I am a temporary worker in Jinyiwei, how did I become a powerful official?

Chapter 147: Hitting the Yan Family (-word chapter)
It wasn't just the cats that went crazy in the Yongshou Palace, but also Emperor Jiajing.

Being crazy is fake, making money is real.

One day later, in the study of Yan's residence, the internal minister Lu Fang and the chief minister Yan Song sat opposite each other.

Lu Fang placed a thick stack of confessions on Yan Song's desk.

Yan Song asked: "What is this?"

Lü Fang replied: "The confession of the salt merchant Zhang Yuhao."

Yan Song pretended to be confused: "Oh? That lowly merchant confessed that he was the mastermind behind the assassination of the king?"

Lü Fang said, "Lord, this confession is the total amount of salt tax collected by Yan Maoqing in the first half of this year."

Yan Song pretended to be confused: "Total? Isn't it 2.8 million taels? 1.3 million of it went into the national treasury, 500,000 was given to the Ministry of Works to repair the three main halls, and 1 million taels was given to Hu Zongxian as military expenses to fight against the Japanese invaders."

Lu Fang sighed, "Alas. Salt administration has always been a matter of conscience, and there are many tricks. Salt tax is collected from salt merchants. Zhang Yuhao, as the head of the Salt Merchants Association, knows this best."

"He confessed that the total salt tax for the first half of the year was 5 million taels. The remaining 2.2 million taels were naturally divided among officials of all ranks."

"Among the officials who shared the spoils, the vast majority were students and old friends of yours, Lord Yan."

Yan Song remained silent and looked at Lu Fang with half-closed eyes.

After serving as an official for so many years, Yan Song summed up a truth: Don't panic when encountering major events, talk less, listen more, and think more.

Lu Fang said: "The emperor has ordered the Jinyiwei and the Silijian to investigate the Maohun assassination case."

"On the Jinyiwei side, Commander Lu is your ally. You have worked together to bring down Xia Yan. Commander Lu naturally does not want to see this confession appear in front of the dragon case in Yongshou Palace."

"I have known Lord Yan for a long time, and I don't want to see this confession appear in front of the Long case."

"So I brought the confession to your study."

Yan Song still didn't say anything, but silently poured a cup of tea for Lu Fang.

Lu Fang took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, and then said, "Yan Maoqing is your disciple. Once this major salt case is exposed, it will bring out the mud."

"I don't know how many of your students and old friends will be implicated. Those honest people in the court will even add insult to injury."

"Until then, alas"

Yan Song knew that Lu Fang was performing.

Lu Fang also knew that Yan Song knew he was acting.

Yan Song even knew that it was Emperor Jiajing who assigned Lu Fang to come to his study to act out this drama.

Yan Song said calmly: "Eunuch Lu, please show me a clear way."

OK! This is what Lu Fang was waiting for.

Lu Fang took another sip of tea and said, "It's actually quite simple. Tell your subordinates in the branch to give out the money they have taken and then collect it and hand it over."

"I'll say hello to Lu Bing and let Zhang Yuhao die in prison without knowing why."

"As for this confession, just burn it."

"This way, the accounts will match. The most important witness died in the imperial prison. The matter will be settled."

Yan Song asked: "Oh? May I ask, Eunuch Lu, should the silver be handed over to the Ministry of Revenue Taicang or..."

Lu Fang replied: "If there is no appropriate name for the money submitted to the Ministry of Revenue, the Qingliu people will definitely find fault with it."

"I am in charge of the Nei Cheng Yun Ku. These two million silvers should be handed over to the Nei Cheng Yun Ku. Just think of it as the silver presented by the officials below to the emperor for building a Taoist temple."

The emperor ordered the eunuch to ask the cabinet chief for money to replenish the emperor's private treasury. If Taizu knew about this, I'm afraid his coffin would not be able to hold it down.

Yan Song finally expressed his opinion: "Thank you, Eunuch Lu, for saving my Yan family. I will ask my subordinates to collect two million taels and hand it over to the Internal Transport Depot within ten days."

Lu Fang smiled and said, "Old Lord Yan is a man of great righteousness. I want to advise you that you have been too indulgent to your subordinates over the years. Sooner or later, they will cause you great trouble."

