“Don’t throw the bowl over here, there’s soup in it. I’m wearing a Flying Fish Uniform right now; getting it dirty is deceiving the Emperor.”
Li Miao said.
In Li Miao's previous life, many people imagined that the Embroidered Uniform Guard should wear Flying Fish Uniforms and carry Embroidered Spring Knives.
But that's not the case.
Under the production conditions of the feudal era, there was no ability to issue embroidered uniforms to groups other than officials.
In fact, the Embroidered Uniform Guard's uniforms were ordinary Official Uniforms, and the outfits for handling affairs changed according to the system of the Ministry of War at that time.
The Flying Fish Uniform was actually one of the Emperor's special rewards to meritorious officials, subordinates, and other officials. Whether one could wear it depended on whether the Emperor granted it.
The recorded official uniforms granted to Embroidered Uniform Guard officials included four types: the Python Robe, the Flying Fish Uniform, the Bullfighting Uniform, and the Qilin Robe. The Flying Fish Uniform that Li Miao was wearing was bestowed by the current Emperor. Not to mention getting it dirty, even washing it was a crime.
Such Emperor-granted clothes were rarely worn in normal times.
Wang Hai directly put this set on Li Miao, because he anticipated that Zhu Zai would do this to Li Miao, and he prepared in advance.
Sure enough, Zhu Zai was choked by Li Miao's words, and the bowl he was holding also put down.
But he still stared fiercely at Li Miao, breathing heavily.
After a while, Zhu Zai finally cursed, "Look at you! A worthless person can't be helped!"
Li Miao said without raising his head or opening his eyes, "Sir, I've been on duty under you for twenty years. I already knew I was a lump of worthless person, why do you want to help me, old sir?"
“You keep trying to help, but the worthless person is uncomfortable, and you still get angry. Why don't you just treat me like a fart and let me go, what do you say?”
“Damn it——”
Zhu Zai was over fifty years old, from the Imperial Clan, and was an old man with a temper, but he was quite graceful. At this time, he was also angered by Li Miao's attitude of not being afraid of boiling water and cursed.
The hand holding the bowl had just been put down and then raised again, about to throw the bowl at Li Miao's face.
“Hey hey——” Li Miao straightened his chest, revealing the embroidered flying fish on his chest, and pointed with his hand. The meaning was to remind Zhu Zai of the Emperor-granted clothes.
Pa!
Zhu Zai slammed the bowl on the ground in hatred, and pointed at Li Miao's nose and scolded.
“Why can't you strive for something, do something! How long have you been a Commander? Fifteen years, right!”
“You were a Commander under me in the seventh year of Jiajing! In the twenty-third year of Jiajing, you're still a Commander! Are you going to be a Commander for the rest of your life!?”
“How many times have I given you opportunities, I haven't spent so much thought on my son's career! Can't you move your lazy bones and come up and share some of the burden for me!?”
Zhu Zai looked at Li Miao, who was leaning against the chair, with an indifferent expression, looking like he hated iron for not becoming steel.
“Why didn't you come back to report last night!?”
Li Miao replied, "I was tired. Wang Hai brought back a few scoundrels, so I went back to sleep."
“Who cares about those scoundrels!? I'm asking why you let Yan Xiaosheng go!?” Zhu Zai said. The Green Forest Heroes who were brought back from Yan Xiaosheng last night, some of them were also good hands who had made a name for themselves in the Jianghu, but in his mouth, they became scoundrels.
“This matter of Yan Xiaosheng, there's plenty of profit, everyone wants to grab it, why do I have to send you? Can't you understand?”
“I understand, I understand.” Li Miao said.
“It's just that the Assistant Prefect of Money is about to retire, and Yan Xiaosheng has the Ministry of War's background. You want me to bring him back and hand him over to the Ministry of War to get a good reputation. So they can give me a hand and let me take the position of the Assistant Prefect of Money, right?”
When the Founding Emperor of Da Shuo established the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he wanted to leave a secret service organization independent of the Imperial Court for the future emperors. Personnel promotion and salary were all decided by the Emperor's word. Only in this way could the loyalty and reliability of this secret service organization be guaranteed.
