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

Chapter 213 Gao Gong's elder brother is also in Taiyuan! [Requesting monthly votes]

Taiyuan Guard Commandery.

"Hehe, Yan Maoqing?"

Commander Zhang Yin, nearing seventy, stroked his beard and smiled, a hint of disdain appearing on his old face.
"A mere youth, barely out of his teens, dares to ruin my years of hard work? He only led two thousand soldiers and headed straight for Taiyuan?"

"You simply don't know how high the sky is or how deep the earth is!"

"Zhang Yin" is just his current alias; his true identity was exposed more than a decade ago.

—Li Fuda.

The White Lotus Sect disciples and followers he had cultivated over the years would privately refer to him as "Grandmaster" or "Old Manager".

But so what?

After the "Li Fuda case" that even the Jiajing Emperor personally intervened in, those who identified him were either executed, exiled to the border, or demoted. Who would dare to step forward and identify him as Li Fuda?
He was even reinstated to his original position afterward, which almost tacitly acknowledged Li Fuda's identity, allowing him to expand his followers extensively in the Taiyuan area.

Most of the officials, dignitaries, and merchants here are aware of the situation, so who would dare to report him?
They don't dare!

Because the Jiajing Emperor personally exonerated him and reinstated him to his original position, he became inextricably linked with the Jiajing Emperor.

If someone identifies him as Li Fuda and accuses him of being the leader of the White Lotus Sect, it would be tantamount to accusing the Jiajing Emperor of admitting to fabricating a false case back then.

Is this an accusation and denunciation against him?
This is a slap in the face to the Jiajing Emperor!
Who in the world doesn't know that Emperor Jiajing is extremely protective of his own weaknesses? He would absolutely not tolerate such behavior, and who would be so tired of living as to dare to provoke him?
Therefore, for the past ten years or so, he has been "preaching by imperial decree," and no one has been able to turn a blind eye or even mention it.

Over time, many officials, dignitaries, and merchants, hoping to gain a share of the profits and the support of his followers, joined his White Lotus sect and willingly became his "managers."

without any exaggeration.

Now Taiyuan has been transformed into an impregnable city by him, and no external force can interfere, including the supreme imperial power.

Centered on Taiyuan, his influence has also spread to the surrounding areas.

Even members of the royal family, such as the Prince of Datong, had close ties with him in private, and many things were influenced by Luo Tingxi, the "manager" he arranged in Datong.

And all this.

We should all thank Emperor Jiajing, Zhu Houcong!
If Zhu Houcong hadn't cleared Li Fuda's name in the "Li Fuda case" back then, he would have had his family property confiscated and his clan exterminated long ago. And a traitor like himself might have even suffered the agony of being slowly sliced ​​to death. How could he be in his current state?
This is what they mean by "it's good to have a big tree to lean on for shade"!
He didn't even offer a single bribe, yet he managed to get close to the most powerful and influential figure in the Ming Dynasty.

Life is so unpredictable; there's no such thing as right or wrong, no such thing as black or white.
That lofty emperor and court were nothing more than a larger makeshift operation, hardly any more capable than this "old manager"...

“Father, I received a letter from the second and third sons in the capital saying that this Yan Maoqing is probably something special.”

The eldest son, Zhang Daren, was still somewhat worried, and frowned as he tried to comfort him.
"He passed the imperial examination this year and became a Jinshi. In less than a year, he has already become the Crown Prince's tutor, which is a high-ranking official of the third rank in the imperial court. This alone is worth noting."

"Moreover, after he passed the imperial examination, he did many shocking things and offended many people in the court. However, he was impeached and accused repeatedly but always remained in power, which is also very questionable."

"What we need to be most concerned about is that the Emperor has now given him the power of the Western Depot, which has always been controversial, and treats him even more intimately than the palace eunuchs."

"All these events are enough to prove that the Emperor may be his patron, and he is also the Emperor's most trusted person at present."

"Even if this kind of person is bad, he is probably not stupid. Father must not be careless and be careful not to capsize in this little ditch."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yin still wore a disdainful smile, but he nodded slightly and said unhurriedly:
“You are right. Openly making an enemy of them is not a wise choice. The best approach is to use a combination of kindness and force.”

"First, greet them with a toast, following the same old routine: invite them to dinner, give them gifts, and then they'll become your dogs."

"If he refuses the toast offered, he will be punished with a penalty drink, so that he understands the consequences. Naturally, he will then behave like the governors and inspectors who come to offer him the toast, and dare not refuse."

"Does he think he can resist both soft and hard tactics?"

"Don't forget, his backer is the Emperor, and your father's backer is also the Emperor."

“Since he’s not stupid, he should understand that if he dares to attack us, he will definitely bring up that case from back then. In that case, he will offend the Emperor’s face, and who will ultimately suffer the loss?”

"Power should be accountable for its source, and favor should be accountable for its source. If he doesn't even understand this, he will lose his backing and the emperor's favor, and even the emperor will not tolerate him."

"Furthermore, how can a powerful dragon suppress a local snake?"

"Especially in Taiyuan, whether the place is chaotic or not, whether the people are obedient or not, is just a matter of your father's word."

“Even those officials, powerful figures, and merchants are our people. We have leverage over almost everyone, and they can only advance and retreat with us.”

"You have concerns in your heart, but don't they have concerns in theirs as well?"

"Perhaps before things even reach us, someone is already rushing to trip up this Yan Maoqing, making it impossible for him to move an inch."

Zhang Daren nodded:
"Old ginger is indeed spicier... By the way, I also heard from someone that this Yan Maoqing is apparently the adopted son of Duke Guo Xun, and his success today is inseparable from Guo Xun's support."

