Niao Ni
Chapter 463: The Tranquil Lord
Grand Scholar Shu frowned and stepped forward, arguing with His Majesty. He argued that such a large-scale appointment of officials, without going through a court discussion or prior review by the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate, was too hasty. However, the Emperor was determined today and did not even give him face, lightly refuting him. This imperial decree became a certainty.
A changing of the guard had become inevitable. Qin Heng was transferred to the樞密院 (Shumi Yuan, the Privy Council). The rank seemed to have increased, but in reality, he was moved away from the vital location of the Kyoto garrison. He was somewhat stunned but had to step forward to thank the Emperor for his grace.
Furthermore, prominent figures such as the former Deputy Envoy of the樞密院 (Shumi Yuan), Qu Xiangdong, had no choice but to accept this decision. His Majesty did not delve into the matter of the assassination in the valley; otherwise, the military would have to pay an even greater price.
However, the gazes of these military generals towards Fan Xian became increasingly angry.
Everyone knew that in the civil and military factions, His Majesty's adjustments to the樞密院 (Shumi Yuan) and the Kyoto garrison were to support Fan Xian and to vent his anger for the assassination attempt in the valley. As for any other follow-up actions after the court session, they had to wait and see. However, the military's days would likely not be easy.
Within the civil official faction, the number of officials who were removed was the highest. Basically, they were all officials close to the Second Prince's faction. What was especially alarming was that, from the looks of it, the thirty-two officials arrested by Fan Xian last night seemed to have no chance of coming out again…
Fan Xian listened intently to the imperial decree. It was clear that the decree had been prepared by the Emperor last night. After listening for a long time, he was surprised not to hear the name of Yan Bingyun. However, on second thought, it made sense. Even if the Emperor wanted to give importance to Yan Bingyun, he could not transfer him to another department. Not only would this violate Qing laws and the regulations of the Censorate, but at the very least, if the Emperor wanted to use Yan Bingyun, he had to give Chen Pingping some face.
There was also no possibility of promoting Little Yan. If Little Yan were to be promoted again, he would have to replace Fan Xian as the Head of the Supervisory Council—Fan Xian shook his head, thinking that unless the Emperor was prepared to overturn the entire Censorate, he would not do such a thing.
However, Fan Xian was very surprised to hear the name of Cheng Jialin!
He slightly turned his head, forcefully suppressing the urge to look at the middle-aged man on the dragon throne. A strange feeling welled up in his heart. Jialin was his disciple, currently serving as an official far away, so how did he catch the Emperor's eye? And he was… entering the Ministry of Personnel? The department that he had always been unable to get involved in… He had been promoted by two ranks at once, this speed of promotion was too fast.
When the court officials heard the name of Cheng Jialin, they could not help but be shocked. As everyone knew, this person was one of the four disciples of the Fan faction. He had only been in office for two years, so why was he being transferred back to the important location of Kyoto? The crowd turned their gaze towards Fan Xian, with some alarm in their eyes.
Fan Xian felt a little uneasy. The favor given by the Emperor was too great. According to that fellow's habits, after giving a sweet date, there would be a stick, but he didn't know where the stick would fall.
“… Shen Chongwen has been transferred to the Imperial Censor of the都察院 (Du Cha Yuan, the Censorate). The Left Censor-in-Chief He Zongwei is also responsible for overseeing matters of the Censorate, assisting Fan Xian in his duties, and reporting to the Inner Court.”
…
…
The stick came quickly!
Fan Xian suddenly raised his head, two rays of light flashing in his eyes. He glanced at the young man who stepped forward to thank the Emperor for his grace. The Left Censor-in-Chief entering the Censorate? Although the Censorate had always been nominally under the supervision of the Inner Court, the Qing Dynasty imperial family had always strictly prohibited eunuchs from wielding power. Moreover, Chen Pingping was too powerful, so the Censorate was like an independent kingdom.
But… to have the Left Censor-in-Chief watching the Censorate and reporting to the Inner Court at the same time was equivalent to placing the Censorate directly under the Emperor's gaze.
Fan Xian's back felt a little cold, and the fingers of his right hand trembled slightly. He knew that because of his status, the Emperor could not possibly trust him as much as he trusted Chen Pingping. However, he had not expected the Emperor to be so ruthless, putting a rope around his neck before things were even over, tying it so tight that his head was aching!
Who was He Zongwei? He was the Kyoto talent who was as famous as his disciple Hou Jichang in those years, one of Ruoruo's suitors, first under the Crown Prince, then he joined the Princess, and now he became the Emperor's student. He was directly appointed to the court without passing the imperial examination as an Imperial Censor, and then he was promoted to Left Censor-in-Chief because of his merits in investigating the Ministry of Revenue case…
Aside from Fan Xian, He Zongwei was definitely the most popular figure in the Qing Dynasty court in the past two years.
And it was such a person whom Fan Xian extremely detested who was to become the Emperor's eyes in the Censorate. Fan Xian felt inexplicably angry, extremely angry.
