76 Chapter 76
◎Clean and honest administration◎
To facilitate communication, Xie Mingzhuo gave Lin Fan the method of delivering the letter, and the place outside the palace referred to was Huanghuafang.
Lin Fan has always been sensible and would not easily send her a message unless it was an emergency.
She had to go there in person.
But Gao Quan and Lu Lian are still waiting to report on their work.
After a moment's thought, she ordered, "Ayu, prepare a spacious carriage. Governor Gao, Censor Lu, we'll talk on the way."
They both said, “…”
The princess is really creative.
Xie Mingshuo was just about to check on the head of the Ministry of Revenue. He waved to Xie Mingzhuo and turned to leave.
Riding in the carriage with the princess, Gao Quan and Lu Lian didn't know what to do with their hands and feet, and they wished they could sit outside the curtain.
"No need to be so formal," Xie Mingzhuo said with a gentle smile, "Governor Gao will go first."
Gao Quan had already prepared a draft. He respectfully presented the memorial in his hand and spoke fluently, "I have captured a thousand rebels in Bishan. However, after investigation, I found that most of them were abducted and lured into the mountains. Only a few were criminals who had committed crimes and had gone into the mountains to avoid capture."
"Well, what are you going to do with nearly a thousand people?"
There is no doubt that they participated in the rebellion, but firstly, they did not do it voluntarily, and secondly, they did not formally rebel. Killing them all would be too cruel, but if they are not severely punished, more people will inevitably become disloyal.
"After investigation, it was found that most of them were from Henan. I think it would be better to let them repair the Yellow River in Henan. This would be a blessing for the elders of their hometown and a way to forgive their sins."
Don't underestimate the task of repairing the river. As a heavy corvee, it is no less terrible than exile and forced labor, and the number of casualties each year is shocking.
But this was something that had to be done, and the court could not come up with a better solution. If the river was not repaired, if the river flooded, there would be more casualties.
The hardships of river workers are something that not everyone can understand.
Xie Mingzhuo agreed with his suggestion.
Next, Lu Lian reported to Xie Mingzhuo all the findings from his investigation in Henan over the past few months.
After listening carefully, Xie Mingzhuo was very impressed by the meticulousness of his work. He took care of almost every aspect and was considered a talented person.
"Censor Lu, are you willing to go out and gain experience?"
Going to Henan to serve as the Censor-in-Chief was only Lu Lian's temporary position, and Xie Mingzhuo had more expectations for him than that.
Lu Lian certainly understood what she meant, and quickly said sincerely: "Thank you, Princess, for giving me the opportunity to gain experience. I will obey the arrangements of the court."
"good."
The carriage arrived at an empty alley. Gao Quan and Lu Lian were put down and respectfully watched the carriage go away.
"Brother Lu, maybe we can go back together." Gao Quan said with a deeper meaning.
After the Liang Wang case, there were vacancies for officials in Henan and Anlu, and the ministers in the court were well aware of the situation.
The princess's words were very clear. She wanted Lu Lian to fill a vacancy.
He previously served as a censor in Henan, so he probably won't be allowed to serve in Henan again.
He was just promoted to the seventh rank Censor a few months ago, so he probably won't be promoted again in the short term, so he can only be transferred horizontally.
The only vacant seventh-rank position in Anlu was the position of Anlu County Magistrate.
Although it is a lateral transfer, anyone with a discerning eye can see that as long as he does his job well, promotion in three years is a sure thing.
Gao Quan was also very happy when he thought that Anlu County under his jurisdiction would soon be welcoming a capable county magistrate.
"Thanks for the good words, Master Gao," Lu Lian said, bowing, "Please take care of me in the future."
Meng’s House in Huanghuafang.
When Xie Mingzhuo stepped into the yard and saw Song Qianqi, his eyes paused and then fell on Lin Fan who was standing beside him.
There was a hint of resentment in his eyes, but there was no anger or accusation of being "deceived".
The momentary feeling of guilt slowly dissipated, but a trace of remorse remained. She walked straight to him without hesitation or taking her eyes off his face.
