Corrupt official in the Red Chamber

Chapter 316 Self-defeating
Brother Ying glanced at the shopkeeper, and then said: "I'll write you a note. When the time comes to check out, just give it to grandma."

After hearing this, the shopkeeper happily took out pen, ink, paper and inkstone from the side and sent it to Brother Ying.

Brother Ying curled his lips, then picked up the pen and wrote a few words casually.

The shopkeeper took it and gently dried the ink, then carefully placed it in the account book aside.

After that, Brother Ying was about to leave. The shopkeeper diligently sent two boys to carry the box and followed Brother Ying back to the house.

After Brother Ying came back, she sent the boy away, and then asked the two women to carry the box and follow her into the inner house and to Xue Baochai's yard.

After entering, they saw Jia Rui still lying on the imperial concubine's couch, and Xue Baoqin next to him was holding small pieces of apple and stuffing them into Jia Rui's mouth one by one.

But Xue Baochai was sitting in front of the table, counting the numbers with a thick stack of ledgers.

Brother Ying first stepped forward to salute Jia Rui, and then came to Xue Baochai's side.

"Grandma, I brought the things back, please take a look."

Xue Baochai nodded, and Brother Ying then asked the two women to carry the box in, and then took the key to open the box himself.

At this time, Jia Rui, who was lying on the bed, also became interested. He got off the bed, walked to the box and looked inside.

I only saw three red corals inside, which were bright red and very beautiful.

But Jia Rui had seen so many things like coral that he just took a casual glance and didn't care.

Xue Baochai next to him carefully looked at the quality of the three corals, then sighed and said: "I didn't expect that these are the only things left in Rongguo Mansion. It seems that all the good things left by the ancestors have been sold."

Jia Rui laughed, "Maybe there are some treasures at the bottom of the box that haven't been taken out yet?"

After hearing this, Xue Baochai thought about it and realized that it was indeed true. The glass screen was a great thing back then, but it was a pity that it was sent back.

"How much money did you give to their family?" Xue Baochai asked Brother Ying standing next to him.

Brother Ying pouted, and then said to Xue Baochai: "Our shopkeeper was so unsightly that he directly quoted 6000 taels, so I had no way to lower the price. In the end, I had no choice but to give 2000 taels." two."

It turns out that Brother Ying thought the price of 6000 taels was too high.

Xue Baochai also felt that the number was a bit high. She thought that the maximum compensation this time would be more than 7000 taels of silver, but she did not expect that it would exceed 1 taels.

Jia Rui listened and said nonchalantly: "Isn't it just 1 taels of silver? Don't take it to heart. After all, it's just this one time. How can he still come to our house to fight against the autumn wind!"

"You said you found such a good way for Girl Feng to get money, why doesn't she know how to help the house?" Xue Baochai was a little unhappy.

You must know that this is more than 1 taels of silver. Even if you know that this time it is given away for free, you are mentally prepared, but you feel unhappy, which is human nature.

Jia Rui touched his nose, and then pretended to be nonchalant and said: "This shows that she is smart and knows that it is a bottomless pit, and no amount of money can fill it, so she just kept it for her son."

When Xue Baochai heard this, he thought about his precious son Jia Xuan and nodded involuntarily.

"Hey, how pitiful the hearts of parents in the world are." Xue Baochai said with a sigh.

Just when Jia Rui and his wives and concubines were lamenting the difficulty of Rongguo Mansion in the room, Ying'er hurried in from outside.

"Uncle, the Prince of Nan'an County has asked to see you, but the housekeeper has already made way to the living room."

When Jia Rui heard this, he quickly asked Xue Baochai and Xue Baoqin to help him change his clothes, and then hurried to the second door.

When he arrived at the second gate, he found that his personal servant Wangcai was already waiting there.

"How long has it been since Prince Nan'an came?" Jia Rui asked as he walked forward quickly.

"Back to uncle, it's time to burn incense." Wangcai replied following Jia Rui.

While talking, Jia Rui had already arrived in the living room.

As soon as he entered the door, Prince Nan'an already came to greet him.

Jia Rui immediately handed over his hand and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me for missing your welcome."

Prince Nan'an is an old man in his 50s. His beard has turned gray, but his eyes are still bright. He is tall, has a delicate face, and an elegant temperament. He should have been a handsome young man when he was young.

"Your Majesty Jia, you are so polite. It is because of my recklessness that I did not inform you in advance. What is your fault, Mr. Jia?" Prince Nan'an said with a hearty smile.

After the two people re-entered the living room, the guests and hosts took their seats, and the waiter below brought them fragrant tea.

Jia Rui took a sip of tea and then asked, "Does the prince have something important to do when he comes to my humble residence this time?"

The Prince of Nan'an County smiled and put down the tea bowl in his hand, and then said: "Your Majesty Meng, the Emperor is very considerate and has ordered me to go to Tianjin to preside over the affairs of the Navy. However, the money for the formation of the Navy has not yet been obtained. Shouldn't I ask Mr. Jia? This God of Wealth is here."

After hearing this, Jia Rui thought for a moment, and then said: "Although I am the general manager of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and am in charge of the money transactions in the palace, how can I dare to take out the money from the inner treasury privately without the order of the Supreme Emperor?"

