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

Chapter 214 The Fishing Diary Ends
Summer of the thirty-ninth year of the Jiajing reign.

Lin Youniu arrived in Nanjing amidst the eager anticipation of his family.

Having escaped death and reunited with their family, the joy and happiness go without saying.

After the family reunion dinner, Lin Shisan helped Lin Youniu to the study. On the desk sat an abacus made of fine nanmu wood.

Lin Youniu sighed, "Alas, I have no business left, what use is a divination tool?"

Lin Shisan laughed and said, "Father, who said you won't have any business to do once you get to Nanjing?"

"Eunuch Yang, the garrison commander of Nanjing, has found you a respectable shop at the entrance of Shanlu Lane on Zhenjianfu Street so you can open the Nanjing branch of Fuyuanhao!"

Shanlu Lane was formerly known as Ganesha Lane.

In the first year of the Hongxi reign, Emperor Renzong dispatched eunuchs to supervise military affairs in Nanjing and established the Garrison Eunuch Office.

The main street in front of the town's administrative office was renamed Town Administrative Office Street.

There is an alley on the main street that was once used for the business of gelding donkeys during the Yuan Dynasty, hence the name gelding donkey alley.

The town's magistrate found this unpleasant and renamed Donkey-Stripping Lane to Good Shoes Lane.

Lin Youniu's eyes lit up: "Open a branch of Fuyuanhao?"

Lin Shisan nodded: "Eunuch Yang said that from now on, all the ice for the Nanjing Imperial Palace and Xiaoling Mausoleum in summer will be supplied by you."

"In addition, he contacted the Jiaofangsi (a government-run entertainment institution) to arrange for the pleasure boats on the Qinhuai River to use our ice in the summer."

"He also approved thirty mu of land for you inside Tongji Gate, where you can freely dig ice cellars. It's all been registered with the Yingtian Prefectural Government."

Lin Youniu was overjoyed: "Oh my, this Eunuch Yang is really good to our family! Does this mean I'm going to make a fortune again after coming back to Nanjing?"

After a moment, he had some doubts: "I heard that Nanjing is much warmer than the capital. In three or four winters, only one winter was so cold that it froze."

"If we can't freeze it, what are we going to sell? We've built ice cellars, but we don't have any ice to store."

Lin Shisan smiled and said, "I've already thought of that. Nanjing is south of the Yangtze River, it's too warm, so it's indeed not good for making ice."

“Chuzhou in Jiangbei freezes every winter. I have asked Eunuch Yang to speak with the eunuch in charge of Chuzhou and find 500 mu of wasteland on the banks of the Chu River for our family to make ice-making fields.”

"Once the ice freezes solid in winter, it will be transported from Chuzhou to Nanjing and stored in ice cellars."

Lin Youniu clapped his hands: "Hey! Great! Isn't that all? Now our Lin family's ice cellar business is going to have a grand expansion in Jiangnan!"

“Eunuch Yang has helped our family so much. I should give him 20% of the shares! With his protection, my business in Nanjing will definitely go smoothly.”

Lin Shisan said, "Father, never give him shares. That's not thanking him, it's harming him."

"Eunuch Yang is a man who loves power more than money. These past two years, he has been planning to be transferred back to the capital to serve as a scribe in the Directorate of Ceremonial.

"I will repay his kindness in other ways."

Lin Youniu said, "Then it would be alright to send him some gifts during holidays."

Lin Shisan nodded: "It's common for officials to exchange gifts during festivals, that's fine. Father, please rest here in the study for a while. I have official business to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."

Lin Shisan left his study in the back office and went to Yang Jinshui's study in the next courtyard.

Yang Jinshui stood up: "Your father has arrived. Are you about to take up your official post?"

Lin Shisan nodded, took out a memorial from his bosom, and handed it to Yang Jinshui.

The memorial read, "Your subject, Lin Shisan, a commander of the Nanjing Embroidered Uniform Guard, is investigating the mutiny at Zhenwu Camp."

In this memorial, Lin Shisan completely attributed the cause of the mutiny to the deceased Huang Maoguan and Liu Shiyan, the Earl of Chengyi, who had made great contributions to suppressing the rebellion.

This was exactly the advice Hu Zongxian had given him that day.

Yang Jinshui nodded after reading it: "Yes. This memorial is enough to protect the Qi and Yu departments."

