Qing Yao

Chapter 469 My Lord is My Father!

Zhao An was quite sarcastic. He simply asked when Lord Liu would be joining the Grand Council, but instead asked why he was drawing pictures for the Ziguang Pavilion.
How is this any different from directly asking Lord Liu when he will die?

Fortunately, Lord Liu held back, otherwise tomorrow the whole capital would know that the seventy-year-old Liu Luoguo and the twenty-year-old "Fu Lu Shou" had fought three hundred rounds.

Zhao An's insults towards Liu Yong were actually intentional, given Liu Yong's sharp tongue. It was also a way of sending the strongest possible signal to Heshen—that Youlu's heart will always belong only to you, Grand Secretary!
Whether it's Liu the Hunchback or Ji the Fatso, they all have to be brought down.

Having come this far, how could anyone dare to harbor even the slightest unrealistic hope for Jiaqing?

However, the appointment of Zhao Ande as the governor of Anhui was both a good thing and a bad thing, because it meant that Zhao Ande had to give up his position as the provincial treasurer of Anhui.

At the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, due to the fact that the Manchus had not yet completed their overall conquest of China, there was a phenomenon of governors-general concurrently serving as governors and governors concurrently serving as provincial treasurers. After the reform of the bureaucracy during the Yongzheng reign, the provincial treasurers were separated from the original officials under the governors and became one of the provincial institutions directly responsible to the court. This was also a manifestation of the Qing court's centralized system and a design to balance and restrain the power of local governors and governors.

While there were governors-general concurrently serving as provincial governors after the Yongzheng Emperor, there was no precedent for a provincial governor concurrently serving as provincial treasurer.

Zhao An's previous appointment as acting governor did not violate the system's design. Now that he is serving as governor, the court will certainly reappoint a new Anhui provincial governor to ensure that local power is not controlled by one person.

No matter how loyal you are, it won't work.

There have always been three ways for a provincial governor to be promoted: first, by being parachuted in from the capital; second, by being promoted from a circuit intendant or prefect in the same province; and third, by being transferred from a neighboring province.

From a personal perspective, Zhao An certainly hoped to promote a provincial governor from among the officials in his own province, someone who would be easy to use and obedient. His preferred candidate was Song Jiawen, the prefect of Anqing, who was the first official in Anhui to defect to him.

As the top official in the provincial capital, Song Jiawen's education, experience, and seniority were all sufficient for his promotion to the position of provincial governor. In later generations, he would have been a provincial governor, and his promotion to the second-highest rank would have been normal.

Therefore, after returning to his office, Zhao An wrote a letter to Heshen, combining the actual development needs of Anhui with the selection of the provincial governor, and had it delivered to him.

The letter strongly recommended Song Jiawen for promotion to the position of Provincial Governor of Anhui.

However, as the second most important position in a province, the promotion and appointment of the provincial governor also followed a series of procedures. The Ministry of Personnel would first submit a list of officials who met the promotion qualifications to the Grand Council for review, and the Grand Council would then select two or three from them for the emperor to decide.

When Zhao An acted as the acting provincial governor while serving as the grain transport commissioner, he was actually exploiting a loophole. What loophole was that the provincial governor at the time, Jing Daoqian, was also acting as the commissioner.

The actual provincial governor, Chen Dawen, was unable to work due to illness, so the then-governor, Zhu Gui, recommended the circuit intendant, Jing Daoqian, to the court to act in his place.

In addition, the sudden major disaster and religious unrest in Anhui enabled Zhao An's appointment to bypass the Ministry of Personnel's organizational procedures, saving him from the process of "competing" with rivals.

Now that the position of provincial governor is vacant again, Chen Dawen, who took sick leave, is very likely to be reinstated.

Therefore, even if Heshen could include Song Jiawen, recommended by Zhao An, in the final list submitted to the Emperor by the Grand Council, it was still questionable whether he could successfully become the Provincial Governor.

Chen Dawen is a very competitive person.

Although he was a second-class Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) like Song Jiawen, his resume was much richer. He not only served in the Ministry of Personnel, but also served as the prefect of Guangxi, and presided over the Guangxi provincial examinations, as well as serving as the provincial judicial commissioner of Guizhou and Anhui provinces.

I've worked in personnel, civil affairs, education, and judicial criminal law.

They are well-rounded individuals with a strong competitive advantage.

Therefore, Zhao An could only do his best and leave the rest to fate.

However, Heshen would certainly not agree to send an official who was at odds with Zhao An to Anhui as the provincial governor. After all, the most important thing in training troops is money and provisions. If the provincial governor, who is in charge of the purse strings, makes things difficult at every turn, how can the troops be trained?

Good things kept happening one after another. Less than half an hour after Liu Yong left, someone came to the palace.

