Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 404: Chapter 390 Perils and Opportunities

While the Yang family was busy moving, Yang Zhenshan also received news from the Capital City.

Ennoblement!

Looking at the letter sent by Wu Zheng, Yang Zhenshan was a bit stunned.

Why would they suddenly grant me a noble title?

And it was advocated for by the Crown Prince himself!

In the study, Yang Zhenshan furrowed his brows deeply.

“The Crown Prince is trying to harm me!”

He quickly realized the crux of the matter.

Ennoblement!

This directly thrust Yang Zhenshan into the eye of the storm.

On the surface, it seemed the Crown Prince wanted to win him over, and use his ennoblement as a chance to show goodwill to the military commanders in the border towns, but in reality, it was bait laid down by the Crown Prince for Prince Cheng and Prince Gong.

Prince Cheng and Prince Gong would certainly not let the Crown Prince have his way!

So how would Prince Cheng and Prince Gong break the game?

The simplest method would be to kill Yang Zhenshan!

As long as Yang Zhenshan was killed, the Crown Prince’s plan to show goodwill to the military commanders in the border towns would fail!

But considering that Yang Zhenshan was a General of a town, if he died an unnatural death, the court would have to conduct a thorough investigation, at which point the Crown Prince could take the opportunity to make things difficult for Prince Cheng and Prince Gong.

Even if the Crown Prince didn’t have evidence to prove that it was the doing of Prince Cheng and Prince Gong, it would still sully their reputations.

At that time, the military commanders in the border towns would definitely be discontented with Prince Cheng and Prince Gong!

The nobility would also be discontented with Prince Cheng and Prince Gong!

Even the entire court of civil and military officials would be discontented with Prince Cheng and Prince Gong.

“The Crown Prince’s move is quite ingenious!”

“If I die, he can use this to make things difficult for Prince Cheng and Prince Gong. If I don’t die and the ennoblement is successful, then he can win over the allegiance of the military commanders in the border towns!”

“Not just the military commanders in the border towns, all military officers want ennoblement. As long as the Crown Prince opens up this opportunity, all military officers’ hearts will lean toward the Crown Prince!”

Yang Zhenshan looked again at the letter in his hand, “I don’t know which wise person advised the Crown Prince, this move is truly splendid! Just not very friendly towards me!”

Based on his understanding of the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince definitely couldn’t come up with such an ingenious plan.

The Crown Prince is actually not that deep in thought, as is clear from his previous actions.

Of course, one can’t say that the Crown Prince is terrible, after all, he has been the Crown Prince for thirty years; even if he was originally naïve, he has gained some cunning by now.

It can only be said that the Crown Prince is mediocre, not as cunning as Emperor Chengping.

After figuring out the key points, Yang Zhenshan sat back at his desk and set the letter down.

“To be ennobled, I must go to the Capital City; the messenger sent by the court to deliver the news will probably arrive soon!”

“This trip is bound to be extremely dangerous; I need to act with caution!”

Yang Zhenshan thought to himself.

The Crown Prince’s move was played brilliantly. Yang Zhenshan was fully aware of the dangers involved but had no choice but to go to the Capital City for the ennoblement.

He couldn’t reject it, nor did he have a reason to.

It was a perilous situation, but it was also an opportunity.

If he overcame it, from then on, the Yang family would be among the nobility.

There’s no need to mention how rare the opportunity to be ennobled is, Yang Zhenshan had no reason to give up this chance.

…

The affairs of Chongshan Town were numerous and complex, but Yang Zhenshan was now very familiar with them, so he quickly managed to sort out the matters of Chongshan Town.

However, some issues still required the court’s resolution; he could not decide everything on his own and had to wait for the court’s response.

For example, the candidates he recommended, or his wish to incorporate the Tenglong Guard’s Five Army Camps into the Camp of Chongshan Town, had to be approved by the Central Army Commander’s Mansion and the Ministry of War.

Therefore, for the time being, there was not much that Yang Zhenshan could do.

He appointed Yang Mingzhi to temporarily take the position of Assistant General in Fuzhou City, and ordered Qin He to return to Dingliao Guard and assume the same post. Then he had Niu Zhuang and Tang Feihu lead the troops back to Jianning Guard and Jinzhou Guard respectively.

As for the Governor’s Office, well, the Governor’s Office was in an even worse state than the General Mansion, because Ji Feiyu had killed almost all the officials there.

The Governor’s Office responded immediately at the onset of Ji Feiyu’s rebellion.

Unfortunately, how could the Governor’s Office’s strength rival that of the General Mansion? The result was self-evident.

From the Capital Commander down to the ordinary constables, nearly all of them were wiped out by Ji Feiyu.

In the end, there were only about a dozen civil servants left, incapable of even trussing a chicken.

Helpless, Yang Zhenshan had no choice but to prop up the Governor’s Office by himself, as many matters in Chongshan Town required the cooperation of the Governor’s Office, especially those involving the management of military households.

While Yang Zhenshan was busy with the military affairs of Chongshan Town, officials sent from court arrived at Chongshan Pass.

