Chapter 119 A Single Pound to Clear the Board (Part 2): "Sister, where's my fifth brother-in-law?" "He went into the palace the day before yesterday and hasn't come out."...
"Sister, where is my fifth brother-in-law?"
"He went into the palace the day before yesterday and hasn't come out since."
Before entering the palace, Yu Lang instructed Shen Wanqing to summon Shen Wanlan and Shen Wenyuan to the mansion, so that she would have trustworthy people at hand at all times if anything happened to her.
Both of them came yesterday, but this morning Shen Wenyuan was called away by Baoshan. Only Shen Wanlan sneaked into Shen Wanqing's courtyard early in the morning.
Originally, she wanted to be an eyesore to her fifth brother-in-law and annoy him, but she didn't expect that there would only be Shen Wanqing and Yi An in the East Courtyard so early. She didn't see Lord Yu, who had been doing this for several years without fail, accompanying his grandmother to breakfast every morning before going out.
"It's been three days and they still haven't come out. Did the Emperor not agree to my brother-in-law's request for a thorough investigation?"
"It's hard to say. Yesterday evening, Yuqing Palace sent a eunuch, but he didn't explain why I didn't leave the palace. He just told me not to worry."
"That means neither the Crown Prince nor the Emperor has made up their minds."
Shen Wanlan took Yi'an from Shen Wanqing's arms, wanting to hold him high and play with the child. However, Yi'an hadn't seen his father for two days and was still angry. He looked at his aunt with a serious expression and said, "Auntie, An'er is unhappy and doesn't want to play with you."
In a few months, Yi'an will be two years old. After his birthday, he will be three years old in the traditional Chinese age reckoning. Yu Lang and Shen Wanqing have already agreed that after this year, they will find a tutor for the boy next spring.
After turning one year old and starting to speak, Yi'an changed every day. Now he speaks fluently and is so smart that it's rare to see him.
Little Xihan was in a bad mood. He turned his little bottom around and reached out to his wet nurse. Soon, the wet nurse took him to the side room to play by himself, leaving Shen Wanlan to sigh at how clever the boy was while comforting Shen Wanqing, who clearly seemed to be in a bad mood.
"Fifth sister, since the Crown Prince can still send someone out of the palace to deliver a message, there must be nothing serious on your brother-in-law's side."
Embezzlement cases resurface every few years, and by now, most of the cases that needed to be investigated have been investigated openly, and no one related to our family has been found guilty. The few who were implicated did not commit serious offenses; if they were truly investigated, they would at most lose their positions.
The only job our family gets directly from the Imperial Household Department is the horse caravan. Don't worry about that; with my father watching over things, there won't be any major problems."
The Shen family's caravan also got involved in purchasing materials for several princes' and noble families' mansions. However, because of Shen Wanqing's involvement, the Shen family's business was not large in scale and was not particularly noticeable.
The main business involved transporting jade and oil paints from the Northwest to the capital, while also taking on the easy and profitable trades of leather and spices.
With their son-in-law working as a physician in the Ministry of Works, anyone could take the opportunity to make a fortune, but the Shen family would certainly not sabotage them at this time.
Fortunately, the Shen family had its own caravan. After securing procurement contracts from the Imperial Household Department and the Ministry of Works, they led their caravan westward out of Beijing. Several merchants who wanted to cooperate with the Shen family failed to catch up with the caravan that Shen Hongji had taken.
"Don't be careless. Some things can't be controlled just because you don't want them. The demand for jade, pigments, and fragrances is there, and you need to be an expert to avoid being fooled. With such huge profits in front of you, it's normal for some people to be greedy."
People will do anything for a life-threatening business, but nobody will do anything that loses money. As long as greed takes hold, sometimes you don't need a high-ranking official or much power. Even a lowly manager in a caravan can pull off a scheme and get away with something if he has the wrong idea.
“So Shen Feng and Chun Xian went with you this time when you left the capital. Chun Xian is even more thoughtful than you, Fifth Sister. She can tell if you're guilty just by looking at her. With her and Shen Feng there, you should be able to rest assured, right?”
Even after Chunxian married Shenfeng, she did not sever ties with the manor. Shenfeng opened a shop in the capital with the help of a caravan, and Chunxian even took the initiative to invest in it for Shen Wanqing.
