Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 125 The dispute between the two factories begins
Seeing Lu Wenzhao's badge, the smile on Madam Xue's face froze. "Nuanxiang Pavilion is a government-run brothel. How could it possibly harbor bandits?"

"You have no say in whether there are bandits or not." Lu Wenzhao was fearless because the Jiaofangsi was a department under the Ministry of Rites and not part of the internal official system. As for the external official offices, the Jinyiwei had never been afraid of them.

Lu Jianxing's words were even more blunt: "Do you think the Ministry of Rites will sue the Jinyiwei for an old prostitute like you?"

"My Lords, I regard Miaotong as my own flesh and blood." Madam Xue pretended to be pitiful, but just as she was about to play the family card, she was stopped by Lu Jianxing.

"Hmph. Flesh and blood? If that's the case, then brothels are in the business of shaving bones and removing flesh." Lu Jianxing took the package of silver from Shen Lian's hand and shook it in front of Madam Xue. "Why are you pretending? I didn't say I wouldn't give you the money."

"Sir, two hundred taels is not enough. This little money can't buy a prostitute anywhere, not to mention that Miaotong is the top performer of my Nuanxiang Pavilion who is being trained with great care."

"You were just talking about family, weren't you? Why are you talking about money now?" Lu Wenzhao picked up the 20-pound package with one hand and forced it into the madam's pocket. "This is part of the ransom my brother paid for Miss Miaotong. It's the deposit. He'll write you an IOU later, and the rest will be considered a loan from you."

Madam Xue understood that these Jinyiwei had been planning to buy prostitutes on credit from the beginning. "Sir, I've been in this business for 30 years and I've never heard of the rule of buying prostitutes on credit."

"You'll listen today." Lu Wenzhao held up three fingers. "I'll give you three options. First, we'll take you back and thoroughly clarify our suspicions. Second, we'll go to your house and investigate how much money you've embezzled from your years as a brothel owner, which should have been handed over to the Ministry of Rites. Third, do as I say and give my brother a favor." Lu Wenzhao offered Madam Xue three options, but he didn't give her a chance to refuse.

"Alright," Madam Xue resigned herself to her fate. "I won't charge Mr. Shen any interest on this 'loan,'" Madam Xue emphasized the word "loan." "But I have one condition."

"You say!" Shen Lian immediately responded.

"I promise Miaotong won't accept any customers, but don't take anyone away until you pay the full amount, okay?" Madam Xue pulled out a chair and leaned lazily against the back.

"Are you afraid that I will default on my debt?"

"Of course. Miaotong's ransom price has been reported to the Ministry of Rites. You can check it yourself. Apart from the minister, only the one in the Forbidden City can change it. If you take her away without paying enough, I will have to make up for the shortfall. How long will it take for my old ass to make up for the shortfall of more than 800 taels of silver?" Old Madam Xue seemed to be giving up.

"Okay! I agree. But once this document is signed, she's mine. If you let her sing again, or even go so far as to ask her to sell her body, I'll kill your entire family." Shen Lian leaned close to Madam Xue's ear and whispered, "I'm a bachelor with no parents and no scruples."

Shen Lian really frightened Madam Xue. She quickly said, "I have several prostitutes here every year. I don't need to play tricks on you! So let it be."

"Sign and seal!" Lu Wenzhao took out a document that he had prepared long ago and slapped it on the table in front of Madam Xue.

"Sir!" Shen Lian saw Lu Wenzhao sign his name in the guarantor column.

"We are brothers who have shared life and death together. How can I not trust you with such a small matter?" Lu Wenzhao had just finished speaking when Lu Jianxing took out a pen and signed his name crookedly behind the three words "Lu Wenzhao".

After signing, he did not forget to glare at the madam Xue, as if to say: The Jinyiwei are watching you!
In the Forbidden City, between Xihua Gate and Taiye Lake, in the back hall of the Western Affairs Office near Taiye Lake, Wang Chengen, the youngest fifth-rank eunuch in the entire internal official system, was reporting on his work to his immediate superior, the talented Mi Mengshang.

"Director Mi, according to your instructions, the External Audit Department has conducted a comprehensive investigation of the centurions and newly appointed thousand-householders selected by Cui Wensheng, the director of the East Factory. Here are the files of each official, please take a look, Director." Wang Chengen placed the file papers that had not yet been bound in a book in front of Mi Mengshang.

"Why are you standing there? Find a place to sit." Mi Mengshang always treated the young eunuch in front of her, whom she brought up personally, as her younger brother.

"When reporting, you have to stand up and answer. This is the rule of the Western Investigation Bureau." Wang Chengen answered in a serious tone.

"Where do you get so many rules to follow?" Mi Mengshang suddenly felt that a pathetic barrier had been erected between her and Wang Xiaodi. "Alright, now that your life has been restored, get out." Mi Mengshang snorted softly. She hated this barrier.

"You haven't seen it yet." Wang Chengen shook his head.

