nycdaug Chapter 144 Money Delivered to Your Door
Chapter 144 Money Delivered to Your Door
When a group of officials led a large group of yamen runners out of the gate, they ran into Eunuch Wu with a frosty face.
In an instant, the air seemed to freeze, the officials' eyes met, and panic surged in their hearts. An ominous premonition of impending disaster gripped their hearts.
Despite pretending to be calm, they still managed a few awkward and flattering smiles on their faces and hurried forward to greet them.
One of the officials asked cautiously, his voice trembling slightly, "Eunuch Wu, what brings you here? Come in!"
Eunuch Wu's eyes were like knives, sweeping over everyone one by one. He said coldly, "The adults are all here, very good. Then come with me!"
These words hit the officials like a hammer. The officials subconsciously swallowed their saliva. One of them mustered up the courage and stammered, "I wonder where Eunuch Wu is taking us?"
"The Emperor invites you!" These four simple words were like thunder in the cold winter, frightening everyone.
At this moment, they had no time to care about the noisy people around them. They could only hang their heads and follow Eunuch Wu obediently, step by step towards the unknown fear.
As I stepped into the hall, a chill hit me in the face, which came from the majestic aura emanating from the emperor above.
The officials lowered their heads, not daring to look the emperor in the face. The uneasiness in their hearts surged like a surging tide. They were afraid that it would not be so easy to escape this time.
"I will see you, Your Majesty!"
As soon as the ministers finished speaking, there was a loud "bang". The emperor, in a rage, threw the inkstone in his hand hard, and it hit a minister's forehead right on the spot.
The minister screamed and blood gushed out immediately.
"Tell me clearly, what is going on with those tributes?" The emperor's voice seemed to be wrapped in frost, echoing in the hall.
An elderly minister hurried out and said tremblingly, "Your Majesty, this is nothing more than hearsay among the people. Someone must have deliberately spread rumors to stir up trouble."
The emperor's eyes were like torches, and he stared at the minister and said sternly, "Well, if that's the case, tell me who did it."
Beads of sweat formed on the minister's forehead as he muttered, "This... I really don't know. But this man has sinister intentions and a vicious heart. Once proven, he should be severely punished."
The Emperor laughed in anger, but there was no warmth in that smile. He swept his cold gaze over His Highness and his ministers, and spoke word by word, "What a severe punishment! You are so fearless! Do you think I haven't sent anyone to investigate? I'm telling you, these things are all true!"
After saying this, the emperor waved his hand, and a stack of papers fell from the sky like snowflakes, slowly floating in front of the ministers.
When the ministers' eyes fell on the familiar time and events on the paper, their faces suddenly turned pale, and no matter how many excuses they made, they seemed pale and powerless.
It turned out that the emperor had already investigated the matter thoroughly, and the revelations from the people were all true, without any falsehood.
Several ministers with weak mental endurance felt their legs weaken and they fell to their knees, kowtowed and begged for mercy: "I have been bewitched and committed such an unforgivable mistake. I beg Your Majesty to show mercy and atone for my sin!"
The emperor was furious, his face livid, and he suddenly ordered, "Come here! Thoroughly investigate these traitors and seal off all their shops dealing in tribute."
After that, the Royal Guards took the order and went out, rushing to the ministers' residences in a mighty procession.
This investigation indeed revealed a shocking inside story.
In the study rooms of these officials, the Imperial Guards not only found solid evidence that they had abused their official positions to accept bribes and exploit merchants, but also found a huge amount of embezzled silver, which amounted to as much as one million.
When the imperial guards reported back, the emperor was furious. He slammed the imperial desk and roared, "Great! This is the minister I have always trusted, and he actually deceived me like a fool! Confiscate their property, confiscate their entire property, and spare no one!"
In an instant, more than ten officials in the court were arrested.
A large amount of gold, silver and jewelry were seized from their mansions, and their families were shackled and thrown into prison.
Seeing that the situation was hopeless, these people simply gave up and reported the crime one after another in an attempt to drag others into the water.
An official fell to the ground and shouted, "Your Majesty, Yan Wanwan's products are far inferior to those in the grocery store. Isn't there a suspicion of substandard goods being passed off as good ones?"
Another person quickly echoed, "Exactly! To seize the market, she not only imitated the all-time popular grocery store, but also robbed it. As the county lady, her actions are clearly a discredit to Your Majesty!"
Everyone was talking at once, blaming Yan Wanwan, but they selectively forgot that she had previously donated the fertilizer recipe for free.
The emperor pretended to be lost in thought after hearing this. After a moment, he said coldly, "That's right, Yan Wanwan is equally unforgivable. I will revoke her title of County Princess right now..."
At this moment, Eunuch Wu hurried to the emperor's side and whispered in his ear, "Your Majesty, the news I just received..."
The emperor's expression instantly turned ugly, and he said in a cold voice: "You said... Yan Wanwan is the owner of the grocery store."
This sentence was like a huge rock thrown into a calm lake, causing a thousand waves. Everyone fell silent in an instant and looked at each other in confusion.
The minister kneeling below was filled with disbelief and asked in a trembling voice, "The grocery store actually belongs to Yan Wanwan?"
At this moment, everyone's brain seemed to freeze. Someone said in a daze, "No wonder Yan Wanwan went to help the grocery store and even took the shop's deeds without mercy. These are all hers!"
Upon hearing this, the emperor's eyes widened in anger, veins popped out on his forehead, and he slammed the armrest of the dragon throne, roaring, "Come here! Take all these people away!"
The guards rushed in like a tide and quickly took away a dozen criminals.
In a blink of an eye, only the emperor and Eunuch Wu were left in the hall.
The emperor could no longer suppress his rage. He paced back and forth in the hall, gritting his teeth and saying, "Asshole! Yan Wanwan, that girl, appears to be suppressed by the grocery store and has no power to fight back, but behind the scenes she is manipulating the situation and trying to stockpile stores at low prices. No wonder those shops only want to buy, not give away. It turns out they are waiting for me here!"
Thinking about how the court had previously spent a huge amount of money to snatch the shop from the grocery store, and Yan Wanwan didn't spend a penny, and in the end both the silver and the shop fell into her pocket, the emperor felt his blood boiling.
Wouldn't this mean she earned double the money for nothing? Even the God of Wealth wouldn't give out money like this! And he was that stupid God of Wealth.
The emperor became angrier and angrier as he thought about it. His eyes were red and murderous intent flashed through his mind: "This Yan Wanwan is really going too far!"
Seeing this, Eunuch Wu hurried forward and whispered, "Your Majesty, please calm down. The rumors that County Lady Yan was secretly manipulating the grocery store to lower prices have been disproven. If you revoke her title based solely on this reason, it will probably spark discussion within the court and harm your reputation."
"Hmph, do you think I'm afraid of her?" The emperor frowned, his eyes full of anger, and he shook his sleeves heavily.
Eunuch Wu beside him hurried forward, bowing slightly, his tone urgent yet cautious, "Your Majesty, you are the ruler of a country, the highest authority in the land. Naturally, you have nothing to fear. However, that woman has acted erratically. If you take her to task, it will only damage your reputation!"
Upon hearing this, the emperor moved his lips, but ultimately closed them. His chest heaved violently, and the rage in his body was like that of a trapped beast. Although it was forcibly suppressed, it still permeated the air, making people shudder.