Although Shen Feng was a member of the Shen family, Chunxian still regarded herself as Shen Wanqing's maid. Ordinary people who open shops and do business always need to find a backer for themselves, and she trusted Shen Wanqing more than the Shen family.
Shen Wanqing gladly accepted the shares offered to her and even lent Si Dezi to manage her accounts for three months.
Firstly, by helping Chunqian get the shop back on track, and secondly, by having someone familiar with Si Dezi spread the word, so that outsiders would know that he and the Hesheli family were behind the shop, no one would cause trouble.
"No wonder I haven't seen her come to visit me at the manor recently. Why didn't she tell me about such an important matter as leaving the capital with the caravan?"
“It’s not easy being a caravan driver. Chunqian is afraid to tell you that you can’t bear to let her go.”
"I wouldn't. Our families aren't the kind of prominent families that have been in the capital for many years. We've gotten to where we are today entirely by supporting and helping each other."
“If she doesn’t want to make this trip, I will try to persuade her.”
The more Yu Lang investigates, the more he gets involved, and now it's unlikely he'll stop on his own. Most people don't want him to investigate, while a smaller portion are secretly stirring things up, hoping Yu Lang will cause a major uproar.
Shen Wanlan was specially left behind by Shen Wanqing. She is meticulous and bold. Since she came to the capital with Shen Hongji, she has gone from being the subject of gossip to becoming the famous Taoist priestess Lan, which is known to many people. It only took her a few years.
She was well-read and could write poetry. Over the years, she had traveled all over the country and seen a lot. She always appeared in front of people as a Taoist nun. After several times, she made a name for herself in the inner quarters of the capital.
As long as Shen Wanlan was in the capital, those who liked to be cultured would invite her to poetry gatherings every now and then, those who liked to pray to gods and Buddhas would like to listen to her preach, and two people who liked martial arts would pester her every day to become her disciples.
Yu Lang was building residences for so many princes and nobles, and Shen Wanqing guessed that this year would be a turbulent one even before the work began. With Yu Lang backing her up outside, things were alright, but Shen Wanqing still took the initiative to ask Shen Wanlan not to leave the capital this year.
If she stays behind, she can act as the general liaison and coordinator for the caravan and the Xu family's boat guild. If anything really happens, she can also help me find solutions in the inner courtyard of the capital.
When the time comes, it might be necessary to plead for her or smooth things over, and Shen Wanlan's intervention would be more effective than my own. After all, even the ladies of the Mingzhu family had sent invitations to Shen Wanlan, inviting her to a banquet to compose poems—a privilege I hadn't received.
"Fifth Sister, your mind is in turmoil."
Shen Wanlan knew she didn't need to say anything more to comfort Shen Wanqing, since the truth was right there, and Shen Wanqing could understand what she was saying.
"Yes, my mind is in turmoil."
Things are easiest when they're just talking, but now that things have progressed step by step, Shen Wanqing is actually a little scared.
"Sister, don't be afraid. The Shi family has already dealt with all the nephews and nieces who needed to be punished. Even if the Emperor investigates thoroughly later, it won't be a death sentence. Officials in Fuzhou and Jiangnan have already been sent letters. The smart ones will handle the aftermath themselves, but those who don't..."
Shen Wanlan sighed and shook her head, then said to Shen Wanqing with a hint of helplessness, "Then it's not something that the Shen family, the Shi family, or even the Crown Prince can protect."
Yu Lang and Shen Wanqing had a son named Yi An. Within two years, they received nearly ten thousand taels of silver in congratulatory gifts under various pretexts, not to mention all sorts of gold longevity locks, anklets, bracelets, and other things the child could wear.
His Majesty was willing to implement benevolent policies, and although he did try to control corruption and the gradual decline in officialdom, he was clearly not as strict as he had been in the past.
The Crown Prince has broken away from the original historical trajectory and is steadily moving forward. Now, there is a legitimate eldest prince in Yuqing Palace. Even if Kangxi still has his illness and is suspicious of the Crown Prince, it will not be so easy for him to shake Yuqing Palace and Yinreng, the heir apparent he personally chose.
