Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 43 Fake drunkenness
With the arrival of autumn, the days grew shorter. By the time the imperial meeting ended, it was already dark. A cool breeze brushed across Xu Guangqi's sturdy face, finally causing his stomach to protest.

Xu Guangqi was hungry, so he strode towards Dong'an Gate. To his surprise, the emperor also walked when he left the cabinet, not riding in a sedan chair.

Your Majesty said that more exercise is good for the body, and also asked Zhang Tianshi to teach him Tai Chi. This is really... Xu Guangqi's aimless thinking was interrupted by a voice.

Liu Yirong was no match for Xu Guangqi, who had a military career. He was out of breath after only a few steps. "Last time, I was so hasty in handing out the invitation, not considering your busy schedule with military duties. Please forgive me for my eagerness to see you."

"Mr. Liu, thank you for your kindness." Xu Guangqi stopped and bowed.

"No need to be so polite, just call me Ji Hui." Liu Yirong said with a smile.

"How dare I. Lord Liu is my superior." Xu Guangqi still bowed.

"You and I are both Ministers of Rites. You are also the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, a fourth-rank official, while I am only a fifth-rank Grand Secretary. If we have to be serious, you are my superior." Liu Yirong joked.

"Zixian, you, Ji Hui, and I are all comrades of the Donglin sect. Why are you being so polite?" Han Yu came over, his words tinged with a hint of anger. "Excessive politeness leads to distance!"

"Then I will respectfully obey your command." Xu Guangqi smiled and changed his address. "Ji Hui. Yu Chen."

"Zixian." Han Yu and Liu Yirong said in unison.

Fang Congzhe was old, his legs slow, and his eyesight not so good. When he first saw Xu Guangqi, he had intended to greet him and exchange pleasantries. But when he saw Liu Yirong and Han Yu, he immediately abandoned the idea. After a simple thank you, Fang Congzhe sighed and walked away.

Humph, you're afraid I'll take the opportunity to fall over. Xu Guangqi's expression remained unchanged, and he only glanced at Liu Yirong inconspicuously.

"Would you be so kind as to come to my humble abode tonight and have a couple of drinks with me?" Liu Yirong didn't notice Xu Guangqi's mood.

Xu Guangqi had no desire to go to the Liu residence for a drink. Firstly, because he had the emperor's support and no longer needed to rely on other parties to increase his political leverage, and secondly, because the Liu and Xu families were far apart, and the sedan chair ride would take at least two quarters of an hour.

For officials whose ancestral home wasn't in the capital, a Beijing property wasn't an asset they needed to hold permanently. After leaving Beijing, officials typically sold their properties for cash. Most properties couldn't be sold immediately, so they were sold to banks at low prices, which then took the difference and sold them to new officials.

Before this trip to Beijing, Xu Guangqi was just a young official in the Imperial Household Department, his family having fallen on hard times. Furthermore, he had only recently been promoted to the position of Shangshu, and had not encountered many local officials who would come to him to pay him money, so he remained poor.

To buy a decent house (a decent house was a necessity), Xu Guangqi had to borrow money. Who did he borrow from? The money houses. So, in this business, the money houses took advantage of both the seller and the buyer, pocketing the difference in price and the interest.

It wasn't that Xu Guangqi didn't want to buy property in Nanxunfang, but the prices there were unreasonably high. To save on interest, he had to buy a house near the Imperial Examination Hall. Earlier, when the emperor had said he could pay the interest on loans to low-ranking officials, Xu Guangqi had even thought of asking, "Can I be one of them?"

But then again, Xu Guangqi still had a mission assigned by the emperor, so he had to go even if he didn't want to. So he smiled and agreed: "Since I really want to, why not come?"

A quarter of an hour later, three sedan chairs stopped at the gate of Liu's residence in Nanxunfang. On the way, they heard that while the imperial meeting was being held in the afternoon, the Western Factory, which was still under construction, had already begun to lock down the city and arrest people.

