Chapter 311 Did they switch allegiance?
A few days ago in court, Imperial Censor Ding Shaojie reported that the carriage windows of a young woman from overseas participating in the imperial concubine selection were embroidered with silver bamboo patterns, representing Prince Rui. This action was suspected of sowing discord between Prince Rui and the Emperor, and the Emperor immediately ordered him to be dragged out.
Jiang Yu suspected that someone had learned about Prince Rui's weapons research and wanted to use this to undermine the prince and hinder his research. Regardless of how foolish this move was, if the emperor had even the slightest suspicion of Prince Rui, or if the emperor were arrogant and incompetent, Prince Rui might already be in trouble.
Afterwards, Jiang Yu ordered an investigation into Imperial Censor Ding Shaojie. Prince Rui and the weapons he developed were their foundation, and they could not afford to lose them.
"Ding Shaojie is thirty-eight years old. He comes from the Ding family, a scholarly family in Huaiyang. His grandfather was a great Confucian scholar in the area, and his father was also very famous in Huaiyang. The Ding family's Huaiyang Academy is one of the best in the entire Daqian area."
The commander of the secret guards reported: "Ding Shaojie is also a brilliant young man. He passed the county-level examination at the age of ten, the provincial-level examination at the age of eighteen, and the metropolitan-level examination in the same year, where he won the top spot in the second class."
With his achievements, he could easily have entered the Hanlin Academy through some maneuvering, but at the time there was a vacancy for the position of Vice Prefect of Huaiyang, which he filled. Later, he was promoted to Assistant Magistrate of Huaiyang and then Prefect of Huaiyang, before being transferred to the capital as an Imperial Censor at the beginning of last year.
Jiang Yu nodded after listening. This man's resume was clearly part of a family plan. The Ding family was a prominent clan in Huaiyang, and Ding Shaojie's excellent performance in the imperial examinations meant his promotion in Huaiyang would be unimpeded. Once he had accumulated enough experience in Huaiyang, he could be transferred to the capital.
However, if Ding Shaojie had entered the Hanlin Academy from the beginning, and given that the Ding family's connections weren't in the capital, his promotion wouldn't have been so easy. Moreover, his position as an official in Huaiyang would have brought significant benefits to the family. It can be said that the Ding family made very sound moves step by step.
but.....
"Whose connections did Ding Shaojie use to get transferred to Beijing?" Jiang Yu asked.
Commander of the secret guards: "Princess Wenxin."
Jiang Yu was taken aback; she hadn't expected the matter to involve Princess Wenxin. That princess, who had never married and kept male concubines, was said to be like Prince Rui, not involved in court affairs!
“Go on,” Jiang Yu said.
The commander of the secret guards said, "Princess Wenxin had a favorite male concubine who came from Huaiyang. The Ding family in Huaiyang provided great convenience to that concubine's family. At the end of the year before last, when the Left Censor retired and a position became vacant, Princess Wenxin sent someone to deliver a message to the Ministry of Personnel, and the following year Ding Shaojie was transferred to the position of Censor-in-Chief. However, Princess Wenxin never paid any attention to Ding Shaojie after that."
Jiang Yu frowned and pondered for a moment before saying, "So, Ding Shaojie has switched allegiance?"
"That should be true," said the commander of the secret guards.
"Is there any other information?" Jiang Yu asked again.
The commander of the secret guards said, "Ding Shaojie has two legitimate sons and one legitimate daughter, as well as three illegitimate sons and three illegitimate daughters. His second legitimate son used to play with the fifth young master of the Marquis of Anyuan's mansion."
After a moment of silence, Jiang Yu asked, "Is there anything else?"
"Old Master Ding and Ding Shaojie's father have already arrived in the capital. Ding Shaojie was dismissed from his post, and the Ding family must have come to pull strings. That's all the information I've gathered."
“It would be strange if the Ding family didn’t send anyone at this time,” Jiang Yu said. “Continue the investigation.”
