Tang Chen: Starting from the Xuanwu Gate Incident

Chapter 32 Yan Lide's Troubles

With the case handled by Manager Qian as a foundation, Shen Ce felt less anxious.

He completed his annual KPI in just three days, and planned to stay obediently in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for the next month. Even if his subordinates did anything out of line, he would turn a blind eye and pretend he didn't know.

Every day when he went to work, he would take the abacus that the carpenter had made again from hardwood and tap it loudly in the registrar's office. He also gave each of the clerks in the registrar's office who needed to do the accounting a bamboo one, so that they could do the accounting anytime, anywhere, not just in their rooms, but in the courtyard or under the corridor. If anyone asked, they could say that he, the registrar, had made it for them.

With the leader's promise, everyone worked diligently, and within two days, the sound of abacus beads could be heard throughout most of the Eastern Palace, even drowning out the summer cicadas.

Hearing the crackling sounds outside the door, Yuwen Shiji frowned and said, "Brother Xuancheng, what new business has come to our Court of Imperial Sacrifices these days? I see the clerks carrying wooden boxes over a foot long, banging on them all day long."

Wei Zheng put down the memorial in his hand, sighed, and said with a helpless expression, "I heard that it was made by our Shen Zhanshi, and it's the same kind of thing as counting rods."

Yuwen Shiji asked in confusion, "With such constant noise, Brother Xuancheng, why don't you stop it?"

Wei Zheng gave a wry smile and said, "I was also very agitated the other day. I summoned Shen Ce and asked him about it. I learned that this thing can perform numerological calculations faster and more accurately, and is less prone to errors."

After saying that, he turned around and took a stack of memorials from the multi-treasure pavilion, placed them in front of Yuwen Shiji, patted them and said: "These memorials were all calculated using his abacus. I have reviewed them and they are almost without errors. Moreover, the efficiency is incomparable to the past, which has greatly improved the efficiency of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices."

"So, Xuan Cheng, you've tacitly agreed?"

Wei Zheng did not answer, but instead took out a bamboo abacus from a box beside him.

Yuwen Shiji slammed his fist on the table and stood up: "You brat, why don't you escort me here?"

"I snatched this from the clerk; how could he have given it to me?"

In contrast to the ease with which the Registrar's Office reviewed the figures, the Directorate of Works was experiencing a headache—not a real headache, but rather a headache because Emperor Li Er had contracted out the work of repairing Chang'an City to the Directorate of Works through the Ministry of Works, and had also appointed the Court of Judicial Review as the supervisor...

They were adamant that if there was a mistake in the calculation of money and grain, the person who made the mistake would be reported directly to the Ministry of Justice.

Yan Lide, who came from a family with a strong academic background, didn't take this project seriously. It was just a small job, and he didn't need to do it himself. His subordinates could handle it.

However, both versions of the budget for the construction of the capital region and the list of materials for the city wall repair were rejected by Li Er, who claimed that they were full of errors and omissions and that the costs were inflated.

Yan Lide then began to take it seriously. After making inquiries from various sources, he learned that a fellow scholar had presented the Crown Prince with a memorial outlining the project's budget. Li Er regarded it as a classic example and reduced all unnecessary expenditures.

The office of the Directorate of Works was packed with people. Yan Lide, his face dark, sat at the top and paced back and forth in the office, roaring at those below, "Didn't you all claim that no one could surpass you in mathematics? How come you can't figure it out now? Calculate it right here. No one is allowed to leave until you can figure it out."

The dozen or so seasoned officials below the hall dared not provoke them. Each of them stood about ten feet apart, keeping an eye on the account books while carefully manipulating their counting rods.

An old official with a white beard was overjoyed as he watched his calculations for his assigned area nearing completion. Then, a young clerk behind him, perhaps suffering from rhinitis, kept sniffling and finally sneezed. The old official watched as his calculation rods scattered to the ground in a gust of wind, his efforts rendered futile.

Seeing his day's hard work vanish into nothingness, the old official's vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground. The crowd below immediately erupted into chaos, blaming their colleagues for messing up their calculations.

Yan Lide sighed, waved his hand, and said weakly, "Stop making a fuss, get out, get out quickly, let me have a moment of peace."

The once noisy hall fell silent. Everyone bowed in unison and left one by one, showing no sign of the argument that had just taken place inside.

Outside the gate, in the courtyard, a young scholar in his early twenties, with a tall and straight figure, wearing a green round-necked robe and a leather belt around his waist with a sash hanging from it, walked slowly with an official gait, just like a noble young master in a painting.

The visitor was Yan Liben, Emperor Gaozong's court painter, who would later paint the portraits of the twenty-four meritorious officials in the Lingyan Pavilion for Emperor Gaozong.

As a noble young master, he naturally possessed the qualities befitting one. His maternal grandfather was Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou, Yuwen Yong, and his father was the fourth-rank official in the Sui Dynasty, who oversaw the construction of the northern section of the Grand Canal and the Sui Great Wall.

Upon entering the main hall of the Imperial Workshop, he kept his eyes straight ahead, cupped his hands, and said, "Brother, I have inquired and found out that it was a man named Shen Ce, the registrar of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. A few days ago, he was accused of soliciting bribes and was summoned before the Emperor. Not only was he cleared of his crimes, but he also presented His Highness with a robe that a peasant had worn for a hundred years, in order to suggest that His Highness reduce expenditures. The memorial His Highness gave you was submitted by this man."

Yan Lide tossed the chapter aside, his face beaming with joy, and said, "It's good that you found the source. I've been really troubled by this book these past two days, it's giving me a terrible headache."

"Could it be a problem with the calculations?" Yan Liben asked, seeing the counting rods scattered all over the room.

"Indeed, normally a general budget report would suffice, but this time the Crown Prince has ordered that everything must be detailed and accurate, and that no empty promises be made. He is particularly strict about the required amount of materials and labor."

Yan Liben was overjoyed and took out an abacus from behind him: "Brother, take a look at this."

Yan Lide, a master architect, immediately recognized the object's purpose. He quickly took it, examined it closely, and eagerly asked, "Where did this come from?"

"Shen Ce, the Registrar of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices."

Yan Lide frowned: Why is it him again?

He carefully examined the abacus in his hand, tried to manipulate it a couple of times, and immediately said, "Liben, go home and fetch a scepter of pine resin ink, two wolf-hair brushes, and a small bluestone inkstone. Also, take my visiting card and deliver it to the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, saying that I will arrive this afternoon."

Yan Liben looked unwilling and said awkwardly, "Brother, you are a fifth-rank official, the Junior Supervisor of Works, while he is only a seventh-rank official. Why should we give him gifts?"

Yan Lide rolled up his fan and smacked him on the head without any politeness: "You spend all day painting, have you wasted your time studying the classics?"

"This matter is official business. I brought gifts to ask for a favor in order to fulfill my official duties. If word gets out, it will become a good story."

"Secondly, this item is the unique knowledge of this Registrar Shen. Do you intend for me to seize it by force using my official power?"

After saying that, Yan Lide snorted coldly: "This matter is over. Go home and study for a month to temper your temper."