“Your Majesty!”
Fan Xian stepped forward, standing beside He Zongwei, and said in a deep voice to the man on the dragon throne, “I have an objection!”
He Zongwei looked at Fan Xian beside him with a gentle gaze. Although he felt unparalleled anger deep in his heart whenever he thought about being beaten up by the other party in the Fan residence, he still concealed it extremely well. His eyes appropriately revealed a hint of surprise and admiration, seemingly to show his emotions to the officials in the hall – he admired Lord Fan for daring to confront the Emperor face to face.
The hall was already in an uproar. An emperor gives an order, and a minister accepts it. Apart from old fellows like Shu Wu who dared to confront the Emperor to his face, no one had ever dared to directly express their objections and grievances over the appointment of officials.
The Emperor frowned and said, “What objection do you have?”
Fan Xian raised his head and said expressionlessly, “The Censorate does not need an Imperial Censor to point fingers.”
…
…
“Bold!” The Emperor slammed his hand on the dragon throne, angrily saying, “The law enforcers are beside us, the Imperial Censors are behind us, the laws of the country are clear, and My will has been decided. How can you, a young man, talk so much nonsense?”
Anger arose in Fan Xian's heart. He knew that he could not back down today; otherwise, he would truly ruin the Censorate in his hands. How would he explain to that woman and the old cripple in Chen Garden?
He straightened his body and said directly, “May I ask Your Majesty, this Censorate is responsible for supervising the officials and the administration, and the Inner Court supervises the Censorate. Now, suddenly there is an Imperial Censor. If this Imperial Censor is corrupt and perverts justice, will the Censorate investigate, or not? If they investigate, how will they investigate?”
The crowd of officials was in an uproar, but the Emperor laughed coldly and said, “It's a waste that you are so smart, but you are pretending to be confused here. Step back.”
He Zongwei also pretended to persuade Fan Xian a few times, but Fan Xian was too lazy to even look at him. He did not step back, rolled his eyes a few times, and suddenly said loudly, “I object!”
This was a bit too much. What the Emperor decided, how could a minister object? This was not in a public court. Fan Xian, you are not Song Shiren, and the Emperor is not a small magistrate.
The Emperor was angry and displeased. His beard under his chin trembled as he pointed at Fan Xian's nose and scolded, “I want to see how you can object?”
Fan Xian hardened his heart and said, “I naturally dare not resist the imperial decree, but I am just the Head of the Censorate. The Director is still staying in Chen Garden. Logically speaking, it is not my turn to discuss this decree. However, today in the hall, I am the leader of the Censorate. If I accept, there will be problems. If I don’t accept, there will also be problems. After looking around… I… can only resign from this position as the Head of the Censorate. Your Majesty can directly issue the decree to the Censorate, which is the best way.”
Resign from the position of Head of the Censorate?
Resign from office?
The crowd of officials was in an uproar, completely failing to understand how today's grand court meeting had turned into the current situation. Originally, they thought that His Majesty was using the Censorate to deal with the court officials, but how did he end up bullying Lord Fan? However, this Lord Fan was indeed worthy of being called a poetic genius. The arrogance in his bones was indeed not something that ordinary people could compare to. He actually… dared… to use his resignation as a threat at the grand court meeting, refusing to accept the decree!
Such great courage had not been seen by these ministers since the founding of Qing Dynasty. For a moment, discussions arose in the hall, and the gazes towards Fan Xian, who was standing in the center, held a few strands of absurdity and admiration in addition to the original wariness.
Grand Scholar Shu and Grand Scholar Hu could not bear to watch any longer, so they stepped forward one after another, one playing the black face and the other playing the red face. Shu Wu scolded Fan Xian thoroughly, saying that he did not know the duty of a minister and spoke nonsense. Grand Scholar Hu, however, comforted Fan Xian in a gentle voice, explaining the imperial decree to him in detail on behalf of His Majesty.
Anyway, Fan Xian just stood there straight, refusing to accept the decree, and refusing to do anything else.
The scene looked like a kindergarten student in the senior class who was missing the fruit from their lunch plate and was being coaxed by two teachers.
The two Grand Scholars Shu and Hu then turned around and pleaded to the Emperor for Fan Xian's sins, saying that Lord Fan was young and inexperienced, and so on. They guessed in their hearts that the Emperor had rarely encountered such a big nail in the court and was probably about to go crazy with anger.
On the dragon throne, the Emperor laughed in anger, his eyes radiating cold light as he said coldly, “Fan Xian, are you trying to use your resignation to coerce Me?”
“I dare not.”
“Good, good, good.” The Emperor said three good words in a row, then said quietly, “You are relying on the fact that I love you and think that I dare not punish you… You want to resign from office, then I will…”
Before the Emperor could finish his words, Fan Xian had already gratefully thanked him, “Thank you, Your Majesty. I am willing to return to the Imperial Academy to teach.”
The Emperor was displeased by his extremely quick response and said angrily, “I will not let you resign!”