Officials are all incredibly shrewd, and they have already analyzed and planned the situation hundreds or even thousands of times over, even though Shen Wanqing could sense it.
They were all, to varying degrees, siding with the Crown Prince or making arrangements in advance, and Yu Lang was the best way to do so. There was nothing wrong with that, but their established habits did not align with what the Crown Prince wanted. Rather than letting them become too powerful to control later, it was better to sort things out as soon as possible.
"I understand everything you're saying, but..."
It was all too fast, even though Yulang and I had walked this path hand in hand. But ever since Yulang became the Director of the Construction Department, the plot had sped off like a runaway horse with its brakes failed.
If all the corrupt officials inside and outside the court were arrested and executed now, wouldn't that push the timeline forward by twenty or thirty years? If that happened, then there would be no chance for the Fourth Prince.
As a staunch supporter of the Crown Prince's faction, Shen Wanqing naturally didn't want Yongzheng to still exist in this world. But an instinctive sense of crisis still made her feel that things were moving too fast, though she couldn't quite put her finger on what was too fast or grasp it.
However, the good thing about this world is that it is never short of smart people, or rather, the current moment is the greatest gift God has given to Shen Wanqing.
Shen Wanqing sensed something was amiss but couldn't quite put her finger on it, while Emperor Kangxi in the palace could explain it clearly. Moreover, he wasn't old yet, and thanks to the groundwork laid over the past few years, he had passed the period when he was most suspicious of the Crown Prince.
Five years earlier, if the Crown Prince had dared to bring up such a matter in front of him, regardless of right or wrong, Kangxi would have immediately suspected the Crown Prince of plotting to seize power. At that point, the emperor and crown prince would have been trapped in a vicious cycle of mutual distrust, and court officials forming cliques and engaging in infighting.
If this matter had been brought up ten to fifteen years later, the emperor, already nearing the end of his life, would only have been thinking about how to bring his life to a perfect close. He certainly wouldn't have done something like this, causing trouble for his officials and squandering their wealth.
Only now, at the age of forty-five, in the twilight of his prime, after receiving the results of Yulang's investigation, Kangxi embarked on a completely different path.
Yesterday morning, Yinreng took Yulang to the Qianqing Palace. Yulang wrote down the findings in a memorial and submitted it along with the memorial that Yinreng had written overnight. And that was the end of it.
The two entered the main hall of the Qianqing Palace together. Yu Lang was left outside the warm pavilion, while only the Crown Prince went inside. Yu Lang didn't know what they talked about, only that the Crown Prince didn't come out until almost noon.
Yinreng's expression wasn't exactly pleasant, but it wasn't particularly bad either.
The memorial Yu Lang submitted was like a grand military mobilization by the Khan, listing names from members of the imperial family to nobles, then to the Imperial Household Department and the Six Ministries. On the next page, there was a long list of names of local officials who had been implicated in this case.
Even after all this, Yulang's memorial still had to smooth things over with his wildly unrestrained writing, saying that this was only half the result of the investigation, and that he was young and reckless and didn't know how to investigate further or which path to take. He could only ask His Majesty for instructions on what to do next.
Yinreng felt that he had been led astray by Yulang. Yesterday, when Yulang showed him this memorial at Yuqing Palace, he actually felt that this matter was not particularly serious. These corrupt and audacious officials should indeed be dealt with.
He himself was unwilling to protect the so-called "Crown Prince faction," and took this opportunity to deal with those who were disobedient and who were doing evil under his banner.
For the emperor, this was a case of cutting off his own wings. After his brothers left the palace to establish their own residences, he, as the crown prince with fewer loyal ministers, might be able to gain some freedom and real power.
But he and Yulang were only thinking about this side of the story, and neither of them considered the other. Kangxi stared at the memorials for a long time without speaking. Did someone like him not know what his officials were doing?
Why not just ignore it? Why let it go? Do you really think that he has already done all the battles he can fight and the achievements he can create, and that from now on he only wants to be a wise and benevolent ruler, and doesn't want to care about any other annoying or troublesome things?
It was simply a matter of time; Yulang's desire for mass slaughter stemmed from his focus on the common people and the various factions that wanted to drag him down. Yinreng, on the other hand, only saw his position as crown prince, whether Kangxi was wary of him, and the fact that the empire couldn't be completely devoured by these parasites.
