jdhmnovel Chapter 215: Deal with it Calmly
Chapter 215: Deal with it Calmly
Officials of the Great Zhao Dynasty were required to report to their respective government offices before 3:45 AM.
Outside the imperial city, there was a row of houses, which were the offices of various ministries. The Ministry of Rites was located on the side closest to the moat, with the moat flowing gently right in front of its gate.
At Chen Shi (7-9 AM), Yun Shang had already arrived at the Ministry of Rites' office.
The officials of Dazhao have always been lazy, and officials from various departments usually arrive at the appointed time of Chenshi (7:45 AM) to start their shifts. However, today, because each department has new officials on duty, the newly appointed officials from the yamen arrived earlier than usual.
In particular, almost all the officials from the Ministry of Rites were present.
The courtyard of the Ministry of Rites is shaded by green trees and has winding corridors.
Yun Shang, however, had no leisure to appreciate the scenery. He walked straight in, and the officials in the courtyard, who were chatting amongst themselves, all cast their scrutinizing glances at him.
Then, seemingly recognizing him, she casually looked away, neither speaking nor bowing, a hint of contempt flashing in her eyes.
When Yun Shang noticed this, he only frowned slightly and did not get angry.
After all, most of the officials in Shengjing came from aristocratic families, and these scions of families had always looked down on students from poor families.
The news that Yun Shang was highly regarded by Emperor Wenjing has been circulating widely in the city recently, which is tantamount to being publicly humiliated by those from aristocratic families.
They thought highly of themselves, but were overshadowed by a poor student, and naturally felt resentful.
Therefore, when Yun Shang first arrived, the officials of the Ministry of Rites conspired to give him a hard time.
Yun Shang could tell at a glance what these people were up to.
He lowered his eyes slightly, his expression indifferent, completely unconcerned about the contempt these people showed him.
A short while later, a minor official from the Ministry of Rites walked over.
These low-ranking officials came from humble backgrounds and were at the very bottom of the various government departments. Their superiors were vying for power and deliberately mistreating the newly arrived vice minister, so these low-ranking officials dared not deliberately neglect him.
With a smile on his face, the clerk said to Yun Shang earnestly, "Sir, I am Liu Cheng. Knowing that you would be coming to the yamen today, we have already prepared your desk for your work."
"Would you like to take a look around this government office first, or go directly to the general office?"
Yun Shang said calmly, "Go directly to the office."
"Yes," Liu Cheng replied, respectfully leading the way.
After passing through several corridors, Liu Cheng led Yun Shang to the inner courtyard.
This is the office of the official in charge of the Ministry of Rites, consisting of three rooms.
The largest room was the office of the Minister of Rites, another room was shared by two Vice Ministers of Rites, and the remaining room was shared by several officials of Rites.
Liu Cheng led Yun Shang in and towards the table on the right.
"Lord Yun, this is you..." Liu Cheng said with a smile, but his expression suddenly changed when he saw the table.
Yun Shang raised his eyes slightly.
The desk was covered in dust, as if it hadn't been cleaned in a long time. The documents beside it were also piled up in a mess.
Liu Cheng's face paled instantly, and he was about to explain.
Just then, a voice came from the doorway.
"Oh, this newly arrived Vice Minister Yun, you must be quite lenient with him. Our Ministry of Rites is very busy and short-staffed, so this desk may not have been cleaned up in time. You are a man of great talent, surely you won't mind such trivial matters?"
This man was a trusted subordinate of Wang Ling, a minor official named Zhao Qi.
He deliberately raised his voice, and his gaze toward Yun Shang was full of provocation.
Liu Cheng's face was extremely ugly. Suppressing his anger, he said, "Zhao Qi, what's going on? I clearly ordered someone to clean up the Vice Minister's desk!"
Zhao Qi spread his hands with a roguish look, "How would I know? Perhaps the people you ordered were negligent and didn't clean at all."
