Ming Dynasty: I, Yan Maoqing, am truly radiating auspicious energy!

Chapter 68 Embroidered Spring Blade
"Demanding a bribe of 100,000... Could it be silver?!"

Upon hearing this, Huang Jin gasped in shock, utterly astonished.

Whom was the Emperor scolding—the Duke of Yi, Yan Maoqing, or someone else?

However, regardless of who it was, if it was an individual act, this would undoubtedly be the biggest corruption case in the history of this dynasty, breaking the record for the largest single bribe amount, enough to be recorded in history and leave a lasting stain on history!
Based solely on intuition, Huang Jin strongly suspects it is Yan Maoqing!
Yan Maoqing was the first person to cause such a drastic emotional fluctuation in the Emperor recently.

Moreover, whether it was the Duke of Yi or other high-ranking officials, they were all seasoned veterans in the officialdom.

Even if these people were soliciting bribes, they wouldn't have done it so clumsily, much less demand such an outrageous amount...

After all, he had heard rumors that even if one were to ask a high-ranking official in the imperial court for a position as a regional governor, it would only require a bribe of 10,000 taels of silver. What could possibly warrant a bribe of 100,000 taels of silver?

I guess only a maverick like Yan Maoqing could do something so illogical.
But let's get back to the point.

Whether or not Yan Maoqing did it, it makes no difference to him personally.

From the moment the Emperor issued that secret edict to Guo Xun, Yan Maoqing was destined to be a pawn, and he couldn't escape death no matter what...

at the same time.

Lu Bing, however, felt a surge of suspicion:
"Shouldn't His Majesty's focus be on the matter of Guo Xun and Yan Maoqing's secret collusion with the enemy?"

At this moment, there is a significant information gap between him and Huang Jin.

Huang Jin only knew about the "Bird's Strategy," but he didn't know the contents of Shen Lian's secret letter.

Lu Bingze only knew the contents of Shen Lian's secret letter and that the emperor was now determined to restore the regime, but he did not know about the "bird's scheme".

As for this unprecedented bribery case in the Jiajing era, the Emperor only needed to give a word to the Northern Garrison to handle it, so why was he so angry?
But speaking of it.

Shen Lian's official career is really good. He was transferred to the capital not long ago and then met Yan Maoqing, a "benefactor".

Last month, he was promoted from a hundred-household commander to a thousand-household commander because of this noble person. Now that he has made such a great contribution, if I say a few good words for him to the emperor, wouldn't he be promoted to garrison commander in no time?
Unfortunately, after this incident, his usefulness as a benefactor is probably over...

……

I was wrong!
How wrong!

Zhu Houcong breathed heavily, feeling a strange sense of defeat amidst his anger.

I had previously held some hope for this scoundrel, secretly anticipating his future growth, and even presumptuously envisioned three paths for him:
Either it perishes carrying my expectations;

Either become a great traitor to me;

Either become a great sage for me!

Looking back now, it seems I was just being wishful; I ultimately lacked the ability to judge character...

Does this villain need time to grow and need the tempering of officialdom?

He doesn't need it at all!
He was born a great villain, a great villain who was born without a teacher!

In this treacherous and unpredictable officialdom, he thrived like a fish in water, a tiger with wings, like a philanderer on a pleasure boat in Yangzhou.

In my already despicable court, some people are ferrying, some are diving, some are slacking off, and some are drinking water. This damned scoundrel dares to swim naked on his back! Does he even have any respect for me?!

As the saying goes, "He who steals a needle when young will steal gold when old."

He dares to openly demand a bribe of 100,000 taels now. If he gets an official position in the future, will the combined imperial treasury and the imperial funds be enough for him to embezzle?

The only thing worth being comforted by now is this:
Judging from this secret letter, the "Bird Plot" seems to be continuing...

But what good is that anyway!

Because of this barbarian's nonsense, I was forced to hold a court meeting to discuss the matter again, and even had to personally intervene. What good is it to fool the Tartars for a while?
Has things really come to this point? Am I really going to keep going back to this, just for a moment of peace, even abandoning the tough image I've barely maintained through torture, and continue to agree to pay tribute to the Tartars?!
"Huang Jin!"

Exhaling a long breath of stale air, Zhu Houcong shouted angrily.

"Send another secret edict to Guo Xun, to be sent to Datong by express courier, ordering him to suspend all operations and return to the capital immediately to report!"

at the same time.

Datong, Yanghe Sai.

"Yan Maoqing, you cannot go beyond the Great Wall to see the Tartars!"

Shen Lian, wielding his embroidered spring knife, stood in front of Yan Maoqing, making no attempt to conceal his indignation and contempt.

"Do you know what you are doing right now? This is a treasonous crime of selling out your country for personal gain. I sent a letter to Commander Lu a few days ago, and I am just waiting for his reply before I can arrest you and bring you back to the capital!"

"Commander Shen, please calm down, let's talk this out..."

Seeing this, Gao Gong took the initiative to act as a peacemaker, just as he had vowed in his diary, but he didn't know how to persuade him.

He knew about Yan Maoqing's "bird-like scheme" and naturally understood what Yan Maoqing was doing.

However, the biggest problem with this "bird trick" is that the fewer people who know about it, the better.

Even if everything is exactly as Yan Maoqing said, it must be kept strictly secret until the final goal is achieved, otherwise all efforts may be in vain.

The process of achieving this ultimate goal may take several years, or even longer.

During this period, no matter what criticisms or infamy Yan Maoqing suffered, he could only swallow his anger and resentment. The only people in the entire Ming Dynasty who could understand him were a handful of people who knew about this "bird-like scheme".

Fortunately, the current emperor is among these few people, and the emperor knows whether Yan Maoqing is a meritorious official or a traitor.

At the same time, Gao Gong also knew that Yan Maoqing originally did not want to, and could have avoided, all of this.

It's all his fault for revealing this "bird-like scheme" to the Emperor in his loyalty, which put Yan Maoqing in such a dilemma...

"Maruhachi... Brother Sukkei, please move aside."

Yan Maoqing merely smiled calmly, pushed Gao Gong aside, and then drew his sword from his waist with a "whoosh."
"Commander Shen, I've heard that the Embroidered Spring Blade is forged through countless hammer blows and is exceptionally sharp. But I wonder, is your Embroidered Spring Blade sharper, or is my Imperial Sword even sharper?"

"!!!"

Shen Lian stiffened, immediately straightened his clothes, bowed his head, knelt down, and performed the five bows and three kowtows:
"May Your Majesty be well!"

"As expected, my imperial sword is still the sharpest. That's right."

Yan Maoqing nodded in satisfaction, walked past Shen Lian and stepped forward again, "Follow me out of the border!"

"puff……"

Gao Gong almost burst out laughing. He never expected that Yan Maoqing would actually take back the imperial sword that the emperor had bestowed upon Guo Xun, leaving behind such an invincible "great sword".

Speaking of which, Yan Maoqing is a truly worthy godfather; he's even closer than a biological father. Why don't I have such good luck?

"Wait a minute..."

Shen Lian was forced to perform the ceremony, and was about to speak again as soon as he stood up.

"Ok?"

Yan Maoqing turned around and glared. With a soft "whoosh," the Shangfang sword was drawn half an inch from its sheath.

"Don't! Don't! Don't!"

Shen Lian hurriedly raised his hand to explain.

"I won't stop you from leaving the border, but it's my duty to stay by your side at all times and make sure you don't desert out of fear of punishment!"

　Thank you to [Hantian Watermelon Juice] for the generous donation.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)