Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 767 Following the will of the people, sacrificing family for the greater good

Beneath, bee, bee.

When Gao Yingqiu knocked on the door of the bank manager's duty room on the third floor, it was pouring rain outside. The sound of the rain drowned out the sound of his knocking.

Gao Yingqiu was certain that his godfather was in the room, so after waiting for a while without any response, he simply pushed the door open and went in.

"As expected, it was you knocking on the door." The moment Gao Yingqiu pushed the door open, Gao Shiming was also looking in the direction of the door.

"Godfather." Gao Yingqiu walked quickly to Gao Shiming's desk and bowed respectfully. "Your son has returned to report."

Gao Shiming didn't immediately ask Gao Yingqiu about the important matter. Instead, he leaned on the armrest of the chair, slightly rose, and looked at the hem of Gao Yingqiu's clothes. "Your dog skin is all wet. Go next door and change your clothes before you come back."

Gao Yingqiu felt a warmth in his heart. "Thank you for your concern, Godfather. My outer clothes are wet, but I'm still dry inside."

"Tch. I was just worried you'd dirty my floor." Gao Shiming waved his hand coldly. "Go change it now."

"Yes!" Gao Yingqiu smiled and left.

Before long, Gao Yingqiu, now dressed in clean clothes, returned to the bank manager's office. Gao Shiming was no longer sitting behind his desk.

He stood by the half-open window, arms crossed, quietly watching the torrential rain.

"Godfather, your son is back." Gao Yingqiu walked behind Gao Shiming and bowed again.

"You say," Gao Shiming said, puzzled. "Is His Majesty also enjoying the rain right now?"

Gao Yingqiu was taken aback, subconsciously feeling that his godfather's words had a hidden meaning, but he couldn't quite grasp the underlying sarcasm, so he could only mechanically reply, "I guess so."

"Heh." Although the sound of rain masked his words, Gao Shiming still sensed the hesitation in Gao Yingqiu's voice. However, he had no interest in explaining further and cut to the chase in the blink of an eye: "Tell me. Who is the current owner of the Zhang family's old house?"

“It is Chen Yuting, Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices,” Gao Yingqiu replied solemnly.

Gao Shiming, the Minister of the Imperial Stud, nodded. "That's true."

The Imperial Stud was located in Xiaoshiyongfang, and officials of this government office preferred to own residences in that area.

"How much did he offer?" Gao Shiming turned his head and asked.

“Uh,” Gao Yingqiu shook his head.

"Didn't see anyone?" Gao Shiming frowned.

"No. My son saw someone at the yamen (government office)."

"He won't sell?"

“It’s not that I’m unwilling to sell, it’s just that…” Gao Yingqiu’s face showed a troubled expression.

“Didn’t I tell you? Price isn’t an issue,” Gao Shiming said. “He wouldn’t be so greedy as to ask for ten thousand taels, would he?”

“It’s not about the price,” Gao Yingqiu said. “He wants us to find him a ready-made house to live in.”

“That’s easy,” Gao Shiming said. “Our bank has no shortage of money and houses. Just take the catalog to his door later and let him pick any one he wants.”

“My son told him the same thing, but he only wants a house in Xiaoyongfang, and it has to be close enough to the Imperial Stud. It can’t be farther than the original house.” Gao Yingqiu shook his head. “If my son remembers correctly, there shouldn’t be such a house on our register.”

"There's none?"

"I think should not be."

“I seem to remember there was one.” Gao Shiming walked back to the desk, picked up the thick property register, flipped through it casually, and quickly found a property that he thought was suitable. “This is it. It’s the old house entrusted to me for sale by Bi Ziyan, the former Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. It’s located at No. 3, Wupu, Wupai, Yongfang, Xiaoshi.”

“Wugong Hutong?” Gao Yingqiu leaned closer, looking at the address recorded in the register: “That place is near Chang’an Street, but quite far from the Imperial Stud. It’s definitely farther than the Zhang family’s old house.”