But rules are dead, people are alive. After experiencing several emperors and the Imperial Court's game, the current Embroidered Uniform Guard was no longer a purely private army of the Emperor. The two Assistant Commanders under the Commander are now recommended by the Ministry of War. It is equivalent to the Imperial Court planting nails in the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
Zhu Zai's intention was to let Li Miao take advantage of the opportunity to clean up the Imperial City, to bring back Yan Xiaosheng, the Ministry of War's white glove, and make an exchange with the Ministry of War, so that it would be justified to promote Li Miao to the position of Assistant Commander.
From top to bottom, the Embroidered Uniform Guard consists of the Commander, the Vice Commander, the Assistant Commander, the Subduing Commissioner, the Commander, and the Centurion. Li Miao, this Commander, is of the Fifth Rank. The Vice Commander is of the Third Rank, and this leap is not small. It is a very rare promotion, which only appears in special Government Offices like the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
This kind of opportunity, if put outside, would be fought over.
But Li Miao beat the person half to death and let him go, letting Yan Xiaosheng go to his own end. He also chatted with Yan Xiaosheng about a lot of things.
The weakness must be held in hand to have the basis for negotiation. He let Yan Xiaosheng go, which would only make this matter a tacit exchange of interests.
It seems that in a few days, the Ministry of War will send a large sum of silver, but Zhu Zai's plan to have the Ministry of War propose to promote Li Miao to be the Assistant Commander will be impossible to mention.
How can this not make Zhu Zai, who has painstakingly found an opportunity, not angry and not furious?
He said with a look of hating iron for not becoming steel, "You are not a brute whose brain is only for practicing Martial Arts, you know this matter very well! Why do you have to go against me!"
“How many years, how many times! Every time I want to promote you, you have to make troubles. You don't come to Roll Call, you don't go to Guard. Others are grabbing credit, you sleep, others are promoted, you cheer!”
“Others work from sunrise to sunset, and you only work four hours a day like a young master. Fine, you have great ability, you have high Martial Arts, I tolerate you. But what does promotion have to do with you!? Do you love being that Fifth Rank Commander so much!?”
Zhu Zai's face was flushed, and he walked back and forth in the room, cursing one sentence with each step, cursing until his beard was disheveled and his clothes were wrinkled. He had no demeanor of an Important Minister at all, and looked like an old man scolding his unpromising son.
Li Miao saw that Zhu Zai was really angry, so he took down the hand that was supporting his face, sat up straight, and took out a yellowed piece of paper from his arms.
As soon as Zhu Zai saw the paper, his momentum weakened, and he waved his hand impatiently, "You don't have to talk about this thing!"
Li Miao ignored him and unfolded the paper, which he had taken from under the paperweight on his desk, on the table.
The paper vaguely wrote words like "Li Miao" and "four hours a day", and the other places were stained with dried blood, a black patch. Only a handprint could be seen at the bottom, as if someone had signed it.
“This is what this subordinate risked his life for back then. The handprint you pressed on it was still pressed with my blood.” Li Miao said.
This was when Li Miao was twenty years old, and he was still a Centurion.
At that time, he did a life-threatening job for Zhu Zai, and he almost didn't make it. Zhu Zai saved him at the time, and supported Li Miao, who was covered in blood, and asked him what he wanted.
As a result, Li Miao took out a "labor contract" written in imitation of his previous life, and coaxed Zhu Zai to press his handprint.
Zhu Zai thought it was just a joke by Li Miao at the time, but who knew that from then on, he would only work four hours a day. Every time Zhu Zai scolded him for being lazy, he would use this paper to block Zhu Zai's mouth.
And every time Zhu Zai saw this paper, thinking of Li Miao, who was lying in his arms and covered in wounds, he would no longer make things difficult for him.
But, this time is different.
Zhu Zai was silent for a while, and finally said, "Li Miao, this time it's not a joke."
“Your Majesty has shown signs of old age in recent years, and has been building a mausoleum, making plans for the funeral and passing on the position to the Crown Prince.”
“I, this Commander, won't be in this position for long.”