Yang Fan looked at the man in front of him. He was dressed in a green coarse cloth, with a green headscarf on his head and a black belt around his waist. He seemed to be an ordinary minor official in the Ministry of Justice.
He looked to be less than forty years old. His body wasn't fat, but it was very sturdy. He had a dark red face, and his strong muscles made his face look taut. Other than some crow's feet at the corners of his eyes, there were no wrinkles on his face.
Yang Fan frowned and asked, "Who are you?"
The man let out a sigh of relief and got up from the ground. "Doctor Lang is still breathing. Are you okay?"
Yang Fan said, "Of course I'm okay. What could happen to me?"
The man smiled sheepishly and said, "I just came in and called for the doctor, but he didn't respond. I waited for a while and saw that the doctor didn't even seem to be breathing, so I took the liberty to try. As expected, I couldn't feel the slightest bit of breathing. I was really scared."
Yang Fan laughed and said, "I see. This is just a kind of breathing technique, a way to prolong life. There is nothing strange about it. Who are you? What are you doing in my office? "
That person had probably heard of the matter of breathing exercises to maintain health. Hearing Yang Fan's question, he hurriedly bowed and said, "I am the head of the cooks in the Yamen of the Ministry of Justice. My name is Wang Wan, and I am here to deliver leftovers to you."
"Leftovers? What's that?"
Yang Fan was puzzled. After asking carefully, he understood the whole story.
It turned out that Wang Wan was the head chef of the Ministry of Justice, responsible for the lunch supply of the whole government.
The officials in the government enjoyed a free lunch. Who paid for it? Of course it was the imperial court. The officials' daily lunch expenses were called "food", and the corresponding money allocated by the imperial court was called "food cost". The imperial court allocated a huge amount of "food cost" at one time. The government would then use this money to make loans to generate interest, and the profits would be used for daily food expenses.
Would the government be afraid of not getting back the principal and interest? Therefore, this money would generate a stable income, and a very rich one at that.
Everyone ate to their heart's content for lunch every day. No matter how much they tried, it was impossible to finish it all. What about the rest of the money? The leftover money was called the 'leftover money'. Every day, when the kitchen official was settling the bill, he would distribute it to all the people in the yamen, so that everyone could share it.
After listening to Wang Wan's explanation, Yang Fan couldn't help but smile. "So that's how it is. I've just taken office and haven't received my salary yet, but I've already gotten some extra income. Haha, how much is it?"
Grinning, Wang Wan took out a string of coins from his waist and put it on the table in front of Yang Fan. He bowed and said, "This is the leftovers from today's meal, a total of eight hundred and forty copper coins. The leftovers are uncertain every day, and we'll only know how much is left after we've spent the day, and then we'll distribute it to everyone."
Yang Fan was startled, he cried out involuntarily, "There are actually so many leftovers in one day's meal?"
At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, prices were cheap. Although they often fluctuated, in general, money was still very valuable at that time. According to the current prices in Luoyang, one copper coin is equivalent to one yuan in our current state. How much extra monthly income is this?
Seeing his surprise, Wang Wan grinned and said, "This isn't considered much. This lowly one remembers that the highest daily income last month was one thousand three hundred and sixty-two copper coins."
Speaking up to this point, he took a step forward and lowered his voice, saying, "Of course, it's impossible for everyone to get so much. This lowly one calculates the leftovers from the actual number of people and then adds in some imaginary amounts. For the officials, the leftovers are multiplied according to their rank. Assistant Minister Cui gets ten times, the other doctors get eight times, and the vice ministers get six times, and so on and so forth. "
Speaking up to this point, Wang Wan sighed and said, "Everyone says that this lowly one's job is full of benefits, but this lowly one's job is not easy. The low-ranking officials often say that high-ranking officials have a lot of salary and land, and that the salary and allowance have long been distributed according to their rank. It's fine if I eat better than everyone else at lunch, but why do I have to share the leftovers several times?
They all say that the leftovers from the meal should be divided equally among everyone regardless of their rank. But they only talk about it in private, and none of them dare to say it to their superiors. So they often come to bully this lowly one. This lowly one is only a chief cook with no power or influence, what can I do? Not only am I being bullied, they even accuse this lowly one of taking advantage of the situation. Every month, the yamen checks the accounts, what can this lowly one do? Sigh, I'm being bullied … "
"Oh?"
Yang Fan's eyes flickered slightly, and he carefully inquired about the leftovers. Wang Wan complained to him, then slapped his forehead and said in surprise, "Aiyo, why did this lowly one only care about talking to the doctors? Those low-ranking officials naturally go to the kitchen to get their leftovers, while the officials need this lowly one to deliver them one by one. The Ministry of Justice is the first place this lowly one comes to, and Yang Langzhong is the first place this lowly one delivers. After that, there are still many places to go. If I delay for too long, I won't be able to deliver everything before the yamen is dismissed. Since the doctors are busy, this lowly one still has things to do. "
Yang Fan nodded and said with a smile, "Alright, go do what you need to do."