But none of them thought about, or rather, they thought about but didn't figure out what to do after these officials and lackeys were dealt with in large numbers.
The officials who were demoted or beheaded should be replaced by suitable replacements. Where can so many people be found to fill these positions in such a short time? Most of those waiting to be appointed in the capital have no experience in any particular region. Putting them into office so hastily might cause more harm than the corrupt officials who were replaced.
Being a local official isn't easy. Yesterday, Kangxi didn't say whether to investigate the matter or not; he only asked Yinreng to draft a list based on the memorial submitted by Yulang. If all these people are punished according to this list, who will fill the vacancies later?
This was not meant to be harsh or difficult for Yinreng. For the first time, Kangxi truly entrusted power to Yinreng, allowing him to try to handle the issue like an emperor.
There's no problem cracking down on cronyism and corruption, but first you need to figure out who will take over their positions after they die or are demoted. Don't let the country be stable with these corrupt officials around, only to become unstable without them; that would be a joke.
After returning to Yuqing Palace with the memorial, Yinreng turned around and dumped the matter on Yulang. "You've investigated the matter so thoroughly. I can't compile this list. If you're so capable, then you compile it."
Yu Lang, of course, couldn't come up with a solution either; in fact, he was sweating profusely. The Emperor hadn't said he wouldn't investigate, but he was subtly telling him and the Crown Prince that their methods wouldn't work. What exactly did the Emperor want to achieve with this? Thinking about it carefully, it became somewhat frightening.
There's no turning back once the arrow is released; no matter how scared Yulang was, it was useless. The next day, a eunuch from the Qianqing Palace came to the Yuqing Palace to deliver an imperial edict summoning the Crown Prince and Yulang, the Minister of Works.
Yinreng and Yulang, who had stayed up most of the night working on that list, were not in good spirits. The study was littered with scraps of paper, and no matter how many officials they had written and drawn on, they could not fill the gap.
As dawn broke, Yinreng sighed, got up, and walked to the window. Looking at Yulang, whose face was as pale as paper, he said, "Look, Father Emperor is still the most capable, isn't he? In His Majesty's eyes, we two are probably just two greenhorns, who are good at doing things but not at doing them."
The two men, their backs drooping, entered the study of the Qianqing Palace, only to find several more people inside. The Fourth, Fifth, and Seventh Princes were all there, their expressions identically bewildered. Recently, the Yuqing Palace and Yulang had been causing quite a stir outside, and they dared not get involved in anything related to it.
"The third prince has been sent by me to revise books. We will not need him for the time being. We will talk about their affairs when the eldest prince returns from the grasslands."
“All three of you, except for the fourth one, have your maternal relatives who are embezzling and extorting money for you outside the palace. The money that was supposed to build your residences went into the pockets of your uncles, cousins, and even maternal uncles.”
“Although the Uya family didn’t get involved, the Tong family did make arrangements for the fourth prince. So none of you princes and masters can escape this situation.”
Kangxi got straight to the point, taking over from Yulang and starting to call out names one by one. Only after he finished and saw his sons' trembling expressions did he continue speaking.
"The worst thing you can do in a corruption case is to uncover hundreds or thousands of cases just by seizing one clue. Yulang has not done a good job in this matter."
"However, I have seen your sincerity as a subject. It would be hard to find someone like you in the whole capital who dares to investigate so thoroughly, even if it is a thankless task."
Kangxi spoke with heavy breathing, startling Yulang so much that his face turned pale. Meanwhile, the Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, couldn't hide his satisfaction in his eyes and face. Investigate! It should be investigated! A thorough crackdown will make them all obedient!
"Officials, generals, and merchants in the Southwest who participated in the dispute with local chieftains over timber, and who subsequently engaged in fraudulent practices such as substituting timber for other materials, were brought back to the capital and handed over to the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review for punishment according to the law."
"The court is increasingly rife with factionalism and corruption. This problem is not just a matter in the southwest. The root of the problem lies in the capital, right beside me."