"I won't watch if you don't sit down." Mi Mengshang could only regain some of the liveliness that a girl of her age should have in front of these little eunuchs.

"Okay." Wang Chengen picked up a nearby stool and sat down obediently.

"So many people with the surname Cui? Eunuch Cui really knows how to squeeze people in wherever he can." Mi Mengshang finished reading quickly. "If he really wants to seize power, this is not the way to do it. If he really squeezed these people in, the Emperor's East Factory should be renamed Cui."

"I'll go back and write a rebuttal."

"Don't be so impatient. Think more before you do anything. If you can let the higher-ups make the decision, don't make it yourself. Otherwise, if the decision you make doesn't align with the emperor's will, there will be no room for maneuver." Mi Mengshang reminded.

"Haven't you already made up your mind?" Wang Cheng'en naturally assumed that the person in the entire Western Depot who best understood the emperor's intentions was the talented Mi in front of him. "The emperor must have told you what he meant."

"How would I know what the Emperor is thinking?" The Emperor hadn't summoned her in days, leaving Mi Mengshang feeling rather dejected and a bit emotional, as if something had been used and then discarded. "I'm asking you to deliver these files to Director Wei and let him make the decision. Then, no matter what happens, it won't be your business; it will just become a battle between the two Directors."

"I understand." The young Wang Chengen didn't understand all these twists and turns, he just nodded ignorantly.

"You know shit." Mi Mengshang stood up and walked over to Wang Chengen, rubbing his head hard. "It's not just this matter. You need to think twice about anything that has anything to do with the higher-ups. You have to shoulder the responsibilities you should, and avoid the ones you shouldn't."

"What should be borne and what should not be borne?" Wang Chengen looked up at Mi Mengshang.

"Think about it carefully." Mi Mengshang took the file back from the table and returned it to Wang Chengen. "Send it to the factory supervisor."

The side hall was only twenty steps away from the main hall, so Wang Chengen arrived there soon.

At this time, Wei Zhongxian was discussing the affairs of the Jinyiwei with Fu Yingxing.

"Did the operative sent out to spy come back with good news?" Wei Zhongxian smiled and waved to Wang Chengen, who was standing at the door, to come in while talking to Fu Yingxing.

"Superintendent?" Fu Yingxing glanced at Wang Cheng'en. "Wang Shaojian is young and promising. Like me, he's a servant serving the Emperor and a colleague of yours in the Western Factory. Is there anything you shouldn't say to him?" Wei Zhongxian said, his voice deliberately raised.

Wei Zhongxian had a thorough understanding. Supervising the East Factory and the Embroidered Uniform Guard was the West Factory's primary job, and there was nothing wrong with it. Rather than trying to cover it up, he might as well try to win over this seemingly young brat. If he could get him to act up and make a few mistakes, it would be easier to control him.

But what disappointed Wei Zhongxian was that Wang Chengen didn't show much expression. This kid was like a little idiot, sitting there motionless, as if thinking about something.

"To answer the factory supervisor, most of the senior Jinyiwei are on high alert." Fu Yingxing first outlined the difficulties and then the achievements. "But rumors are still circulating. Based on various sources, we can confirm that the Jinyiwei's commander, Tian Ergeng, is planning a major operation against the Donglin Party."

"Tian Ergeng?" Wei Zhongxian had a memory of this man. "Is he the one who gave me a thousand taels of silver in one go?"

The one thousand taels of silver was the "reward for integrity" returned to Wei Zhongxian by the Lijian Liancai Office. In other words, Tian Ergeng gave Wei Zhongxian ten thousand taels of silver.

"To answer the factory director, it's him." Fu Yingxing replied.

Wei Zhongxian thought for a moment and pressed the issue, "Who are they planning to target? Liu Yirong or Han Yu?"

Wei Zhongxian believed that the Jinyiwei's best entry point for attacking the Donglin Party was the recent false accusation. If they could find or fabricate sufficient evidence to prove that Yang, Feng, and Gu were not acting alone but were being orchestrated, they could start a new political movement within the cabinet.

As long as the Jinyiwei had dug a trap, then Fang Congzhe, the cabinet chief and leader of the Zhejiang Party, who claimed that "no one was instructing him" in the Huangji Hall, would definitely mobilize the anti-Donglin Party censors to add insult to injury. Otherwise, how could the details of the Huangji Hall court meeting be spread throughout Beijing on the second day of the winter month?

But Fu Yingxing shook his head and said, "It seems that the Jinyiwei did not send anyone to follow and monitor the two Grand Secretaries Liu and Han, but instead paid too much attention to the Grand Court Minister Zou Yuanbiao."

"How could it be Zou Yuanbiao?" Wei Zhongxian was a scheming man, but before he started the Western Factory rebellion, he was at most a mere eunuch serving under Li Xianshi, barely even a junior eunuch, with virtually no access to court affairs. Due to limited access to information and the recent rise of the rebellion, his understanding of the Donglin Party was limited. "Wasn't this man summoned to the capital to fill the vacancy after the Emperor ascended the throne?"

