Prime Minister.

Chapter 10, Page 010: [Being in the Midst of It All]

Gu Heng, courtesy name Gongyi, is currently a senior official in the Water Conservancy Department of the Ministry of Works.

As one of the four core departments of the Ministry of Works, the Water Conservancy Bureau was responsible for the management of canal transport, the construction and maintenance of water conservancy projects, and the supervision of textile production, and had a very wide range of powers.

Although the position of Director of the Water Conservancy Department was only a fifth-rank official, it was a typical example of a low-ranking but powerful official in the court. How could Xue Minglun, as the Minister of Works, not entrust such an important and crucial position to his trusted subordinate?
Moreover, in Xue Huai's memory, the reason why Xue Minglun was able to become the right-hand man of Grand Secretary Ning Hengzhi was because he was able to make the Ministry of Works as impenetrable as an iron bucket. The skill of such a big man in managing his subordinates is self-evident. Without his permission, would Gu Heng really dare to rashly point the finger at Xue Mingzhang?

However, Xue Minglun's attitude at this moment was exceptionally sincere, and his expression and eyes showed no flaws. An ordinary person might have been moved by his words and simply thought that this Grand Minister of Works was truly unrelated to the matter.

Xue Huai's mind raced. He felt that even with the experience and knowledge from his previous life, he probably wouldn't be able to figure out Xue Minglun's true strength, since the other party wasn't a shallow-minded nobody like Chen Quan.

After a brief moment of thought, he followed up on the other person's words, saying, "I am grateful for your concern, Grand Minister. This matter is rather strange. I have never had any contact with that servant Liu before, and I do not know why he would do this."

"Liu Pingshun is actually insignificant."

Xue Minglun did not deliberately explain his extensive information channels. Given his position in the court and the Ning Party, as long as he was willing to pay attention, the Hanlin Academy would naturally not be able to keep secrets.

He glossed over Liu Pingshun's topic, then looked at Xue Huai and said earnestly, "What you should really be paying attention to is Academician Chen Quan."

Xue Huai's gaze sharpened slightly.

The conversation had barely begun when Xue Minglun's impression of him was quite different from what he remembered. He seemed like a kind and benevolent elder, without any selfish motives.

Xue Huai felt that Xue Minglun's question was difficult to answer.

Before understanding the other party's true intentions, Xue Huai was unwilling to reveal too much. However, Xue Minglun had already indicated that he knew about what had happened in the Hanlin Academy, which meant that he was definitely aware of the changes that had occurred in Xue Huai. At this point, there was no point in deliberately hiding his abilities.

Therefore, Xue Huai frowned slightly and asked, "Grand Minister of Works, may I ask who is standing behind Scholar Chen?"

Since Xue Minglun insisted on playing the role of a kind elder, Xue Huai had no choice but to go along with it, since what he needed most right now was information.

Xue Minglun picked up his teacup, took a sip, and slowly said, "Chen Quan and Wei Zheng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, are very close."

This statement was enough for Xue Huai to determine Chen Quan's stance.

Like Xue Minglun, Wei Zheng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, had been promoted by Grand Secretary Ning Hengzhi. In other words, he was also one of the key members of Ning's faction.

The fog seemed to be lifted.

The corruption case in Yangzhou was brought up by Gu Heng, and Chen Quan was clearly the mastermind behind bringing Xue Huai into the scheme. Considering their backgrounds, the identity of the person behind the scenes is obvious—even if it wasn't the work of Grand Secretary Ning Heng, it was a scheme set up by some big figure in Ning's faction.

The problem is that this information was leaked from Xue Minglun.

At this moment, Xue Huai was somewhat dazed. Could it be that Xue Minglun was going to abandon the darkness and turn to the light, turning his back on the Grand Secretary's faction and joining the ranks of the upright officials?
He felt that such a deduction was too absurd.

Even if Xue Minglun were to go down this path due to mental instability, he would definitely have a private conversation with Shen Wang and would never have relayed the message through Xue Huai.

Xue Huai suppressed the turmoil in his heart, gazed at the other party and said, "Thank you, Grand Minister, for clearing up my doubts."

Xue Minglun smiled and said, "You are a smart man. Perhaps your past methods of handling affairs were not sophisticated enough, but even His Majesty admires your intelligence and erudition. I think you shouldn't be in a state of sudden enlightenment right now, but rather have more doubts, don't you think?"

Xue Huai did not deny it.

Xue Minglun put down his teacup, stood up and said, "Come with me for a walk."

The two left Chengyun Hall one after the other and walked along the covered corridor.

As the autumn wind rises, fallen leaves swirl and sweep across the courtyard paved with blue bricks.

Turning east through the hanging flower gate, the narrow path flanked by Taihu stones suddenly opens up—in the courtyard about half an acre in front, the withered stems of the withered lotus in the pond pierce the water's surface, and two or three brown-winged butterflies are startled from among the withered stems, flitting over the hexagonal glazed wall with rounded corners embedded in the west wall.

Xue Huai stepped over the white lichen peeking out from between the pebbles and saw a clump of late chrysanthemums at the base of the west wall, their petals still holding up their crab-green color, but their hearts had faded to a withered dark purple.

Xue Minglun suddenly walked over, seemingly moved by something, and said, "These are chrysanthemums presented as tribute by Grand Secretary Ning last year; they are more cold-resistant than ordinary varieties."

His tone was gentle and calm, but the back of the flower petals he turned up revealed holes eaten by insects.

Xue Huai looked at his profile and said calmly, "The gift from the Grand Secretary is certainly no ordinary item."

Xue Minglun turned his head and glanced at him, then smiled faintly and continued walking.

