Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 135: It is better to leave a way out for your children and grandchildren than to seek their happiness

"Serve tea to Prime Minister Fang." Luo Sigong knew that he could not continue practicing this skill, so he simply found a chair nearby.

Fang Congzhe also wanted to chat with Luo Sigong more, so he sat down side by side with Luo Sigong across the small wooden coffee table.

Luo Sigong had been practicing for the better part of an hour, and his energy and blood were surging, not as steady as usual. So before the tea was even served, he spoke, "Prime Minister Fang. I still don't quite understand why you came to me."

Luo Sigong was not confused by his practice and had forgotten what Fang Congzhe had just said. Instead, he could not understand why Fang Congzhe could stop the Jinyiwei from expanding the scope of the Donglin Party's involvement.

"I can only come to you." Fang Congzhe was dressed in plain clothes and sat upright. He looked quite like an immortal.

Luo Sigong was very dissatisfied with Fang Congzhe's vague answer. He wanted Fang Congzhe to explain the reason for his visit more clearly, but Luo Sigong was afraid of making mistakes and did not want to ask directly, so he just remained silent instead of asking.

However, his silence did not elicit any further explanation from Fang Congzhe.

The Luo family's servants were quick and efficient, and in a matter of moments, a tray containing two cups of tea was brought over. After the cups were placed on the coffee table between them, Fang Congzhe first lifted the lid and sniffed the tea, then blew on it before finally taking a sip, just the right amount. "Great tea! This is truly rich and fragrant. I rarely interact with Chief Guard Luo, but Lord Luo still treated me to such fine tea. I'm truly unworthy of it."

Fang Congzhe's words had another hidden meaning. He felt unworthy because he had no intention of inviting Luo Sigong to the Fang residence to return the cup of tea.

"The distance between our two homes is far. The Prime Minister is willing to condescend to pay a private visit to my humble home, which is already a great honor for me." Luo Sigong added a subtle emphasis on the four words "condescend to pay a private visit".

The two men, though distinguished by their civil and military backgrounds, were of comparable rank, both serving as heads of high-ranking government offices. A visit to the Luo family wasn't considered condescension. But Fang Congzhe's absence from official uniform, dressed only in plain, casual clothing, suggested a lowering of status. Luo Sigong was hoping to use this as a provocation, to get Fang Congzhe to reveal his true purpose.

"Haha. The Fang family's ancestors were members of the Imperial Guard who followed Emperor Chengzu north. If I had failed the civil service exam thirty years ago, I might be a veteran officer under Luo Zhangwei by now." Fang Congzhe chuckled twice. He used his status as an Imperial Guard member to show that he didn't mind "condescending."

"If Lord Fang joined the Imperial Guard, I'm afraid it wouldn't be my turn to manage it," Luo Sigong said flatteringly, then changed the subject. "The Imperial Guard is not like the Cabinet. If I want to drink some good tea in the government office, I have to bring it myself. After all, the tea provided by the palace to the Cabinet is much better than what I have, right?"

"In the past, we always drank some old tea." Fang Congzhe felt that the time was almost right, so he began to discuss things over tea.

"Prime Minister, please don't be so modest. Even if it is not as good as the imperial Huangjianerlong tea, the palace would not serve old tea to the cabinet." Luo Sigong smiled and continued the conversation tactfully.

"Of course the tea served is good tea, but it will become stale if left for too long." Fang Congzhe picked up the teacup and drank most of it in one gulp.

"You tactless fellow, refill the Prime Minister's water." Luo Sigong waved to the servant. The servant quickly came over with a kettle of boiling water. Only then did Luo Sigong speak: "Although the Prime Minister didn't sit in the main hall, he always drank alone. Now that five more have been added, I'm afraid there will be times when the hot water can't be refilled in time."

"Just use separate stoves to boil water. The well is right next to us. If we light a few more stoves, everyone will have water to drink. At least we won't drink up all the water in the well." Fang Congzhe smiled and nodded to the servant who added water, expressing his gratitude.

Luo Sigong understood: Fang Congzhe didn't mind having more cabinet members.

However, Luo Sigong felt this wasn't enough, so he continued to discuss the tea. "Well water is never empty. But the teapot is so small, you're reaching in." Luo Sigong blew on the water to warm it, brushing a few floating leaves away from his lips. "Won't this teapot empty too quickly?"

"No matter how fast you finish the tea, it's not my job to replenish it. Just tell the Imperial Household Department and they'll send someone to replenish it." Fang Congzhe immediately grasped the hidden meaning behind Luo Sigong's words and responded cleverly, "If you drink alone, a can of tea can last from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. Even the best tea will become indistinguishable from bad tea after aging."

"So that's how it is." Luo Sigong finally understood the meaning of "old tea".