Yan Song sent Lu Fang away.

Yan Shifan walked in: "Dad, what did Eunuch Lu say to you?"

Yan Song tapped the confession on the table with his finger: "Read it for yourself."

Yan Shifan was furious after reading it: "Yan Maoqing secretly concealed the amount of 200,000 taels? And Zhang Yuhao, that fellow, actually..."

"Bang!" Yan Song threw the teacup hard to the ground.

Yan Shifan asked quickly, "Dad, what does Lu Fang mean?"

Yan Song said, "You should ask the emperor what he means."

"The emperor's meaning is very simple. You should collect two million taels of silver and send them to the internal transport warehouse. We will not pursue this matter any further."

Yan Shifan frowned: "Is the emperor using the cat wedding assassination case to blackmail our Yan family?"

Yan Song said, "What do you mean by blackmail? All the wealth in the world belongs to the emperor. Even the Ming Dynasty is the private property of the Zhu family. This money originally belonged to the emperor."

"You guys are just fooling around. I'm already seventy-seven years old. Sooner or later, you'll ruin my life."

After hearing this, Yan Shifan immediately knelt down in front of Yan Song and said, "Father, if you say so, your son should jump into the Yongding River."

Yan Song said, "Okay, get up. You do two things right away. First, make those who have taken the salt commission pay out the money immediately. I will come forward and hand the money over to the internal transport warehouse for them."

"The second thing."

When Yan Song said this, a sad look appeared on his face.

Yan Shifan asked, "Dad, what is the second thing? Please tell me."

Yan Song sighed and said, "Send someone to our hometown in Fenyi County to buy ninety-nine acres of land around the ancestral tomb. Then choose a tomb master from among the distant relatives and nephews."

Yan Shifan stood there in a daze.

According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, all the property of corrupt officials would be confiscated after they fell from power.

The only exception is cemeteries, which are not included in the confiscation.

Therefore, when high-ranking officials gain power, they always leave themselves a way out, buying some land around their ancestral graves and using it as a cemetery.

If the area of the cemetery does not exceed one hundred acres, it is legal.

A few acres are enough for the tombs, and the extra ninety acres can be rented out to the people for farming.

If a high-ranking official lost power, more than 90 acres of land would be enough for his descendants to live on.

Senior officials usually choose a poor and simple person from among their distant relatives, nephews and nephews to take care of the 90-odd acres of land on weekdays. This person is called a "grave master".

Yan Shifan said, "Dad, our Yan family is at its peak, why did you suddenly think of this?"

Yan Song sighed: "The money for buying a hundred acres of land is not enough for you to hold a banquet. However, people cannot stay happy for a thousand days, and how long can flowers bloom in the spring?"

"When that day comes, these one hundred acres of land will ensure that the descendants of the Yan family will not go hungry."

"Go do it."

Eight days later, the young treasurer Lu Yi suddenly gathered all his hundred households, including Lin Shisan.

Lu Yi said: "You should immediately select a thousand men. They should be strong, steady, reserved and not gossipy. All of them should gather in front of the Xiyuan Palace before sunset."

"I have an important task for you tonight. Remember, this task is confidential. Anyone who dares to talk too much will be executed."

The big job that Lu Yi mentioned was to move two million taels of silver to the inner transport warehouse.

Lin Shisan returned to the duty room and called out the names of the twenty-three lieutenants. These people were usually taciturn.

The two generals under him, Sun Yue and Li Gao, were not included in this list. These two guys were both big mouths. They dared to tell anyone about going to a brothel, hugging a woman and feeding her with horse urine.

In the evening, Lin Shisan brought his men and gathered with his comrades in the West Garden.

Soon, Yan Shifan arrived in front of the Western Garden on horseback, followed by a donkey caravan. On both sides of the donkey caravan were a thousand guards from the Five Cities Army.

Not long after, Lu Fang also arrived. He said to Yan Shifan, "Young Lord, did you gather the money so quickly?"

Yan Shifan's face turned pale and he said nothing.

Lu Fang waved at Lu Yi and said, "Captain Lu, have your men come over to move the boxes. Carry them all to the inner transport warehouse."

Lin Shisan and his fellow Jinyiwei moved the boxes for two hours in a row, and finally all the heavy wooden boxes were transported into the inner transport warehouse.

