MLMD -Chapter 277 An Unexpected Emissary

In fact, the affairs of the world are quite simple—nothing as mysterious as books make them out to be. Many things are forced into being. For example, when Yue Yang first arrived in this time and space, his ideal was very simple: to let the old matriarch at home, his younger sister Yue Ying, and the Linglong sisters live good lives; to let the people of Yue Family Village live good lives. Later, this list gained Hai Lanzhu and a pair of precious children as well.

This goal had never changed. But afterward, Yue Yang discovered that living a peaceful life was far more difficult than he had imagined. Not only did he have to deal with the local bigwigs, but those neighbors who were always full of benevolence and morality would come from time to time to freeload. He also had to guard against harassment by bandits. Later still, roving rebels arrived—and then the Jurchens as well. To keep his modest life from being disturbed, Yue Yang had no choice but to desperately strengthen himself. By now, even the emperor had joined in the fray.

If it were possible, Yue Yang truly wanted to say to Chongzhen, “Boss, please stop targeting me. I sincerely just want to live a good life.”

But obviously, that was impossible. And so, today’s meeting came to be.

The meeting lasted a full day. From morning to night, everyone discussed matters in the main hall. Outside the hall, Chen Dazhi led two hundred personal guards, sealing the area so tightly that not a drop of water could pass through. No unrelated person was allowed within a hundred paces of the hall—violators would be executed on the spot.

It was not until the You hour in the afternoon that the assembled generals finally emerged from the hall, their faces bearing a mixture of excitement and tension.

That evening, Yue Yang held a grand banquet at the general’s residence to entertain his subordinates. The next day, everyone returned to their respective defense zones.

Naturally, news of Yue Yang convening the generals could not be kept from Jiang Xin, the prefect of Hunyuan Prefecture. However, when Jiang Xin heard the report, he did not take it to heart. In his view, Yue Yang was the regional vice commander of the northern Shanxi route; summoning his subordinates to discuss affairs was entirely normal. Moreover, Jiang Xin had no desire to meddle in such troublesome matters. These past two years, his tenure as prefect had been exceedingly comfortable. He had been rated Grade A by the Ministry of Personnel for two consecutive years, and if nothing unexpected happened, he was certain to be promoted once his term ended next year.

Jiang Xin’s consecutive top evaluations were all thanks to Yue Yang. After two years of development and land reclamation, Hunyuan Prefecture was brimming with vitality everywhere. In other words, he now needed to do nothing at all—just sit in the yamen, sip a little wine, listen to some opera, and he could still rise in rank and wealth. What could possibly be more delightful than that?

“Do not provoke Yue Yang. We only need to do what falls within our own duties.” This was Jiang Xin’s repeated instruction to officials at all levels in Hunyuan Prefecture, as well as to the yamen runners.

Although the officials of Hunyuan felt somewhat helpless about this stance, they could understand it. This Lord Yue was simply too domineering. True, the long-standing tradition of the Ming dynasty was to govern the military with civil officials—but that depended on circumstances. Rough military men had always been looked down upon by scholars, and in the past, military pay and supplies were controlled by civil officials, which naturally put soldiers at a disadvantage. But Lord Yue was different. He had silver when he needed silver, grain when he needed grain. The usual tricks civil officials used to restrain the military were utterly useless against him. Worse still, he was ferocious and fond of killing. Back when he first arrived in Hunyuan, those mutinous soldiers demanding pay had been slaughtered by him in heaps—hundreds of heads piled into a gruesome mound at the drill ground north of the city. Who, after eating their fill, would dare provoke such a ruthless man?

“Thinking carefully on past events, my heart still seethes with hatred;
Alive, the mandarin ducks were torn apart.
All day long, like drunk yet like ill,
I lean bitterly against the incense brazier, sitting until dawn…”

In the rear courtyard of the prefectural yamen, Jiang Xin reclined comfortably on a lounge chair. On the Eight Immortals table beside him were a small dish of pumpkin seeds, two plates of pastries, and a pot of clear tea. With eyes half-closed, he listened to two dan actresses ahead of him singing opera in lilting tones, his face full of rapture. At this moment, Jiang Xin was wholly immersed in the noble pursuit of appreciating opera.

Just as he was listening with relish, a voice sounded softly by his ear: “My lord… my lord…”

Jiang Xin slowly opened his eyes and turned his head. It was Lu, the head runner of the yamen. Immediately displeased, Jiang Xin snapped, “Head Lu, what is it? Didn’t I say that after noon I would not handle official business? Why are you here to bother me again?”

In today’s Hunyuan Prefecture, although more than two hundred thousand refugees had been taken in, thanks to proper resettlement and ample grain—and with Yue Yang having established cement factories, steelworks, breeding farms, and various workshops—anyone who was not excessively lazy could earn a living. Moreover, Yue Yang cracked down harshly on crimes. Public security in Hunyuan could be said to be excellent. Thus, Jiang Xin had set the rule that after noon, he would not attend to official matters.

Facing Jiang Xin’s displeasure, Head Lu said with some grievance, “My lord, it is not that this humble one wished to disturb your elegant enjoyment of the opera, but someone outside insists on seeing you. That is why I had no choice but to come in.”

