Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 64: Jinyiwei Guard Chief Luo Sigong
Dashiyongfang, just north of Xijiangmixiang, is the headquarters of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Luo Sigong, the Grand Tutor and the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, who was in charge of the Jinyiwei with the rank of Second Rank Commander, asked someone to make him a cup of tea, which marked that he had officially entered the working state.

But what should he do? Luo Sigong used the lid of the cup to scrape away the few tea leaves floating on the water and fell into deep thought.

As usual, he got up early today and took a sedan chair to the Meridian Gate to wait for the court. Outside the Meridian Gate, Luo Sigong saw a person who should not be there - Wei Chao, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department.

Luo Sigong was a little confused, because the job of bringing people into the palace would not be done by a eunuch like the Silijian Bingbi who sat in the clouds.

After all the officials gathered, Wei Chao spoke: The emperor will not come to court today, tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, so please go back.

After saying this, Wei Chao did not explain and turned around and left with a few of his godsons who were accompanying him.

The officials were clamoring and protesting, and soon surrounded Fang Congzhe, the cabinet chief minister, who was standing at the head of the civil service line. Old Fang was also very cunning, and he pretended to faint after being yelled at a few times.

All the officials were helpless and could only ask Ye Xianggao, the second assistant of the cabinet, for an explanation.

Ye Xianggao was amused by Fang Congzhe's trick, but he still had some dignity to maintain. Through his narration, the officials learned what had happened yesterday afternoon: the emperor had the Imperial Household Department pass a note to the cabinet, saying that the rules for the morning court session should be changed.

Zuo Guangdou was the first to jump out and ask: Has the cabinet approved it?

Ye Xianggao:
Fu Li, the Censor of the Criminal Department, also put on a righteous look in the expectant eyes of his colleagues: Has the cabinet rejected it?
Ye Xianggao:
Like most cabinet ministers, Ye Xianggao considered attending court or not to be a trivial matter. As long as the emperor continued to govern, attending court or not was immaterial. Even when King Sejong practiced Taoism for twenty years and avoided court, he still maintained tight control over officials and handled government affairs. While his efforts to build temples, refine elixirs, and search for auspicious signs impoverished the people and the country, he was still governing.

But after the brief tussle before yesterday's court session, Ye Xianggao had already realized that Shi Jixie was the only one in the entire cabinet who sincerely opposed the decree. Neither faction wanted to express their stance, but instead wanted the other to do so. Because no matter how they expressed their views, they would not benefit. Supporting the emperor would lead to condemnation, while opposing him would likely result in a loss of the emperor's favor and, ultimately, their position in the cabinet.

But the censors of the six departments and thirteen provinces didn't care. They instinctively felt that, with the example of Emperor Shenzong, who had changed the dynasty and abolished it, the next step would be for the emperor and his ministers to stop meeting.
Luo Sigong would not bother himself by getting involved in something that would surely bring him trouble. So while the civil officials gathered around the cabinet ministers to discuss the matter, Luo Sigong and a group of nobles decided to go to the government office instead.

The Emperor used the Zheng family's confiscation as an excuse to launch a comprehensive purge of the Eastern Depot. Although the Wei Zhongxian case had been declared closed, the final outcome remained uncertain. Luo Sigong fretted daily, fearing the day when the Western Depot would "execute" him, armed with a special imperial decree authorizing the operation, would come to his house to arrest someone.

Since the establishment of the Eastern Depot, the Imperial Guard had been under its control. Although the Eastern Depot Supervisor was only a third-rank official, and therefore considered inferior to the First-rank Imperial Guardian, the most direct measure of official power and authority, whether in the inner or outer courts, was the proximity of the office to the emperor's permanent residence.

The Cabinet was located within the Forbidden City, so a mere Fifth-Rank Grand Secretary was superior to the Second-Rank officials of various ministries. The main office of the eunuchs of the Imperial Household Department wasn't even their own department, but rather at the emperor's side. Compared to the outer court, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was considered a eunuch, but compared to the scribes and seal-bearers of the Imperial Household Department and the Imperial Horse Department, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was merely a bodyguard.

