This son-in-law is wicked in a good way!

Upon hearing this, the Minister of War was immediately displeased.

"Old Kong, isn't that a bit too domineering of you?"

"How can three houses be enough for the four of us?"

"If you ask me, the highest bidder wins!"

Lu Zhanshan flung the Minister of Personnel's hand away and angrily shouted, "What are you doing! When did I say I was going to sell the house?"

"I'm telling you, I bought these five houses to live in, and I'm not selling them."

Just kidding, even a fool knows this house is going to go up in value.

I lost a whole 80,000 taels of silver because of the nonsense you guys spouted!

The thought of this made the Minister of Works' heart bleed.

He was the one who first discovered the value of these houses, yet he ended up paying a high price.

These people still have the nerve to try and seize his house: Bah, they're shameless!

The others were stunned by his words.

Then his face was full of anger.

The Minister of Personnel angrily rebuked, "You surnamed Lu, what do you mean by this? Your whole family can't even fit in one house, why would you need five? Are you trying to sell yourself to someone else for a higher price?"

"Pah, I can't possibly live here all the time... Can't I keep a dog? It's none of your business!"

The Minister of Works was not intimidated at all and loudly refuted him.

The Minister of War also joined in the cursing: "You old dog Lu, do you want to test how hard my fists are?"

Lu Zhanshan rolled up his sleeves: "My fists are just as hard!"

It looked like the group was about to start fighting.

The Minister of Rites stepped in to smooth things over: "Alright, alright, they're all officials appointed by the court, what kind of behavior is this!"

"Brother Lu, why don't you state your terms? What would it take for you to sell the remaining four sets?"

The Minister of Personnel glared at him fiercely: "That's right, state your conditions! Even if it means you earn ten or twenty thousand, I'll accept it!"

"Ten or twenty thousand? Heh..." Lu Zhanshan said with a disdainful look.

"Hey you guys, haven't you figured out the situation yet?"

"The prices of houses in Wenhua Garden will continue to rise!"

"Only that penniless wretch Zhao Kongcheng borrowed a lot of money to support Zhang Ping'an, which is why he rushed to sell five sets. Who else would sell at this time?"

The Minister of Personnel was furious: "Then you have to set a price! Just tell me directly how much silver you'll sell it for!"

"Two hundred thousand taels!" Lu Zhanshan roared, his eyes wide.

The Minister of Personnel's eyes widened suddenly, his chest heaving with anger, and he roared, his face red and neck bulging, "You're greedy!"

"You sold the house for 100,000 taels, and now you want to sell it to us for 200,000 taels? Why don't you just rob us!"

Lu Zhanshan chuckled: "Buy it or don't, it's not like I'm begging you to."

"You surnamed Lu, we'll see!" The Minister of Personnel stormed off in anger.

"Hmph, goodbye and don't come back!" Lu Zhanshan was not afraid at all.

The Minister of War glared at Lu Zhanshan, snorted coldly, and then turned and left.

Two hundred thousand taels of silver? They think they're suckers!

"Brother Lu, to be blinded by profit and forget righteousness is not the behavior of a gentleman!" The Minister of Revenue shook his head and left.

The Minister of Justice also followed.

Now only the Minister of Rites and the Left Chancellor remain.

"Brother Lu, how about I get one set for 150,000 taels?" the Minister of Rites whispered.

Lu Zhanshan gave a cold laugh: "Take care, and don't bother seeing me off!"

The Minister of Rites blushed, snorted, and left.

"Your Excellency, please make yourself at home!" Lu Zhanshan was in a frenzy, showing no respect to anyone.

Lu Chongyang smiled slightly, and said meaningfully, "Lord Lu, you've chosen a narrow path!"

Lu Zhanshan completely ignored him; if it weren't for them, he would have made a fortune long ago.

I feel so bad for the extra 400,000 taels of silver he spent!

The next day, morning.

The Empress only spoke about one thing at today's court assembly.

That is, she owns the mansion in Wenhua Garden.

However, the price is 150,000 taels per set.

She had originally discussed with Mo Yu that a set would cost 100,000 taels, but the Empress changed her mind at the last minute.

She felt that 100,000 was too cheap for these ministers.

Moreover, she wanted to see whether these court officials, who always complained about being poor at crucial moments, were truly poor or just pretending.

A house costing 150,000 taels is an astronomical price.

However, since ancient times, things have been valued for their rarity. Antiques are so expensive, yet people still buy them to collect. Houses, which can improve the comfort of living, are much better than antiques.

Moreover, each house in Wenhua Garden becomes one less available once it's sold, making them even more valuable than antiques.

"I heard that Zhao Kongcheng has already moved in."

"Not only that, several princes have also moved in."

"My God, who are these people living in Wenhua Garden? Their identities are all terrifying!"

"No, even if it means going bankrupt, I'm going to move into Wenhua Garden."

The courtiers whispered among themselves.

However, the court officials had reservations about purchasing from the Empress.

Once you make a move, won't you expose your true financial situation?

Based on his annual salary, it would be impossible to save up 150,000 taels of silver in his lifetime.

Isn't this blatantly telling His Majesty that I'm a corrupt official?

At this point, someone had already made a move.

The Minister of Personnel was the first to step forward: "Your Majesty, I am willing to contribute funds to purchase these items and help replenish the national treasury."

The Empress smiled at him and said, "Lord Kong, you are truly devoted to the country. You are very thoughtful."

"Then I will give the best set of seats to Lord Kong."

"Your Majesty, I will have someone fetch the silver notes from home right away!" Kong Wenxuan stepped forward happily and took a room number plate, glancing at it to see that it was number 188.

His eyes immediately lit up: "Your Majesty, I thank you!"

As he left, he deliberately glanced at the Minister of Works and snorted.

Those who had been hesitant before were now free of any concerns. They didn't know how many houses the Empress owned, and what if they were all taken away?

So what if it gets exposed? We can just make up an excuse and say we borrowed the money from someone.

"Your Majesty, I'd like to buy one too."

Minister of Rites Zheng Shiqi stepped forward and bowed in greeting.

"it is good."

"Your Majesty, I'll buy some too..."

"Your Majesty, I'm still here..."

Suddenly, the entire imperial court turned into a vegetable market.

As the Empress gazed at the chaotic scene, her murderous intent could no longer be concealed.

This is the same pauper from the imperial court who constantly complains about being poor to her, yet he seeks reimbursement from the government for every tael of silver he spends, and he doesn't even blink an eye when it comes to spending 150,000 taels to buy a house.

The Empress did not intend to morally blackmail them; it was just that these people were far too greedy.

"Thanks to Zhang Ping'an's idea, these guys have finally bleed money. The funds for the post-disaster reconstruction of Yuzhou are finally secured."

One hundred houses were sold out on the spot.

Some people even bought several sets at once, explaining to her that their relatives were in business and they wanted to buy them for them.

The Empress was too lazy to investigate whether it was true or false. If she were to really investigate seriously, the entire court would probably be implicated.

Of course, there are exceptions.

For example, Zhang Xiaoru, who remained completely still.

He was undisturbed by external things; he truly deserved to be called a great Confucian scholar from the academy.

In fact, Zhang Xiaoru was so envious that his liver trembled.

Unfortunately, he had no money. He couldn't even come up with 500 taels, let alone 150,000.

Especially on the day Zhao Kongcheng moved into his new house, he also went to see the house in Wenhua Garden, which was absolutely beautiful.

He wanted it too, but he was too poor!