Chapter 249 A Fine Knife
Chu King's Palace —
Li Mingxiu, who was reviewing official documents, rubbed his temples. He had been doing accounting for the past few days and his head was spinning. His own father hadn't even asked anyone to help him.
Several of his capable associates have been sent out, and he doesn't know what they've gone to do. Now he's just been given a huge pile of official documents.
There must be an official account book, and a private account book must also be made again, so that the second son can help him share some of the expenses at home. Now that the second son has gone to the front line to fight, only he and his noisy younger sister are left at home.
It was really boring.
After reviewing official documents for a while, Li Mingxiu simply gave up, somewhat irritated, and threw down his pen, leaning back in his chair to rest.
Almost simultaneously, a report came from outside the door: "Your Highness, a batch of goods has been sent back from the front lines and is currently piled up at the door. Commander Lu said that you should take a look at it first before entering the storeroom."
Li Mingxiu straightened up, raised his eyebrows, and repeated, "You want me to go and see for myself???"
The servant who came to report nodded and said, "Yes, Your Highness, we filled more than ten carts."
Li Mingxiu stood up with great interest and nodded to the servant: "Let's go, take me there."
I wonder what Qi Lao Er has been up to at the front lines. It's probably not over yet, but he's already brought back a bunch of stuff. It must be important. I'd better go and check it out.
Thinking this, Li Mingxiu followed the servant quickly to the front yard, and when they arrived at the gate, they saw a row of carriages in front of the mansion.
I was a little confused. The goods should be loaded onto wagons by freight cars, so why were they being transported by horse-drawn carriages?
Li Mingxiu looked at Lu Shan ahead and waved to the people in confusion.
Lu Shan strode forward and bowed to Li Mingxiu, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness."
Li Mingxiu casually waved his hand: "So many carriages? What's going on?"
Lu Shan looked around and then glanced nervously at the servant beside the prince, saying, "It was our commander who ordered them to be brought back quickly. Please, Your Highness, have a word with us."
Li Mingxiu glanced at Lushan with suspicion. Lushan's commander of a thousand men should be the young general who was quite capable under the old man. If he remembered correctly, his father had praised that person several times because he was a clever and skilled martial artist despite his young age.
What was his name again? I think it was Lin Changning.
Since he was one of the old man's men, he was naturally trustworthy. Li Mingxiu walked towards a secluded spot and looked at Lu Shan seriously: "There should be no one here. Speak."
Lu Shan clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Inside the carriage are jewels and gold worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, as well as a batch of finely crafted long knives."
As soon as he said this, Li Mingxiu's eyes widened and he covered Lu Shan's mouth.
"Silence!!!! Let's go inside first!!!"
Good heavens! How come no one told him about something this big beforehand? Is this something that can be discussed outside the mansion? The area around the Chu Prince's mansion is practically covered with hidden agents and spies planted by the imperial court.
It would be bad if those nails found out they had suddenly acquired these things.
Li Mingxiu, feigning nonchalance, patted Lu Shan on the back, then put his arm around him and led him into the mansion.
As he walked into the mansion, he said, "Move the carriage into the mansion first. As for the beauty in the carriage, steward, make arrangements for her tonight. Don't neglect her when the concubine selection is held in a few days."
After saying that, he put his arm around Lu Shan's shoulder and walked into the courtyard.
Li Mingxiu finally breathed a sigh of relief when he reached the inner courtyard. He was terrified, but thankfully it was all over without any real danger.
After the carriage entered the inner courtyard, Lu Shan ordered people to unload the chests of treasure. Li Mingxiu opened the chests and was instantly dazzled by the variety of treasures. He gasped and beckoned to a servant beside him, "Quickly call my father here!!! Oh, and tell my mother to hurry up and arrange the selection of concubines these two days. It's just a formality, but it's essential that the young ladies from each family come to the mansion."
After saying that, he looked at the steward and said, "Tonight, have the maids in the house dress up as young ladies from various families and stay in the outer courtyard. Everything will be done according to the example of selecting imperial concubines."
The butler readily agreed and quickly stepped back to prepare to make arrangements.
After inspecting the boxes one by one, Li Mingxiu suddenly turned to look at Lu Shan and asked, "How come there's so much treasure and weapons? Did Second Brother lead you guys to become bandits?"
Lu Shan clasped his hands in a respectful gesture and replied, "The commander must have just learned of this matter. The thousand-household commander ordered us to send the items back as soon as possible. These items were hidden in Yongning City by the rebels. The Tartars couldn't find them, but we rescued a group of refugees and happened to learn of this incident, so we dug them out and sent them back overnight."
Li Mingxiu laughed heartily, patting Lu Shan on the shoulder as he laughed: "As expected of the Second Master's men, you are very clever. My father and I will remember this matter and give you credit for it."
These treasures are secondary; with the wealth of the Chu Prince's Mansion, they have a considerable fortune. These hundreds of thousands of taels are enough to save this year's military pay and can also buy a lot of grain.
The most crucial thing is actually the finely crafted weapons that were sent back. What they lack most right now is weapons. The imperial court does not allow the private forging of weapons, so most of your weapons are remade and reused after they are broken.
The number of weapons brought back this time was considerable, and they were all well-made, which could be distributed to middle and upper-ranking officers and their personal guards.
This solved their immediate problem.
Li Mingzheng was chuckling when he saw his father, Wang Long, stride into the courtyard: "What's the matter that you're in such a hurry to have someone drag me here?"
As soon as the King of Chu entered the courtyard, his eyes were dazzled by the rows of chests and boxes on the ground.
He instantly sprinted over, grabbed the treasure from the chest, and glanced at his eldest son suspiciously: "Mingxiu, did you go somewhere to become a bandit? Where did all this treasure come from?"
Li Mingxiu rolled his eyes at his father, saying, "It was Lin Qianhu who brought it back. These should be the wealth of the Third Prince, which he hid in Yongning to prepare a way out for himself. Then Lin Qianhu dug it up and sent it back."
The King of Chu was delighted upon hearing this, and with narrowed eyes, he grabbed a handful of treasures: "Good, good, good! When I return this time, I must reward Commander Lin handsomely. With so much stuff, Third Brother has really spent a fortune this time, hahaha. If I can't find it when I get back, I'll probably be furious."
Looking at his gloating father, Li Mingxiu, he shook his head, tugged at the King of Chu's robe, and pointed to something else: "Father, these treasures are secondary. Look over here, they are all finely crafted longswords."
The King of Chu's smile faded. He followed his crown prince's gaze to the weapons in the other chest, picked up a long sword, brandished it a few times, and exclaimed, "What a fine sword! What a fine sword!!!"
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