Chapter 1081
Preparations by the Imperial Household Department
Chapter 1081 Preparations by the Imperial Household Department
"Dai Quan, have all the people entered the capital?"
"Your Majesty, Zhuang Shouzhi, the Provincial Governor of Jiangnan, Jing Cunliang, the Inspector General, Du Yifu, the Commander of the Imperial City Guard, and several officials from the accompanying government offices have all entered the capital and are staying at the Southern Garrison Office, under the personal supervision of Commander Ma Mengquan."
In the imperial study room,
It was completely quiet.
After Grand Secretary Li and Marquis Luoyun left, Empress Wu was somewhat absent-minded. The case in Jiangnan might offer an opportunity to implicate Chang Le Palace, but the imperial family's reputation was of utmost importance.
Or perhaps Yang Chi is also the head of the inner court. If he weren't insane, how could he reveal certain things to others?
These people all need to be interrogated. The key issue is what Yang Chi, the head of the Imperial Household Department, can say, what he can't say, or whether he's truly insane.
"Everyone says that Yang Chi has made great contributions, and I also remember his good deeds. Now that he is mentally impaired, the joint trial by the three judicial departments must be fair in order to silence the opinions of the civil and military officials and the people of the world. Go and arrange for someone from the Imperial Hospital to come here and treat Yang Chi."
Perhaps having made up her mind, the Empress's eyes sharpened as she glanced at Dai Quan. Dai Quan immediately felt a chill run down his spine and quickly lowered his head in agreement.
"Yes, Your Majesty, this old servant will personally arrange for someone to meet you at the dock."
Then, he called Xiaoyunzi inside and explained things to her in person.
"Xiao Yunzi, take the guards from the Imperial City Guard and secretly escort Yang Chi back to the palace through the Xuanwu Gate. Don't let the news get out."
"Yes, godfather."
Xiao Yunzi responded softly, then left the Imperial Study. Leading a group of men, she found the Imperial City Guards and headed towards the western suburban docks. But she was already horrified. Eunuch Yang had gone mad! How could that be? Knowing Eunuch Yang as she did, he would never do such a thing unless he was truly driven insane. The thought sent a chill down her spine.
But there is also the Imperial Household Department. I wonder if Eunuch Wang knows about that?
Returning to the Imperial Study,
Dai Quan, along with a group of eunuchs, carried the two boxes of account books, which had been brought into the palace from the ship, into the center of the hall.
"Your Majesty, Xiao Yunzi has personally led a group to the western suburbs dock. As soon as they arrive, they will be brought back to the palace immediately. However, the Imperial City Guard has sent Lord Jing a box containing accounts of the Jiangnan land tax, which details the reasons for the reduction in taxable land in Jiangnan."
The conversation stopped there; after all, it wasn't exactly something to be proud of.
"Here is also a memorial written by Jing Cunliang, which this old servant brought along,"
Dai Quan didn't say much, but he placed the memorial on the table. Empress Wu was in a bad mood at the moment. She didn't even need to look at the account books; she knew where all the taxed land had gone. It was nothing more than nobles and powerful families using trickery and coercion to pocket it all.
He glanced at the document; its contents were better left unread than read. He asked a question.
"Which family bought the most fields in Jiangnan?"
"Your Majesty, it seems the Zhen family bought the most, followed by the Shi family, the Wang family, and the Jia family. Only the Xue family sold their land. The other families, and even Lord Zhuang and his family, acquired quite a lot."
This effectively wiped out all the nobles and officials in the capital. Upon hearing this, the Martial Emperor sneered.
"Very well, everyone is only thinking about filling their stomachs, but they don't see the plight of the court. I heard that Jia Yucun, the prefect of Jinling, sold all the disaster-stricken fields, thus retaining both the court's tax revenue and additional funds for disaster relief. Is that right?"
Thinking of this, he rummaged through the pile of memorials on the table and found the one written by Su Chong, which contained a detailed record of this method. This method was truly a triple win for the imperial court: it could guarantee tax revenue, provide disaster relief, and solve the problem of food for the people.
"Your Majesty, this is indeed the case. When these fields were sold, they were purchased according to the amount of grain produced. The imperial court took 30% of the tax revenue, the buyers also took 30%, and the remaining 40% was left to the people. This ensured that the people could live while also guaranteeing the imperial court's tax revenue. It's just that the buyers had to pay a little more."
