use this boat. I need someone to row it for me."

Huang Jin ordered Chen Ju: "Go and help him."

Lin Shisan moved the bucket of small shrimps onto the boat, then took a ladle and threw it into the bucket.

Chen Ju rowed the boat, and every time he moved forward a few dozen steps, Lin Shisan told Chen Ju to stop rowing. He picked up the scoop, scooped some small shrimps from the bucket, and splashed them on the water.

As the dense swarms of small shrimps entered the water, they immediately jumped and scattered on the water surface.

Lin Shisan used the scoop more than twenty times to pour the entire bucket of small shrimps into the Taiye Lake.

Lin Shisan thought: When the golden tortoise sees the small shrimp, it will be like a dung beetle seeing dung. It will definitely float to the surface within half an hour.

After he had finished pouring the shrimps, he and Chen Ju came ashore and stood on the shore with their hands hanging down, waiting for the emperor to arrive.

After a long while, Emperor Jiajing finally arrived at the bank of Taiye Lake, surrounded by eunuchs.

Chen Hong, the eunuch who was in charge of the Imperial Household Department and the governor of the Eastern Depot, helped Emperor Jiajing onto the Anfu Imperial Boat. Lu Fang and Huang Jin followed.

Lin Shisan was a hundred steps away from the Anfu Imperial Boat, and he lowered his head as per the rules. He had no chance to see the Emperor.

Emperor Jiajing sat on the viewing platform of the Imperial Boat. He was a Taoist who took elixirs every day, which made his internal heat strong. He was wearing only a Taoist robe in such a cold weather.

The eunuchs in the lower cabin rowed the oars and the royal boat sailed into the Taiye Lake.

Emperor Jiajing looked at the scenery on the water, but he was not happy at all. He looked worried.

Fighting against Japanese pirates in the southeast; defending against Tatars in the north; building military garrisons in the northwest; tight finances; famine in several provinces; and that troublesome Shen Lian, everything made him worried.

It's really hard to be alone.

But the precious golden turtle in Taiye Lake just refused to float on the water.

It was a cold day and Lu Fang was sweating anxiously. He winked at Huang Jin.

What could Huang Jin do? He couldn't just jump into the Taiye Lake and ask the Golden Turtle Ancestor to show up.

Huang Jin cursed in his heart: Lin Shisan, you little bastard, how am I going to deal with you when I get ashore.

Emperor Jiajing suddenly spoke up and said to Lu Fang: "It seems that the Imperial Observatory's calculations are not accurate."

Lu Fang knelt down: "Your Majesty, this old servant is your old servant."

If Lin Shisan's method does not work, the seal holder and chief scribe of the Imperial Household Department will be embarrassed in front of Emperor Jiajing.

At this moment, Chen Hong exclaimed: "Your Majesty, south, south."

Chen Hong was nicknamed "Magpie". Whenever there was good news, he would always rush to report it to Emperor Jiajing.

Whenever there was bad news, he would make excuses and push the job of delivering the news to Huang Jin.

Whenever the "magpie" of the Imperial Household Department opens his mouth, good things will happen.

Emperor Jiajing reprimanded Chen Hong: "Why are you shouting so loudly?"

Chen Hong smiled and said, "Your Majesty, please look to the south."

(End of this chapter)