Chapter 119 Imperial Decree
The palace gates are not to be knocked on casually.
All memorials from provinces, both inside and outside the capital, had to be circulated through the Office of Transmission before reaching the Imperial Palace. The only exception was urgent military intelligence; otherwise, all memorials would be considered a violation of prohibitions and taboos.
In other words, even if the Pingliang magistrate's report was true, he would still have to admit his guilt and be punished—and he might very well lose his official position.
From another perspective, he was essentially using his official position as collateral to prove that what he said was true.
Because it happened in full view of everyone, the Crown Princess received the news very quickly. However, she could only listen to it. There were countless civil and military officials in the main hall. These important national affairs were for them to handle.
The Crown Princess slowly sat back down: "The people of Pingliang are going to suffer."
These were words befitting her status. Palace attendants rushed to comfort her, but the Crown Princess waved her hand and said, "Since there is a disaster in the area, it is not appropriate for me to be extravagant here. Remove everything that can be removed. Also, tell the Imperial Kitchen to reduce the banquet by half."
The reduced banquet was held quietly, and Xu Rong immediately took his leave after the banquet ended.
The Crown Princess did not try to stop her, but simply nodded: "Go ahead. You'll probably be busy by now."
Xu Rong hurriedly left the palace and boarded her carriage, eager to inform Lin Xin of the news as soon as possible. However, when she returned to the Yongjing Marquis's residence, only Madam Wei remained. She nervously greeted her, saying, "Someone from the palace suddenly came and summoned Xiao Bao. They just left. The Marquis hasn't returned yet either. Rong'er, what happened?"
Hearing this, Xu Rong was a little surprised but then calmed down: "It's nothing, he's probably being summoned for questioning."
At this point in time, this is the only possibility.
However, Lin Xin's journey took much longer than she had anticipated—Lin Xin's assessment of the situation in Pingliang was based solely on information gathered from various sources; he himself had never been there. Even if the palace had questions for him, they shouldn't have taken this long.
When she thought of the Crown Princess's last words, a thought stirred within her.
A ruler as dignified as the Crown Princess would never utter a word without purpose.
She waited until the end of the day, and finally Lin Xin returned.
His expression was—it was hard to tell whether he was happy or unhappy.
Of course, the fact that Pingliang was confirmed to have suffered a disaster meant that he had turned his life around, but it was not a good thing for the people. So it was normal that he couldn't show any joy. However, his expression was not just heavy, but also contained a sense of seriousness and reluctance.
Xu Rong ushered him into the house and asked, "What's wrong?"
"The Magistrate of Pingliang County—"
“I know, he slapped the Pingliang prefect in the face.” Xu Rong sat down across from him at the kang table and poured him a cup of tea—he must have been in the palace all day and hadn’t had any tea. “The two of them have completely different stories. I think the prefect’s story is more credible.”
Lin Xin took the teacup and nodded: "His Majesty said so too. The cabinet suspects that the prefect of Pingliang was probably negligent in his duties at first and failed to report the disaster in time. Later, he was caught in a dilemma and dared not speak up."
Drought is a natural disaster. Once it's reported, disaster relief should be provided. Local officials don't have to take the blame for the natural disaster. If they do a good job and achieve outstanding results, they might even get promoted. But delaying the reporting of a drought is a different matter.
Concealing information is an even more serious crime.
"Therefore, the magistrate of Pingliang had to defy his superiors and undermine him. If he continued to be stubborn, it wouldn't just be a matter of whether he could keep his official position; the Emperor might even have them beheaded to vent the anger of the people of Pingliang."
This is the time to sabotage—
"It seems unnecessary for him to have someone knock on the palace gates, does it?"
Lin Xin looked up: "Yes."
The disaster was urgent, but it wasn't a military emergency. Sending a letter to the Ministry of Justice through normal channels, even if it took three to five days to process, was a manageable delay compared to the risks of knocking on the palace gates.
The magistrate of Pingliang insisted on choosing the latter.
It's true that he slapped his superior, but at the same time, he also upset the emperor.
"Was it unintentional, or—?"
