Chapter 369 Also Colluding with the Zhao Family
After Zhao Yuntong left, Jiang Fenghua sent someone to fetch Hongxiu. Since Minister Zhao was corrupt and the Su family was corrupt as well, and both were important officials, did they have some kind of connection? After all, the money embezzled by the Su family had to go through the Minister of Revenue.
Hongxiu and Lianye arrived together, and Jiang Fenghua asked Lianye to stand guard outside. Apart from Wuxin, they were her true confidants in the entire palace.
“Every time I come to report to the Crown Princess, you never ask how much money you have.” Hongxiu said with a smile, puzzled. “You usually reward the servants a lot. It’s strange how the money is. Even though it’s all spent, we always end up making more money. Even the money seems to like the Crown Princess.”
Jiang Fenghua stopped joking around and her tone became serious: "It's time to use money. Let's do the math!"
Hongxiu noticed that her delicate eyebrows were slightly furrowed. "Has Miss Lin Yu encountered some trouble? She rushed into the palace."
“No,” she had already instructed Lin Yu that only she knew about these things. She didn’t want Hongxiu and Lianye to be filled with hatred like Lin Yu. She would handle this matter personally.
Hongxiu continued, "We own several properties and shops in the capital, as well as businesses in Yucheng. Over the years, we've acquired properties and shops in various places..."
"How much cash do you have?" What she needed now was money. Hongxiu controlled all her finances, and now she needed to carefully calculate how much wealth she had. She was determined to kill Su Xuan at all costs. Her maternal grandfather's family had been镖师 (bodyguards/escorts) for generations, and they knew many people in both the legitimate and criminal worlds. During those ten years, she also learned a lot about the martial arts world through this connection. The golden silk soft armor Su Xuan wore was not easily obtained; it was extremely rare and expensive, and even money couldn't buy it.
Hongxiu whispered a number in her ear, and Jiang Fenghua was shocked. "I already have this much money?"
Hongxiu nodded. "It's no exaggeration to say that we could easily buy another Yu City with just cash. If the Crown Princess needs money, I'll have someone go to the various banks to withdraw it. We also have..." Young Master Ruan's wealth was already among the best in the Great Zhou Dynasty. It's just a pity that everyone thought that such a wealthy person was surnamed Ruan and was a man.
"That's enough, it's already exceeded the limit. Keep the rest of the money after deducting what I need!" Jiang Fenghua nodded. "I've already asked Lin Yu to contact the Feng family. To use connections, you need money..." She wanted to drive Su Xuan to a dead end. Even if he escaped back to the border, most of his advisors and confidants had already died. Although the Su family army on the border was loyal to the Su family and grateful to them, most of them didn't dare to rebel easily. So she wanted to make a bigger commotion.
She not only wanted to eliminate the Su family, but also to turn all their achievements into a disgrace, to be despised by the people. She refused to believe that the Su family's ancestors were completely clean.
Throughout history, no noble family has ever been clean; they merely used their achievements to portray themselves as heroes and objects of worship.
True noble families do exist, but they are extremely rare. To expect them to be both incorruptible and powerful is simply absurd.
Is integrity linked to power? Obviously not.
Jiang Fenghua earns so much money, and she can't guarantee she's honest and upright, but at least she doesn't earn money that goes against her conscience.
Next, Su Xuan will be driven to a dead end. Even if he uses money to bribe his way out, he will run out of money. He prides himself on being good at strategizing and manipulating people's hearts, but the prerequisite is that he must have the title of Grand General bestowed upon him by the royal family to issue orders. Now he is just a fugitive. Who will listen to him and help him rebel and rebuild his strength?
Xie Shang defied public opinion in the court and appointed Jiang Jinyan as imperial envoy to go to the border. The emperor even granted him supreme power to act on behalf of the emperor and to confiscate all of the Su family's property on the border.
This imperial edict was issued by the Emperor, but everyone knew it was actually the Crown Prince's doing. Everyone was in a precarious situation and trying to figure out a way to deal with it.
If the Su family army on the border dared to rebel against the court, the Crown Prince might hesitate and stop the investigation. However, they did not understand the Crown Prince who had just ascended to the throne. His power was already strong. The Emperor had given the Su family the green light for so many years, and now the Crown Prince himself would shut it off. Winning this battle was crucial for him.
Xie Shang's arrow had already been released, and he had no way to retreat. He had no choice but to face the challenge head-on in order to lay a solid foundation for his ascension to the throne and the consolidation of power.
Jiang Fenghua's words had already struck a chord with him, and he would not listen to the ministers' instigation.
Even though he knew that Jiang Fenghua really wanted to deal with the Su family, no matter what the reason, he still chose to stand by her side and be of one mind with her as husband and wife.
Soon, Jiang Fenghua learned that the Crown Prince had appointed Jiang Jinyan as an imperial envoy to go to the border. A smile appeared on her lips. She knew that Xie Shang would give important positions to the Jiang family.
If Xie Shang really listens to the old ministers and lets the Su family go, he won't be able to govern the Great Zhou well after he ascends the throne, because once is enough, twice will happen. As long as he doesn't set a precedent, it will be fine.
As for other things, she couldn't care less for the time being. She just needed to sit back and wait to dig up more old information about the Su family and beat Su Xuan so badly that he couldn't fight back.
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Just then, Zhao Yuntong met Zhang Jingjing at the palace gate. Thinking of the scene on New Year's Eve when Zhang Jingjing knelt before the emperor to lodge a complaint, she took the initiative to walk up to Zhang Jingjing and said, "Greetings to Zhang Zhaoxun."
Zhao Yuntong didn't understand either. Her father was a second-rank minister, while Zhang Jingjing's father was only a fourth-rank prefect, and neither of them were officials in the capital. Although she was a concubine's daughter, in terms of family background and status, her rank should be higher than Zhang Jingjing's, especially since Zhang Jingjing was extremely poor.
Zhang Jingjing and Zhao Yuntong lived in the same palace. She knew that Zhao Yuntong was rich, and her father was the Minister of Revenue. She even looked down on her. Therefore, Zhang Jingjing, the proud legitimate daughter, did not have much conversation with a concubine's daughter.
She said calmly, "Did Zhao Fengyi want to see me about something?"
Zhao Yuntong was stunned. "I meant to say that we all live in the same palace and are newly arrived concubines. Among the ten concubines, it seems that there are only a few who haven't been favored, including me and Zhang Zhaoxun."
Zhang Jingjing said calmly, "His Highness the Crown Prince hasn't even been to Chenxi Palace recently, and the Su family's rebellion is still ongoing. His Highness is busy with the court affairs, so how could he have time to care about the ladies in the harem? Consort Zhao, please be patient! His Highness will remember Consort Zhao."
Zhang Jingjing thought to herself: Does he really think she's stupid? Zhao Yuntong's father, Minister Zhao, is in charge of the Ministry of Revenue. He's probably a big corrupt official. She hates corrupt officials the most. Zhao Yuntong is the daughter of a corrupt official and enjoys the benefits. So she hopes that when the Crown Prince punishes corrupt officials, their children and relatives will also be punished.
Zhao Yuntong didn't understand why Zhang Jingjing was so cold. Wasn't she marrying the Crown Prince to win his favor and make her father rich?
Zhang Jingjing actually wanted the people of Yuzhou to become wealthy and have a better life, while Zhao Yuntong was too superficial, only wanting to make herself rich and, incidentally, consolidate the Zhao family's favor.
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