"Impossible!" Liu Cheng exclaimed angrily. "I made a special check when I left the yamen yesterday to make sure that all the desks and tables were clean and that all the documents on them were neatly arranged!"
"Why are you taking it out on me?" Zhao Qi said nonchalantly. "Maybe it's just the wind blowing in the night, and it's covered in dust. It has nothing to do with me."
The two argued back and forth, neither willing to give in.
Officials outside, hearing the commotion, all gathered around to watch the excitement.
Yun Shang glanced at the two of them lightly, her tone calm and indifferent, "It's alright, we'll just clean it again if it gets dirty."
He gently patted the dust off his clothes, his expression calm and composed, showing no sign of anger.
Zhao Qi couldn't help but feel annoyed by her calm and composed demeanor.
I thought I could provoke him, but I didn't expect him to be so calm and collected.
Zhao Qi snorted coldly, still unwilling to give up, and said, "Minister Yun has great magnanimity, but the rules of this yamen cannot be broken. If everyone is as sloppy and casual as this desk, how can the Ministry of Rites operate?"
Yun Shang slightly raised his eyes and looked directly at Zhao Qi. "What Zhao Li said is absolutely right. So, in your opinion, what should be done?"
Zhao Qi choked. He only wanted to make things difficult for Yun Shang and had not thought about how to handle the aftermath.
After stammering for a few moments, he said, "Of course, the person who did the cleaning should be punished as a warning to others."
Yun Shang gently shook his head, his gaze calm. "Before this matter is thoroughly investigated, no one should be punished arbitrarily."
"Since Liu Cheng has already made the arrangements, perhaps, as he said, there was an unexpected change last night. Let's not wrong an innocent person."
After saying this, he picked up a rag from the side and began wiping the table.
Everyone was astonished to see this; a high-ranking official was actually personally cleaning this dusty desk?!
Some officials from prominent families looked on with disdain.
He came from a humble background, and even though he was already a vice minister, he still did something so unbecoming of his status, which was a disgrace to his superiors.
However, the low-ranking officials in the government office were deeply shocked.
Is the newly arrived vice minister really such a kind person?
Yun Shang was completely indifferent to everything around him.
He worked quickly and efficiently, cleaning the desk and organizing the documents in no time.
Liu Cheng also helped tidy up, deeply moved.
Zhao Qi has always been at odds with him, and this time he must have deliberately framed him. It's fortunate that the Vice Minister didn't hold it against him, otherwise he would probably have lost his job today!
Among the onlookers were several senior officials who had served in the Ministry of Rites for many years, who couldn't help but look at Yun Shang with new respect.
This vice minister, who came from a humble background, remained calm and composed despite being harassed by others. He was also considerate of his subordinates, a truly extraordinary quality.
After Yun Shang finished tidying up, he said to Liu Cheng, "Liu Cheng, you'll have to take care of these trivial matters from now on. If you encounter any difficulties, you can tell me."
Liu Cheng nodded quickly, feeling grateful to Yun Shang.
Seeing that his attempt to make things difficult had failed and that Yun Shang had gained popularity, Zhao Qi felt a surge of resentment and left with a heavy snort.
After tidying up the table, Yun Shang sat down and began to peruse the relevant files from the Ministry of Rites.
He didn't take what had just happened to heart at all.
The officials who had gathered to watch the spectacle gradually dispersed when they found it uninteresting.
Wang Ling is currently drinking tea in the small garden behind the inner courtyard.
He deliberately ordered someone to give Yun Shang a hard time, to make Yun Shang understand who was in charge of the Ministry of Rites.
But to his surprise, Yun Shang remained completely composed despite the difficulties he faced.
Instead, his composure and calmness thwarted his plans and even subtly won him favor among some minor officials.
Even the old officials in the Ministry of Rites, whose tempers were harder than the stinking rocks by the latrine, showed appreciation for Yun Shang.
He clearly wanted to give Yun Shang a hard time, but instead he ended up doing the work for him!