Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 618 Intense Methods

"Since you all have differing opinions, let's set them aside for now and discuss them again later," Li Yuan said, interrupting the proceedings as the argument seemed to have gone on for a while.

Internal strife is inevitable, but endless internal strife is unacceptable. If they insist on fighting to the death, then we should replace them.

Li Yuan has his own ideas and refuses to be led by the nose by the cabinet.

"Regarding the Ottoman mission, let's make contact first, discuss it slowly, understand their ultimate demands, and then make a definition."

After expressing his dissatisfaction to a limited extent, Li Yuan stood up.

Lin Ruhai also sensed Li Yuan's impatience and carefully got up to see him off.

Upon returning to the cabinet, Lin Ruhai summoned Li Qing and Fang Song to his office and said, "If you two wish to continue your feud, please do so in front of His Majesty!"

Fang Song didn't say it aloud, but he was very dissatisfied. Back then, they fought side by side for the late emperor, and now that you've become the Grand Secretary, you're starting to punish your comrades.

Li Qing smiled, secretly despising him. "If it weren't for your subtle hints, would I have coveted the position of Vice Censor-in-Chief?"
The two men, though resentful after being reprimanded by Lin Ruhai, could only swallow their anger and bid farewell before leaving.

On the way back, Li Qing caught up with Fang Song: "Want to chat?"

Fang Song turned around with a half-smile: "Forget it! It's about a blind man eating dumplings."

Despite knowing that in a fight between the snipe and the clam, the fisherman benefits, Fang Song still looked down on Li Qing deep down. He still had trump cards up his sleeve and wasn't worried about being squeezed out of the cabinet.

Li Qing smiled and nodded, then returned to her office.

After sitting down, he couldn't help but secretly regret that he had been blinded by greed and had fallen for the trick of the scoundrel Lin Ruhai.

Work still needs to be done. The cabinet has a strong inertia from the reign of Emperor Seihui, and it is basically still a cabinet that gets things done.

Li Qing contacted the Court of State Ceremonial, asking them to make initial contact and discuss the matter to ascertain the client's demands and bottom line.

Speaking of the Court of State Ceremonial, Li Qing also had a headache. This department was no longer under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites, and Li Qing was only in charge of a section of it. With Jia Lian behind this government office, Li Qing's words did not carry much weight.

They might say "okay" to your face, but then drag things out or create trouble and sabotage—these are common tactics.

As expected, the messenger returned with a report that the Court of State Ceremonial had been quite busy lately, and the reasons were quite valid: the new emperor had ascended the throne, and various countries had come to offer their congratulations. Since they were all friendly nations, it was not appropriate to neglect them, and there was also the matter of who arrived first. In short, the matter of the Ottoman delegation could not be taken care of for the time being.

After thinking for a moment, Li Qing went to Lin Ruhai and truthfully conveyed the "difficulties" of the Court of State Ceremonies. He then took the initiative to say, "I see that His Majesty is very concerned. Why don't we send someone from the Ministry of Rites to take charge of this matter?"

Lin Ruhai remained silent, staring at Li Qing for a long time, making Li Qing's scalp tingle. Only then did Lin Ruhai say, "Let's discuss it again!"

Helpless, Li Qing could only retreat. The moment the door closed, he heard the sound of a teacup falling to the ground inside, and his face immediately turned bitter.

Before Jia Lian left the capital, due to the tense relationship between him and his father-in-law, he didn't even bother to say goodbye. When Li Qing approached Lin Ruhai to discuss the work at the Court of State Ceremonial, Lin Ruhai naturally had reason to suspect that this scoundrel was trying to sow discord between them. "You, the Grand Secretary in charge, aren't going to talk to me? What are you wasting your breath on me with?"

In reality, Li Qing didn't mean anything by it; he just came to make a greeting. As the Grand Secretary in charge, Li Qing certainly had the authority, but wasn't he powerless against Lin Ruhai being the Grand Secretary? Who didn't know that the Court of State Ceremonial had completely separated from the Ministry of Rites because of Jia Lian's proposed new foreign policy?

In short, Li Qing is in a difficult position, caught between a rock and a hard place!

Jia Lian, far away in Guangzhou, had no idea about the mess in the capital, much less that while he was away, the cabinet was fighting even more fiercely.

The Wang family finally replied; Wang Ping himself came and brought back a handwritten letter from Wang Yi.

The letter naturally begins by recounting familial ties, before explaining the difficulties Annam faced and the past relationship with Sassoon, noting that some things were difficult to discuss openly, and that this was not intentional.

After explaining, they didn't offer a clear solution, but only repeatedly emphasized the difficulties, such as the long coastline, insufficient naval capabilities, and the difficulty of a complete ban.

In front of Wang Ping, Jia Lian finished reading the letter, then silently lit it and burned it, throwing it into the basin for washing brushes, and slowly poured water over it.

After doing all this, Jia Lian said, "Okay, I understand! You can go back now!"

Such calmness frightened Wang Ping a little, and he cautiously asked, "Aren't you going to give me a reply?"

