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

Chapter 225 Lin Shisan is a sharp sword left to the Emperor by Emperor Shizong.

Based solely on the four words "accusation by a hidden spy," Lin Shisan was determined to raid the homes of a provincial governor and a provincial vice-governor.

The commanders of the Embroidered Uniform Guard were all well-informed and knew that Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan were powerful figures in the region.

He, the most senior of the six commanders, immediately objected: "Third Manager, you said that a spy has reported this. May I ask which spy it is? Do you have any evidence?"

"To search and confiscate the ancestral homes of Minister Xu and Vice Provincial Judge Xu without concrete evidence? Isn't that a bit too frivolous?"

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard does indeed have authority that surpasses that of the Three Judicial Offices. Even so, evidence is still essential in handling cases."

Another commander surnamed Jin chimed in: "That's right. We can't just follow the example of those noisy officials in the court and rely on rumors to solve cases."

"Moreover, Grand Secretary Gao, Minister Xu, and Vice Provincial Judge Xu..."

All six commanders believed that Lin Shisan had betrayed the regime and sided with Xu Jie as soon as he became the Northern Garrison Commander.

Just today, a group of officials impeached Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan for embezzlement and bribery. And tonight, Lin Shisan is going to raid their homes? It's obvious they've been rigged.

Commander He said, "If you want to confiscate their property, that's fine. But at least ask the head steward and the second steward, right?"

After saying that, He Qianhu gave Jin Qianhu a wink.

Jin Qianhu understood immediately: "I will go to the residences of the head manager and the second manager to ask for instructions."

Lin Shisan's expression changed: "What, are you going to take this opportunity to tip off the families of corrupt officials?"

“I am the acting commander of the Northern Garrison. The rules of the Embroidered Uniform Guard are absolute, and the orders of my superiors are as law as the heavens. I order all those on night duty in the garrison to immediately set up camp and surround the ancestral home of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan.”

Turning to his apprentice, Deputy Commander Sun Yue, Lin Shisan said, "I'll lead one group to raid Xu Zemin's ancestral home. You lead the other group to surround Xu Fuyuan's ancestral home first."

Sun Yue cupped his hands in greeting: "Yes, sir!"

There were more than 500 people on night duty at the Northern Division. Led by Lin Shisan and Sun Yue, they split into two groups and headed in a grand procession to the ancestral home of Xu and Xu.

Two quarters of an hour later, in front of Xu Zemin's mansion gate.

Xu Zemin's elderly father, Xu Kuan, quickly approached Lin Shisan.

Xu Kuan was in his eighties. He had served as the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites in the capital and later as the Governor of Shandong. However, he had retired more than ten years ago and was enjoying his retirement at home.

Xu Kuan was a man who had seen many big occasions. He cupped his hands towards Lin Shisan and said, "Commander Lin, what is your purpose in mobilizing such a large force in the middle of the night?"

Lin Shisan pulled Xu Kuan aside and whispered something in his ear.

Xu Kuan nodded: "I see. Then, Commander Lin, please confiscate my property."

Lin Shisan waved his hand: "Brothers, search thoroughly!"

The Xu family had been officials for generations. They weren't particularly corrupt, but they had certainly accumulated a considerable fortune.

The Imperial Guards ransacked the house, and by midnight they had found gold, silver, jewelry, house deeds, land deeds, and other valuables, worth approximately 70,000 taels of silver.

For a bureaucratic family, 70,000 taels of silver was not a large sum of money.

Over the past few decades, maritime smuggling has led to a massive outflow of silver. It's likely that a prefect of a medium-sized prefecture could earn seventy to eighty thousand taels of silver in a three-year term just from collecting bribes.

In the ten years or so since Lin Shisan rose to prominence, his family wealth has accumulated to more than 100,000 taels.

The mere 70,000 taels of silver in the Xu family's wealth only shows that Xu Zemin was a good official, and his father was also a good official.

All the valuables were placed in the backyard.

Lin Shisan instructed He Qianhu: "You are to transport these valuables from the Xu family to the treasury of our Northern Garrison Command."

