Chapter 840 - 843: Fury

Chapter 840: Chapter 843: Fury

Hu Dong knew his employers’ concerns. He glanced at Gu Wenheng beside him before continuing, "Actually, it’s not like there are no options, but it depends on whether you would agree, sir."

Gu Wenheng raised an eyebrow at him. "Let’s hear it."

"We could actually set up an empty account with the government. As long as we have the household registration and road permit in hand, no one would notice."

Gu Wenheng hadn’t expected this suggestion and immediately shook his head in denial. The method seemed feasible, but it would leave too many hidden dangers. It would be fine if no one noticed, but the moment they did, there was no telling whose hands the money in the empty account would ultimately fall into. They trusted Hu Dong and his men, but the same couldn’t be said for others. After all, this wasn’t a small sum. No matter how thorough the plan was, there was always the fear of someone getting greedy. There were too many loopholes to exploit, and Gu Wenheng felt there was no need to risk big losses for small gains.

"Let’s wait a bit longer! If we still can’t come up with a solution in a few days, we’ll talk about it then."

Hu Dong was merely offering a suggestion. The final decision had to be made by his masters, so he simply nodded and changed the subject.

Once Hu Dong left, Jin Qianqian spoke up. "We really couldn’t see the forest for the trees. I actually think his method is viable."

Gu Wenheng was speechless.

Jin Qianqian explained, "We are observing Ding You, but the rest of the clan isn’t affected."

"You want to use the identity of a clansman to handle matters outside," Gu Wenheng said, instantly understanding her intention. It wasn’t impossible; it just added an extra step to the process.

"I think Gu Yi’s identity could be put to use," Jin Qianqian suggested.

Gu Wenheng weighed the idea and realized Gu Yi truly was the most suitable candidate. The man had followed him for years and possessed an upright character. Moreover, as the Clan Leader, he wouldn’t harbor any ulterior motives, whether for the sake of his descendants or his own reputation.

Jin Qianqian wasn’t a stingy person either. The moment the idea came to her, she had already decided to offer appropriate benefits. "We’ll temporarily borrow his identity for a year, and we won’t let him work for free. As long as the business operates normally, we will give the clan two thousand Silver a year. They can distribute it individually or use it for clan expenses." Besides, they already spent roughly that amount of Silver on the clan here and there every year anyway. Why not just be generous and hand it over all at once?

Gu Wenheng replied, "The method works, and there won’t be any issues on Gu Yi’s end. But do you really think Cancan will be able to take over in a year?"

Jin Qianqian rolled her eyes at him. "Even though he’s my biological son, I know exactly what he’s capable of.

"Don’t we still have Luo Luo? That boy might not like dealing with worldly affairs, but with him keeping an eye on things, Cancan will mature much faster."

Gu Wenheng felt sorry for their second son in his heart, but his tone carried a hint of schadenfreude. "...If Cancan finds out, he’ll probably cry."

"You’re also idle at home now," Jin Qianqian said. "The three of you, father and sons, can handle these matters. I’m going to take a good rest this time." The beginning of anything was always the hardest. She had laid the groundwork so many times already; it was high time she let others manage their livelihood.

"Since we’re going to hand everything over to the two of them eventually anyway," Gu Wenheng said, "why not just let them manage it themselves?

"I shouldn’t even be the one to talk to Gu Yi. Let Luo Luo and Cancan handle it. This family will be handed over to them sooner or later. If no one reinstates me after our Ding You period ends, we can openly and rightfully retire."

Gu Wenheng found the prospect delightful just thinking about it. It would be best if those people in Shangjing never remembered him again. Once the time came, he would take his wife and start traveling the world.

Jin Qianqian ignored his daydreaming. She knew it was impossible, but as long as thinking about it made him happy, she would let him be.

"That’s enough," Jin Qianqian finally interrupted, unable to watch him sit there grinning like a fool any longer. "Don’t rush to tell the two boys about this, though. We still need to let them grind away at farming for a while.

"Besides, we can use this time to carefully screen those hundreds of people. We should dismiss the useless ones as early as possible."

Although they had invested manpower and resources into everyone they bought, some still harbored impure motives. This was the perfect opportunity to gather them together and observe them carefully. Gu Wenheng naturally had no objections to his wife’s arrangements. Their spies in the Capital also sent letters back daily. Taking the time to analyze the intelligence when they were free would help them make better decisions.

Time slowly marched on.

Two months passed, and many things had happened in Shangjing. First was the palace. The Emperor’s temper had been erratic lately, and he had consecutively punished several concubines. They were either demoted or thrown straight into the cold palace. Because of this, the officials in the imperial court trembled with fear every day they attended court. The front court and the harem had always been intertwined, and they were terrified that this fire would spread to the court.

But the very thing they worried about eventually arrived.

On a gloomy, rainy day, the Crown Prince was targeted and severely reprimanded by the Holy Emperor the moment court began. While everyone was feeling anxious, Hua Shunming turned his firepower on them.

"Tell me, what use do We have for this massive bunch of you?" Hua Shunming roared. "The taxes handed up every year aren’t even enough for you to squander!

"Don’t talk to Us about the National Treasury being empty or complain about this disaster or that calamity.

"What is the actual situation? You all know it in your hearts!

"Although there have been minor disasters and calamities over the years, many places have been governed well, and the taxes handed up have grown more abundant year by year. Despite this, you still dare to cry poor to Us!

"Where is the Minister of Revenue? We entrusted the treasury of the entire nation to your management, and this is how you repay Us?!"

Lu Gaoning knelt trembling before the hall, feeling immensely wronged. Although he was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, he only dared to hand over every Silver Tael spent after it was approved by the Holy Emperor. The fact that the National Treasury was now empty was entirely documented and verifiable. But with the Holy Emperor currently in a fit of rage, he didn’t have the guts to retort. When he took over Zhou Shicong’s position, he was already complaining internally. He was the Emperor’s confidant, true, but the Holy Emperor had made him Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue precisely because he was obedient. And it was because he was too obedient that the Holy Emperor had become increasingly brazen in approving the disbursement of Silver.

"May the Holy Emperor quell his anger!" the other officials shouted in unison.

Although these words were reprimanding Lu Gaoning, weren’t they also a slap in all of their faces?

"How do you expect Us to quell Our anger?" Hua Shunming demanded. "Today, the Ministry of Justice wants to purchase new torture devices; tomorrow, the internal departments need to buy paper and pens; the day after, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War will have all sorts of other excuses.

"Look at how all your little requests add up, emptying out Our National Treasury!"

Hua Shunming wouldn’t reflect on his own mistakes at a moment like this. The National Treasury had been full these past few years. Whenever his subordinates cried poor—and considering that many things hadn’t been replaced in the many years since he ascended the throne—he had felt that certain items truly needed to be renewed. But once the floodgates were opened, they couldn’t be closed. Every department had all sorts of reasons to request approvals. By the time he came to his senses, the originally abundant National Treasury was about to hit rock bottom. Now look at it—they had used it to their hearts’ content and completely emptied out the National Treasury. As for using his personal Silver Tael to replenish it, Hua Shunming didn’t consider himself that generous. He happened to be rather irritable lately, so it was only right that these people bear the brunt of his wrath.