The Prodigal Son

Yunhuai.

In the afternoon, Han Chong and Xiong Quhu led 8,000 troops to Yunhuai County.

Upon learning that the two men had arrived with their troops, Qin Yu immediately smiled.

He brought a limited number of troops from Yunhuai, and he had many things to deal with, so his forces were inevitably stretched thin.

Now, his men have arrived!

It's time for a thorough search of Yun Huai!

The unfinished search of the property can now continue!

Their entire family, including nine generations, shall be exterminated!

This is not something that can be resolved by simply confiscating the property of one historian!

"Greetings, Lord Qin!"

Upon seeing Qin Yu again, the two were filled with both excitement and emotion.

Before the New Year, Qin Yu was first richly rewarded, and then dismissed from a large number of official positions.

In the blink of an eye, Qin Yu not only became the Grand Admiral of the Navy, but also took control of the military and political affairs of the Nine Provinces!

His Majesty's favor and trust in him is truly enviable.

Now, Qin Yu has uncovered the truth behind the assassination of the Crown Prince eight years ago!

After that, His Majesty's favor towards Qin Yu will probably be unmatched by anyone else!

"We're busy right now, let's save our catching up for later!"

Qin Yu gestured for the two to sit down. "You both understand the situation, right?"

Han Chong replied, "I have some understanding, but not much detail!"

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All along their journey here, they had heard people talking about the historians plotting to murder the crown prince.

However, most people only talked about the matter itself and didn't go into many details.

Of course, most people wouldn't know too many details.

Most of them are just repeating what others say.

Even now, some people still believe that Qin Yu was after the Shi family's money and was framing them.

"Then I'll give you a brief explanation."

Qin Yu kept the conversation brief, briefly explaining Yun Huai's current situation to the two men before speaking seriously: "I originally transferred you here to search for the Shi family's assassins, but now almost all of them have been wiped out. You must assist the Baojing Division in conducting a thorough search of Yun Huai and confiscating the Shi family's collateral branches!"

"yes!"

The two accepted the order in unison.

Qin Yu waved his hand, "Alright, go report to Zeng Guan of the Treasure Mirror Division. He'll handle the details!"

The two bowed and took their leave.

After the two left, Qin Yu summoned the Golden Armored Imperial Guards and the registrar of Yunhuai County.

Previously, they had been busy with various matters and had not had time to properly inventory the property confiscated from the historians.

Now, we need to quickly take stock of all that valuables.

They'll be raiding their house next!

Each and every single one of these accounts needs to be clarified!

After Qin Yu made the arrangements, the Golden Armored Imperial Guards began a comprehensive inventory.

They worked on the inventory from the afternoon until late at night before they finally finished.

"Your Excellency, after our inventory, the following items were seized from the Shi family."

"198,210 taels of gold and 5,538,760 taels of silver."

"Six hundred and forty-two jade artifacts, two hundred and ninety-five pieces of calligraphy, paintings and antiques, five hundred and fifty-three gold jewelry pieces, four hundred and twenty bolts of brocade and cloth, and eighty-five land deeds..."

The registrar, holding the account book, recounted the valuables confiscated from the historian's residence with great familiarity.

Listening to the registrar's report, Qin Yu couldn't help but click his tongue in amazement. He then interrupted the registrar, "The official will take his time to look at the detailed accounts. Just give me the total! Approximately how much silver are all these items worth?"

"Yes, yes!"

The registrar forced a smile, "My initial estimate is around thirty to forty thousand taels! However, the prices of jade and antiques vary from person to person, so my estimate is probably inaccurate; it could fluctuate by fifty to six hundred thousand taels of silver..."

What the hell!

Qin Yu's heart was pounding.

He knew that the amount of property confiscated from the historians would be substantial.

But the figure of 34 million taels still startled him.

This is truly a boon to the national treasury!

Moreover, this only includes the property confiscated from the Shi family's home, and does not include the fines imposed on the Shi family and the salt merchants.

Some of the Shi family's properties were simply sealed off; they hadn't been confiscated yet.

Things like ships, horses, and large warehouses haven't even been moved yet!

If we were to investigate the collateral branches of the Shi family, their wives' families, and all those corrupt officials in Yunhuai, the amount would easily start at 50 million taels of silver.