Song Qianqi was stunned. He had just finished describing the princess's heroic demeanor to his friend for the third time when the real princess came over.
I even forgot to greet you for a moment.
Xie Mingzhuo didn't care about these empty formalities. He sat down next to Lin Fan and said straight to the point, "You will leave Beijing tomorrow. Lin Fan will be traveling with you. Please take good care of him."
"Ah?" Song Qianqi was surprised. "Why did Ah Fan want to go to Guizhou with me? No, do you really know his identity?!"
He jumped up in shock. What on earth was going on?
"Don't be nervous, sit down first." Xie Mingzhuo's eyes were gentle and calm, and he said directly, "I already know about the case ten years ago, and I intend to investigate it thoroughly."
Song Qianqi couldn't help but glance at Lin Fan.
"What are you looking at me for? Listen to what the princess has to say."
Song Qianqi: "..."
I knew you were brave when I was little, but I didn't expect you to be so brave. Not only did you explain your life story to the princess, you even dared to sit at the same table with her, and so close to her!
Xie Mingzhuo said slowly, "Ten years ago, your father was bedridden and unable to manage family affairs. Your brother was still young and inexperienced. Your second uncle was ambitious and attempted to join forces with outside forces to seek the position of chieftain, which indirectly caused the tragedy in Guiyang Prefecture."
It was this person who "testified" against Lin Yingjie's guilt.
"It was indeed my fault." Song Qianqi lowered his head in guilt. "After my father passed away, he became even more ruthless. My brother suffered several setbacks at his hands. Fortunately, my sister-in-law helped us and foiled his schemes. In the end, he was beheaded in front of the whole family."
But the damage has already happened, and no matter how many heads are chopped off, the victims can't come back.
"How much does your Song family know about the tragedy in Guiyang Prefecture?"
"My brother should know something, but he didn't tell me and asked me not to mention it outside." Song Qianqi understood what she meant. "You asked Ah Fan to go to Guizhou with me. Are you going to investigate this case in depth?"
"Would you like to?"
Song Qianqi didn't hesitate: "Of course I am willing, but is it too dangerous?"
He really didn't dare to agree easily to something that even his brother was so secretive about.
"I'm not afraid of danger." Lin Fan said, "Back then, apart from your father and brothers, few other people in the Song family had seen me. Ten years have passed, and my appearance has changed so much that no one can recognize me."
"Okay." Song Qianqi said straightforwardly, "I wanted to invite you to Guizhou before, and I even thought of a reasonable reason for you."
"What is it?"
"Just say you've fallen for a girl in the team and want to follow her to Guizhou."
Lin Fan hurriedly looked at Xie Mingzhuo: "I don't have it!"
"I know you don't have one." Xie Mingzhuo responded and turned to Song Qianqi, "Why don't you think of another one?"
Song Qianqi: There is something really wrong between you two!
He scratched his head and said, "This is the most suitable one. Others won't think too much about it."
"It's not appropriate," Lin Fan rejected it outright. "Princess, I do have an idea."
Xie Mingzhuo: "You say."
"Years ago, I was in Anlu and met a caravan manager. He often told others that he had found gold and silver while trading in Guizhou. Many ruffians from the caravan believed him and went to Guizhou together. We haven't heard from him since."
"Do you suspect the manager deliberately tricked people into becoming miners?" Xie Mingzhuo began to speculate, "Do you want to use the excuse of gold mining?"
After the reform of the chieftain system, the imperial court took over and developed many gold and silver mines in Guizhou, but the chieftains were unwilling to hand over the gold and silver, and must have kept some of the mines privately.
The sky is high and the road is long, and the court is unable to supervise.
The local chieftains are powerful, but their population is far smaller than that of the Central Plains. Mining requires manpower, so they can only trick people from the Central Plains to come over.
Song Qianqi's face flushed upon hearing this, and he hurriedly said, "Princess, please understand. After my Song family surrendered to the imperial court, we handed over all our mines to the court. We absolutely did not keep any of them for ourselves!"
Xie Mingzhuo: “…”
This kind of talk can only fool children.
Although the Shuidong Song family is indeed the most "docile" chieftain in Guizhou, everyone has selfish motives.
