Supreme Golden Palace

Chapter 17: Mei Han Lang

Within the imperial city, the three provinces, six ministries, and hundreds of government offices gathered. Within, the palaces were majestic, towers abounded, red-painted gates and embroidered houses stood tall, streets and alleys crisscrossed, and government offices were scattered side by side. Between the offices, armored soldiers, sharp warriors wielding halberds, and gatekeepers bearing swords formed a network of checkpoints and a strict security system.

After checking the documents and verifying his identity, Lu Shang walked slowly into the imperial city. When passing by various government offices, he could see teams of armored imperial guards patrolling. The armor of these imperial guards gleamed brightly in the sun, and the red tassels on their helmets were as fierce as flames, with a hint of blood.

After witnessing the Imperial Guards' impressive presence, Lü Shang paused to observe for a moment. It was said that the most important requirement for admission to the Imperial Guards was physical stature, followed by proficiency in archery and horsemanship, familiarity with battle formations, and expertise in combat. After observing for a moment, Lü Shang could only conclude that this was indeed the case.

The Imperial Guards he had seen all had regular features, distinct outlines, tall stature, and broad shoulders, a look that revealed their extraordinary courage and strength. Of course, these Imperial Guards were no mere figures; they marched in an orderly fashion, their steps measured, and their spirits soared.

Lu Shang only watched for a moment, and his eyes felt a slight sting. The sharpness of these imperial guards had reached the point where they could condense the real and the fake. They had tempered their spirits to a considerable degree. If they were in the army, they could at least defeat ten people.

The ten enemies here do not refer to ten strong civilians, but ten brave warriors who are armed with sharp weapons.

In the era of cold weapons, armor and no armor were two completely different concepts. Not only for ordinary people, but also for gods and demons, the difference between armor and no armor was completely different. The demons in Journey to the West often said "take my armor" before leaving the cave to fight the monkeys. This is the same principle.

At this, Lu Shang exclaimed: "What a powerful force in the world!"

Lü Shang had experience governing the State of Xu and naturally knew the price he had to pay to build such a powerful army. Even in the chaotic times of the Southern and Northern Dynasties, with wars between the Northern Sui, Southern Chen, and the Turks, forging such an iron army was no easy task.

Without the nourishment of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, it would be difficult to have such a sharp spirit. Perhaps because he was excited by the sight of prey, Lu Shang stood in the palace alley for a while longer. When a patrolling imperial guard noticed Lu Shang standing there for a long time and wanted to approach for questioning, he slowly walked towards the Secretariat.

In front of the Secretariat office, Lu Shang strolled up the stone steps. The imperial guards on duty at the door looked at Lu Shang. After seeing Lu Shang present his employment certificate, the imperial guards took a closer look, then indifferently pointed to the side door next to the main entrance of the Secretariat.

Lu Shang smiled and nodded, gently pushed open the side door, stepped over the threshold, and saw a quiet courtyard with rockery and strange rocks scattered around, contrasting with the ponds, flowers and trees. Walking along the brick path, he saw the official residence of the Secretariat.

Just as Lü Shang was crossing the courtyard and about to enter the official residence, a clerk was about to go out to the Secretariat on official business. Seeing that Lü Shang was unfamiliar, he approached and asked, "Who are you?"

Lü Shang replied, "I am a newly appointed secretary, and I have come here to take up my new position."

"I am Zhang Li, the Bookkeeper. I am honored to meet you, sir." This clerk had long been informed by his superior that a new secretary would be hired in the province. He also knew that this secretary was of noble birth and was a relative of the emperor, so after Lu Shang revealed his identity, the clerk immediately bowed and saluted.

Although the Secretariat is known as a noble government office, only a few people above the rank of Secretary Lang can truly be considered noble. Officials below the rank of Secretary Lang are just ordinary officials. In fact, because the Secretariat is too poor, its status is even lower than that of some bureaucrats in ministries and departments.

Zhang Li, the clerk, held a low-ranking, unranked position, so he naturally dared not neglect Lü Shang, a relative of the royal family. While a clerk in the Secretariat must have some connections, these connections were nothing compared to Lü Shang.

Facing Zhang Li's fawning face, Lu Shang raised his hand and said calmly, "No need to be so polite. Go and do your official duties. I still need to submit my official certificate to the officer and officially start my job."

Since Lu Shang had already spoken, Zhang Li naturally did not dare to say anything about leading Lu Shang's way. He could only bow his head and respond, "Then, I will take my leave first."

After sending away Dianshu Zhang Li, Lu Shang slowly walked into the official residence of the Ministry of Secretariat. Suddenly, he was greeted by the aroma of incense, like orchid and musk, elegant and long-lasting. Its fragrance was subtle, as if it could cleanse the mind and make people feel at peace.

He looked around the inner hall of the official residence and saw small stoves burning incense on both sides of the hall, with the fragrance wafting in the air. Several rows of desks were neatly arranged. The sunlight shone through the gauze on the windows, shining on the mountains of books and volumes. Dozens of clerks were writing furiously at their desks.

The purple-robed official who was supervising the other officials at the head of the inner hall said calmly, "Who are you? What business do you have in the Secretariat?"

Lu Shang took out his official certificate and walked to the purple-robed official's desk, put it down, and said, "I am summoned to meet you, my superior, the new secretary, Lu Shang."

Officials who could wear purple robes were at least of the fifth rank, but Lu Shang’s secretary was only of the seventh rank, so Lu Shang directly addressed him as his superior.

"Oh?"

The purple-robed official looked at Lü Shang with surprise. He looked him up and down, then said slowly, "Are you the Lü Shang, Lü Feixiong, who abandoned his family and went to Zhongnan? I am Wang Chong, the Secretary-General. I will be your superior from now on. I hope you will be humble and make achievements."