In fact, this memorial was not only closely related to the Qi and Yu departments.

The Dajiaochang Camp, Xiaojiaochang Camp, Chihe Camp, Puzikou Camp, and Xinjiangkou Camp stationed in Nanjing were also among the troops stationed to defend against Japanese pirates.

Lin Shisan's memorial also saved them.

Yang Jinshui laughed and said, "These past few days, the generals of the Fifth Battalion have wanted to come and pay their respects to you and give you money. I've chased them all away."

Lin Shisan quickly replied, "The Yan faction is watching me like a black-eyed chicken right now. I dare not accept the silver from the camp officers."

Yang Jinshui said, "Yes, I know. Once this memorial is submitted, you will be the benefactor of the Nanjing garrison commanders. With these soldiers around, your safety in Nanjing will be more guaranteed in the future."

"However, if I may be frank, the day your memorial arrives in the capital will be the day you completely break with the Yan faction."

"You've ruined their grand plan to dismantle their elite troops and nurture a bandit to enhance their own power!"

Lin Shisan said, "There's no way around it. How can you always cut tofu perfectly? I'm not a dutiful son or grandson of the Yan family; I'm the Emperor's man!"

"Please have Eunuch Yang send someone to escort this memorial to the capital by express courier, which will travel 800 li."

Several days later, in the main hall of Yongshou Palace.

The Jiajing Emperor was holding a state council meeting. Cabinet members and ministers from various ministries were all present.

Although the Jiajing Emperor did not attend court for decades, this did not mean he neglected state affairs. Such imperial deliberations took place every seven days.

This emperor, who loved to act mysterious in front of his ministers, still sat cross-legged inside the green gauze curtain.

He picked up the bronze hammer and struck the bronze chime. "Clang!" The clear sound of the bronze chime echoed in the hall.

Lü Fang shouted at the top of her lungs, "Discuss!"

Huang Jin, the chief scribe of the Directorate of Ceremonial, presented Lin Shisan's memorial: "The matter of the mutiny in the Zhenwu Battalion in Nanjing has been thoroughly investigated by His Majesty for more than a month and a half."

"Now the cause and effect have finally been found out."

Huang Jin read Lin Shisan's memorial aloud to everyone.

Yan Song frowned upon hearing this.

Yan Shifan was furious, his face flushed: "Well, Lin Shisan has finally tricked us!"
Yan Shifan quickly gave his uncle, the newly appointed Minister of Personnel Ouyang Bijin, a wink.

There are powerful figures and thugs in the imperial court.

The bigwigs always sit upright, remain silent, and rarely express their opinions.

Only thugs would spew such spittle.

Ouyang Bijin had been a henchman for Yan Shifan's faction for many years. But now, as the Minister of Personnel, he considered himself a powerful figure. He wouldn't dare to spew spittle at Yan Shifan at the slightest glance.

Ouyang Bijin turned to look at Wu Xuanlang Fang Xiang and gave him a wink.

Today's political discussion focuses on military affairs. Although Fang Xiang is not a minister, he is a junior official in a relevant department.

"Officials" refers to relevant departments. Therefore, he was also among those involved in political discussions.

Fang Xiang immediately jumped out: "Lin Shisan is a treacherous minister!"

A clang rang out from the bronze chime. Lü Fang said, "His Majesty asked Physician Fang why he called Lin Shisan a treacherous minister?"

Fang Xiang spoke up for Yan's faction: "Who doesn't know that Huang Maoguan is an honest and diligent official? Liu Shiyan is a hero who quelled the Zhenwu Camp mutiny?"

"Lin Shisan, however, pinned the blame for the mutiny on them? This is turning black into white! It's the work of a treacherous minister!"

Minister of War Yang Bo stepped forward: "That's not right. A month and a half ago, 129 upright officials submitted a memorial to the court, impeaching Liu Shiyan."

"They accused Liu Shiyan of being young and frivolous on the night of the mutiny, disregarding the overall situation, and arbitrarily mobilizing five battalions of troops to quell the rebellion, which led to the deterioration of the situation and forced the Zhenwu Battalion to rebel."

"Later, Liu Shiyan was surrounded by rebel troops and unable to escape. To save his life, he disregarded all shame and flattered the rebel soldiers, promising them 100,000 taels of silver." "Are all 129 upright officials wrong? Only you, Physician Fang, are right?"

