Dugong

Chapter 88 Tolerance for the Country
The second quarter of Shen time.

The imperial eunuch shouted in a high-pitched voice.

"If you have something to report, do so now; otherwise, the court may adjourn."

The officials kowtowed three times and bowed nine times, shouting "Long live the Emperor!" As soon as His Majesty got up and left the Hall of Diligent Governance, they hurriedly rushed out of the palace.

It was customary for the morning court session to last until the afternoon at the Yongning court.

In the past six months, many elderly and frail officials have been unable to keep up with the times and have repeatedly fainted in the court, forcing them to submit petitions to retire and return to their hometowns.

When Emperor Yongning's attempts to persuade him to stay failed, he bestowed upon him honorary titles such as Grand Secretary and Grand Master of the Palace, and awarded him a memorial archway to commemorate his achievements. He then ordered the Imperial Guards to escort him back to his hometown in glory.

The late emperor's ministers were all deeply grateful and praised Your Majesty as a benevolent and wise ruler!
"Grand Secretary Cui, Grand Secretary Cui..."

Minister Lu, panting, called out, hurrying to catch up. A month ago, Grand Secretary Zou retired, and Minister Cui was successfully admitted to the cabinet after being recommended by the court officials.

The process was reasonable and legal, and had absolutely nothing to do with Minister Cui being His Majesty's cousin!

Despite his rumbling stomach, Grand Secretary Cui stopped and asked, "What brings you here, Lord Lu?"

Minister Lu glanced around and whispered, "His Majesty just inquired about tax reduction. What is Grand Secretary Cui's opinion?"

Grand Secretary Cui said, "This is indeed a good policy that benefits the country and the people. The late emperor exhausted the people's strength, and taxes should be reduced to allow them to recuperate."

Minister Lu worriedly asked, "The national treasury is currently depleted, and we are living beyond our means. If we further reduce taxes, how will we solve the problem of the salaries of officials and the rations of soldiers next year?"

Grand Secretary Cui did not answer directly, but instead asked, "Lord Lu, have you heard of Eunuch An?"

"of course."

Minister Lu glanced around to make sure no eunuchs were eavesdropping, then lowered his voice and said, "This eunuch is ruthless and has a bloody history. If His Majesty allows eunuchs to infiltrate the capital's military, the consequences will be dire!"

Grand Secretary Cui asked, "Why is Your Majesty promoting eunuchs?"

Minister Lu clicked his tongue, speechless. In the end, it all came down to a lack of silver. Now, whoever can make up for or reduce the deficit will be promoted by His Majesty.

As for future troubles, those who come after will resolve them.

at this time.

The two high-ranking officials, including Eunuch An, were bowing and waiting outside the Imperial Study, awaiting His Majesty's summons.

The eunuch Xiao Liangzi, who was on duty at the entrance of the Imperial Study, always had a smile on his face. Every time Governor An came, he would slip him a silver note, which was at least a hundred taels in value.

There are many important figures in the Imperial Household Department, but very few are as condescending as Admiral An.

Xiao Liangzi liked money and also liked being noticed by important people, so he whispered a reminder: "Eunuch An, His Majesty has been in a good mood these days and has been talking about military affairs frequently."

Li Ping'an nodded in understanding: "Eunuch Liang works in the Directorate of Ceremonial, so it's not appropriate for us to offer him a promotion. If any of the younger generation are short of positions, they can come to the Imperial Horse Administration or the Beijing Garrison at any time."

Xiao Liangzi's eyes lit up: "Thank you for your help, Eunuch An. I will inform you promptly if anything happens in the Imperial Study in the future."

Li Ping'an cupped his hands in greeting, emphasizing that the position of "gatekeeper" was always of utmost importance.

I waited for almost half an hour.

When Eunuch Leng came out of the Imperial Study, his face was unreadable. He nodded slightly to Li Ping'an and then hurriedly walked towards the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Li Ping'an bowed in response, saying that no matter how much they fought in private, they still had to maintain appearances on the surface.

The hatred between Empress Dowager Zhou and Consort Zhang for killing their son and grandson was such that if they met in the palace, they would at most exchange a few sarcastic remarks, but they would not gouge out eyes or pull hair.

Then Eunuch Hai appeared and announced, "Eunuch An, His Majesty summons you."

Li Ping'an bowed as he entered the room, then slid down to his knees before His Majesty, performing three kowtows and nine prostrations, shouting "Long live the Emperor!"

"Flat body."

Emperor Yongning smiled, clearly in a good mood, and beckoned, "Little Anzi, come and talk to me."

Li Ping'an glanced furtively at Eunuch Hai to the Emperor's right, noticing his solemn and indifferent expression. She cautiously stood to the left, half a step behind Eunuch Hai, bowing slightly lower. "Your Majesty, this servant has come to report on matters concerning the Capital Garrison."

