Chapter 212: Who Isn't a Grand Secretary?

Ministry of Revenue.

Just past the hour of Chen this day, Li Youzi, with his large belly protruding, stepped over the threshold of the Ministry of Revenue, swaying with every step as he walked along the path toward his office.

On both sides of the small courtyard, officials of the Ministry of Revenue stood with their hands hanging down, their faces full of respect, staring straight at this high official who was about to enter the Grand Secretariat.

This morning, the list of those entering the Grand Secretariat had spread throughout all the major government offices.

At first, the people at the Ministry of Revenue thought they had heard wrong.

Their own high official's name had not been on the court recommendation list, yet in the end, he had made a "lane change" to overtake others, squeezing out both Wang Xijue and Wei Xueceng.

Entering the Grand Secretariat as a Grand Secretary of the East Pavilion.

It could truly be called a meteoric rise.

As for this high official, many Ministry of Revenue officials still held him in high regard.

During his tenure, not only did the Ministry of Revenue officials receive money and small gifts during festivals, but even the food within the office was never repeated from day to day.

Over the course of a year, many Ministry of Revenue officials complained that they had gained a layer of fat.

Now that the high official was leaving, there was suddenly a bit of reluctance to see him go.

Walking toward the office door while meeting everyone's gaze, a clerk from the Ministry of Revenue leaned forward with a beaming smile and called out flatteringly, "Grand Secretary, everything has been packed up. Shall I have it sent to the Grand Secretariat now?"

"Mm." This title of "Grand Secretary" made his heart bloom with joy, and the look he gave the clerk became increasingly favorable.

Pushing the door open and entering, the office was empty.

All the valuable items had already been organized by the clerk before Li Youzi arrived, waiting only for his arrival to set off immediately.

Of course, this was not a case of "people gone, tea cold."

Rather, it was the joy of promotion; Li Youzi was now eager to get to the Grand Secretariat quickly to grasp the brush for the Drafting of Rescripts.

Turning around, Li Youzi swept his gaze over the officials who had come to see him off, cupped his hands, and smiled, "Many thanks to you all for coming to see me off despite your busy schedules. I am deeply honored.

Today I am hosting a banquet at the Tianxian Pavilion; you are all welcome to go tonight after you finish your shifts."

"Many thanks, Grand Secretary."

The crowd shouted in unison.

The repeated calls of "Grand Secretary" made Li Youzi's bones feel soft, and his face was flushed with excitement.

He gave a shiver, ordered the clerk to follow, took his office belongings, and headed straight for the Grand Secretariat in the Forbidden City.

Upon arriving at the Grand Secretariat and settling into his office, Li Youzi waved his hand to dismiss the servants and plopped down onto the yellow pear-wood Grand Tutor chair in the office.

The office was large, covering over forty square meters, divided into three small rooms.

The outermost was the side room for the scribes to work, inside was a small parlor for the Grand Secretary to receive guests, and further inside was Li Youzi's own workspace.

The room had painted beams, bright windows, and elegant furnishings.

The scent of ink permeated the air, and a faint fragrance drifted out from the emerald Xuande Incense Burner, floating in the air. Li Youzi took a sniff, as if sipping a fine wine, and was completely intoxicated by it.

So, this was what it felt like to have an office in the Forbidden City.

Just sitting here, he felt an indescribable joy.

No wonder all scholars, with all their heart and soul, wanted an office of their own here for their entire lives.

It was just a pity that such offices were very limited, with only six in total.

At the thought of becoming one of the six, Li Youzi couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Even if he were to drop dead at his post right now, it would be worth it!

While he was intoxicated, hurried footsteps came from outside the office, followed by a respectful voice: "Grand Secretary Li, the Grand Secretary invites you to gather in the official hall on the second floor."

"Alright, I know."

When Li Youzi arrived at the official hall on the second floor, only he and Zhang Siwei were inside. Li Youzi knew that the visitor meant no good, so he gave a simple bow and found a chair to the right of Zhang Siwei to sit down.