Then Lin Shisan took out a piece of paper and read aloud: "List of confiscated property from the ancestral home of Xu Zemin, Governor of Fujian: 89 taels of silver; 44 strings of copper coins; 12 mu of land deeds; 18 houses in total; over 100 pieces of tattered clothes without hair, insects, or rats; and more than 10 pieces of women's jewelry with silver plating, iron plating, and copper lacquer."

Upon hearing the so-called "list," Commander He was initially puzzled. He looked at Xu Kuan, who was stroking his white beard and appeared calm and composed.

A moment later, He Qianhu suddenly realized: "Third Manager, you are brilliant, truly brilliant! You are unfathomable!"

"Aren't the censors accusing Minister Xu of corruption and abuse of power? Why don't you just conduct a midnight raid on his home to prove his innocence?"

"The list of confiscated items from the Embroidered Uniform Guard is right there. If that's all the wealth in the ancestral home, isn't that the mark of an honest official?"

Lin Shisan laughed and said, "The matter is urgent, and I can't explain it to the brothers. Let's just keep it to ourselves."

Lin Shisan turned to Xu Kuan and said, "Minister Xu, please keep your valuables in the treasury of the Northern Garrison for now. Once this turmoil is over, I will return them in full."

Xu Kuan nodded: "Thank you."

Lin Shisan then went to Xu Fuyuan's house and did the same thing.

At 3:45 AM, Lin Shisan had finished ransacking Xu Fuyuan's ancestral home and was about to lead his comrades back to the Northern Garrison.

Three official sedan chairs arrived at the gate of the Xu residence.

Cabinet member Gao Gong, Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander Zhu Xixiao, and Deputy Commander Liu Shouyou alighted from their official sedan chairs with imposing manners.

Gao Gong glared at Lin Shisan. He had just heard that Lin Shisan had raided the Xu and Xu mansions. Like Commander He, his first reaction was: Lin Shisan has betrayed us and sided with Xu Jie.

This misunderstanding was caused by Qi Kang, a student of Lai Gaogong.

Lin Shisan had told Qi Kang his plan in the first half of the night. Qi Kang went to Gao Gong's residence to report it. However, the steward told Qi Kang that Grand Secretary Gao had already gone to sleep.

Qi Kang always respected his teacher as a father. Not wanting to disturb his teacher's rest, he returned to his residence. He planned to tell his teacher about this matter when all the officials gathered at the Jinshui River before the emperor's audience the next day.

However, Gao Gong's spies had rushed into the Gao residence half an hour earlier, and the caretaker woke Gao Gong and informed him of Lin Shisan's raid on the house.

Gao Gong had a fiery temper, and he flew into a rage when he heard about this. That very night, he summoned Zhu Xixiao and Liu Shouyou to confront Lin Shisan and demand an explanation.

Zhu Xixiao angrily said, "Lin Shisan, who gave you permission to mobilize the troops of the Northern Garrison to raid the ancestral homes of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan?"

"Don't forget, you're just the acting garrison commander of the Northern Garrison. Above you are me and Vice-Commander Liu!"

Liu Shouyou also questioned, "Do you have concrete evidence to confiscate the property of a high-ranking official and a deputy provincial judge? The Northern Garrison Command certainly wields great power. But how can power be abused?"

Gao Gong was too lazy to talk to Lin Shisan, this "two-faced scoundrel." He glanced at Lin Shisan sideways.

Lin Shisan strode up to the three bigwigs: "Reporting to Grand Secretary Gao, Head Manager, and Second Manager, my subordinates have completed the search and seizure of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan's ancestral home!"

"Your subordinate is guilty! I listened to the words of a petty villain! Guess what? Well, what we found was shocking. It turns out that Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan are truly incorruptible officials!"

Zhu Xixiao asked in confusion, "What do you mean?"

Lin Shisan presented two lists of confiscated property: "Please take a look, gentlemen. The value of Xu Zemin's ancestral home is no more than two hundred and thirty taels of silver."

"Xu Fuyuan's ancestral home and property were worth no more than 180 taels of silver."

Gao Gong, Zhu Xixiao, and Liu Shouyou looked at each other in bewilderment.

Everyone here is a sensible person; they all know that the wealth in the couple's ancestral home is definitely more than just this little bit. They're not Hai Rui (a notorious figure in Chinese history known for his shrewdness and integrity).