Watching Wang Wan leave, Yang Fan looked at the glistening yellow string of coins on the table and thought for a while. Suddenly, he smiled mysteriously and reached into his bosom …
…
Yang Fan walked out of the office with his hands clasped behind his back and stood under the osmanthus tree. From time to time, he would stretch his arms and legs and move his body. The officials who worked for Doctor Chen didn't know Yang Fan's identity, but those who knew that he was the department's new chief official couldn't help but look at him strangely.
Yang Fan was calm and turned a blind eye to them. He only strolled leisurely in the courtyard. Sometimes he would walk to the wall and lean over to look at the water lilies in the vat. Sometimes he would walk to the wall carvings and carefully admire the mighty image of the Xie Zhi. He stroked the delicate and smooth lines of the carvings. His expression was extremely leisurely.
Doctor Chen's assistant Luo Ling hid behind the door and quietly watched his movements. The more he watched, the more puzzled he became. He couldn't help but come out and pretended to wander around the door for a while. Then he greeted him with a smile, "Yang Langzhong!"
Yang Fan was looking up at the Xie Zhi with his hands clasped behind his back. He turned his head to look at him and said with a smile, "Ah! It's Luo Ling. Look at this Xie Zhi. The lines, the eyebrows, the scales, the carvings are really extraordinary. From my point of view, it must be the work of the name. "
Luo Ling hummed and laughed as he agreed. He wanted to pry information from him and probe his thoughts, but he didn't know how to start. Yang Fan seemed to have seen enough. He turned around and walked back to his office. As he walked, he said to Luo Ling, "This official is very bored. If you have nothing to do, why don't you come and talk to this official?"
This was exactly what Luo Ling wanted. Luo Ling hurriedly agreed and accompanied Yang Fan into the office. The two entered the room. Yang Fan sat behind the table and said to Luo Ling, who was bowing and standing there, "It's just a casual chat. There's no need to talk about so many rules. You can also sit."
Luo Ling complied and sat opposite him. He saw two strings of glistening yellow coins on the table and couldn't help but ask, "Er … Lang Zhong, this is …"
Yang Fan looked at the table and said with satisfaction, "Before this official came to the Ministry of Justice, I thought that working in the yamen compared to working in the palace would be very boring. I didn't expect this place to be so good. This is the leftover food that this official just received. Working here has such benefits. This official really didn't know before. "
Luo Ling looked at the amount of money on the table and said hesitantly, "Lang Zhong is an official of our Ministry of Justice. The leftover food he receives is a bit more than other people. To me, this is just an ordinary official. It can't be compared to Lang Zhong. Oh! The leftover food that Lang Zhong received today, I'm afraid it's at least a thousand taels? "
Yang Fan casually glanced at the table and said, "Oh, it's a total of one thousand five hundred taels. There are so many additional benefits in one day. Over the course of a month, it's a considerable amount of income. "
Hearing this, Luo Ling's expression immediately froze and his eyes suddenly widened. He quickly put on a calm expression and anxiously calculated in his mind, "One thousand five hundred taels? How come my family's Lang Zhong only received one thousand taels? That Wang Wan is so hesitant. He even said that he doesn't put this new official in his eyes at all and that the leftover food he gives him is far less than that of my family's Lang Zhong … "
Luo Ling's gaze turned slightly cold and he secretly thought about it.
Yang Fan slowly put away the two strings of money and patted the bulging bag with satisfaction. He said to Luo Ling, "The yamen has such benefits all thanks to the kitchen officials. The benefits fall into our hands, but the kitchen officials only get a few coins. It's not easy. I heard that the people below him have a lot of criticisms against him. We should take good care of such a capable chef! "
"What?"
Luo Ling exploded as soon as he heard this. With a red face, he said, "It's not easy for Wang Wan? He's as incorruptible as water? Lang Zhong, you're a new official and don't know the ins and outs. In our public kitchen, even an assistant minister might not get as much as he does as a kitchen official. He still feels wronged. Is there anyone in this world who doesn't feel wronged? "
Yang Fan said in surprise, "What do you mean? I heard from that kitchen official Wang that the yamen checks the accounts every month. What benefits can he get? "
Luo Ling sneered and said, "So what if they check the accounts? Even if they send an immortal down, they won't be able to understand the accounts. "
Luo Ling first saw that Wang Wan was two-faced and gave Yang Fan more food than Lang Zhong Chen. He was already furious. Now that he heard Yang Fan speak up for Wang Wan, he couldn't hold back anymore.
His face and neck were red as he said, "Lang Zhong, you saw the quality of our public kitchen's food this afternoon. It's extremely sumptuous. The more sumptuous the tea and food, the more expensive it is to buy. The more expensive the food, the more Wang Wan is in charge of purchasing it. Isn't that right? "
Yang Fan was obviously partial to Wang Wan. After hearing this, he said disapprovingly, "You don't know about the kitchen, so you're just taking it for granted. If there was really a lot of profit to be made from purchasing it, the imperial court would have reduced the quality of public meals long ago. "
Luo Ling slapped his thigh and said, "Hey! Lang Zhong is right. The imperial court wants to reduce the quality of public meals. In our imperial court, the highest quality of public meals is none other than the chefs of the Political Affairs Hall where the prime ministers work. The chefs are really delicacies, there's nothing they don't have, and every meal costs a lot of money. "
Two years ago, the prime ministers had discussed this matter. They said that the Political Affairs Hall was too wasteful and Prime Minister Di (Di Renjie) proposed to reduce the standard of food, but the other prime ministers didn't agree!
