The sunlight shines through the window and into the house, forming beams of light.

There are fine dust particles floating in the light.

Someone passed through the light, and dust particles floated in chaos.

"Madam, the health-preserving soup is here. Drink it while it's hot."

Qingmei felt sorry for Gu Jiu, so she specially cooked a bowl of health-preserving soup over low heat in the small kitchen.

Gu Jiu had an indifferent expression and wrote quickly, reciting the palace's house rules from memory.

On her left hand was a thick stack of manuscript paper, all filled with words.

Each one has neat handwriting and can be used as a model.

Qingmei complained, "The princess is really too harsh on Madam. She even asked Madam to copy the family rules a hundred times."

The palace's family rules consist of 108 articles and 3,000 words.

One hundred times is three hundred thousand words.

Copying everything by hand is not an easy task.

Gu Jiu said, "No need to complain. I'll just treat it as calligraphy practice. Look, has my handwriting improved? It's more powerful than before."

Qingmei looked at it carefully, nodded and said, "It is indeed stronger than before. It's just that Madam is too tired. How about I massage Madam's wrist for her?"

Gu Jiu shook his head, "Wait until I finish writing this page."

She wrote quickly, without any hesitation.

A page of paper was quickly filled with beautiful calligraphy in small characters.

After the ink is dry, place it on the tall stack of manuscript paper.

Qingzhu fetched some hot water and applied a massage to Gu Jiu's hands.

Qingmei rubbed Gu Jiu's shoulders to help her relax.

Gu Jiu sighed comfortably. This day was so comfortable.

She drank health-preserving soup and had maids serving her. It turned out that she was a person who indulged in enjoyment and could not endure hardship.

What she is most worried about now is that Liu Zhao will fall in the future and she will have to suffer with Liu Zhao for decades.

It’s really chilling to think about those hard days.

None of the emperors of the Zhou Dynasty was merciful.

Dealing with royal relatives and brothers fighting for the throne is more cruel than dealing with foreign enemies.

If the Ning Palace and Liu Zhao fell, what awaited them would definitely not be simple imprisonment. There was nothing the palace people could not do, only the unimaginable.

Gu Jiu bit his lip. Establishing connections in the south and sending people out to sea had to be done as soon as possible.

She had to leave a way of escape for herself, Liu Zhao, and her future children.

However, Liu Zhao is still imprisoned in the Zongzheng Temple. Without Liu Zhao as her backer, she really faces a lot of constraints in the mansion.

Gu Jiu drank the health-preserving soup and asked, "Is the master here?"

Qingmei nodded. "Madam, the master brought his officials to the palace early this morning. Eunuch Deng said the prince has prepared a total of 45,000 taels of silver."

Gu Jiu hummed. Forty-five thousand taels wasn't much, not even enough to make up the difference. Fortunately, he finally paid some back, using the money to express the palace's respect for the emperor.

The emperor demanded that the arrears be cleared, and the royal palace had to come up with the money even if it meant selling everything it had.

This is the attitude of the palace.

It doesn’t matter how much money it is. What matters is that the palace is very active in repaying the money and doesn’t cause the Ministry of Revenue any worries.

Compared with other royal palaces, this one is superior in attitude alone.

At this moment, in the Bixi Pavilion, Lord Gu was feeling uneasy.

Servants from the palace came in carrying several boxes.

The box was filled with silver, a total of 45,000 taels.

Prince Ning looked lazy and said, "Master Gu, please count it. It's a total of 45,000 taels. I have emptied the royal family's coffers to collect this. If you still think it's not enough..."

Bang!

Prince Ning clapped his hands, and soon, servants came in carrying a few boxes.

When the boxes were opened, they were filled with jewelry, various ritual objects, as well as gold, silver, lacquerware, and ceramics.

Prince Ning pointed at these items and said to Lord Gu, "I have collected 45,000 taels of silver. If the Ministry of Revenue still thinks it is not enough, then Lord Gu will move all these things away. I am a loyal minister and a filial son. If the emperor orders the arrears to be cleared, I will fully cooperate."