The Secretary-General, a fifth-rank official, served as deputy to the Secretary-General, the head of the Secretariat. He assisted the Secretary-General in handling provincial affairs and supervised four seventh-rank secretaries, twelve ninth-rank proofreaders, four ninth-rank scribes, and over a hundred clerks specializing in scribes and regular script. Wang Chong stood up and beckoned Lü Shang to follow him, saying, "Follow me. To begin your duties as a secretary, you must meet with the Secretary-General. Once you receive the seal of the Secretary-General, Lord Niu, you will be officially a secretary and registered in the Ministry of Personnel as an official."

"Secretary General, Niu Hong!" Lu Shang's heart moved, and he immediately followed Wang Chong. The Secretary General of the Secretariat was indeed a noble among the nobles, holding the position of the third rank, half a level higher than Yang Su, the Chief Censor of the Censorate.

In the current imperial system, the first-rank three masters and three dukes were nominal positions, more in name than reality. Therefore, the second-rank Shangshu Ling was the de facto prime minister, second only to the emperor and above all others, holding the most power. In contrast, the third-rank Secretary General had already entered the decision-making hierarchy.

Wang Chong led Lu Shang to the south. After walking for about a few dozen steps, they came to a square hall. When they entered the main hall, they saw that it was spacious, with bright windows and clean desks, without a speck of dust. In the center of the main hall, there were rows of desks. On the desks were a pen holder and a celadon Biyong inkstone.

In the north corner of the hall, there are several tables and chairs, all made of red sandalwood, simple and solemn. Next to them stands a mica stone screen with a painting of frosty plum blossoms on it. An old man in a red robe sits under the screen, leisurely brewing tea and reading a rare miscellaneous notebook in his hand.

Wang Chong bowed to the red-robed old man and said solemnly, "Sir, the newly appointed secretary, Lü Shang, has come to report for duty."

Niu Hong took a sip of the warm tea, glanced at Lu Shang, and said, "Are you from the Duke of Qi's family here to start work right now? I remember the province gave us a three-day deadline, and it's only been a short while. You're young, after all, and you can't afford to sit idle for even a moment."

"Wang Chong, go to the bookshelf and take out the secretary's seal and give it to him. Then arrange an office for Lu Shang, prepare writing brushes, inkstone, and paper, and find a secretary working in the yamen. Talk to Lu Shang about the official business that needs to be handled by the secretary."

Wang Chong said: "Yes,"

Niu Hong said calmly: "Go down."

Although he met Lu Shang, Niu Hong, the Secretary General, obviously did not intend to pay attention to Lu Shang, the playboy. Lu Shang's abandonment of his home and running away gave Niu Hong a very bad first impression of Lu Shang, so he just gave them a few simple instructions and wanted to send the two away.

Even though Lü Shang was backed by the Duke of Qi and was a relative of the emperor, Niu Hong remained indifferent to him. His official position was already extremely noble, and when he first became the Secretary General, he was granted the title of Duke of Qizhang by Yang Jian, which shows that Yang Jian valued him.

Yang Jian later commented on Niu Hong, saying that he was an official with excellent academic performance, had a simple and elegant style, a broad mind, and absorbed the gains and losses of hundreds of kings to create the rules and regulations of his generation. This was already a very high evaluation of a minister.

"Yes," Wang Chong and Lu Shang bowed and left the hall together.

After leaving the square hall, Wang Chong looked at Lu Shang thoughtfully and said, "Lu Lantai, I think you heard what Lord Niu just said."

Since the Jin Dynasty, Secretary Lang has also been called Lan Tai Lang. Although this title has not been recognized by the court, many people in the court and the public call Secretary Lang Lan Tai Lang, so Lu Shang can now also be called Lu Lan Tai.

Lu Shang nodded and said, "I heard everything."

Wang Chong thought for a moment and said slowly, "Well, that's good. I will hand over the Ding Department's collection of books to you for management. You will work in the Ding Department's office in the future. Lord Niu also asked me to find you a secretary in the yamen to familiarize you with official duties. Let me think about who is in the yamen."

After a moment, he made a decision. Wang Chong turned to the office where the books were stored and called out, "Han Jin, Jinxiu Lang."

A young man in a green robe walked out of the office with a sign that read "Book Collection of Section B." He spread his hands and said, "Sir Wang, what's the matter?"

"What a handsome man!"

This was Lu Shang's first reaction when he saw the green-robed young man Han Jin. He had an elegant appearance, a handsome demeanor, beautiful eyebrows like paintings, eyes like bright stars, skin whiter than snow, and hair as black as ink. When the breeze blew, a few strands of black hair fluttered, adding a bit of unrestrainedness.

In his past lives, even in the vast wilderness and seas, Lü Shang had never seen such a handsome man. He had only heard of Pan An and Song Yu, whom he scoffed at. So-called male beauty, no matter how beautiful it was, could it ever compare to the beauty of a beautiful woman?

It was not until today that Lu Shang saw the real handsome man and realized his beauty. It was so breathtaking that even a man would be moved by him.

Wang Chong smiled and introduced Han Jin's family background to Lu Shang, saying, "Secretary Han Jin is a descendant of Han Tuidang, Marquis of Gonggao in the Former Han Dynasty. His great-grandfather was Han Qi, Marquis of Wu'an and General Longxiang of the Northern Wei Dynasty. His great-great-grandfather was Han Mao, Prince of Anding, General Zhengnan, and Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince of the Northern Wei Dynasty. He also comes from a prominent family."

(End of this chapter)