Prime Minister Li (Li Zhaode) said, "The public meals are sumptuous. That's because the imperial court values the Secretariat. If we are incompetent, we can just resign and let the capable ones take over. There's no need to reduce the standard of food to gain fame. That's it. If anyone mentions reducing the standard of food again, isn't that admitting that they're incompetent? Therefore, no yamen dares to be so unconventional. "
Luo Ling's interest was piqued. He crossed his legs and continued, "Because of this, the various yamens have to make sure that their public meals are exquisite. You tell me, how can he not be fat as a kitchen official? There's a rebate for everything he buys.
Moreover, our Ministry of Justice has people on official business from time to time, and the officials who come from all over to handle affairs have to treat each other. Many officials and bailiffs don't eat lunch in the yamen, so the number of people who eat every day is actually less than sixty percent. But the kitchen is always full. That Wang Wan is so fat, yet he still cries about being wronged. Is there any justice left in this world? "
What Luo Ling was talking about was the practice of eating and drinking at public expense from the early Tang Dynasty. This practice was only stopped by Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty with the thunderous methods of the "old turtle". But in the Qing Dynasty, this practice was revived and became more and more intense. There was even a head chef who could spend money to donate a platform for himself, which showed how rich this kitchen official was.
When Yang Fan heard this, he was furious and said, "This slippery little official, I was almost cheated by him."
Luo Ling saw that Yang Fan was angry with Wang Wan and felt very happy. He laughed and said, "This kind of lowly person is the most treacherous. Lang Zhong, don't believe their honeyed words!"
Yang Fan was instigated by him and became more and more angry. He slammed the table and said, "This kind of lowly person is as greedy as a big rat. Why didn't the yamen fire him and replace him with someone more obedient? I think that newcomer wouldn't dare to be so presumptuous. "
Luo Ling snorted and curled his lips, saying, "But for such a person, no matter what Tom, Dick, or Harry he is, there is always a great Bodhisattva behind him. Wang Wan is a relative of Assistant Minister Cui's family, who can do anything to him? This kind of lucrative job has always been occupied by the relative of the person in charge. "
Luo Ling picked out his earwax, flicked his finger in the air, and harrumphed, "In the past two years, our yamen has had three chefs. The first one was Zhang Chujin, a distant nephew of Minister Zhang. The second one was Zhou Xing, a nephew of Minister Zhou. This Wang Wan is the elder brother of Lady Ru, the most beloved of one of Assistant Minister Cui's brothers."
When Yang Fan heard this complicated relationship, he couldn't help sucking in a breath of cold air. He laughed dryly and said, "If you want to beat a dog, you still have to look at its owner. If that's the case … it's really … inconvenient to offend him."
Seeing that he was terrified, Luo Ling felt disdain in his heart. Suddenly, he felt that he had said too much just now. Moreover, he shouldn't have revealed the relationship between Wang Wan and Assistant Minister Cui. Wouldn't it have been better to ask him to go to Assistant Minister Cui and meet a rebuff?
Thinking of this, Luo Ling regretted it in his heart. He lost interest in chatting and quickly got up, saying, "I'm sorry, I've been away for a long time. I don't know if Doctor Chen has any instructions for me, I have to go now."
Yang Fan nodded and said, "Good, good, good. You go. When I'm alone and bored, you might as well come over and chat with me to relieve the boredom."
Luo Ling snorted and thought, "Sure enough, the more you talk, the more mistakes you make. Don't even think about asking me to talk nonsense with you again!" His mouth was full of promises, but he turned around and left.
Yang Fan waited for him to leave. He leaned slightly on the table, propped his chin on his hand, and muttered to himself, "This Wang Wan, between the lines of his words, he clearly wants me to stand up for everyone and ask for an equal share of the leftovers. In this way, without being exploited by the officials above him, he will be even more like a fish in water. But … I'm afraid that's not his original intention.
What's more, even Di Renjie ran into a rebuff on this point. This is the rule of the officialdom. If I do this, I'll be ridiculed by others if I fail. If I succeed, not only will I offend all the bureaucrats in the Ministry of Justice, but the officials from other yamens will also be tempted and make a ruckus. All the officials in the world will blame me.
Cutting off a person's source of wealth is like killing his parents. Smashing someone's rice bowl is bound to cause resentment for generations to come. Even if ten thousand people say you're good, what's the use? If you offend a superior, you'll be in trouble. This chef is pushing me into a pit. He's Assistant Minister Cui's man. Could it be that Assistant Minister Cui also wants to mess with me? The Ministry of Justice is not only a bit muddy, but also a bit deep … "
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