Yang Bo was using someone else's strength against them. Those 129 upright officials were all Xu Jie's men.

On the matter of Zhenwu Camp, Yang Bo's attitude was to strongly support Lin Shisan.

This was not because Lin Shisan had saved his life.

Imagine if Yan's faction could disband the Southeast Japanese defense troops today through intrigue and trickery. Then tomorrow, they could do the same to the Nine Border Garrisons, disbanding the border troops as well.

This path must not be taken! It would severely damage the interests of the Jiangchen Party. Therefore, Yang Bo must find a way to thwart the Yan Party's conspiracy today.

Yang Bo turned to look at Vice Minister Xu Jie: "Vice Minister Xu, is that right?"

Xu Jie's heart skipped a beat. He thought to himself: I was too hasty before. I should have focused my efforts on echoing Yan's faction and finding a way to dismiss Qi and Yu's subordinates. Why did I have to create unnecessary complications and impeach Liu Shiyan?
This is truly a case of losing the watermelon to pick up a sesame seed.

Xu Jie couldn't contradict his own supporters, so he could only give a vague answer: "Ah, on the night of the mutiny, Liu Shiyan may have, perhaps, indeed did do something inappropriate."

"However, it is unfair to attribute the entire cause of the mutiny to him."

Yang Bo pressed his advantage: "Didn't Lin Shisan's memorial say that the mutiny was not only caused by Liu Shiyan, but Huang Maoguan is also to blame?"

Fang Xiang said, "The mutiny was clearly caused by the fact that the soldiers of the Japanese guerrilla camp were recruited from the civilians, and their discipline was lax and they were unruly."

Yang Bo said, “How strange. Back then, when Hu Zongxian submitted a memorial to the throne, he proposed recruiting soldiers for the Japanese pirate defense camp in Yiwu. Whether it was you, Langzhong, Grand Secretary Yan, or Grand Secretary Xiao, they all agreed to it.”

"At the time, there were indeed some upright officials who opposed recruiting soldiers in Yiwu, citing 'unruly and difficult to control' as their reason. But I remember that Dr. Fang even wrote a memorial to refute them."

"How come you're going back on your word now, saying the Japanese pirate garrison is unruly and difficult to control?"

Today, Fang Xiang was proven wrong by yesterday's Fang Xiang. Helpless, Fang Xiang could only mutter, "Times have changed."

The officials of Yan's faction wanted to speak up for Fang Xiang, but they didn't know how to start.

"Clang!" The sound of the bronze chime rang out again.

Lü Fang approached the green gauze curtain, and the Jiajing Emperor whispered something to him.

Lü Fang said, "It was an imperial edict. Lin Shisan has always been shrewd and capable. He has already investigated and found that the cause of the Zhenwu Camp mutiny was Huang Maoguan's exploitation of the soldiers and Liu Shiyan's improper handling of the situation."

"Now that Huang Maoguan is dead, we will not pursue the matter further."

"Liu Shiyan is young and reckless, which led to the situation getting out of control. He is hereby dismissed from his post as Right Army Commander of Nanjing. He is also fined three years' salary as a warning to others."

“All military officers of the Zhenwu Battalion, from the garrison commander to the centurion, shall be executed.”

"The rest of the soldiers who committed bloodshed in Nanjing on the night of the mutiny, killing civilians or raping women, shall all be executed."

"The rest of us will be sent to defend the border in Datong."

"Lin Shisan has made meritorious contributions in thoroughly investigating the matter and is hereby awarded double the salary of a thousand-household commander."

The Jiajing Emperor gave the final verdict on this coup.

Yang Bo immediately knelt down and cried out, "Your Majesty, you are wise!"

The officials from the Yan and Xu factions had no choice but to echo "His Majesty is wise."

Lu Fang then said, "His Majesty has issued an oral decree summoning Tan Lun, the Governor of Fujian, to the palace for a meeting."

Tan Lun has returned to Beijing to report on his duties these past few days and is temporarily residing in the Prince Yu's residence.

Logically speaking, it was taboo for a high-ranking official to reside in a prince's mansion. However, this was the decree of the Jiajing Emperor.

The Jiajing Emperor wanted to tell all the officials that Tan Lun was the heir apparent's man. They should not hinder his important work against the Japanese pirates in Fujian.

Upon entering the main hall of Yongshou Palace, Tan Lun first bowed to the Jiajing Emperor.

