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

Chapter 265 Yan Maoqing has bullied me so badly! [Seeking monthly votes]

"Oh, Godfather, don't even mention it... It hurts so much I can't breathe just thinking about it."

Yan Maoqing immediately became even more heartbroken, pounding his chest and stamping his feet, saying...
"Father, do you still remember Shen Lian, the Imperial Guard who accompanied me last time? That hothead reported the matter truthfully to the Emperor, so after the silver was transported back to the capital, the Emperor ordered it to be sent to the palace."

"What does it matter if it's 100,000 taels or 400,000 taels? I haven't received a single coin."

"Otherwise, why would my godfather think I was promoted so quickly? It's because the emperor used that money to buy my official position and gave me a promotion as compensation."

In short, let's just brush off Guo Xun for now.

Hearing that he hadn't received a single penny, he probably felt much better, and the matter was dropped.

Moreover, a mere 100,000 taels of silver was already a small sum for Yan Maoqing.

If Zhu Houcong keeps his promise and splits the spoils of this trip to Shanxi with him nine-tenths, it will be a considerable income.

Even just the money and supplies seized from Anda's court... Yan Maoqing certainly hoped that the money would not be divided, but even if Zhu Houcong insisted on dividing the spoils, even if he only took 10%, it would still exceed 100,000 taels of silver.

and so……

"But if the Emperor doesn't find out about my godfather's 100,000 taels of silver, he will surely be able to get his hands on it."

Just as Guo Xun felt slightly better after hearing this, he heard Yan Maoqing chuckle shamelessly.
"Father, although I am barely considered a close minister of the Emperor, and even the office of the Imperial Household Department is located in the palace, I am not a hothead like Shen Lian. I certainly would not speak recklessly in front of the Emperor."

"However, my godfather also knows that even the Kitchen God needs to be offered sticky rice cakes every year to fill his stomach, so that he won't say anything he shouldn't when he returns to Heaven at the end of the year."

"Although I won't speak recklessly in front of the Emperor, I can't help it when I don't have anything to eat, and my tongue might slip... Godfather, you know what I mean."

"Rebellious son?"

Guo Xun was speechless at Yan Maoqing's shameless face.

OK!

This is the adopted son he recognized, the adopted son with whom he considered to have a "fatherly and filial" relationship!

They actually dared to extort money from his godfather! This is utterly outrageous!

Fortunately, he had been careful beforehand and said that the 300,000 taels was 100,000 taels. Even if he had to give some of it, it wouldn't be too much. Otherwise, wouldn't he have had to pay a huge price this time?

He went to great lengths to make amends for this rebellious son, giving him an even greater "recapture" merit than the surprise attack on Anda's court, in order to quell the emperor's thunderous rage that had already turned murderous!
This achievement is comparable to his ancestor's achievement of shooting Chen Youliang, isn't it?
Even though he is already the Duke of Yi, he should be able to use this merit to bestow titles upon his descendants and secure a title for his three good-for-nothing sons. This is a much more tangible benefit than money!
As a result, this unfilial son continued to covet what was in his bowl while enjoying what was in the pot...

If I had known this would happen, I should have never recognized this adopted son. I should have just let Zhou Shangwen follow the imperial decree and had someone assassinate him. Why did I wait for him to come back and cause me so much trouble?

"I know your mother!"

Guo Xun grew angrier and angrier, and finally couldn't hold back any longer, kicking Yan Maoqing in the backside and cursing loudly.
"I've been running around doing everything for you, cleaning up your left and right butts, and now you think you're all grown up and dare to set your sights on me!"

"I'm telling you right now, I don't have a single penny to my name, but if you want to beat me up, I'll give you as much as you want!"

"If you dare to slip up in front of the Emperor, I'll rip your tongue out, wrap it around my neck three times, and I'll kill my own family for the greater good!"

He ultimately did not reveal the secret memorial from Zhu Houcong that had nearly cost Yan Maoqing his life.

He can play the role of a godfather, keeping it a secret from both sides.

He felt that this matter would definitely have a direct impact on the relationship between Zhu Houcong and Yan Maoqing, and that he, as the adoptive father, would probably not fare well either, caught in the middle.

Moreover, you can't fight city hall.

What good would it do if Yan Maoqing found out? Besides causing Zhu Houcong and Yan Maoqing to harbor resentment towards each other and affecting Yan Maoqing's future career, would he dare to show his true colors in front of Zhu Houcong?
If he really dared to do that, it would be an even greater crime, and he, as the godfather, might also be implicated...

"..."

Seeing the father and son start fighting, Zhang Xian, the trusted servant, had sweat dripping down his temples.

Duke Yiguo has always enjoyed dabbling in literature and considers himself a refined scholar.

He had served the Duke of Yi for many years, and this was truly the first time he had ever seen the Duke of Yi use such foul language and personally beat someone. Even the three young masters in the mansion had never received such treatment.

This shows just how special this fourth young master, Shouchang, was.

Anyone who criticizes him does so because they don't know him well enough.

Those who truly understand him want to beat him up...

……

You don't even have the strength to hit someone, yet you call yourself a nobleman?
Yan Maoqing naturally did not retaliate, after all, how much strength could an old man nearing seventy have?

Besides, forces are reciprocal, and he hadn't even removed his armor yet... Who asks for money without wearing a helmet?

