Chapter 798: Promotion in name only, demotion in reality!

In Chenji Teahouse, Mr. Zhang was very enthusiastic when delivering the sermon, and he delivered it with great effort and passion:
"When Yang Yichen heard this, he slammed the table and shed tears, saying, 'How dare this traitor be so cruel? Most of the ministers in the court are greedy for positions and afraid of death. Is there no loyal and righteous minister in the vassal states who would punish this traitor? ' He cried bitterly. That night, he felt depressed, lit a painted candle, read a book in the study, and sighed..."

While listening to what Mr. Zhang said about Ye Mingsheng, he suddenly asked Wang Xuecheng beside him:

"Xuecheng, you should have heard the news. What do you think of this administrative reform?"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng ask this, Wang Xuecheng, who was already in a complicated mood, was even more surprised. He was the deputy director of the Coordination Office, the executive department of the Fengwu Army. According to the rules set by Ye Mingsheng, the Coordination Office was not allowed to interfere in government affairs!
In the past few years, many people in the Coordination Office have violated this rule and have been severely punished by Ye Mingsheng. Now Ye Mingsheng actually took the initiative to ask himself what he thinks about the new round of administrative reforms. Could it be that this is an adult testing whether he really abides by the rules?

Thinking of this, Wang Xuecheng immediately said:
"Sir, I have no opinion on this administrative reform. Everyone in the Coordination Office is loyal to you, Sir. We will do whatever you say!"

Hearing this answer from Wang Xuecheng, Ye Mingsheng laughed a little, and then said with a smile:

"Since I asked you to meet here, you don't have to be so formal. You can speak freely!"

After hearing what Ye Mingsheng said, Wang Xuecheng realized that he had guessed Ye Mingsheng’s thoughts wrong. Although he didn’t know what Ye Mingsheng’s intention was in asking this question, it seemed that if he continued to fool Ye Mingsheng, he would definitely not satisfy Ye Mingsheng································
After thinking this through, Wang Xuecheng fell into deep thought, and Ye Mingsheng did not urge him. He looked at Mr. Zhang on the stage and listened quietly to the Romance of Sui and Tang Dynasties.

The purpose of this administrative reform was not complicated in Wang Xuecheng's view. It was because the Fengwu Army's territory was too large, including Liaoyang, Youyan, Qilu, Hebei and Henan, Anqing, as well as part of Yun and Huainan. These places together occupied half of the world.

The original governance system of the Fengwu Army seemed a bit too rough in the face of such a large territory. So in order to govern the area more meticulously and to better centralize power and ensure the authority of the center, Ye Mingsheng set up various bureaus equivalent to the six small departments!

Compared with the Legal Affairs Bureau, the Personnel Bureau, the Political Affairs Bureau and other departments, this so-called Central Council seems to be a decoration. It can even be regarded as a department set up by Ye Mingsheng specifically for Cui Shao, giving Cui Shao a so-called central envoy in name only, second only to the emperor and above everyone else.

But in reality, the power that Cui Shao actually possessed came from his concurrent position as Director of the Political Affairs Bureau!
Although he understood Ye Mingsheng's intention this time, Wang Xuecheng still said very cautiously in response to Ye Mingsheng's question:

"Sir, I think your administrative reform this time will benefit both the future and the present. Only by taking power back to the central government can we better implement various policies and ensure that the people can get real benefits..."

"As far as I know, after the news of this new round of administrative reforms leaked out, the soldiers and civilians under my Fengwu Army were all very happy. They all believed that you, sir, are the true son of destiny and a good lord who governs the people with benevolence!"

Although Wang Xuecheng's words were very flattering, Ye Mingsheng didn't care and said calmly:

"Xuecheng, this time I plan to let Wei Gang be the director of the Legal Affairs Bureau, and I will give one of the deputy directors to Cui Zibo. There is another deputy director position in the Legal Affairs Bureau. I wonder if you are interested?"

"When you joined the Coordination Office, I promised you that as long as the Coordination Office was on the right track, I would let you return to the right path. Now the Coordination Office is developing quite well, and it's time for me to let you return to your original job!"

Hearing Ye Mingsheng say this, Wang Xuecheng's expression suddenly froze. The thing he was most worried about finally happened!

