Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 753 Summons and Visits

After Han Binggui left, only the rustling sound of paper scratching remained in the signing room.

Shen Guangzuo leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and rubbed his slightly throbbing temples, his mind racing.

A moment later, Shen Guangzu opened his eyes, sat up straight and leaned forward, and called out loudly, "Someone come here!"

No sooner had Shen Guangzuo finished speaking than the door to the signing room was pushed open. A minor official in black robes slipped in through the crack in the door, his speed surprising even Shen Guangzuo. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was the gatekeeper who had just left.

Seeing the gatekeeper return, Shen Guangzuo's heart tightened, thinking that another urgent report had arrived. "Where did this message come from this time?!" His brows furrowed even deeper, and his voice was filled with obvious irritation.

The gatekeeper stopped in his tracks, stood at the threshold, bowed, and replied, "Reporting to the Grand Master of the Palace, it is a note from the Ministry of Revenue."

"Ministry of Revenue." Shen Guangzuo was taken aback at first, his tightly furrowed brows unconsciously relaxing slightly, but then he frowned again. He waved his hand: "Bring it here."

"Yes." The gatekeeper then carefully stepped forward and gently placed an envelope bearing the seal of the Ministry of Revenue on Shen Guangzuo's desk.

Shen Guangzuo picked up the document and opened the envelope. Seeing this, the gatekeeper silently bowed and turned to leave.

Just as the gatekeeper was about to leave the signing room, the yamen runner waiting in the next room also arrived. The yamen runner and the gatekeeper exchanged glances, paused simultaneously, then nodded to each other and brushed past each other.

"Come back." Shen Guangzuo's voice reached his ears just as the gatekeeper stepped out of the threshold.

"What are the orders from the Grand Prefect?" The gatekeeper immediately stopped and turned to look at Shen Guangzuo respectfully. The constable who had come to answer also shut his mouth and swallowed the same cliché.

Shen Guangzuo neither looked at the gatekeeper nor the yamen runners, but instead turned his gaze to another clerk in the signing room: "Clerk Ren."

Ren Hongyun, an old clerk, had been working in the Shuntian Prefecture Office since the Longqing era. Dozens of prefects had come and gone, but he remained steadfastly in the signing room. Shen Guangzuo, seeing that Ren Hongyun was old and frail, initially considered replacing him. However, after a brief examination, he discovered that this clerk was old but still sturdy and well-versed in the rules of the government office. Therefore, he also relied on him to handle the daily official documents between government offices.

Upon hearing the greeting, Ren Hongyun immediately put down his pen and stood up, but before he could leave his seat, Shen Guangzuo raised his hand to stop him. "No need to come over."

"What are your orders, Your Excellency?" Ren Hongyun stopped and clasped his hands in greeting.

Shen Guangzuo waved the Ministry of Revenue document in his hand: "This is a summons from the Ministry of Revenue, asking me to come over first thing tomorrow morning to discuss the tax reform. Draft a reply now, informing the Ministry that I will be there on time tomorrow. After you've written the reply," Shen Guangzuo spoke quickly, before finishing his sentence, his gaze shifting to the gatekeeper, and he nodded at him. "Give it directly to him," Shen Guangzuo said to the gatekeeper, "You wait here, and send the reply to the Ministry of Revenue immediately."

"Yes!" Ren Hongyun and the gatekeeper responded almost simultaneously.

Unlike Han Binggui, Ren Hongyun did not spread out white paper to make a draft. Instead, he skillfully took out a pre-printed standard palindrome paper from the drawer, dipped his pen in ink, and quickly filled in the reserved blank space.

Shen Guangzuo's gaze then fell on the waiting yamen runner: "Go and invite Prefect Yao over."

Yao Shishen, courtesy name Zhonghan, was born in the sixth year of the Wanli reign (1611). He was a tribute student in the 20th year of the Wanli reign (1612), and ranked sixteenth in the Zhejiang provincial examination in the 31st year of the Wanli reign (1613). In the 32nd year of the Wanli reign (1614), he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), in the same year as Sun Chengzong. He was first appointed to the Ministry of Personnel for observation, and later selected as a probationary official in the Hanlin Academy. In the 35th year of the Wanli reign (1616), he was appointed a supervising secretary in the Ministry of Personnel. In the 38th year of the Wanli reign (1618), he offended the emperor with a memorial and was demoted to the position of clerk in Fuzhou Prefecture. In the 47th year of the Wanli reign (1618), he was promoted to assistant director of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, and in the 48th year of the Wanli reign (1619), he was promoted to vice minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. In February of the first year of the Taichang reign (1611), he was promoted to assistant prefect of Shuntian Prefecture.

"Yes!" The constable accepted the order, turned around, and quickly left.

Not long after the yamen runner left, Ren Hongyun finished writing the reply to the Ministry of Revenue. He stood up, holding the still-wet ink on the paper, and walked to Shen Guangzuo's desk: "Prefect Shen, the reply is ready. Please take a look."

