Chapter 567: Repression
Editor: Atlas Studios
At that time, Qi Xiuyuan was focused on the war, so in the end, he only sent 2,000 people to surround the treasury and continued fighting. When he opened the treasury, he also suspected that the soldiers had stolen it, but he quickly dismissed this idea.
The 2,000 soldiers were all trustworthy people. Moreover, there were his trusted aides among them. Considering they were not familiar with Linâan City, it would have caused a huge commotion if they had stolen from it. It was impossible for them to do such a thing.
Therefore, the only possibility was that the treasury was already empty before he ordered his men to surround it.
However, he also didnât believe that the Second Prince had emptied the treasury. Just as Mu Yangling had said, since Qi Xiuyuan had attacked Linâan City suddenly, it was impossible for the Second Prince to be prepared in advance. Moreover, he would be courting death by carrying so much money when fleeing.
Having been chasing after the Second Prince the entire time, Qi Xiuyuan was very familiar with their speed.
Mu Yangling said, âIf it isnât the Second Prince, Emperor Jingyan couldnât have hidden the things, right? But the Second Princeâs rebellion also happened suddenly. Besides the two of them, who else in this world could take the money out of the vaults without batting an eyelid?â
Mu Yangling paused and looked up at Qi Xiuyuan. Li Jinghua also had a guess and said hesitantly, âMinister Qin?â
Smiling, Qi Xiuyuan said, âWeâll know if itâs him after we raid the Qin residence tomorrow.â
Minister Qin had taken his son with him, leaving only his daughter, concubines, and unimportant servants in the residence.
Although Qi Xiuyuan didnât kill them, he didnât let them off either. He chose an upright official from the Ministry of Justice who was proficient in the law to interrogate them before sending them all to prison. Minister Qinâs residence was empty now.
It should be said that all the residences under Minister Qinâs name in Linâan were empty.
Qi Xiuyuan got his men to search through all the residences, but they did not find a single piece of gold.
This time, even Qi Xiuyuan felt that something was wrong.
Who was Minister Qin?
That was the number one greedy person in Great Zhou, who had more assets than the treasury. How could he not have any gold?
Qi Xiuyuan flipped open the confiscated account book and saw that various items such as silk, jewelry, and antiques were listed. There was enough precious pearls that could fill up a box, in addition to countless rubies and sapphires. Also, the various jade artifacts could fill up a small storeroom alone. Alas, there was not a single piece of gold.
Qi Xiuyuan picked up a gold hairpin and asked, âAre the gold and silver items here too?â
âGeneral, thereâs gold and silver jewelry, but the larger gold and silver artifacts have all disappeared.â
Investigate!â Qi Xiuyuan threw down the things in his hand and said, âSince they left the capital in a hurry, itâs impossible for them to take away so much gold and silver. Those things must still be in Linâan City.â
However, the officials of the Ministry of Justice failed to obtain any useful information on the people left behind by Minister Qin despite using torture on them. The important people had been taken away by Minister Qin, and the unimportant people who knew the inside story had also also killed by Minister Qin. The remaining people really had no idea.
The pauper Qi Xiuyuanâs expression turned even uglier. One night, Li Jinghua probed, âMaster, all the aristocratic families are rich.â
Qi Xiuyuan was silent for a long time before nodding slightly.
Li Jinghua heaved a sigh of relief. She would not ask anymore in the future, but she knew that the aristocratic families would probably completely disappear in the future.
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Emperor Shizong of Great Zhou had tried his best to suppress the aristocratic families. Things only gradually recovered after Emperor Gaozong allowed things to rest and recuperate for a hundred years.
The Li family was no longer worthy of its aristocratic status. They only looked like an aristocratic family on the surface, but in reality they were not. Soon, the other aristocratic families might become like the Li family.
Li Jinghua wanted to write a letter to ask her father and brother to come over, but after thinking about it, she decided to put this matter aside for the time being. Her fatherâs health was not good, and her brother was disabled. Since it would not be of much use even if they came, why let them go through such torment?
