Yinzhen's guard: "According to the list, all these people should be taken to prison to await interrogation. Also, when confiscating their homes, display all the things they have hidden so that the people of the capital can see their evil deeds."

Then Yinzhen took out another list and said, "The people on this list will be suspended from their posts and ordered to return the ill-gotten gains. If they do not return them, they will be treated the same as those on the previous list."

Two groups of guards received their orders and began to get to work.

The capital city is the imperial city, and what the capital city has in abundance is the presence of ordinary people and lively atmosphere. As a result, Yinzhen's words immediately attracted attention in the capital.

When the soldiers started arresting people, some people began to inquire about the details. Before they could find out, the soldiers carried out boxes of gold, silver and precious artifacts from the homes of those arrested. The items were so dazzling that they attracted the attention of almost everyone in the capital.

Everyone in the capital, from high-ranking officials and nobles to ordinary people, was watching closely. It wasn't hard to find out what was going on. So many good things were released, starting from the homes of corrupt officials and being displayed on the streets for almost a day or two.

The embezzlement by the Imperial Household Department caused quite a stir.

Yinzhen also sent people to spread rumors in secret, truthfully reporting the evil deeds of these people in the Imperial Household Department. Despite the Emperor's good treatment of them, they were still greedy and insatiable. The things that the Imperial Household Department found were enough to fill several streets.

The capital city was mostly inhabited by ordinary people. So many good things dazzled them. These were all left behind by the servants of the Imperial Household Department who lined their own pockets.

The people couldn't help but curse him. Putting themselves in his shoes, if their own servants had embezzled so much—of course, they probably didn't have that much to embezzle—they would be incredibly frustrated. So, surprisingly, the people sympathized with Emperor Kangxi.

Because only a portion of the property was confiscated, and the remaining portion was only ordered to return the silver without further investigation, even if they lost their jobs, at least their lives were spared. Upon hearing this, the people exclaimed that His Majesty was truly benevolent.

The people thought that if they ever became rich, and their servants had embezzled so much of their money by deceiving them, they would probably grind those people to dust.

That's why people say Emperor Kangxi was benevolent.

Emperor Kangxi was truly merciless. He not only returned the embezzled silver but also lost his job, which was no different from being beheaded.

Without money, and having grown accustomed to a comfortable life, it's said that it's hard to go from luxury to frugality, so it's naturally not so easy to adapt.

Emperor Kangxi also intended to make an example of someone to warn others.

Basically, it was Yinzhen who handled this matter. By the time he had almost finished dealing with it, half a month had passed.

At this time, Shuyuan's wedding day arrived.

These days, Shuyuan claims to be preparing for her wedding, but in reality, she's been wallowing in self-pity in the courtyard of the mansion. She still hasn't come to terms with it, and she's ultimately unwilling to accept the loss of the Empress's position.

As for the Fourth Prince of Gong's Mansion, she knew nothing about Qing'e. He was a nameless and unknown person in history, so he probably wasn't anyone important. She had traveled through time, only to be forced to marry an "ordinary" and "unknown" person. How could she be willing to accept that?

But what could she do even if she was unwilling? No matter how mysterious her origins were, she couldn't reveal them, for fear of being burned at the stake as a ghost.

So her situation was that she couldn't refuse the marriage proposal, but she also couldn't be enthusiastic about it.

Shu Wanke had been keeping a close eye on Shu Yuan's movements and knew her current state. She was very satisfied. Sure enough, what made her happy was seeing Shu Yuan unhappy.

Shuwan asked the nanny, "What do you think of Xiuyue?"

The old woman thought of the maid who betrayed the eldest princess. Although she felt disgusted, the maid was still one of their own. She said, "Miss Xiuyue is a good girl. She knows what a good home is and she knows to abandon darkness for light."

"I'm referring to what she looks like?"

appearance?

"Although Xiuyue's appearance is not particularly striking, this servant finds her rather pitiful. With a proper makeover, she could be quite a charming girl. What are your plans, Princess?"

Shuwan smiled and said, "Isn't Sister resentful that the Fourth Prince married Prince Gong? Since her heart belongs to someone else, we should find someone to help her bear the feelings the Fourth Prince has for her. Xiuyue and Sister have a deep bond as mistress and servant, so I think Sister would be willing. When the time comes, mistress and servant will serve the same person, which will surely be a beautiful story."

The old woman smiled and said, "What you say is true, Your Highness. I will instruct Xiuyue right away. Xiuyue is a loyal child and should be willing to share the burden for Your Highness."

Shuwan nodded in satisfaction and said, "Then let's leave this matter to Granny! Xiuyue is still a bit inexperienced, Granny, please find someone to teach her more privately."

The old woman replied, "Yes, Princess."

Shuwan doesn't mind doing more things that might upset Shuyuan.

On the eve of Shuyuan's wedding, Shuwan went to Shuyuan's courtyard with a beaming smile to offer her congratulations.

Shuwan looked at the pink wedding dress beside her and said with a sigh, "Sister, you always love to wear pink clothes. Now your wish has come true. You are wearing a pink wedding dress for your wedding. Congratulations, sister!"

Shuyuan glared fiercely at Shuwan, but her gaze, though harsh, had no effect on Shuwan whatsoever.

“What? Did my sister say something wrong? I remember Mother prepared two outfits, one pink and one red. My sister said that red was gaudy and that pink would make one look more delicate and pretty. She said that I couldn’t pull off that delicate color. So she took the pink outfit. Now my sister is even 'delicate and pretty' on her wedding day. I also think that my sister’s pink outfit is beautiful. My sister should wear it well and wear it for the rest of her life.”

Shuyuan said irritably, "Shut up."

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