"Tell me."

Emperor Yongning constantly dispatched the Zhenfu Division to keep an eye on things, and Prince Cheng would also report carefully. However, he still needed to listen to the eunuchs and compare the differences between the three memorials in order to gain a clear understanding from all sides.

Li Ping'an took out a memorial from his sleeve, raised it above his head, and bowed respectfully.

“Yesterday, I investigated Zhang Yuan, the military commander of the Capital Guard. He came from a poor family and made many meritorious contributions during his time in the Pingxi Guard. I never expected that after he was transferred to the Beijing Garrison, he would start to embezzle public funds and exploit soldiers, stealing tens of thousands of taels of silver.”

Emperor Yongning flipped through the memorials and said with regret, "Such a valiant general, who braved mountains of corpses and seas of blood, died from the corrosive effects of gold and silver."

Li Ping'an continued, "After discussing with Prince Cheng, I have decided to promote the heir apparent Zhao Lian to the rank of adjutant. I request Your Majesty's approval."

"Your uncle is loyal to the emperor and devoted to the country, and your elder brother is brave and skilled in battle. I grant your permission."

Emperor Yongning learned from Prince Cheng's memorial that Xiao Anzi was extensively recruiting founding nobles into the army, so he wrote in imperial seal: "Uncle, please keep a close eye on the Beijing garrison."

Zhao Lian's promotion today clearly indicates that Prince Cheng is following the Emperor's will and has begun to compete with Xiao Anzi for a position in the Beijing Garrison.

The two had previously joined forces to eliminate the Zhang family's military generals, but in the blink of an eye, they began to fight amongst themselves, which was in the best interests of Emperor Yongning.

We will fight forever, but never break apart!
Emperor Yongning put down the memorial, picked up his imperial brush, and wrote four large characters: "Little Anzi, what do you think of my calligraphy?"

Li Ping'an carefully examined the four characters "Xiang Ren Wei Guo" (meaning "to endure for the country"), but after a moment's thought, he couldn't understand their meaning. He could only praise the calligraphy itself.

"Your Majesty's calligraphy is a perfect blend of movement and stillness, strength and gentleness, especially the character '国' (country), which is so powerful that it transcends mere brushwork; one can almost see the vastness of your mind and the landscape within it..."

Eunuch Chu once mentioned the preferences of the princes, among which His Majesty was fond of copying the running script of the Northern Stele.

Li Ping'an started practicing a little late, but after reading many books praising running script, he understood the mysteries of the script and naturally knew how to praise it.

Emperor Yongning was aware of his own abilities, but he did not point out the flattery he received from his subordinates.

"Xiao Anzi has done a good job in reorganizing the Beijing garrison, killing corrupt officials, and quelling the resentment of the soldiers. Therefore, I bestow this calligraphy upon you."

"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty."

Li Ping'an squeezed out two lines of tears, kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude, and respectfully accepted the imperial brush.

Emperor Yongning nodded and said, "You may step down. From now on, serve diligently, and I will never mistreat a loyal subject."

"This servant is willing to repay your kindness like a dog or a horse, even if it means being ground to dust!"

Li Ping'an kowtowed and swore an oath, then left the imperial study with the calligraphy scroll in his hands. He kowtowed three times and nine times outside the door before turning to leave.

Back to the Imperial Horse Stables duty room.

Immediately send someone to mount the calligraphy copybook into a plaque and hang it high in the central hall, and remove all other calligraphy copybooks from the room. What right do they have to share a room with His Majesty's calligraphy?

Li Ping'an summoned his trusted eunuch and asked, "What exactly does Your Majesty mean by those four words?"

Imperial edicts were not bestowed lightly. The Book of Rites states, "Reverence for Heaven and ancestor is embodied in the form of regulations," where "form" includes imperial edicts, imperial writings, handwritten instructions, and so on.

After much discussion and deliberation, the group still could not understand His Majesty's true intentions.

Eunuch Xia frowned and said, "Judging from the surface meaning, it means that he has made meritorious contributions to the reorganization of the Beijing Garrison but has not been rewarded. Your Excellency should compromise and be tolerant."

Li Ping'an kowtowed in the direction of the Imperial Study, then shook his head slightly after rising.

“We are His Majesty’s servants, and it is our duty to serve him faithfully. If we are rewarded, it is a great favor from the Emperor. If we are not rewarded, it is only right. It is not worthy of His Majesty’s imperial decree.”

Little Jingzi was young and had little education. She looked up at the plaque and murmured to herself as she read it over and over again.

"Godfather, I always feel that these four words are full of resentment..."

(End of this chapter)