114: Chapter 114: Eunuch Takes Over Two Departments?
(Additional Chapter 10) 114: Chapter 114: Eunuch Takes Over Two Departments?
(Additional Chapter 10) “Therefore, this old official earnestly asks to retire and return to my hometown, hoping Your Majesty will grant his grace.”
After saying this, he thudded to the ground with a kowtow.
This immediately caused the young Emperor to rise from the Dragon Chair, striding quickly to the old man’s side, personally helping him up.
At the same time, his eyes filled with reluctance, he spoke:
“The Emperor has truly neglected, not realizing that just a few short years have passed, and the old Chief of Staff has already surpassed the age of sixty.
I still remember when I was young, how spirited and vigorous the old Chief of Staff was.
Time spares no one, unexpectedly even the old Chief of Staff has aged.
Alas, since the old Chief of Staff’s health is unsuitable and his mind to retire is set, I shall agree to it then.
But for this retirement of the old Chief of Staff, I must ensure it be glorious.”
After saying this, he swiftly walked back in front of his Dragon Chair, then his gaze swept across all the officials present, speaking with an undeniable tone:
“Bestow upon the wife of Chief of Staff Zhou the rank of Third Grade noble lady, and grant the old General a reward of ten thousand Gold!”
After these words, the old man knelt again, shouting “Thank you for Your Majesty’s great grace.”
As to what the old man truly thought in his heart, that was unknown.
In any case, Lin Yi watched in stunned amazement.
He felt as if he were watching an intense drama, the brilliance of it unspeakable.
Especially when the young Emperor mentioned granting ten thousand Gold, he could hardly keep his lips from twitching.
As for why such a reaction, it was because he understood what ‘ten thousand Gold’ actually meant – it wasn’t ten thousand taels of Gold.
The real meaning of ‘ten thousand Gold’ was just 10,000 Copper Coins.
1,000 Copper Coins make one tael of Silver, thus 10,000 Copper Coins are merely ten taels of Silver.
But after all, it was the Emperor’s reward, which naturally demanded to sound generous and dignified; one cannot simply say it was rewarding 10,000 Copper Coins – that would make the Emperor appear too stingy, doesn’t the Emperor care about his image?
Moreover, it was funny that, even though the Emperor was merely offering a mere ten taels of Silver, the recipient still had to express profound gratitude.
If not for Lin Yi feeling his self-cultivation was good, he probably would have burst out laughing.
However, right after rewarding the old man and receiving his thanks, the young Emperor’s gaze finally turned to another person, that is, Lu Guang.
“Lu, dear sir, what brings you here?”
The young Emperor only asked once, naturally playing dumb since yesterday it had already been decided to exchange positions in two ministries for one Minister of Revenue, so he clearly knew what Lu Guang implied.
Indeed, after this old man knelt down, he more or less repeated the same type of speech.
He expressed his loyalty to the court and his body and age’s unsuitability, simultaneously pleading to retire and return to his hometown.
Once again, the Emperor showed great sorrow and with a wave of his hand, just like before, he bestowed his wife the rank of Third Grade noble lady and granted him ten thousand Gold.
With this, the two positions were completely opened up for the young Emperor.
At this moment, the Fourth Prince turned his hopeful gaze towards the young Emperor.
Honestly, he was truly afraid the young Emperor would renege.
If the young Emperor suddenly ignored his plan and appointed an official to the Minister of Revenue himself, he would truly have no way to oppose him.
Especially after these events, the young Emperor’s power had grown significantly, one could almost say he was strong enough to rival him in influence.
After asking for opinions symbolically about the vacancy and the candidates for Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Industry and Ministry of Rites, since the two Chiefs of Staff had decided to resign,
naturally, the court officials, who had already been influenced by the Fourth Prince, wouldn’t stand out to object.
Even the close confidants of Sixth Prince received instructions to hold still and observe secretly.
Seeing such circumstances, the young Emperor appeared very distressed, and after pondering for a while, he then spoke up:
“Since none of my beloved subjects have recommended any candidates, I am indeed in a difficult position.
Ministry of Industry and Ministry of Rites are not the most powerful departments, but they cannot remain leaderless for a day.
How about this, from today, little Lin, accompany me to inspect and from within these two ministries, choose suitable candidates to report back to me, and then I will decide on the heads of these two ministries.”
Upon hearing this, Lin Yi promptly bowed deeply to the young Emperor and acknowledged the order.
Although this answer left everyone somewhat puzzled and equally surprised.
They never thought that, in the end, the young Emperor would entrust a small eunuch to manage these two departments.
Although it was merely said to select the candidates, anyone could understand the underlying implication.
After all, whoever ends up being chosen for these two departments needs the approval of this small eunuch.
This undoubtedly made this little eunuch the much-sought-after sweet filling of the departments.
After discussing this matter, the gaze of the young Emperor gradually turned cold, after sweeping a glance at all the ministers, he then lightly opened his mouth:
“Just yesterday, when all beloved subjects joined me to ascend the city walls for observing the condition of the refugees, a very displeasing situation occurred, a disdainful act against the imperial authority unfolded.”
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone instantly sharpened their focus, and they all knew what the young Emperor was referring to, judging from the vacant position of Minister of Revenue.
Today, Zhang Liang had disappeared from the court and could not stand here anymore.
As expected, the following words of the young Emperor directly pointed out the bold actions of Zhang Liang.
Not only so, but he also took out a pile of his charges.
Including the recent disaster relief effort, he blatantly defied the royal decree, with Lin Yi supposed to distribute good aid, he only used one thousand taels of Silver.
Such treasonous conduct certainly deserved execution.
However, in view of the many years of co-serving the court, Your Majesty did not impose a severe punishment but merely allowed him to retire and return home,
sufficiently demonstrating the vastness of Your Majesty’s merciful dragon grace.
After discussing this further, the young Emperor then entered into the main topic,
he then directed his gaze to the Fourth Prince, who was eagerly looking at himself.