The two passed through the moon gate and entered the east courtyard, which was Xue Minglun's study, with the words "Duiyue Xuan" (Moon-Facing Pavilion) inscribed on the ebony plaque.

This was a very spacious study, with bookshelves lining the east and west walls. Xue Huai glanced at them and could tell there were many rare and precious books among them. "I invited you here today to clear up any misunderstandings you may have."

Xue Minglun gestured for Xue Huai to sit down, and then said, "After the morning court session, His Majesty summoned me to the Imperial Study and asked me in person why I targeted Xue Mingzhang, who had passed away ten years ago. Regardless of whether Mingzhang and I had any substantial conflicts back then, we are of the same clan and should always take into account this clan bond. Therefore, His Majesty was quite dissatisfied with me."

Xue Huai asked, puzzled, "Didn't Physician Gu consult the Grand Minister of Works before submitting his memorial?"

Xue Minglun asked with great interest, "Why did he need to ask for permission?"

Before Xue Huai could answer, he continued, "In the past year or so, you have impeached so many officials. Have you consulted with Academician Lin, the head of the academy?"

Xue Huai hesitated and said, "This is different—"

Xue Minglun interrupted him: "There is no difference between the two. Could it be that in your heart, Lin Jingxing is a gentleman who distinguishes between public and private matters, while I am a shameless bureaucrat who abuses public power for private gain?"

Xue Huai shook his head and said, "This humble official had no such intention."

“Whether it exists or not is not important.” Xue Minglun’s eyes were deep. “Jing Che, since you have chosen to enter the officialdom, you should understand one thing: everyone has their own position, especially when facing choices of interests. A stubborn and headstrong person is extremely rare. We always have to make all kinds of choices and trade-offs.”

Xue Huai lowered his eyes and said, "I have learned a lot."

Xue Minglun continued, "His Majesty has been in a bad mood these past few months because many places in the south have suffered severe disasters. The court cannot come up with enough money for disaster relief and recovery in a short time. That old fox in the Ministry of Revenue has a long face all day long. Whenever His Majesty asks about it, he bursts into tears, leaving no room for argument. So His Majesty is really angry. The Jing'an Division has sent a large number of skilled people to the south to find out which officials have embezzled funds. At the same time, the officials in the Ministry of Works are under great pressure because the Ministry of Works is responsible for supervising the construction of the vast majority of water conservancy facilities."

Xue Huai gradually understood, and he tentatively asked, "So, the reason why Doctor Gu submitted this memorial impeaching my late father was simply to absolve himself of responsibility?"

Even now, he still doesn't believe that Xue Mingzhang would embezzle the funds from the river works project.

Xue Minglun pondered for a moment and said, "We can't be sure that he was doing this for that purpose. I've seen the Ministry of Works' archives before, and there is indeed some evidence against Mingzhang that is unfavorable to him, and it's even annotated by him in his own handwriting."

Xue Huai pursed his lips and remained silent.

Xue Minglun looked at him and said, "As for why Gu Heng didn't inform me beforehand, the reason is actually very simple. Mingzhang and I are of the same bloodline, and I have quite admired you, my distant nephew, over the past two years. Since he wanted to impeach Mingzhang, why would he inform me in advance? Before, in the Imperial Study, after I explained the reasons, His Majesty stopped being harsh on me."

His explanation was reasonable, but Xue Huai still felt something was off.

If Gu Heng was not acting under someone's orders, then how do you explain what happened in the Hanlin Academy?

Xue Minglun seemed to see through his thoughts and said seriously, "Jing Che, you are in a very dangerous situation right now."

Xue Huai calmly said, "Grand Minister of Works, Liu Pingshun framed me, and Chen Quan fanned the flames. These are all obvious facts. As long as the court follows this line of investigation, they will definitely find out the truth."

"Is it really that simple?" Xue Minglun shook his head. "If Liu Pingshun insists on denying it, do you have any evidence to prove that you didn't hide and destroy those files? Your performance at the Hanlin Academy today was impressive, but that's not enough to clear your name, because you did have the motive to do so. Furthermore, you said Chen Quan fueled the fire. Although he gave some clues in his words, Lin Miao has already covered it up for him. Do you have any other evidence to prove that he framed you?"

Xue Huai remained silent.

If he had solid evidence, why would he be so busy searching for clues?

Xue Minglun continued, “You don’t need to worry too much about yourself, because you didn’t do it, and the person who set the trap has no evidence to convict you. You still have plenty of room to maneuver in this matter. Simply put, the key to the Yangzhou corruption case lies with your father. As long as you can overturn Gu Heng’s accusations against him, the suspicion against you will be cleared. At that time, Chen Quan and Liu Pingshun will suffer the consequences.”

"I understand."

Xue Huai was not stupid; how could he not know the key to breaking the deadlock? But where could he find the lost files from the Hanlin Academy?
If he can't find it, how can he clear Xue Mingzhang's name?

Xue Minglun has just stated that the old files kept by the Ministry of Works are very unfavorable to Xue Mingzhang.

Unless... he can see the old files of the Ministry of Works with his own eyes and ask Cui about what happened back then, he might have a chance to discover the flaws.

A long silence fell over the hall.

Looking at the middle-aged man's calm face, Xue Huai had a flash of inspiration.

He rose, cupped his hands in a salute, and said, "Please enlighten me, Grand Minister."

Xue Minglun remained silent.

Xue Huai hesitated for a moment, then said seriously, "Please enlighten me, Uncle."

Xue Minglun stared at him intently, a faint smile finally appearing on his face.

(End of this chapter)