Chapter 86: New Year’s Eve

Emperor Hongzhi’s life was extremely full of hardships. He was born to a palace maid, and Consort Wan held exclusive power, viewing him as a thorn in her side. From the moment he was born, countless people watched him closely, making him tread as if on thin ice. Yet during his growth, many people went through fire and water for him. There was his mother who sacrificed herself for him. There were the eunuchs who carefully hid him, and the court eunuchs who were eventually executed. There was Empress Dowager Zhou, who angrily shouted at Emperor Hongzhi’s father, the Late Emperor Chenghua, “I too was born to a palace maid!” And there was Empress Zhang, who after marrying him, faced great dangers together with him, sharing weal and woe. Furthermore, in the imperial court, there were countless officials who risked their lives to contend for the foundation of the state, refusing to compromise with the Chenghua Emperor and Consort Wan, fighting desperately to ensure Emperor Hongzhi would inherit the throne.

At that time, the Late Emperor Chenghua had entertained thoughts of changing the Crown Prince. People like Liu Jian did not hesitate to offer advice, crying bitterly. When the Late Emperor Chenghua asked the Duke of Yingguo and others, all of them kept silent with dark faces, but their attitude toward the Late Emperor Chenghua was clear without speaking. Even Fang Jifan’s father, Nanhe Bo Fang Jinglong, wept openly on the spot. Seeing that civil officials acted this way and military officials did the same, the Chenghua Emperor reluctantly gave up these ideas.

Emperor Hongzhi’s life was itself a legend. It made him understand the dangers in people’s hearts, but it also made him realize that there was much warmth in this world. He clearly knew that back then, he was the hope of countless people. And so, he spared no effort, avoiding extravagance, not loving beauties, working diligently every day, toiling day and night, determined not to let anyone down.

Most importantly, he learned tolerance. Even when facing those who had flattered Consort Wan and acted as her lackeys, although he dismissed them or ordered them to retire, Emperor Hongzhi hardly ever called for their execution.

Emperor Hongzhi returned to his usual self and merely sighed, starting to worry a little about his foolish son: “I am not angry at the Crown Prince, only concerned. The Crown Prince takes playful words seriously and has no opinion of his own, just like this calculated annual surplus…” He lowered his eyelids and glanced at the ledger: “Actually, how could I not know? Last time I scolded the Crown Prince, he must have been unconvinced in his heart. He is that kind of child, always wanting to prove himself to others. Probably in the House of the Crown Prince, the Crown Prince racked his brains trying to calculate the accounts. That kid Fang Jifan saw him like this and most likely knew the Crown Prince could not figure it out. Rather than waste effort, it was better to humor him. That foolish son took it seriously. Moreover, this guy’s courage has grown even greater; he actually dared to scold his Imperial Father as a fatuous ruler!”

“…”

This was His Majesty’s family matter. Liu Jian and the other two really did not know how to advise him.

Emperor Hongzhi then shook his head and smiled again: “But Minister Liu was right. The Crown Prince has had no brothers since childhood and grew up lonely. When I was his age, sometimes… I felt terribly lonely too. It is not a bad thing for him to trust someone. That is also why I originally appointed Fang Jifan as his study companion. The only thing is, this guy Fang Jifan sometimes is really a bit unreliable; he must change!”

It seemed his anger had subsided.

Zhu Houzhao seemed to be holding a grudge and did not even go to the palace. He did not pay respects at Empress Zhang’s Kunning Palace or the Grand Empress Dowager’s Longevity Palace, only saying he was unwell.

…

The New Year was approaching. The streets were filled with joy. The food and drinks from several restaurants were fully booked and then delivered to the Western Hills Coal Mine. All this was Fang Jifan’s doing. It was the New Year, and these miners brought their families to mine for the Fang Family. How could Fang Jifan be stingy? Chicken, duck, fish, and meat were all included. This move made Wang Jinyuan want to cry. Money, it was all sparkling silver! Although the Guardian State Mining was now earning a lot every day, such waste… was not right. So Wang Jinyuan resolutely decided that on New Year’s Eve, he would not spend it at home but come to the mine. If he did not eat, it would be a waste; the more he ate, the more he would earn back.

