Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 347 Do I Really Understand You
"Mingzhen." Fang Congzhe ate another piece of rice cake, and the hunger that made him feel anxious was slightly relieved.

"Oh!" Shen responded immediately.

"There is one thing I need to remind you of," Fang Congzhe said.

"Just say it." Shen smiled.

"It's good that you're upholding the orthodoxy, but don't try to use this incident to implicate someone and punish someone else." Fang Congzhe said slowly, "The Emperor is wise and will never believe unfounded rumors."

At noon today, the emperor replied to the secret revelation jointly submitted by Ye Xianggao and Fang Congzhe: You can just focus on assisting in the administration, I will delete it and will never be jealous of loyal and virtuous ministers because of what others say.

This brief reply was like a tonic. Seeing the word "Zhenliang", Ye Xianggao immediately thought of "the prosperity of the Han Dynasty is just around the corner", and he felt relieved.

"Yes. I know." Although Shen didn't know about the secret disclosure, he also knew who Fang Congzhe was talking about.

Fang Congzhe nodded with satisfaction. "Just do whatever you want. I won't hold you back."

"Prime Minister." Shen Qing sighed. "I'm afraid I can't do it even if I want to."

"Hmm?" Fang Congzhe asked, "What do you mean?"

"That matter has spread." Shen said.

"What?" Fang Congzhe frowned.

Shen was silent for a few seconds before he said, "It was the incident where Governor Wen submitted his resignation, which angered the Emperor and led to the demotion and transfer of dozens of people."

Things turned out just as Liu Yirong and Han Yu had suspected. After the demotion order drafted by Shen was sent to the Ministry of Personnel, it was immediately temporarily detained by Xue Fengxiang, the Ministry's Deputy Secretary.

Xue Fengxiang quickly wrote a short petition and sent it to the palace along with the next batch of memorials, pleading with the emperor to temporarily defer his wrath. The next day, the emperor's reply arrived: "While the groundless slander of the governor cannot be pardoned, your petition is justified." Officials transferred to other positions will be demoted, while those demoted will be fined two months' salary. The petition will be immediately submitted to the Ministry for execution, and officials in the Ministry of Justice will not be allowed to hinder it.

Although Xue Fengxiang successfully "protected" these officials who had launched a tentative offensive against Wen Qiu, the Governor-General of Ji and Liao, news of the conversation between the eunuchs in charge of ceremonies and cabinet members spread that same day. Everyone knew that Shen was playing both sides, using extremely high-sounding words to persuade Prime Minister Fang Congzhe to stop admonishing the emperor.

"It spread so quickly?" Fang Congzhe asked in confusion.

"This must have been spread intentionally by Liu Yirong and the others." Shen stretched out a finger.

"Hmm," Fang Congzhe understood. The reason why they were able to remain calm for the entire day after the incident was not only because the Censorate had not yet produced its report, but also because Shen's appeal had been severely hit.

"So now it's up to you to come forward and unite everyone." Shen Yanci said sincerely.

Fang Congzhe thought for a moment. "Don't worry, let's wait. The key to this matter doesn't lie with my cabinet. It lies with Zhang Deyun of the Censorate. As long as it's proven that those Western barbarians are truly intent on disrupting the orthodox doctrine, Zhang Deyun will definitely not tolerate it."

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Knock, knock, knock. At about the same time, someone knocked on the Ye family's door.

"Are you from the Atlantic Country?" the old doorman who came out to answer the door asked Johann Adam Schall von Bell.

"Of course I'm an official of the Ming Dynasty." Johann Adam Schall von Bell patted his sixth-rank heron badge on his chest. "It's just that my ancestral home is a little far away."

"Hmm." The old doorman looked Tang Ruowang up and down, confirming that this man was indeed not the Atlantic man who came to pay his respects last time. Then, he looked at Sun Yuanhua beside Tang Ruowang. "Then what brings you and this gentleman to the Ye Mansion?"

"Of course, I'm here to see the Vice Prime Minister." Tang Ruowang pulled a silver ingot weighing two taels from his sleeve pocket and handed it to the old doorman. "I hope you'll take the trouble to inform him." Having been in the Ming Dynasty for so long, Tang Ruowang understood the principle of "a seventh-rank official in front of the Prime Minister." However, Tang Ruowang had no time to bring money with him when he left, so the silver ingots he handed over were all borrowed from Sun Yuanhua.

"I can't guarantee that you'll be able to see my master." The old doorman took the silver but didn't put it in his pocket immediately. "May I ask your names, sir?"

"Thank you." A hint of joy appeared on Tang Ruowang's gloomy face. "My last name is Tang Ruowang. I've met Ye Cifu before. This is Sun Yuanhua, the juren who came to Beijing to take the imperial examination."

