Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 173 The Young Grand Secretary Enters the Grand View Garden [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

Two days later.

I woke up early in the morning, but unfortunately the weather was sunny that day.

Without any servants to wake him, Yan Shifan got up early in the morning, washed and changed his clothes, and sat in the courtyard watching the servants sweep up the fallen leaves.

Ouyang Duanshu led her personal maid in and said, "You unfilial son, you're up early today."

Yan Shifan laughed and said:
“Mother, Yan Maoqing has put aside past grievances and offered help in this time of need. I am not one to be unreasonable.”

"How can you call him by his first name? You should call him Uncle-in-law. You have no manners!"

Ouyang Duanshu immediately glared at her and rebuked:
"Things are different now than when your father was the Minister of Rites. Now that you're in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, you need to work hard. Otherwise, you'll disappoint your uncle's good intentions..."

"Don't worry, Mother, I know what's important."

While talking.

Yan Shifan had already avoided Ouyang Duanshu and boarded a small sedan chair that he would never have given a second glance to before. He then leisurely left the Yan residence and headed towards Donghua Gate.

Sitting in the sedan chair, many thoughts gradually surfaced in my mind.

The prospect of facing Yan Maoqing, a sudden and unexpected uncle-in-law, and having to serve under him, filled Yan Shifan with indescribable complex emotions.

Thinking back to the imperial examination that year, it was he who arrogantly expelled Yan Maoqing from the Yuzhang Guild Hall.

Who could have imagined that things would change so quickly? He was no longer the son of a second-rank official in the imperial court, while Yan Maoqing had become a third-rank official.

Even now, he still needs his mother to swallow her pride and plead for him in person to barely secure Yan Maoqing's protection; otherwise, he wouldn't even have the ability to protect himself...

The only thing to be thankful for now is...

Yan Maoqing probably doesn't know about the other sordid things he did, especially the way he used Zhang Yusheng to frame Yan Maoqing and Bai Lu for "adultery without a husband".

Otherwise, this feud would probably have reached the point of irreconcilable enmity, and it wouldn't be something that could be resolved by the mother swallowing her pride and pleading for mercy. Perhaps now, Yan Maoqing would be added to the list of people who want the Yan family destroyed.

However, upon further reflection, he realized that he and his father had indeed helped Yan Maoqing before.

Previously, Yan Maoqing was able to be selected as a junior compiler in the academy and even ranked first on the list because of his and his father's literary works.

So let's consider our past grievances settled as a matter of course, like the flood washing away the Dragon King's temple.

I, Yan Shifan, appreciate this timely help. When my father returns in the future, I will repay the favor when I have the opportunity. After all, we are relatives...

"Young master, we've arrived at Donghua Gate."

The sedan chair sank slightly, and the voice of a servant came from the front. The curtain of the sedan chair was then lifted.

"Ah."

Yan Shifan murmured, climbed out of the sedan chair, puffed out his general's belly, and swayed as he walked toward the Donghua Gate.

Passing through Donghua Gate and across the square outside Huiyin Gate, you will find the Imperial Household Department directly in front of you.

"Aha——"

When he arrived outside, Yan Shifan couldn't help but yawn.

He hadn't been this punctual for roll call in a long time.

Previously, when he served in the Left Army Commandery, the Rear Army Commandery, and the Shuntian Prefecture, he could go whenever he wanted, and no one ever dared to say anything.

However, today is the first day I've been to the Imperial Household Department, and I've received a timely favor from Yan Maoqing, so I should at least give this uncle some face, shouldn't I?
After today.

The officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices all knew of my relationship with Yan Maoqing.

We should certainly give them that much face, so the matter of checking in isn't important.

Anyway, the Crown Prince hasn't moved into Cining Palace yet, and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices is basically just a place for the Hanlin Academy to move around, so what could possibly happen...?

"Cough cough!"

Clearing his throat and straightening his official robes, Yan Shifan finally straightened his back and stepped onto the steps in front of the Imperial Household Department.