Emperor Jiajing, for the first time ever, lifted the green gauze curtain: "Rise."

Tan Lun shouted "Thank you for your great favor, Your Majesty!" and then stood up.

The Jiajing Emperor said, "Tan Lun, although you are the governor of Fujian and have no jurisdiction over Zhejiang, you are Hu Zongxian's deputy in the fight against the Japanese pirates."

"I ask you. The Zhejiang troops under Qi Jiguang have been established for over a year, consuming countless amounts of official funds. When will they achieve merit on the battlefield?"

Tan Lun said confidently, "Within a year, the Zhejiang troops will surely achieve great success."

The Jiajing Emperor said, "Oh? Do you dare to sign a military pledge?"

Tan Lun replied solemnly, “Your Majesty, I dare to say yes. Not only do I dare to say yes, but the Governor-General of Zhejiang and Zhili, Hu Zongxian, the General of Zhejiang, Yu Dayou, the Commander-in-Chief of Zhejiang, Lu Tang, the Deputy General of Zhejiang, Tang Kekuan, and the Assistant Commander of Zhejiang, Qi Jiguang, all dare to say yes!”

"The sword has been sharpened and is now gleaming. Success and achievement will be within a year!"

The Jiajing Emperor praised, "Excellent! Then I will wait for the news of Qi Jiguang's victory in Yongshou Palace. Within this year, if Qi Jiguang wants silver, I will give him silver; if he wants weapons, I will give him weapons."

"But if they still achieve nothing after a year, then I will hold you accountable."

The Jiajing Emperor made his stance clear—he fully supported the Zhejiang troops.

What Yan Party or Xu Party? Anyone who makes things difficult for those brave warriors in the southeast who are fighting against the Japanese pirates will be my enemy!

The pressure fell on Hu Zongxian. He had been planning the resistance against the Japanese pirates for years, spending countless resources. If he didn't achieve a major victory soon, it would be unacceptable to the imperial court.

After the court session, the cabinet officials take their duties.

Yan Song and Xu Jie sat facing each other, drinking tea.

Yan Shifan said, "Ha, Vice Minister Xu, Lin Shisan has tricked both of us this time!"

Xu Jie remained unmoved.

Yan Song said, "Donglou, stop talking nonsense. The Emperor has already issued an edict acknowledging the results of Lin Shisan's thorough investigation."

Yan Shifan left the cabinet office in a huff and returned to his residence.

Upon entering the mansion, he personally wrote a letter to Luo Longwen in Nanjing, instructing him to assassinate Lin Shisan.

Luo Longwen, by bypassing Yan Song and listening to Yan Shifan, instigated a mutiny in Nanjing and suffered a loss.

This time, he didn't listen to Yan Shifan. Instead, he sent a special envoy back to the capital to meet with Yan Song and inquire whether the assassination of Lin Shisan was Yan Song's doing.

Yan Song then gave Yan Shifan another severe scolding.

In recent years, Emperor Jiajing has intentionally suppressed the Yan faction, and their situation has become dire. Under this pressure, Yan Shifan, a man of intelligence, has made one disastrous decision after another.

Yan Song's rebuke was well-deserved: "Don't you realize that Lin Shisan is the Emperor's eyes and ears in Nanjing? To assassinate him is tantamount to gouging out the Emperor's eyes!"

"Furthermore, Nanjing is the territory of Xu Pengju and Yang Jinshui. Xu Pengju has always been an incompetent fool; he would never dare to help Luo Longwen kill Lin Shisan."

"Lin Shisan has Yang Jinshui's protection. In addition, he has won favor with the Five Battalions of Nanjing this time. Luo Longwen is all alone in Nanjing. Can he kill Lin Shisan?"

"Send Luo Longwen back to Beijing immediately!"

Meanwhile, Nanjing returned to peace.

Lin Shisan resumed his leisurely life of fishing every day. The difference was that he no longer had Xu Pengju as his fishing buddy. And every time he went fishing, he was protected by thirty comrades and a hundred soldiers from the military garrison.

The turmoil of the thirty-ninth year of the Jiajing reign thus came to an end.

Summer goes and autumn comes, autumn goes and winter comes, winter goes and spring comes.

Springtime arrived in the fortieth year of the Jiajing reign.

A horse-drawn carriage carrying Xu Wei, Hu Zongxian's top strategist, entered Nanjing.
(End of this chapter)