I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 258 Xu Jie feels guilty

Just as Zhang Siwei came to find Gao Gong, someone delivered an urgent letter from Songjiang to Xu's house.

After reading the urgent letter, Xu Jie was so angry that he sat down on the chair, his eyes were blank and he was gasping for breath, like a century-old bellows, unable to breathe for a long time.

"Rebellious son! What a rebellious son! He will not stop until the Xu family is completely ruined!" Xu Jie suddenly cursed with tears in his eyes.

At this moment, he understood the feelings of his old colleague Yan Song.

However, Yan Song had only one son. He was forced into a desperate situation. In order to keep four generations living together, he could only grit his teeth and send his only son, Yan Shifan, to death.

Xu Jie had several sons, so at least he didn't have to worry about no one to see him off to the grave.

The second son Xu Kun and the third son Xu Ying rushed over upon hearing the news. Seeing their father Xu Jie in a rage, they were at a loss for what to do.

Xu Kun was sharp-eyed. When he saw the urgent letter dropped on the ground, he quickly bent down to pick it up. He lowered his head and read it ten lines at a glance, with a look of pride and gloating on his face.

When he raised his head, his face was full of anxiety and panic, "Brother, how could you do this! How can the Xu family gain a foothold in Shilin?"

Xu Ying took the urgent letter calmly. After reading it, the muscles on his face twitched a few times. His expression was very solemn. He lowered his hands and did not express his opinion.

Xu Kun glanced at him, then turned to Xu Jie and continued, "Father, now that Cai Guoxi has knelt, my Xu family's reputation of being rampant in the village and oppressing the local people has been established. And Hai Gangfeng rushed to the scene, so he has a full handle on us.

If Hai Gangfeng really pursues this matter, things will be bad."

Xu Jie turned to look at Xu Ying and asked in a deep voice, "The old house in Huating has always been managed by you and Dalang in turn. Tell me, how much land does my Xu family have in its name?"

Xu Ying didn't dare to speak.

Xu Jie slammed the table and cursed: "Asshole! You want our Xu family to be confiscated and exiled before you agree to this, right?"

Countless alpacas ran through Xu Ying's heart.

My old father, you know better than us how much assets the Xu family has!
You have learned a lot and put it into practice, using all the checks and balances in the court on us brothers.

We brothers are in charge of several major industries of the Xu family respectively. We are of course very clear about what we are in charge of, but we have no idea how many industries the Xu family has as a whole!
I'm afraid only you and your second uncle know the answer best, so why are you asking me?

Xu Ying didn't dare to speak, but lowered his head and replied: "In response to what father said, I have accumulated some small property over the years relying on your reputation. I own about 400,000 mu of land."

Xu Jie stared at Xu Ying and continued to ask, "Are they all registered under the name of my Xu family?"

"Half of them are registered under the name of the Xu family, and the other half are registered under the names of clan members. They all have the surname Xu, so they are trustworthy."

"At this moment, it's hard to say who can be trusted!" Xu Jie said angrily, "I have repeatedly warned Dalang to be careful. Hai Rui is like a wandering soul in Southern Zhili, and no one knows where he will drift to.

That is the Tai'a sword. Emperor Jiajing used his own reputation to sharpen it to an extremely sharp edge, and left it specially for the Crown Prince of Xiyuan, specifically to be used to slay demons and monsters!
Doesn't he know how powerful he is? He still wants to occupy the land and hide the land tax at this pass. Hai Gangfeng's nose is sharper than a dog's. He is so ostentatious that people follow the smell and pass by.

What on earth does Dalang want to do! Do you want our Xu family to be clean? If the Xu family is clean, how can he be clean? "

Xu Kun rolled his eyes and said hesitantly, "Brother's personality has changed drastically since the death of his sister-in-law. Is there any reason why he made such a big mistake this time?"

Xu Ying echoed the speculation and said, "Father, what my second brother said makes some sense. My eldest brother is the smartest of the three of us. He has been with father for a long time and is familiar with the mysteries of officialdom. Logically, he should be aware of Hai Rui's strength and know to stay out of the spotlight for the time being."

Why did you suddenly buy more than 50,000 acres of fertile land last year and cause such a big fuss?"

Xu Jie stroked his beard and fell into deep thought.