Upon arriving at the courtyard, they discovered that the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices were scattering and heading towards their respective duty rooms.

"Is this... something I missed?"

Yan Shifan felt a little strange.

He remembered clearly that he had gotten up very early today to arrive right on time for his roll call.

Why are these officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices acting as if they have just finished an important meeting and gone off to do their own business?
"?"

The officials of the Imperial Household Department also noticed this one-eyed fat man who had just arrived.

Pairs of eyes looked over, their gazes filled with a complex mix of curiosity, admiration, and perhaps sympathy.

"Who is coming?"

At this moment, a square-faced, serious-looking official from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices walked straight toward him, holding a booklet.

Just look at the scarlet cloud and goose insignia on the official's chest.

Yan Shifan knew that this was at least a fourth-rank official.

There were only two officials of the fourth rank in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, namely the two junior officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Yan Shifan then bowed slightly and said with a smile:
"Greetings, sir. I am Yan Shifan, the newly appointed Left Attendant."

"You dare to fail to perform your duty on the first day of roll call?"

The official's expression grew increasingly serious as he sized Yan Shifan up and down, before demanding an explanation in a deep voice.

"Do you know the punishment for failing to perform the duty of inspection? My Imperial Household Department has no one as unruly as you!"

This person was none other than Kong Jian, the Junior Chamberlain, who demanded that the officials of the Chamberlain be "strictly self-disciplined" every day, even before Yan Maoqing took office and before the Chamberlain had a new official in charge. He even required them to put their fingerprints on their documents for roll call.

That day, after Yan Maoqing carried the board and "Yan Gong spit out his food" (a reference to a famous Chinese poem),...

The duty of roll call naturally returned to Kong Jian's hands, and the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices returned to their previous life of arriving at the Court of Imperial Sacrifices a moment early to roll call.

Of course, Yan Maoqing would never show up on time for roll call.

However, due to Kong Jian's even greater persistence and sense of responsibility after "Duke Yan spitting out his food", he was hindered.

He still had to come up with an excuse that "I go to the palace every day to pay my respects to the Crown Prince" in order to fool Kong Jian and maintain his "hero" persona.

"This……"

Yan Shifan, who had always acted like a lord in other government offices, had never seen such a scene before. He was momentarily stunned by Kong Jian's presence and had no choice but to immediately invoke his "uncle-in-law" to bolster his position.
"I am new here and am not familiar with the roll call rules of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. My uncle-in-law, Minister Yan, has never mentioned them either. Please forgive me, sir."

"Rules are rules; how can they be discounted or waived!"

Kong Jian's gaze remained icy as he raised his hand and shouted loudly.
"Guards, what is the punishment for failing to conduct a routine inspection without a valid reason?"

"Ten strokes of the cane!"

The two junior officials from the Imperial Household Department behind him immediately replied.

"Execute the punishment!"

Kong Jian waved his hand, and two minor officials from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices immediately rushed forward and forced Yan Shifan to kneel down.

Other minor officials also hurriedly brought rattan canes, intending to punish Yan Shifan on the spot.

"Wait, wait, Shangguan, please wait!"

Yan Shifan was completely stunned. He had never seen such a delusional person in his entire life. Thinking that the young master of the palace hadn't understood his implied meaning, he quickly added...

"This humble official wishes to see my uncle-in-law, Minister Yan!"

As it turned out, it would have been better if Yan Shifan hadn't mentioned Yan Maoqing at all. But the moment Yan Shifan did, Kong Jian immediately became as if he had been injected with chicken blood, his face even glowing with admiration. He bowed deeply and said:
"What a hero Minister Yan is! If he were here today, seeing you so disregarding the rules, he would be less likely to show favoritism or protect you, especially since you are his nephew!"

"What are you all standing there for? Execute the punishment!" "Slow down!"