Lord Gu looked at the box full of jewelry and other items and broke out in a cold sweat.

No wonder he felt something was amiss in the hall when he came in. The shelves were completely bare, without a single object.

It turns out that the prince packed all the decorations in this hall into boxes.

Perhaps if he were the Minister of Revenue, he would really order people to carry away these jewels and artifacts.

But Lord Gu didn't dare.

He was worried that once he took away these jewels and artifacts, rumors would spread that he had led people to raid Prince Ning's Mansion.

He can't bear such a huge blame.

Moreover, Prince Ning's attitude was also very strange.

To be cautious, Lord Gu did not act rashly.

He smiled and said cautiously, "Your Highness is such a jokester. With these 45,000 taels of silver, everyone in the court and the palace will know that Your Highness has done his best. After all, no one would store hundreds of thousands of taels of silver in their mansion."

Prince Ning laughed heartily, "Master Gu is right. It is certainly impossible for me to hide hundreds of thousands of taels of gold and silver in my mansion for no reason.

The palace has nearly a thousand people, and every year, every month, the income is not enough to cover the expenses. If the 45,000 taels are repaid, the palace will be broke.

Alas, this prince is also in a dilemma. This prince does not want to ask the Ministry of Revenue for money, but his family is large and his business is huge, and he does not have enough money to spend. He has no choice but to ask the Ministry of Revenue for some money.

I never imagined that after a few years, I would owe the Ministry of Revenue hundreds of thousands of taels. This amount of debt is beyond my ability to repay in full. I would like to ask Sir Gu to explain this to me. If the Ministry of Revenue refuses to accept it, Sir Gu, please move all these valuables away. We can calculate how much it can offset the debt."

Lord Gu shook his head repeatedly, "Your Highness, you are worrying too much. It is better for these items to stay with Your Highness. They complement each other very well."

Prince Ning smiled and said, "Master Gu really doesn't want these treasures?"

"How can I take away the palace's belongings at will? Absolutely not. No way."

Prince Ning laughed heartily, "My in-laws are honest people."

This was the first time in such a long time that Prince Ning called Lord Gu his relative, which made Lord Gu very excited.

"My daughter is marrying into the palace. If anything goes wrong, Your Majesty, please feel free to punish me."

Prince Ning laughed and said, "You worry too much, my dear. Dalang's wife is very good and virtuous. How could I punish her?"

Lord Gu immediately breathed a sigh of relief, and his whole body relaxed, no longer as reserved as before.

Prince Ning took Lord Gu by the hand and chatted with him for half an hour, talking about all sorts of things.

Lord Gu was still not satisfied, and seeing that it was getting late, he said goodbye. He called for his servants, carried several boxes of silver out of the palace, and went to the Ministry of Revenue to report.

The Minister of Revenue learned that Lord Gu had received 45,000 taels from Prince Ning's Mansion. Although it was still too little compared to the amount owed, it at least opened a gap.

He thought that he must encourage Lord Gu and ask him to keep up the good work and continue to pay off the debts.

But just as he said this, the household official came to report, "Sir, the silver is not right."

Lord Gu was furious. "How could it be wrong? I saw forty-five thousand taels of silver with my own eyes. Don't try to humiliate me."

The Household Official said calmly, "If you don't believe me, Lord Gu, you can go and inspect it yourself. Everyone from the prefectural yamen in the capital is here and can testify for me that I didn't touch the silver."

Lord Gu came to the Ministry of Revenue’s warehouse angrily.

Just as they were about to deposit 45,000 taels of silver into the treasury, the Revenue Department said the silver they had brought back was not the right kind and would not be deposited. This created a problem.

When the yamen runners saw Lord Gu, they all rushed over.

"Sir, this silver was indeed brought back from the palace, how could there be any problem? It's clearly the people from the Ministry of Revenue who are making things difficult for us."

"Yes, it's clearly a difficult situation."

"The old man is here, everyone please make way."

The Minister of Revenue stepped forward, picked up one of the five-liang silver ingots, and weighed it in his hand.

Then he asked Master Gu, "Do you know what kind of silver this is?"

