Chapter 816 He has a very dirty dirty word to say
The Shi family's patriarch turned his head abruptly: "What did you say?!"
The court officials from the nearby aristocratic families were also looking at Guo Changming in shock, and Guo Changming was trembling with fear.
Liang Guangyi's face was also dark: "How did those people sell it?!"
Guo Changming whispered, "Adult men are 30 taels each. Women are sold for 10 to 100 taels, depending on their age, appearance, and virginity. Young children... children can also be sold. Pretty girls are more expensive, boys are less. If they are officials who are skilled in martial arts or literate, the price will also be higher..."
Liang Guangyi almost laughed out of anger: "Shouldn't I praise you guys for your business skills?!"
Guo Changming looked up and wanted to say "no", but he heard him slap the table suddenly. The loud noise scared him so much that he slid to the ground, and his knees softened and he knelt down.
"How long has this business been going on?" Liang Guangyi asked angrily.
Guo Changming's lips trembled: "It's been five or six years."
"How do we divide the profits?"
"The people below have the channels to sell people. 30% of the profits go to the person who makes the connection, 10% to the person who escorts the person, and 30% to the officials under the Ministry of Justice who give them tips and bribes. The rest, the rest goes to me. I help them cover up the death toll. Occasionally, I also do other things..."
“Bang!!”
The head of the Shi family became furious after hearing what Guo Changming said. He suddenly stepped forward and slapped him in the face.
"Anything else? Are you afraid that your death won't be tragic enough?! I think you're just crazy about money!!"
The maximum amount of money that could be earned from selling a person is one hundred taels of silver. Guo Changming only gets 30% of it, which is only 30 taels. Not to mention the other uneven amounts, I'm afraid that if the profit is evenly distributed, the maximum amount that could be earned per person is 10 taels of silver. This is assuming that the people below don't "line their pockets" and take it all for themselves.
It is impossible that all the exiled prisoners were sold, otherwise it would not be possible to cover up the truth for such a long time. So even if they could sell 1,800 human slaves a year, how much silver could he get?
Is that little bit of money enough for Guo Changming to risk his life to get involved with others?!
The head of the Shi family was panting heavily. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He kicked Guo Changming, who had fallen to the ground, in the heart, wishing he could kick him to death.
"My Shi family expended countless manpower and resources, even abandoning several members of our family who were destined for officialdom, just to keep you in the Ministry of Justice. Lord Liang and I went through so much trouble to get you promoted to the position of Vice Minister. We were just waiting to find something to hold against He Cheng so we could replace him. But what about you?"
"You actually did such a shameful thing for such a small amount of money, you, you..."
The murderous rage filled his heart. The head of the Shi family was only middle-aged, but he was so angry that his vision went dark and his body was shaking. Someone hurried forward to support him.
After the Patriarch of the Shi Family regained his footing, he said viciously, "I was so blind to marry my seventh sister to you!!"
Guo Changming was kicked to the ground and couldn't get up for a long time. He was already annoyed when he heard the scolding. His family background was not as good as the Shi family, and he was not loved by the elders in the mansion. It was by accident that he won the favor of the girl of the Shi family and married the daughter of a noble family. Even if she was just a concubine's daughter, it was already marrying up for him.
He was able to enter the Ministry of Justice thanks to the Shi family and worked his way up to the position of doctor. Because he was the son-in-law of an aristocratic family, everyone gave him some respect. However, he did not live a wealthy life in private, and his wife, who was a noble lady from an aristocratic family, also had a tight budget due to him.
He was not a particularly important figure to the Shi family, and was even more inconspicuous when he was with other aristocratic family officials. He wanted to make himself feel more confident and wanted his wife to gain face among the sisters-in-law, so he did not refuse when the people below "offered tribute".
At the beginning, he just collected some small money and did some small things for them. He was not so bold. But later, after he tasted the sweetness, he could not stop. In addition, the aristocratic families occupied the court and had tremendous power, so he could get some protection, so his courage grew.
Guo Changming felt severe pain all over his body, but he just huddled on the ground and said:
"I know I was wrong. When Your Majesty and the deposed emperor started quarreling, I sensed something was amiss and wanted to shut down this business. However, the people below were too tempted by the benefits and refused to give up. I was also afraid that their quarrel would only ruin things."
"I had been thinking about secretly dealing with those people some time ago, but who would have thought that the Queen would suddenly mobilize the Ministry of Justice..."
Guo Changming got up from the ground, knelt down and took a few steps forward: "Brother, brother, you have to save me!"
Then he turned to Liang Guangyi and said:
"Prime Minister Liang, I know I was wrong. I was greedy, but I really didn't expect the Queen to hold on to the Ministry of Justice."
"Those Black Armor Guards are like mad dogs. Once they smell blood and bite, they won't let go. If the Queen continues to investigate like this, they will eventually find me."
"There are not many people left from the six ministries in the court now. Your Majesty intends to suppress us. If the Queen catches me, she will definitely not let me go. I know I was wrong, but if anything happens to me, you will be completely helpless in the Ministry of Justice. Please, Minister Liang, save me. Please, Minister Liang, save me."
Liang Guangyi looked at Guo Changming, who was kneeling on the ground and kowtowing in a dishevel, with an extremely ugly expression on his face.
He really didn't want to save this brainless guy who was willing to sacrifice his future and do something that would cost him his life for a little bit of profit. If there were other available people in the Ministry of Justice, he would definitely give up Guo Changming without hesitation, and even arrest him personally to avoid implicating them.
But now there is only such a person in the Ministry of Justice. The others either have too low an official rank to be promoted, or cannot enter the Ministry at all.
Guo Changming holds the position of Vice Minister, the person closest to the position of Minister of Justice, and is also the most important chess piece for them to control the Ministry of Justice. Just as Guo Changming said, once he is abolished, they will no longer have a say in the Ministry of Justice from now on.
Now that the government has been restructured, he has been given a share of power by Cao Dejiang, and most of the people from aristocratic families in the cabinet have been purged.
Among the six ministries, the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War have been completely controlled by Xiao Yan. With Qian Baokun and the new Minister of War Yan Bai there, no one can get in because of their strict defense. The remaining Ministry of Rites is of little use, the Ministry of Works cannot control the court power, and the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice are the ones they absolutely cannot give up.
Liang Guangyi held out his hand to block the furious Shi family head, then lowered his eyes to look at Guo Changming: "Do those people have any evidence against you in this matter?"
Guo Changming lowered his head: "They have an account book with the detailed accounts for each year."
“…”
The veins on Liang Guangyi's head popped out, and he took a deep breath and said, "What else do you have to say? Tell me all at once."
Guo Changming lowered his head even more. "They set up a brothel, where they kept many beautiful female prisoners. I've been there twice. There's also a brokerage that specializes in buying and selling human slaves. Some of the guys there have questionable backgrounds."
"What do you mean by not innocent?"
"They are not from good families... Some of them were abducted..."
“…”
Liang Guangyi has something very dirty to say.
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