Eloquent Jade
I was the only member among the four members of Liu Shan Men with his head up.
“Who let him in? Who permitted him to enter late?” thundered His Majesty.
“Your Majesty, it is not their fault. Does your subject not have a golden token to come and go without notification? They let your subject through as soon as they saw it.”
Before the angry monarch could order the confiscation of my token, I held my hands up in a salute and conveyed, “Congratulations, Your Majesty.”
His Majesty stopped mid motion, then frowned. “What is the congratulation for?”
“Would you permit your subject to explain?”
His Majesty looked to his confounded vassals, then grumbled, “St-st-step forward to speak.”
His Majesty was genuinely angry; listen to him stutter. I jogged towards him, looked around to warn everyone not to eavesdrop, then, with a serious expression and soft voice, inquired, “Have you had breakfast, Your Majesty.”
“Cut the nonsense. Explain the congratulation.”
“Hehe, nothing. I was just worried you felt embarrassed after losing your temper and would confiscate my token, so I wanted to give you an olive branch.”
“You give me an olive branch?! Am I at fault? Return to your line. I’ll have you punished for insolence.”
“Hey, hey, hey, this is called beating the cook after you have had your meal. You did not speak this way when you asked your subject to complete a task. You were so courteous then.”
“I was courteous, but did you complete the task?” His Majesty paused for a second, then asked, “Have you taken one of my sons on as a pupil?”
“No.”
“Then what are you wasting my breath for?”
“It will be soon. Your subject is nearly done thinking about it. Please grant him a few more days.”
Pointing at me, His Majesty ranted, “Ming Feizhen, I don’t like scolding you, but can you not be punctual for once? Is it so hard to attend court?”
I was on time! Your wife’s nephew was the one who made me late. How is it my fault? Blame your relative.
Following another short rant and on account of my sincere apology, His Majesty, now calm, waved his hand and sonorously instructed, “On account of your performance for the task, I will pretend this didn’t happen. Return to your spot.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
His Majesty was evidently in a good mood today since he spared me so readily and then returned to hosting morning court as if he never flipped out. Once he summarised recent not-so-important matters, he moved on to the main topic, which, of course, was crowning the outstanding examinees of the imperial exams. He was going to personally see those who placed and were waiting outside a bit later. Shen Kuang, myself and Wu Dayong were to be conferred our new ranks in court as we were the top three performers. Suffice to say, from the perspective of some people, it was His Majesty personally conferring us the titles rather than the imperial court.
Wu Dayong was conferred a seventh rank county magistrate post and dispatched to Yanshi County. As long as he didn’t offend his superior, or His Majesty and his family, then he would’ve soon returned to the capital once he built up a resume. Likewise, I was also conferred a magistrate post, except I was granted a fifth rank.
Eunuch Wang loudly and clearly voiced, “Ming Feizhen demonstrated great talent and contributed many achievements. He shall hereby be conferred the rank of county magistrate of Luoyang. In consideration of his obligations at Liu Shan Men, his head constable rank shall be replaced with Official Ming of Liu Shan Men. Thus, his task will be to recruit members and assist in managing the bureau.”
“Your subject is most grateful!” I performed such a perfect salute that not even Boss could tell me off.
Although dispatching me to Luoyang was a handsome reward, it was blatantly obvious that he wanted me to be in close contact with his son. All I could do was feign ignorance. Official Ming of Liu Shan Men sounded nice, but following my deep analysis, I was still ranked lower than Boss. Additionally, my jobs were the same as what I was currently doing. Liu Shan Men still paid my salary, so I didn’t get a raise, either.
Well-played, Your Majesty, giving out a promotion without costing yourself a single coin.
Unlike with Wu Dayong and yours truly, when it was Shen Kuang’s turn, His Majesty personally gave the speech. “Shu Rong, you have proven yourself the most outstanding scholar. Principal Huang wishes to take you under his wing as his closed-door pupil. What say you?”
The offer immediately garnered reactions from everyone. Despite his circumstances, Uncle Huang was still respected and the head of Confucianism. Since he had yet to name his successor, being his closed-door pupil meant having a big chance of being the next person to lead Confucianism. That said, nobody was as surprised as Boss for she realised how independent her brother was. The offer was probably the best strategy for them at the moment.
His Majesty was overjoyed to hear Shen Kuang accept the offer. “As for whether he stays in the capital or not, I shall make an exception and let Shu Rong decide for himself. You can choose to stay here and help me, or you can explore the world beyond the capital as the other two will.”
His Majesty both tested Shen Kuang and protected him. More than likely, he was worried Shen Kuang would be in a dilemma if he chose wrong, so he put the right to pick in Shen Kuang’s lap.
“… Please allow your subject to contemplate it for a few days.”
His Majesty fiddled with his beard, then nodded. “Indeed, it is a tough decision. Take your time.”
With that, His Majesty led the court back to national affairs. I had heard about the morning court procedure before. Since I made a mistake before, I decided to raise my hand straight away.
“Your Majesty, as your subject arrived late, he is willing to speak first.”
“But I haven’t asked anything yet.”
“Your subject will answer everything in his capacity without withholding anything.”
Boss stepped on my heel.
“???”
I glanced to my right to see Boss grouch through her clenched teeth, “You think we’re playing around here?! What’s the point of speaking first?”
“I am trying to make you look good.”
Boss was about to pinch me when His Majesty voiced, “It is a rare occasion for Duke Ming to take the initiative to bravely speak first. I don’t want to get in your way of doing your part for the nation, either. Where did we leave off last meeting?”
Someone replied, “We left off at Hanlin Academy’s Academician Lin reporting the military’s Attendant Gentleman.”
His Majesty wagged his hand. “L-let’s move on from that. Anything else?”
A general stepped out. “Cavalry General also reported Ministry of Rite’s Attendant Gentleman Zhang.”
His Majesty pushed aside one matter after another because it was just case after case of the civil servants and military members reporting each other. The Imperial Censor couldn’t even step in with the pace they blasted each other.
An elder suggested, “Your Majesty, we cannot just leave so many matters unresolved. How about we seek a neutral party’s opinion?”
His Majesty was relieved to hear an alternative line for a change. “Preceptor Jiang, who do you suggest I listen to?”
“The new second place in the imperial exams. Did he not offer to help you?”
Previous Chapter l Next Chapter
