Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 250: Check Jizhen First
"Ji Hui. Why do you ask that?" Ye Xianggao leaned back wearily in the second-in-command chair of the cabinet. He let out a long, tired breath. After standing all day, his old legs were almost numb.

"Because I think that if the military budget cuts are just to prevent Cui Wensheng from taking advantage of the situation and proposing to send eunuchs to supervise the border towns, then that's putting the cart before the horse," Liu Yirong said bluntly. He also didn't use a nickname for Cui Wensheng's position.

"Putting the cart before the horse?" Ye Xianggao's pupils shrank slightly, and there was a fleeting hint of annoyance between his eyebrows.

"Excessive military spending is only a symptom of the border towns' problems. Focusing solely on this superficial issue is merely treating the symptoms, not the root cause. If we cut military spending simply because Bushitu and Huduntu are submissive, what happens if they become disobedient? Regardless of Cui Wensheng's recent proposal to send military supervisors to the border towns, even if he did, dispatching censors to investigate the persistently high military expenditures would itself be part of the solution." Liu Yirong sat upright and laid out his views. "The cabinet's role isn't to prevent the dispatch of eunuchs as military supervisors, but to find a way to select suitable talents for the emperor and the country."

"Ye Cifu didn't say he didn't care. Disarmament and spending cuts aren't in conflict with rectifying the border towns." Shi Jikai, noticing the tension, stepped in to smooth things over. "The question now is who to send, and where."

"The three governors-general of the nine frontiers are being filled." Shen, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly interrupted, startling everyone for a moment. Throughout the entire imperial meeting, Shen hadn't said a single word. Aside from an early morning visit to the other cabinet members and six ministers, he'd been practically silent all day, practically a background figure. "If the cabinet sends someone else, wouldn't that mean they'll have to be replaced? That's probably not a good idea."

Currently, there are four governors-general responsible for military affairs: the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, the Governor-General of the Three Borders of Shaanxi, the Governor-General of Xuanda and Shanxi, and the Governor-General of Ji and Liao. Aside from the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, the other three governors-general are all located in the Nine Borders.

"What's wrong with that? We can't let them check themselves, right?" Han Yu immediately asked back.

"Since Lord Han has said so, let me raise one." Shen curled his lips and climbed up the ladder. "After Liaozhen, Jizhen has the largest military expenditure, right? I think Wen Qiu, the governor of Ji and Liao, is to blame. Lord Liu, what do you think?"

Liu Yirong didn't expect Shen to call his name. So he subconsciously asked, "Why are you asking me?"

Shen glanced around, his gaze lingering on Fang Congzhe for a moment before finally settling on Liu Yirong's face. He smiled softly and said, "The current Ji-Liao Governor, Wen Qiu, seems to be a contemporary of Liu Ge Lao."

Liu Yirong's face suddenly turned cold. "What do you mean?"

"It's nothing, I'm just stating a fact." Shen leaned back in his chair softly.

"Then let me state a fact! You, Lord Shen, and I are of the same age!" Han Yu got angry all of a sudden.

Shi Jikai shrank back awkwardly. He, Shen, and Han Yu were all Jinshi (Jinshi) in the Renchen year of the Wanli reign. Furthermore, Shi Jikai was the highest ranked of the three, having finished second in the first class of the Renchen year, or second place.

Just as Shi Jikai was about to laugh it off and play peacemaker, Shen spoke up again. "Lord Han and I have a close relationship, just like a gentleman." Shen's smile remained undimmed. "But I heard that Lord Liu and Wen Youtang have a good relationship?"

After being hit by Shen Lai a few times, Liu Yirong was already furious. "I have a good relationship with Sun Jingwen! You might as well just impeach me!"

"Ming Zhen!" Fang Congzhe called out loudly.

"Yes, Prime Minister." As Shen retreated, he did not forget to add: "I am just discussing the matter at hand. Lord Liu, please don't take it to heart."

"Okay. Let's discuss the matter at hand, right? Then let's discuss it." Liu Yirong suddenly stood up, and Congzhe bowed. "Prime Minister, if the Emperor asks for advice on rectifying the border towns, I suggest starting with Jizhen!"

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In the post system, the fastest courier, covering 300 miles per day and night, was Lu Jianxing's. This was because courier traveled by foot, while Lu Jianxing rode at top speed, completely disregarding the fact that his horse would lose weight from galloping. Upon arriving at the post station, regardless of the time, he would wake up the postmaster and exchange his badge as a Jinyiwei for a horse, without stopping for a single moment.