Guo Xun, panting heavily, walked ahead and, after leading him into the study, impatiently tossed an imperial edict at him:
"This is an imperial edict sent by the Emperor after you left the pass. You weren't there at the time, so I accepted it for you. Take a look for yourself."

Yan Maoqing caught it precisely and opened it with a puzzled look.

This is yet another imperial edict.

After Zhu Houcong ordered him to finish the Datong matter, he was to go south to Pingyang Prefecture (around Yuncheng) and thoroughly investigate Pingyang Prefecture as well.

The final date on the document was before he cleared customs.

In other words, when this imperial edict was issued, even he himself had not yet planned to launch a surprise attack on Anda, so Zhu Houcong could not possibly have foreseen that he would lead troops out of the pass.

This is yet another imperial edict whose information was delayed due to a time lag.

As for the purpose...

Yan Maoqing was naturally familiar with Pingyang Prefecture, which had the largest salt lake in the north.

Salt, in any era, has been an essential commodity for people's livelihoods, a veritable money-printing machine directly impacting the government's revenue. Where there is profit, there is a world of intrigue and power struggles.

The greater the profit, the greater the storm.

The bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish...

Therefore, it is not hard to imagine that the problems in Pingyang Prefecture must be more severe and more difficult to handle than those in Taiyuan Prefecture and Datong Prefecture.

In fact, if Zhu Houcong hadn't issued an edict forcing him to go to Datong immediately after leaving Taiyuan, he would have indeed intended to visit Pingyang Prefecture.

When it comes to splitting the profits, who would complain about having too much money, and who wouldn't want to make Zhu Houcong feel the pinch?

However, this imperial edict also reveals that after learning about what Zhu Houcong was doing in Taiyuan Prefecture, he seemed to have figured it out and was considering cooperating with him for mutual benefit.

Since it was a 90/10 split, the more Yan Maoqing got, the more Zhu Houcong would receive.

only……

"Father, apart from this imperial edict, after General Zhou reported that I was leading troops out of the pass, the Emperor did not issue any other imperial decrees?"

Yan Maoqing first put the imperial edict away, but then pondered for a moment and asked.

"……No."

Guo Xun hesitated for a moment without realizing it, then immediately denied it.

"impossible?"

Yan Maoqing seemed somewhat puzzled, and frowned, saying...

“General Zhou submitted a secret memorial to the emperor on the very day I left the pass, so it’s impossible that the emperor didn’t react at all.”

"And these days are enough for the imperial edict and the imperial decree to travel back and forth between Datong and the capital. In fact, if the emperor had been impatient, the imperial edict should have been sent back a few days ago."

"Godfather, are you sure you don't?"

"Certainly not."

Guo Xun shook his head again, then changed the subject.
"I have already read the contents of this imperial edict."

"In my opinion, now that you have accomplished such a great task and made such a great contribution, you can postpone your trip to Pingyang Prefecture for the time being. You should return to the capital as soon as possible to report back to the Emperor."

"And His Majesty must be more concerned about what is happening here and is eager to know everything that is happening here in detail."

"If the Emperor still needs you to go to Pingyang Prefecture after you report back, it won't make a difference if you travel a few hundred more miles. After all, Pingyang Prefecture can't grow legs and run away, can it?"

"..."

Hearing Guo Xun's words, a scrutinizing look appeared in Yan Maoqing's eyes:
"Godfather, you're hiding something from me!"

"Absolutely not..."

"Must have!"

Yan Maoqing said with certainty,
"You've been talking about how you've been running around for me and cleaning up my mess this time."

"Now you are urging me to return to the capital as soon as possible to report to the Emperor and present everything that has happened here."

"Please answer me truthfully, godfather. What exactly did you do to clean up my mess?"

"Has His Majesty already issued an imperial edict to punish me for leading troops out of the pass without authorization, which may have disrupted the tribute system? And has this edict already reached Datong?"

"Speak, how exactly does the Emperor intend to punish me? Does he intend to dismiss me from my post and investigate me?"

Guo Xun was speechless for a moment. Although he knew that Yan Maoqing was a clever and intelligent young man, he did not expect that his insight was also so sharp.

It's amazing that they were able to guess the gist of the matter just from such a small detail.

However, he ultimately underestimated the situation. The Emperor wasn't just going to dismiss him from his post and investigate him; he almost took his life!
And so things have come to this.

Guo Xun still did not intend to tell Yan Maoqing the truth, and continued to speak the truth, albeit reluctantly:
"This really doesn't happen!"

……

West Garden.

"This is bullying!"

Upon hearing Huang Jin's latest report of the victory at Jiyang Camp in returning the Hetao region, Zhu Houcong practically leaped off his prayer mat.

However, this time there was no anger on his face, only an indescribable joy, so much so that the red glow on his face even had a faint halo:

"That damned, wicked devil who's been bullying me so badly, has actually been secretly plotting such a grand scheme and giving me such a huge surprise?!"

"..."

Huang Jin bowed quietly, without saying a word.

He knew that Zhu Houcong had been sulking for the past few days.

Because he had not received any response from Zhou Shangwen, either that he would arrest Yan Maoqing in accordance with the imperial decree, or that he would assassinate Yan Maoqing in secret.

Instead, they received news of Yan Maoqing's victory in wiping out Anda and his subordinate leaders, as well as Zhou Shangwen's secret memorial explaining why he had not followed orders.

Who could have imagined the result.

Just four days later, an even more astonishing piece of good news came from Datong!

(End of this chapter)