"Okay." The old doorman stepped back, closed the door, and lowered the bolt before entering the inner courtyard to look for Ye Xianggao.

When the old doorman found Ye Xianggao, Ye Xianggao was reading in the study. The door of the study was not closed, and the old doorman walked straight in: "Master."

"Who's here?" Ye Xianggao didn't put down the book in his hand.

"A sixth-rank official who looks very much like an Atlantic man, his name is Johann Adam Schall von Bell. There is also a scholar, his name is Sun Yuanhua. Would you like to invite them in?" The old doorman did not intend to relay the words that Schall von Bell had met Ye Xianggao. After all, Ye Xianggao was the second-in-command of the cabinet, and many people had met him.

Ye Xianggao immediately said, "No."

He had just tried to get himself out of the situation by exposing the secret, but he didn't want to get himself into trouble again.

"Yes." The old doorman turned around and went back to the door without saying a word.

"The master is not in good spirits and cannot see guests." The old doorman handed the silver ingot back to Tang Ruowang. "You two can go back."

"This..." Johann Adam Schall von Bell was stunned.

Sun Yuanhua stepped forward, took the old doorman's hand holding the silver, and stuffed another two taels into it. "Please help me again."

The old doorman flipped his wrist and stuffed four taels of silver directly into Sun Yuanhua's sleeve pocket, repeating: "The master is not in good spirits and cannot see guests. You two can go back." Although the old doorman wanted the silver very much, Ye Xianggao was not the kind of person who could be persuaded by servants.

Sun Yuanhua suddenly had an idea. "Well, please tell the Vice Minister that it was Chief Wei from the Imperial Household Department who released us from the Northern Pacification Office."

"!" The old doorman was stunned. At this time, Sun Yuanhua also wisely took out the two silver bars from his sleeve pocket and stuffed them into the old doorman's hands again.

"Then I'll try again." For the sake of money, the old doorman was willing to help. Even if it still didn't work, with such a reasonable reason, at least he wouldn't be scolded by the master.

The old doorman returned to the study. Ye Xianggao, though still seated in the chair, had already put down his book and was lost in thought. "Master," the old doorman's voice was already cautious. "Those two men said they were released from the Northern Pacification Office by Wei, Chief of the Imperial Household Department." Ye Xianggao's eyes fluttered beneath his wrinkled lids.

"Do you want to chase them away?" Ye Xianggao remained silent for a long time, and the old doorman's heart was hanging in the air.

Ye Xianggao was silent for a while before saying, "Take him to the living room."

"Yes." The old doorman was delighted, but his tone was still as steady as before.

Soon, Tang Ruowang and Sun Yuanhua were brought to the Ye family's reception room by the old doorman. They sat there for a while until the servants brought tea and Ye Xianggao, who had changed his clothes, came over.

Upon seeing Ye Xianggao, Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Sun Yuanhua immediately stood up. They both bowed to Ye Xianggao. "Your humble servant, Johann Adam Schall von Bell, and your student, Sun Yuanhua, greet Ye Cifu."

Ye Xianggao did not return the greeting immediately, but walked past them and went straight to the main seat and sat down.

According to the regulations recorded in the "Da Ming Hui Dian," "When meeting with officials of the fifth rank or lower, the lower one should bow. The more senior one should sit and receive the greeting. When meeting with officials of the fifth rank or lower, the first rank should sit and receive. When reporting matters, one should kneel." Ye Xianggao, who had retired as Junior Tutor and Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, was a legitimate first-rank official. Since Johann Adam Schall von Bell and Sun Yuanhua were of the sixth rank and the lowest rank, Ye Xianggao naturally sat down to return the greeting. "Please take a seat, both of you."

"Thank you, Ci Fu." The two of them bowed again and sat down.

Ye Xianggao looked at Sun Yuanhua and asked, "Are you Xu Zixian's student?"

Sun Yuanhua was a little surprised. He quickly stood up and bowed, saying, "Replying to the Vice Minister, I did learn from the Grand Master of the Imperial Clan."

"This isn't a courtroom. Let's just sit down and talk." Ye Xianggao nodded and added, "Xu Zixian once mentioned you to me. He said you were a rare talent." Ye Xianggao smiled and pointed to the chair under Sun Yuan's avatar. "He was sitting in this chair when he said that."

Sun Yuanhua was touched, but he still declined modestly: "I am just a student with a few ounces of sour ink in my belly. I can't be considered a talent. My dear teacher, your praise is really too much."

Ye Xianggao's lips curled up politely, then he turned slightly and glanced at Tang Ruowang. "Why did you come here with him?"