Lord Gu was a little confused, but finally realized the crux of the problem.

He quickly picked up a silver ingot, put it to his lips and bit it, "This is Southwest Silver."

"Exactly!"

There are many silver mines in the southwest. After the silver is mined, the silver mine supervisor will order people to make the silver into ingots of five taels according to the mold and transport them to the capital.

However, because there are many impurities in the silver from the southwest, the amount is said to be five taels, but in fact it is less than five taels.

After the silver arrived in the capital, it was usually melted down and recast. A five-liang ingot of southwest silver could yield about four liang of official silver.

The Ministry of Revenue only accepts official silver of full weight.

Lord Gu's face turned pale.

Five taels of silver became four taels of silver, and forty-five thousand taels suddenly became nine thousand taels less, becoming thirty-six thousand taels.

A full nine thousand taels.

Lord Gu asked anxiously, "Where's the signature? Hurry and hand it over to me for review."

The invoice only stated 45,000 taels of silver.

Lord Gu's heart sank.

He turned around suddenly and looked at Master Ma. "I remember that when I inspected the silver, I saw with my own eyes that it was official silver, right?"

Master Ma nodded repeatedly, "This humble official confirms that it is official silver. I have inspected every box."

All official silver will have the year and furnace number on the bottom.

These Southwest silvers are just a piece of silver with nothing underneath.

At this time, Gu Yu stepped forward and said, "Your Excellency, I can also confirm that the box was indeed filled with official silver at the beginning."

Lord Gu was anxious and said to the Minister of Revenue, "Old sir, you heard it too. Initially, this silver was indeed the official standard silver of five taels per ingot. I absolutely do not have the courage to falsify it."

The Minister of Revenue pondered for a moment and asked, "After you inspected the silver at the palace, did you immediately carry the box back?"

Lord Gu shook his head. "I didn't come back right away. The prince kept me chatting for half an hour."

Gu Yu frowned, "This silver was obviously swapped when we were in the palace."

Master Ma nodded repeatedly, "During that time, I felt abdominal discomfort and left for a while. I guess it was during that time that the people in the palace switched the things."

Lord Gu slapped his head suddenly, "Prince Ning is harming me!"

He actually thought that Prince Ning was sincere in his relationship with him, and he chatted with him for a full half hour.

At that time, he still felt unsatisfied.

But I didn't expect that it was all a routine.

Prince Ning was treacherous and actually exchanged Southwest Silver for Guanping Silver.

"No, I have to go to King Ning and ask for an explanation. Why did he want to harm me?"

Gu Yu was worried, "The prince won't admit it."

Master Ma was equally worried. "The prince is deliberately plotting against you, sir. He's clearly prepared for your questioning. He might even turn the tables and accuse you of pocketing the money and secretly exchanging the silver."

"He dares!"

"He really dared to do that." The Minister of Revenue sighed, "Master Gu, you are too careless. When it comes to the amount of silver, how could you not keep an eye on it?"

Lord Gu regretted it too late and was filled with indignation.

"Please help me, old man." After saying this, he bowed deeply.

The Minister of Revenue shook his head. "The receipt clearly states 45,000 taels. Now you say Prince Ning only gave 36,000 taels, how could he admit it? If we're not careful, this lawsuit will end up before His Majesty. Lord Gu, are you sure you have a chance of winning?"

"So what do we do?"

"You have to pay the remaining nine thousand taels out of your own pocket."

Bang!

Lord Gu punched the wall.

"I can't swallow this."

The Minister of Revenue advised: "Nine thousand taels to buy a lesson is not a loss."

Nine thousand taels is not a lot, Lord Gu can afford it.

But he was unwilling to suffer this injustice.

He really didn't expect that the two families were relatives after all, and Prince Ning was also very generous and took the initiative to return the money. But Prince Ning actually tricked him into giving him a full nine thousand taels.

When this matter got out, he really became the laughing stock of the capital.

Lord Gu said to the Minister of Revenue, "I will handle this matter later. Everyone, follow me to the palace to collect the debt."

This time, if he doesn't skin Prince Ning alive, he is not worthy of the surname Gu.

