Chapter 701: Jin Ling, the Night Deepens, the Ministry of Revenue Hall in the Auxiliary Capital is Brightly Lit

Jin Ling, the night deepens, the Ministry of Revenue hall in the auxiliary capital is brightly lit.

A dozen desks were arranged in the hall; under the bright candlelight, each desk was piled with account books, both new and old.

A dozen minor officials and clerks from the Ministry of Revenue were working diligently at their desks, carefully verifying various account books, occasionally taking notes, and the crisp sound of abacuses rose and fell.

For the past few days, they had all been busy with the same matter: auditing and verifying the confiscated assets of the Zhen family of Jin Ling.

Ever since the imperial decree was issued from the Love Shenjing a few days ago, the Zhen family's main branch, while already under indictment, had communicated with powerful figures in the Love Shenjing to hide private family wealth, adding to their crimes.

The head of the main branch, Zhen Yingjia, along with his family and children, were sentenced to fifteen years of exile in Lingnan.

Zhen Yingjia and his wife were already nearing fifty; whether they could survive to return to their homeland was already a matter of doubt.

The thirteen chests of gold and silver they had originally relied upon became the root cause that dragged their family into the abyss once more.

The Emperor's wrath went far beyond this; the original imperial decree to confiscate seventy percent of the Zhen family's assets was upgraded this time to a total confiscation of everything.

Furthermore, the disaster extended to the Zhen family's collateral branches; within one month, the direct and collateral branches of the Zhen family within three generations were ordered to move out of Jin Ling and be escorted to Tongxian for detention and settlement.

This Zhen family confiscation case originated from the main branch's involvement in the private manufacture of firearms, but in the end, all collateral branches within three generations were implicated.

Zhen Yingjia's elders and cousins of the same generation suffered a sudden disaster overnight; the severity of the imperial punishment shook the entire city of Jin Ling.

The simple-minded commoners whispered among themselves that the current Emperor was being too heavy-handed, implicating the innocent.

But among the officials and citizens of Jin Ling, those with some strategic insight could all taste the deep meaning behind Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's actions.

The Zhen clan had deep roots in Jin Ling, with wealth overflowing and money pouring in daily; their prestige among the Jiangnan aristocratic families was so great that there was a hidden fear of them having the power to rally hundreds with a single call.

The young and strong generation of the Zhen family's main branch dared to plot the private manufacture of firearms; the power and wealth of the Jin Ling Zhen family were so arrogant that one could not say they hadn't developed a hidden heart of rebellion.

The Zhen family's collateral branches seemed innocent, but the children of these branches all managed businesses for the main branch, holding connections that spread throughout Jiangnan and could not be underestimated.

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao had always been deeply wary of those coveting firearms; the involvement of such a powerful aristocratic family as the Jin Ling Zhen family made him even more vigilant and ruthless.

If it weren't for Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's concern for the Retired Emperor's face, and his unwillingness to create rifts between father and son that could lead to a crisis within the deep palace,

the Zhen family's main branch would likely not have escaped the disaster of total annihilation; the fall of the Jin Ling Du family years ago was a precedent.

Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao exiled Zhen Yingjia's branch to the remote lands of Lingnan and moved all three generations of the Zhen family's direct and collateral branches to Tongxian for detention.

This was to completely sever the century-old roots of the Jin Ling Zhen family in Jiangnan in one fell swoop; the methods were ruthless and decisive, and it served as a warning to the Jiangnan aristocratic families.

The children of the various Zhen family branches demoted to Tongxian had become rootless duckweed because all their family assets had been confiscated.

Arriving in the unfamiliar land of Tongxian, they would find it difficult to even make a living.

The government had long since arranged their livelihood; they could rent government land to farm for a living.

Within ten years at most, these descendants of an aristocratic family that once lived in luxury in Jin Ling would be transformed into farmers scratching for food in the fields, no longer capable of any acts of transgression.

Sixteen years ago, the Du family fell, and the demons and monsters of Jiangnan lay dormant for many years; the disaster of the Jin Ling Zhen family today is merely the Emperor setting an example once again.

A monarch governs the world and exerts pressure over the four seas; his mouth speaks of benevolence in governing the common people, but his heart is that of the supreme, heartless Heaven and Earth.

