Chapter 17 means that Lin Yan not only didn't fall, but also...
The door to the duty room creaked open, and the stench made Lin Yan instinctively take a half step back.
The interior was dimly lit, with only a few windows letting in a sliver of sunlight that barely outlined human figures.
Seven or eight people in wrinkled official robes were crammed into the small space, some sitting and some standing. They all looked haggard with sunken eyes, like a flock of quails wilted by the rain. When they heard the door open, they all raised their heads and focused their dull and dazed eyes on the backlit figure at the door.
As Lin Yan stepped inside, his brand-new fifth-rank scarlet official robe, in the dimly lit room, was like a red-hot iron plunged into stagnant water, instantly stimulating everyone's senses.
"Lord Lin?" Wang Jian, the person in charge, was the first to react, his voice dry and trembling.
"Master Lin!"
"Lord Lin, you've arrived!"
Like a pond where stones have been thrown in, the deathly silence was instantly shattered.
The old clerk, who had been slumped on the ground, tried to get up and pay his respects, but his legs went numb and he fell back down. The young clerk, who had been huddled in the corner, stared wide-eyed like copper bells. Wang Jian scrambled to the front, forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace, his back bent so low he almost broke over.
All eyes were fixed on Lin Yan, their gazes filled with fear, ingratiation, and the fanaticism of someone desperately grasping at the last straw.
With Wu Haimin gone and Zheng Jing gone, those of them, imprisoned in the palace and cut off from all communication, were like lambs to the slaughter.
Lin Yan, who appeared at this moment, was wearing a fifth-rank scarlet robe. He was calm and composed, with Li Lianshun, the adopted son of Li Defu, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, following behind him!
what does that mean?
This means that Lin Yan not only didn't fall from grace, but was also promoted!
This also means that he has won the Emperor's favor and is the only person who can speak to His Majesty now!
"Lord Lin! You've finally arrived!" Wang Jian's voice was choked with sobs, his words trembling with excitement. "Your humble servants... your humble servants have been on tenterhooks day and night, fearing..."
"Stop." Lin Yan didn't want to use the same tactics he used on Wu Haimin on himself.
His gaze swept calmly across the fearful and uneasy faces. In the Ministry of Rites, which of these people, openly or secretly, hadn't followed Wu Haimin in trampling on him a few times? Which of them hadn't pushed difficult documents onto his desk? Their current groveling and begging appearance only made him feel ridiculous and disgusted.
Doesn't your cheek get sore from trying so hard to flatter?
If only I had known this would happen, I would have shirked responsibility and shirked my duties less back then, and things wouldn't have come to this.
Now you're scared? Too late.
Lin Yan suppressed the turmoil in his heart, cleared his throat, and said in a businesslike tone, "I have come to see you all on His Majesty's orders."
"Your Majesty is wise! Your Majesty is benevolent!" The crowd kowtowed again, tears streaming down their faces, as if Xiao Che had sent Lin Yan to give them gold ingots.
Lin Yan was too lazy to watch their performance and turned his attention to the two eunuchs that Li Lianshun had brought.
Together they lifted a heavy wooden crate and placed it on the ground with a thud, the dust it kicked up making everyone cough.
Lin Yan walked over and lifted the lid of the box.
Inside, there were piles of files, documents, writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones.
"His Majesty said that all of you colleagues have been resting in the palace for many days, and I presume you are all well-rested." Lin Yan paused as he spoke, wanting to laugh at himself; Xiao Che was too difficult to talk nonsense about.
Apart from him, who else comes to the palace without suffering?
"The official duties of the Ministry of Rites are piling up, and we can't just leave them to waste forever. As officials of the Ministry of Rites, although we are temporarily residing here, we still receive our salaries and our duties remain. How can we just sit idly by and do nothing?" Lin Yan casually picked up the top file. "His Majesty has already sent someone to fetch everyone's official duties."
Everyone: "..."
Lin Yan opened the file, glanced at it, and tossed it to Wang Jian: "Master Wang, this is yours."
His gaze landed precisely on Wang Jian, whose face turned pale.
