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

Chapter 236 The villains are made by their subordinates, and the infamy is borne by them [Seeking monthly votes]

"Yan Nian, come in!"

Having made up his mind, Yan Song immediately summoned Yan Nian and said solemnly,

"Prepare a sedan chair and take this old man to the Duke of Yi's residence!"

"Yes."

Yan Nian quickly agreed and was about to turn around to call the servants.

But then Yan Song continued:

"You don't need to come along. Take our most capable people with you. Remember not to alert the yamen runners. Keep a close eye on that White Lotus Sect leader in town named Luo Tingxi. Find an opportunity to kidnap and hide him without anyone noticing as soon as possible."

"Sir, didn't you say before that this person was a hornet's nest that shouldn't be disturbed?"

Yan Nian stopped and turned around, asking in surprise.

Yan Song trusted Yan Nian completely and didn't hide most things from him.

Therefore, Yan Nian also knew that this White Lotus Sect leader named Luo Tingxi had close ties with officials, border generals, powerful figures, and merchants in Datong.

Especially when smuggling goods to the Tatars, they would usually contact Luo Tingxi privately and ask him to send White Lotus sect members to escort them.

Firstly, the lives of these White Lotus sect members were worthless, making it cheaper than sending people to escort them; secondly, it would be easier to absolve oneself of any responsibility should anything go wrong.

Therefore, whoever controls Luo Tingxi controls the evidence of these people's treason, and will immediately become the target of public criticism.

Moreover, Yan Song had told him that even if he had this evidence, it would be of no use. Otherwise, the emperor would not have burned the box of account books presented by Anda in public during the morning court session. If even the emperor could only do that, who would dare to defy the world?

Now, Yan Song suddenly wants to stir up this hornet's nest again, which Yan Nian finds hard to understand.

"Times have changed... Do it quickly, the sooner the better, lest things get complicated."

Yan Song gave his unquestionable instructions.

If Yan Maoqing's letter hadn't briefly mentioned the matter of Ying County, it would have been different.

Yan Song only knew that someone in Datong had instructed Luo Tingxi to send someone to Ying County to give Yan Maoqing a hard time, but he did not know that Yan Maoqing had already resolved the matter.

Yan Maoqing even used the word "attack" in his letter, which shows how ruthless his methods were. The situation in Ying County was probably even more terrifying to these people than in Taiyuan Prefecture.

However, since Yan Maoqing's letter has been delivered, and it was clearly written after the obstacles in Ying County were resolved, it is likely that related news will follow soon.

Once the people of Datong learn of this news, they will surely alert the enemy. What will they do then?

Yan Song thought they should silence Luo Tingxi first, so that Yan Maoqing wouldn't capture the White Lotus Sect members in Ying County and trace the clues back to Luo Tingxi.

Then, through Luo Tingxi, they were implicated and their past crimes were investigated.

Yan Maoqing had already done this once in Taiyuan Prefecture, so how could the people in Datong Prefecture not take precautions?
At the same time, Luo Tingxi should immediately understand his situation after learning the news.

He certainly wouldn't sit idly by and wait to die; he would definitely flee immediately, neither letting himself fall into the hands of the people of Datong Prefecture nor into the hands of Yan Maoqing, otherwise he would die either way.

What Yan Song needs to do now is to take advantage of this information gap and strike first.

He wanted to take control of Luo Tingxi in advance and present him to Yan Maoqing as a generous gift to express his sincerity.

Of course, this level of sincerity is far from enough.

He will also show even more sincerity to ensure that Yan Maoqing cannot refuse his reconciliation request, and that the Yan family can escape unscathed this time, just as they did during the Zhengde era...

……

Not long after, at Guo Xun's temporary residence in Datong.

"Greetings, Duke Yi. I have come here today to apologize to you."

Upon meeting Guo Xun, Yan Song immediately performed an unusually grand salute, and his words left Guo Xun completely bewildered.

"Brother Weizhong, why do you say that?"

Guo Xun quickly stepped forward to help him up, asking with a puzzled look.

He was five years older than Yan Song. Although their relationship wasn't exactly close, they had cooperated on many things because of Xia Yan, a common political enemy, and thus often addressed each other as brothers in private.

"Since things have come to this, I will tell you the truth."

Yan Song raised his head to look at Guo Xun and said solemnly,
"The Duke of Yi should know that the delay in resolving the carbon tax issue is not unrelated to the frequent sabotage of trade by officials and border generals in Datong."

"However, when Duke Yi served as governor, for certain reasons, he not only turned a blind eye to these matters, but also frequently protected these officials and border generals, neither investigating nor reporting them to the emperor..."

"Yan Song!"

Before he could finish speaking, Guo Xun's expression instantly turned cold, and he interrupted him with a sharp voice.
"Don't forget your place. You're just a mere county magistrate. How dare you slander me like this? What are your true intentions?!" There are no eternal enemies, nor are there eternal friends.

Yan Song had the experience of a second-rank official, and there was no doubt that he might be reinstated in the future. Moreover, he had previously shown great respect to Guo Xun, so Guo Xun naturally treated him with courtesy.

But now that Yan Song has made such a blunt accusation against him, it's tantamount to overturning the table in front of him. How could he continue to be polite to Yan Song?
"Duke Yi, look what this is?"