Sun Yuanhua thought for a moment and said, "Yesterday, after the imperial examination ended, I walked out of the Imperial Examination Hall and ran into Tang Guanzheng at the entrance. Because Tang Guanzheng's residence in Zhengxifang had been blocked by the imperial guards, Tang Guanzheng had nowhere to go and didn't have much money on him, so I took him back. Later, the imperial guards from the Northern Pacification Office arrested Tang Guanzheng and me and took us to Zhengxifang."

Hearing this, Ye Xianggao began to frown.

"But early this morning, before daybreak, Wei Chao, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, came over and released Tang Guanzheng and me."

Ye Xianggao raised his hand to interrupt Sun Yuanhua.

He had originally wanted to dissuade Sun Yuanhua from interfering in this matter, but from this description, it was clear that Sun Yuanhua was already highly involved and had been exposed to the Imperial Guards and even the Imperial Household Department. Perhaps even the Emperor had heard of him by now. So, after several pauses, Ye Xianggao simply asked, "Did you meet Chief Wei?"

"No, Chief Wei was already in the car when I left the house." Sun Yuanhua looked at Tang Ruowang again. "But Tang Ruowang has already met Chief Wei."

Tang Ruowang nodded in agreement, but Ye Xianggao didn't intend to talk to Tang Ruowang at this time. He just gestured to Sun Yuanhua: "Go on."

Sun Yuanhua continued, "There's not much to say after that. Official Tang went to the yamen as usual, and I found a nearby teahouse for tea. I didn't come to your place with Official Tang until the yamen was dismissed."

Tang Ruowang interrupted and said, "When I was in the yamen, I received several impeachment memorials against me." As he spoke, Tang Ruowang took out three rubbings of impeachment memorials transferred from the Ministry of Public Security from his arms.

"I was the one who drafted these three memorials." Ye Xianggao adjusted his sitting position to face Johann Adam Schall von Bell.

Tang Ruowang was startled and immediately asked, "Ye Cifu, may I ask what the draft is about?"

"'This person is a citizen from overseas who has been civilized. He is not familiar with the laws and regulations of the country. He should be suspended from his post until he understands the principles and regulations and then reinstated.' All three books are the same." Ye Xianggao only recalled the contents of the draft a little and recited them.

Tang Ruowang suddenly felt a little sour in his nose. He still remembered that when he met Ye Xianggao at the Jesuit headquarters, Ye Xianggao praised him, saying that Tang Ruowang was a young talent with the legacy of the Li family, and asked him to live up to the emperor's grace and serve the Ming Dynasty well.

At that time, he had a good impression of the old man, but he did not expect that Ye Xianggao would suggest to the emperor to suspend him on the grounds that he "did not understand the country's laws and regulations."

"What about the emperor's reply?" Tang Ruowang asked timidly with a slightly trembling voice.

"I don't know. They haven't been issued yet." Ye Xianggao noticed Tang Ruowang's mood swings, but he had no intention of comforting him. "If we have to guess based on the time, the two copies from this morning should have been kept. The one from this afternoon is the one on the front." Tang Ruowang was still holding the three memorials. Ye Xianggao pointed to the outermost one and said:

"Usually we won't know until the next day. But I think it should be kept in the center."

"Liu Zhong?" Tang Ruowang had never heard of this term. "Excuse me, what does it mean?"

"It means not reporting, or not responding," Ye Xianggao explained. "Even if a minister submits a memorial, the monarch doesn't necessarily have to respond."

"Why?" Tang Ruowang asked again.

Ye Xianggao chuckled. "I don't know what His Majesty is thinking. Only His Majesty knows. But it seems that His Majesty still has some good impression of you."

"How can you explain this!" Suddenly, there was a hint of brightness in Tang Ruowang's gloomy eyes.

"What else can I say?" Ye Xianggao took a sip of his tea. "The palace can just send a message to the Imperial Guards, and have a small eunuch deliver a note. They can have the eunuch in charge of ceremonies personally let you two go. It's hard to say."

"So according to you, there is still room for improvement in this matter?" Johann Adam Schall von Bell asked anxiously.

"It depends on whether that interpreter named Mendoza actually slandered the emperor and incited rebellion before the army. If the charge of slandering the emperor and inciting rebellion is proven, there will be no room for reversal in this matter." Ye Xianggao put down his teacup and asked in a very serious tone, "Did he really do it?"

Tang Ruowang was stunned. "Mendoza is a very pious man. He may spread the doctrine wherever he goes, but he will never incite rebellion, Ye Cifu..."

Ye Xianggao raised his hand to interrupt Tang Ruowang. "Mr. Tang, whether or not you're inciting rebellion isn't something you can just say." Ye Xianggao took a deep breath. "Based on my personal understanding of you, or the Li family, I don't believe you would slander the emperor and incite rebellion. But do I really understand you, or are you truly not hiding anything?"

(End of this chapter)