Shen Guangzuo took the paper and quickly scanned it. After confirming that everything was correct, he picked up a pen and wrote his name at the signature section at the end of the document. Then, Shen Guangzuo picked up the large seal on the table and firmly stamped it on his signature.

He gently blew on the still-wet ink and seal paste, then pushed the palindrome forward: "Take it."

Ren Hongyun picked up the palindrome and turned to hand it to the gatekeeper who was waiting nearby. The gatekeeper took it with both hands, bowed, and quickly left.

The gatekeeper had just reached the entrance of the courtyard where the signing office was located when he came face to face with Yao Shishen, the prefectural magistrate, who was rushing over. "Prefectural Magistrate Yao," the gatekeeper quickly stopped and stepped aside to make way for him.

Yao Shishen was dressed in a scarlet robe with a cloud-patterned official hat. His slightly thin face still retained a touch of scholarly air. He nodded slightly, his steps never faltering.

Yao Shishen took two steps, then suddenly stopped, turning back to ask Shen Guangzuo why he had been summoned. But by then, the gatekeeper's figure had already disappeared around the corner of the courtyard gate, leaving only a series of hurried footsteps. Yao Shishen hesitated for a moment, then turned and continued walking towards the signing room without giving chase.

Upon arriving at the signing room, Yao Shishen immediately saw Shen Guangzuo, who was bowing his head. Instead of stepping inside directly, he first raised his hand and gently knocked twice on the open door.

Shen Guangzuo looked up at the sound and saw that it was Yao Shishen. He put down the documents and stood up: "Zhonghan has arrived." Han Binggui, Ren Hongyun and others who were handling official business in the room also stood up. "Greetings, Grand Master."

Yao Shishen stepped into the room and bowed to Shen Guangzuo, saying, "Grand Prefect, what are your orders?"

"An urgent report from Changping says that Miyun has been hit by torrential rains and is suffering from flooding. Han, the clerk, is drafting a reply and a memorial." Shen Guangzu returned the greeting with a cupped hand and waved for the two clerks to continue their work.

Yao Shishen was taken aback upon hearing this: "So the summer floods really have caused disaster again this year?" The summer floods, also known as the major floods, specifically refer to the period of rising water levels around the hottest days of summer. "What's the current situation? Is it still serious?"

“It’s hard to say,” Shen Guangzuo pondered. “The report says only a few dozen civilians drowned, and even including those missing, it’s just over three hundred. However, more than three hundred hectares of farmland were flooded, and that’s just the preliminary estimate.” For a county, three hundred deaths and missing persons isn’t a lot, but more than three hundred hectares of flooded farmland is terrifying. You have to understand that the total registered land area in Miyun is less than two thousand hectares, which is equivalent to one and a half percent of the county’s farmland being flooded at once.

"Has disaster relief been provided?" Yao Shishen asked again.

“Wang Jiaying has already opened the granaries to distribute relief,” Shen Guangzuo nodded and said, “but the grain reserves in Miyun County should not last long. I don’t know how many days the grain reserves in Changping Prefecture can last either.”

"Does the Grand Preceptor intend for me to personally go to Chang and Mi areas to inspect the disaster situation?" Yao Shishen asked proactively.

"Yes." Shen Guangzu nodded, his expression turning serious. "I need you to take several capable officers and set off immediately for Changping and Miyun. There are three purposes for this trip. First, to verify the disaster situation. The exact number of affected people, damaged fields, and houses, and the amount of relief funds and grain needed must be detailed. Second, to closely monitor local grain prices. If any local powerful or wealthy individuals dare to hoard grain or inflate prices, arrest them immediately. Third," Shen Guangzu paused, emphasizing his words, "urge the local authorities to organize the people to replant autumn crops as soon as possible! Fields must not be left uncultivated! If there are shortages of seeds, farm tools, or livestock, they can be borrowed or requisitioned from neighboring prefectures and counties! Time is of the essence!"

"Yes! I understand!" Yao Shishen's expression tightened, and he solemnly cupped his hands in response, "I will gather the men today and depart first thing tomorrow morning!" "Good!" Shen Guangzu nodded approvingly, "Thank you for your trouble. Go."

"This humble official takes his leave." Yao Shishen cupped his hands again and strode towards the door.

Just as he reached the door, Shen Guangzuo's voice followed, carrying an even deeper admonition: "There's one more thing! Disorder is prone to arise after a disaster, so be sure to take strict precautions! If any petty thieves take advantage of the chaos to loot or even incite the disaster victims to cause trouble, be sure to suppress them as soon as possible and nip the chaos in the bud! Remember that!"

Yao Shishen stopped and turned around calmly, saying, "Don't worry, Governor Dazan. Miyun has Governor Wen's elite troops; there won't be any chaos."

Shen Guangzu looked at him with a deep gaze: "We still need to take precautions. Unless absolutely necessary, it's best not to alarm the garrison. Local matters should be handled by the local government."

"Yes. I understand." Yao Shishen nodded in agreement. Only after seeing Shen Guangzuo return to his seat did he turn and leave.

