nucmednet Chapter 395 Seeking an Official Position
Chapter 395 Seeking an Official Position
Liu Ye coughed twice, "Well... Inspector Lin is my future father-in-law. After the war in Shandong is quelled, I will propose marriage to him..."
Zhu Dadian suddenly realized. He vaguely remembered that Lin Tianming had few children, only one daughter, who, judging by age, was indeed a good match for Liu Ye. He smiled again and joked, "Inspector Lin's ancestral home is in Hunan. After entering officialdom, he served in the capital for a long time. You are just a military officer from Guangdong, thousands of miles away. How did you manage to form a marriage alliance with Lin's daughter?"
Liu Ye feigned an embarrassed expression: "Your Excellency, Inspector Lin's brother-in-law is Mu Tianyan, the Governor of Guangdong. Miss Lin has lived at her uncle's house for two years. I gained Governor Mu's favor and frequently visited the Governor's office, which is how I became acquainted with Miss Lin..."
"Oh, I see." Zhu Dadian still smiled, but in his heart, he was reassessing Liu Ye's value. He had originally thought Liu Ye was just a skilled military general who was adept at interpersonal relationships and commanding troops. Now it seemed that Liu Ye's connections spanned the north and south, from the governor of Guangdong to the imperial censor of Shandong, with whom he maintained very close ties. Such a person, who was so well-connected in both civil and military circles, was bound to be someone of great potential. And his so-called connection with the Lin family's daughter was probably not as simple as mutual attraction; perhaps it was a deliberate arrangement by Liu Ye to solidify his relationship with Mu Tianyan and Lin Tianming.
Thinking about this, Zhu Dadian understood why Liu Ye had suddenly inquired about Lin Tianming's promotion. On the surface, it seemed like concern for his future father-in-law, but in reality, he wanted to consolidate his network of connections and gain greater power. Zhu Dadian and Lin Tianming also had a good personal relationship. During the Tianqi era, Zhu Dadian had served as a censor in the Ministry of War, while Lin Tianming was a censor in Shaanxi Province. Both were respected officials who spoke out against injustice, and naturally, they were close. Their cooperation in suppressing the rebellion in Shandong had been pleasant, and Zhu Dadian was happy to see Liu Ye promote Lin Tianming.
He thought for a moment and said, “It’s only natural that you’re concerned about your father-in-law’s career. This time, the defeat of the rebels and the recapture of Dengzhou went very smoothly. After the report is submitted, His Majesty will surely be delighted, and everyone in the army will be rewarded, including Inspector Lin. He’s currently a seventh-rank Inspector, and he’s accumulated enough seniority. With this military achievement, I can add a few more strokes to his name in the report, and it shouldn’t be a problem for him to succeed me as Right Vice Censor-in-Chief…”
Liu Ye was overjoyed. If he were promoted to Right Vice Censor-in-Chief, then there would be room for maneuver in appointing him as Governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou. He asked with concern, "What position will the Governor be promoted to? Is it possible that Inspector Lin will be given a substantive post on the spot?"
Zhu Dadian stroked his beard and smiled, "I dare not speculate on His Majesty's intentions, nor do I know what position he will be promoted to. However, based on common sense, it is highly likely that he will be promoted from Right Vice Censor-in-Chief to Vice Minister of War, still serving as governor of Shandong to stabilize the post-war situation in Shandong. Perhaps he will be used for other purposes in a few years. As for your father-in-law, whether he will be appointed to a local post is uncertain and depends on how you handle things."
Upon hearing this, Liu Ye bowed and said, "There is a vacant position available right now. I hope to help Inspector Lin secure it. I would appreciate your guidance on how to proceed."