Lin Xin shook his head: "I don't know. That official was just following orders. He said the county magistrate instructed him to report the disaster situation to the emperor as quickly as possible. When the elders asked him about the current situation in Pingliang, he could tell them some things. But when asked about anything else, he was completely clueless."
Xu Rong thought for a moment: "Has His Majesty also summoned Hanlin Academician Yue to the palace?"
Lin Xin shook his head again: "No." Then he pursed his lips and, before Xu Rong could ask again, took the initiative to say, "His Majesty summoned me not to ask about the disaster in Pingliang, but simply to have me listen in."
His expression grew serious, overshadowing his other expressions. "Later, His Majesty appointed Zhou Qianxian, the Left Vice Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate, as the chief envoy and me as the deputy envoy to tour Pingliang."
He had been gone for so long, and given what the Crown Princess had said, Xu Rong had a premonition and nodded slowly.
But before Lin Xin could finish speaking, his next sentence truly surprised her: "After the ministers took their leave, His Majesty kept me behind alone and told me that I was young and inexperienced in government affairs, and that disaster relief was a matter of great importance, which should be handled by Vice Minister Zhou. After I arrived in the local area, I should just listen and observe more. In addition, there are other secret matters."
"What?"
Lin Xin uttered eight words: "Monitor Prince Qing and investigate his rebellious activities."
"..."
Xu Rong pressed down on the table, subconsciously lowering his voice: "Is Prince Qing going to rebel? Has His Majesty already received intelligence?"
Lin Xin shook his head again: "No. There are inspectors and garrison eunuchs in Pingliang, but neither has reported anything."
"Then why—" Xu Rong hadn't finished speaking when he realized what was going on, "The prefect of Pingliang made a mistake, and the emperor doesn't trust them."
As a local official, the prefect of Pingliang also had the responsibility of supervising the princes within his jurisdiction. Although he could not actually supervise them, his basic function was to monitor whether the princes were behaving themselves, whether there were any signs of rebellion, and to report back to the court in a timely manner.
However, the prefect of Pingliang exposed his incompetence and recklessness in dealing with the drought.
If someone can conceal the extent of drought, they might be able to conceal other things as well.
If the prefect of Pingliang is like this, then other local officials are not necessarily reliable either.
“His Majesty has never truly let go of what happened back then,” Xu Rong said in a low voice. “This suspicion of his may have been brewing for a long time.”
So a tiny spark ignited a blaze.
Rather than saying that the secret investigation was sent out because of the drought, it would be more accurate to say that the drought was used as a cover to send people there.
“Then your mission is far more important and dangerous than that of the Imperial Envoy.” Xu Rong’s fingers twitched nervously. “Regardless of whether Prince Qing intends to rebel, the consequences of you approaching him are unpredictable.”
It's almost like asking a tiger for its skin.
But the imperial decree had already been issued, and there was no way to disobey it.
Lin Xin's face darkened: "This trip is a long-distance business trip, it will take at least three to five months."
It wasn't that on-site disaster relief would take that long, but rather that he and Zhou Qianxian were taking some disaster relief supplies with them, and since there were no waterways available, they could only transport them by land. It was already late April—and they still might not be able to set off immediately. The supplies would have to wait for the Ministry of Revenue to prepare them, and by the time they reached Pingliang, it would probably be June at the earliest.
By then, the summer harvest had already passed, and time was very tight. If we prepared according to the timeframe Lin Xin had previously suggested in his letter, it would be just right.
Then, they would provide disaster relief in Pingliang, arrest some officials, and investigate Prince Qing—all of this was expected to go smoothly in March and May.
"I haven't been able to see you for so long." Lin Xin's face was even more somber and cold, a stark contrast to his complaints.
Xu Rong: "..."
She was both amused and exasperated: "Is this what you don't want?"
Lin Xin looked at her as if it were the most natural thing in the world and said, "Mm."
"..." Xu Rong suppressed a laugh, "Official business is important, and imperial envoys cannot bring their families, so you'll just have to bear with it."
Lin Xin knew this was the truth, but it was irreversible, which is why he was quite disgruntled.
As for Prince Qing, even if he is in danger, he is thousands of miles away, so there is no use in worrying about him now.