So after the new emperor ascended the throne, the first thing Luo Sigong did when the two successive governors of the East Factory took office was to give money. Wang An received 10,000 taels of silver and 200 taels of gold. Cui Wensheng received 9,999 taels of silver and 199 taels of gold.

This money wasn't just for peace, it was also for retaining his position. Luo Sigong considered himself to have secretly aided the crown prince during the "Three Major Struggles." Even if he wasn't a loyalist, he wasn't a traitor. As long as he was loyal and obedient, he had a chance to stay in office.

But now Cui Wensheng's fate is unknown, and the Dongchang case remains unresolved. Luo Sigong really doesn't know if the money he sent to the prison will become the three-foot white silk hanging by a thread to hang himself.

Luo Sigong concluded that the emperor already knew about the bribery. Cui Wensheng would definitely betray him. For survival and power, Cui Wensheng had even betrayed Zheng Yangxing. Let alone himself, an outsider with no connections and only financial dealings.

"Oh! Why hasn't he come by the first day of next month?" Luo Sigong picked up the teacup, frowned, and blew away the floating tea leaves with a lamenting tone.

"Report!" The captain in charge of the defense of the envoy's office walked quickly into the main hall. "Speak." The tea was a little hot, so Luo Sigong just took a sip from the rim of the cup.

"A eunuch has come to the palace." The captain reported.

"What?" Luo Sigong's hand holding the teacup trembled in fear. The tea spilled onto his desk along with a leaf that had just unfurled. Luo Sigong forced himself to calm down, then put the teacup down and said, "Do we need to inform the palace about the arrival of someone? Just come in!"

When the eunuch delivering the imperial edict entered the main hall, Luo Sigong had already walked to the center of the hall and was waiting: "Greetings, eunuch."

"Greetings, Grand Protector." The man was about thirty years old, with a handsome and strong face, and he had the air of a scholar.

"Excuse me, sir, what is your name and position?" Luo Sigong felt that the man in front of him looked familiar, but he couldn't remember it for a while, so he had to pretend that he didn't know him at all.

"The eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department and the seal of the inner library is Cao Huachun." Cao Huachun replied with a smile.

"Forgive my poor eyesight, but I'm honored to meet Eunuch Cao." Luo Sigong remembered that the eunuch in front of him, surnamed Cao, was one of Wang An's godsons. The last time he saw him was when Wang An was promoted to the position of Chief Seal of the Imperial Household Department.

Luo Sigong remembered that he had specially selected several masterpieces from famous artists that he had treasured for many years and presented them to Wang An. The person who received the gift list was Cao Huachun.

"You are too polite, Taibao." Cao Huachun returned the greeting again.

"Excuse me, Commander Cao, what brings you to the Jinyiwei Yamen?" Cao Huachun's gentle attitude made Luo Sigong feel a little relieved.

"Does Luo Taibao still remember the Book of Impermanence that the Embroidered Uniform Guard handed over to the Imperial Household Department yesterday?" Cao Huachun answered the question with a question.

"Is there something wrong with that booklet?" Luo Sigong asked.

Although the Macau and Yingtan incidents were specifically mentioned by the Imperial Household Department, it was ultimately just a tracking and surveillance mission. Even if there were any benefits or merits, they wouldn't be much.

Therefore, Luo Sigong sent Lu Wenzhao, a trial centurion who had served as a scout in Liaodong and was recommended by someone and given a gift of 500 taels of silver, to take the mission in Macau.

He had seen the Death Book that Lu Wenzhao had handed over. However, because he couldn't understand it at all and couldn't write a memorial, he sent the original copy to the Imperial Household Department for the palace to decide.

Before Luo Sigong had time to think about it, he heard Cao Huachun say, "It's not up to me to decide whether there is a problem or not. The emperor has the final say."

"Your Majesty?" Could it be that something extremely treasonous was recorded above and disturbed the emperor's presence? Luo Sigong thought nervously.

"The emperor wants to see the person who wrote the book now. Let him come out and follow me." Cao Huachun said.

"Go quickly, go and find Lu Wenzhao!" Luo Sigong turned around and ordered Hai Zhentao, the fourth-rank commander who was standing beside him.

(End of this chapter)