Zhu Mo remained unaware that the capital had erupted in an uproar over these past few days.
Late at night,
Yan Song's mansion had been buzzing with activity for a long time.
"Damn it! He actually killed my men?! Without imperial decree or notification, he directly executed a provincial governor of the second rank! Is there any law left? Impeach them! Impeach them to death! Old Luo, you write the memorial now! I want to impeach that Zhu Mo to death!"
Yan Shifan paced back and forth, thoroughly enraged.
Yan Maoqing, Luo Longwen, and Gao Hanwen stood respectfully before him, while Yan Song lay in his chair, his eyes closed, his brow furrowed in deep thought.
"Who do you want to impeach to death? Is he even an official? How can you impeach him? It won't hold!"
Yan Song, seemingly annoyed by his son's pacing, couldn't help but reprimand him. In truth, who was he? The moment he heard the news, he already knew he had been tricked by that young man. His bold move was clearly a very formidable countermeasure...
Luo Longwen seized the opportunity to speak:
"Young Grand Secretary, this is infuriating! But it's not entirely without basis... Your Excellency, please don't be angry first, listen to me for a moment – He Maocai committed the grave crime of colluding with the Japanese. At that time, there were witnesses and evidence, no one could have saved him... Although the imperial court has no explicit decree, it has been the established practice in recent years to execute those caught colluding with the Japanese on the spot. It has always been done this way... For instance, He Maocai himself executed several collaborators. So, this matter cannot be blamed on Zhu Mo..."
Yan Maoqing chimed in, "Young Grand Secretary, our priority now is to stop him. We cannot let him succeed. If he truly pulls this off, we will have truly lost this time..."
Gao Hanwen, who had recently pledged allegiance to the Yan family, suddenly interjected:
"Young Grand Secretary, don't you find it strange? He killed He Maocai using the Jin Yi Wei from Jiangnan... This is the key... Does he have the authority to command the Jin Yi Wei? The secret report stated that the Jin Yi Wei even seized Zheng Bichang's royal command token at the time... This is even stranger..."
His words sent a jolt of shock through everyone present –
To be able to command the Jin Yi Wei meant being connected to the Directorate of Ceremonial.
Who could it be then? Could Zhu Mo himself be part of the Directorate of Ceremonial? But that didn't make sense, he wasn't a eunuch... Or was the Directorate of Ceremonial supporting him in secret?
Yan Song, who had kept his eyes closed for nearly an hour, suddenly opened them, nodded at Gao Hanwen, showing his approval, and said,
"That's right... That's how one should think, Moqing... Shifan, think again, what did you say last time? When Yan Fu and Yan Lu encountered someone on the street, you said they were retainers of which prince? Wasn't that the case?"
Yan Shifan immediately recalled: When Zhu Mo wrote the Qing Ci poem and tried to escape, two of his household guards almost apprehended him, but they were saved by someone holding a plaque with the character "Ming" on it... Combining this with the current situation, he vaguely grasped something –
"Father, are you saying those Jin Yi Wei in Jiangnan are also connected to this person? Which prince is behind it? Are you referring to Prince Yu?"
Yan Song offered no definitive answer.
Luo Longwen suddenly remembered something and exclaimed, "I recall! Zhu Mo's two escorts, my informants reported, were both..."
He suddenly lowered his voice and continued, "They were people from the Chaotian Temple..."
Ah?
So that's how it is!
Everyone instantly understood.
But at the same time, a chill crept into their hearts –
Chaotian Temple was a royal Taoist monastery, and the people within were very complex. Even a casual laborer might have an unusual background... If both escorts, along with that胖子 (fat guy) holding the "Ming" plaque, were from Chaotian Temple, then everything would become clear. It would imply that people from Chaotian Temple had been protecting Zhu Mo all along.
But the problem immediately followed –
What kind of place was Chaotian Temple?
Who could say for sure?
Whether Zhu Mo's actions in mobilizing the Jiangnan Jin Yi Wei under the guise of Chaotian Temple were legal or not, and whether there was an order from the Directorate of Ceremonial, were things that might never be clarified. However, one thing was certain: with this connection, at least some of the Jin Yi Wei were likely listening to him.
The matter had become clear, but it had also reached a dead end, making further investigation impossible.
However, Yan Shifan remained unwilling to accept defeat. For so many years, he had never suffered such a significant setback. If he couldn't regain his prestige this time, how could he lead people in the future?
"Father, we cannot accept this setback!"
"He is fabricating imperial decrees and deceiving the Emperor!"
"I surmise that his so-called anti-Japanese debt and state-run money exchange will surely not succeed! We'll just wait and watch the show, and then we'll settle his crime of deceiving the Emperor!"
The more Yan Shifan thought, the angrier he became. Suddenly, his thoughts shifted, and he said, "Old Luo, Maoqing, both of you send people down to watch for me! Damn it, any wealthy family that dares to donate to his so-called debt, you remember them!"
"Also! You go down and don't just idle around! Set traps, lay snares, do everything for me! Disrupt his plans!"
"And that Hai Rui! Zhu Mo and Hai Rui, two people opposing us, we must get rid of at least one! Old Luo, you go and trap that Hai Rui!"
Both bowed and replied, "As you command!"
At this moment,
Yan Song, who had been silent for a long time, after pondering for a good while, also spoke:
"Yes, let's do it this way... Winter is fast approaching, the national treasury is still empty, there are disasters and refugees everywhere. Ruzhen also said there will be a major battle at the end of the year, all of which requires money..."
He struggled to get up and continued,
"Money... but where is the money? Don't always fixate on that Zhu Mo, look at the bigger picture! The court needs to survive, it needs to fight wars and provide disaster relief, all of which requires money. Whoever can procure money will have the strongest standing."
"Maoqing, you take on a difficult task. This time, go down to Jiangnan, inspect the salt administration, and collect the salt taxes. Remember to collect more... Later, during the imperial court discussions, Shifan will use the Ministry of Works to improve the Emperor's Wanshou Palace even further..."
After giving his orders, he still wore a look of doubt and said, "I've been pondering for a long time, what exactly is this thing Zhu Mo is doing? Have you all understood it clearly? Have we been deceived by him...?"
A moment later, after thinking further, he became increasingly worried –
This young man, resorting to such severe measures? What exactly does he intend to do?
Could it be,
He truly has confidence in raising a large sum of money?
Being the old fox he was, he faintly felt that he had indeed been deceived by Zhu Mo... Almost instinctively, he immediately thought of needing to raise money himself to guard against Zhu Mo's next move.
His head started to ache slightly. He waved his hand, saying, "Regardless of whether he succeeds or fails, in the end, it depends on who has more money... If we have more money, we won't lose..."
Upon hearing this, everyone felt that an old ginger was spicier.
At this point, when they recalled what Zhu Mo was planning, they realized it might not be as simple as he described. There were definitely hidden plans... And under the public gaze, so many of the Yan Party's high officials had been duped by him.