--------

Shen Guangzuo hunched over his desk, fine beads of sweat glistening on his forehead, but he was oblivious to them. He wrote the last character on the six-leaf brush, but he did not relax.

Shen Guangzuo put down his brush on the mountain, then picked up the entire memorial and quickly skimmed through it from beginning to end. After confirming that the words were correct and the ink had dried, he opened the sandalwood box containing the seals and took out the silver seal of the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, which was covered with cinnabar ink.

Shen Guangzuo raised the official seal, aligned it with the blank space at the end of the document, and stamped it down neatly. The bright red mark landed on the paper, and he finally let out a long sigh of relief.

“Prefect Dazan.” Han Binggui suddenly stood up and walked to the main table. In his hand was another document, which was the draft reply to Changping Prefecture.

Shen Guangzu closed the memorial and handed it over casually: "Send someone to deliver the memorial to the Office of Transmission right now."

"Yes!" Han Binggui gently took the heavy document, and then handed the draft of the reply to Shen Guangzuo: "Lord Dazan, the draft of the reply to Changping has also been prepared. Please take a look."

“Okay.” Shen Guangzuo nodded and reached out to take the draft. The moment his fingertips touched the paper—

clang... clang... clang...

A melodious and resonant bell tolled, piercing the sweltering air like an arrow, clearly emanating from the bell tower not far to the west. This was the bell signaling the end of the official business hours.

"Han, the clerk!" Before the bell stopped ringing, Shen Guangzu called out to Han Binggui, who was about to go back to continue his work.

Upon hearing the call, Han Binggui immediately stopped and returned to the table, respectfully asking, "Is there anything wrong with the reply? I will correct it immediately."

“There’s nothing wrong with it, it’s just…” Shen Guangzuo’s gaze swept quickly across the palindrome manuscript, his brows furrowing almost imperceptibly. “The character ‘赈’ in ‘赈济’ and the character ‘蠲’ in ‘蠲免’ seem to be misspelled. Take this and correct them.” With that, Shen Guangzuo handed over the palindrome manuscript.

"Yes!" Han Binggui's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly accepted the document with both hands: "I am foolish and incompetent, I will go and revise it right away..."

"No rush." ​​Shen Guangzu raised his hand to interrupt him, then opened a drawer beside him and took out a blank sheet of paper with the Shuntian Prefecture government's letterhead.

Shen Guangzuo picked up his brush, lightly touched the inkstone twice, and then signed his name directly in the designated signature space on the far left of the paper. He blew heavily to dry the ink, then took out the official seal and firmly stamped it on his signature. In this way, a blank document representing the Shuntian Prefecture was completed.

Shen Guangzu handed the blank document, already signed and stamped, to Han Binggui, speaking a few steps faster than usual: "After you've made the changes, just copy it onto this page. Once you've copied it, send it out. There's no need to wait for me to return to the yamen for verification."

Han Binggui took the blank-stamped document and paused for a moment. "Are you going out?"

"Yes, I need to go out for a bit." Shen Guangzu nodded, carefully placed the seal of the Prefect of Shuntian back into its box, closed the lid, and stood up without further explanation. "You can go back once you've finished your work. There are no other errands today."

Han Binggui, being quite sensible, didn't delve into the details but instead asked, "What about the dispatch to the Ministry of Revenue? I haven't had time to write it yet."

“That’s not urgent.” Shen Guangzuo pointed to his desk piled high with documents: “Just write it down and put it on my desk. There’s no need to wait long.”

"Yes." Han Binggui replied and walked back to his seat, picking up his pen to revise the draft.

Shen Guangzuo stepped out of the signing room and waved to a yamen runner waiting in the corridor.

"What are your orders, sir?" The constable, seeing the gesture, quickly walked over.

"Have someone prepare a car," Shen Guangzu ordered. "Prepare my car."

"Yes, sir!" The constable accepted the order and ran quickly toward the stables.

Shen Guangzu followed the yamen runner out of the courtyard, but instead of continuing to the main hall, he turned and headed towards the backyard.

The Shuntian Prefecture Office was similar in layout to other prefectural offices throughout the country. The front courtyard was the office where official business was handled, while the back courtyard was the inner residence where the prefect and his family lived.

Shen Guangzuo hurried home and returned in just a few breaths.

His sudden return surprised the servants in the inner quarters. After all, Shen Guangzuo had been working overtime lately and would never return before dark.

Shen Guangzuo had no interest in answering the servants' questions, nor did he respond to their scattered greetings. He walked straight through the courtyard towards the main house. As soon as he reached the porch, the curtain to the main house was lifted, and his second wife, Wang, came out to greet him. She was dressed in a simple, light purple jacket, her hair simply tied up, and her face showed obvious surprise: "Master? Why did you leave the office so early today?"

"Didn't I tell you before?" Shen Guangzu didn't stop walking, brushing past her and going straight into the house, bringing with him a slightly warm breeze. "I'm going to visit Grand Secretary Shen."

(End of this chapter)