Chaos of Ming 1628

"Lord Sun, please accept the imperial decree!"

The last eunuch who delivered the imperial edict met a tragic end; a little thought reveals the reason behind it.

When the eunuchs came to Hejian Prefecture again to deliver the message, they were extremely cautious and no longer acted arrogantly.

Sun Qing knelt on the ground, his face completely indifferent.

An imperial edict was issued, demanding 100,000 taels of silver.

"The Prefect of Hejian Prefecture, Sun Qing, is hereby ordered to lend 100,000 taels of silver to relieve the court's urgent financial crisis, to be repaid after the autumn harvest next year."

The eunuch delivering the imperial edict was surnamed Liu. He was a fair-skinned middle-aged man whose hands were slightly sweaty as he held the edict, and he had a smile on his face.

"Lord Sun, look at this matter... His Majesty truly has no other choice. The entire court is looking to you. Who doesn't know that Hejian Prefecture is in its current state because of you?"

"Ten thousand taels of silver is nothing to you. Please accept it, so that His Majesty can be at ease." He smiled and handed the imperial edict forward, bending slightly at the waist, his posture so humble that it seemed as if he were begging for something.

Sun Qing knelt on the ground, looked up at the yellow silk ribbon, and snorted, "Father-in-law, do you even believe yourself when you say those four words, 'a drop in the ocean'?"

The smile on Eunuch Liu's face froze: "This... I was just relaying a message from His Majesty."

"Lord Sun, please be lenient and accept this decree. It will make it easier for me to report back, won't it?"

"You see... the Hejian Prefecture is a large and powerful family, 100,000 taels is not a big deal..."

His voice trailed off as he spoke, because Sun Qing still hadn't reached out.

If it were anyone else, who would dare disobey such an imperial edict after it has already been issued?

But this person is Sun Qing.

Nowadays, the palace eunuchs are all reminding and warning each other not to provoke anyone.

"Then, then I'll go to the post station and wait there. I'll come back when Lord Sun has made up his mind." The eunuch's face was full of fear.

They were afraid of accidentally provoking Sun Qing.

After saying this, he carefully placed the imperial edict in Sun Qing's arms and hurriedly ran away.

Sun Qing stood there, his face grim and terrifying.

As soon as the eunuch left, Song Xian hurriedly stepped forward: "My lord, I never expected His Majesty to ask you for money."

"You came to Hejian Prefecture with a mountain of uncollectible debts, and not a single grain of rice was left for you. Now, you've finally managed to clear those debts, allowing the people of Hejian Prefecture to live a good life and paying their taxes in full, but unexpectedly..."

Song Xian was a good person, but being a good person doesn't mean being a stupid person.

Emperor Chongzhen's abacus beads were about to fall and hit people's faces.

Sun Qing's expression remained calm, and he merely gave a cold laugh in response to the questions raised by Song County.

He only asked one question: "So, did you write it all down?"

Song Xian was slightly taken aback, his expression gradually becoming serious, and he nodded solemnly: "Yes, I've written it all down."

"It's good that you've written it down," Sun Qing simply replied.

Song Xian looked puzzled and asked softly, "Lord Sun, what should we do about His Majesty?"

He glanced at the accounts and continued, "When you first started supporting Hejian Prefecture, we did indeed lose money. However, after you began exploiting wealthy merchants under the guise of Wei Zhongxian, we hardly spent any money."

"Later on, the expenses required by the people increased, and they gradually became negative."

"After spring arrives, the snow melts, and productivity increases significantly. At this moment, we have not only made up for the previous deficit, but have even made a considerable amount of money."

"Currently, there are 300,000 taels of silver available for transfer in the public accounts."

Song Xianyu was somewhat agitated.

Given the current situation, how many places can still have this scale and quantity?

Sun Qing remained silent.

Song Xian knew that Sun Qing was a capable prefect; otherwise, who could not only revitalize a place in such a short time but also earn so much money?

But no one would willingly hand over all their hard-earned money just because someone says something.

"My lord, if it really doesn't work..."

Song Xian had just opened his mouth when he was interrupted by Sun Qing's gaze.

Sun Qing's eyes were firm, and his tone was cold and unyielding: "No way. You know this is money we worked so hard to get."

"Our Hejian Prefecture also needs a lot of money."

After saying this, Sun Qing wouldn't allow Song Xian to say another word: "Hejian Prefecture has no money!"

After saying that, Sun Qing flicked his sleeves and went inside to do whatever he needed to do.