However, all three were seasoned veterans of officialdom, seasoned old foxes, and seasoned old hands. They immediately grasped Lin Shisan's intentions. What a shrewd Lin Shisan! He struck first, using the confiscation of their property to indirectly prove that the officials' accusations against Xu and Xu for corruption and abuse of power were unfounded!

Gao Gongdao said, "Thirteenth, you did a great job. But could you have given us a heads-up beforehand?"

Lin Shisan asked in confusion, "I already had Qi Kang, the head steward, report this to you."

The steward of the Gao family, who was serving nearby, suddenly remembered something: "Your Excellency, Qi Kang did come to our residence in the first half of the night. He heard that you were asleep and said that he would report an important matter to you before the morning court tomorrow."

Gao Gong cursed, "This stupid carriage. Well, with all this commotion, none of us will get any sleep. Let's find a place to have breakfast and then go to Huangji Gate for the morning court at dawn."

The practice of holding court at the gate (early morning court) was an ancestral custom.

However, the Jiajing Emperor did not hold court for decades and renamed the Fengtian Gate, where he held court, as the Huangji Gate.

After Emperor Longqing ascended the throne, he reinstated the practice of holding court at the Imperial Gate. Every day, he would go to the Imperial Gate to discuss matters with his officials.

As dawn broke, before the sun had even risen in the east, officials gradually gathered at the Jinshui River in front of the Huangji Gate, forming two ranks of civil and military officials, ready to enter the grand courtyard in front of the Huangji Gate.

Lin Shisan is now the acting garrison commander of the Northern Garrison, a fourth-rank official, and is qualified to participate in the imperial court's hearings.

At the exact hour of Mao (5-7 AM), the officials entered the spacious courtyard in front of the imperial gate.

Before long, the Longqing Emperor arrived at the front courtyard and sat on the dragon throne. Meng Chong, the Grand Secretary of the Directorate of Ceremonial, and Feng Bao, the Junior Secretary, served him on either side.

Meng Chong shouted in a shrill voice, "Discuss!"

The group of thugs and censors under Grand Secretary Xu Jie immediately jumped out.

Censor Zhan Yangbi reported: "Your Majesty, yesterday the Censorate impeached Xu Zemin, the Governor of Fujian, and Xu Fuyuan, the Assistant Surveillance Commissioner of Guangdong, for corruption and abuse of power. Their proposals regarding opening the sea to the sea should absolutely not be adopted!"

Hu Yingjia, a censor, said: "Your Majesty, I believe that officials should be dispatched from the Censorate to Fujian and Guangdong immediately to thoroughly investigate the misdeeds of Xu and Xu!"

Ouyang Yijing, a censor, said: "Your Majesty, Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan should be dismissed from their posts and allowed to remain in office pending trial."

Xu Jie, representing the conservative faction in the court, had a clear objective: whoever proposed opening the sea to foreign trade, they would be eliminated.

Let's see who dares to oppose us in the future!
Good heavens, opening up customs and the seas? This is going to take away our livelihood! We've been making a living from smuggling for generations, a hundred years. And now, a new emperor and everything's changed?

Whoever cuts off our source of income, we must cut off their path to survival!
Lin Shisan, a member of the military officer corps, stepped forward: "Your Majesty, I have something to report."

The Longqing Emperor glanced at Feng Bao. Feng Bao called out loudly, "Bring it here!"

Lin Shisan loudly proclaimed, "Yesterday, I received a secret report from an undercover agent that Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan are corrupt, accepting bribes, and acting lawlessly."

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard has the duty to monitor any illegal activities by officials. Therefore, I led my comrades from the Northern Garrison overnight to raid the ancestral homes of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan!"

These words caused an uproar throughout the court!

Xu Jie felt a surge of smug satisfaction: There's an old Chinese saying, "Those who understand the times are heroes." Lin Shisan, as expected of someone famously shrewd and worldly-wise during Emperor Shizong's reign, seems to have mastered this principle!
He ransacked the ancestral home of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan with lightning speed, clearly a gesture of loyalty to me.