The task was completed and everyone dispersed.

Lu Fang called Lin Shisan, as if he wanted to test his nephew: "Guess what's in those wooden boxes?"

Lin Shisan said: "Judging from the weight of those wooden boxes, they should be filled with silver. As for what kind of silver it is..."

"The young minister brought it here personally. It must be the salt tax money that the corrupt officials vomited out."

Lu Fang nodded in satisfaction: "Smart. You have made contributions in this matter. The more the emperor uses you, the more convenient it will be. In the future, there will be more important tasks assigned to you."

Lin Shisan's heart skipped a beat. He actually wanted to be an easygoing official, taking care of pet affairs in the West Garden and helping his father make some money in the palace.

Lu Fang seemed to see through Lin Shisan's thoughts: "People need to make themselves useful. Why would the emperor give wealth and glory to useless people?"

Lin Shisan cupped his hands and said, "Uncle is right."

Lu Fang said, "Forget it, let me tell you something serious. The emperor wants to take action against the former governor of Xuanda, Yang Shun, and the former inspector, Lu Kai. Do you know what to do?"

Lin Shisan blurted out: "Take out the second confession of the demon Yan Hao and make it public."

Lu Fang smiled and said, "Luckily I told you in advance. Otherwise you wouldn't even know how you died."

"It is true that the emperor wants to take action against Yang Shun and Lu Kai. But that is to crack down on the Yan Party, not to abandon the Yan Party."

"You made Yan Hao's second confession public. Don't you become the mortal enemy of the Yan Party?"

"Only one of Yan Song and Lin Shisan can stay. Who do you think the emperor will choose to stay?"

Lin Shisan was stunned.

Lü Fang said: "Your Majesty accused Yang Shun and Lu Kai of being afraid of fighting and cowardly, and watched the Tatars break through dozens of forts in Yingzhou."

Lin Shisan said, "Isn't this the same crime that Lord Shen Liangong impeached them for? Can Lord Shen Liangong be vindicated?"

Lu Fang shook his head: "The crime for executing Shen Lian was collusion with evil people and secretly communicating with the Tatars to rebel. It was different from his impeachment of Yang Shun and Lu Kai."

"Now that the emperor has convicted Yang and Lu, you must not think of overturning the verdict for Shen Lian."

"You must keep Yan Hao's confession carefully. You can take it out when the emperor is overthrown."

"You are so close to the Yan Party. The civil and military officials in the court all regard you as a member of the Yan Party. When the Yan Party falls, the confession will be your amulet."

Lin Shisan bowed: "Thank you for your advice, uncle."

Lu Fang said, "Don't be in a hurry to thank me. You need to be prepared. You were very close to Yang Lu when you were in Xuan University."

"The emperor is punishing the two of them, and you can't escape responsibility. Lu Bing will arrest you and put you in the imperial prison, and interrogate you as a formality."

"You don't have to panic. The final result will definitely be 'After interrogation, Lin Shisan is not guilty'. You will get away safely."

"I'll tell you this first. This will save you from panicking and being at a loss as to what to do, and you have to take out Yan Hao's confession in advance."

It’s good to have an “uncle” who is the seal holder of the Imperial Household Department as a backer.

Lin Shisan is still a young official. How can he be as thoughtful as an old fox like Lu Fang?
If Lu Fang had not reminded Lin Shisan, Lin Shisan would have made a stupid move this time, leading to his own death.

Finally, Lu Fang said to Lin Shisan with emotion: "Remember, being in the imperial court is like dancing on the edge of a knife. You must be careful when walking on thin ice."

The next afternoon, the Lord of Yongshou Palace made a speech and all the ministers from the ministries and agencies gathered together.

Emperor Jiajing struck the bronze chime, and the music officially began.

Lu Fang said loudly: "Wu Shilai, the Criminal Department's Censor, Zhang Chong, the Criminal Department's Director, and Dong Chuance impeached Yang Shun and Lu Kai for being afraid of the enemy and losing the military opportunity. What do you think?"

Xu Jie said nothing. Yan Song also said nothing.

Yan Shifan wanted to speak, but Yan Song glared at him and signaled him to be quiet.

"Dang" the sound of the bronze chime rang for the second time.