Yan Song, however, calmly took out a silver seal from his pocket.

His previous secret reports were able to be delivered directly to Zhu Houcong, reporting on the carbon tax office, thanks to this silver seal that was not taken back after his demotion.

However, Yan Song was quite shrewd. In order to prevent Guo Xun, who had come to Datong with him on business, from worrying that Yan Song would take credit for his work and thus openly or secretly exclude him, Yan Song kept the matter a secret from Guo Xun.

"You also carried out the Emperor's secret decree?"

Guo Xun knew exactly what this was, and his heart skipped a beat, causing his momentum to weaken.

"Just as loyal to the Emperor as the Duke of Yiguo."

Seeing that Guo Xun was now listening attentively, Yan Song smiled noncommittally, and then continued,
"To be honest, I have already reported the situation in Datong to His Majesty. In the past few days, I have also submitted another memorial, specifically explaining to His Majesty that after the Duke of Yi came to Datong, he exchanged letters with Zhang Zan, the Minister of War. His Majesty may have already seen this secret memorial."

"Yan Song, how dare you harm me?!"

Upon hearing this, Guo Xun's expression changed drastically, and the veins on his temples bulged out.

This matter is of utmost importance. Once the emperor learns of his relationship with Zhang Zan, it will be tantamount to him knowing that Zhang Zan was outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant in Datong, condoning the border officials' sabotage of the tribute system.

This is far more serious than the previous incidents of recommending alchemists who were suspected of deceiving the emperor and encroaching on the interests of the people!
After all, he knew better than anyone else that the Emperor was determined to obtain the carbon tax office. His actions were nothing short of a blatant betrayal to the Emperor, and it would be strange if the Emperor could still tolerate him!
"I dare not, I am only trying to protect myself."

Yan Song, however, remained unfazed and bowed, saying...

"As the Duke of Yi just said, I am now just a mere county magistrate, and I am really not capable of bearing the responsibility for ruining the carbon tax office, let alone the Emperor's wrath."

"My purpose in coming here today to confess this matter to the Duke of Yi is not to harm him, but to save him."

"Otherwise, I could simply remain silent and wait for His Majesty to issue his decree. Why go through all this trouble?"

Guo Xun gritted his teeth in hatred, but he could also sense the hidden meaning in Yan Song's words. He could only suppress his anger and glare at Yan Song, his eyes instantly turning bloodshot, and shouted:

"So, in that case, I should thank you... Just say what you have to say!"

Meeting Guo Xun's intense gaze, Yan Song remained unperturbed by either favor or disgrace:

"Now that things have come to this, Duke Yi probably only has one way out: to quickly sever ties with these people who have done wrong."

"In my opinion, whether it is Zhang Zan or the border generals, although these people may have some connection with the Duke of Yi, the fact that the Duke of Yi volunteered to come and supervise the affairs of Datong is enough to show that the Duke of Yi knew nothing about what they had done in Datong."

"Indeed, if we only use this explanation, it is probably not enough to prove the Duke of Yi's innocence, cannot completely avoid arousing the Emperor's suspicion, and cannot prevent political enemies from attacking and impeaching him."

"This is probably what the Duke of Yi is most worried about, so he has no choice but to protect these bad people against his will."

"Fortunately, there is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity right now, which will allow the Duke of Yi to completely sever ties with these people, so that he will no longer be subject to their control or have to do things against his conscience."

Hearing this, Guo Xun's anger subsided slightly, but his brows furrowed even more deeply.
"what do you mean……"

"Your Duke Yi must know that your adopted son, Yan Maoqing, will be arriving in Datong soon, right?"

Yan Song continued,

"Yan Maoqing's visit to Datong this time must also be on the Emperor's orders to supervise the carbon tax office."

"I know that Minister Yan Mao is very filial to the Duke of Yi and will not sit idly by while the Duke of Yi is imprisoned."

"Does Duke Yiguo intend to prevent Yan Maoqing from succeeding for his own selfish gain, thereby losing the Emperor's trust?"

"..."

Guo Xun fell silent upon hearing this, his anger completely gone, his face turning pale and then red.

He recalled Yan Maoqing's selfless rescue of Duan Chaoyong, and his tireless efforts to intervene in cases involving the encroachment on the people's interests.

It always seemed that it was he, the good-for-nothing adoptive father, who was dragging down Yan Maoqing, the adopted son... This often made him unable to distinguish who was the father and who was the son.

"The Duke of Yi had already heard about what Yan Maoqing had done in Taiyuan Prefecture."

Yan Song noticed Guo Xun's emotional changes and continued to patiently guide him:
"As long as Duke Yiguo is determined to distance himself from these bad people and remove obstacles for Yan Maoqing to succeed, so that he can be free from constraints and help him achieve great merit this time, then he will still be the emperor's most trusted favorite minister!"

"With Yan Maoqing's wisdom and methods, he will surely be able to clear the stain on Duke Yi's name, so that Duke Yi can remain invincible forever!"

"Only when you two, father and son, achieve success together can you truly be called a loving father and a filial son!"

"If the Duke of Yiguo is truly facing some difficulties, he may delegate authority to his subordinates. I will take the blame for the villains and bear the infamy!"

(End of this chapter)