What a remarkable Lin Shisan! He's truly a fascinating person.

Upon seeing this, Xu Jie's henchmen all stepped forward and praised Lin Shisan highly.

Ouyang Yijing said, "Commander Lin is decisive and hates evil. He used the privileges of the Northern Garrison to promptly confiscate the ancestral homes of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan. He is truly dedicated to his duties."

Censor Xin Zixiu said, "Commander Lin handled the case decisively. He has truly set an example for our three judicial departments."

Zhan Yangbi said, "During Emperor Shizong's reign, Commander Lin was highly valued by the emperor for his shrewdness and competence. He was truly a sharp sword that Emperor Shizong left to the emperor!"

Lin Shisan chuckled inwardly: Don't be so quick to praise me, you'll all hate me to the core in a moment!

Lin Shisan said, "Your Majesty, after confiscating my property, I feel deeply guilty."

The Longqing Emperor spoke: "Oh? What makes you say that?"

Lin Shisan said, "Xu Zemin's ancestral home and property, valued at a total of 230 taels of silver. Xu Fuyuan's ancestral home and property, valued at a total of 180 taels of silver."

"This amount of silver is not even enough to cover the expenses of a banquet for some local officials. Yet it is the money they have accumulated over many years of service as officials."

"These two are simply first-rate honest officials!"

"What the undercover agents said and what the officials reported are all untrue!"

These words were like a thunderbolt from the blue! The Xu faction officials were all dumbfounded!

Emperor Longqing smiled knowingly: "Oh? In that case, I almost wronged my two ministers, Xu and Xu."

Zhan Yangbi shouted, "Your Majesty, Lin Shisan is a treacherous minister! He is colluding with Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan!"

Qi Kang, a member of the Gao faction, immediately stepped forward: "Imperial Censor Zhan, didn't you just praise Lin Shisan as a sharp sword left to the Emperor by Emperor Shizong?"

"How could you change your tune so quickly?"

Zhan Yangbi was speechless: "This, this..."

Yu Shenxing, a newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), a probationary official in the Hanlin Academy, and a student of Zhang Juzheng, stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, whether an official is honest or corrupt, confiscating his property is an excellent way to distinguish between honest and corrupt officials."

"I have heard that the Embroidered Uniform Guard is extremely skilled at confiscating property. Chang Feng, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard during the reigns of Emperor Xiaozong and Emperor Wuzong, was known for his expertise in this field. His disciples and descendants now all serve in the Northern Division, specializing in confiscating property."

"The Northern Division will surely confiscate every last penny from the ancestral homes of Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan!"

"Therefore, the amount of wealth reported by the Embroidered Uniform Guard for Xu and Xu's family is sufficient proof of their incorruptibility!"

A group of Gao Gong's cronies stepped forward and echoed, "Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan are honest officials!"

"Since they are honest officials, their proposal to open up the seas and conduct customs should be subject to public discussion!"

"Your Majesty, opening the sea to the sea is beneficial to the country and its people! I hereby reiterate the proposal made by Xu Zemin and Xu Fuyuan!"

Opening up customs and the sea is a matter of national policy. It is certainly not something that can be decided overnight.

During the morning court session, the pro-open faction and the conservative faction clashed again.

After the court session, Lin Shisan did not return to the Northern Garrison Command, but went to Black Mountain to see his uncle, Lü Fang, who was living in seclusion there.

Lu Fang looked quite old as she carried a watering can and watered a pot of flowers.

Lin Shisan was pruning the branches for him: "Uncle, although I helped Kaihai School today, I can't decide the overall situation."

Lu Fang chimed in, "Of course. Opening the sea and clearing the borders is a major undertaking, and there will be countless rounds of open and covert attacks, back and forth."

Lin Shisan said, "Uncle, I have an idea. Actually, some things are difficult to do, but also easy to do."

“Xu Jie’s farmland is located in Songjiang. My nephew should investigate and make the amount public. Even if Xu Jie were to serve as Grand Secretary for three hundred years, he probably wouldn’t have accumulated more than two hundred thousand acres of prime farmland.”

"As long as Xu Jie is brought down, opening the sea to the sea will be a natural outcome, won't it?"

(End of this chapter)