Chapter 159: The Minister’s Worries

Chapter 159 The Minister's Worries

The incident that evening was merely a small episode for Zheng Shanci, but not for Su Yan. Upon returning home, Su Yan was once again persuaded by his parents. He pretended to agree, but he still did not withdraw from the Ministry of Justice.

Worn out, he went back to his room, his head full of questions. Even if his mother had once been Madam Nie’s maid, why was she so afraid of him having any connection to the Nie residence?

Yun Niang had been freed from her contract by Madam Nie and was no longer a servant—just a regular person. As a low-ranking official in the Hanlin Academy assisting at the Ministry of Justice, he wouldn’t even run into Lord Nie. What was his mother so afraid of?

Those who achieved the rank of Second-Ranked Jinshi were no fools. After calming down, Su Yan started piecing things together. When he was young, his mother had still been in Madam Nie’s service. After he earned his Jinshi degree, Madam Nie had freed his mother from her contract and gave his parents some money to start a small business.

His father had used the money to open a grocery store, which came with a small courtyard where the family now lived.

Su Yan recalled that whenever he visited the Nie residence, his mother would chase him away, and Young Master Nie was nasty to him, often threatening him.

No wonder Su Yan stopped wanting to visit the Nie residence.

As a child, he had hit his head on a rock and lost all memories before the age of three. The first person he saw upon waking was his mother, who told him he had a bump on his head, so she bandaged his face to help him recover faster.

Was all this tied to his lost memories before the age of three? Su Yan wondered if his mother’s persistent efforts to keep him from the Nie residence meant his forgotten past was tied to it.

And why had his father’s attitude suddenly changed?

Su Yan’s mind was all jumbled up.

The next day, while on duty at the Ministry of Justice, Du Ning called him away to record details at the crime scene.

Du Ning knew this stuff inside out and had brought Su Yan along to show the kid the ropes.

Once the coroner finished speaking, Su Yan took notes.

They analyzed the scene, and Su Yan continued recording everything. After standing all morning, noting down every necessary detail, Du Ning, seeing the time, decided against returning to the canteen for leftovers. “To the noodle shop—my treat,” he declared.

Hearing their superior’s offer, the Ministry of Justice officials loaded up their bowls with every extra, even if it was just a bowl of noodles.

Only Su Yan quietly asked for just a basic bowl of yangchun noodles.

Du Ning chuckled. “I’m no big spender like Brother Zheng, taking you all to a proper restaurant, but I can at least treat you to a bowl of noodles. At least get some shredded pork noodles with an egg. Sit with me—forget the plain noodles. Two bowls of shredded pork noodles, two eggs apiece.”

The noodle shop owner acknowledged the order. Du Ning was a regular, and the owner recognized him.

Su Yan sat awkwardly facing Du Ning. When there wasn’t enough room, the Vice Director motioned for Su Yan to scoot closer and sit beside him, ordering a bowl of Kung Pao chicken noodles with an extra egg.

After some conversation between the Vice Director and Du Ning, the noodles arrived.

Both Du Ning’s and Su Yan’s bowls were loaded with shredded pork and pickled radish, topped with two golden fried eggs.

The Vice Director stared. “I didn’t go big enough—I should’ve asked for two eggs.”

Du Ning grinned. “At home, the kitchen usually only fries one egg per bowl. When I eat out, I like to indulge—two eggs to my heart’s content.”

The Vice Director called out, “Boss, add another egg for me!”

The noodle shop owner glanced at him, put the order with the right person, and cheerfully agreed.

“This shop owner is sharp—he remembers exactly who ordered what,” the Vice Director remarked.

Su Yan just nodded politely while Du Ning finished his noodles in a few bites. “You two keep eating. I’ll head back to the scene.”

This case still carried some pressure. Though Du Ning seemed carefree, he paid close attention to details—which was why he took a liking to the equally detail-oriented Su Yan.

The Vice Director's noodles arrived. Seeing that Du Ning had Su Yan accompany him to the crime scene, he realized Du Ning valued him and thus shared more about the Ministry of Justice's cases. Don't speak while eating or sleeping—when Ministry officials were swamped with cases, meals were their only break. Forcing them to stay silent would drive them mad.

Su Yan asked, "With so many cases, it's remarkable that you can remember them all."

