Chapter 629: Zhang Yu's Diplomatic Mission to Joseon

Zhang Yu had once wondered how this fellow had managed to come here and become an official.

With looks like that, there was no way he could become an official — he probably couldn't even pass the jinshi examination.

You had to understand, in this day and age, good looks were the way to go. Yet this was the man who had climbed to the position of Bureau Director in the Ministry of Revenue. Though it wasn't exactly a high post, the road he must have traveled to get here had surely been fraught with hardship, and making it this far was genuinely remarkable.

Under these circumstances, this man named Liao Daoyan formally captured Zhang Yu's attention.

From that point on, Zhang Yu basically came into contact with Liao Daoyan here almost every day, and after meeting him, he began trying to build a relationship and get close to him.

This surprised a great many people. After all, Zhang Yu's identity and status were right there — one day he was bound to have a bright future. How could he be getting mixed up with someone like Liao Daoyan?

You had to understand, no matter which government office Zhang Yu went to, there were always crowds of people trying to befriend and curry favor with him — whether they had connections or not, everyone wanted to get on his good side.

But although Zhang Yu was very courteous to everyone, when it came down to who he actually befriended, there really was no one.

This Liao Daoyan being able to get so close to Zhang Yu left everyone baffled. What baffled them even more was still to come — Liao Daoyan himself didn't seem very interested in Zhang Yu, and usually avoided him.

This counted as one of the Ministry of Revenue's minor mysteries; no one understood what was going on.

Seeing that Zhang Yu still wanted to say something, Liao Daoyan turned around and said, "Hurry up and go — all the food in the canteen has been snatched up by them. I still want to go eat braised pork today."

After saying this, Liao Daoyan strode off directly toward the canteen.

The intent was obvious — he didn't want to say anything more to Zhang Yu.

Watching his retreating figure, Zhang Yu smiled lightly, a glint of brightness flashing through his eyes as he said slowly, "No matter what secret you're hiding, I'll dig it out. Once I've set my sights on you, don't even think about hiding."

After saying this, he too swayed as he walked out.

Just at that moment, a person walked over from not far away.

Upon seeing this person, the smile on Zhang Yu's face withdrew, and his relaxed demeanor vanished as well.

He walked straight toward this person.

This man appeared to be in his fifties, dressed in the manner of a household steward.

Upon seeing Zhang Yu, the old man hastily said respectfully, "Greetings, Young Master-in-law."

Zhang Yu quickly reached out to support the old man, saying, "Uncle Laifu, how many times have I told you not to be so formal? Why have you come here looking for me? Is something the matter?"

"The master wants to see you." Uncle Laifu said with a smile.

"Has Grandfather already returned to the residence?" Zhang Yu asked with some hesitation.

Although Grandfather was the Chief Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat, at this time of day he should be on duty — meaning Grandfather ought to be working at the Grand Secretariat right now; the fact that he'd gone home at this hour was plainly skipping work.

If he wanted to summon him to the Grand Secretariat, Grandfather wouldn't have sent Uncle Laifu.

Zhang Yu judged that Grandfather must have already returned home, and this was certainly no ordinary matter. Anything that could make Grandfather skip work — how could that be a small matter?

"The master has already returned home." Uncle Laifu nodded and said, "Taking advantage of this moment, he sent me to invite Young Master-in-law over. Shall we go now?"

After hearing this, Zhang Yu nodded and said, "Then let's head over now."

This plainly meant something had happened; otherwise he wouldn't have been summoned over.

Under such circumstances, how could Zhang Yu afford to waste time?

He directly followed Laifu and left.

The people at the Ministry of Revenue didn't pay it much mind; they only knew that Zhang Yu had been called away.

Though some were suspicious, no one dared say anything — it was simply that Zhang Yu's identity was too special. Moreover, the one who had called Zhang Yu away was the current Chief Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat; if anyone was caught gossiping about this behind his back, there would be trouble.

Along the way, Zhang Yu was also pondering, wondering what had happened.

By the time Zhang Yu arrived at the Han residence, he found that the atmosphere there was nothing out of the ordinary — everything was just as it had always been.

This let Zhang Yu breathe a sigh of relief.

As long as nothing had happened to the Han family, it was fine.

Back when he'd wanted to take a gamble, he had tied himself to the Han family's boat — to put it plainly, he had borrowed Han Kuang's power.

In order to bind him fast, Han Kuang had also thought of many methods, and later had even simply married his granddaughter to him, thoroughly tying him and himself together.

Although Han Kuang was very old and wouldn't affect his own promotion, there was ultimately still an influence. Zhang Yu had even wondered before — could the reason he still hadn't been promoted have something to do with Han Kuang? If Han Kuang stepped down from the position of Chief Grand Secretary, would he then move up?

But this was something he could only think about; Zhang Yu didn't dare say it out loud. Since His Majesty currently had no intention of making Han Kuang step down, no one else dared to act rashly.

Walking further inside, Zhang Yu's thoughts were somewhat chaotic. He soon arrived at Han Kuang's study.

This was the place where Han Kuang handled confidential matters on ordinary days; very few outsiders could enter here.