However, upon arriving in Beijing at 1:15 PM the next day, Lu Jianxing still obediently abandoned his horse and walked, trotting towards the Command Headquarters. No matter how serious the Tianjin incident was, it was still a local matter. If he offended an imperial censor over such a minor matter, he would be fined and accused of violating the rules of horse racing, and there would be no place for him to seek justice.

Lu Jianxing arrived at the Jinyiwei Commandery, breathless. Although he had not changed out of his official uniform when leaving Tianjin and had ridden directly to Beijing, the captains guarding the Commandery gates usually didn't recognize official uniforms, only faces and waist badges, so they stopped him. "Stop, what are you doing?"

"From the East Office." Lu Jianxing showed his badge.

"It's General Lu," the lieutenant said, recognizing the words on the badge. "Why are you so disheveled and covered in mud?"

"I just came back from another place and had something urgent to do." Lu Jianxing smiled at the captain who asked the question and answered casually.

"You go ahead." The captain asked casually, and then stepped aside after checking.

Although Lu Jianxing rarely visited the Commanding General's Office, he knew the way to the Experience Office. He made his way to the Experience Office's clerk's office, knocked, and opened the door. He found no one sitting behind the main desk. So, Lu Jianxing approached a young official wearing a green robe with a seahorse patch and asked, "Excuse me for taking the time, where is Experience Luo?"

"Who are you?" The young ninth-rank military officer raised his head, still holding the pen in his hand, a look of displeasure on his face. "Can't you see I'm working? I've been so busy these past few days, I'm exhausted."

Under the Lishisi, there were six Lingshi and seventeen Dianli, all of whom were ninth-rank officials, usually selected from the civil service examinations who had failed to pass the imperial examinations. They were responsible for handling the general affairs of the Jinyiwei headquarters, such as the receipt and issuance of documents, the transcription of archives, and the classification and sealing of archives. If they passed the imperial examinations while in office, they would generally be assigned by the Ministry of Personnel to the Jinyiwei system to continue their civil service duties. This was not uncommon. Shen Qingxia, a Lishisi official who was executed by Yan Song during Lu Bing's tenure, was a civil service Jinshi from the regular imperial examinations.

"I don't mean to disturb you." Lu Wenzhao took out the badge from his arms and wanted to put it on the young clerk's desk, but he could hardly find an empty space, so he had to hold it up.

The clerk was a bit nearsighted and had to lean over the table to write, so he couldn't see clearly what was written on the badge. But his little temper finally dissipated. "Experience Luo went out for something." The clerk pulled out a piece of white paper and prepared to make a memo. "If you have anything, tell me first. When he comes back, I'll pass it on for you. Don't worry, I have a good memory." "This matter is confidential and urgent. I can only show it to Experience Luo." Lu Jianxing shook his head.

"That's all we can do. Who knows when he'll be back?" The Experience Department often received documents like this that needed to be personally handled and filed by Luo Yangxing. They didn't ask too many questions, as they were likely sent to Luo Zhangwei.

"Then can you tell me where he went?" Lu Jianxing smiled. "I can go find him myself."

"I'm not sure exactly what he's doing there. You might want to go to the East Office first." Lingshi put down his pen and stretched. "He's been promoted and is now also serving as the commander of the East Office. Maybe the Luo family will have another general."

"Commander of the East Office!?" Lu Jianxing widened his eyes, his face full of disbelief.

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Lu Jianxing quickly arrived at the East Office, but he didn't find Luo Yangxing there. After asking around, Lu Jianxing learned that Luo Yangxing had almost completely reassigned the entire East Office staff to investigate the case, retaining only secret agents with special missions. Luo Yangxing himself had also gone to the Rear Army Commandery to investigate the case.

The Rear Army Commander's Office and the Embroidered Uniform Guard Commander's Office were at opposite ends of the same street, but one was closer to the Right Gate of Chang'an, and the other to the Daming Gate. In other words, he had to turn back.

When Lu Jianxing arrived at the Rear Army Commandery, he was still disheveled and his official uniform was stained with dirt. But this time, he wasn't stopped for questioning because the gatekeeper had been replaced by a lieutenant from the East Office. The East Office was small, with few officers, and everyone knew each other. The lieutenant, seeing his face, let him in without questioning.

Although the Five Military Commandery's floor space varied, the structure of the headquarters remained essentially the same. Lu Jianxing walked around the screen wall and arrived at the main entrance. He saw a sea of ​​bright red, representing high-ranking military honors.

Sitting in the center of the main hall was, of course, Duke Ying, Junior Tutor, and Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, Zhang Weixian. He sat in his seat with a sullen expression, clearly unhappy.