The Vice Director finished his two poached eggs and said, "These cases are burned into my memory. Most of them boil down to conflicts of interest. Sure, there are murders driven by family ties, love, or friendship—those are usually crimes of passion. But even then, underlying it all is still interest. Your interests, my interests, all tangled together. Take this case—our first suspicion naturally falls on whoever benefits from it."

Conflicts of interest.

Su Yan took the Vice Director's words to heart.

After finishing their noodles, the group returned to the crime scene.

A few days later, once the case was closed, Du Ning reviewed Su Yan's case records and nodded approvingly. "From now on, you'll accompany us to crime scenes."

Su Yan replied, "Thank you for the opportunity, Lord Du."

Du Ning dismissed him with a wave. With the case concluded, there was no excuse to eat out at noon anymore, so Du Ning headed to the canteen. There, he spotted Zheng Shanci with a plate of braised pork, eyeing it with envy.

Zheng Shanci tugged his sleeve. "Go for the shredded pork with pickled bamboo shoots."

Du Ning nodded subtly. Everyone gathered their meals and ate together.

Du Ning scarfed down a bowl. Xiao Gaoyang, watching him wolf it down, chuckled. "I heard your ministry solved a beheading case quickly."

"We're eating—spare yourself the details," Du Ning said between mouthfuls.

Xiao Gaoyang dropped the subject.

Zheng Shanci was curious too, but he preferred focusing on his meal. With the autumn harvest tasks completed, the Ministry of Revenue's workload had lightened. Still, Zheng Shanci had his own worries—now that he’d become Minister of Revenue, he had much to learn. Minister Mei wasn’t as warm toward him as before, and the other ministers were polite but distant.

He was still adjusting, feeling a little out of place. After all, the perspective and foresight required of a second-in-command differed from those of the top leader. With his change in status, people’s attitudes toward him had shifted as well.

After his duties, Zheng Shanci returned home. Yu Lanyi was at a banquet at the Wei estate and wouldn’t be back for a while.

At the Wei estate, Yu Lanyi encountered many ministers' wives and husbands. Most who held the rank of Minister were in their forties or fifties, so at thirty-two, Zheng Shanci’s appointment made Yu Lanyi stand out as unusually young among the consorts.

Yu Lanyi mused that he couldn’t exactly age himself artificially.

The Minister of War’s surname was Cao. Mr. Cao smiled and asked, *What does Young Master Yu usually do at home?*

*Mostly play around, of course.*

Yu Lanyi replied, "I usually go over the ledgers first, then take a walk in the garden. If my husband’s purse is damaged, I’ll do some needlework or cook for him. Home life gets tedious, so I also enjoy horseback riding in the countryside."

Mr. Cao gave a satisfied nod, deeming Yu Lanyi’s conduct befitting a noble husband.

Yu Lanyi nibbled on grapes while listening to the conversations. *Ugh, their conversation’s nowhere near as fun as Shi Geer’s.* They spoke deliberately, and when something amused them, they’d cover their lips with a handkerchief, laughing without showing teeth. Their movements were unhurried, projecting poise. If Yu Lanyi tried to mimic them, he’d find it unbearably stifling.

Now mingling with the grand secretaries' and ministers' wives, Yu Lanyi noticed some had brought along their young sons, chatting idly with other wives.

*The real game wasn’t the wine—it was matchmaking.*

The young man was quite good-looking, and Yu Lanyi took a few extra looks. The two wives grew more engrossed in their conversation, eventually pulling the young man over to introduce him to another wife. Mr. Cao chimed in, "Your family is outstanding. If only my son weren’t already married—I’d have loved to bring him into our household."

"You’re too kind, Mr. Cao," the wife replied, her smile widening.

Mr. Wei, though, kept his distance. He gave the young man a brief glance before looking away, sipping his tea and setting the cup down without a sound.

Though engaged in conversation, all eyes were on Mr. Wei. Some husbands deliberately steered topics toward him, thrilled to receive even a faint smile in return. As the Chief Grand Secretary’s husband, his every gesture carried weight among the spouses. The wife eager to showcase her son said, "The weather is lovely today. My son’s quite good at whisking tea—let him prepare some for everyone to taste."

Mr. Wei loved making whisked tea. Though from a merchant family, he wasn't skilled at it himself but held great appreciation for the craft.

This time, Mr. Wei glanced at the young man and said with a smile, "Why don't we let him try?"