Although he didn't understand why Kong Jian was blushing, Yan Shifan realized that his aunt's husband, Yan Maoqing, couldn't save him, so he quickly protested loudly again.
"Even if I failed to detect it, my superior should have reported it to the Censorate for investigation and prosecution. How can I resort to private punishment? That would be against the rules of the court."

Who knows the next moment.

"You're asking me what the Court of Imperial Sacrifices is?!"

Kong Jian suddenly became even more excited than before, and his voice even cracked with excitement.
"I'm telling you right now, if other officials in other departments can't conduct the inspections and their superiors turn a blind eye, then our Court of Imperial Sacrifices will never do that!"

"The imperial court has its own rules and regulations, and our Court of Imperial Sacrifices will naturally not disobey them!"

"But our Court of Imperial Sacrifices also has its own rules. As long as you are in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, the rules of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices are the rules!"

"In short, I rejoice to see waves of rice and millet, heroes everywhere under the evening glow, rising from the mud unsullied, cleansed by the clear water yet remaining pure!"

"This is the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, is that clear enough?!"

He finally got his chance!
No one knows how proud and elated Yan Maoqing was when his deeds at the Hanlin Academy were reported back to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices!
In particular, almost everyone in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices was familiar with the words spoken by Yan Maoqing at that time.

So much so that whenever they can find an opportunity, they will seize it to put on an incredibly awkward imitation show.

A few days ago, an imperial censor from the Censorate came to inspect the matter, and it was because he said half a sentence about "your Court of Imperial Sacrifices...".

Before he could finish speaking, Hu Hongzhen, the Right Imperial Eunuch, interrupted him, thoroughly enjoying himself. This made the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices extremely envious, and it also terrified the censors of the Censorate, who almost mistook the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for a research center for abnormal humans.

even……

"Uh?!"

Yan Shifan was also stunned by Kong Jian's neurotic behavior.

At the same time, I really want to ask, Shangguan, if you're going to speak, why do you have to use your pinky finger to speak?

Aside from male actors playing female roles in opera troupes, even palace eunuchs wouldn't do that...

"Execute the punishment!"

After Kong Jian had his fill of that, he immediately gave a cold shout.

……

"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!"

After Yan Shifan received ten strokes of the rattan cane on his buttocks, he continued to curse under his breath as Kong Jian led him to the duty room.

"You just wait, one day I'll pay you back tenfold!"

He even suspected that this was a revenge tactic deliberately arranged by Yan Maoqing, in order to avenge the previous expulsion of him from the Yuzhang Guild Hall.

If that's the case.

He had never met such a petty person in his life. There was no one in the world more vengeful than him!
However, the situation is beyond his control now, and he still has to rely on his uncle-in-law to keep his official position and help the Yan family get through the most difficult period. He can only curse him in his heart.

However, upon further reflection...

If this uncle really wanted to take revenge on him, wouldn't it be better to either watch from the sidelines or kick him while he's down?

There's no need to first give him an official title and then deliberately arrange for the Imperial Household Department to whip him ten times with a rattan cane. Isn't that putting the cart before the horse?
It's probably not revenge.

It's probably really a rule of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, since there really wasn't any official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices who arrived later than him.

Moreover, he had heard from his mother these past two days that his uncle-in-law had only recently taken charge of the Imperial Household Department, and it was a time for him to work diligently and make great strides...

That's right, that's right. With such a group of mentally unstable subordinates under his command, how could my uncle possibly manage them without using some special methods? How could he possibly govern with diligence and determination?

"We've arrived. From now on, this will be your duty room, and this desk will be your official desk."

Suddenly, Kong Jian's voice came to my ears.

Today's seemingly absurd "disciplinary action" had a remarkable effect, immediately waking Yan Shifan up, who quickly nodded in agreement:
"Thank you, sir. I will certainly do my best in my work from now on."

"Yes, the officials of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices are all watching you. As Yan Butang's nephew, you should be even more careful in everything you do and not disgrace Yan Butang."

Kong Jian, at this moment, had a rather kind and benevolent expression and smiled.

"Thank you for your guidance, Shangguan... Ouch—ah!"

