Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 409 The Head of the Manor
In fact, it wasn't just him; all the officials who had come with Jiu Que today were incredibly nervous, fearing that even small mistakes they made would ruin their careers. Although they held low-ranking positions, there was a fundamental difference between being an official and being an ordinary citizen these days. At least they could continue to live such a leisurely life as long as they wanted, without worrying about making a living.

At this moment, many people were exchanging glances in private, trying to get definite information from the other party, but in the end they were all disappointed, because they had all been suddenly brought to this royal estate by Ying Jiuque today.

And the reason was quite good: to come here and check on the output of the imperial estate.

But it's winter now. Winter is always a time for the land to rest and recuperate. What use would they be here in winter? Everyone thought Jiu Que was just putting on a show. Even if this young lady had a good reputation among the common people, she was still a pampered young lady raised in luxury. Of course, she might have grown up on a country estate in the suburbs for many years, but even so, she shouldn't know the hardships of life. How could she know how to grow crops? Maybe it was just a whim, or perhaps she wanted to add another layer of prestige to herself. They'd seen this kind of thing many times before. Why were they so flustered today?
Thinking this way, many people felt relieved. However, a few officials from the Ministry of Rites were not so happy. After all, Lin Wei had been their colleague or superior for many years. They hadn't expected him to be removed from his position as Vice Minister so quietly and imprisoned in the Ministry of Justice's jail, where he was still not out. How could they not feel? Shouldn't this father and daughter give Lin Wei some compensation? After all, he had been cuckolded for so many years. Even if he knew beforehand, no man would feel comfortable about such a thing.

However, they only dared to think about it in their hearts; they didn't have the courage to say it out loud.

The imperial estate was quite vast, and perhaps because it was winter and the weather was cold, there were few people on the road, making it look somewhat desolate. They walked a long way before reaching one of the plots of land.

Because it was early, before sunrise, a layer of frost covered the fertile land. Jiu Que bent down and forcefully dug out a clod of soil, squeezing it; it was hard and unusually cold to the touch. However, judging from its color, it was indeed fertile land.

At this moment, the estate manager who had run off to retrieve the production ledger also came running over, followed by several rough-looking, nervous-looking people who appeared to be tenant farmers. It must be said that this man was quite capable to have become the estate manager, as one of the five people he brought was a middle-aged woman. At this moment, the estate manager looked at Jiu Que with almost fawning eyes.

"Your Highness, these are the account books you requested. Rest assured, even if I had the greatest audacity, I wouldn't dare to deceive His Majesty and Your Highness. These are the account books of several tenant farmers on the estate..."

Jiu Que casually picked up the account book and flipped through it. She did it so fast, almost as if she were playing around, that the previously tense headman relaxed. He figured this master was just going through the motions; judging by his demeanor, he didn't even bother pretending anymore. He was now regretting bringing these tenant farmers along. They were always so uncouth; what if they said something wrong and angered His Highness?
Unexpectedly, Jiu Que's series of questions left the head of the manor completely bewildered.

"Why is the grain interest on the tenth day of the eighth month 30% less than that of other farmhouses? The land on this farm is almost the most fertile in the entire capital, so why is the grain output only 80% of that of the best farms? Don't tell me it's because the seeds are bad or the fertilizer is insufficient. Even if all the farms in the capital lack fertilizer, the top-grade imperial farms don't."

"Furthermore, along the way, we saw that the houses built for the tenant farmers were only a few dozen rooms. Even if each family had five able-bodied laborers, could they possibly cultivate such a large area of ​​land? According to the laws of the Great Jing Dynasty, tenant farmers are entitled to 30% of the grain yield per mu (unit of land area), and because of the Emperor's grace, tenant farmers on imperial estates are entitled to 40%. But the five tenant farmers you called over are already the strongest, since they might have to do the heavy work. Each tenant farmer's household should always allocate more grain to the able-bodied laborers, because they have to work."

Jiu Que stepped forward and patted one of the tall-looking men on the shoulder, casually rolling up his sleeve. Before anyone could stop the prince's rather improper action, they noticed a thin layer of skin loosely hanging from the man's arm. Everyone fell silent. Logically, His Majesty's estate was so fertile; its yield should be substantial, and these tenant farmers would receive forty percent of the produce—a sum that should be more than enough to ensure their comfort. Why then did these tenants still look like they were starving?
The intricacies of the situation were clear to everyone without needing to ask. Looking at the manor manager, now sweating profusely and trembling with fear, what else was unclear? He must have embezzled a portion of the funds. The only question was whether His Highness knew beforehand or had deduced the embezzlement based solely on what he had seen and felt along the way. But shouldn't this matter involve summoning officials from the Ministry of Justice? Why call in those from the Ministry of Rites, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of Revenue?
At that moment, the man had already knelt on the ground with a thud, tears streaming down his face as he begged for mercy. "Your Highness! Your Highness, please hear my explanation! I had no choice..."

"Okay, then explain."

Jiu Que turned around generously and looked at the bloated manor head, indicating that he could say whatever he wanted.

However, the other party was taken aback by Jiu Que's reaction. After a moment of hesitation, he hurriedly shouted out how difficult things had been for him over the years.

"Your Highness, you don't know that although the land on this imperial estate looks fertile, it requires a lot of manpower and resources to manage. Moreover, this year's rainfall has been insufficient, resulting in a significant reduction in grain production. These are all obvious to everyone! It's not that I intentionally concealed anything; I was just worried about incurring His Majesty's wrath, so I altered a few figures..."

"So is this my fault?"

"Of course not, it's all my fault! Please forgive me this time, Your Highness. I promise to be loyal and dutiful in the future and never conceal anything..."

Jiu Que was annoyed by the crying and sighed deeply. His expression softened, and just when the village head thought he had escaped a disaster, he slowly took out a piece of paper the size of a palm from his pocket.

After opening it, he read it out slowly and deliberately.

"Tian Desheng, the head of the Imperial Estate No. 1, embezzled over 100,000 taels of silver during his fifteen years in office by abusing his position. He also forcibly requisitioned grain, fertilizer, and farm tools in the name of the Imperial Estate..."

"And your overflowing underground granaries, and the three concubines you forcibly took in, were all things you had no choice but to do?"