The Minister of Revenue advised: "Master Gu, please be cautious and don't get angry."

Lord Gu said, "Even if the case is brought before the Emperor, I am still in the right. I am following His Majesty's order to settle the outstanding debts. Anyone who dares to disobey will be served by the Jinwu Guards."

The Minister of Revenue frowned. "Prince Ning's actions are truly infuriating. Okay, I support you. If Prince Ning refuses to pay, I will report the truth to His Majesty, and the Jinwu Guards will then entertain Prince Ning."

The civil officials have always disliked these royal relatives and believed that they were a bunch of parasites.

Since Lord Gu has the courage to confront Prince Ning, there is no reason for the Minister of Revenue to stop him.

He figured it out and decided to take advantage of this incident to write a good article and make these royal relatives pay for it.

With the lesson learned from Prince Ning, it will certainly be much easier to clear the arrears in the future.

Worried that Lord Gu would not be able to handle the matter well, the Minister of Revenue also assigned him the Revenue Department to help Lord Gu clear the arrears.

Lord Gu was filled with rage and, with the yamen runners, he charged towards Prince Ning's mansion.

"Your Highness, this is bad. Lord Gu has brought people to collect debts again." The steward reported anxiously.

Prince Ning said nonchalantly, "Tell him there is no money."

"Master Gu also said that if you don't pay, he will bring the case to the emperor."

"He dares!"

Prince Ning snorted. Gu Zhili was so bold that he actually dared to shout in front of the prince's palace.

"Go, take a few guards with you and drive them all away."

The eunuch Chang En advised: "Your Highness, shouldn't you be more gentle?"

Prince Ning sneered, "I simply have no money. What can he do? Even if the case is brought before the Emperor, I will still say the same thing: I have no money. If all else fails, I will sell my belongings on the street to pay off the debt."

this……

Chang En knew that Prince Ning was angry and it was difficult to persuade him anymore.

He waved to the steward and said, "Do as the prince commands."

The steward took the order and left.

However, Prince Ning still underestimated Lord Gu.

The guards of the prince's palace were fighting with the runners of the prefectural yamen in the capital in the street. The news spread like wildfire throughout the capital and even to the inner quarters of the prince's palace.

Song Zheng, now a palace guard, hurried to the East Courtyard. "Madam, something bad has happened. Lord Gu and his guards are fighting with the palace guards."

"What's going on?"

Gu Jiu was completely confused.

Things were changing so fast that she couldn't keep up.

Song Zheng took two breaths and said, "I heard from the yamen runners that the prince exchanged the official silver for Southwest silver, and Lord Gu had to bear the loss of 9,000 taels for nothing."

Gu Jiu's expression turned grim. "The silver was replaced, and no one noticed?"

Song Zheng said, "The prince kept talking to Master Gu, and they were having a great time. During that time, Master Ma and the others felt uncomfortable in their stomachs and went to the bathroom. I guess that's when the silver was replaced. Afterwards, the yamen runners didn't check the boxes anymore and simply carried the boxes out of the palace. Who would have thought that the prince would actually order them to replace all the silver in the boxes with Southwest silver?"

Bang!

The inkstone was swept to the ground by Gu Jiu, and ink splashed all over the floor.

Gu Jiu's face turned pale. "You are a prince, but you are playing a trick of switching things. Do you really think everyone is a fool and will just swallow their anger?"

At this moment, Gu Jiu really hated King Ning.

The palace does not lack the nine thousand taels.

Prince Ning chose to use tricks and had the silver in the box swapped. I really don't know what he was thinking.

Is it directed at her?

Or are you going for Lord Gu?

Or is he teasing the Ministry of Revenue?

While actively repaying the debt, he also played tricks, squandering all the goodwill he had accumulated.

Aren't you afraid of being punished by His Majesty?

Prince Ning was definitely not someone who valued money over his life, and the palace was not so poor that it couldn't even come up with 9,000 taels. Prince Ning didn't need to ruin his reputation for 9,000 taels.

Is he doing this just to disgust people?

Gu Jiu said sternly, "Follow me to see the prince."