On the scales weighing the pros and cons of the state, human feelings, compassion, and legal principles are all insignificant weights.

While these Ministry of Revenue clerks were busy, a Ministry of Revenue official wearing Grade 6 official robes patrolled back and forth between the desks.

He was Jia Cong's close friend, Liu Bi, the eldest grandson of the Master of Letters, Liu Jingan.

Liu Bi came from a scholarly family that had produced seven jinshi in one generation; he had been taught by his grandfather since childhood and was also outstanding in his studies.

He had once ranked in the upper-middle of the second tier in the Spring Examination and, according to common practice, should have been able to enter the Hanlin Academy to cultivate his talents.

However, he unexpectedly failed the Hanlin Academy's imperial examination and lost the qualification to be selected as a shujishi; it remains a mystery and a case of doubt to this day.

But the matter did not end there; as the grandson of a Master of Letters, his grandfather had many old connections in the capital, and logically, he could have remained in the capital as an official.

Yet, in the end, he didn't even have the opportunity to observe governance in the Six Ministries and was early on assigned by the Ministry of Personnel to be the County Magistrate of Chun'an in the south.

Liu Bi served as the County Magistrate of Chun'an for three years with excellent performance and was rated first-class by the Ministry of Personnel, then transferred to be a Director in the Ministry of Works in the auxiliary capital.

Although he still couldn't return to the capital to serve as an official and enjoy family life, he was promoted by one rank; it wasn't too good, but it wasn't too bad either.

Jin Ling was the auxiliary capital of the Great Zhou, a wealthy city in Jiangnan, and a place where literary talent gathered.

Liu Bi had been an official here for half a year and had completely adapted to living as a guest in Jin Ling; last month, he had also brought his wife to Jin Ling to settle down.

Because he was familiar with the flow of money and grain during his tenure as County Magistrate of Chun'an, he was the one supervising the confiscation of the Zhen family's assets this time.

When he patrolled to the first desk in the first row, the clerk who was hunched over verifying the account books stood up and saluted immediately upon seeing Liu Bi.

He said, "Master Liu, this subordinate has been verifying the cash flow of several shops under the Zhen family's name and found quite a few discrepancies."

Liu Bi's expression tightened slightly, and he asked, "Where did the discrepancies appear, and what is the amount of missing silver?"

The clerk said, "In the two shops this subordinate checked, over the past year, someone has successively withdrawn 200,000 taels of deposit silver from the shops.

The withdrawal signature is that of the Zhen family steward, Liu Xian, and the silver was used for maritime trade.

This subordinate checked the relevant accounts; part of this deposit silver was used to purchase goods, which were then sent out to sea by the Zhen family's fleet.

But a large portion of the deposit silver remained idle, and there is no record of this silver flowing back in the subsequent account books, so it is considered a discrepancy."

Liu Bi felt a chill in his heart upon hearing this; even for a wealthy family like the Zhen family of Jin Ling, 200,000 taels of silver was definitely not a small amount, and it had to make one suspicious.

He did not dare to be negligent and began to walk between the desks, asking the clerks and scribes if they had found any suspicious points while verifying the accounts.

As it turned out, almost every desk verifying the Zhen family's account books found similar situations.

In the Zhen family's shops and businesses across various locations, large amounts of deposit silver had been withdrawn by someone over the past year, and the remaining silver on the books was merely to deceive the public.

Liu Bi had someone calculate the total, and the cumulative amount of deposit silver withdrawn from these shops was extremely huge, accounting for a large portion of the Zhen family's assets.

The reason for these withdrawals was always for the Zhen family fleet's maritime trade.

But Liu Bi had been in the Jin Ling Ministry of Revenue for half a year and had heard about the major events in Jin Ling city.

He naturally knew clearly that the Zhen family fleet had set sail in May and encountered a hurricane in the East Sea, never to return; it was rumored that the entire fleet had capsized in the sea.

This meant that this huge amount of deposit silver, along with the fleet responsible for the far-sea trade, was now in a position where it could not be verified.

Liu Bi was a man of great learning, born into an official family, and had been taught and influenced by his father and grandfather since childhood.

Not only did he know that the official career was dangerous, but he also knew that there were all kinds of strange tricks in the world.