No one knows a son better than his father!
Xu Fan's reputation for intelligence and ability was largely the result of Xu Jie's painstaking efforts.

As the eldest son of the Xu family, Xu Fan will have to take over the Xu family and support the family. If he doesn't improve his reputation, how can he control his brothers and the Xu family members in the future?
Xu Jie knew that his eldest son Xu Fan's intelligence was above average, superior to that of ordinary people, and he was obedient and filial, enough to support the Xu family.

There are many advantages, but also many disadvantages, two of which give Xu Jie the most headaches.

One is greed for money. When Xu Fan grew up, Xu Jie was in the most difficult time.

At that time, Xu Fan had suffered a lot with his father and experienced the ups and downs of life, so as long as there was an opportunity to make money, whether it was fields or shops, he would do it without hesitation and find a way to get them.

The second is that he is too righteous and too trusting of friends.

He was able to help others in need, and whenever his relatives, acquaintances, and old friends were forced to serve in the army or were in trouble with a lawsuit, he would do his best to help them. He had a group of friends who called themselves the wise men of the Bamboo Grove and the scholars of Wuzhong. Xu Fan was very loyal to these people and trusted them without hesitation.

Could it be that some of these friends framed Dalang and lured him into the trap?
Xu Jie carefully pondered the causes and consequences of the matter and smelled a strong scent of conspiracy.

Gao Gong surveyed the land in the three towns, and the court officials all knew that this was in preparation for surveying all the land in the world.

Xu Jie knew who the tall man with a big bearded man was.

He has lofty ambitions. Now that he has reconciled with Xiyuan and has received the full support of the prince's party, he is determined to accomplish something big that will go down in history!

Survey the land!

Then, despite his repeated warnings, his boss "bought" more than 50,000 acres of fertile land and concealed the land tax, which led to the prefect of Songjiang, Cai Guoxi, kneeling in front of his mansion. Fortunately, Hai Rui, who had been lingering in Southern Zhili, met him.

Xu Jie felt like a big net was coming towards him and the Xu family.

Are you trying to use the chicken from my Xu family to scare the monkeys?

Stay calm when things get tough!
Xu Jie recalled the situation in the urgent letter and thought about it carefully. He found that the biggest mistake his eldest son made was being too conceited, forcing Cai Guoxi and the two county magistrates to kneel in public at the gate of the government office.

After all, Cai Guoxi was a double-professional Jinshi and an official appointed by the imperial court, but Xu Fu Dalang forced him to kneel in public.

Does the Xu family think that because they have a prime minister in the family, they can ignore the two successful candidates in the imperial examinations and the officials appointed by the court and treat them as they please?
Once this incident happened, the Xu family's reputation would be ruined, and many Jinshi and officials would become disgusted with their family. They were the mainstream of the literati and gentry, and when they became resentful, the wind direction of the literati family would change.

This forcibly created a rift between the Xu family and the literati and gentry.

If Gao Gong really wants to take action against the Xu family, how many people will be willing to speak up and help?

What a vicious move!

Secondly, the boss dared to commit the crime despite knowing that Hai Rui was on inspection in Southern Zhili.

Now that Hai Rui has caught him, it would be no big deal for him to investigate thoroughly. But other friends, relatives and noble families would probably curse Xu Dalang in their hearts for being greedy and stupid!

If you want to die, don't take us with you!

Xu Jie knew the character of these people best. They were opportunistic, seeking profit and avoiding harm. They were the most cunning. For their own safety, it was okay to sacrifice the Xu family.

But this chess game is so big that Gao Da Hu Zi doesn’t have the ability to do it!
He might be able to order Cai Guoxi around, but Hai Rui would ignore him!
I knew from the beginning that there was no good between these grandparents and grandchildren!

Zhang Cong, Xia Yan, and Yan Song, which one of them was not squeezed to the point of exhaustion, or even had his family destroyed?

Now it's my turn, right? Not only will I have to work hard for your Zhu family all my life, but I will also have to sacrifice my entire family in the end so that you can make an example of me and reform and eliminate abuses!

Xu Jie closed his eyes and gasped.

Xu Kun and Xu Ying looked at each other and asked carefully, "Father, how should we deal with this?"

After a long while, Xu Jie let out a long sigh, "Second Brother, quietly invite Uncle Zhang over."

"Yes."

(End of this chapter)