Lu Fang asked, "Yang Bo, Minister Yang. You are in charge of the Ministry of War. What do you think of the defeat in Yingzhou?"

Yang Bo held the tablet in his hand and said solemnly, "Your Majesty, when I comment on the cause and effect of a battle, I always judge the matter, not the person."

"The defeat in Yingzhou was caused by the fault of General Xuan Da! After the late emperor won a great victory in Yingzhou, he built many strong fortresses."

"Last year, the Tartars invaded Yingzhou with only 30,000 soldiers. The forts in Yingzhou could hold out for more than a month. As long as Commander Xuan Da mobilizes the border troops to reinforce, we can at least inflict heavy damage on the Tartars, even if we cannot completely annihilate them."

"However, the Yingzhou forts have been defending for two and a half months. Commander Xuan has not sent a single soldier to reinforce them!"

"If this isn't cowardice, what is it?"

"In my opinion, Wu Shilai, Zhang Chong, and Dong Chuanze were right to impeach Yang Shun. Lu Kai, as the inspector, was guilty of the same crime for not urging Yang Shun to send troops."

Yang Bo was the leader of the Frontier Clan and also a military official in the Ministry of War. His words carried a lot of weight in frontier military affairs.

His words basically determined the fate of Yang Shun and Lu Kai.

The bronze bells rang twice. Lu Fang approached the gauze tent. Emperor Jiajing whispered to him.

Lu Fang said loudly, "There is an imperial decree! Yang Shun and Lu Kai allowed the enemy to break into the fortress, which is a heinous crime. Yang Shun will be dismissed from his post as the Minister of War in Nanjing, and will be taken to the capital by the Jinyiwei for strict interrogation."

"Lu Kai is dismissed from his post as the Junior Minister of the Imperial Household Department and is to be interrogated strictly by the Imperial Guards."

"Also, Wu Shilai, Zhang Chong, and Dong Chuance impeached Yang Shun, Lu Kai, and Lin Shisan for colluding and framing Shen Lian. The matter has been handed over to the Jinyiwei for a thorough investigation!"

If the powerful governor Hu Zongxian was reported, Yan Song would definitely risk his life to protect him.

But Yang Shun has now become the Minister of Retirement in Nanjing, and Lu Kai is even a Shaoqing who manages the kitchen.

Yan Song knew very well that the emperor was trying to warn me by punishing two idle officials under my command.

Therefore, Yan Song said nothing from beginning to end. If he did not speak, the ministers of the ministries and agencies of Yan's party would also remain silent.

Half an hour later, in the Northern Pacification Office.

Lin Shisan was drinking almond tea with Sun Yue and Li Gao in the duty room.

Deputy Captain Liu Shouyou walked in aggressively with eight of his men.

Liu Shouyou said sternly, "Lin Shisan, the censors have accused you of colluding with the feudal lords and framing loyal officials. Come with me to the imperial prison."

"Come on, take down Lin Shisan!"

Sun Yue was shocked: "Is there some misunderstanding here, Deputy Captain Liu?"

Li Gao shouted, "You must have wronged my elder brother Lin! Brother Lin, don't worry, I will go find my sister and plead for you in front of Prince Yu!"

Lin Shisan said calmly, "No need. The innocent will be innocent. With the wisdom of the chief and junior shopkeepers, they will definitely be able to figure out the whole story. You don't have to worry about me."

Liu Shouyou took Lin Shisan into the No. 1 interrogation room of the imperial prison in a threatening manner.

Various torture instruments were hung on the walls of the interrogation room, and there were many dried bloodstains on the floor that could not be washed away.

Lu Yi sat behind a table in the interrogation room. On the table were a charcoal basin, several plates of mutton, several plates of seasonal vegetables, a jar of wine, and three cups.

Lu Yi said loudly: "The criminal Lin Shisan is extremely evil, I want to interrogate him personally. Liu Shouyou stay, and the rest of you leave."

Everyone left the interrogation room, leaving only Lu Yi, Lin Shisan and Liu Shouyou.

Lu Yi said, "Don't just stand there! Untie Lin Shisan quickly. I just got a jar of Western wine, it's very refreshing. Let's have hotpot and taste the wine."

(End of this chapter)