Whether there are any hidden mines is not within Xie Mingzhuo's consideration for the time being. Uncovering the secret of Guizhou is the top priority.
"Well, I trust you, Song." She calmed the young man down and then said, "The gold rush is a good excuse, but there are other chieftains in the team. If you were really taken there to mine, I would be worried."
Lin Fan really wanted to reply that he wouldn't really go mining, but when he heard her say that she was worried about him, his heart swelled and his face turned red.
"Then I'll... think of another way."
Song Qianqi interrupted quietly: "Actually, Ah Fan's excuse is not bad. I won't let him be dragged into mining."
"Okay." Xie Mingzhuo chuckled, "Then I'll have to trouble you to take care of me."
"He's my brother, too. It's only natural."
Only after the issue of Lin Fan leaving Beijing was resolved did Xie Mingzhuo bring up the urgent report.
Lin Fan's face suddenly darkened, and he said solemnly, "Princess, today Aqi invited me to the teahouse to listen to storytelling..."
He told Xie Mingzhuo everything he had seen and heard, and tried to be objective, not mentioning his own thoughts at all, for fear of influencing her judgment.
Xie Mingzhuo understood immediately and asked, "Do you think someone is using storytelling to mislead people?"
"It's both a way to deceive people and a way to make money." Lin Fan said, "There are a lot of people giving rewards, and the starting amount is five taels of silver. It's no problem to make hundreds of taels a day."
There are indeed countless wealthy families in the capital.
Xie Mingzhuo's thoughts shifted for a moment, then he smiled and said, "Thanks to your alertness, otherwise if the potential crisis had erupted, who knows how many people would have been killed or injured."
She thought of the Sun and Moon Sect she encountered in Jiangxi.
"Bewitched?" Song Qianqi finally reacted, "So you cut my hand and saved me?"
"Well, I suspect there's some mind-enchanting drug hidden in the tea or the candle."
"I'll have someone investigate secretly." Xie Mingzhuo said nothing more, looking at Song Qianqi, "Mr. Song will leave tomorrow morning, why don't you go back to Huitong Hall and pack your luggage first."
Song Qianqi immediately took his leave. When he reached the gate of the courtyard, he looked back for some unknown reason. His expression suddenly froze and he almost tripped over the threshold.
He staggered a few steps out of the yard, the scene he had just seen still lingering in his mind.
Princess Rong'an actually held Afan's hand!
Even if the customs in Guizhou and Beijing are different, a woman and a man holding hands indicates that their relationship is unusual, right?
I never expected that you would be such a Meng Fan!
There were only two people left in the yard.
"Stay for dinner tonight?" Lin Fan asked.
Xie Mingzhuo stared into his eyes, "Don't blame me?"
"Your identity is special, and it's safer and more secretive to act under an alias. Why should I blame you?" Lin Fan carefully held her hand, feeling the thin calluses on her fingertips, and felt a little distressed. "But you are a princess, why do you need to take such risks yourself?"
"Going out for experience, there are gains and losses."
"I..." Lin Fan mustered up his courage and suppressed the sourness that was spreading to his lips. "I heard before that Princess Rong'an once abducted the third place winner into the imperial examination. Is that true?"
Xie Mingzhuo: “…”
It had been so long since this happened that she had long forgotten about it. She never expected it to turn into a boomerang and hit her.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Lin Fan panicked. He didn't care whether he was jealous or not. He was just afraid that Her Royal Highness would think he was "jealous" and abandon him.
"I, I'm not questioning you. I just feel a little uncomfortable. I don't mean to interfere with your choice." He said this in a particularly insincere way, and even his eyes were dim.
"I've never liked him," Xie Mingzhuo suddenly leaned forward, his tone gentle and serious, "I abducted him into the mansion only because he offended me and I wanted to teach him a lesson. Do you understand?"
Her explanation was full of loopholes, but Lin Fan's mind was already blocked, and all he could see was the handsome face that suddenly approached.
"Clearly, I heard it very clearly." He could no longer hold back, and he embraced her with both arms, hugged her tightly, and pressed his nose against her neck, mumbling, "Princess, please don't leave me."
