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

Chapter 225 No one understands Stockholm Syndrome better than Xiao Jiang

The 29th day of the twelfth lunar month in the ninth year of the Shunzhi reign.

A long queue formed outside the Eight Banners Salary Office located in Qianliang Hutong, where bannermen came to receive the imperial court's New Year's rewards, one of the legitimate benefits for bannermen in the capital.

The notice read:

Each household can receive 5 taels of silver, 5 catties of pork, 5 catties of oil, 5 catties of pastries, 5 catties of dried fruit, 5 feet of floral cloth, 5 feet of colored silk, and a pair of door god prints.

Though the Qing dynasty may be over, the ironclad support for the people must not be severed.

Not only should it not be interrupted, but the benefits should be even more generous than in previous years.

This is equivalent to the tactic of surrounding three sides and leaving one side open, which can, to some extent, undermine and weaken the enemy's will to resist.

No one understands the Qing Dynasty better than Jiang Qingyun.

No one understands Stockholm better than Jiang Qingyun.

No one knows better than Jiang Qingyun how to be a strict yet loving father.

……

Giddy up!
A large cavalry force roared in, making quite a spectacle.

"The Nine Gates Admiral has arrived."

The people in line all knelt down, not daring to raise their heads.

At the age of 20, the Commander of the Nine Gates wielded immense power and commanded a large army; his youthful arrogance could hardly be described as mere youthful recklessness.

The only sounds at the scene were the snorting of warhorses pawing the ground and the crunching of military boots on the snow.

Only after the horse caravan had gone far away did the crowd dare to stand up.

"Come on, let's continue distributing New Year's gifts."

The clerks distribute New Year's gifts based on the latest banner sergeant files, without any obstruction. Unless, of course, your name isn't in the file.

A Manchu woman at the very front of the line nervously twisted her fingers.

"Take it!"

Two soldiers walked over and easily pinned her down.

"let me go."

"Grandma, can you tell me why your family isn't on the records?"

"When we were registering and filing the documents, the head of the household happened to fall ill."

"Since it's not in the Eight Banners archives, then it must be the Ninth Banner."

Just then, Wu Guo, the secretary of the Eight Banners Salary Office, happened to pass by, and he felt a little sorry for him.

"Never mind, let her go."

"Whoo."

The woman left in a panic.

The clerk was very respectful, knowing that Wu Guo was a junior whom the governor often took care of, and he absolutely could not offend him.

However, one should not be perfunctory in one's duties.

The clerk subtly gave a wink, and the imperial guards nearby understood immediately. Following the clues, they arrested the entire family.

For every Ninth Banner officer arrested, the yamen (government office) would award one tael of silver. This applied to everyone from 80 years old to 8 months old.

……

That same day, Jiang Qingyun received a secret report.

He sighed and immediately wrote a letter transferring Wu Guo to the Health Department of the Urban Construction Division of the Infantry Commander's Office as a physician.

My nephew is kind-hearted but naive; he should not be involved in this mess. Otherwise, it will lead to disaster sooner or later.

For the past two weeks, I've been living in my office. Green Pearl brought the cat over, adding a touch of warmth to this humble place.

Cats are companion pets, and their facial features are very much in line with human aesthetics. They can soothe people's hearts in daily interactions.

Knock, knock, knock. Someone is knocking on the door.

"Come in."

"Reporting to the General, the list of executed prisoners is as follows: 1321 able-bodied men and 1754 elderly, weak, women and children."

"All relevant official documents, including their files, will be destroyed immediately after reading."

"Yes, in addition, the construction of the brick kiln was not ideal."

Construction site.

The incompetent officials from the urban construction department stared blankly at the collapsed and smoking site, still shaken.

"what happened?"

"For some reason, we tried to expand the brick kiln three times, and each time the dome collapsed, which doesn't seem to be a technical issue."

Jiang Qingyun was startled. If it wasn't a technical factor, then it must be a metaphysical one.

"Any idea?"

"I am from Longhu Mountain. In my opinion, the main reason for this situation is the unfavorable timing. It is not advisable to break ground or draw blood in the first month of the lunar calendar."

What about you?

