Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 262 Lian Po is not old yet

"What's going on?" Luo Sigong sat back down, but compared to before, the ease and composure on his face had completely disappeared. "Tell me in detail." Luo Sigong closed his eyes, forcing himself to calm down and think.

"Here's what happened. You initially thought it was the Duke of Ying who leaked the secret, but..." Luo Yangxing pulled out a small stool and sat across from Luo Sigong. He detailed the entire investigation process from beginning to end, concluding, "I tried my best to persuade that little ancestor to return. After that, the Imperial Household Department came and asked me to cooperate in closing the case. I thought the matter was resolved, so I returned."

"Are you sure?" Luo Sigong noticed a key issue and asked, "was it really the Li family who placed the body there?"

"I'm not sure, but it's likely true. My undercover agents discovered that after curfew last night, a vehicle carrying something left the Li family's residence and headed towards Guangning Gate." Luo Yangxing added, "The agents I've planted near the nobles' residences are close associates of Lu Wenzhao. They're well aware of the impending marriage between the Lu and Luo families, so they probably wouldn't lie to me."

"Didn't the secret agent follow us?" Luo Sigong asked.

"No. There are too many nobles and relatives, and not enough manpower." Luo Yangxing paused and sighed, "Or rather, there aren't enough people I can trust. I'm too inexperienced to control the veterans in the East Office."

"It's not that you can't control it. It's that everyone thinks I'm going to step down." Luo Sigong didn't dwell on this matter any more, waving his hand and saying, "Go on."

"The secret agent didn't follow them, so we can't be sure there was a corpse in the car, but the next morning, Shen Caiyu's badge appeared. I don't think this is just a coincidence. There's no such coincidence in the world." Luo Yangxing thought for a moment in silence, and finally said, "That's about it, nothing else."

In fact, Luo Yangxing immediately came up with this deduction when he received the news. This deduction was technically easy to verify. There was no need to go to the military headquarters to see the body. They could directly assemble the Jinyiwei to attack the Li Mansion and arrest Li Mingcheng for interrogation. But in Luo Yangxing's view, from the moment the case reached the Li family, it was no longer a technical issue, but a political issue. And political issues are never about facts, but about taking sides. The Jinyiwei can only have one position, and that is to stand with the emperor. Making the emperor lose face is to make themselves uncomfortable.

"Have you suppressed the news?" Luo Sigong kept stroking the carefully trimmed beard on his chin. He stroked harder and harder, even pulling out two white hairs.

"Of course, I've already informed them." Luo Yangxing confirmed, "Apart from you, me, and the secret agent sent to the Li family, no one else knows about this."

"You did the right thing. In any case, this news should be suppressed." Luo Sigong nodded slightly and then asked, "What is the name of the secret agent who follows the Li family?"

"Shen Lian." Luo Yangxing immediately remembered the thin young man. "He was also involved in the Donglin Party case. His name was on the promotion list personally approved by the Emperor."

"Feed him with silver." Luo Sigong ordered: "This is a big deal. Lu Wenzhao's connections may not be able to hold up." Luo Sigong's experience told him that when small people face big things, they will either shrink like monkeys or speculate like madmen.

"Okay." Luo Yangxing suddenly remembered something and said, "I heard that Shen Lian has a young prostitute in Huanghuafang. How about buying her and giving her to him?"

"That's it." Luo Sigong immediately agreed. "Giving a woman is better than giving money. Go buy it yourself and then send it directly to his home."

"Got it. I'll do it tomorrow." Luo Yangxing picked up Zhao Yanqing's impeachment from the table and, suppressing his anger, read it again. "Do you think this impeachment is related to the Li family's affairs?"

"It shouldn't be related." Luo Sigong said, "I checked. This censor was appointed to the Censorate last year. He is a member of the Donglin Party. The sour scoundrels of the Donglin Party and the nobles and relatives are not on the same page. It's impossible for them to serve as pawns for the Li family."

"But this timing is too coincidental." Luo Yangxing said.

"It's not surprising that it's a coincidence. It's just an impeachment, not important. Just make a defense according to the emperor's wishes!" Luo Sigong suddenly opened his eyes. He grabbed the written resignation, crumpled it into a ball, and threw it into the wastepaper basket beside him. Then he picked up the pen and wrote vigorously on the white paper. "If this censor really has some dealings with the Li family, we will find out sooner or later. The censor colluded with the nobles to attack the Jinyiwei. If this matter is exposed, his more than ten years of study will be in vain! We don't even need to speak out. Yang Lian, who recommended him, will definitely jump out and tear him apart."