In addition to Duke Yingguo Zhang Weixian, those sitting in the hall included Marquis Gongshun Wu Weiying, Marquis Wuqing Li Mingcheng, Earl Huairou Shi Zhuangyou and Earl Yongning Wang Tianrui.

Wu Weiying, Marquis Gongshun, is a child, fifteen years old this year. He has Mongolian ancestry, which can be traced back to Wu Yuncheng, Duke of Bing, who was posthumously awarded the title during the reign of Emperor Chengzu.

Li Mingcheng, Marquis of Wuqing, was the grandson of Li Wei, the first Marquis of Wuqing. His father, Li Wenquan, the second Marquis of Wuqing, died in the 36th year of the Wanli reign. Li Mingcheng inherited the title of Earl in the 37th year of the Wanli reign and was promoted to Marquis eight years later. In other words, his Earldom was hereditary, but the Marquisate lacked a hereditary certificate.

Shi Zhuangyou, the Earl of Huairou, was a descendant of Shi Ju, a Seljuq Turk. Shi Ju had defended Liaodong and, during the Battle of Beijing, was ordered to lead troops westward to provide support. After Emperor Yingzong's restoration, Shi Ju was granted the title of Earl of Huairou, a title passed down to the ninth generation today.

As for Wang Tianrui, the Earl of Yongning, he was the nephew of the current emperor's biological mother, Empress Dowager Xiaojing, and in other words, his cousin. If the imperial relatives most hostile to the current emperor were the Imperial Concubine Zheng's family, then the Empress Dowager Wang's family was the closest to the current emperor. When the emperor launched a political reckoning against the Zheng family with Cui Wensheng's impeachment, Wang Tianrui wanted to join in and give them a hard time. However, events unfolded too quickly, and by the time he realized what was happening and had the power to do so, Cui Wensheng himself was already imprisoned.

Including Zhang Weixian, these nobles were nominally in charge of the Jingzhuwei, Beizhili, Daningdusi, Wanquandusi, Shanxidusi and Shanxixingdusi, although these nobles may have never been to their own "territory" in their lives.

In addition to these nobles and relatives, there are also many non-hereditary military officers in the Rear Army Governor's Office who hold the titles of Governor-General and Governor-General's Assistant.

Luo Yangxing followed the tone set by Luo Sigong completely, showing no mercy at all. He directly ordered the men left by Lu Wenzhao to seal off the rear army governor's office. He then dismissed the guards, sealed the treasury, and checked the records. He also explicitly arranged for strict surveillance for every registered senior military officer. Whether leaving or returning to the court, they were escorted by the Jinyiwei.

Luo Sigong and Wang Chengen acted as if they were not afraid of offending anyone, which really intimidated these nobles who usually looked down on everyone.

Everyone present had a grim expression on their faces, except for Wang Tianrui, whose expression and posture seemed a bit too relaxed. He looked like he was watching a show, almost laughing.

But Wang Tianrui's composure wasn't due to his status as the emperor's cousin. He felt so confident because his title of Earl of Yongning was newly bestowed upon the Empress Dowager last year, and he had only been at the Rear Army Commandery a few days. No matter how hard the Imperial Guards investigated, they wouldn't be able to trace him.

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Lu Jianxing's arrival didn't cause much of a stir; few even glanced his way. Only a few low-ranking Jinyi officers, who were also from the East Office's Hundred Households Unit, noticed him. Lu Jianxing didn't approach them to engage in conversation, responding to their curiosity. Instead, he wandered around, searching for Luo Yangxing.

He and Luo Yangxing hadn't interacted much, having only met a few times without saying a word. But Lu Jianxing still had a deep impression of Luo Yangxing; after all, he was the eldest son of the head of the guard. He soon found Luo Yangxing in an open living room to the left of the main hall.

Lu Jianxing noticed a strange child wearing a bright red cotton-padded jacket sitting next to Luo Yangxing. He didn't pay much attention to it, thinking it was just another noble family member who had lost their father or brother at a young age. He walked straight towards the two of them, but was stopped halfway by a burly man wearing the uniform of a seventh-rank military officer.

"Wait, who are you? What do you do?" The burly man stopped the man with his left hand and held the knife with his right hand.

The burly man's actions attracted the attention of Luo Yangxing and Wang Chengen. However, although Lu Jianxing knew Luo Yangxing, Luo Yangxing had no impression of Lu Jianxing's face, so he did not interrupt.

"Who are you?" Lu Jianxing asked cautiously. Although he didn't ask around in the East Office, it wasn't hard for him to guess why Luo Yangxing was investigating the rear residence.

"Hmph." The seventh-rank military officer laughed. He obviously had no intention of wasting time with Lu Jianxing. "If you don't have anything important to do, don't come over."

(End of this chapter)