MLMD -Chapter 278 The Tree Longs for Calm, but the Wind Will Not Cease

“Within reach?” Jiang Xin sneered and said calmly, “I’m afraid the day within reach is the day I lose my post and am dismissed from office.”

Having weathered the official world for so many years, Jiang Xin had seen more schemes and intrigues than he could count. In his eyes, Zuo Ting’s words were no more than something meant to fool a three-year-old. What a joke. Those newly reclaimed farmlands had been opened up through the hard labor of Yue Yang leading hundreds of thousands of refugees. Calling them Yue Yang’s lifeline would not be an exaggeration. If Jiang Xin dared to touch even a single finger of those lands, Yue Yang would definitely fight him to the death. Did Chen Xinjia really think he, Jiang Xin, had only just come out into the world yesterday?

“Hahaha… Why does Lord Jiang speak in such a way?” Zuo Ting laughed. “As the saying goes, under heaven, nothing is not the emperor’s land. Anything within the territory of the Great Ming belongs to His Majesty. Although those wastelands were reclaimed under the organization of the Zhen’guo Gen—ah, now he should be called the Feng’guo General—although those lands were reclaimed by the Feng’guo General organizing refugees, in the final analysis they still belong to the Great Ming and to the emperor. Now that the court wishes to reclaim the taxes from these lands, it is only proper and justified. Wouldn’t you agree, my lord?”

“Heh heh… What Master Zuo says makes sense,” Jiang Xin replied with a cold smile, “but my abilities are limited, and I simply lack the strength to carry this out. Please ask Lord Chen to seek out someone more capable for this matter.”

At this moment, what Jiang Xin felt was no longer displeasure but outright anger. This Chen Xinjia—he hadn’t even taken office yet and already wanted to use him as a spear. Did he really take Jiang Xin for a fool? Yue Yang was not someone easy to deal with. If Jiang Xin foolishly went to Yue Yang and said he wanted to bring the taxes from those lands back under the court’s control, it would already count as good temper on Yue Yang’s part if he didn’t draw his sword on the spot and chop him in two.

Seeing the dark expression on Jiang Xin’s face, Zuo Ting knew very well that the man sitting opposite him was an old fox who had spent half his life wrestling in officialdom. If he didn’t produce something of real weight, there was no way the other side would pay him any heed.

After thinking for a moment, Zuo Ting smiled again. “This junior also knows that this matter is indeed rather abrupt for Lord Jiang, but it concerns the very foundation of the Great Ming. Lord Chen has no choice but to adopt this course. As for Lord Yue, he will just have to suffer a bit of grievance.”

Hearing this, Jiang Xin almost burst out laughing. He didn’t know whether this Zuo Ting was too naïve or simply too stupid—such words wouldn’t fool even a three-year-old, yet he dared to use them on him. By this logic, the court should have confiscated all the land of every landlord and gentry in the Great Ming. Why target Yue Yang alone? Wasn’t it simply because a newly appointed official wanted to curry favor with Chongzhen? Jiang Xin could easily imagine it: if Chen Xinjia, upon taking office, could hand over two million—no, even four or five million—dan of grain to the court, then his position as Governor-General of Xuan–Da would be unshakable. But did he really think Yue Yang’s advantage was so easy to seize?

Just as Jiang Xin was sneering inwardly, Zuo Ting spoke again. “Of course, Lord Jiang may not wish to get involved in this trouble—after all, less trouble is better than more.”

“So you know that, do you?” Jiang Xin was still sneering inwardly when Zuo Ting continued, “But does my lord truly believe that only Lord Chen is behind this matter?”

“Oh?” Jiang Xin was slightly startled. “What does Master Zuo mean by that?”

“Of course not,” Zuo Ting said smugly. “Does my lord know that this time, besides Lord Chen taking up the post of Governor-General of Xuan–Da, the supervising eunuch of Xuan–Da is also being replaced?”