Perhaps Qi Xiuyuan had found another way. In any case, he stopped paying much attention to the theft of the national treasury. Moreover, after a few groups of people searched Minister Qinâs residence and didnât find anything, he waved his hand and said, âLeave Minister Qinâs residence alone for now. When Haoran returns, Iâll confer him the title of a Prince and grant him that as his residence.â
Rong Xuan had no objections, and the other ministers had no objections either. Not to mention that Qi Haoran was Qi Xiuyuanâs biological younger brother, even if he wasnât, he deserved this honor. After all, he had led hundreds of thousands of troops and helped Qi Xiuyuan conquer half of the country.
Everyone was concerned about another question. âGeneral, when will you and Madam move into the palace? Although you havenât ascended the throne yet, itâs better for you to enter the palace early.â
Qi Xiuyuan was still living in the Qi Residence and rushed to the palace every day to deal with government affairs. The ministers reckoned he must be exhausted from doing this, and they were also afraid that something would happen on his journey from the palace to the Qi Residence.
Qi Xiuyuan paused for a moment and said, âLet the Imperial Astronomer choose a good day. Thereâs no need for so many palaces in the palace. When the time comes, seal them and only open up those that we need to use.â
Hence, someone took the opportunity to suggest adding new people to the palace. For example, the previous eunuchs and palace maids should be replaced. Moreover, there were many palace maids and eunuchs who had escaped previously, so the number should be increased appropriately. Since they were adding more palace maids and eunuchs, the size of Qi Xiuyuanâs harem should also be increased.
Qi Xiuyuan still only had Li Jinghua as his wife, two mistresses, and no concubines. Everyone knew that if a woman could become Qi Xiuyuanâs concubine at this time, then after he ascended the throne, his concubine would definitely obtain a considerable position.
However, Qi Xiuyuan hated it when others interfered in his family matters, so he pretended not to understand and only said, âGet someone to renovate â Minister Qinâs residence. When Haoran comes back, he can move in directly.â Hence, everyoneâs attention shifted again. If Qi Haoran moved in as soon as he returned, the plaque would definitely have to be replaced. This involved rewards based on merit. This was a huge problem, an even bigger problem than Qi Xiuyuanâs harem.
After Qi Xiuyuan returned, Mu Yangling knew that she was soon to move into a huge residence. She asked curiously, âI heard that Minister Qinâs residence is even better than a princeâs residence. The standard is even higher than a princeâs residence, right?â
Qi Xiuyuan nodded. âConsidering Minister Qin has done plenty of illegal things, Emperor Jingyan didnât mind such a small matter.â
But Big Brother, didnât you want to confer Haoran the title of Prince? This is
already surpassing what even a King should obtain.â
Li Jinghuaâs heart skipped a beat. She hurriedly said with a smile, âJust set aside a few plots of land for now. You can always connect the lands when Fourth Brother gets conferred the title of a King, right?â Considering Qi Xiuyuan and Qi Haoranâs relationship, it was only a matter of time before the latter got conferred the title of a King.
However, Qi Xiuyuan said with a smile, âThereâs no need to go through so much trouble. We can just build a martial arts arena for Haoran on the excess land.â
However, Mu Yangling disagreed and said with a straight face, âThat wonât do
We have to follow the rules. Big Brother, Haoran is your biological younger brother. Only if he obeys the rules will the subordinates have more scruples. Otherwise, if he violates the rules first, wonât the other meritorious officials follow suit?â
âSince Haoran is a member of the royal family, the rules donât apply to him as much as to the others.â This had always been the unspoken rule.
However, because it was an unspoken rule, Mu Yangling disliked it even more.
Big Brother, the compliance Iâm talking about is not only targeted at outsiders. Thereâs also our Qi family, including Little Treasure, Little Bear, and the descendants of the Qi family in the future. The Great Zhou Dynasty declined rapidly after the World Sectâs Emperor because it was too indulgent to the descendants of the royal family. As a result, there wasnât a single person in the royal family who amounted to much. But it led the royal family to accumulate a lot of power and money, causing the order to collapse and making the country powerless to resist in the face of outsidersâ invasion. In spite of that, they put the blame on the border guards. Haoran is your younger brother. Itâs naturally not wrong for you to dote on him as an elder brother, but youâre bestowing him those rewards in your capacity as a king. Since Haoran is your subject, itâs only right that he abides by the rules.â