Compared to Chang'an Avenue, the Zhang family's old residence was closer to Xi'an Gate. Zhang Juzheng chose to settle here mainly for convenient access to the Xiyuan Garden, where the Temple of Heaven was located.

“You go talk to him first,” Gao Shiming said. “At worst, we can give him some more money. If he has any other requests, as long as they’re not too unreasonable, we can agree to them.”

"What if," Gao Yingqiu blinked and whispered, "we can't reach an agreement?"

"What did you say?!" The rain was too loud, and Gao Shiming didn't hear clearly.

"It's nothing," Gao Yingqiu said, shrinking back slightly. "Son, I'll go right now!"

"There's no need to rush. Let's wait until the rain subsides a bit more," Gao Shiming waved his hand. "Also, have someone prepare a car for me. I need to go to the head office."

"Going to the head office again? What's the matter?" Gao Yingqiu had gone to Xiaoyongfang early in the morning to look for the Zhang family's old residence, so he didn't know that Gao Shiming had been invited to the Ministry of Revenue by Wang Yingjiao earlier. "Oh! Son, I understand." Gao Yingqiu suddenly remembered the strange question Gao Shiming had asked earlier. "You went to the head office to discuss the closure of Yuegang."

"If you understand, then get lost. I'm getting annoyed with you." Gao Shiming turned around, put his hands behind his back, looked at the rain outside the window, and didn't say anything more.

"Yes. I'll go down and tell people to feed the horses and prepare the carriage." Gao Yingqiu bowed and turned around.

"It's raining heavily. Don't forget to give the driver some tips!" Gao Shiming's voice came after them.

"Yes. I understand, son." Gao Yingqiu turned around, stood at the door, and bowed again.

--------

The sky cleared, and Wang An, the Grand Eunuch who had taken shelter from the downpour in the cabinet, swaggered over to the palanquin that had just arrived. "Grand Secretary Fang, esteemed ministers, I shall take my leave now."

"Please take care, Master Wang." Fang Congzhe led the way in returning the greeting.

Wang Angang grabbed the handrail, but then turned around as if he had suddenly remembered something. "Prime Minister Fang, please allow me to say one more thing."

"Please speak, Master Wang," Fang Congzhe gestured for him to speak.

"The national treasury is empty, the borders are in peril, and His Majesty is working tirelessly day and night. This is precisely the time for us to unite and cooperate. I hope you gentlemen will prioritize the greater good and refrain from acting on your own impulses." Wang An surveyed the crowd, finally fixing his gaze on Fang Congzhe and Ye Xianggao. "Furthermore, I urge the Grand Secretary and the Second Grand Secretary to do their utmost to mediate and prevent His Majesty from having to worry about the affairs of the cabinet!"

"What Minister Wang says is true." Fang Congzhe nodded solemnly, then deliberately glanced at Shen.

Shen He didn't understand. He slowly took a breath, puffed out a hint of "apology" and looked at Han Kuang: "Brother Yu Chen. I spoke without thinking today, please don't take it to heart."

"Not at all, Brother Mingzhen, you flatter me." Han Kuang also put on a forgiving expression.

"Good! I'm relieved to hear your words." Wang An smiled and said to everyone. "Farewell! Please return, everyone."

"Please take your time, Master Wang." Fang Congzhe led the way in returning the greeting, watching the palanquin head towards the Donghua Gate. "The Ancestor has arrived!" A quarter of an hour later, the palanquin carrying Wang An slowly came to a stop in the courtyard of the Inner Eastern Depot.

Upon hearing the loud announcement, Cui Wensheng, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial and concurrently the Director of the Eastern Depot, hurriedly led his men to the palanquin. Just as he was about to kneel, Wang An stopped him, saying, "What a pity you all have such fine skin! Don't kneel!"