Xie Mingzhuo was suddenly hugged, his eyebrows raised slightly, and he became a lot bolder.
He had a faint, delicate scent of grass and trees on him, which almost dissipated the further away he got.
The violent heartbeat sounded like thunder, clearly coming from his chest, and even the air felt a little hotter.
Xie Mingzhuo placed his left hand on his shoulder as a silent response. Feeling the other person's breathing suddenly become rapid, he patted him gently.
"This journey is full of dangers, you must be careful."
"Princess..." Lin Fan murmured softly, "You are busy with government affairs. You don't need to see me off when I leave tomorrow."
Xie Mingzhuo didn't respond. He simply untied the brocade pouch from his waist, handed it to him, and said, "It contains my personal seal. If there's a letter from Guizhou, I'll only recognize letters with my personal seal."
Lin Fan let go of her and carefully hid herself inside his clothes. Tears seemed to flash in his eyes. He turned his face away and said in a muffled voice, "I'll go cook."
Xie Mingzhuo didn't let him cook in the end. He ordered a few dishes from the restaurant and ate with him.
The meal was eaten slowly.
Even though Lin Fan was reluctant to let her go, he knew it was inconvenient to return to the palace late at night, so he still saw her out of the courtyard.
After watching the carriage drive away from the alley, he turned back to the house, took out the brocade bag from his arms, and poured out the seal.
The seal is very small, only the length of a thumb and the thickness of a little finger. It is carved from stone and is not easy to break.
There are three strange symbols engraved on the bottom. They are not Daqi characters, but seem to come from foreign countries.
Even if others saw it, they wouldn't know what it meant.
The princess has thought it through very carefully.
Lin Fan held the delicate little seal in his hand, and the sadness caused by parting was soon replaced by a hidden sweetness.
This unique seal is his.
After returning to the palace, Xie Mingzhuo summoned Yang Yunkai immediately and ordered him to secretly investigate the teahouse.
Yang Yunkai also happened to have something to report.
"Huitongguan reports that Prince Li Si has a head injury and has requested to stay in the capital for a few more days to recover before returning to Goryeo."
"Got it, keep watching."
"yes."
The next morning, the Guizhou birthday celebration team left Beijing.
Lin Fan rushed to Cen's house while Cen Kui was at the yamen, and announced that he was about to leave Beijing.
Cen Kui was shocked when he heard this: "Brother Lin, I was planning to recommend you to the Ministry of Justice as a constable, why are you leaving Beijing now?"
Didn’t the girl find it?
Lin Fan didn't explain much, but simply thanked the other party sincerely for his kindness, said goodbye to him, and then headed out of the city.
He and Song Qianqi agreed to meet outside the city gate.
As he turned out of the alley, a blue cloth carriage came into view. It was parked quietly at the street corner. There was no one around, but he suddenly had an intuition.
My heartbeat suddenly became wild.
A hand lifted the car curtain, revealing half of a handsome face. The eyes were exactly the same as those in his dream last night.
Lin Fan rushed over, tugging at the curtain, his voice trembling: "Why are you here?"
"We're closed for the day," Xie Mingzhuo replied calmly, "Come up."
Lin Fan was an expert at climbing, and almost the moment he finished speaking, his figure disappeared in front of the car.
Inside the carriage, Xie Mingzhuo was embraced by someone.
The young man hugged her tightly, but his hands only loosely held her shoulders. There were no unnecessary or abrupt movements. Only the trembling breathing close to his ear revealed his mood.
"Are you good friends with Cen Kui?" Xie Mingzhuo diverted his attention.
Lin Fan buried his face in her shoulder and said in a muffled voice, "He and Brother Shen are classmates and friends. I came to the capital, firstly, to visit on behalf of Brother Shen, and secondly, to ask him to help me find someone."
"Um."
"Oh right," Lin Fan said, his mind suddenly flashing with something. He looked up and said, "Brother Cen has been in two accidents recently. After careful investigation, no trace of anyone else's involvement was found, but I still feel that these are not accidents."