"In September of the 41st year of the Wanli reign, Ye Xianggao and I were both recommended by Wu Daonan to join the cabinet. After I joined, Ye Xianggao ceased to act as its deputy, intent on leaving. Wu Daonan, citing his fear of not being summoned by the emperor, insisted on not joining the cabinet. Since then, I have been the sole minister for seven years, and I've been drinking stale tea for seven years. Stale tea is bitter, like drinking hot wax." Fang Congzhe considered and clarified his words. "Although we boil water in separate furnaces now, the tea is constantly fresh. And with more people, I have colleagues in the cabinet who can discuss matters and share my worries, so I don't feel so lonely sitting here."

"We don't need six people, do we?" Luo Sigong nodded and asked more directly, "Wouldn't it be better to keep some who are useful and obedient?"

"So, the Jinyiwei originally planned to set the fire to the cabinet?" Fang Congzhe immediately caught Luo Sigong's omission.

Luo Sigong clenched his fists, then smiled and said, "The Jinyiwei are just following the will of heaven. And Prime Minister Fang, this is not a bad thing for you. Out of sight, out of mind is better than getting on bad terms with certain people in the cabinet."

"I still have some tolerance. I won't get too hung up on the younger generation." After many rounds of criticism, Fang Congzhe no longer felt the same sense of treading on thin ice. His style of conduct has become more like that of a prime minister, rather than the leader of a particular party.

"Minister Fang, if you share the tea with them, aren't you afraid they'll break your cup?" Luo Sigong looked at Fang Congzhe. "If the cup breaks, you won't even have any stale tea to drink."

"I may be old, but my hands are still steady." Fang Congzhe put down the teacup and covered it. "Even if the cabinet doesn't have a cup for me, I still have some at home."

"You're truly calm." Luo Sigong nodded, and Congzhe's admiration grew. "But your composure doesn't convince me. The Jinyiwei act in accordance with the will of heaven. If Lord Fang has nothing else to say, please return."

"This is not something that cannot be handled calmly. Indiscriminately implicating others will only stir up factional disputes and disrupt the government!" Fang Congzhe narrowed his eyes slightly, and his words became more harsh.

"." Luo Sigong did not respond. But his averted gaze and slightly raised lips seemed to say: So what?

The Imperial Guard was not a government agency but a secret service, and whether the imperial court was in chaos or not had nothing to do with it. In other words, chaos itself was the ladder for the Imperial Guard to seize power and rise.

Seeing that he couldn't convince Luo Sigong with this, Fang Congzhe asked, "Are the Jinyiwei really acting in accordance with God's will?"

"The Donglin Party is plotting to disrupt the government and forcing the emperor to abdicate. We are the emperor's personal guards, so naturally we must serve the king and protect him." Luo Sigong spoke righteously, but his brows were slightly furrowed.

"To stop here is to follow God's will. To implicate others is to dig one's own grave." Fang Congzhe looked at Luo Sigong's profile.

"What do you mean?" Luo Sigong thought of Xiong Tingbi and Yuan Yingtai for no apparent reason. Fang Congzhe and Luo Sigong looked at each other, but Fang Congzhe only said quietly, "The East Factory is a lesson for us."

Luo Sigong was visibly shaken, because he was one of the fifteen military heroes who accompanied the emperor to the Chengtian Gate Tower to watch the execution that day.

"Sun Ruyou was arrested under the leadership of General Luo, right?" Fang Congzhe continued to add.

"." Luo Sigong thought to himself: No problem, this person was specifically arrested by the emperor.

Even though Fang Congzhe didn't know the details, he could still see through Luo Sigong's thoughts. "I'm old. If I want to move up, I either have to retire or be posthumously honored." Fang Congzhe used himself as a metaphor for Luo Sigong. "Even if I fight the Donglin Party to the bitter end, what will I gain? I can't just give Shen the throne and then ask him to take care of my son."

"." Luo Sigong looked at Fang Congzhe with some panic in his eyes.

"It is better to leave a way out for your children and grandchildren than to seek happiness for them." Luo Sigong immediately returned to his normal expression, but this slight emotion was still caught by Fang Congzhe, who had been an official for half his life.

Luo Sigong felt a sense of being stripped naked, of having nowhere to hide. He had reached the limit of his official rank, and any further promotion would be nothing more than a title. Luo Sigong had allowed Tian Ergeng to attack the Donglin Party members, and even acquiesced in Tian Ergeng's plan to expand the scope of his actions, precisely to help him ascend to power. He had supported Tian Ergeng because he had always been sensible and willing to repay Luo Yangxing's kindness with credit.

But if the Jinyiwei also caused public outrage like the Dongchang, and were eventually caught by the Xichang, then, not only would they not be able to save their son, they would probably be dragged to the gate of Chengtian and beaten to death in public. Twenty-eight lives.

