Chapter 127 First Day in Office
The next day, after breakfast, someone came to take Jiang Yu's measurements to make his official robes. Actually, for low-ranking officials like the sixth-rank official, their robes weren't custom-made. But someone of Jiang Yu's background, let alone a sixth-rank official, even an eighth or ninth-rank official would have had their robes custom-made by the Imperial Clothing Bureau.
After taking the measurements, the woman from the clothing bureau smiled and said, "The sixth-rank official's uniform is green. The young lady has fair skin, so she will definitely look good in it."
As soon as she finished speaking, another woman accompanying her tugged at her arm and said with a smile, "She was saying that Miss is a woman of great talent... She is just as capable as any man, and she looks impressive no matter what she wears."
Jiang Yu smiled nonchalantly and asked Chunxue to see them out. On the way, Chunxue gave each of them two taels of silver as a tip.
The two women accepted the gifts with smiles. After leaving the Duke of Chu's mansion, one of the women said to the other, "You can't even say what you want to say. We're wearing official robes; how can you say they look good?"
Another woman frowned and said, "I just said it offhand, I think all women should be complimented on their looks."
Then she clicked her tongue twice, "The young ladies from wealthy families are different; they can even become officials."
"Oh dear, you think that having a good family background guarantees you can become an official? Let me tell you, I heard that this young lady did a test that was even harder than the one for the top scholar in the imperial examination, and she did it exceptionally well, which is how she became an official."
"That's amazing?"
What do you think?
"I never imagined that we women could be so amazing."
...
The biggest news in the capital right now is that the eldest daughter of the Duke of Chu's family is going to become an official. Everyone in the streets and alleys is talking about it, some saying it's good, and some saying it's bad.
Jiang Yu naturally paid no attention to the rumors circulating about her. She was busy receiving guests who came to congratulate her, while also getting to know the staff and functions of the Ministry of Revenue.
Time flies, and she will be taking office tomorrow. Lu Yifang seems even more nervous than her; she has run to Yunfeng Courtyard seven or eight times since this morning. Cheng Yunxiu is the same; she has been staying with Jiang Yu for the past few days.
At this moment, Lu Yifang held up the official uniform sent by the Clothing Bureau and had Jiang Yu try it on. Jiang Yu took it into the bedroom, and Lu Yifang said to Cheng Yunxiu, "They have to eat lunch in the government office when they are on duty. The food is different depending on the official rank. Zhu'er is a sixth-rank official, so I don't know if the food is good."
After hearing this, Cheng Yunxiu said, "If the food at the government office is not good, we can prepare it and send it over, right?"
Lu Yifang thought for a moment, "That's fine too. The Ministry of Revenue's office isn't far from home, so the food won't get cold if we send it there."
Jiang Yu came out after changing her clothes. Hearing the conversation between the two mothers, she looked helpless and said, "It's not good for me to be different from others as soon as I take office."
“That’s true, they’ll ostracize you then,” Cheng Yunxiu said.
Lu Yifang looked embarrassed, but Jiang Yu smiled and stretched out her arms to show them her official robes, saying, "It shouldn't be bad, don't worry."
"Let's eat it for two days first." Lu Yifang and Cheng Yunxiu began to look at her official robes with sparkling eyes. Cheng Yunxiu reached out and carefully touched them. "So this is the material of the official robes. It's really nice."
Tears welled up in Lu Yifang's eyes. She knew how difficult it was for Jiang Yu to wear this official uniform, and how many hardships he would have to endure in the future. However, she quickly wiped away her tears and said with a smile, "So majestic."
Jiang Yu stood in front of the mirror and looked at herself. The official robes were quite aesthetically pleasing, with wide sleeves, a narrow waist, and an exquisitely crafted belt. Of course, if someone were overweight, their waist wouldn't be that narrow.
Working as a high-ranking official is no easier than the 996 work schedule; it's all about starting work at dawn and finishing at dusk. That is, they start work between 5 and 7 AM and finish between 5 and 7 PM. If they need to attend court, they have to get up even earlier, around 1 or 2 PM. Of course, Jiang Yu's current rank isn't high enough to attend court.
The next day, Jiang Yu ate breakfast at 2:45 AM and was escorted to the gate of the mansion by Lu Yifang and Jiang Chengye before heading to the Ministry of Revenue.
Yes, Jiang Chengye saw her to the door. Lately, he seemed to be trying to be a good husband and father, following Lu Yifang around all day and often saying a few words of concern to Jiang Yu. Although he felt awkward saying them, he still forced himself to say them.
Jiang Yu didn't care much about this. As long as he didn't cause trouble, he could do whatever he wanted. Of course, he couldn't upset Lu Yifang either.
At 4:45 AM, Jiang Yu's sedan chair arrived at the Ministry of Personnel. Jiang Yu had timed this carefully—neither too early nor too late—so she wouldn't draw too much attention. However, as a woman taking office, and on her first day in office at that, even with the calculated timing, she would still attract considerable attention.
From the moment she stepped out of the sedan chair, Jiang Yu felt many eyes on her. She ignored them and continued walking inside, nodding slightly to anyone she encountered along the way, while trying to guess which official in the Ministry of Revenue they were.
She now had a basic understanding of the key officials in the Ministry of Revenue. Whether in modern or ancient times, working in any organization requires navigating interpersonal relationships. And in ancient times, in the intricate web of connections in the capital, even a nobody could potentially influence a powerful figure.
On her first day in office, Jiang Yu naturally went through the onboarding process and then listened to her superiors' instructions. She went to the Household Registration Department and handed over her official documents. The Household Registration Department was responsible for managing household registrations and also handled the onboarding and offboarding of officials from the Ministry of Revenue.
"Please sit down, Lord Jiang. It will be done in a moment. Quickly serve Lord Jiang some tea." Su Chengyi, the Assistant Director of the Ministry of Revenue, smiled and invited Jiang Yu to sit down. Then he took out the relevant documents, made a record of them, and asked Jiang Yu to sign them.
The Assistant Director of the Ministry of Revenue was a sixth-rank official, half a rank lower than Jiang Yu.
Su Chengyi, 35 years old, was from a collateral branch of the Qingshan Earl's family. A scholar who had passed the imperial examinations, he was recommended by the Qingshan Earl to work in the Ministry of Revenue. Although she was from the Qingshan Earl's family, the other party showed no intention of making things difficult for her and smiled throughout the process. Jiang Yu naturally smiled throughout as well, and cooperated very well to complete the onboarding procedures smoothly.
Just as things were settled, a man in his twenties, who looked like an attendant, came over, bowed to Jiang Yu, and said, "Lord Jiang, the Minister invites you."
Jiang Yu smiled and bid farewell to Su Chengyi, then followed the attendant to the study of Tang Boyang, the Minister of Revenue. Upon entering, Jiang Yu bowed to Tang Boyang, who was seated behind his desk, saying, "Minister Tang."
Tang Boyang, in his fifties, had a square face and a serious expression. Hearing Jiang Yu's voice, he looked up, grunted, and said, "Sit down."
Jiang Yu walked to a chair and sat down properly. The attendant who brought her served tea and then left, while Tang Boyang continued to look down at official documents, showing no intention of paying any attention to Jiang Yu.
Jiang Yu understood that this was a way of putting her in a difficult position. She came from the Duke of Chu's family and her official position was bestowed by the Emperor himself, so the show of force couldn't be too intense or conspicuous, but by leaving her in a cold shoulder, no one could say anything.
However, if she were a spoiled brat who couldn't stand such cold treatment and dared to take advantage of the Minister, she would naturally suffer the consequences, and might even be fired on her very first day in office.
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