"Thank you for your mercy, Ancestor!" Cui Wensheng seized the opportunity and led the people in the hall to bow deeply, almost burying their heads in their crotches. "This servant Cui Wensheng greets Ancestor."

"Alright. Go back now." Wang An stepped over the lowered sedan chair poles, dismounted, and waved to the crowd. "Cui Wensheng, find a quiet room nearby. I'll say a few words and then leave."

"Yes!" Cui Wensheng's heart skipped a beat. He swallowed the pleasantries that were about to come out of his mouth, moved closer to Wang An, and gestured "please" towards the second hall. "Grand Ancestor, this way please."

Cui Wensheng dismissed all the eunuchs they encountered along the way and led Wang An to the nearest tea room. After closing the door, Cui Wensheng went to Wang An, who was already seated, lifted his robe, knelt down, and made up for the kowtow he hadn't done earlier: "This servant greets the Ancestor."

“Let’s talk while we’re seated,” Wang An said, pointing to the seat next to him.

"I wouldn't dare!" Cui Wensheng didn't obey. Instead, he picked up a low stool nearby, sat down with his neck hunched, and deliberately looked up at Wang An.

"Hehe." Wang An chuckled and patted Cui Wensheng on the shoulder. He seemed quite satisfied with Cui's measured performance.

"Haha." Cui Wensheng also laughed obsequiously. "If the Ancestor has any orders, please feel free to order this servant around."

"Nothing else, just one thing," Wang An said with a smile, holding up one finger.

Cui Wensheng wasn't really interested in listening, but he still flattered her, saying, "Please speak, Ancestor."

“Let Li Guorui commit suicide out of fear of punishment,” Wang An casually remarked.

"Huh? This..." Cui Wensheng's smile froze instantly, his right eyelid twitching uncontrollably. "Didn't you say before that you'd let the outer court make a fuss for a while? Why are you doing this now?"

“The situation has changed; if we keep arguing, something serious will happen.” Wang An shook his head and asked, “Do you know where I went before I came here?”

"This servant is dull-witted. I don't know." Cui Wensheng shook his head blankly.

"cabinet."

"The Cabinet." Cui Wensheng asked in confusion, "What happened to the Cabinet?" The sudden downpour slowed the transmission of news; otherwise, given the distance between the Eastern Depot and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Cui Wensheng should have heard the news by now.

“We almost got into a fight because of this,” Wang An said.

"A fight?" Cui Wensheng was taken aback. "Who's against whom?"

“Grand Secretary Shen and Grand Secretary Han,” Wang An said.

“The two of them…” Cui Wensheng’s surprise faded slightly, but he still couldn’t understand it for a moment. “It can’t be that bad, the case of Marquis Wuqing has nothing to do with them.”

“But he was involved in the leak,” Wang An said.

“A leak.” Cui Wensheng leaned forward, lowering his voice. “But didn’t we send people to do it ourselves?”

“They don’t know that.” Wang An smiled.

"Are they starting to distrust each other?" Cui Wensheng understood somewhat.

“That’s right.” Wang An sighed and explained briefly: “Grand Secretary Shen suspected that Grand Secretary Han deliberately leaked the secret, stirred up public opinion, and then used public opinion to force Grand Secretary Fang to return the imperial edict. In this way, the master would be angry with Grand Secretary Fang and then instruct Grand Secretary Fang to retire.”

“But the master wouldn’t do that,” Cui Wensheng said. “After the imperial edict is returned, wouldn’t the master be able to ‘go with the flow’ of public opinion and sentence Li Guorui to death?”

“The situation is changing too fast; we can’t wait until then. Moreover, given this impression, even if the emperor heeds the loyal advice and approves the cabinet’s decision to return the fiefdoms, the cabinet’s internal conflicts will become irreconcilable. If a factional struggle erupts between Xia and Yan, or between Yan and Xu, it will not be a blessing for the country,” Wang An said. “The best course of action now is to have Li Guorui commit suicide out of fear of punishment, thus ending all of this once and for all.”