Xu Rong was usually quite rational, but after analyzing everything, he hadn't thought of this part yet. However, after this commotion, the sorrow of parting welled up in his heart. He looked at the increasingly handsome face opposite him and thought that three to five months was a bit long.
I'm also reluctant to part with him.
It's been less than two months since they really started to get better.
Lin Xin seemed to sense it, and finally smiled slightly, then opened his arms to her.
Xu Rong found him annoying, but she still sat down next to him and asked him to hug her.
"I'll be back as soon as possible."
"Don't rush, official business is the priority, and safety comes first."
Lin Xin nodded to her, clearly understanding the relative importance of things, and calmed himself down.
"When you arrive, Bai Quanru will still be in Prince Qing's mansion. He is a clever man, and I will give you his letter as proof. He should be able to help you. If he has already been redeemed, then I will ask him what he knows and try to have someone send it to you."
Xu Rong thought for a moment, then said again.
They talked for a while longer, and by dinner time, the whole family knew the news.
Lin Ding immediately put down his chopsticks, not even bothering to finish his meal. He summoned all his retainers, intending to arrange for them to accompany Lin Xin on his journey to protect him. Still feeling it wasn't enough, he then made arrangements to send someone to the Duke of Ying's mansion to borrow more men.
Xu Rong stopped him, saying, "My lord, it's so late. It's not good to disturb the old master. Let's talk about it tomorrow."
The official decree will be issued tomorrow.
All parties began to take action, both officially and privately. There was also an interlude in the middle: the emperor did not forget Yue Hanlin and specially ordered him to be transferred from the Hanlin Academy to the Left Spring Palace of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices as the Left Tutor.
There wasn't much of a promotion in rank, but the Crown Prince's position was secure and unshakeable after the birth of the eldest grandson. Entering the Crown Prince's service at this time was a sure step from being sidelined to being in a prominent position.
Ding Hanlin teased him with a hint of envy, "Brother Zhongling, are you still planning to retire?"
Yue Hanlin, beaming with pride, flatly denied it: "What retirement? Who said that? I know nothing about it!"
We must not forget those who dug the well when we drink the water. All the disaster relief arrangements were made in full. When Lin Xin left Beijing with Vice Minister Zhou, he also came to see him off.
"This is a letter from me to my father. Please pass it on to the top scholar. He is getting on in years and has some influence in the area. If you encounter any problems, he can't be of much help, but he can certainly offer some guidance and advice."
Lin Xin accepted the gift and thanked him. The early summer breeze felt hot on his face. He glanced at the city behind him one last time, then turned and left the capital.
**
Time passes both quickly and slowly.
The quick ones are those where a day passes by in a daze, without you even knowing what you did; the slow ones are those where a long day seems to fly by, but when you look at the calendar on your desk, it's only been ten days or so.
"Has the young master arrived in Pingliang yet?" Xin Cheng asked curiously.
Xu Rong shook his head: "It shouldn't be yet."
Her tone was somewhat languid, which made me feel rather bored.
Habit is a terrible thing. He had only been in her life for a short time, yet she had already gotten used to his warmth. Now, with no one beside her at night, she felt empty and had to toss and turn for a long time before she could fall asleep.
Two days later, some fresh news finally came in.
"Grandma, my brother has sent people back!" Hongliu ran in to report.
Xu Rong straightened up from the kang (a heated brick bed): "Let him in."
Before her brother Hongliu left, she had instructed him to find out some information about Pingliang and send it back. At that time, the drought situation in Pingliang was still unclear. It's no longer necessary now, but it wouldn't hurt to hear about it.
In addition, she also wanted to know how Hongliu's brother's job was going and whether it went smoothly.
The curtain was lifted, and the boy who had been sent back greeted them from outside, his face contorted with grief. His first words were about this: "Grandma, something terrible has happened! Steward Xiao Liu has been detained by the Prince Qing's mansion!"
Xu Rong: "..."
Hongliu exclaimed in shock: "What? Why are you detaining my brother?!"
"The head steward of Prince Qing's mansion said that Steward Xiao Liu is clever and well-mannered, and Prince Qing has taken a liking to him and wants to keep him in the household."
Xu Rong: "..."
Xu Rong was furious: What do you mean? You can't teach your servants yourself? You're a prince, are you just taking advantage of her?!
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