Luo Yangxing stood up and picked up the resignation from the wastebasket. He walked over to the charcoal stove and threw it in to burn. For a moment, Luo Yangxing even felt that his father's eyes were more blazing than the flames. "So, how do you plan to defend yourself?"

"Zhao Yanqing's memorial of impeachment has two main points. One is accusing me of greed, debauchery, and the other is accusing me of old age and frailty. There's no need to argue about the greed, debauchery, and extravagance; just write it down vaguely. The Emperor has already seen the Luo family's secrets, so there's no way to argue about it. As long as the Emperor trusts me and uses me, 'greed, debauchery, and extravagance' are minor matters that won't bring me down. I only want to argue about the second point," Luo Sigong wrote rapidly. "Since Zhao Yanqing says I'm too old and frail to serve him, then I'm challenging him to a duel. If he wins, I'll resign."

Luo Sigong felt that the best way to deal with questions like "Lian Po is old, can he still eat?" was not to "eat a dou of rice, ten pounds of meat, wear armor and mount a horse to show that he was still useful," but to beat the person who asked the question. Since he couldn't win over the civil servants with words, he would just resort to swordplay.

Soon, a rather unrefined but forceful defense was completed. Luo Sigong dried it and handed it to him. "Copy it exactly as it is and send it to the Ministry of Internal Affairs tomorrow morning."

"Yes." Luo Yangxing took the brief and asked, "Will the case be closed tomorrow?"

Luo Yangxing thought his father would nod directly. But Luo Sigong stared at him and said firmly, rather excitedly, "No!"

"Not closing the case?" Luo Yangxing exclaimed, "The Imperial Household Department has already informed us!"

"Sometimes the Imperial Household Department's opinion is not the same as the Emperor's opinion." Luo Sigong supported his head, his eyes flickering.

"How do you know the Imperial Household Department's intentions aren't the Emperor's?" Luo Yangxing asked. "Calculating the time, how come the matter has already been reported?"

"I don't know." Luo Sigong looked like a gambler at the moment. "I guess."

"Even if you were to guess, you can't just guess blindly, right? That's Empress Dowager Li's nephew. Even the Emperor can't." At this point, Luo Yangxing paused. He leaned over the table, leaned closer to Luo Sigong, and whispered in a lowered voice, "Even the Emperor can't take action against the Li family over such a trivial matter. It would ruin his reputation."

"You're right. Empress Dowager Li has been kind to His Majesty, and His Majesty will never risk public criticism by rashly attacking the Li family." Luo Sigong said, almost emphasizing each word. "But not attacking the Li family doesn't mean His Majesty will continue to keep them in the harem."

"Why do you say that?" Luo Yangxing asked.

"What are we doing?" Luo Sigong asked back.

"To discuss something." Luo Yangxing didn't understand what was going on.

"What the hell are we discussing? The Imperial Guards are conducting a purge!" Luo Sigong instinctively reached out, but just as his palm was about to slap Luo Yangxing on the head, he suddenly stopped. "Think about it! The Imperial Guards are investigating the stolen goods, and the Imperial Guards are conducting a purge. What's next?"

"Noble relatives?" Luo Yangxing widened his eyes.

"Yes!" Luo Sigong nodded heavily. "There are only about a thousand redundant officials on the roster of the Jinyiwei in Beijing. But there are tens of thousands of military officers receiving salaries in Beijing. They are registered on the payroll of the Rear Army Commandery and eat the country's food. The court allocates hundreds of thousands of taels of silver every year to feed and drink them. But when the war comes, they are of no use at all. If I can think of it, do you think the emperor hasn't thought of it?"

"I should have thought about it." Luo Yangxing nodded thoughtfully.

Luo Sigong added, "To dismiss these people, we must first clean up the Rear Army Governor's Office. First, select those who can be used and dismiss the useless ones. After the government office is cleaned up, the inventory will begin."

"Are you sure?" Luo Yangxing asked. "I'm not." Luo Sigong let out a long sigh. "But I want to try, or rather, take a gamble. Stand firm and see if the Emperor truly has such intentions. If the Emperor does, and we declare the case closed, then this drama won't be able to continue. If he wants to continue, the Emperor will have to find a new excuse to set up the stage. If I give in now, then the troupe that performs on stage will probably have to be replaced by another one."

"What if the emperor just doesn't want to sing?" Luo Yangxing asked finally.

"Just look for another opportunity to be a soft egg." Luo Sigong shrugged.

"Okay." Luo Yangxing still felt uneasy, after all, the Imperial Household Department had already made the announcement. But in the end, he chose to support his father without reservation. "What should I do?"

"Mobilize troops and surround without investigating." Luo Sigong decided to escalate the situation.

"Surround the Li Mansion?"