Jia Lian said calmly, "No need!" He then picked up his teacup and said, "Have some tea!"

Wang Yi was somewhat indignant at the time, but when he came out, he saw many officials queuing up to see Jia Lian, including several prefects, and he silently suppressed his resentment.

Jia Lian told Zhu Zi to go out and announce that there would be no guests today, and everyone should go home.

He immediately summoned the governor and the provincial treasurer. After a short meeting, a battalion of the Third Division of the New Army set off overnight, led by the governor and the provincial treasurer respectively, to raid several garrisons.

Jia Lian was not idle either. The next morning, he had the prefects and magistrates who were waiting outside wait in the main hall of the governor's office.

The officials sensed something was off as soon as they entered. It wasn't that they didn't hold meetings, but it was never like this before, with soldiers from the New Army both inside and out, and not even the provincial governor's standard-bearer was used.

As the group was whispering amongst themselves, Jia Lian appeared. Standing in the middle, he looked at the group of lower-level officials, said nothing, and simply waved his hand. A group of imperial guards emerged from the next door and headed straight for their target.

The arrested official shouted, but his mouth was quickly gagged and he was dragged away!
After taking away three county magistrates and one prefect, the remaining officials were all trembling with fear, and some even had their feet soaked.

"In the few years since Jia left, the coastal garrisons and officials at all levels along the coast have become corrupt. Has the imperial court wronged you, or has Jia wronged you? He dares to take any kind of money! Today he dares to take money from opium dealers, tomorrow he dares to collude with foreign vassals to plot rebellion!"

When others said these things, the lower-ranking officials would disagree, but when Jia Lian said them, there was no problem. During his time in Guangdong, Lord Jia provided considerable benefits to officials at all levels and offered them numerous ways to make money; even without being corrupt, they could have amassed a fortune. The problem is, people's desires are insatiable; he grew increasingly audacious, wanting to make money from anything!
Fortunately, there weren't any major problems in Guangzhou. There were some issues with the patrol battalion, but they couldn't be attributed to the Guangdong General. Instead, the Governor directly arrested several of the brigade commanders.

The commotion inside the yamen (government office) wasn't actually that big; the real commotion was inside the city. The governor's guards went out into the streets, breaking down five doors in one go and arresting hundreds of people. After on-site screening, ordinary workers were released, and more than a hundred were eventually brought back. This was just the first step; some were also brought back from outside the city.

At first, the people in the city were just watching the spectacle, but later, some neighbors who were happy to share the truth revealed that the families whose doors were broken into were secretly running opium dens.

This is a smuggling network involving thousands of people and more than a dozen officials.

Inside the governor's yamen, Jia Lian continued his address: "I reiterate today that anyone who dares to get involved with opium should pray to the gods and Buddhas to avoid being discovered by me. Otherwise, they will be dismissed from their posts at best, and exiled at worst. I have gathered you all here today so that you will know that I, Jia, always keep my word."

The remaining officials, though terrified, had escaped a terrible fate. They soon realized the imperial envoy wasn't there to investigate corruption, but rather to crack down on opium smuggling. A group of officials who had come intending to curry favor with the envoy had instead ended up having several arrested.

Everyone listened intently to Jia Lian's subsequent address. He reiterated the same old refrain, repeatedly emphasizing the dangers of opium. Finally, he raised a crucial point: the Annamite royal family had accepted bribes from Western opium dealers, assisting these unscrupulous merchants in smuggling opium into the interior. He instructed all prefectures and counties to return and severely crack down on related industries within their jurisdictions, while simultaneously prohibiting all trade with Annam.

The officials, having survived the ordeal, all assured the Imperial Envoy that they would do their utmost... But when they left the governor's hall, they found the scene outside even more chaotic.

At this moment, everyone finally understood Jia Lian's attitude towards opium; it was not only his words that were harsh, but his actions were even more so.

When the news reached Guilin, Cui Cheng couldn't stay any longer. Before he could react, trouble also broke out in Guangxi. The Imperial Guards suddenly launched an attack and arrested six officials, half civil and half military.

The governor of Guangxi naturally objected, as it involved leadership responsibility, and tried to stop it. However, the Imperial Guard Commander Long did not listen to reason and directly presented the imperial envoy's order, which was stamped with the imperial seal.

So the Guangxi officials came to Cui Cheng to make a decision, saying that they couldn't just let Jia Lian run wild like this; after all, he was the governor-general and had to speak up.

Cui Cheng had no choice but to return to Guangzhou, only to find a notice of murder posted at the city gate.

None of the prisoners killed were officials; they were all local gentry and powerful figures. Faced with the rifles of the new army, these people had virtually no chance of resistance.

After the men were brought back and interrogated, more than thirty ringleaders and key criminals were identified. Jia Lian then presented the imperial edict and announced their immediate execution.

Upon hearing the news, Cui Cheng learned that sixteen civil and military officials from Guangdong had been arrested and imprisoned. Their crimes had been determined, and the verdicts had been sent to the capital. They were awaiting a reply from the capital, after which these officials would be exiled.