Although he had no clear evidence, his intuition told him that there must be something fishy about this matter.

Before the Zhen family's downfall, such a large amount of silver flowing out from various Zhen family industries, quietly and without a trace, and ultimately being impossible to track down, was simply too coincidental and strange.

Liu Bi said to the clerk beside him, "Set up a special file, and for the outflow of deposit silver from each shop found during the account verification, record it item by item and describe the details in full.

In addition to the outflow of deposit silver, also verify the Zhen family's real estate, such as shops and houses, one by one, and check if there have been frequent changes within this year.

All files and documents must be ready tonight; tomorrow morning, I will report this matter to the Vice Minister."

Jin Ling, Hongchun Medical Hall.

This medical hall had been open for less than two years, but it had quite a reputation in Jin Ling city, and people seeking medical treatment came in an endless stream every day.

The reason this medical hall had such a scene was not only because the doctors hired by the hall were highly skilled and possessed a benevolent heart and medical skills.

It was also because the medical hall's consultation fees were reasonable and the prices were fair; for the lonely, widowed, and poor families in the city, they often provided medical treatment and medicine for free, which was why they had such a good reputation.

Although this Hongchun Medical Hall was very prosperous, none of the local ruffians and powerful bullies dared to easily extort or provoke them.

The root cause was that the owner of the medical hall was not simple, making the local rats and bullies very wary.

Because Hongchun Medical Hall was an industry under the name of the Jin Ling Xinchun Firm, and behind the Xinchun Firm stood the Count of Lord Weiyuan, Jia Cong.

A court official known to all under heaven, a Hanlin Academy scholar, and a Grade 5 official in the Ministry of Works—with the protection of such a person's name, naturally no one dared to come and cause trouble.

Years ago, Qu Hongxiu and Jia Cong founded the Embroidery Fragrance Shop in the Love Shenjing and adopted many orphans who had fled from famine.

After being educated and enlightened, these young boys and girls had now become the backbone of the Xinchun Firm's branches everywhere.

As the scale of the Xinchun Firm continued to expand, the firm needed more reliable personnel.

After Qu Hongxiu and Qin Keqing gained a firm foothold in Jin Ling, they adopted orphans and abandoned girls from all over Jiangnan and selected those with excellent aptitude for education.

To treat the illnesses of these orphans, they specifically opened this Hongchun Medical Hall and hired skilled doctors from Jiangnan.

The medical hall also received poor commoners, with the intention of saving the world through medicine.

In the past few days, the medical hall had admitted an old woman over sixty, the original old lady of the Zhen family of Jin Ling.

Ever since the imperial decree was issued from the Love Shenjing again, the Zhen family's disaster had gone from bad to worse; the main branch was all exiled to Lingnan, the other branches were detained and moved to Tongxian, and all family assets were confiscated.

After all, Old Lady Zhen was a person of advanced age who had enjoyed wealth and glory all her life.

Now, encountering such a huge change in her family, her body and mind were severely devastated, and she finally fell ill and could not get up.

After the imperial decree was issued, in less than ten days, the various branches of the Zhen family were escorted to Tongxian.

But for someone of Old Lady Zhen's age, with such a serious illness, plus the hardship of traveling thousands of miles, she was bound to die on the way.

This time, Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's punishment of the Zhen family was severe, but he did not kill a single person from the Zhen family, which could be considered an extra act of grace.

The Prefect of Yingtian, Jia Yucun, who was in charge of this case in Jin Ling, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard Battalion Commander, Wang Zhangjiang, both knew the root of the matter.

It was nothing more than the current Emperor considering the face of the Retired Emperor and remembering the late Old Imperial Consort Zhen, who had passed away less than a year ago.

If the Zhen family were forced to move thousands of miles away this time, ultimately forcing the highest-ranking old lady of the Zhen family to her death,

not only would Emperor Emperor Jia Zhao's act of mercy in not killing anyone be stained, leaving behind a handle for others, but it would also not look good in front of the Retired Emperor.

Besides, an old woman who was already decaying was irrelevant to the Zhen family's major case and the Emperor's intentions; there was no need to create extra trouble for her.

Therefore, after Jia Yucun and Wang Zhangjiang discussed it, they let the various branches of the Zhen family set off in time, not daring to delay the Emperor's will.