"No. It's too obvious." Luo Sigong clasped his fingers together and said resolutely: "Surround the residences of all the superior nobles in the rear palace!"

"understood."

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"Dianmao" refers to the ancient attendance system whereby officials reported to their respective yamen at the hour of Mao. Officials checking the number of people was called "Dianmao," while lower-level officials or clerks arriving at the yamen to wait for roll call and responding was called "Yingmao." If a signature was required, this was called "Hua Mao."

The roll call at the Western Depot was divided into two levels, and nearly everyone participated. The first level involved signing and swearing in front of Li Yongzhen, the Director of the General Affairs Department. Only the Directors of the various departments and the Qianzong of the Executive Bureau were required to sign and swear in the main hall.

After the main hall finished checking in, the chief officers and captains returned to their offices to roll in the civilian staff or officers below them, who in turn rolled in the soldiers below them. This was the second level of roll call. This second level of roll call had to be completed within 25 minutes. After the personnel check, everyone had lunch together. After that, everyone went back to their normal duties.

In the entire Western Factory, only the Factory Supervisor and the Director of the Inspection Bureau were exempt from this restriction. However, the circumstances of the Supervisor and the Director were slightly different. Supervisor Wei was, after all, a member of the Imperial Household Department, and he had to report to the Imperial Household Department. As for Director Mi, her dual identity meant she didn't need to report. Empress Mi could come anytime, or even not at all; after all, only the Emperor could control her.

At the exact time of the Mao hour, Wang Chengen arrived at the main hall of the Western Factory, signed his name in the booklet, and noted the time. After finishing the Mao hour, he put down his pen and nodded to Li Yongzhen in front of him.

"Wang Sizheng looks very tired." Li Yongzhen placed Wang Chengen's crooked pen on the gap of the inkstone.

"Thank you for your concern. I didn't sleep well last night." He hadn't slept well, he hadn't slept at all. Yesterday, his worldview and values ​​had been repeatedly challenged. The sage teachings of the Hanlin Academy and even the cabinet ministers had become completely useless overnight. Deep self-doubt had left Wang Chengen tossing and turning all night, unable to sleep.

"Are you going to the Jinyiwei later?" Li Yongzhen asked casually.

"I'm not going." Wang Chengen sighed. "I'll just stay in the West Factory."

"Has the suspicion of the Jinyiwei been cleared?" In Li Yongzhen's opinion, Wang Chengen investigated this case only to eliminate the suspicion that the crime was committed within the Jinyiwei.

"I guess so." Wang Chengen sighed again.

"Did the Jinyiwei find out who committed this crime?" Li Yongzhen asked curiously.

"Not yet. It's probably an unsolved case." Wang Chengen stepped aside to make room for Captain Huang Yuming who came over to draw the picture.

Huang Yuming's rank was much higher than that of Si Zheng. Still, he bowed to the two eunuchs. "Your humble servant, Huang Yuming, greets Si Zheng Wang and Si Zheng Li."

"No need to be so polite, General Huang." Wang Chengen returned the greeting and said to Li Yongzhen, "You're free to go ahead. I'll be leaving now."

"Walk slowly."

"Farewell to Wang Sizheng."

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Wang Cheng'en had a separate study in the West Factory. Most of the time, he stayed there alone. Wang Cheng'en was always incredibly efficient, but today, after sitting for an entire hour, he hadn't even finished reading a single document. It felt as if the Chinese characters were no longer words, but delicate flowers trembling in the wind. One needed to hold their breath and concentrate to appreciate their essence.

Suddenly, there was a sound of hurried footsteps outside the door. Then, someone knocked on Wang Chengen's door.

"Si Zheng, it's me." Qi Fengen's voice is not loud, but it is very recognizable.

"Come in." Wang Chengen composed himself a little and straightened his almost limp sitting posture.

Qi Fengen pushed the door open but didn't close it. "Si Zheng, there's something wrong with the Jinyiwei!"

"What else could be going on? Isn't the case about to be closed?" Wang Chengen said this before he remembered that he had forgotten to inform Qi Fengen and the others to withdraw.

"Case closed?" Qi Fengen was stunned, then said, "I don't think they mean that."

"What did they do?" Wang Chengen frowned slightly.

"The Jinyiwei have surrounded all the residences of the rear government." Qi Fengen asked, "Si Zheng, what should we do?"

"What!" Wang Chengen jerked back, almost losing his balance. "Luo Yangxing didn't listen?"

Qi Fengen didn't know what this so-called greeting meant, but he still subconsciously asked, "Do you want to stop them?"

"No! Prepare the car immediately!" Wang Chengen ordered Qi Fengen. He muttered, "I have to go over and ask. What exactly does this Admiral Luo want to do?"

(End of this chapter)