"Currently, the Ministry of Justice, the Censorate, the Court of Judicial Review, the Imperial Clan Court, and the Imperial Household Department are jointly supervising this case. The Minister of the Imperial Household Department, Lingpu, the Minister of the Imperial Household Department, Gerfen, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Algishan, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, Nalan Kuixu, Prince Jian, Yabu, and Prince An's son, Marhun, have all been suspended from their duties and returned to their residences to reflect on their actions. We will discuss this matter again when the case has been resolved."
"Yulang will still be in charge of building the Prince's and Beile's residences. Now that you've started this, you'll naturally have to finish it. If any of the Beile princes or Beile feel that their residences are not good enough, I will hold you responsible."
The old fox is still the wisest. Yu Lang, the Crown Prince, and even the Crown Princess were thinking of using this incident to clear away the dead branches, but now His Majesty has taken action and cut down the whole tree.
Lingpu, Gerfen, and Aljishan are the Crown Prince's men; Nalan Kuixu is Mingzhu's son; Prince Jian and Prince An's heirs represent the ministers of the Council of State, which is the power of the imperial clan. Now, they are being dragged out one by one and dealt with together. No one can try to sacrifice a pawn to save the king.
Yu Lang couldn't help but glance in the direction of the Crown Prince, and found that the Crown Prince's back was not tense, as if he was not particularly surprised by the result.
Since the master can endure it, Yulang can naturally endure it too. Since the servants below cannot be moved all at once, they will only be moved at the beginning and the end.
With the high-ranking officials responsible for catching corrupt officials punished, the lower-ranking officials will naturally behave themselves. Even if all the officials who handled this case were replaced, it wouldn't disrupt public morale. As long as the beginning and end are managed well, the middle group will indeed behave themselves.
Having figured it out, Yu Lang felt relieved, but how could Kangxi possibly let this troublemaking wolf cub off the hook? Before Yu Lang could even kneel down to thank the emperor for saving his job, he heard Kangxi speak again from above.
"Reading ten thousand books is important, but traveling ten thousand miles is even more important. You few are not yet qualified to travel ten thousand miles, and I dare not let you go out and cause trouble. But staying in the Imperial Study to study is not enough either. From today onwards, you will go to the Six Ministries to learn and gain experience."
"When Yinzhen and Yinyou enter the Ministry of Works, you will be in charge of your own residences and also observe how the people under you perform their duties. Don't let them fool you in the future."
"Yinqi has joined the Ministry of Justice. You are steady and reliable. You will be in charge of handling this case with the Ministry of Justice."
"The term is three days. Every three days I will see a memorial from you explaining what happened and what you did during those three days. If something goes wrong and you fail to notice, you will lose your title as a prince."
The blow struck, and no one escaped. Back home from the palace, Yu Lang lay limp on Shen Wanqing's lap, panting heavily, unable to speak for a long time.
The monkey wanted to use the tiger's power to remove obstacles and burdens, but now the tiger has seized its weakness and dealt with it one by one. Yu Lang couldn't help but cover his eyes and sigh, "Fortunately, His Majesty didn't really intend to kill."
After hearing Yu Lang's account upon returning home, Shen Wanqing felt a sense of clarity and understanding. She realized that what she had initially thought was wrong was precisely this. Ultimately, she had never truly been in a high position; her thinking was neither comprehensive nor thorough.
Kangxi truly struck at the heart of the matter, using this opportunity not only to severely punish the leaders of the court officials who had formed factions, but also to deal with the imperial family members and the princes in charge of state affairs. He was truly shrewd.
The only thing that felt a little off was the arrangement of sending the prince to the Six Ministries for training. She thought about it and couldn't help but ask again.
"So, starting tomorrow, the Fourth Prince and the Seventh Prince will be going to the Ministry of Works?"
"Um……"
This is truly remarkable. Through his own self-rescue, Yu Lang has risen step by step, resulting in a significant change in the power dynamics surrounding the Crown Prince.
I have a feeling that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the throne that originally belonged to the Fourth Prince is in jeopardy. Now, the Fourth Prince is even coming to the Ministry of Works as an intern to experience life there. The more I think about it, the stranger it seems; it's all too complicated!
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Kangxi: Forget about withered branches, nobody's getting away.
Yu Da Gou: I was so scared! [crying][crying][crying]
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