Yan Shifan bowed, and as soon as he sat down, he jumped up as if he had been electrocuted.

It hurts so much!!!
The caning at the Imperial Household Department was not like his mother's feather duster. Although they were somewhat lenient and wouldn't damage his body, they were not as lenient as his mother.

After all, everyone in the Imperial Household Department is sick!
This Junior Chamberlain is sick, and those minor officials who carry out the punishments are sick too, each one of them is unusually self-disciplined!

"It will be fine in a couple of days. I have some ointment here that is very effective in healing whipping wounds. I can have a colleague apply it for you later."

To everyone's surprise, Kong Jian took out a small porcelain bottle and placed it on his desk, smiling as he said...

"Rules are rules, and friendship is friendship. We are now colleagues, and you are a member of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. If you need anything in the future, just come to me. As long as it involves the rules, I will do my best to help you."

Hypocritical... He only hit me today because he's afraid my uncle-in-law will hold a grudge later.
Hahaha, first he was defiant, then he was obsequious. It's laughable. What a lowly bastard!
It's too late for you to reconcile with me now!

Yan Shifan cursed inwardly again, then immediately straightened his back, adopted an air of superiority, and said in a sarcastic tone:

"No need. I have more expensive ointments at home. Shangguan, you should keep this ointment for yourself."

"Alright then..."

Kong Jian, however, seemed oblivious to his sarcasm. He honestly took back the ointment and turned to leave, but then suddenly remembered something, turned back, and took a piece of paper from his pocket, placing it on the desk.

"By the way, nowadays officials in the Imperial Household Department will write a few words of admonition on the wall of their duty room to remind themselves and reflect on them every day."

"You should also think about what kind of admonitions you should write for yourself as soon as possible, and just follow this pattern."

Yan Shifan, filled with doubt, picked up the page and unfolded it to examine it:

【Duh! 】

[You, Yan Maoqing, passed the imperial examination at the age of twenty-one, and within a few months you were appointed as an assistant minister. The emperor's favor is immense; how can this be considered inadequate?]

Those who do not exert themselves with utmost loyalty and effort, but instead form cliques to ostracize the virtuous, or sell the law for bribes, or betray the public interest to curry favor, or cling to their positions for personal gain, will be punished by the gods, and their misfortunes will extend to their descendants.

【Alas! How terrifying!】

[Written by Yan Maoqing]

August 14th, the 20th year of the Jiajing reign

"???"

At this moment, Yan Shifan was stunned once again.

Wow, wow, I've really learned something new today!
My uncle-in-law is such a good actor!
The officials of the Imperial Household Department are quite the actors!
Even the Taiye Pond outside the palace probably doesn't know how to put on airs. Do they really think that writing a few sensational lines makes them any less of a hypocrite?

Ha ha ha ha...

If we're talking about literary talent, I was the one who took the exams for my uncle-in-law, who was a junior official.

Do you think I can't write a few sentences? Believe me or not, I could write a whole wall of them without repeating myself!
But I'm not going to write it. I still have my pride!
With this in mind, Yan Shifan subconsciously asked:
"Shangguan, why haven't I seen my uncle-in-law today? Doesn't he have to report for duty?"

“Minister Yan arrives half an hour earlier than us every day to personally lead the Crown Prince in his morning reading, so he naturally doesn’t show up for roll call.”

"what?!"

Yan Shifan was shocked again. "You actually believe this?"
A few days ago, he had someone secretly observe Yan Maoqing, and Yan Maoqing's carriage never left before Chenshi (one hour after Maoshi)!
Absolutely!

My uncle-in-law is absolutely amazing!
They could tell such lies and still manage to fool all the officials in the Imperial Household Department.

He was even regarded as a "hero" by the officials of the Imperial Household Department, who treated his overly pretentious admonition as gospel and imitated it by everyone.

I've really learned something new!
Uncle-in-law, I, Yan Shifan, am sure you have some tricks up your sleeve!
(End of this chapter)