…
…
The hall fell into a silence of shock. No one had expected to see such a wonderful drama at the grand court meeting today. Everyone knew that His Majesty's favor towards Fan Xian had not diminished in the slightest, and he probably would not give Fan Xian any substantial punishment. However, they did not know how to break this deadlock.
The ministers were even more puzzled as to why Fan Xian was so angry and impulsive about the matter of the Imperial Censor of the都察院 (Du Cha Yuan, the Censorate) inquiring about the Censorate. If it was to maintain the power of the Censorate, with his methods, Fan Xian would have plenty of ways to do it in the future. What's more, there was still an old ancestor in the Censorate who had not yet come forward.
Obviously, the Emperor also did not know what Fan Xian was thinking. He frowned and said to Fan Xian, “Roll over here!”
Fan Xian did not roll. He ran over with a flattering gait, approaching under the dragon throne, his face full of stubbornness and ferocity.
The Emperor lowered his voice and asked, “Are you going to accept the decree or not?”
“No.”
The Emperor frowned and said, “Why?”
Fan Xian said very directly, “I don’t like He Zongwei.”
The Emperor said angrily, “Last night, you already made the court lose face. Do you want to make Me lose face today? Step back!”
Fan Xian sighed and stepped back.
Eunuch Yao stood aside with a bitter face, holding the duster, suppressing his laughter, feeling very uncomfortable.
…
…
Fan Xian stepped back into the hall, and the ministers on both sides looked at him with increasingly strange gazes. At the grand court meeting, he actually whispered to His Majesty. This favor… was really… ahem.
The Emperor no longer gave Fan Xian any chance to speak, nor did he care whether he accepted the decree or not. He directly nodded to Eunuch Yao. Eunuch Yao immediately used a duck voice that was different from Eunuch Dai's lewd tone and shouted, “Fan Xian, the Imperial Envoy with Full Authority over the Jiangnan Route, step forward to receive the decree.”
Fan Xian was stunned. He lifted his robe and knelt down.
The imperial decree slowly unfolded, no longer mentioning the matter of the Imperial Censor entering the Censorate. Instead, it listed a rough summary of what Fan Xian had done in Jiangnan this year, especially focusing on the matter of the Neiku (the Imperial Treasury) Transportation Division. It praised Fan Xian for his contribution to the national treasury and also mentioned Fan Xian's assistance to Governor-General Xue Qing in investigating the administration of Jiangnan. It also mentioned some other miscellaneous things.
The Emperor spoke in the middle, saying, “I believe that Fan Xian is loyal to the country and should be heavily rewarded.”
The officials were silent. Although everyone did not like Fan Xian receiving rewards again, the more than ten million taels of silver that were transported back to Kyoto from the Neiku were real goods. Such a large and substantial merit was truly comparable to military exploits. If he was not heavily rewarded, the court really did not know how to explain it to the people of the world.
Xue Qing stepped forward at this time and made some supplements to Fan Xian's affairs in Jiangnan, full of praise. Grand Scholar Hu stepped forward and also believed that Lord Fan should be heavily rewarded.
And the old fellow Shu Wu rolled his eyes a few times and glanced at Fan Xian again. Finally, he could not help but step forward and say, “Your Majesty… six months ago, the Secretariat had a discussion, believing that Lord Fan's reputation, scholarship, and achievements were truly sufficient to enter the Secretariat for deliberations. However, the officials of the Censorate have never been able to hold positions in the court. There is a precedent set by the court. However, Lord Fan previously intended to resign from the position of Head of the Censorate…”
The Emperor coughed twice.
Grand Scholar Hu could not help but look at Shu Wu with a strange gaze, thinking that this old man was indeed persistent. He clearly knew that His Majesty would not allow Fan Xian to enter the cabinet, and even less would he allow Fan Xian to leave the Censorate, but he still had the thought that the two of them had six months ago.
However, since Shu Wu had already spoken, he had no choice but to express the same wish, willing to recommend Fan Xian to enter the cabinet.
Fan Xian had heard about this matter from the院报 (Yuan Bao, the Censorate's newspaper) in the past, but he was a little surprised to see it with his own eyes today. He thought that he was only twenty years old, but he was going to enter the cabinet. This was a bit too absurd.
As expected, the Emperor still did not allow it, but he let Eunuch Yao finish reading the decree. After listening to the decree, Fan Xian was stunned in place. After a long time, he remembered to thank the Emperor, thinking that it was indeed absurd for him to be a Grand Scholar, but the reward given by the Emperor was also absurd enough.
The Duke of澹泊 (Dan Bo)!
The hall was full of exclamations and praises. Fan Xian stood on the spot, wondering how he had suddenly been conferred a dukedom. Wasn't this higher than his father's title? The Emperor's stick was ruthless, and the sweet date he gave was also very big! Only one step away from a prince, an extremely noble title – he glanced at the embarrassed He Zongwei, thinking that he could casually play with this person in the future?