Although it was a little hard to accept, Wang Xuecheng also understood that although Ye Mingsheng used a negotiating tone, thunder and rain were all grace from the emperor, and he had no right to choose to refuse. Thinking of this, he secretly took a deep breath, sorted out his emotions, and forced a smile on his face and said to Ye Mingsheng:
"Thank you for your consideration! I will be grateful after learning this!"

Listening to Wang Xuecheng's answer, Ye Mingsheng nodded with satisfaction, and then also instructed:
“The Ministry of Justice will unify the management of the Censors’ Offices in various places. The responsibility is very heavy. I can only feel at ease if a general like you, Xuecheng, is in charge…”

"Thank you for your trust, sir. I will do my best!" Wang Xuecheng said respectfully:
After instructing Wang Xuecheng a few more times, Ye Mingsheng felt satisfied and left after leaving the tea money. Wang Xuecheng followed him all the time. After Ye Mingsheng entered the carriage, he seemed to have thought of something and immediately said to Wang Xuecheng:
"You should take a good rest for a few days after you come back. The official appointment from the Legal Affairs Bureau will be issued in a few days, and Ji Xian will find you to take over in the next few days!"

Hearing the name Ji Xian, Wang Xuecheng's eyebrows jumped slightly, but he still bowed and said:
"Yes! Your lord!"

After patting Wang Xuecheng on the shoulder again, Ye Mingsheng left with his men. Watching Ye Mingsheng's carriage leave, Wang Xuecheng's expression became very complicated. It was not until the carriage that Ye Mingsheng was riding in completely disappeared from his sight that he slowly left and returned home.

As the deputy director of the Coordination Office, Wang Xuecheng's residence is also very luxurious. There is a three-story mansion covering an area of ​​more than ten acres on Fuxiang Street, one of the best locations in Yijing. After Wang Xuecheng returned to the mansion, his wife Ye Yingying came over and said excitedly:
"My husband, I just had a new set of clothes made at the tailor's shop today. What do you think of it?"

Wang Xuecheng was not interested in what Ye Yingying said. He sat in a chair with his eyes closed in a somewhat decadent manner. At this time, Ye Yingying did not feel the strangeness in Wang Xuecheng's heart. She still took out a banknote and told Wang Xuecheng the good news:

"Husband, Manager Liu of De'anju came this morning and brought us five hundred taels of silver. I've heard that Manager Liu of De'anju is an extraordinary person, and today I see that it's true..."

Wang Xuecheng, who was already irritable, was furious when he heard that Ye Yingying had accepted another 500 taels of silver. He cursed fiercely:

"You ignorant and foolish woman, don't you know what the situation is now? How dare you accept money?"

"Are you trying to kill me? Kill our entire family?"

Ye Yingying, who was in high spirits, was stunned when she heard Wang Xuecheng's crazy roar. She didn't understand what was going on. Tears welled up in her eyes and she said with great grievance:
"You heartless bastard, you got mad at that wild woman again, and you came back to vent your anger on me?"

Although Wang Xuecheng and Ye Yingying were very affectionate in the early years of their marriage, Wang Xuecheng even promised to be together for the rest of their lives.

However, as Wang Xuecheng, the deputy director of the Coordination Office, became more and more powerful, he faced more and more temptations every day, and Ye Yingying was getting old and losing her looks, so it was no surprise that Wang Xuecheng had other women and his mind was less and less on Ye Yingying.

Although Ye Yingying felt very sad about this situation, she also knew that she could not change anything. However, she also made a request to Wang Xuecheng!
The requirement is that you, Wang Xuecheng, can find other women, but you cannot bring them home, you can play however you want outside and I will pretend not to see······························
To be honest, Wang Xuecheng was very dissatisfied with his wife's request. He thought that a high-ranking official like him would have three wives and four concubines. It was no big deal for him to play with a few women. Why could others bring them home while he could only do it secretly outside?

Ye Yingying also resolutely resisted this and refused to let Wang Xuecheng bring the wild woman home. Finally, seeing that Ye Yingying was very determined and wanted to die, and she was a member of the Ye family and was Ye Mingsheng's sister in terms of seniority. It would not be good for her to make a big deal out of it, so Wang Xuecheng had to hold his nose and endure it!