"Yes," the commander of the secret guards replied, then hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't. Jiang Yu, seeing this, said, "Just say what you have to say."
"Yes," the commander of the secret guards said. "I think we can have Young Master Lu investigate Ding Shaojie's second son."
Jiang Yu pondered for a moment, then said, "I'll consider it."
"Lord Duke." At this moment, the steward's voice came from outside. Jiang Yu asked him to come in. The steward hesitated for a moment when he saw that the commander of the secret guards was also there.
"Speak," Jiang Yu said.
"Yes," the steward said. "Ding Shaojie's father, Ding Nanshu, met with Princess Wenxin's lover. When the two parted, Ding Nanshu looked very unhappy. This old servant guesses that Ding Nanshu did not get the result he wanted."
Jiang Yu hummed in agreement, thought for a moment, and then said to the steward, "Go to the Marquis of Anyuan's residence and have Lu Xiaowu come to see me."
"yes."
The steward and the commander of the secret guards came out of the study together. The commander of the secret guards couldn't help but laugh and said, "Even the little playboy of the Marquis of Anyuan's mansion has a day when he can do great things."
The steward didn't understand what he meant, but the commander of the secret guards said, "You'll find out soon enough."
After saying that, he left. The steward frowned and set off for the Marquis of Anyuan's residence. When he arrived, Lu Xiaowu was talking with the Marquis of Anyuan's wife. Upon hearing someone report that Jiang Yu wanted to see him, Lu Xiaowu subconsciously said, "I didn't do anything wrong."
The room fell silent for a moment, then Lady Anyuan chuckled. Lu Xiaowu realized he had overreacted, and his face flushed red. But it wasn't his fault! Ever since he took up his post in the Secretariat, the first thing his elders said to him was, "Work hard and listen to your cousin."
“No one said you did anything wrong,” Lady Anyuan said with a smile. “It must be your cousin who wants to assign you something to do. Hurry up and go, don’t delay your cousin’s business.”
Lu Xiaowu stood up, and Lady Anyuan Marquis instructed him again: "Be careful when you do things."
"Understood." Lu Xiaowu replied and walked out. When she saw Butler Li, she asked, "What did my cousin want to see me about?"
"This servant doesn't know," Steward Li said with a smile.
Lu Xiaowu felt uneasy, and his expression naturally turned sour. He flicked his sleeve and walked out. Butler Li knew his temperament and didn't mind, following behind with a smile.
Upon arriving at Jiang Yu's study in the Duke of Chu's mansion, Lu Xiaowu peeked inside from the doorway. Seeing Jiang Yu writing with his head down, he hesitated whether to go in. Then he heard Jiang Yu's voice, "Hurry up and come in."
Lu Xiaowu could only step inside, walk to the table, and bow to Jiang Yu, saying, "Cousin."
Jiang Yu didn't look up, simply said "Sit down," and continued writing. Lu Xiaowu sat in the chair at the desk, watching Jiang Yu write, not daring to say a word.
"Wait a moment, I'll be done in a minute."
Upon hearing Jiang Yu's words, Lu Xiaowu hummed in response, then turned to look around the study. The study, easily over a hundred square meters, had bookshelves on two walls, filled with books. Even the desk where Jiang Yu wrote was piled high with books.
Lu Xiaowu scratched his head, remembering what Jiang Yu had told him: to be her husband, one must be able to study. He couldn't help but shrink back.
At this moment, Jiang Yu put down her pen, and Lu Xiaowu immediately sat up straight. Jiang Yu couldn't help but laugh, "What are you so nervous about?"
"No! I'm not nervous," Lu Xiaowu said immediately.
Jiang Yu smiled again but didn't expose him. She asked, "I heard you get along very well with the second son of Imperial Censor Ding Shaojie."
Lu Xiaowu was taken aback by the question and paused for a moment before replying, "I haven't played with them for a long time, really. I go to the government office to work every day now."
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