He had not originally intended to tell Xie Mingzhuo about this matter without any evidence, but thinking about what happened in the teahouse yesterday, he realized that the capital was not really peaceful, so he thought of saying more to remind the princess.
"Okay, I'll take note." Xie Mingzhuo took out a jade Guanyin from the drawer. "I had a senior monk consecrate it these days. Keep it with you."
It's not that I believe in gods, it's just a consolation.
Lin Fan happily took it, put the red rope directly around his neck, tucked the small jade Guanyin into his lapel, and then held her hand, looking straight at her, with so much reluctance in his eyes that it seemed to be overflowing.
After finding "Miss Meng", he only saw her a few times before they had to part again.
Xie Mingzhuo said gently, "It's getting late, go ahead."
"Princess, I won't let you down." Lin Fan left the last sentence, turned around and got off the car with a hard heart, but stopped suddenly when he stepped out of the car.
He suddenly returned, half-knelt in front of Xie Mingzhuo, said "Sorry for the offense" first, then held up her right hand and kissed her quickly. It took only a moment, and before Xie Mingzhuo could react, he got out of the car and his figure quickly disappeared.
Xie Mingzhuo raised his right hand, and the back of his hand still felt warm.
A little courage, but not much.
The carriage stopped for a moment and then drove secretly into the palace.
Xie Mingzhuo returned to Wenhua Hall and first attended Chang Wei's class. After the class, he and Chang Wei met with two vice ministers of the Ministry of Personnel.
The two assistant ministers again submitted the newly revised code of conduct for officials.
This manuscript is easier to understand than before, and it also takes rhyme into consideration, making it easy to read.
"Yes, who wrote it?"
Teng Shitong said respectfully, "Princess, this was discussed with Minister Fang and this humble official."
Fang Ji stood by, his eyes observing the nose and his nose observing the heart.
"What do you think of this regulation, Minister Fang?"
"It's easy to understand and has indeed met the princess's requirements," Fang Ji replied with his eyes lowered. "I wonder when the princess plans to issue the order?"
"As soon as possible." Xie Mingzhuo handed the draft back to them. "These 'Ninety-Eight Articles' will be disseminated to all government offices throughout the country within this month and will be officially implemented on October 1st. Those who violate these regulations before October 1st will be forgiven, but those who violate these regulations after October 1st will be severely punished."
"yes."
After the two of them left, Xie Mingzhuo looked at Chang Wei.
"Teacher, what do you think of Minister Fang and Minister Teng?"
Chang Wei had half-closed his eyes, but upon hearing this, he perked up and said, "One follows the rules, the other sticks to the rules and seeks justice. They can be considered complementary."
This statement is watertight and does not offend either party.
Xie Mingzhuo laughed and joked, "Is there a 'but'?"
"Your Highness, you're joking." Chang Wei's face was also tinged with a smile, diluting the sick look. "There is no perfect person in the world, let alone a perfect official. It is enough to be able to 'implement the duties of the position and fulfill the responsibilities of the position'."
Being good at discovering the strengths of subordinates and willing to tolerate their shortcomings is what superiors should do.
As long as it doesn't touch upon issues of principle, everything is fine.
Xie Mingzhuo bowed and said, "Thank you for your teachings, teacher."
After seeing Chang Wei off, she called Yang Yunkai.
"Send a message to the Sichuan Jinyiwei, asking if there are any unusual movements in Sichuan."
Yang Yunkai took the order without asking what kind of unusual movement it was. Anything that could alarm the princess must not be a small matter. Those minor disturbances that did not endanger the government could be ruled out.
The next day at the court meeting, the ministers argued fiercely over the issue of filling official vacancies.
The father and daughter just watched it for fun.
Some of the names on the list have already been decided, and the court officials are well aware of this. They are vying for the remaining vacancies.
Only when they were tired of arguing did they quiet down and wait for the emperor and princess to make the decision.
Yang Kejian, the Left Governor of Henan, did not go along with the corruption and retained his official position.
Henan Commander-in-Chief Zong Zhen made great contributions in implementing the wheat harvesting plan and suppressing mountain bandits, but he repeatedly disobeyed the orders of the Ministry of War. His merits and demerits offset each other and he retained his original position.