"I don't know the reason." Fu Yingxing, who rose to prominence thanks to Wei Zhongxian, knew less about the Donglin Party than his uncle.

"Send someone out of Beijing to investigate! I give you until the beginning of next spring to figure out what the Donglin Party is all about." Wei Zhongxian really didn't like this foggy feeling.

"I'm afraid it's too late." Fu Yingxing shrank his neck, but finally said with a brave face: "Tian Ergeng should have lit the fire before the change of the reign."

"He orders his orders, you investigate yours. I told you to send someone to keep an eye on things, but I didn't tell you to interfere in the affairs of the Jinyiwei and the Donglin Party." Wei Zhongxian frowned slightly. "And how could Tian Ergeng have single-handedly wiped out the Donglin Party? Your Majesty." He was about to say something to try to gauge the emperor's intentions when he immediately remembered that there was an "outsider" sitting here, and he abruptly cut the conversation short.

After a brief silence, Wei Zhongxian dismissed Fu Yingxing with a wave of his hand. "Continue to monitor. Don't worry about how the Jinyiwei plan to deal with the Donglin Party. We'll just collect evidence of their crimes. If we can find any evidence on the Donglin Party, we'll do so. If not, forget it." Wei Zhongxian was eager to snatch the job of cracking down on the Donglin Party, but he was certain that if he actually brought this up with the Emperor, he would only end up getting himself into trouble.

"I'll take my leave." Fu Yingxing bowed and took his leave.

"Come back!" Wei Zhongxian called out to Fu Yingxing. "Why don't you bow to Wang Shaojian?"

A Qian Hu was a fifth-rank official, and the title bestowed upon the Western Factory's Chief of External Inspection by the Emperor was also fifth-rank. According to the unspoken rule that inner officials were superior to outer officials, Wang Chengen was clearly Fu Yingxing's superior. However, Fu Yingxing didn't want to perform the dignified ritual of humiliation for a child.

"I'll take my leave." Under Wei Zhongxian's intimidation, Fu Yingxing overcame his psychological discomfort and bowed.

"Captain Fu, you're too polite." Wang Chengen stood up and returned the greeting. This made Fu Yingxing feel much better.

As soon as Fu Yingxing left the hall, Wei Zhongxian smiled broadly, looking like a kind and approachable old grandfather.

"What does Wang Shaojian want to talk to me about?" Wei Zhongxian asked with a smile.

"To answer your question, sir. The East Factory was rebuilt and personnel were frequently transferred. These are the centurions and thousand-householders selected by Cui Dongchang." Wang Chengen talked about the matter at hand and did not mention Mi Mengshang.

Wei Zhongxian picked up the file and asked as he looked at it, "Director Mi should have seen it too, right?"

"How did you know?" Wang Chengen was puzzled.

"Wang Shaojian and I are classmates and good friends in the Inner Academy." Wei Zhongxian completely ignored the fact that there was an age difference of nearly 40 years between the two of them and tried to establish a relationship with a straight face.

"Ah?" Wang Chengen didn't know what Director Wei was up to.

"I've been classmates with Wang Shaojian for many years, and I know him to be the most disciplined and well-behaved student in the entire Inner Academy." Wei Zhongxian's tone was like coaxing a child. "How could Wang Shaojian disregard the rules of the Western Depot and directly show me the results of his investigation, bypassing Director Mi?"

"Thank you for your kind words, Director." Wang Chengen didn't buy it and remained serious, acting like a little adult.

Wei Zhongxian sighed in his heart: This kid is really stupid, I hate old children.

After reviewing the file, Wei Zhongxian didn't comment directly on the contents. Instead, he praised the paper itself: "This single column and line is beautifully arranged. Name, place of origin, parents, teachers, achievements, and classmates are all clearly visible. Wang Shaojian is indeed a young talent."

"The factory supervisor has misunderstood. This is just like the new account books. They were all prepared according to the imperial format and then printed and sent directly by the factory." Wang Chengen quickly waved his hand and said, "How dare I take credit for what I have done?"

Wei Zhongxian's goal had been achieved. He knew, of course, that these bizarre yet inexplicably useful items were essentially the work of the Emperor. He simply wanted to pass on his praises to the Southern Study through different channels and through different people. "Our Emperor is blessed with divine wisdom, capable of creating such a concise and practical case file," Wei Zhongxian said for a long time before returning to the topic.
“What does the Audit Bureau recommend in this regard?”

Wang Cheng'en had clearly taken Mi Mengshang's words to heart. He stuck to the facts, describing the situation without offering opinions. "Look, the changes in the centurions haven't been significant, but two of the three permanent thousand-householders are surnamed Cui. While the chief flag officer of the direct guard, bestowed with the title of thousand-householder, isn't surnamed Cui, he's the nephew of Director Cui. In other words, of the four thousand-householders, three are the Director's personal servants."

"Interesting," Wei Zhongxian scoffed. "He really hasn't been whipped enough."

(End of this chapter)