Facing Ye Yingying's unreasonable demands, Wang Xuecheng, who was annoyed, asked seriously, "I want to ask you how much money you have at home now?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Yingying immediately became alert and said very carefully:

"Wang Xuecheng, what do you want to do? Isn't it enough for you to spend money on wild women? Do you want to spend money from your family on wild women?"

Seeing that Ye Yingying couldn't stop talking about wild women, Wang Xuecheng was so angry that he said helplessly:

"Now that disaster has come, can you please stop making trouble and tell me how much silver you have at home?"

Facing Wang Xuecheng's words, Ye Yingying still spoke indifferently:

"What disaster is about to happen! My last name is Ye! I am the Marshal's sister, and you are the Marshal's brother-in-law, and the deputy director of the Coordination Office. Who in the whole Yijing dares to touch you?"

“You’re so good, Wang Xuecheng. Now you have learned to make up lies for those dirty wild women…”

Seeing that Ye Yingying was still not giving in, Wang Xuecheng could only tell the truth:
"Who can touch me? Who dares to touch me?"

Ye Yingying was stunned at first. She was not a stupid woman. Seeing her husband so anxious and frustrated, she realized the key to the matter and said cautiously:

"Does the Marshal want to touch you?"

Wang Xuecheng sighed upon hearing this, nodded bitterly and said:
"The Marshal dismissed me from my position as deputy director of the Coordination Office and asked me to be the deputy director of the Legal Affairs Bureau!"

Hearing this, Ye Yingying blinked and said:
"Isn't this exactly what you want? Aren't you thinking of leaving the Coordination Office and becoming a proper civil servant?"

"This deputy director of the Legal Affairs Bureau seems pretty good too. I heard that this Legal Affairs Bureau will be the Ministry of Justice of the Fengwu Army in the future. As the deputy director, you should be equivalent to the assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice!"

Wang Xuecheng shook his head helplessly and said:

"Do you, woman, know what it means to rise in public but fall in private?"

"I am currently the deputy director of the Coordination Office. I am able to attend the Zhongwu Hall meetings. But if I am transferred to the deputy director of the Legal Affairs Bureau, it is equivalent to transferring me away from the core key position. And the most important thing is that the Marshal has asked Ji Xian to replace me this time!"

Hearing the name Ji Xian, Ye Yingying was also a little scared and said:

"Is he the inner guard hound you were talking about?"

Wang Xuecheng said in a very depressed mood:

"It's him! The Marshal asked him to replace me this time. Maybe he wants to dig deeper into the Coordination Office. I must make plans early and absolutely cannot sit and wait for death..."

Hearing Wang Xuecheng say this, Ye Yingying finally realized the seriousness of the matter. Fear appeared in her eyes and she couldn't help but say:
"Xuecheng, what did you do to upset the Marshal? Why did this happen so suddenly?!"

"If that doesn't work, I'll go find the eldest lady and the old lady tomorrow and ask them to plead for you!"

Hearing Ye Yingying say this, Wang Xuecheng quickly stopped her and said:

"Don't do this! The Master is very disgusted with you asking for mercy. If you go to them to ask for mercy, things will become worse. What's more, the Madam is in trouble now!"

Seeing her husband say this, Ye Yingying became even more worried and said:
"What do you think we should do after we learn this? Will our family be confiscated and exterminated?"

Feeling his wife's worry, Wang Xuecheng felt extremely regretful. He thought that this matter could be kept secret, but he didn't expect that the Marshal would eventually discover the clues. He now deserves what he has done.

However, now that things have come to this, we can only take it one step at a time. He immediately comforted Ye Yingying and said:

"Don't cry! I, Wang Xuecheng, have made contributions to the Fengwu Army and the Marshal over the years. The Marshal is not a person who doesn't remember the past. He will not kill all of our family. Look at Zhang Dehui and Ye Hongsheng. Aren't their families living well? The Marshal only demoted Huo San by one level and let him go!"

"My problem is not as serious as theirs! This time, as long as we deal with it properly, maybe the Marshal will just give me a light punishment and a warning!"

After hearing what Wang Xuecheng said, Ye Yingying finally felt relieved. She wiped her tears and said:
"So what are you going to do after you learn it?"

Wang Xuecheng pondered for a moment and said:
“Just like Huo San and the others, I donated all the money in my family…”

(End of this chapter)