Chapter 586 - 588: Respective Schemes

Chapter 586: Chapter 588: Respective Schemes

Hua Shunming received Ancient Wen Heng’s memorial. He scanned it briefly, saw it was just about routine matters, and set it aside. He then opened the letter tucked inside.

Thanks to that couple, Hua Shunming’s private coffers had grown more in the last two years than they had even when his father was conquering the world.

This was also another matter he was wrestling with, one that would soon affect his purse strings.

He read the entire letter with a frown, letting out a long sigh only after he finished.

"Le San, prepare the brush and ink."

Le San gestured for the little eunuch beside him to quickly grind the ink.

Hua Shunming quickly finished writing a letter and handed it to Le San. "Have someone deliver this at once. Don’t delay."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Surprise flashed in Le San’s eyes as he glanced at the signature, but he didn’t falter. He quickly left to carry out the order.

Hua Shunming pinched the bridge of his nose. ’It’s time for some of those below me to give up their posts.’

’They’ve been occupying their positions for years without doing any real work. My patience has reached its limit.’

In the following days at court, everyone noticed that the Holy Emperor had begun to constantly find fault.

Yesterday, it was the auspicious characters chosen by the Astronomical Bureau that were supposedly subpar.

Today, it was the Ministry of Revenue’s accounts that were unclear.

In any case, anyone caught in a mistake was sure to be punished.

Everyone was speculating whether the Holy Emperor was once again trying to find leverage over them, aiming to make them suffer losses in both personnel and fortune.

"Mr. Zhou, Mr. Xu, has anything been amiss with either of you recently?"

After court adjourned, Chen Zishu cornered the two of them.

Xu Zhiwen replied, "How should I know? For me, this is a disaster that’s come out of nowhere."

"Choosing titles for the noble ladies of the harem isn’t my decision alone. I found so many auspicious characters; if the Holy Emperor wasn’t satisfied, we could have just chosen new ones."

This baseless fury made him sense a hint of danger.

Zhou Shicong also looked completely baffled. "I had people check and recheck those ledgers. They were only off by a thousandth of a tael. I truly don’t understand how that can be considered a mistake."

Chen Zishu felt like his head was about to explode. He had only just sent his eldest granddaughter, Chen Zitong, away for a political marriage. If he had to lose his second granddaughter as well, his family would be all but finished.

Everyone knew that among the high-born young ladies being raised in the palace, his granddaughter was the most beautiful.

If the Holy Emperor were to take her into his harem, he would have no complaints and would even be proud.

But the path of a political marriage was never an easy one. What’s more, he would have to provide a lavish dowry. His heart clenched just thinking about it.

"Mr. Chen," Xu Zhiwen said, looking at him thoughtfully, "you were always able to get news from Lu City before. Have you heard anything new?"

’This old fox claims to have a nephew earning military merit on the frontier, but he’s never been willing to tell us who it is.’

’Over the years, he provided the most information, so we all tolerated him. But he seems to have lost his touch these past two years. We’ve even been learning things from the Holy Emperor himself.’

Chen Zishu shook his head, though inwardly he was frustrated.

’That Li Ji is useless,’ he thought. ’The intelligence he’s sent back over the years has become increasingly unreliable.’

’Take the sea trade, for example. It was a giant meat pie sitting right in front of him, and he didn’t even know enough to rush in and take a bite.’

’If I had managed to invest early, I wouldn’t be worrying about my household’s finances now.’

"Lu City is now under the tight control of Zhou Shixiong and Ancient Wen Heng," he said. "My nephew is too busy trying to lay low; how would he dare stick his neck out?"

He couldn’t very well criticize his own subordinate’s incompetence in front of outsiders. The blame had to be shifted elsewhere.

"The three-year term of office is about to expire. Surely you have some plans, Mr. Chen?" Xu Zhiwen had his own arrangements in mind, but that didn’t stop him from probing.