The imperial eunuch Liu, who was in charge of delivering the imperial decree, stayed in Hejian Prefecture for seven days.

For the first two days, he still acted like an imperial envoy, drinking tea and dozing off in the guesthouse, waiting for Sun Qing to bring him the money.

On the third day, he couldn't sit still any longer and went to the government office to take a walk around. The gatekeeper said that Lord Sun had gone to the countryside to check on the wheat fields and would not return until the next day.

On the fourth day, he went again, and the gatekeeper said that Lord Sun had gone to the brick kiln and would not return until dark.

On the fifth day, he simply stood guard at the entrance of the second hall, but unfortunately, he still couldn't see Sun Qing.

On the sixth day, he turned to look at the young eunuch following him, his smile fading, and his voice lowered: "Is he... stalling for time?"

On the morning of the seventh day, Eunuch Liu came again.

This time he went straight to the backyard.

Sun Qing was sitting in the study reading a book when he came in. She merely raised her eyes and said, "So it's you, Father-in-law."

Despite his imposing manner in front of others, Eunuch Liu showed his timidity when he was in front of Sun Qing.

Forcing a smile, he said, "Lord Sun, I really can't wait any longer. His Majesty is waiting for my reply."

"Please give me a straight answer today, okay?"

As he spoke, he took half a step forward, bending over, his posture as humble as could be.

Sun Qing didn't stop walking, only glancing at him sideways: "No money."

Eunuch Liu was taken aback, then raised his voice slightly: "No money? Who are you trying to fool?"

"The workshops in Hejian Prefecture are operating day and night, the land outside the city is all green, and even those useless old people can have enough to eat. You say there's no money?"

"Lord Sun, I am acting under imperial orders, you mustn't..."

As he spoke, he became increasingly anxious, gesturing wildly, and with a wave of his hand, he bumped into the freshly filled cup of hot tea on the table next to him.

The teacup overturned, spilling tea, most of it onto Sun Qing's clothes.

Sun Qing glanced down at her front, then slowly raised her head to look at Eunuch Liu, her gaze suddenly changing: "You touched me?"

Liu Gonggong's hand was still frozen in mid-air, and the color drained from his face instantly: "Lord Sun... I didn't mean to, my hand just slipped..."

"A slip of the hand?" Sun Qing took half a step forward, looking down at the other person and pressing down on them. "You stayed in my Hejian Prefecture for seven days, and I treated you to good food and drink. And you turn around and spill tea all over me."

"Sir, you are an imperial envoy, I will not touch you. Not a single penny."

He turned and called out towards the door, "Someone come here!"

Two guards stepped across the threshold in response.

Sun Qing pointed at Eunuch Liu: "Get him out of here."

Two soldiers grabbed Liu Gonggong's arms, one on each side, lifting his feet off the ground and turning his face bright red.

"Sun Qing, how dare you!"

"The miscellaneous scholar is an imperial envoy"

"How dare you defy the imperial decree!"

"His Majesty will not let you get away with this!"

The sound faded into the distance; they were being dragged out of the courtyard.

Fortunately, the tea had long since gone cold, so Sun Qing didn't feel anything at all.

This person is just too irritable.

That's enough.

Yang Qingqing, however, was standing at the door again.

Seeing that Sun Qing was unharmed, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.

She rushed in, her face full of worry for Sun Qing, and said softly, "Husband, you're so kind. Thank goodness you're alright."

"That really scared me to death!"

Yang Qingqing's words made Sun Qing let out a cold laugh.

"What are you afraid of?" Sun Qing asked flippantly, with a hint of disdain. "Are you afraid I'll be taken away?"

"That's His Majesty!" Yang Qingqing's eyes showed worry. "This young emperor is not someone to be trifled with. All he wants is 100,000 taels of silver."

As Yang Qingqing spoke, she cautiously approached Sun Qing, her eyes filled with caution: "Actually, the amount of silver that my ancestor asked me to bring was no less than six million taels of silver."

"One hundred thousand is really nothing to us!"

"Consider it a loss to avoid further trouble!"

Sun Qing was fine at first, but upon hearing this, she instantly became agitated.

He jumped to his feet, his face contorted with rage: "What do you mean by 'paying to avoid disaster'?"

"I'm asking you, what exactly are you afraid of?"

"Just because he eliminated the eunuch faction, does that make him so great?"

Sun Qing stared intently at Yang Qingqing and said, word by word, "Listen to me carefully, I, Sun Qing, will not set a precedent for anyone."

"Whether I have money or not is my business; whether he can get it from me is his skill!"