Once seated, Zhang Siwei smiled and offered congratulations, spoke a few words about working together, and then went straight to the point.

He took out a Memorial.

On it was written "Memorial on Increasing Palace Expenditures for the Ministry of Revenue."

There was no need to guess what was inside. With something like this, if he approved it through the Drafting of Rescripts, the hundred officials of the court would surely break his spine.

If he did not approve it, wouldn't the Emperor and the Concubines in the palace eat him alive?

This was a dead end; stick your head out and you get slashed, pull it back and you still get slashed.

The person who set this trap had now been promoted to Cabinet Minister and was sitting opposite him with a calm and composed expression.

He was so anxious he was jumping, yet he had no way to deal with him, so he could only patiently suppress his anger and ask, "Grand Secretary Li, how did your Ministry of Revenue determine the plan for this 500,000 taels of silver?"

Li Youzi thought that since the mask had been torn off, he would not be polite, so he replied coldly, "For the birth of the prince, 100,000 for the banquet; 100,000 as a reward for Zheng Guifei and her family; the Emperor's Concubines in the Inner Palace have not had jewelry made for a long time, so this time the Ministry of Revenue is allocating 200,000 taels for the Empresses and Concubines to have jewelry made.

Furthermore, since Zheng Guifei has received 100,000, how could we not show something for the two Empress Dowagers and Wang Huanghou?"

"Hmph, Grand Secretary Li is truly generous; one move and it's 500,000," Zhang Siwei flicked the Memorial and mocked.

"What does this count for? Grand Secretary Zhang is the wealthiest in Shanxi; who doesn't know that Shanxi is full of local tycoons? This bit of money is called 'a lot' to others. To you, Grand Secretary Zhang, can it even be called 'a lot'?" Li Youzi grinned and retorted with oily sarcasm.

"500,000 is too much."

"If that is the case, then please, Grand Secretary Zhang, do the Drafting of Rescripts."

"You—"

"I just arrived at the Grand Secretariat today and still have some matters to attend to. If the Grand Secretary has nothing else, I shall take my leave."

After saying this, Li Youzi turned and left.

Zhang Siwei's face darkened, and his bloodshot eyes suddenly surged with murderous intent. Even after Li Youzi's back disappeared from sight, Zhang Siwei still felt his lingering anger unspent.

He picked up the Memorial again and read through the contents repeatedly.

Turning it over and over, looking at it horizontally and vertically, in the end, he could only let out a long sigh and write down in frustration: "Your words are very much in line with My heart; let the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Ministry of Works handle this matter together."

For the next ten days or so.

Li Youzi was quite well-behaved, and seeing that he was ranked last, Zhang Siwei couldn't be bothered to find trouble with him. Gradually, he relaxed his vigilance toward Li Youzi and put most of his energy into dealing with Pan Cheng.

This person was his greatest rival.

Early that morning, Zhang Siwei arrived at the duty office to begin his shift.

As soon as he entered, the clerk in the duty office walked up to him looking as if he had lost his parents, holding a Memorial that already had a Vermilion Approval written on it.

"Grand Secretary, something major has happened."

"What is it?"

"You should take a look at this first."

As the clerk spoke, he handed the Memorial forward.

Zhang Siwei took it and glanced at the name, and immediately, doubt welled up in his heart: Hadn't I already performed the Drafting of Rescripts for this Memorial a few days ago? Why is it being submitted again today? Frowning, he opened it to look at the content: "Having reviewed your memorial, your words are very pertinent to current politics. You are specially instructed to recruit two hundred Scholars, and after they have completed their studies, the imperial court will arrange their placements."

"Who wrote the Drafting of Rescripts?!" Zhang Siwei shuddered as if stung by a scorpion, turning his head to ask the clerk.

The clerk shook his head repeatedly: "I don't know. This Imperial Edict was issued early this morning. Eunuch Zhang from the Directorate of Ceremonial said it was sent from the Grand Secretariat to the Directorate of Ceremonial at the Hour of the Rooster yesterday."

"That Li Youzi!"

(End of chapter)