The court-sent officials were divided into two groups: one to verify military achievements, including the doctors and principal officials from the Ministry of War, the Imperial Censors from the Imperial Examination Hall, and the eunuchs from the palace. The other group came for Yang Zhenshan’s ennoblement, mainly consisting of officials from the Ministry of Rites.

Ennoblement was no small matter; it could not be settled by a mere imperial edict.

The ennoblement ceremony had to be completed at the Da Rong Court to receive the marquis’s seal, and after the conferment, there would be the granting of residence and fields.

The Ministry of Rites was responsible for the ennoblement ceremony, and Yang Zhenshan was to follow their arrangements.

The officials from the Ministry of War and the Imperial Examination Hall were received by Pang Tang. Of course, Yang Zhenshan also went out of the city to meet them, but since Pang Tang was leading the verification of military achievements, Yang Zhenshan didn’t have to worry too much about it.

As for any malicious erasure of their military achievements, there was no need to worry; the court would not allow such actions, and the border town generals wouldn’t tolerate it either. Whoever dared to do such a thing would make an enemy of all the soldiers and generals of the border towns.

Of course, the verification of military achievements would also require the cooperation of Yang Zhenshan’s subordinates. He instructed Song Dashan and Yang Mingzhen to follow Pang Tang’s orders and assist the officials from the Ministry of War and the Imperial Examination Hall in verifying the military achievements.

As for the officials from the Ministry of Rites, Yang Zhenshan would naturally receive them himself.

The official from the Ministry of Rites who came this time was Yin Qingxin, an assistant in the Yizheng Lishi Directorate, responsible for the court’s system and rituals—from the Emperor’s enthronement ceremony down to the attire and accessories of officials—everything fell under their jurisdiction.

And for matters such as ennoblement, they also needed to be in charge.

Yin Qingxin treated Yang Zhenshan with considerable courtesy. After the two sat down in the main hall of the General Mansion, Yin Qingxin directly said, “General Yang, your ennoblement has been confirmed. The Crown Prince and the Cabinet have both given their approval, and the Ministry of Rites has selected October 20th at Fengtian Hall to hold the ennoblement ceremony for you!”

“The specific protocols will be explained in detail after you arrive at the Capital City. My visit here mainly concerns two issues: one is to confirm your escort, court attire, and headdress. The other is to request that you arrive in the Capital City before October 15th!”

The escort and court attire he mentioned naturally referred to the paraphernalia and court dress of a future marquis.

Speaking of which, the court still owed Yang Zhenshan a set of court attire; as the General of Chongshan Town, he had not yet received his court dress.

There were various types of attire for officials in Da Rong: court attire, ceremonial dress, formal wear, everyday wear, granted attire, etc.

During the Great Sacrifice, celebrations, New Year’s Day, winter solstice, sacred festivals, issuing edicts, state readings, and petitions, one would wear court attire.

When the Emperor personally offered sacrifices at the altar and to the earth and grain, civil and military officials accompanied him in ceremonial dress.

For daily morning and evening court reporting, attendance, expressing gratitude, and farewell, one would wear formal attire.

For routine court sessions, everyday wear was used.

The official robes commonly mentioned are actually formal and everyday attire; attire like court dress and ceremonial dress were rarely worn, used only on more solemn occasions.

Among them, court attire was the most ornate and ceremonious, making its production relatively complex. Usually, after an official assumed office, it would take some time for the Ministry of Industry’s garment bureau to complete and deliver the court dress.

The escort, court attire, and headdress that Yin Qingxin mentioned actually referred to the ritual system for nobles and marquises. There were distinctions in the standard, size, and quality of clothes, headdress, housing, saddles, and horses based on their rank.

The structure, decor, color, area, and number of rooms of the residency were all subject to specific ritual requirements.

Simply put, Yin Qingxin was here to lay out the rules for the Yang family to avoid any impropriety in the future.

This was a standard procedure for ennoblement, mainly because the Da Rong court had not ennobled anyone for over thirty years, and many rituals were only half-understood by those outside the Ministry of Rites.

This time, as Yang Zhenshan was being ennobled, the Ministry of Rites took a cautious approach by sending Yin Qingxin to explain the various rules and rituals to the Yang family.

This was something Yang Zhenshan need not worry about himself; he could leave it to Wu Hai when the time came.

What truly concerned Yang Zhenshan was the need to arrive in the Capital City before October 10th.

Considering the time, he had only twenty days, so this indeed needed to be scheduled right away.

That night, Pang Tang entertained the officials from the Capital City at the Governor’s Office, and Yang Zhenshan naturally made an appearance as well.

Not just Yang Zhenshan; Lu Chongde also attended the banquet.

Although Lu Chongde’s current situation in Chongshan Town was somewhat awkward, no one underestimated him.

Regardless of Lu Chongde’s recent setback with Ji Feiyu, he was still a distinguished court official, commanding considerable esteem at court.

With his experience, even if he left Chongshan Town, it was highly likely he would progress further.

The atmosphere at the banquet was harmonious; everyone raised their glasses, engaging in pleasant conversation.