If we include the assets of salt merchants such as Liu Donglai, Jia Dequan, and Ge Songtao, as well as the assets of corrupt officials that have been confiscated or are about to be confiscated, then 60 million taels would probably be considered an understatement!

Get rich!

Damn it!

Raiding houses is indeed the fastest way to make money!

Once he returns to the capital with a huge amount of wealth, Zhao Luan will surely treat him like a king.

Qin Yu imagined Zhao Luan massaging his shoulders and legs, then waved to the registrar, "Alright, I understand! Tomorrow you and your men will go to the Baojing Division and follow Commander Zeng's instructions!"

"Yes, yes!"

The registrar nodded repeatedly, respectfully presented the account book, and said, "This humble official takes his leave!"

……

Over the next two days, Zeng Guan led the Baojing Division to launch a comprehensive search and seizure operation in Yunhuai.

All the businesses of the Shi family and its branches were seized, including more than 20 brothels, most of which were high-end or relatively high-end.

In a short time, Yunhuai's long-renowned "service industry" suffered a heavy blow.

Because of this incident, many merchants from Yunhuai cursed Qin Yu in their hearts.

But Qin Yu had no choice!

He firmly believed that the development of the brothel industry was one of the core standards for measuring the economic conditions of a place.

The fact that there are so many brothels in Yunhuai shows that Yunhuai's economy is thriving!

However, the Shi family committed a heinous crime that would lead to the extermination of nine generations of their clan. All the properties owned by the Shi family and their collateral branches must be confiscated!

Not only should brothels be shut down, but the madams, pimps, and all sorts of brothel girls should also be interrogated and questioned.

It's obvious that these places were full of spies from the historians.

These people must be brought to justice!

Every day, large amounts of gold and silver treasures were delivered to the prefectural governor's office, and many other valuables that could not be delivered to the prefectural governor's office were simply sealed off.

Qin Yu also began a thorough investigation into Yun Huai's officialdom.

Almost everyone in the Yunhuai officialdom had some connection with the historians.

Many officials have formed marriage alliances with collateral branches of the Shi family, and the Shi family has already infiltrated the entire Yunhuai region.

Although this result was within Qin Yu's expectations, he was still somewhat shocked when he found out about it.

That day, Shen Jue sent another message.

They intercepted a group of assassins who were trying to enter Taozhou.

After a fierce battle, Shen Jue lost over two hundred men, while his elite guards lost over one hundred and twenty, with nearly thirty escaping.

It was only thanks to Shen Jue and his group's superior numbers that they were able to defeat this group of assassins.

Before Qin Yu could reply to Shen Jue, Qin Xiong rushed in, "Thirteenth Young Master, I just received news that the Prefect of Ningzhou has committed suicide out of fear of punishment, the Prefect of Wanbao County has launched a rebellion, and people in Shifo and Lingzhao Counties have also risen up in response. Ningzhou is in complete chaos..."

Upon hearing Qin Xiong's words, Qin Yu's expression suddenly turned ugly.

Someone actually dared to start a rebellion!

Prefect of Wanbao County?

That must be the wife's family of Shi Yi's eldest son, right?

Before I even found out about those places, the people there were already getting restless?

If they obediently wait to be dealt with by the imperial court, he will show them leniency.

But since they dared to rebel, they were courting death!

They don't really think their soldiers are just for show, do they?

A cold glint flashed in Qin Yu's eyes. He suddenly stood up and quickly walked to the map.

After studying the map for a while, Qin Yu quickly issued an order: "Send word that Han Chong be the commander-in-chief and Xiong Quhu the deputy commander, and immediately lead the troops to Wanbao County to quell the rebellion!"

"Order Wu Chi's troops, stationed at the border of Yinzhou and Ningzhou, to immediately move into the Ningzhou prefecture and temporarily assume the position of Ningzhou governor, taking command of the Ningzhou garrison!"

"Order Yuan Dingguo to lead the remaining troops to Shifo and Lingzhao to quell the rebellion!"

"Order the governor of Fengzhou to transfer 6,000 troops from the Fengzhou garrison to blockade the northern part of Ningzhou..."