Yu Lanyi stepped away to use the bathroom first. After coming out, he strolled around the garden, where he spotted Mei Geer also admiring the flowers. Seeing Mei Geer, Yu Lanyi happily waved, and the two exchanged smiles.

Mei Geer always hated socializing—he was basically a hermit. Now that he was married to Jiang Lanli, he occasionally had to attend gatherings. Being the son of Minister Mei, nobody would dare mess with him.

Mei Geer had enough of the banquet and stepped out for some fresh air.

"This event is supposedly for flower appreciation, but really, it's all about sizing up which boys were good-looking and which daughters were virtuous. It's basically a meat market, letting the groom's mother and father see if they're satisfied first. If they are, then further interactions can happen," Mei Geer grumbled, which was rare for him.

Yu Lanyi: "It's inevitable. But why are you so worked up today...?"

Mei Geer turned bright red. With his normally ice-cold demeanor and soft-spoken manner, he said, "My health has been poor since my early years. Now, my mother-in-law is pressuring my husband to have another child. I don’t want to, so she’s been shoving quack cures down my throat."

"Luckily, my husband didn’t listen to her. I wasn’t even the one he initially considered for marriage—he chose me first, and that’s how this match came to be."

Yu Lanyi cheered: "Your life is yours and Minister Jiang’s to live. As long as you two are happy, who cares what they think? Just let it go in one ear and out the other. If it gets too much, just threaten to move back home—let Minister Mei and Minister Mei stand up for you. If you don’t make a scene, they’ll walk all over you."

Mei Geer took Yu Lanyi’s words to heart.

That very night, Mei Geer threw a fit, thoroughly frightening Jiang’s parents, who from then on wouldn't dare interfere in the young couple’s affairs. This daughter-in-law had a short fuse and serious connections.

After Jiang Lanli saw his parents off, Mei Geer still felt uneasy.

"I wasn’t wrong," Mei Geer whined.

Jiang Lanli smiled. "Who said you were? You did well."

Mei Geer kicked Jiang Lanli lightly before storming off to their room.

Jiang Lanli, though kicked, his heart skipped a beat and eagerly followed him inside.

...

When Yu Lanyi returned home, Zheng Shanci was playing in the courtyard with Xiao Pingan. Seeing Yu Lanyi back, he asked how it went.

"Nothing much, just a lot of banquets lately."

"Lan Yi, you’ve worked hard."

Yu Lanyi lay back in a chair and glanced at Zheng Shanci. "Rub my shoulders, won’t you?"

Zheng Shanci chuckled and stood behind Yu Lanyi, working his shoulders.

Xiao Pingan came over to massage Yu Lanyi’s legs.

As he worked on Yu Lanyi’s shoulders, Zheng Shanci started thinking about politics. Since becoming the Minister of Personnel, Minister Mei had kept a certain distance from everyone—especially subordinates like him who had been promoted to ministerial positions, to avoid looking biased.

Zheng Shanci understood that Minister Mei was trying to stop cliques from forming. For instance, Grand Secretary Lei, Minister Mei, and himself—all three naturally belonged to the same faction, having all made jinshi in the same year.

This time, the position of Second Grand Secretary had been filled by a member of the Xiao family, the same lineage as Xiao Gaoyang. This new Grand Secretary Xiao was also at odds with Chief Grand Secretary Wei—not because they disliked each other personally, but because they just didn't see eye to eye. The two had passed the imperial examinations in the same year and had even supported each other in court for a time.

Different ideologies, different interests. Nice guys don't always make good bureaucrats, and jerks don't necessarily fail at it.

Zheng Shanci’s mindset had shifted again—he needed to use certain people, and figuring out how to use them effectively was now his priority. Once land reforms were implemented, canal transport could also be improved to bring in more money. As the Minister of Revenue, he couldn’t just follow routine—he had to think about bringing in more money.

Additionally, after completing the land surveys, commercial taxes could be moderately reduced, but they must remain heavier than agricultural taxes. Scholars, farmers, artisans, merchants—the Great Yan Dynasty prioritized agriculture. If commoners were encouraged to become merchants, we'd be screwed for food and taxes.

Yu Lanyi had to tell Zheng Shanci to stop—he had zoned out while rubbing, his grip grew stronger, as if kneading dough.

Yu Lanyi: "..."

When Zheng Shanci finally snapped out of it, Yu Lanyi shot him a dirty look.

"What were you thinking about so deeply? You’ve rubbed my shoulders red—I never knew you had such strong hands."