They left Old Lady Zhen in Jin Ling for medical treatment to preserve the Emperor's and the court's reputation for benevolent governance.

Once Old Lady Zhen's illness was cured, she would be escorted to Tongxian separately.

However, according to the thoughts of these officials, Old Lady Zhen was already of advanced age, and birth, aging, sickness, and death were common things.

The court had arranged for the old lady to receive medical treatment, which had fulfilled its moral duty; it would be best if the medical treatment was ineffective and the old lady died, which would make things clean for everyone.

It was just that when the Yingtian Prefecture sent Old Lady Zhen for medical treatment, several famous medical halls in Jin Ling city only prescribed mild nourishing formulas to soothe her and shirked the responsibility of admitting her.

The Zhen family's total confiscation was known to everyone in the streets and alleys; in such a gloomy moment, who would want to be involved with the Zhen family?

Moreover, Old Lady Zhen was old and frail, and her body and mind had suffered a sudden heavy blow; it was already a case of more misfortune than good.

Now that the government had sent her for treatment, if she died, the medical hall would be involved in a lawsuit for nothing; who would still want to touch such bad luck?

In the end, it was the doctor at Hongchun Medical Hall who volunteered to admit Old Lady Zhen to the medical hall.

Regarding Hongchun Medical Hall's act of benevolence, there were many speculations in the streets.

The most talked-about one was the close relationship between the Jin Ling Xinchun Firm and the Count of Lord Weiyuan, and the Count of Lord Weiyuan had once had an engagement with the Zhen family's third young lady.

This was the real reason why Hongchun Medical Hall extended a helping hand to the fallen Old Lady Zhen.

After Old Lady Zhen moved into the medical hall, there was only one old woman serving her.

The doctor at the medical hall prescribed medicine to nourish her, but for the past few days, Old Lady Zhen's condition remained unstable, and she could not get out of bed to walk.

In fact, the old lady had no serious illness, but the family's downfall and the knots in her heart were hard to resolve; heart disease is hard to cure.

On this day, Old Lady Zhen was resting in the room, and the serving woman brought a bowl of thin porridge; the old lady only ate a few mouthfuls before she couldn't swallow anymore.

At this time, a minor servant from the medical hall came in to pass a message, saying that someone had come to visit the old lady.

Old Lady Zhen and the serving woman both felt strange; the Zhen family had fallen to such a state, and now they were reduced to living in a medical hall, why would anyone still come to visit?

When the middle-aged man who requested the meeting entered the room, Old Lady Zhen and the serving woman were both full of surprise...

It wasn't until sunset that the visiting middle-aged man left alone.

By noon the next day, the Yingtian Prefecture received a report from Hongchun Medical Hall that Old Lady Zhen had died last night.

Jia Yucun was a bit surprised when he heard the news, but he didn't feel it was too unexpected.

Ever since Old Lady Zhen was admitted to the medical hall, the prefecture had been sending people to investigate and monitor her; the old lady had always been seriously ill and unable to get out of bed.

For a woman of this age, with such a condition and situation, it was very difficult to live long.

So, according to custom, he sent government officials to the medical hall to inspect the scene.

The prefecture's constable and runners had just arrived at the medical hall's gate when they saw a thin coffin being carried out, emitting a foul odor.

The medical hall doctor had his face covered with a white cloth, leading the coffin across the threshold, preparing to head towards the west of the city.

The constable covered his nose and mouth and walked up, frowning as he asked, "Didn't they say the old lady only died last night? Why is the body already smelling so bad in less than a day?"

The medical hall doctor said, "The official might not know, but the old lady was of advanced age, and her vital energy was already exhausted; she was already a withered body.

Although she only stopped breathing last night, corpse spots appeared very quickly, and since it is midsummer now, Jin Ling is scorching hot, and the body decays very quickly.

Originally, I wanted to keep the body for the official to inspect, but the smell is too strong; keeping it in the medical hall would not only scare the patients but also attract epidemics, which would inevitably lead to a major disaster.

Since the official has arrived in time, I will open the coffin for the official to inspect."

The doctor covered his nose and mouth with his hand and had someone bring a crowbar to open the coffin.