Chen Zishu sighed. "Alas, the sons and nephews of my household are a disappointment. I don’t have a single one worthy of recommendation. This time, I’m afraid it’s all up to you, Mr. Xu. It seems your esteemed son’s political record these past two years has been quite good. I imagine he could make a strong bid for a position."

Xu Zhiwen replied humbly, "That boy of mine still needs more training. Besides, it’s not up to me to decide. I don’t even know if Mr. Yu, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, has included him on his list."

"That’s not something you can ask us. As it happens, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel is heading this way. Why don’t you ask him?" Chen Zishu then stepped aside, ready to watch the show unfold.

Seeing the man walk right up to them while Xu Zhiwen remained silent, Chen Zishu quickly spoke for him. "Mr. Yu, a moment please. Mr. Xu has something to ask you."

Yu Ligao knew what this was about; far too many people had been seeking him out lately. He stopped and turned to look at them. "Gentlemen, what can I do for you?"

He didn’t believe for a second that Chen Zishu wasn’t scheming as well, so he addressed all three of them at once.

"Mr. Xu, didn’t you have something to ask Mr. Yu?" Chen Zishu said, then continued without waiting for an answer. "Mr. Yu, Mr. Xu’s eldest son has had excellent performance reviews these past few years. We were wondering where he might be transferred this year."

Xu Zhiwen shot a glare at Chen Zishu but tacitly approved of the question.

’It would have been awkward for me to get involved,’ he thought, ’but having it asked so bluntly will at least give me a better idea of where things stand.’

’Being asked in front of so many people, surely Yu Ligao has to reveal something.’

Yu Ligao smiled and said, "I’m afraid I truly don’t know."

"How can that be? In previous years, didn’t all the transfers pass through your hands?" Chen Zishu clearly didn’t believe him.

"In previous years, didn’t you all come to an agreement amongst yourselves before having me finalize the decision?"

"Things have been quieter for me these past two years. Major transfers are no longer something I can decide on my own."

"I have already compiled a list of all those with good performance reviews and sent it to the Holy Emperor’s desk."

"Then is my son on that list?" Xu Zhiwen asked, dropping all pretense.

"I’m getting old, and my memory isn’t what it used to be. Why don’t you go ask the Holy Emperor?" Yu Ligao said, spreading his hands in a shameless display.

"If there’s nothing else, I’ll be on my way. With this major personnel shift, I have endless work to do."

Without waiting for a reaction, he turned and walked away.

"That old coot is getting more arrogant by the day," Xu Zhiwen said through gritted teeth. "Mr. Zhou, you and General Zhou are from the same clan. Have you heard anything?"

Zhou Shicong retorted, "Then you’re asking the wrong person, Mr. Xu. Although we share the surname Zhou, our family lines are more than five generations apart. General Zhou wouldn’t give me the time of day."

After saying his piece, Zhou Shicong also turned and left.

’As if Xu Zhiwen and the others don’t know about the grudge between the older generations of the Zhou Family,’ he fumed internally.

’Our cadet branch deeply offended their main branch—Zhou Shixiong’s branch—back in the day.’

’Even though we’re from the same clan, they refuse to acknowledge it.’

’Haven’t they seen how the Empress has never given us a pleasant look in all these years, let alone shown any favor to the women of our household?’

’My own young daughter is in the harem, and she gets punished more often than the high-born daughters of other families.’

’They don’t treat us like family at all; they torment us as if we were enemies.’

"My, Mr. Zhou is certainly temperamental," Xu Zhiwen said with an awkward laugh. He hadn’t expected Zhou Shicong to be so dismissive.

’With a connection to Empress Zhou, you’d think he’d be doing everything possible to foster a good relationship, not putting on airs like this.’

Chen Zishu said, "I just remembered I have some other business to attend to, so I won’t keep you." No one was a fool. Xu Zhiwen was just trying to stir up trouble, using the old grudge of the Zhou Family’s older generation to warn Zhou Shicong not to get involved.