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Chapter 1458 Two Reports of Victory
The rider, covered in filth, certainly couldn't hear the chatter on both sides of the street, and even if he did, he wouldn't think much of it. At this moment, he only had one thing on his mind: to deliver the battle report to the Office of Transmission outside the Right Gate of Chang'an as quickly as possible. At this time, success or failure had to be calculated in minutes.

Whether it was fate playing tricks or not, just as the courier entering Beijing from Deshengmen rounded the east side of the Imperial City and turned onto East Chang'an Avenue, a rider came galloping in from the direction of Dongdan Archway. Apart from the horses being gray and white, the two were almost identical in speed and attire.

"Second Brother, I'll keep watch here. You must quickly inform the Commander. Something big is probably going to happen in the city today; we need to prepare in advance!"

Two express horses, each traveling 800 li (approximately 400 kilometers) on the utmost speed, simultaneously converged on Chang'an Street from the north and east respectively. Such a coincidence, if not once in a thousand years, would certainly be considered once in a hundred. Upon seeing this, the soldiers of the Eastern City Garrison of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who were patrolling the streets, immediately dispatched men to the garrison. This demonstrates their extensive experience; regardless of whether the report is good news or bad news, the department responsible for maintaining order in the capital must be prepared to handle the situation to avoid chaos.

In reality, the one that was truly in a bit of a mess was not the Capital Garrison, which was now under the jurisdiction of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but rather the Office of Transmission, which was responsible for receiving all kinds of official documents.

This department did not have a strong presence in the Ming Dynasty, but it was one of the Nine Ministers, ranking alongside the Six Ministries Ministers, the Court of Judicial Review Minister, and the Censorate as one of the core departments of the court.

Why was this honor bestowed upon them? It was, of course, due to their duties. The Office of Transmission oversaw all military and political affairs and official correspondence with the emperor throughout the country, and also served as a supplementary petition office in later times. It was one of the means by which the emperor monitored officials and understood the state of the nation.

In the Ming Dynasty, officials and generals who reached a certain rank or assumed a certain position would have an additional privilege: to report directly to the emperor. Such confidential reports could not be submitted to the palace through ordinary channels; this is where the Office of Transmission came in handy.

Any memorial that needed to be presented directly to the Emperor could be sent directly to the Office of Transmission, where it would be registered, filed, and its authenticity verified before being handed over to the scribe of the Directorate of Ceremonial in person. Both parties would affix their seals to ensure that the memorial was not opened without authorization, and it would ultimately be reviewed by the Emperor.

The fundamental reason for this was to protect the correspondence between officials submitting memorials and the emperor, preventing retaliation. Only by ensuring the safety of informers and making informing a habit, so that officials lived in constant fear, could the emperor maneuver freely and flexibly.

Of course, in addition to secret reports, the Office of Transmission also received regular official documents from all over the country, which were then sorted according to their importance and urgency and handed over to the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs for the emperor's review. Each of these documents had to be filed and archived for easy retrieval, making the workload quite substantial.

But today's workload was exceptionally heavy, because two courier horses, one black and one gray, rushed into the courtyard of the Office of the Commissioner of the Court of State Ceremonies almost end to end. The two courier soldiers, each with three small flags stuck on their backs, jumped off the horses before they had even come to a complete stop, holding up their silver waist badges that indicated their identities, and sprinted into the main hall of the front courtyard at top speed.

Due to the special nature of the work of the Office of Transmission, it cannot function without officials who can make decisions at all times. Therefore, from the highest-ranking official, the Director of Transmission, to the second and third-ranking officials, they must take turns on duty and cannot be idle for even a day.

"Good news from Huang Taiji, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Western Regions Theater! Good news from Huang Taiji, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Western Regions Theater!"

"Victory report from the Commander-in-Chief of the Persian Gulf Theater! Victory report from the Commander-in-Chief of the Persian Gulf Theater!"

The two couriers arrived before they did, but their voices carried no joy other than urgency. Years of work pressure had robbed them of ordinary human emotions; they only sought to deliver every urgent report they handled safely and on time.

After verifying their identities and seals as required and signing the acceptance documents, the two couriers were led away by staff to bathe, change clothes, eat, and rest. This was a recognition of their timely completion of their work.

But the task wasn't finished; the next work had to be taken over by the Ministry of Justice. Today, the Commissioner of Justice, Xiong Wencan, was on the day shift. Hearing the sharp copper whistle, he knew the courier had arrived, and his heart skipped a beat. Currently, the only urgent official documents that could be submitted to the capital at the highest level were frontline battle reports. If it was good news, all would be well; but bad news would be a major problem. The homeland's military strength was currently depleted, and any defeat in any war zone would trigger a chain reaction.

"Prepare the horses, form ranks, and head to the Meridian Gate!"

Fortunately, all the news was good; it was truly a blessing from heaven for the Ming Dynasty! Not daring to waste a minute, we quickly sent the news to the palace, and also tried to get some information from the emperor about what to do next after winning the battle.
"Eunuch Wei, what brings you here?"

But after waiting for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn outside the Meridian Gate, it wasn't the Grand Secretary of the Directorate of Ceremonial who arrived, but rather Wei San, the emperor's personal attendant. Even though Wei San was more favored by the emperor than the Grand Secretary of the Directorate of Ceremonial, his actions were not in accordance with regulations.

"Lord Xiong, Chief Secretary Cao and the other scribes are currently on official business in the Hall of Mental Cultivation and have no time for anything else. I need to hurry, His Majesty just sent me this task!"

Wei San, still in that listless state, first briefly explained the situation, then slightly turned to hand over the decision-making power to Xiong Wencan. "Come if you want to enter the palace; if you insist on sticking to your principles, then wait where you are. It's up to you!"

"...Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch Wei!" Xiong Wencan wanted to stick to his principles, but he was holding two extremely urgent battle reports and couldn't afford to waste a moment. So he decided to be lenient this time and not argue with this notorious troublemaker both inside and outside the palace.

"Bullshit! This has been investigated, but who can guarantee that the rest are all clean? Stop spouting this useless nonsense. If we can't even control the military, what else in the Ming Dynasty can we control?"

Just as Xiong Wencan followed Wei San into the courtyard of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the emperor's roar echoed from the main hall. At this moment, Xiong Wencan finally believed Wei San's explanation; those being scolded inside were probably the officials of the Directorate of Ceremonial. If he had insisted on sticking to his principles and not being flexible, he would have been waiting outside the Meridian Gate.

"Eunuch Wei, what has caused His Majesty's great anger? Should we not disturb him for now?"

But simply hearing the emperor scolding someone is useless; one must find out what it's about. If it concerns the Directorate of Ceremonial, then as an outsider, there's no need for me to get involved; I can wait a while before going in.

"Lord Xiong, it's up to you whether to go in or not. But this old servant would like to suggest that if you go in now, with these two reports of victory on your side, it should appease His Majesty's anger, and Eunuch Cao and the others will certainly be grateful."

Wei Sanzhen truly lived up to his reputation as someone comparable to Wang Chengen, having no intention of interfering in court affairs whatsoever. He only offered personal advice out of good intentions, reminding Xiong Wencan not to make a foolish mistake, and unknowingly offended the entire Directorate of Ceremonial.

"...Well then, I'll trouble Eunuch Wei to inform them!"

If it were anyone else, even Wang Chengen, Xiong Wencan might not have given in, but he had to show respect to Cao Huachun and the other scribes of the Directorate of Ceremonial. There was no way around it; the Office of Transmission and the Directorate of Ceremonial were counterpart units, and they had to interact every day, so there was no way to avoid them.

(End of this chapter)