Dai Quan squinted. It seemed that the prefect of Jinling had some vision. Otherwise, disaster relief in Jiangnan would probably be a long way off.
“There are always more solutions than problems. If everyone did this and offered suggestions, the court wouldn’t be in such a difficult situation. Jia Yucun is not bad. He didn’t make any major mistakes in this trial. Let him go back. By the way, is there any other charge against him?”
Emperor Wu casually closed the memorial again and placed it on a corner of the table. This was also his habit; when something good happened, he needed to record it. For example, how wonderful it would be if all the fields in Jiangnan could be managed according to this method!
"Your Majesty, I believe that Jia Yucun, the Prefect of Jinling, can still be trusted. His residence was searched once by the Imperial City Guard. Although it was only a general search, and the study was sealed off, his relatives' freedom was not restricted. However, the Imperial City Guard secretly reported that Prefect Jia's wealth is about 100,000 taels of silver, while the other two officials have at least three times that amount."
As for the wrongdoing, it was a few years ago when he sheltered the eldest son of the Xue family and beat someone to death in the street. He was reported to the Censorate, but because the wife of the deceased, surnamed Feng, had an affair with the steward and fled the mansion after the incident, there was no victim, and the matter was naturally dropped.
Since His Majesty asked, how could Dai Quan dare to conceal it? He also recounted the events at the residences of the Provincial Governor and the Inspector General. When he first received the news, he didn't believe it either. Everyone said that the Prefect of Jiangnan was wealthy, with 100,000 taels of silver. He never imagined that Prefect Zhuang's family was so poor. As for Inspector General Jing, he had only been in Jiangnan for a short time and didn't have time.
"It is said among the common people that a virtuous wife brings peace to the family. The woman from the Feng family is clearly not one of them. In that case, the case is still unsolved and should not be considered openly discussed. The city of Jinling needs to remain stable. If she shows remorse and returns the amount of taxable land to the amount set by the Emperor Emeritus, I will thank her."
On this point, Emperor Wu was not lying. If the land could be restored and the additional fields planted with mulberry trees, the silkworm rearing problem would be solved, and the weaving bureau could then operate more efficiently.
Dai Quan knew perfectly well what was going on.
"Yes, Your Majesty, this old servant knows what to do."
Since it's a case without a clear resolution, there's no need to go to court. Jia Yucun can return home, but manpower still needs to be dispatched to Jiangnan. And the affairs of the Textile Bureau can't be neglected. Perhaps that Master Qin glanced cautiously at His Majesty, hesitating whether to speak or not.
"Your Majesty, the Jiangnan Textile Bureau is now leaderless. The former head is still in the Ministry of Justice prison, and the current head, Shen, is also involved in the case. Such a large government office needs someone to take charge again."
"You've given me a good reminder. The Weaving Bureau can't be in chaos. That Shen Wanhe is a sensible man. As long as he can make up for the Bureau's deficit, he can take charge for now. As for that former head, you need to investigate him thoroughly. He did a good job in the previous few years, but why has the silver he's been paying tribute to decreased so much in recent years? Find out the reason. If there's another reason, come back and tell me."
The Emperor's eyes flickered. If this money were embezzled, he would deserve to die; but if it were given to someone else, that would be a different story.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
With just a few words, each of them had their own thoughts on their minds. A wisp of smoke rose and drifted away with the wind!
Just as Xiaoyunzi went to the West Suburbs Wharf, eunuchs from the Imperial Household Department rushed over and entered the inner hall. There, they saw Eunuch Wang reviewing account books submitted from various places. The room was filled with eunuchs, each with an account book in front of them, and an abacus on the table; their hands never stopped checking the accounts.
I do not know how long it has been,
After Xiaomingzi led the person in, the eunuch who had delivered the message was also greatly surprised by the situation inside the room, but he didn't slow down and hurriedly walked into the hall, knelt down and kowtowed.
"This servant greets Steward Wang,"
Wang Xiu looked up and saw that it was someone he knew well, and replied with a smile;
"Don't be so polite, we're all family, there's no need to stand on ceremony, please sit down."
"Thank you, Steward Wang."
The visitor kowtowed again, stood up respectfully, stood aside, and then leaned closer and whispered;
"Steward Wang, I have important news to tell you today. The Empress Dowager in the palace said that Xiao Yunzi personally went to the western suburbs dock to pick up Eunuch Yang, who is to be escorted back to the capital."