When the constable heard the word "epidemic" and saw the doctor acting as if he were facing a great enemy, with his head and face covered in white cloth, he felt a slight chill in his heart and hurriedly covered his nose and mouth and retreated a few steps.

Impatiently waving his hand, he said, "What's there to see about a dead old woman? This smell is too foul; hurry up and take it outside the west city to bury it, bad luck!"

Jin Ling, Dazai Gate, Xinchun Firm Jiangnan Headquarters.

In the inner room on the second floor, Qin Keqing was wearing a light purple embroidered jacket, a pale yellow camisole, and a pink long skirt on her lower body.

Her eyebrows were like green ink, her skin like jade, her eyes filled with autumn water, and a red treasure gold hairpin with a phoenix was inserted into her black hair bun, shining brightly in the afternoon sun.

She was checking the accounts sent from various branches when the door curtain was suddenly lifted, and Ruizhu and Baozhu carried a copper basin filled with crushed ice into the room.

A white, misty cold air radiated from the copper basin, and the room suddenly felt cool.

Qin Keqing smiled and said, "This rare thing is indeed useful; after getting used to it, I really can't do without it."

Baozhu smiled and said, "It's still Cong Ge who thinks of Sister Xiu and the young lady, writing the ice-making method in detail in the letter.

He sent the materials from far away before summer even arrived; Ruizhu and I haven't tried it many times, and we can already make usable ice bricks; we don't have to be afraid no matter how scorching Jin Ling gets."

The door curtain was lifted again, and Qu Hongxiu walked into the room in a green shirt and skirt; her face was pretty, her waist was slender, and her figure was graceful.

Qin Keqing said while flipping through the account book, "Sister Xiu, you still have a good eye; although that Miss Zou is a novice, her thoughts and methods are quite extraordinary.

She has been managing the Gusu branch for these few months, and the silver income in the shop is more than twenty percent better than the previous few months."

Qu Hongxiu curled her lips slightly and said, "It's not that I have a good eye; it should be that Cong Di has a good eye.

Every woman who gets involved with him is a character; his fate is also strange—how can he be so good at attracting them?

You must not forget, there is not only one Miss Zou in Gusu, but also a more extraordinary Miss Zhen, the third young lady."

Keqing sighed helplessly when she heard this; she naturally knew about Miss Zhen, the third young lady, and the mansion outside Gusu city was still arranged by Keqing.

This Miss Zhen had a significant background; not only was she the person in charge of the Zhen family's business, but she had also almost become the wife of his Cong Di; fortunately, it didn't happen...

Qin Keqing said, "Sister Xiu, Miss Zhen and Cong Di were once betrothed by the palace; the imperial word is gold and jade, and it was a done deal.

After Cong Di finishes his mourning period, will the palace bring up the old matter again?"

Qu Hongxiu shook her head and said, "If it were before, they really could have made it happen, but now that the Zhen family has been confiscated and fallen, this matter is no longer possible.

Cong Di is an official heavily used by the Emperor; now he holds two titles and is the head of the Jia family's main branch; his status is extremely noble.

According to clan laws and etiquette, and for the sake of the court's face, both publicly and privately, he cannot marry the daughter of a criminal family; this matter is already difficult to reverse."

Qin Keqing felt a sense of relief when she heard this, but then she felt discouraged again.

Miss Zhen was the daughter of a criminal family; could she be any better? Everyone was just half a catty to eight taels...

Qu Hongxiu said, "Although I don't like Cong Di attracting people everywhere, his fate with Miss Zhen is a matter of origin, so it can't be blamed on him.

Although the Jin Ling Zhen family has now been confiscated and fallen, it seems that there is more risk in continuing to associate with her family.

But I am in favor of Cong Di helping Miss Zhen, so we have been doing our best to assist her since he wrote to us twice to ask us to help her."

Qin Keqing felt strange when she heard this; they lived together day and night, and she naturally knew clearly that Qu Hongxiu's feelings for Jia Cong were not just those of a master and apprentice.

Last time, even when helping Cong Di settle Miss Zou, she had been angry with herself for several days in private.

This Miss Zhen had almost married Cong Di; Sister Xiu should be even more jealous and angry that Cong Di was helping her, so why was she willing in her heart instead? (End of chapter)