You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 211 Overly Favored by the Emperor, Little Jiang Forced to Return to Public Life

The "assassination case in the suburbs of Beijing" was quickly closed.

The assassins involved were executed along with their entire families, more than ten officers of the Zhili Green Standard Army were beheaded and their heads displayed in public, Shang Zhou, the magistrate of Wanping County, was sentenced to exile for 2000 li, Sony, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, was fined one year's salary, and Zhang Cunren, the governor-general of Zhili, was fined one year's salary.

In addition, a series of minor figures, such as the local inspector and the landowners of the green cornfields, were all beheaded.

Emperor Shunzhi also took the opportunity to make a series of personnel changes.

Fan Wencheng's son, Fan Chengmo, was demoted to a minor seventh-rank county magistrate in Yangzhou Prefecture for taking a female performer from the Pear Garden as a concubine, which was considered an insult to his official conduct.

Ning Wanwo was relieved of his post as Left Censor-in-Chief, but retained his title of Grand Academician of the Hongwen Academy, on the grounds that he was seriously ill and that the government was showing consideration for the elderly official.

……

During his convalescence, Jiang Qingyun hardly concerned himself with external affairs, but the emperor trusted him more and more, bestowing more and more gifts upon him, with envoys constantly shuttling along the official road from Deshengmen to Yuquanshan.

So much so that officials in the capital jokingly said: "Yuquan Mountain has two treasures that the palace can't do without: one is water, and the other is clouds."

On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Jiang Qingyun welcomed another old acquaintance—the Third Eunuch, the seventh-rank chief eunuch of the Forbidden City.

"Jiang Qingyun is deeply favored by me. He is capable and diligent in his duties. However, he is also suffering from an injury or illness. Therefore, I hereby grant him this palace for recuperation and allocate 1000 taels of silver from the imperial treasury to the Ministry of Works for its repair."

"Ning Wan is still recovering from a serious illness and should not be overworked. I am very sorry for him. However, the position of Left Censor-in-Chief is very important and should not be left vacant. Jiang Qingyun is hereby appointed to take over the position, to oversee the daily work of all officials and to participate in the maintenance of discipline. He will remain a second-rank official."

"Further gifts included ginseng, a jade ruyi (a type of scepter), a brocade robe, a sword, and other precious objects."

Jiang Qingyun's mind raced, and based on the recent developments in Beijing, he immediately drew several conclusions.

First, Emperor Shunzhi currently trusts me very much, which is crucial.

Secondly, Emperor Shunzhi was severely lacking in trusted and capable subordinates, which was also a crucial point.

Third, the change of the Left Censor-in-Chief may have been an attempt by Emperor Shunzhi to sow discord among the Liaodong faction and incite conflict.

Fourth, Shunzhi hoped to return to the court as soon as possible.

"I thank you Lord for your kindness."

"Please rise, Chief Constitutional Officer. Congratulations, Chief Constitutional Officer."

"It's hot, Third Uncle, why don't you have a cup of tea before you go?"

"This servant would be more than happy to do so, I'm sorry to bother you."

……

Beside the mountain spring, there is a pavilion.

"How are you feeling, Your Excellency?"

"Very good, Your Majesty's grace is boundless. After consuming the ginseng bestowed by the Emperor, my wound has already healed by sixty or seventy percent."

"The Emperor talks about you every day in the palace."

"Really? Tea brewed with water from Yuquan Mountain, would you like to try some?"

"Oh my, good water makes good tea."

"Third Uncle, your voice is rich, powerful, and clear; you are truly blessed by God."

"The Grand Censor has a discerning eye. I'm not bragging, but among the thousands of eunuchs in the palace who have succeeded or failed, my voice is unique."

Jiang Qingyun nodded and then instructed:

"If others don't have it, I have it; if others have it, I have it better. However, if someone wants to ruin you, it's very simple—just drop a little something here~"

As he spoke, he pointed to the teacup.

The three eunuchs' expressions changed instantly.

"Thank you for your guidance, Your Excellency. I will always keep it in mind."

……

On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the flowers are in full bloom and the moon is round, and music is played in the secluded courtyard.

The family's opera troupe performed "The Peach Blossom Fan," "The West Chamber," "The Peony Pavilion," and "Drunkenly Beating the Golden Branch." The four newly acquired concubines also volunteered to go on stage to showcase their talents, hoping to leave a deep impression on the young master.

