"Master, those private mine owners are almost unable to hold on."
Shaofu, a eunuch stood below and bowed and said.
Deng Cunli flipped through various documents and said, "Let them hang out for two more days. Then, bring them to the signing room of the Ministry of Finance, and I will meet them in person."
The eunuch hurriedly said, "They're just private miners. Why would Master need to come personally? Why not let my disciple..."
Under Deng Cunli's gaze, he swallowed the rest of his words.
"My disciple said something wrong, please punish me, Master."
The eunuch knelt on the ground and slapped himself in the face.
After slapping him ten times, Deng Cunli said lightly, and the eunuch stopped.
At this time, the eunuch's face had become red and swollen.
Deng Cunli said sternly, "Working under our command, barring any unforeseen circumstances, you'll eventually be sent out by the Empress to lead a charge. If you still want a prosperous future, don't act on your own. Especially when it comes to the Empress's strategy, don't speculate with your limited knowledge."
"Disciple knows his mistake and he will never dare to do it again."
"Learn more from your senior brother Zhao Minfa. Don't let our disciples fail to catch up with Bai Zhong and his disciples in the end. Even if you lose your future, it will be a disgrace to our family. If you can't do well, return to the palace as soon as possible."
"I will not return to the palace. I will study hard and never try to be smart again. Master, please give me another chance."
Deng Cunli said with a stern face, "Okay, we'll give you another chance. Get up and sort out the information on these illegal mine owners. It will be useful to us when the time comes."
"I will listen to Master's instructions and go organize the information right away."
The eunuch felt relieved and quickly got up to do his work.
Deng Cunli frowned and his hair turned gray.
Grassland, overseas, this was a plan that had been made long ago.
It was not officially launched until this year, simply because Northwest affairs took priority.
Until there is any result from the Northwest Army and Marquis Lu, all other plans will have to be put on hold.
Fortunately, the Northwest Army took over Xiliang smoothly.
The Duke of Lu was crowned king with the consent of most court officials.
He played with the ring in his hand, thinking about what to do next.
The Empress Dowager let him take charge of the Shaofu, which showed her trust and appreciation for him.
He couldn't let the Queen down, nor could he lose to that old bastard Chang En.
"Sir, Eunuch Chang is here to visit."
Subordinates report.
Deng Cunli raised his eyebrows and smiled. He was thinking about the other party, but he didn't expect that the other party would come to him first.
"Please invite Eunuch Chang to the tea room for tea. We will be there later."
"yes!"
Those who come to Chang'an are not good, and those who are good do not come.
When Deng Cunli met Chang En, they were both extremely jealous of each other.
"Eunuch Chang is a rare guest!"
Chang En laughed heartily. "Eunuch Deng is still as charming as ever. It just so happens that I need to trouble you with something today. If you are in good spirits, we don't have to worry about you passing out during the journey."
Deng Cunli snorted, "Please tell me your purpose, Eunuch Chang."
Bang!
The account book was thrown on the table, and there was a basket of account books behind it.
Chang En had a forced smile on his face, and his eyes were like a hungry wolf, ready to jump up and eat people at any time.
"The Audit Department has been ordered to check the accounts of the Shaofu for the first quarter and has discovered some problems. Please provide an explanation, Eunuch Deng."
Deng Cunli raised his eyelids and waved his hand, and his subordinates understood.
A moment later, more than a dozen accountants from the Shaofu came in at once, each holding an abacus, looking as if they were ready to fight.
Deng Cunli scratched his ears and said, "Just now, Eunuch Chang said that there was a problem with our Shaofu's accounts. Is there some misunderstanding here?"
Chang En glanced at the Shaofu's accountant. "Is Eunuch Deng accusing our family of fabricating stories and making things up?"
Deng Cunli smiled and said, "I dare not! Our Shaofu's accounts have always been clear and straightforward, and there has never been any problem. But when Eunuch Chang came to our house, he said there was a problem with our accounts, which really made us unhappy. We doubt whether the accountant in your Audit Department can do the accounting."
The accountant of the Audit Department was angry.
Chang En waved his hand and suppressed the accountant under his command.
He pointed at several accountants in the Ministry of Finance, "If I'm not mistaken, these people all graduated from the Department of Mathematics of the Mountain and River Academy. The accountants behind me also graduated from the Department of Mathematics of the Mountain and River Academy, and they were all selected from the best. It doesn't make sense that students from the same academy can do accounting in your Ministry of Finance but can't do accounting in the Audit Department."
Deng Cunli smiled knowingly, "The Audit Department is developing quite well, and they're even recruiting people from Shanhe Academy."
"It's just so-so. Not as famous as your Shaofu." Chang En laughed.
Deng Cunli put down his teacup and said, "Since we both have our own opinions, let's re-audit the first quarter's accounts."
"Eunuch Deng, do you not trust our Audit Department?" Chang En smiled.
Deng Cunli said, "We simply trust the accountant of the Ministry of Finance. As for the Audit Office, I'm sorry, we can't trust it."
"In that case, let's recalculate."
The tea room was big enough, and the table was set up, with each party occupying one side.
The two sides were on the verge of a fight and were full of anger.
With a start sound, the abacus starts moving.
Pah pah pah…
The whole tea room was filled with the sound of abacus turning.