Luo Sigong stroked his sweat-stained forehead and began to think wildly: The Emperor ordered the Imperial Guard to arrest Fang Shihong in order to punish his other factions. Why did he want to punish other factions? The Emperor specifically instructed that Liaodong should not be involved, but there was nothing else outside of Liaodong that could not be involved. Fang Shihong.
Luo Sigong looked at Fang Congzhe, and in his mind, Fang Shihong and Luo Yangxing gradually overlapped: Will the emperor order the two factories to arrest my son as well in order to punish the Jinyiwei who had gone too far?

"Your Excellency," Luo Sigong took a deep breath. "The Donglin Party must be defeated. This is God's will."

Fang Congzhe glanced down, thought for a moment, and suddenly said, "Xu Zixian is a very good and talented person."

"What do you mean?" Luo Sigong didn't know why Fang Congzhe suddenly mentioned Xu Guangqi.

"Instead of promoting the only assistant minister to act as minister, we should transfer Xu Zixian to serve in the ministry." Fang Congzhe only hinted, not telling Luo Sigong about Sun Ruyou's public defiance of the emperor. "Luo, the guard. Confirming the charges against those arrested today will be enough to appease the wrath of heaven. Stopping here is both a blessing and a prelude."

"Master Prime Minister, I would like to ask you something."

Fang Congzhe secretly breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that Luo Sigong had been persuaded. "Captain Luo, please feel free to ask."

"Why did you come to me?" Luo Sigong asked.

"It's still the same question as before." Fang Congzhe chuckled.

"No, I completely understand your intentions." Luo Sigong shook his head. "You are highly respected and trusted by the Emperor. You only need to submit a memorial to dissuade me from this. There's no need to risk the charges of 'collusion with the Imperial Guards' and come here to persuade me. Even if the Imperial Guards do carry out this persecution, you can lead the cabinet to prevent the situation from escalating."

"I said it from the beginning. I had no choice but to come here." Once the words were out, Fang Congzhe stopped hiding and started to use other things to explain the matter. "Look, I'm wearing casual clothes, and there's no Prime Minister's lantern hanging on my carriage. I even asked the carriage to circle a few times when I came here. I didn't do this to avoid the Imperial Household Guards. You can't avoid them, because you'll definitely tell the Imperial Household Department about my visit. I did this just to keep it a secret from those subordinates who are sharpening their knives."

"Why?" Luo Sigong asked subconsciously.

"I couldn't speak for the Donglin Party, much less publicly support them. Even if I could only prevent the situation from escalating, the anti-Donglin Party coalition would immediately split, and I would be considered a 'traitor' to the Zhejiang Party. A split among the three parties, with internal attacks, would only lead to greater unrest. So, officially, I could only remain silent or even acquiesce," Fang Congzhe said frankly. "Fighting chaos with chaos is never a good idea."

"Besides, it's better to eliminate the hidden worries now than to try to fix them later." Fang Congzhe stood up and bowed slightly to Luo Sigong. "The tea is very good, thank you."

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister. It's this late, please stay and have a simple meal." Luo Sigong also stood up to return the greeting.

Fang Congzhe shook his head and said, "I'm only here for official business. Privately, it's better for the Jinyiwei and the cabinet to have less contact."

"Thank you, Prime Minister." Luo Sigong picked up the handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"It's just official business." Fang Congzhe declined again and left without looking back.

When the sound of horse hooves revolving came from outside the courtyard, Luo Sigong called out to the housekeeper: "Luo Qingwu."

"Master." Butler Luo Qingwu ran to Luo Sigong and waited for orders.

"Go to the West Office and convey my orders." Luo Sigong regained his composure.

The Jinyiwei's East and West Offices were established during the Chenghua period. The East Office investigated criminal cases, while the West Office apprehended thieves. From that point on, the authority to command the five military divisions (East, West, South, North, and Central) shifted from the Ministry of War to the Jinyiwei.

"Aren't you going to the Northern Pacification Office?" Luo Qingwu was his confidant, and many things were entrusted to him to handle.

"I'll go to Tian Ergeng's place myself tomorrow." Luo Sigong turned and waved to the servant. "Put away all my training equipment." He looked away and back at the butler. "Go to the West Office and have them contact the East City Military Department. Tell them to cancel their operation in Huanghuafang. Do not arrest Fang Shihong."

"Arresting Fang Shihong is an order from above." Luo Qingwu reminded cautiously.

"That's no longer necessary." Luo Sigong walked towards the study. "Today's events must be reported, and I want to use this to signal to the higher-ups that the Luo family won't become overly complacent, and the Imperial Guard won't follow in the footsteps of the Eastern Depot."

(End of this chapter)