"You mean the governor of Dengzhou and Laizhou?" Zhu Dadian nodded. "Since Sun Yuanhua and Xie Lian died at the hands of the rebels, this position has indeed been vacant. Before the rebels were wiped out, no one dared to take on this hot potato, lest they bring about their own demise. Now that the rebellion has just been quelled, and the news has not yet reached the capital, there is still a great chance if we act early. As for how to operate, hehe, don't underestimate your future father-in-law. Although he is currently only a seventh-rank official, he holds great power despite his low rank and has deep connections in the capital. As long as we are willing to spend money, it won't be too difficult to grant him a substantive official position."
Liu Ye was overjoyed. He might lack other things, but he had plenty of money. As long as money could solve the problem, it was no problem for him. He took out a package from his pocket and handed it to Zhu Dadian: "Thank you for your guidance, Governor. Please make sure that our memorials are written well so that His Majesty can see our future prospects."
Having learned from his previous experience, Zhu Dadian knew this time without even touching it that it was a heavy gold bar. He "scolded" him, "What are you doing this again? It was already wrong of me to accept your local produce last time. If I accept it again this time, people will gossip, especially those censors who aren't just for show..."
"Hehe, Your Excellency is joking. I am honored by Your Excellency's favor. Who would dare to gossip if I presented some local products from Guangdong? As for the censors, isn't the most powerful censor in Shandong right now my future father-in-law? Does a father-in-law ever impeach his son-in-law?"
Zhu Dadian laughed, pointing at the other person a few times with his finger: "You're so shrewd, you figured everything out. Fine, seeing how sincere you are, I'll accept this batch of local products for now, but you can't send them again in the future!" As he spoke, he subtly took the package and put it away.
Liu Ye continued, "Now that we know how to handle Inspector Lin's matter, what about my matter? Are you confident?"
"You're talking about being promoted to Commander-in-Chief, right?" Zhu Dadian pondered. "You're currently a full-fledged military commander with a defense zone. Now that you've achieved merit in killing Li Jiucheng and intercepting the main force of the rebel army with the navy, it's impossible for you to only be promoted to deputy commander. Directly becoming Commander-in-Chief shouldn't be a problem. However, there are nuances to the position of Commander-in-Chief, and there's a lot of room for maneuver..."
Liu Ye, not understanding, asked, "I would like to hear more details." He genuinely didn't understand the Ming Dynasty's military system and the ranks of military officers; there were just too many variations.
Although Zhu Dadian also came from a background as a censor, he had served as the deputy provincial inspector of Fujian since the fifth year of the Tianqi reign. He was promoted to the right vice minister of the Fujian Provincial Administration Commission for his meritorious service in resisting the invasion of the "red-haired barbarians". Now he is the governor of Shandong, commanding tens of thousands of troops. He has been dealing with the army for many years and is very familiar with the ways of military officers.
He explained, “The title of General-in-Chief in our dynasty was originally a commissioned one, without rank. In times of war, the General-in-Chief would wear a general's seal and go into battle, returning it afterward. In other words, he only led troops into battle, not training them. During the Hongwu reign, most General-in-Chief were appointed from among the Left and Right Commanders-in-Chief, Deputy Commanders-in-Chief, and Vice Commanders-in-Chief of the Five Military Commissions, as well as dukes, marquises, and earls. It wasn't until the Yongle reign that permanent General-in-Chief were dispatched to guard the borders, bearing a general's seal, thus making the position a permanent official post. Now, General-in-Chief are as numerous as hairs on a cow; even a prefecture or county can have a General-in-Chief, but they don't wear a general's seal. Examples include Chen Hongfan, the General-in-Chief of Changping; Liu Zeqing, the General-in-Chief of Yiyong; Yang Yufan, the General-in-Chief of Tongzhou; and Wu Anbang, the General-in-Chief of Dengzhou, all of whom participated in suppressing the rebellion. Such General-in-Chief are incomparable to the Generals-in-Chief stationed in Liaodong, Xuanfu, Datong, and other regions…”
Liu Ye understood. Not all generals were high-ranking officials. Someone like Zu Dashou was a regional commander who guarded a local area, while someone like Liu Zeqing, who didn't have a general's seal, was just a miscellaneous general.