Chapter 48: Muddled Promotion

  Yang Ling heard that Wu Qianhu had arrived, and he knew there must be something important. He didn't dare to slack off, so he hastily bid farewell to Guan Shouying and rushed to the front hall. Outside the small office of the postmaster, two thin and spirited young men stood upright, Yang Ling thought they were Wu Jie's attendants and didn't pay attention to them. He walked straight in and saw that Wu Jie was still wearing a blue robe, sitting upright on the chair, but his dignified and solemn demeanor was very different from his carefree expression last time.

  Yang Ling's heart skipped a beat, Wu Jie's appearance was obviously important, and he wondered if something had gone wrong with the Imperial Guard. As soon as Yang Ling entered, Wu Jie immediately stood up, and seeing the small official who had delivered the message following behind Yang Ling, he hastily said: "Lord Yang, please come to the inner hall to discuss!"

  Yang Ling saw him and hastily waved his hand to let the little official leave. He closed the door, feeling uneasy, and followed Wu Jie into the inner room. Just as he was about to greet him with the courtesy of a lower official, Wu Jie suddenly turned around and fell to the ground: "Junior officer Wu Jie pays respects to Yang Ling, the commander of the Imperial Guard!"

  Yang Ling was startled and hastily helped Wu Jie up, his face covered in mist as he said: "Lord Wu, what are you saying? What about the same knowledge, this...this..."

  Wu Jie made a smiling face, cupped his hands and said: "Congratulations, sir. Commander Zhang of the Embroidered Uniform Guard greatly appreciates Mr. Yang's talent and has ordered you to be promoted to the position of Embroidered Uniform Guard Tongzhi, with an official rank of 5th grade. I have come to inform you of this decree as I am on my way to Beijing on official business."

  It's said that Wu Jie was only a fifth-rank thousand-household, half a rank lower than him, so he didn't need to show such great courtesy. However, Yang Ling is now an official in the capital and has entered the core of the Brocade Guard, and he's only 18 years old! His future prospects are boundless, how could Wu Jie dare not try his best to fawn on him?

  "What?" Yang Ling was even more bewildered, stunned by the news. He had no concept of what an official like Tongzhi was, but he understood that being a fifth-rank official was a big deal. After a long pause, Yang Ling stuttered: "Lord Wu, how...how did I suddenly get appointed as an official in the capital?"

  Wu Jie's eyes almost welled up with tears: "You ask me, who am I supposed to ask? I'm a hereditary Jin Yiwei, and it took me thirty years of hard work to become a qianhu. There are some Jin Yiweis selected from the people who have risen through the ranks to this level, but they're all old men who have made great contributions over their lifetime. Who knows which ancestor's grave of yours is emitting auspicious smoke? I'm still feeling wronged!"

  However, he didn't dare to say this out loud, and instead smiled and said: "I received the imperial edict and rushed here overnight from the capital, but I don't know the details. It's probably because of the saying 'dust can't hide jade, jade shines through', great talents stand out, and the court wouldn't neglect talented people, haha..."

  Wu Jie smiled, pulled out a paper from his sleeve and handed it to Yang Ling, saying: "Sir, when you first arrived in the capital, buying a house, visiting colleagues, there must be some expenses. I present you with 1,000 taels of silver as a gift, please accept it."

  Yang Ling heard that it was a thousand taels of silver, and he didn't dare to accept it. Wu Jie said with a straight face: "Your Excellency doesn't have to worry, I've been running around outside the pass for many years, and although it's hard, it's just a bit bitter. However, in order to cover up my identity, I often do some private business with foreigners, such as medicine, fur, salt, and tea, under the protection of being a Brocade Guard. Money comes easily, so this small amount of money doesn't count for much, it's just a little token of my intention. If Your Excellency doesn't accept it, I'll be in trouble."

  He said, not waiting for Yang Ling to refuse, and stuffed the silver ticket into his sleeve. He made a reluctant gesture and said: "Since I met you, sir, we have been quite compatible. Now that you are entering the capital, I can only visit your mansion every year when I return to Beijing to report on my duties."

  Alas! I, a humble official, have grown old and spent many years traveling outside, my legs are no longer convenient. Your Excellency will surely be heavily relied upon this time you enter the capital, at that time I hope Your Excellency can put in a good word for me. My relatives are all in the capital, running several pharmacies, if it's possible to transfer me back to the capital, I can also reunite with my family.

  Yang Ling thought: This Wu Qianhu seems to be not in a good position in the capital, otherwise, there are many people in the capital who hold high positions and have great power, and they don't need to come to my door. It's just that I, this small official, was promoted to Bai Hu, which can be said to be because of the Jin Yiwei competing for favor and merit in front of the emperor. But now, being mysteriously promoted to Tong Zhi is really too strange.

  Wu Jie's return to Beijing this time is just an activity to get him to move back to the capital, and it's not just him who has a way out. However, these people have been in office for many years, forming cliques and factions, and are most concerned with the changes in personnel within the imperial court. Yang Ling was promoted to Beijing by the highest authority of the Imperial Guard before he even reached adulthood, and his future prospects are naturally boundless. If he doesn't build good relationships now, who will care about adding flowers to the brocade in the future?

  Yang Ling thought for a moment and asked: "Lord Wu, I am still holding the identity of a postal officer, do I not need an official order from the Ministry of Officials? When can I enter the capital?"

  Wu Jie hesitated for a moment, then said: "Your Excellency, I was ordered to rush here to deliver the imperial edict and seal, but as for your schedule of entering the capital, it wasn't mentioned. Oh, right, there are two Jin Yi guards who came with me, they were sent by the capital to escort you, Your Excellency can ask them."