The miners and their families at the mine were celebrating such a plentiful New Year for the first time. Buckets of dishes, the kind they usually could not even get to eat or name, were now being carried to the mine in buckets. As it was freezing cold, there was no worry about the food spoiling. They stored it a day or two in advance, and on New Year’s Eve, they would just heat it up. Fine wine and delicious food—such happiness might be an ordinary day for the lords and nobles in the Inner City, but for them, it added some color to their bleak lives.

In the city, scholars cursed Fang Jifan loudly, but here, the miners and their families surprisingly praised Young Lord Fang unanimously. If not for Fang Jifan back then, they, who were still refugees, would probably have frozen or starved to death. Afterward, if not for Young Lord Fang taking them in, they would likely still be in tattered clothes, curled up under walls, not knowing what the next day would bring.

At the year’s end, it was time to pay wages. The payment was not made with Treasure Notes or with deductions for firewood and coarse grains, but with real silver and Copper Coins.

Wang Jinyuan, along with the Accounts Office staff, was very meticulous, calling out each person’s name one by one and distributing the money in full. At this moment, many people shed tears. Their faces, blackened by coal, showed white teeth and broke into smiles, but the corners of their eyes were wet.

It was clearly a business transaction, so why did it feel like doing good deeds? Wang Jinyuan shook his head inwardly; he felt he had degenerated.

Fang Jifan was researching large fireworks for the New Year.

Saltpeter and Gunpowder could be bought at the Wanggong Factory in the southwest corner of the Inner City. There was a special Gunpowder Department there that served as the royal arsenal and also made some Firecrackers and fireworks for sale. But Fang Jifan was not satisfied with ordinary fireworks. It was the New Year, so naturally, bigger noise meant more joy and liveliness.

As for Deng Jian, whenever he saw the Young Lord ‘making trouble,’ he felt an indescribable satisfaction. He was not a clever person, only knowing that the Young Lord was not proper, which was proper for him. Actually, he was a dull person, only knowing that the master had instructed that the Young Lord must not fall ill. So he always stuck to the Young Lord like a shadow, diligently following him, afraid that the Young Lord might be careless and relapse, becoming incurable, and then the Fang Family would no longer have a Young Lord.

Xiaoxiangxiang stood afar with a few maids, hanging the master’s clothes to dry while glancing from a distance at Fang Jifan laying fuses in the backyard. The Young Lord was focused and serious, looking incredibly handsome with a unique charm. Occasionally, the maids beside her giggled and whispered about something, but Xiaoxiangxiang turned a deaf ear, beginning to have her own thoughts.

Fang Jinglong went to visit relatives as usual. He had to pay respects to the elders in advance. He also occasionally inspected the Capital Garrison. After all, it was the year’s end, and they still had to guard against thieves and robbers. They absolutely could not allow anyone with malicious intentions to act.

New Year’s Eve arrived.

The Capital suddenly became bustling.

People forgot about the Fang Family’s prodigal son and the bets during the Spring Imperial Examination. Everywhere was filled with laughter and joy. Even the poorest families took out their rare savings of the year to prepare slightly better food and drink than usual. Women and children, no matter how poor, bought a few feet of cloth to make new clothes.

Only in the Ministry of Revenue’s Southern and Northern Archives, on this New Year’s Eve, Li Dongyang seemed a bit anxious and angry.

Over seventy officials from the Southern and Northern Archives were still busily working. Actually, the year-end accounting should have been completed much earlier. But after several verifications, they found that the numbers reported by the Southern and Northern Archives did not match.

This… was really awkward.

It involved the National Treasury’s remaining funds, which was no small matter. If they miscalculated and the things that were not actually there were still recorded on the books, then when expenditures occurred, problems would arise, and that would be a huge disaster.

There was no other way. No one knew exactly which step had gone wrong. So… they could only recalculate.

Because the calculation workload was huge, and to prevent errors and omissions, the over twenty civil clerks from each of the Southern and Northern Archives mostly verified separately. Only when the numbers from both sides matched could they ensure the figures were correct.