"Eunuch Yang, where is Eunuch Yang from?"
While Wang Xiu was checking the accounts, he casually remarked that he was somewhat absent-minded. The most important things about the Imperial Household Department were the mines in various places and the revenue from the estates. In addition, the procurement also needed to be handled with extra care. Now that the Jiangnan case involved the Imperial Household Department, the tribute and procurement from the five counties in Jiangbei all needed to be accounted for separately. He remembered that they were all expenses from Chang Le Palace, but these account books were a hot potato.
"Uh, Chief Steward Wang, it's Eunuch Yang, the Director of the Imperial Household Department. He's being escorted back to the capital from the Jiangnan Textile Bureau. It's said that he caught a cold and was frightened on the way back, and then he went mad. The Imperial Hospital has already prepared imperial physicians to treat Eunuch Yang."
The messenger eunuch was somewhat taken aback; how could Chief Steward Wang be so distracted with such important news?
"What? Yang Chi has gone mad?"
Perhaps regaining his senses, Wang Xiu's eyes widened upon hearing that Yang Chi had gone mad. He couldn't believe it at all. Yang Chi, that old fox, was the most cunning of the three of them, and the first to be sent out to work elsewhere, holding the reins of the textile bureau and rolling in money. How could he just go mad so easily?
Thinking about it carefully, it seems something terrible has happened; he'd either go mad or die. "Eunuch Wang, this servant is right. The Ancestor said that although the person hasn't arrived yet, the news won't be wrong. They're using the secret guards' inside network; it shouldn't be long before we see them at the western suburban docks,"
The eunuch who delivered the message was also somewhat uneasy. In the inner court, people were in a state of panic, and many with ulterior motives had their eyes on the position of Director of the Imperial Household Department. But these people didn't seem to realize that these positions required the Emperor's approval.
"Xiao Mingzi, reward him; don't let anyone make the trip easy,"
"Yes, Godfather,"
Wang Xiu's eyes flickered. This news came at the perfect time. Once the Imperial Household Department's accounts were finalized, several matters would be attributed to Yang Chi. In this way, the accounts for the jade that flowed out of the capital from the Imperial Household Department could be settled.
Xiao Mingzi was quick; he personally approached and presented the messenger with a hundred-tael silver note and poured him a cup of tea. The messenger accepted the silver note with a smile, then took the tea, sipped it lightly, as if remembering something.
"Thank you, Eunuch Ming. Oh, and Steward Wang, there's something else I need to say. Before Eunuch Yun went to fetch the people, Marquis Luoyun and the Grand Secretary went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and discussed the case in Jiangnan. The joint trial by the three judicial departments might be soon, perhaps even tomorrow. The Ancestor's opinion is that if the evidence is conclusive, it's best to close the case as soon as possible."
These were words he had deduced. If they wanted to uncover a major case, they wouldn't have been in such a hurry to have him relay the message. Wang Xiu nodded after listening, understanding his godfather's meaning. With the Emperor Emeritus's birthday banquet approaching, several vassal kings were actively networking with various people. Although their actions were discreet, nothing stays hidden forever. Unfortunately, no one at Chang Le Palace knew their true intentions.
Furthermore, Marquis Luo Yun has repeatedly provoked them, so how could the princes be willing to accept this? With this major case happening right now, it's likely that another wave of trouble will arise.
"Yes, go back and tell the Grand Eunuch that preparations have been made for the Imperial Household Department's affairs, so there's no need to worry."
"Yes, Steward Wang, I will definitely pass on the message. I'll take my leave now."
He bowed deeply, his steps hurried, eager to return and deliver a message.
As soon as the person left, the godson, Xiaomingzi, quickly stepped forward, tidied up the teacup, and said softly;
“Godfather, if the three judicial departments hold a joint trial tomorrow without anyone else involved, the case should be closed in a few days. They might not even find the accounts here, and even if they do, who would dare to come and demand them?”
Furthermore, more than half of those jade stones went into the inner palace, leaving very little left.
"You're thinking too simply. Song Zhen, the Minister of Justice, is very cunning. The Jiangnan case involves so many people. If Marquis Luoyun is involved, then several princes will be involved as well. In that case, let alone a joint trial by the three judicial departments, it will become a mess even if it goes all the way to the Grand Secretariat. What I'm worried about is Yang Chi. If things go wrong, disaster may befall him."