  Yang Ling received the imperial edict and the two came to the outer hall. Wu Jie opened the door and called in the two young men, who were about the same height, with bright eyes and a sharp gaze, looking very smart and capable. The two had already learned of their appointment in the capital, and as soon as they entered the room, they clasped their hands together and knelt on one knee, paying respects to Yang Ling: "Your humble servants Liu Biao and Yang Yiqing pay their respects to the Honorable Magistrate."

  Yang Ling was still not used to being treated with such great courtesy, and he quickly stepped forward to help the two men up. After asking them in detail, it turned out that they had received orders to escort him back to Beijing, where they would meet with Director Zhang again. As for the time of their return to Beijing, Director Zhang had specifically instructed them that someone else would be coming to greet them soon, and they should wait quietly. At the same time, the matter of his promotion to Intendant was not to be notified to the local officials for the time being.

  Yang Ling and Wu Jie looked at each other in dismay, exchanging astonished glances. To be aware that the identity of the Brocade Guards is divided into three types: one is to work in the government office, with a public identity, as the core member of the Brocade Guards; another is like the postmaster, who is semi-public, everyone knows he has this identity, but no one will mention it, and is an external personnel of the Brocade Guards; the third type is Wu Jie, who operates under a civilian identity, and outsiders absolutely cannot know his true identity, actually being a secret agent of the Brocade Guards.

  Yang Lingguan has become a Tongzhi and entered the capital as an official, which is now his public identity. However, he is not allowed to notify his locality, so there must be some underlying reason for this. Moreover, someone from the capital has come to welcome him? This makes Wu Jie even more certain that Yang Ling has found a powerful backer in the capital and becomes increasingly respectful. As for those two jiaowei, they have been assigned to Yang Ling's personal guard, and both of them are overjoyed to see this young official.

  Many descendants of the meritorious officials and nobles in the Imperial Guards were numerous, all of whom held hereditary official positions. These two men, however, were selected from among the common people to join the Imperial Guards. It's like someone else has a university degree, but you only graduated from vocational school. Even if your work ability is stronger than theirs, you'll still encounter many obstacles when it comes to promotion. Now, serving this young master who has such a bright future ahead of him and is also from a commoner background just like myself, I naturally have a much greater chance of advancement.

  Yang Ling sent Wu Jie away and arranged for Liu Biao and Yang Yiqing to stay at the post house first. He thought that he was now a fifth-grade official, and also a powerful and prestigious Brocade Guard. After being dazed, he suddenly felt a kind of joy, and he couldn't help but rush excitedly to the backyard, wanting to tell this news to You Niang.

  Men in love are like little children, and when they have something delightful, they can't wait to share it with the people closest to them. Yang Ling excitedly rushed to the fourth courtyard, just as Ma Lian'er was carrying a basin of water out of the gate, splashing it out with a loud "whoosh". She had on an apron, her black hair tied up in a white cloth, her sleeves rolled up halfway, revealing two pale arms like lotus roots. The weather was still cold, and because she had been wet for so long, her skin was frozen bright red. It was rare to see her dressed in simple clothes, but it was quite charming.

  Her eyes were red, as if she had cried recently. When she saw Yang Ling coming, Ma Lian'er was startled and didn't want to be seen in her current disheveled state, so she quickly turned around and flashed into the courtyard. Yang Ling saw her and remembered what he had just heard about Bi Du's concubine, so he hurriedly chased after her. Ma Lian'er rushed into the courtyard and saw that Yang Ling had followed closely behind, which made her even more anxious, so she hastily picked up another wooden basin from the ground and rushed into the house in a fluster.

  When did Ma Lian'er become so afraid of seeing people? Yang Ling became even more curious, and without thinking, he followed her into the house. Ma Lian'er was both angry and embarrassed, and she slammed the wooden basin onto the table, turned around to block it with her body, and hastily scolded: "Why are you chasing me?"

  Yang Ling spread his hands and said helplessly: "What are you running for? Is there something in the basin that can't be seen?"

  Ma Lian'er's face turned red with anger, and she glared at Yang Ling, saying: "What business is it of yours? You're just a dog catching a mouse!"

  She blushed and pulled the tablecloth over the wooden basin, walked to the front of the kang and sat down with a plop, her legs curled up, her hands clasped around her knees, her chin resting on her knees, staring at Yang Ling: "What are you chasing me for? Do you have something to say?" Yang Ling noticed that she was wearing a pair of white bow shoes, which were worn for mourning her father. Her legs were curled up, and her pants were stretched tight, revealing the perfectly round curve behind her straight legs.

  Yang Ling took a glance, only to feel a tug at his heartstrings. He didn't dare look again and shifted his gaze back to the wooden basin covered with a tablecloth. It was then that he realized what she had just washed might be the mistress's intimate undergarments, such as her waistband or breast band. Women were too modest about these things, even avoiding washing and drying their own intimate clothing, let alone letting others do it for them. No wonder Ma Lian'er had rushed back like a cat with its tail stepped on, eager to put the things away quickly.

  He sat down on a chair opposite him, pondered for a moment and said: "I heard... Brother Ma came over this morning?"

  Ma Lian'er looked at him with a profound gaze and said with a slight curl of her lip, "Haven't you met him before?"

  Yang Ling's face turned red and he muttered: "You... how did you know?"

  Ma Lian'er's eyes rolled around and a faint smile flashed across her face, saying: "I... heard that you saw him this morning."

  Yang Ling sighed and said: "Still making a fuss? How can you not know sorrow? I heard that your brother is going to force you to marry Mr. Bi?"

  Ma Lian'er rolled her eyes and thought to herself: "What's the hurry, if my brother is still blinded by greed, I won't let him bind me and give me away as a concubine."