“Oh? Someone wants to see me?”

Jiang Xin was slightly startled. For Head Lu to risk being scolded and disturb him, the person outside must either be of exceptional status or had given Head Lu sufficient ‘filial piety.’ Thinking this, Jiang Xin slowly straightened his posture and asked unhurriedly, “Very well—who is it?”

Head Lu lowered his voice. “My lord, the visitor claims his surname is Zuo, and says he is an aide to the newly appointed Xuan–Da Governor-General!”

“What? He really said that?”

At those words, the drowsiness lingering in Jiang Xin vanished without a trace.

Head Lu was so anxious he was almost swearing an oath. “Absolutely true, my lord! That is exactly what he said. I thought such a matter was better believed than doubted, so I came in to report it to you.”

Hearing this, a layer of fine cold sweat immediately appeared on Jiang Xin’s forehead. For over a year now, because Lu Xiangsheng had been away suppressing bandits, the post of Xuan–Da Governor-General had remained vacant. There had long been rumors that the court would appoint a new governor-general to replace Lu Xiangsheng, but they were only rumors. Who would have thought that now someone would actually claim to be here on the orders of the new governor-general? The implications of this were enormous.

Jiang Xin took several deep breaths, forcibly calming himself, and then said to Head Lu, “Mm, you did well. Quickly bring him to the side hall in the rear courtyard and serve him tea. I will change clothes and come to see him at once!”

“Yes!”

Seeing that Jiang Xin did not blame him, Head Lu secretly breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew. His left hand brushed his sleeve, and when he felt the heavy lump of silver inside, his mood lifted again.

Soon after, Jiang Xin changed into casual clothes and went to the side hall, where he saw the man who claimed to be an aide to the new governor-general.

This man was about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, with a short beard and a slightly plump build. As soon as he met Jiang Xin, he bowed deeply and said, “Student Zuo Ting greets Lord Jiang!”

Jiang Xin did not waste words and asked bluntly, “You claim to be an aide to the newly appointed Xuan–Da Governor-General. Which lord is that, and what proof do you have?”

Zuo Ting smiled faintly, took a letter from his sleeve, and handed it over with both hands. “My lord will know once you read it.”

Jiang Xin opened the letter and immediately sucked in a cold breath, his face changing drastically. The contents of the letter were nothing extraordinary—just greetings and polite remarks, concluding with a statement that the bearer of the letter was a trusted aide with matters to discuss. But the signature nearly blinded Jiang Xin’s eyes, for at the end were three neat characters written in regular script:

Chen Xinjia.

Jiang Xin turned the letter over again and again. If it were not for the private seal of Chen Xinjia stamped upon it—something extremely difficult to forge—he would almost have ordered this fellow arrested. After quite some time, he placed the letter on the table and asked in confusion, “Wasn’t Lord Chen already dismissed from office by His Majesty? How has he been reinstated?”

“That is not something Lord Jiang needs to concern himself with,” Zuo Ting said, sitting beside him with a smug smile. “Lord Chen is blessed with good fortune and benefactors. He has already been re-employed by His Majesty.”

Jiang Xin took a deep breath and stared at Zuo Ting. “Lord Chen’s reinstatement is certainly a good thing. But I wonder—what business brings Mr. Zuo here to see me today?”

Zuo Ting lifted the teacup on the table and took a light sip. “Nothing else—only the matter of Hunyuan Prefecture’s taxes.”

“Taxes?”

At these words, an ominous feeling surged in Jiang Xin’s heart. He said, “Our prefecture’s taxes have always been paid on time these past two years, and the amounts submitted are among the highest in the Ming. Is there something amiss?”

In these two years, Hunyuan’s tax and grain submissions had not decreased—they were excessively high, astonishingly so. The Ministry of Revenue had issued repeated commendations to Jiang Xin for this reason, and without that, the Ministry of Personnel would not have given him top evaluations two years in a row. But both Jiang Xin and the court knew very well that these taxes had little to do with the prefectural government. They all came from the military farms reclaimed under Yue Yang’s command.

“Of course, nothing is amiss,” Zuo Ting said calmly. “However, both the court and my lord know that the taxes Hunyuan has submitted these past two years come from newly reclaimed farmland. Yet those lands are not under the yamen’s jurisdiction. The taxes are collected by personnel from the General’s Residence and then handed over to the court. Lord Jiang merely carries the title. I wonder—what thoughts does Lord Jiang have on this?”

“So what?” Jiang Xin snapped. As a prefect, he was immediately angered by Zuo Ting’s aggressive tone. Even if you are Chen Xinjia’s trusted aide, I am the prefect of Hunyuan. No matter how long the governor-general’s reach is, he cannot interfere with local administration.

Seeing the irritation on Jiang Xin’s face, Zuo Ting realized his attitude had gone too far and sought to ease the atmosphere. He smiled and said, “Of course, Lord Jiang’s capabilities are well known to the court. This student believes that once your term is complete, with your abilities, another promotion will surely be just around the corner.”