The one who came was Bao Lun, the Minister of the Imperial Court, who was ordered to come and process the formalities for Taiping, the Zuo Ling under his command, to serve as a guard at the Qianqing Gate.

Both the guards at Qianqing Gate and the imperial guards were under the jurisdiction of the inner palace. However, the guards were under the command of the Minister in charge of the Imperial Guards, while the guards at Qianqing Gate were under the management of the Minister in charge of the Imperial Guards.

The guards of Qianqing Gate were mainly responsible for protecting the emperor, serving in the inner court, checking the entry and exit of officials, and escorting the emperor on duty. In short, they were gatekeepers. The number of guards was not fixed and was usually filled by members of the imperial family and the sons of hereditary nobles of the Upper Three Banners.

Except in special circumstances, Han Chinese are not granted positions. Bao Lun is also from the Fucha family; his grandfather was Fu Qing, Fu Heng's elder brother.

Fu Qing plotted to lure and kill the Tibetan king Jurmed, who was plotting a rebellion. However, he was surrounded by the rebel army and committed suicide. His son, Mingren, died in the army while fighting against the Greater and Lesser Jinchuan. As a result, Baolun not only inherited his ancestor's first-class viscount title, but was also appointed as the deputy commander of the Manchu Bordered White Banner and served as a minister in the imperial court.

The Fucha family enjoys unparalleled favor in the dynasty, and this is not just Heshen's envious remark, but a genuine expression of their favor.

Bao Lun is in his early thirties, about the same age as his cousin Fu Chang'an. Besides his noble air, he also looks like a spoiled brat who doesn't understand social etiquette.

"I have come here on official business."

Upon entering the Governor-General's Office, Bao Lun got straight to the point: "By imperial decree, Taiping, the Manchu Zuo Ling of the Bordered Yellow Banner in your office, is hereby promoted to the position of Qianqing Gate Guard. The relevant documents must be filed with the Governor-General's Office and Taiping Zuo Ling must be informed."

After speaking, Bao Lun handed the relevant documents to Zhao An.

Zhao An took the document and quickly glanced through it. Although the position of Qianqing Gate Guard had no real power, it was an extremely prestigious title, meaning that one could frequently get close to the emperor. It was a promotion path that countless noble sons dreamed of.

The four young masters of the Fu family all rose from the ranks of guards at the Qianqing Gate to enter the core power circle of the empire.

Although Taiping was a fourth-rank official, within the Eight Banners, he was equivalent to a township head, because his duties were limited to the three hundred bannermen under his command. Calling him a regimental commander was too high a rank, and calling him a battalion commander was too low a rank.

The title of Qianqing Gate Guard is an honorary title that only top-ranking officials can obtain. With this title, Taiping's primary job will definitely be promoted to the third-rank military officer, and he will also be able to serve in front of the emperor. For Taiping, this is definitely a great thing that has fallen from the sky.

Seeing that Bao Lun had no intention of getting close to him and was acting in a businesslike manner, Zhao An had no intention of flattering him and nodded in agreement.

Bao Lun had no intention of staying any longer. After exchanging a few polite words, he returned to the palace to report back.

Zhao An escorted Bao Lun to the entrance of the yamen, and then instructed a servant named Bai Tang'a to summon Taiping, who was unaware of the impending wealth and honor, to the yamen.

Bai Tang'a accepted the order and left. Not long after, a series of hurried and chaotic footsteps came from outside the door, accompanied by heavy breathing. It was clear that the person had been running in a hurry.

The office door was pushed open, and Taiping, covered in sweat, appeared in the doorway.

"This humble servant greets Your Excellency!"

After quickly performing the greeting, Taiping's expression clearly showed surprise and doubt.

Zhao An didn't speak, but simply pushed the document bearing the seal of the Imperial Guard forward gently.

"This is?"

Taiping accepted the appointment letter, which seemed light yet weighed a ton. After a couple of breaths, his fingers began to tremble slightly. He looked at Zhao An with unwavering certainty, his lips quivering as if he wanted to say something, but he couldn't utter a single word.

I was so excited I couldn't speak.

"This is the Emperor's favor upon you; just do your job well from now on."

Zhao An smiled slightly, very satisfied with "Horse Bone's" reaction at this moment, because he had experienced this scene before.

The next moment, this man, who had spent years struggling at the bottom of society, suddenly knelt down with a thud, kowtowing deeply to Zhao An, sobbing uncontrollably: "This humble servant thanks you for your guidance, sir! This humble servant, this humble servant..."

The rest of the words were stuck in my throat.

Let alone three thousand taels, even ten thousand taels wouldn't buy you the qualification to serve as a court attendant or close attendant to the emperor!

Deputy Commander Zhao, you are like my own father and grandfather.

(End of this chapter)