"But Mr. Jia, didn't the Supreme Emperor say that all the navy's money must come from his inner treasury." Prince Nan'an was a little anxious.Jia Rui smiled and comforted Prince Nan'an, and then said: "Since the Emperor has agreed, he will not break his promise, but if he wants to withdraw money from the inner treasury, he will need his help. "

The Prince of Nan'an County was a little disappointed. He rolled his eyes, then leaned his head towards Jia Rui, and whispered: "Master Jia, anyway, the Emperor has agreed. You can give me the money first. Then the Emperor will naturally ask. Let me answer."

After saying this, Prince Nan'an looked around again and saw no one else, and then said again:
"Every time the silver comes out of the warehouse, Mr. Jia can float up to one level."

Jia Rui's eyelids twitched a few times, but it wasn't his left eye that was twitching for wealth, but his right eye that was twitching for disaster.

"My lord, I don't have the courage. If the Emperor knew that we were doing this kind of thing behind his back, I'm afraid both of our heads would have to be moved." After Jia Rui said this, he leaned back Come on, as if you want to stay as far away from Prince Nan'an as possible.

Prince Nan'an was a little disappointed, but the smile on his face did not fade away. Instead, he complimented Jia Rui:
"I have long heard that Mr. Jia is fair and honest, and has a clean mind. When I saw him today, he certainly lived up to his reputation."

Jia Rui also quickly waved his hand and humbled himself: "Everywhere we go, we are working for the Supreme Emperor. Naturally, we must uphold a loyal heart. This is the basic principle for us to be ministers."

Next, Prince Nan'an complimented Jia Rui a few more times, and Jia Rui lost no time in replying to Prince Nan'an.

The atmosphere in the living room was harmonious for a while, and the atmosphere between the two of them did not become awkward because Prince Nan'an did not ask for money.

After talking for half an hour, Prince Nan'an left on the grounds that there were important matters in the palace.

Jia Rui personally sent Prince Nan'an out of the palace and watched his eight-carriage sedan leave before returning.

After Jia Rui returned to the study, he sat there and thought for a while, then immediately picked up a blank memorial and wrote seven or eight hundred words.

After I finished writing, I dried the ink and clapped my hands.

Immediately an inconspicuous boy came in from outside.

"Send this memorial to the palace immediately and let the Supreme Emperor see it in person."

The boy quickly stepped forward and took Jia Rui's memorial with both hands, then respectfully stepped out.

Jia Rui sighed. Maybe others didn't know, but Jia Rui knew very well what a terrifying organization the Intelligence Department was.

Throughout the court, almost all ministers had spies from the Intelligence Department in their homes.

Even Jia Rui's home is no exception.

The words he talked to the Prince of Nan'an today should be reported to the Supreme Emperor by the personnel of the Intelligence Department soon.

In this case, wouldn't it be better to just take a preemptive strike and leave a loyal and honest impression in front of the Supreme Emperor?
Sure enough, as Jia Rui thought, as soon as his memorial was delivered to the Supreme Emperor, the information from the Intelligence Department had already arrived at the palace.

You must know that Jia Rui is the chief minister of the current government and the key focus of the Intelligence Department.

This is a rule formed by the Intelligence Department since Taizu was established. It is not because the Emperor trusts Jia Rui that the Intelligence Department will ignore him.

After receiving the report from the Intelligence Department, Zhao Jin did not dare to neglect and came to the Supreme Emperor with the report.

The Supreme Emperor put down Jia Rui's memorial and glanced at Zhao Jin, "Is this a conversation between Jia Aiqing and Prince Nan'an?"

"Your Majesty, you are really good at predicting things." Zhao Jin said flatteringly.

The Supreme Emperor smiled, and then pointed to Jia Rui's memorial, "Jia Rui has written a memorial about today's events and sent it over."

Even though he said this, the Supreme Emperor still took the report from the Intelligence Department from Zhao Jin and compared it with Jia Rui's report.

Then I found that they were very similar, and even some places were not as detailed as what Jia Rui wrote.

The Supreme Emperor put the report on the table, and then complained to Zhao Jin: "What do you think Prince Nan'an lacks? And he is already so old, why can't he serve the court with peace of mind?"

Zhao Jin stood nearby, not daring to answer a word.

The Supreme Emperor closed his eyes and thought for a moment, and realized that he wanted to replace the Prince of Nan'an County, but there was still no candidate.

He can only be used as a makeshift, but the position of Prince Nan'an is already high enough, so he should cause some trouble for him. Otherwise, when he becomes a navy master, he may not be able to reward him.

By that time, it would not be easy for either the emperor or Prince Yizhong to overthrow Prince Nan'an.

"Ask your people to pay more attention to Prince Nan'an, especially the financial transactions, and record them clearly for me."

Zhao Jin was shocked after hearing this.

What is the Supreme Emperor doing?Do you want to find someone to blame after things are done?

Although he thought so, Zhao Jin still agreed honestly.

The Prince of Nan'an County didn't know that he just wanted to make some money from it, but the Supreme Emperor was concerned about it.

(End of this chapter)