Henan Governor Guo Duan, Henan Provincial Surveillance Commissioner Fan Cheng, Henan Left Councillor and other colluders were all dismissed from their posts, escorted to Beijing and beheaded, and their families were exiled and sent to the military.
Among them, the governor needs to be recommended by cabinet ministers.
After competition among various forces, the list was finally finalized.
Those who have been appointed include the magistrate of Anlu County and the assistant judge of De'an Prefecture. The rest will not be mentioned in detail.
Lu Lian was appointed as the magistrate of Anlu County and took office on the same day; Chen Shi, the former seventh-rank prosecutor of De'an Prefecture, was promoted to the sixth-rank assistant magistrate.
Xie Mingzhuo didn't know much about the other officials, so she could only make her choices based on the Ministry of Personnel's past evaluations. Considering the need to balance the forces of all parties, she did not completely follow her wishes and basically gave them sweet treats.
The central government finally returned to peace.
However, the issuance of the "Ninety-eight Articles" instantly sparked heated discussions in government offices across the country.
De'an Prefecture Government Office.
Chen Shi received a letter from the capital, the writer was his brother Lin who "traveled thousands of miles to pursue love".
The letter stated that he had found Miss Meng and decided to follow her for the rest of his life. He also visited Master Cen, saying that Master Cen was a generous and magnanimous person and admirable, and finally expressed a few words of greeting.
Chen Shi slapped the letter and said, "You didn't even leave an address. How am I supposed to reply? Sigh!"
"Sir! Sir!" The subordinates hurried over.
Chen Shi took the letter and said slowly, "What are you so scared about?"
"The new prefect, the new associate prefect, and the new county magistrate have all entered the city and are almost at the government office!"
Chen Shi: “…”
Well, I don’t have time to organize the files today. I have a whole day to deal with social interactions.
He quickly straightened his official robe and went out of the gate with the other officials of the yamen, standing in an orderly manner outside the gate waiting to be greeted.
While I was pondering the temperament of my new boss, three carriages with a group of attendants stopped in front of the gate.
I guess the three newly appointed officials are in the carriage.
Just as he was about to take a step forward, a man suddenly dismounted from the carriage, wearing a military uniform with narrow sleeves that was convenient for walking. He walked up to him and bowed politely.
"Your humble servant, Lu Lian, is the newly appointed magistrate of Anlu County. I'm honored to meet Lord Shen."
Chen Shi: “…”
Lu Lian? Could he be the eldest son of Marquis Weining, who was previously assigned to Henan as a censor?
Damn it, with such a strong background, how are we going to get along in the future?
Wait, he is a seventh-rank prosecutor, why does County Magistrate Lu call himself "your humble official"?
While he was stunned, the prefect and the associate prefect got off the carriage one after another.
Before Chen Shi could perform the ceremony, the prefect took out the appointment document from the Ministry of Personnel and read it out on the spot.
When he heard "promoted to the rank of sixth-rank Tongpan", Chenshi's eyes suddenly felt hot.
In fact, he didn't accomplish anything. He just helped run errands and delivered a message. Only a handful of people knew about this matter, and it never reached the emperor's ears, but he was awarded such an appointment.
Miss Meng is indeed very knowledgeable.
Could it be that after he sinks the stone, he can be considered to have a strong background?
With the appointment of new officials, the atmosphere of the government office in Anlu County, De'an Prefecture has been completely renewed.
The prefect not only brought the appointment documents, but also the "Ninety-eight Articles" newly formulated by the Ministry of Personnel. On the first day of taking office, he posted them on the bulletin board of the yamen, ordering all officials and servants in the yamen to memorize them and conduct annual assessments.
If an official fails to pass the examination three times in a row, it will affect his annual evaluation; if an official fails to pass the examination five times in a row, he will be dismissed from his post and will not be re-employed within three years.
As soon as this announcement was made, a craze for recitation swept through government offices across the country.
When it comes to the future, no one dares to take it lightly.
In a short period of time, the domineering and frivolous atmosphere in government offices across the country was swept away, and a new atmosphere of clean and honest administration gradually emerged.
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