"Our Tiantai Sect thinks so too." "Alright, let's respect metaphysics and build it after the first month of the lunar calendar. We need to be able to ensure that the furnace temperature reaches the level required for steelmaking."

"Thank you, sir."

Jiang Qingyun carefully closed the kitten's ears in her arms so that it wouldn't be frightened by the loud noise of the Qing Dynasty's collapse.

……

Forbidden City.

Hundreds of eunuchs were temporarily reassigned to the imperial kitchen to help prepare for the New Year's Eve banquet the following day.

Satisfied smiles radiated from their faces. Those who live near mountains eat from the mountains, those near rivers eat from the rivers, and those near the imperial kitchen naturally get to eat some imperial food.

The Thirteen Offices, the Directorate of Ceremonial.

Wu Liangfu locked himself in his room, feeling conflicted, contradictory, and hesitant.

Because of the recent "Yongli Coin Case in the Forbidden City", he lost 5 of his adopted sons (3 were imprisoned after the guards found out about the Yongli Coin, and another 2 were beaten and crippled by the corrupted eunuch).

This case greatly diminished his prestige in the palace, reduced his trust in the emperor, and caused him to lose all his savings from the past few years!

Jiang Qingyun devised a plan, with the Third Eunuch digging a pit, as a warning to himself to become blind and deaf from now on.

You have two choices in front of you.

Part 1: Expose the truth before the emperor, a desperate battle.

Second, by submitting and bowing down, one is on a pirate ship.

Wu Liangfu was extremely loyal to Emperor Shunzhi, and he really did not want to deceive him.

Suddenly, someone knocked violently on the door.

Thump thump thump thump~
Startled, Wu Liangfu, who was deep in thought, lost control of his bladder again.

"Who's the bastard?"

He stormed out of the room, his anger vanishing in an instant. Standing outside was Jiang Qingyun, with several grumpy-faced eunuchs behind him.

……

The Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs was the core area of ​​the Thirteen Offices, with armed eunuchs guarding the entrance, and outsiders were not allowed to enter or leave in principle.

But Jiang Qingyun is a man of principle.

"Steward, we can't stop them."

"Get out, get out, get out!" Wu Liangfu said with a forced fawning smile. "Greetings, Lord Jiang."

"Steward Wu, it's the dead of winter, why are you sweating so much?"

"I...I'm physically weak."

Is it physical weakness or emotional weakness?

As he spoke, Jiang Qingyun peered into the room. There was a heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove) inside, and on the kang was a small table covered with intelligence reports.

Wu Liangfu was sweating profusely.

Jiang Qingyun took out her handkerchief and handed it to him.

"Don't be nervous, Steward. I'm just passing by."

"Hey, hey."

You don't look well today, is something wrong?

After a while~
“My house in Qianliang Hutong was robbed a few days ago, and I suffered a considerable loss.”

Do you want to recover your losses?

"Of course I do."

"Beg me! Beg me! Have you begged me yet?"

Looking at Jiang Qingyun, who had transformed from evil to righteous, Wu Liangfu's inner wall of resistance crumbled.

Your Majesty, how can this servant possibly fight against such a wicked person? Even if I grind my teeth until they rot and stick my butt out to the sky, I still can't defeat this evil person!
"I beg you."

Wu Liangfu made a gesture of bowing, but Jiang Qingyun, smiling, helped him up.

"No, no, you are the Grand Eunuch, you can only kneel before the Emperor."

"Don't worry, I'm in charge of the entire city, including the inner and outer gates of the capital. Before the fifteenth of the first lunar month, the Infantry Commander's Office will definitely solve this case and recover all the stolen goods."

"Thank you, Lord Jiang."

"You are welcome."

Jiang Qingyun patted him on the shoulder and said meaningfully:

"Chief Steward Wu, the court is a very complex place. You only know one side of the story, and you only know the surface but not the essence. In short, important matters of state are not something a eunuch like you can interfere with. Do you understand?"

"The servant understands."

Wu Liangfu looked utterly dejected, as if he had no will to live.

They couldn't win by fighting, and they couldn't win by brawling.

The entire court is spineless; what can I, a mere eunuch, do?

(End of this chapter)