The same applies to Guangxi. Anyone involved in opium smuggling is executed immediately, and officials are exiled and their property confiscated.

Cui Cheng was so angry that he couldn't speak. The Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, a man of great stature, hadn't even informed him when officials under his jurisdiction were arrested.

Cui Cheng immediately sent a visiting card to Jia Lian. Jia Lian's reply was full of humiliation, consisting of just two words: "No time!"

Such an action would be considered a complete breakdown of relations in officialdom. Enraged, Cui Cheng wanted to impeach Jia Lian, accusing him of harming the common people and persecuting officials.

Before he could even make a move, dozens of memorials from Guangdong and Guangxi had already arrived in the capital, all impeaching Cui Cheng.

The charges were clear: accepting bribes, condoning smuggling, causing not only financial losses to the state, but also harming the people through opium addiction.

After these memorials arrived in the capital, they were immediately sent to the Grand Secretariat. Fang Song read them and found that Jia Lian had not personally taken charge. He regretfully finished organizing them and presented them to Lin Ruhai.

"Since this involves a high-ranking official of the second rank, it is not appropriate for me to send it directly to the Emperor. Minister Lin, please take a look."

After patiently reading through the impeachments, Lin Ruhai casually asked, "It seems that Lord Fang and Buqi have a close relationship!"

Fang Song, of course, wouldn't respond to that, and laughed, "It's just business as it is!"

Upon hearing the news, Li Qing rushed over in a fit of rage. Hearing Fang Song's words, he forced himself to enter, still seething with anger.

After exchanging greetings, Li Qing insisted on looking at the impeachment memorials. Lin Ruhai and Fang Song didn't even look at them, telling him to look at them as he pleased.

After watching the video, Li Qing was quite relieved to find that Jia Lian had not personally participated.

"This involves a high-ranking official of the second rank in the imperial court, so according to custom, an inspection team should be sent to review the case." Li Qing could only stall for time, thinking about how to get the person out of trouble.

Fang Song sneered, "Jia Buqi is in Guangzhou, why bother with all this? Just let him go and verify it."

Li Qing quickly defused the situation: "Jia Buqi is the Imperial Envoy for the Suppression of Opium, not a Censor. How can this be!"

Upon hearing this, Fang Song laughed and said, "What a coincidence! I remember that Buqi holds the title of Censor!"

Li Qing was speechless for a moment, so he looked at Lin Ruhai, hoping that he would say something.

Lin Ruhai, naturally unwilling to take the blame, said calmly, "Send receipts to both sides and submit them to the Emperor for a decision!"

Without Lin Ruhai's support, Li Qing naturally couldn't compete with Fang Song in matters under Fang Song's jurisdiction and could only accept it reluctantly.

A stack of memorials was delivered to the Emperor. Li Yuan was also surprised after reading them. He did not make a decision immediately, thinking that Jia Lian was in Guangzhou and he would wait to see his report.

The next day, Jia Lian's memorial arrived, first to the Grand Secretariat, and then directly to Lin Ruhai.

After carefully reading it, Lin Ruhai remained silent and gestured for it to be shown to the other cabinet ministers.

Jia Lian's memorial circulated around, but not a single cabinet minister offered any comments or suggestions. Initially, it was thought that Jia Lian was using this as an excuse, but it turned out the matter was quite serious. Even more ridiculous was Cui Cheng's appalling attitude; despite Jia Lian staying in Guangzhou for a long time, Cui Cheng refused to meet with him, hiding in Guilin.

Jia Lian was completely unaffected by him. He arrested people who deserved to be arrested and beheaded those who deserved to be beheaded. Now, a bunch of officials have been taken down and sentenced to exile, and they are just waiting for the court's reply.

By the way, Jia Lian also mentioned in his memorial that copies of the relevant case files had been returned and could be accessed at the Office of Transmission at any time.

This is Jia Lian's style of doing things; as long as he handles a case, he always has solid evidence against the charges.

Anyone who knows Jia Lian knows he's beyond saving. Knowing his ways, he's definitely not afraid of a second investigation.

Not to mention, these officials definitely have problems, so we really shouldn't re-investigate them; they might even uncover bigger issues.

The Ministry of Justice was also at a loss for words; they had never seen anything like this before, and yet they had sent over a whole bunch of files. Fortunately, Lin Ruhai didn't make things difficult for them, and told the Ministry of Justice to keep them safe for filing.

After receiving the memorial, Li Yuan was indeed astute as Jia Lian had predicted. Li Yuan wasn't particularly angry, but rather curious about what was in the files. He instructed Hu Min to go to the Ministry of Justice and retrieve all the files.

After Li Yuan stayed up all night reading through these files, he stood in the Qianqing Palace and started cursing, completely losing his composure.

The excitement surrounding the recapture of Macau quickly faded, but the subsequent reports of opium smuggling were truly shocking. Even within Guangdong and Guangxi provinces alone, the amount uncovered so far has reached ten million yuan.

In this regard, Jia Lian also pointed out that the Wang family played an extremely disgraceful role, using the family's interests as a stepping stone for Western merchants.

(End of this chapter)