Stepping into the study, Zhang Yu saw Han Kuang resting with his eyes closed.

In the past two years, Han Kuang's energy had declined considerably compared to before, and he had become increasingly cautious, weighing the pros and cons repeatedly before every decision.

For an official to reach his level, he had basically reached the ceiling. What he thought about now was how to consolidate his position, how not to be eliminated from the game.

But in Zhang Yu's view, there was no such thing in this world as an eternally stable realm, nor an eternally stable position. The more one tried to solidify one's position without striving for progress, the faster one lost it.

"You're here." Hearing the commotion, Han Kuang slowly opened his eyes, glanced at Zhang Yu, and said slowly, "Sit."

"Yes, Grandfather." Zhang Yu acknowledged, found a seat, and sat down, then asked directly, "May I ask what matter Grandfather has called me here for at this hour?"

"Something has indeed happened." Han Kuang didn't beat around the bush and said directly.

This was unexpected for Zhang Yu.

It seemed this matter was no small thing; otherwise Han Kuang wouldn't have spoken like this. This did leave Zhang Yu somewhat surprised.

"That good friend of yours, Liu Xian — have you been in contact with him recently?" Han Kuang asked slowly.

"Yes." Zhang Yu nodded and said, "But between us we only discuss personal matters; we never talk about official business. He's now by His Majesty's side, and there are some things that need to be avoided — this way is better for everyone."

Nodding with satisfaction, Han Kuang said, "Good, well done."

"There's something concerning him that I can tell you about." Han Kuang looked at Zhang Yu and said, "His Majesty is going to establish Tianjin as a directly administered prefecture, and the first prefectural magistrate will be your good friend Liu Xian."

Upon hearing this, a flicker of surprise crossed Zhang Yu's face, and then he said with a smile, "This is a good opportunity. Indeed, as long as he does well in Tianjin, given His Majesty's way of employing people, Liu Xian receiving important appointments should be only a matter of a few years."

"Yes!" Han Kuang sighed and said, "There's also another matter concerning you."

"Me?" Zhang Yu said with a smile, "Could it be that I've been promoted too?"

"Yes, you've been promoted as well." Han Kuang nodded and said, "Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, concurrently Junior Director of the Court of State Ceremonial."

Zhang Yu truly hadn't expected this, and immediately smiled wryly: "So they're sending me as an envoy?"

"Let your grandson think—if I'm not mistaken, it's either the Mongols or Joseon."

"Then guess—Joseon or the Mongols?" Han Kuang said with a smile.

"It should be Joseon." Zhang Yu sighed and said: "There's not much left to do on the Mongol side. Even if they send someone over, it wouldn't be your grandson, and they certainly wouldn't confer the title of Vice Minister of Rites concurrent with Junior Steward of the Court of State Ceremonial. If they were just keeping me in the capital, this post would be too much—after all, I'm still young, and right now I'm only a Bureau Director in the Ministry of Revenue. How could I possibly leap that far in one step? So it must be Joseon."

"Very good." Han Kuang nodded with satisfaction and said: "I originally thought those two years in the Ministry of Revenue might have wasted you, but it seems not. That puts my mind at ease."

"This time you are the deputy envoy." Han Kuang continued: "But in reality, you're the one in charge."

"That makes me curious—who is the nominal chief envoy?" Zhang Yu asked with a smile.

"It's His Highness Prince Fu." Han Kuang said.

"Prince Fu—why Prince Fu?" Zhang Yu asked in surprise: "Does Your Majesty intend to let a feudal prince participate in governance?"

Zhang Yu stood up excitedly, paced a few steps, and said: "This isn't good. This isn't right. Didn't Grandfather try to stop it?"

"Sit down, sit down. Don't be impatient." Han Kuang said with a smile: "The reason Prince Fu is going along this time, and serving as chief envoy, is very simple—what came from Joseon was their Crown Prince. To show that the Great Ming's rank matches theirs, His Majesty sent Prince Fu."

"There's another reason: the two sides are going to establish permanent resident missions in each other's territory. Prince Fu will be the permanent ambassador to Joseon, while the deputy envoy will be rotated periodically."

"I still think there's something improper about this." After thinking it over, Zhang Yu said with a grave expression: "I'm afraid there will be hidden dangers!"

"Don't worry about that—His Majesty has long since made arrangements. Go back and prepare, then leave the capital as soon as possible. I've already prepared some staff for you, and if there's anyone you find particularly capable and want to bring along, that's fine too."

"Oh, and one thing you must remember: don't bring too many people, especially your own people. And when selecting people, remember not to pick from your classmates—otherwise, you'll easily hand others a handle to use against you."

"Do you know how heavy the charge of 'forming a faction for private gain' sits? These past two years, people have already been spreading rumors that you lot are banding together and forming cliques. But since you're all students of the Imperial Academy, and the Imperial Academy was established by His Majesty himself, for now they only dare to talk, not make trouble. Though your consciences are clear, don't hand them a weapon."

"Rest assured, Grandfather—your grandson understands." Zhang Yu nodded and said: "I'll just pick two or three capable people. Why bring so many others along?"

"Besides, it's only Joseon—it's not like going to an enemy state."