"Hehehe, wouldn't that make things even easier?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yin smiled with even greater confidence, straightening his hunched back.
"Back then, Guo Xun spared no effort to help us in order to avoid being implicated, and he even persuaded Zhang Cong and Gui E to help us."

“Now he will also keep a close eye on his adopted son because of this.” “So this time, for Yan Maoqing, there is pressure from the Emperor on one side and pressure from his adoptive father on the other. This is a test of his loyalty and filial piety.”

"Would he dare to be an unfaithful and unfilial person?"

……

Suburbs of Taiyuan.

"General, our scouts report that we will reach Taiyuan City in about 30 li."

Gao Gong arrived at Yan Maoqing's carriage and reported.
"Prefect Deng Shirong of Taiyuan has led all the officials of Taiyuan Prefecture and wealthy merchants from the city out of the city to welcome us. The people who came to meet us are less than ten miles away from our army. Please give your instructions, General."

"Is Zhang Yin, the commander of the Taiyuan Garrison, among them?"

Yan Maoqing lifted the carriage curtain and asked.

He had inquired before he came and found out that Zhang Yin (Li Fuda) was still the commander of Taiyuan Garrison.

Furthermore, given the garrison system established by Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty, this official position was hereditary. If nothing unexpected happened, his eldest son could still succeed him as the commander of the Taiyuan Garrison after his death.

It must be admitted that Zhang Yin's move back then was truly brilliant.

After buying this official position, he not only cleared his name from a traitor to a border general, but also solved the employment problem for his descendants.

If it were Yan Maoqing, he would definitely buy such an official position; it would be incredibly profitable.

"Although the scouts did not report it, the commander of Taiyuan Guard is also an official in the city. Although he and the general are both of the third rank, the general is an imperial envoy. This person should not dare to easily offend the general."

Gao Gong analyzed his answer, then asked with some doubt,

"The general specifically mentioned this person; could he be an old acquaintance of yours?"

Although this was the first time Yan Maoqing had mentioned Zhang Yin, he had already formed some impression of him after Yan Maoqing brought it up.

After all, the "Li Fuda case" back then caused quite a stir, and his father, Gao Shangxian, was then serving as the Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices.

Therefore, even though Gao Gong was only a little over ten years old when this case occurred, he still analyzed this current event and educated his five brothers.

Indeed, Gao Gong had four brothers: the eldest brother was named Gao Jie, the second brother was named Gao Duo, the fourth brother was named Gao Cai, the fifth brother was named Gao Jian, and he was the third oldest.

However, apart from Gao Gong, only his elder brother Gao Jie passed the imperial examination in the fourteenth year of the Jiajing reign.

Moreover, Gao Gong never told anyone that his elder brother was currently in Taiyuan and was serving as the Deputy Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Shanxi, a fourth-rank official.

After passing the imperial examination in the fourteenth year of the Jiajing reign, Gao Jie was quickly given an important position and appointed as a principal officer in the Ministry of Revenue.

Later, after his mother passed away and he was in mourning, he was reassigned as the Director of the Military Affairs Department of the Ministry of War, and soon after, he was promoted to Assistant Director of the Military Selection Department.

As a result, because he insisted on strict and clean selection methods during his tenure, he displeased his superiors and was relegated to a lower position, transferred out of the capital to serve as the prefect of Chongzhou.

After taking office, he continued to severely punish the powerful and tyrannical, and extorted and plundered, which earned him the love and respect of the people. He also used his wisdom to quell the rebellion of the notorious bandit Li Bangzhen, who had gathered bandits to rob and plunder in his jurisdiction, within two months.

He was eventually promoted to Vice Commissioner of the Shanxi Provincial Surveillance Commission for his merits, and has been working in Taiyuan ever since, for more than a year now.

However, Gao Gong's silence does not mean that Yan Maoqing was unaware that he had such an elder brother.

He simply didn't know that Kao Chieh was now serving as the Deputy Provincial Surveillance Commissioner of Shanxi in Taiyuan.

However, it is known that this Boss Gao had previously led troops to defend Daizhou. When his forces were weak, he devised a plan to use the grain and fodder army to bluff and scare away the Tatars.

Later, when the Japanese pirates broke out, he was promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Nanjing Censorate and concurrently served as the Commander of the River Defense. He personally recruited and trained soldiers, donned armor, and went into battle to keep the Japanese pirates out of Nanjing.

Afterwards, all the generals were listed in the merit book, except for Gao Jie.

The various government offices in Nanjing wanted to submit a memorial to the emperor requesting that Gao Jie be granted a title for his meritorious service. However, Gao Gong, that ignorant and foolish younger brother, actually tried his best to stop it at the Hanlin Academy by arguing that "civil officials are not granted titles of duke or marquis according to the imperial ancestral rules." Otherwise, Gao Jie might have really been granted a marquis title for this reason.

However, it was also because of his effective resistance against the Japanese pirates that Kaohsiung Jie soon attracted a lot of trouble.

Not long after, someone submitted a memorial impeaching Gao Jie for allowing his subordinates to harass the local area, and on this pretext, he was demoted to the Deputy Military Commissioner of Caohuai, and soon after, he was further demoted to the Right Councilor of Shaanxi.

Under the relentless pursuit of these people, Gao Jie's situation became increasingly difficult. Feeling that he was in danger of being killed, he resigned from his post due to illness and returned to his hometown.

After that, Kao Chieh never took up an official post again, and eventually died peacefully in his sleep in the second year of the Longqing reign...

To be honest, Gao Gong probably doesn't know this yet.

Ever since Yan Maoqing failed to retire and return to his hometown, his official rank has continued to rise, and he has become increasingly favored by Zhu Houcong.

Yan Maoqing had long regarded this "Boss Gao" as his life goal, and the things he did showed signs of replicating his life trajectory.

(End of this chapter)