Thinking of this, he felt a chill run down his spine and immediately looked at the eunuchs who were keeping accounts around him, and gave them instructions;
"Mingzi, you stay here and keep an eye on things today. You can only leave when the accounts are fully tallied. Even your meals and drinks must be eaten and drunk indoors. I'm worried about that."
"Yes, Godfather, don't worry. I won't go out until the accounts are clear. I will definitely finish the inventory tonight. Also, the accounts for the Jiangnan jade mine have been rewritten and will be foolproof. However, Chang Le Palace is still urging us to prepare the jade quantity for the end of the year. How should we respond to them?"
Regardless of what happens outside, Steward Xia has set the budget for Chang Le Palace, and the amount of jade is quite substantial.
"Seal off all the rest. If more is needed, use those to make up the difference. If it's not enough, explain why. We'll see if the jade in the five counties north of the river can still be mined. If not, then there's nothing we can do."
"Yes, godfather, I understand."
Inside, silence returned, broken only by the clatter of the abacus.
Whether it was due to the atmosphere or not, after the grand court assembly, officials from various departments were busy reviewing memorials from all over the country and checking accounts. Some people had already sensed that something was wrong and went into hiding to protect themselves. However, some restless people were still waiting for an opportunity to observe, while others were indifferent and stayed out of it, inviting three or five friends to sit in a brothel and enjoy themselves.
The capital city was unusually quiet, with only the bustling crowds and vibrant figures remaining on the streets.
Inside the East City Military Commandery,
Zuo Anhe sat in the main hall, pacing back and forth. Three days had passed, and although no one was blocking the gate anymore, the surrounding taverns and teahouses were always packed, clearly waiting for their young master to return home.
"Reporting, sir, the doctors we summoned have arrived."
In the palace,
The military commander, Tian, along with several physicians, had already arrived inside the hall. They greeted Lord Zuo and bowed in unison.
"Greetings, Lord Zuo."
"No need for formalities. I called you here today to have someone take a look at you and see how your health is. If there are no problems, that's fine. But if there are, tell me right away."
Zuo Anhe was still worried about the captured students. They had only been in prison for less than three days and already seemed listless. He feared they might develop illnesses, so, just to be on the safe side, he had someone fetch a doctor.
"Yes, sir, certainly, certainly,"
Seeing that everyone was ready, Captain Asada gave the order.
“Old Tian, you’re a veteran in this government office. Call Zuo Fangzhong over, have him inspected, give him a good scolding, and then release him. Be mindful of the consequences.”
Captain Tian understood the meaning behind this perfectly, so he nodded and replied.
"Yes, sir, rest assured, I understand."
Then, nodding to the doctors, he took a few trusted soldiers and went to the prison. Zuo Fangzhong was already impatient inside. Putting aside the smell, the students' shouting and cursing were incredibly annoying.
Seeing Uncle Tian walk in, I quickly went to greet him.
"Uncle Tian, what did my father say? If I had known, I should have released them all. These past few days, the food, supplies, and doctor's fees have cost the yamen quite a bit of money."
Zuo Fangzhong felt a pang of heartache, his face trembling. These were all under his control; if he had known it would cost so much money, he would have released these useless fellows long ago.
"Well, young master, this isn't something the old master can decide. I heard it was Lord He who ordered that you be detained for a few more days. If the old master hadn't been so kind to you, we might have had to wait two more days."
Looking at Zuo Fangzhong, who had lost a lot of weight, his face was pale, and his official robes were wrinkled, with the cloud pattern on the cuffs stained and shiny. A sour smell wafted out, showing that he had been suffering.
Lieutenant Tian smiled broadly. As the saying goes, "A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit." The Military Command is just a figurehead; why should they have so many things to worry about? As long as no one dies, a few lashes are fine.
"What? We have to wait another two days? By the way, I wonder if my father would suggest collecting some silver from everyone to cover the expenses the yamen has incurred these past few days? After all, it's the yamen's money."
I was about to say something harsh, but I changed my mind. After all, the treasury money in the yamen was earned and used by the soldiers themselves. My father had said that the military command could do without anything, but not without money. So, this was all for the brothers' benefit.
Captain Tian paused slightly, understanding his young master's meaning, and his eyes darted around.
"Young master, the master didn't say we can't have them, nor did he say we can. You can decide for yourself. I'm here today to check on those students' health."
"Okay, that's settled then. Go take a look first, and I'll talk to you later."
(End of this chapter)