“The supervising eunuch of Xuan–Da is being replaced as well?” Jiang Xin’s heart skipped a beat, and he asked urgently, “May I ask who the new supervising eunuch is?”

Seeing the flash of anxiety that crossed Jiang Xin’s face, Zuo Ting snorted inwardly. So much for your supposed abilities—aren’t you just another fence-sitter?

Rocking his head, Zuo Ting said, “Lord Jiang would never guess it. The new supervising eunuch of Shanxi is none other than Gao Qiqian, Eunuch Gao, formerly the supervising eunuch of the Liaodong Garrison.”

“What… is this true?” This time, Jiang Xin could no longer remain calm. If it were only Chen Xinjia coming to Shanxi, perhaps Yue Yang could afford to ignore him. But if a permanently stationed supervising eunuch were added to Shanxi, that would be a different matter altogether. In that case, among Shanxi’s three great powers—the provincial governor, the governor-general, and the supervising eunuch—two would already be standing on the opposite side. Could Yue Yang, a mere brigadier general, withstand such enormous pressure?

“Of course it’s true,” Zuo Ting finally couldn’t help but laugh smugly. “Once Governor-General Chen and Eunuch Gao join forces, what matter in Shanxi would be impossible to accomplish? Forget reclaiming a bit of land—even stripping certain people of their posts and investigating them wouldn’t be difficult at all, would it?”

Jiang Xin fell silent in thought. The shock this news brought him was simply too great. Chen Xinjia had been reinstated and was even replacing Lu Xiangsheng as Governor-General of Xuan–Da, and now even Gao Qiqian had been sent to Shanxi. Could it be that His Majesty truly intended to move against Yue Yang?

As someone immersed in officialdom, Jiang Xin’s political sensitivity was naturally keen. Faced with such a strongly targeted arrangement, alarm bells immediately rang in his mind. He realized at once that Chongzhen was preparing to act against Yue Yang.

“Since the emperor has already decided to strike, should he, as a subordinate official, take this opportunity to add insult to injury?”

True to form as a standard official, Jiang Xin made his decision within just a few breaths.

“May I ask Master Zuo, what does Lord Chen require this subordinate to do?”

Zuo Ting smiled. He knew that today’s matter was settled…

Hunyuan Prefecture was as lively as ever. Yamen runners and constables still patrolled the streets lazily, and many commoners were busy scraping out a living. But to those within official circles, subtle changes were keenly felt.

Starting a few days ago, the usually indolent prefectural magistrate—no one knew what medicine he had taken—had suddenly become diligent, showing up every morning to handle affairs in the main hall of the yamen. Even the long-standing rule of knocking off work at noon had changed. In the afternoons these days, he gave up his favorite operas, climbed into his sedan chair, and, accompanied by a few yamen runners, went out to inspect the newly reclaimed farmlands around Hunyuan Prefecture, returning only late at night.

Jiang Xin’s abnormal behavior sparked much speculation among the officials. But no matter how they guessed, Jiang Xin continued as usual, going out of the city every day to wander about. After a while, everyone grew accustomed to it and thought nothing of it, assuming their prefectural lord had simply grown restless after too much quiet.

By a small fish pond, Yue Yang sat on a stone bench with a fishing rod laid out before him. He sat there quietly, eyes fixed on the surface of the water. Behind him stood Jiang He, the deputy director of the Mountain Division, silently at attention.

After a long while, Yue Yang asked, “So, this Zuo Ting has been visiting the prefects of various places these past few days?”

“Exactly,” Jiang He replied respectfully. “Over the past month or so, Zuo Ting has not only visited Jiang Xin, the prefect of Hunyuan, and Zheng Fakui, the prefect of Yingzhou, but has also gone through all the prefects around our Northern Route one by one.”

“The tree longs for calm, but the wind will not cease,” Yue Yang sighed softly. “This Chen Xinjia really can’t wait any longer, can he?”