Quarrel!
Deng Cunli stood up and bowed, "Eunuch Chang, please have some tea. I still have official business to attend to."
"Let's go together. We also have official business to attend to."
Chang En also disliked the teahouse being too noisy, and the clacking of the abacus gave him a headache. He found an excuse and followed Deng Cunli out of the teahouse.
As soon as they left the tea room, the two started chatting.
"I heard that Shanhe Academy is officially expanding its enrollment of students majoring in numerology, and a special numerology exam has been added for this purpose. As long as you pass the numerology exam, you can enter Shanhe Academy."
"Some accountants who have been here for decades are actually thinking about studying at Shanhe Academy and taking the exam for the Divination Department."
After years of development, the various subjects of Shanhe Academy were gradually separated from the imperial examinations.
Even the entrance exams are diverse.
If you want to take the imperial examination, then focus on it.
If you are good at something and do not plan to take the imperial examination, you can specialize in a certain subject.
There are also single-subject entrance examination papers for each month's admission examination.
"With the current market situation, graduates of the Shanhe Academy specializing in numerology can earn higher wages. Naturally, the old accountants are tempted."
"Even the accountant of the palace is applying to the Shanhe Academy."
"The Imperial Academy also offers a course in divination, but few people apply."
"Besides the imperial examinations, the Imperial College hasn't gained much fame for its other subjects, so it's naturally not as good as the Shanhe Academy."
"This time, I'm checking your Shaofu's accounts not to cause trouble, but there really is a problem."
Deng Cunli smiled and said, "We know where the problem lies. We have already settled the accounts, but you are still holding on to it. What's the reason?"
Chang En raised an eyebrow, "Since Her Majesty has established an audit department, our family must fulfill its responsibilities."
Deng Cunli knocked on the table. "You should know that the Shaofu is His Majesty's private treasury. When His Majesty uses money, it is sometimes inconvenient to record it in the accounts, and he can only balance it with other expenses. If you, the Audit Department, insist on making a fuss, I will have no choice but to ask Her Majesty for justice."
"Then tell me in private, where did the money go?"
Deng Cunli hesitated for a moment. "Your Majesty has been in the military for many years and has many men under his command. Not all of them are promoted, and not all of them are lucky enough to return home unscathed. Your Majesty is benevolent and righteous, and has never forgotten these old subordinates. Therefore, every year, you take out a sum of money from the Ministry of Finance to privately support these disabled soldiers. In addition, in addition to the money and food spent publicly, there are also some necessary expenses incurred in governing Xiliang. These expenses cannot appear in the account books, so we have to find a way to balance them."
Chang En smiled knowingly, "Looking at the gaps in the account book, Your Majesty must have bribed quite a few people in the Northwest Army."
Deng Cunli sneered, "This is a secret. Now that you know it, you'd better keep your mouth shut."
Chang En laughed heartily. "We know the palace rules better than you do. We know better what to say and what not to say."
"Since you know it clearly, you shouldn't bring people here today to question the Shaofu's accounts for the first quarter." Deng Cunli was extremely dissatisfied.
Chang En said, "It's our duty. We have no choice. We have to be responsible to the Queen."
Deng Cunli said, "Don't think no one knows what you're thinking. You simply suspect that I'm being unfaithful to the Empress and am hiding it from her. I can solemnly tell you that the Empress knows every detail of the Ministry of Finance's accounts. She also knows exactly where the money went. Your Majesty never inquires about the Ministry of Finance's accounts. Do you think such a large sum of money could be spent without the Empress's consent?"
Chang En smiled, "So, our family misunderstood you?"
Deng Cunli sneered, "It's good that you know! Remind your accountants not to spread rumors. Prince Anxi will contact the Pei family in the capital sooner or later. If the news leaks out and reaches Prince Anxi, you know the consequences."
"Do you think Prince Anxi doesn't know that His Majesty has planted spies in the Northwest Army?"
"He knows, but without solid evidence, the King of Anxi dares not act rashly. He has just arrived in Xiliang, his foundation is unstable, and he still hopes for support from the imperial court."
"Tomorrow we will go to the palace to pay our respects. We will report today's events to the Empress faithfully."
Deng Cunli's eyebrows remained unchanged. "Please do as you please, Eunuch Chang. We cannot interfere with what you want to do. I just ask you not to do anything bad."
Chang En laughed. "When we first took on this job, we knew the Audit Department was a hated government office. Eunuch Deng doesn't need to remind us what we should and shouldn't do. Goodbye!"
"Goodbye."
Because the Audit Department was checking the accounts, the Shaofu was in a turmoil for two days.
In the end, it came to nothing.
Zhang Shengshui walked into the Shaofu Yamen, feeling uneasy.
Damn it!
He had also been to the Jiangnan Grand Marshal's Mansion, which was much more magnificent than the Shaofu, and he had never been nervous there.
The clerk took them to the signing room.
"Sir, several mine owners have arrived."
"Please come in."
Zhang Shengshui walked into the signing room and looked up to see that it was a eunuch.
Eunuchs serve as officials of the Shaofu?
When the other party looked at him, his heart tightened and he hurriedly bowed his head to greet him, "This humble servant greets you, sir!"
"Are you Zhang Shengshui, from the Xizhou Zhang family?"
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