The makeup, clothing, and hairstyles of the women in the mansion were not much different from modern aesthetics, which could be regarded as a small-scale warm-up practice of Chiang Kai-shek's "New Life Movement".

The famous failed scholar Liu Yong once said:
When you are a student, if you do the same problem repeatedly every day, you will become more skilled and the time and speed of solving problems will get shorter and shorter.

Moreover, you might find the questions too easy, making you reluctant to do them or even touch a pen.

I'm tired of doing it, I'm fed up with it, and it doesn't challenge me at all.

At this point, you need to go outside for extra lessons, meet new teachers, make new friends, and do new problems. Then your problem-solving methods will become more and more diverse, and you'll spend more and more time solving problems. Jiang Qingyun is a typical small-town problem-solving expert. Even after time-traveling, he doesn't forget his original aspirations, always keeping a pen in hand and constantly absorbing new knowledge and new question types.

……

Looking at her husband who was focused on watching the play, Jiangnan felt a little bittersweet, but she could accept it. Her husband was a high-ranking official of the second rank, and having three wives and four concubines was considered a simple life.

Besides, he has treated her family well, so she should be content.

"Husband, are you satisfied?"

“Very good, Madam has put in a lot of effort.”

Jiang Qingyun held her hand and made her sit on his lap. They watched the play and chatted about seemingly unimportant things.

"How much did you spend?"

"500 taels per person."

"Was it paid from the government's public accounts?"

"No, it was my father who provided the money."

"Oh? Father-in-law has struck it rich?"

"You gave him the qualification to escort tax silver in Zhili Province. Now he is practically the head of the Jianghu in the north, with more money than he can spend."

Jiang Qingyun gently sniffed the soapberry scent in Jiangnan's hair and asked:
"Who was specifically in charge of this?"

"It was personally chosen by me and Green Pearl."

Jiang Qingyun said no more. He was instinctively worried that someone had infiltrated his backyard, so he decided to send someone to investigate the background of that family when he had time.

Emperor Shunzhi was not an mediocre person; he was just a bit young, impatient, and inexperienced.

He couldn't wait to bare his fangs. The Thirteen Offices, the sharpest claws of imperial power, were expanding rapidly and would sooner or later become the second Western Depot, and would sooner or later become obstacles in his path.

On stage, a section of "The Romance of the Western Chamber" was being sung. The actress playing Cui Yingying and the concubine playing Zhang Shengchang were seeing each other off at the pavilion, pouring out their hearts to one another. However, Jiang Qingyun's thoughts were far away.

There are too many enemies!
They can’t kill them all, they can’t kill them all at all!

A large-scale rectification campaign is necessary.

……

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, rumors began to circulate in the capital's official circles that the favored minister, Xiao Jiang, was about to return to the court.

First they spread rumors, then they do the work; that's how seasoned officials in officialdom operate.

September 1st.

At the foot of Yuquan Mountain, along both sides of the official road, all the officials of the Censorate arrived early.

When they saw the group descending the mountain, everyone knelt down in unison.

"See General Constitution."

Jiang Qingyun, mounted on his horse, smiled and nodded.

"Fellow colleagues, please rise. From this day forward, the Censorate will be the Emperor's sharpest sword."

"I will obey the order of the Chief Justice."

After walking a little further, the soldiers of the Five Cities Garrison, fully armored, knelt on one knee and roared like thunder.

"See General Constitution."

"Brothers, please rise. From this day forward, the Five Cities Garrison will serve as the first line of defense for the capital."

"I will obey the order of the Chief Justice."

……

As we approached Xizhimen, firecrackers crackled and popped, and smoke shrouded the road ahead.

Minister of Personnel Feng Shuan, Director of the Personnel Selection Department Ji Zheng, Vice Minister of Revenue Sukesaha, Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture Tong Guogang, Magistrate of Daxing County Wu Jinyan, and others all came.

There was also Zhou Shao, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

"Congratulations to the Chief Justice on his good health."

"Thank you all for your trouble."

Jiang Qingyun reined in his horse, cupped his hands in greeting, and shouted in his heart: Jiuding, here I come!

(End of this chapter)