"Grandfather! Killing someone at this time will make anyone suspect that it was ordered by the palace and carried out by the Eastern Depot. No one will believe the excuse of suicide out of fear of punishment!" Cui Wensheng was anxious. He didn't care whether factional strife was a blessing for the country; he was only afraid that the flames of the Li family would burn him.

“But no one will investigate!” Wang An pressed Cui Wensheng’s shoulder, looking into his eyes. “And no one will jump out to impeach the Eastern Depot for harboring ulterior motives and silencing witnesses, as you previously feared.”

“This servant does not understand,” Cui Wensheng stared blankly at Wang An.

“Is there anything else you don’t understand?” Wang An explained solemnly, “Those officials and censors have been submitting memorials one after another, each more vehement than the last, accusing everyone of eight or ten major crimes. Some have even brought up the fact that the burial of Zhuang Jian, the Duke of Anguo, exceeded the prescribed limits. Aren’t they doing all this to severely punish the Li family father and son? After the emperor issued an edict to demote Li Ke and Shu Dao, public sentiment became even more indignant, and the cabinet almost came to blows. Executing Li Guorui at this time is a way to turn the tide, accept advice, follow the will of the people, and put righteousness before family!”

"Oh," Cui Wensheng nodded thoughtfully, his expression seemingly improving. "So, the Ancestor just left the Inner Cabinet and came straight here to this servant?"

“That’s right.” Wang An nodded. “I first went to the cabinet to announce the decree to punish Minister Shen. As soon as the rain stopped, I swaggered over here.”

"Alright!" Having said that, Cui Wensheng understood everything. "This servant will make that brat commit suicide tonight out of guilt." In an instant, his expression became extremely submissive, and his eyes became extremely fierce, like a vicious dog ready to pounce.

“Very good.” Wang An nodded in satisfaction. “Also, have your Eastern Depot conduct another perfunctory search.”

"search?"

"The secret imperial edict has been leaked. Shouldn't we conduct a search?" Wang An countered.

"Oh! I understand, it's to deceive others," Cui Wensheng said with a bow and a smile.

"Yes."

"Then," Cui Wensheng's eyes darted around, and he suggested, "how about we arrange a few more scapegoats?"

"There's no need for that, just going through the motions is enough," Wang An said.

“This servant thinks it’s necessary. With a scapegoat, the Grand Secretaries won’t suspect each other.” Cui Wensheng suddenly seemed very concerned about the court. “Isn’t it killing two birds with one stone?”

“It’s going to be hard to find a scapegoat. Logically speaking, only the Directorate of Ceremonial and the Grand Secretariat should be qualified to know about this. If we just grab a few people, it will probably turn from covering up the truth into burying our heads in the sand.” Wang An shook his head again.

"That's precisely why we need to find a scapegoat," Cui Wensheng grinned. "Otherwise, the suspicion among the elders won't disappear."

"You mean," Wang An raised an eyebrow, "that the people from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs are being arrested?"

Cui Wensheng nodded heavily.

"What exactly do you want?" Wang An's eyes turned cold.

"This servant just suddenly had an idea and wanted to smooth things over a bit more; I had no other intentions." Cui Wensheng stiffened and quickly put away his smile, explaining, "Besides, didn't the Western Depot recently discover that there are a few greedy servants in the Imperial Secretariat who have been profiting by smuggling money? We can arrest them and make them take the blame, saying that they have an old grudge against Marquis Wuqing and want to kill him, which is why they leaked the information. Their status is suitable, and no one will care if they die. The Directorate of Ceremonial can also use this to deter those vermin who want to enrich themselves at the expense of the public."

After a moment of silence, Wang An suddenly stood up and walked towards the door. "Take care of what's at hand first, we can talk about the rest later."

"Yes." Cui Wensheng immediately followed, a smile returning to his face. "This servant will see you off!"

(End of this chapter)