"And this one, a preliminary compilation and verification of the list of auspicious offerings from various places for the Autumn Sacrifice, Li Lingshi, is this yours?" Lin Yan picked up another copy.
"This is yours, the verification of the increase in land ownership of local temples and monasteries after the issuance of ordination certificates for monks and Taoist priests, Registrar Zhao?"
He went through the dishes one by one, and with each dish he ordered, the person whose dish was ordered turned paler and their forehead became covered in more cold sweat.
They never imagined that Lin Yan, who appeared weak, pitiful, and subservient in front of Wu Haimin, had this other side to her.
“These are all official duties that should have been completed by you all.” Lin Yan gently tossed the dossier back into the box, making a dull thud. “I don’t care how Wu Haimin was when he was alive. Now that I am the Director of the Ministry of Rites, the rules must be followed by me.”
He looked around at the pale faces and said slowly, "From today onwards, everyone should clarify and complete their respective duties here. There will be enough paper and pens, and enough space. Once you are done, the eunuchs will come to collect them."
A deathly silence.
The feigned gratitude and flattery from just moments before were instantly replaced by immense despair and disbelief.
Are they locked up in the palace and forced to work? In this wretched place?
Wang Jian's lips trembled, his face turning from white to pale. He mustered the greatest courage he had ever had and took a small step forward, his voice shaking uncontrollably: "Lord Lin... I dare to ask... may His Majesty... when will you allow us to leave the palace?"
This question echoed everyone's thoughts, and countless gazes, like searchlights, focused intently on Lin Yan's face, filled with hope.
Lin Yan met Wang Jian's gaze, her face expressionless.
"His Majesty will make his own decision." His voice was as calm as if he were stating the weather. "Instead of worrying about when to leave the palace, you should think about how to do your official duties well. If you are in a position but do not fulfill your responsibilities, you will only be heading towards death if you leave the palace."
That last sentence, though seemingly casual, struck like a heavy hammer blow into everyone's hearts.
He holds the position but fails to fulfill his duties.
His Majesty is going to settle scores with them for their past negligence and dereliction of duty!
Wang Jian's legs went weak, and he staggered back a step, almost collapsing to the ground. The others were even more pale.
Without exception, all of these people were thinking about whether they could protect their families after being purged by the emperor.
Lin Yan looked at their grief-stricken expressions and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Judging from his interactions with Xiao Che over the past few days, Xiao Che is not a cruel ruler who would kill people at the drop of a hat, but he is also not someone who can tolerate cunning and deceit.
If these people hadn't been so negligent in their work, they wouldn't have been imprisoned here by Xiao Che, their minds tormented.
"Everyone, take care of yourselves." Lin Yan stopped looking at the group of distraught people and turned to Li Lianshun, nodding: "Eunuch Li, please arrange for someone to deliver food and water to them on time every day, and replenish pens, ink and paper promptly if needed."
"Don't worry, Lord Lin, I understand," Li Lianshun replied respectfully.
Lin Yan glanced at the dimly lit duty room one last time before stepping out.
The heavy wooden door slammed shut behind him, shutting out the deathly despair inside and the suffocating, foul air.
Outside the gate, the bright autumn sun shone on the palace road, where golden bricks paved the ground, eaves were painted red, and the air was filled with the crisp scent of grass and trees and the faint fragrance of agarwood.
Lin Yan stood in the sunlight, took a deep breath of the clean, cool air, and felt as if his lungs had been marinated in the stale air from the duty room.
If the prison cell is already so unbearable, one can only imagine what it must be like for Wu Haimin and his father, the Minister of Personnel, in prison.
Lin Yan shook his head and walked towards Qingyi Pavilion. Ahead was his luxurious "workstation" filled with the scent of pears, covered with a Persian carpet, and with the imperial cat Aman waiting for him.
The contrast between the two is like heaven and hell.
As Lin Yan walked, his pace unconsciously slowed down.
A thought, uncontrollably emerging from the depths of my heart, grew clearer and clearer.
Was Xiao Che being a little too nice to him?
A note from the author:
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