Upon hearing this news, Liu Yijing's face changed several times, and his doubts grew even more intense. But after taking his place at the table, he remained calm and chatted with Han and Xu. Only after three rounds of drinks, when he was already tipsy, did Liu Yijing begin to get to the point.

"Zixian, your demeanor today is the epitome of 'a lady who doesn't speak, yet always hits the mark!' It's no exaggeration to compare you to the virtuous ministers of old," Liu Yirong praised with a smile. "Haha, Ji Hui, you're too kind. I came prepared. How dare I compare myself to the virtuous ministers of old?" Xu Guangqi said, his eyes half-drunk.

"How can you say we're prepared?! At the morning court, Prime Minister Fang and Admiral Cui worked together to request the emperor reopen the Western Depot. Then, in the afternoon, the emperor convened a meeting. With less than half a day between them, how could there be time to prepare?" Han Yu offered Xu Guangqi another glass of wine. "Master, don't be too modest. Too much modesty can lead to arrogance."

"In the morning, we discussed opening the Western Factory, and in the afternoon, we locked down the city and arrested people. The emperor was well prepared, so why can't I be prepared as well?" Xu Guangqi raised his glass in response, then raised his head and drank the wine in one gulp.

This was what Liu and Han suspected. How could such action be achieved in just half a day? After Liu Yirong returned home, he used the excuse of going to the bathroom to ask his servant to describe in detail what had happened outside the palace that afternoon.

The servants who were responsible for the investigation described the Western Factory as being too decisive and swift. As far as Liu Yirong knew, the only two units in Beijing with such organizational capabilities were the Jinyiwei and the Imperial Horse Prison Army.

Although the West Factory's personnel came from the Imperial Guard, they were not used directly, but were reorganized. No matter how good the original foundation was, it would be impossible to reorganize the troops and form combat effectiveness in just a few hours.

Blocking the sixteen gates, completing the formalities at the Military Commission, and arresting people from house to house according to the map were all done in such an orderly manner that it must have taken a long time to get the job done.

In other words, the emperor did not come up with this idea on impulse; the palace had already been preparing for the Western Factory.

"Zixian, stop joking." Liu Yirong saw Xu Guangqi's face flushed red, so he waved his hand to stop Han Yu from passing him the wine glass. His goal had been achieved, so he couldn't continue to force him to drink. If he continued to force him to drink, he would pass out.

"I... I'm kidding you. Have you forgotten where I was and what I was doing before I came to Beijing?" Xu Guangqi asked back.

"Where are you and what are you doing?" Han Yu acted as if he didn't hear.

"I am in Tongzhou, I am training troops in Tongzhou! Not long after I was promoted to Shangshu, these soldiers also came to Beijing, they were transferred to the palace!" Xu Guangqi raised the corners of his mouth slightly, as if he was proud.

"Imperial Stables?" Liu Yirong stroked his beard.

"Yes! It was transferred to the Imperial Stables." Xu Guangqi nodded, then continued to ask, "Do you remember when I came to Beijing?"

"After Cui Wensheng took over the East Factory and started to confiscate properties!" Liu Yirong certainly remembered that period of time.

"I've trained soldiers for over a year, and I have a few trusted figures. They told me the Tongzhou troops are stationed near Xi'an Gate and Taiye Lake." The emperor himself had told him about the plans for the Western Factory. Xu Guangqi said this to distance himself from the emperor. Only in this way could he gain the Donglin Party's trust.

"That was the original location of the old Western Factory." Han Yu was also a little intoxicated, but his mind was still clear.

"I arrived in Beijing after Cui Wensheng became the commander of the Eastern Depot, and the soldiers I trained were transferred to serve in the Imperial Horse Supervisory. Isn't that easy to guess?" Xu Guangqi said with a smile, "The Emperor needs a new, loyal force to deal with the increasingly powerful Imperial Guards. These people have dared to openly reach into the treasury. How can the Emperor not be furious?"

Xu Guangqi paused for a moment, then said something that would appeal very much to the Donglin Party: "The chain that ties a dog often turns into a new vicious dog. So from that time on, I began to think about how to limit the authority of the New West Factory!"

(End of this chapter)