Anyone who has ever sent money to the Imperial Fundraising Office knows that when the office receives investment funds, it stamps a small mark on the banknote to indicate that it has been deposited into the Imperial Treasury. Then, the banknote is exchanged for a red contract stamped with the same seal of the Imperial Fundraising Office, which is then paid out by the government the following year along with the principal and interest.
But only he knew that this gesture was probably a habit of the Su family.
When he was in Dingzhou, he noticed that Su liked to make a mark on the large banknotes she handled, saying it was to prevent thieves or the notes from being switched.
The Imperial Recruitment Office was established under the advocacy of the Su family. Although Ye An was the one who came forward, the regulations were all written by the Su family.
The funds raised by the Imperial Fundraising Office certainly couldn't be in the form of cash; wealthy families deposited them into the office using banknotes. The Su family did this for two reasons: first, to track the use of the funds, and second, to prevent anyone from taking the banknotes from the office without authorization.
He finally realized that his and his mother's repeated failures to harm the Su mother and daughter made sense.
And now, their counterattack is finally about to begin.
How could he be so naive as to think they were weak women who couldn't even kill a chicken? Even if they knew he had once harbored murderous intent, they would never come back for revenge? Because he thought they would be throwing eggs against rocks?
In fact, by transferring her dowry to the Jingzhao Prefecture at a low price, Su was able to take away most of the Earl's family's property and cause the Earl's family to lose face. Wasn't her counterattack already underway?
Wasn't Xiao Youran's last outburst at the Earl's mansion, causing him to lose a fortune, also a form of retaliation?
Could the matter concerning the eldest brother also be their doing?
Countless thoughts raced through his mind in an instant, but Princess Qingping pushed him out the door with even greater anger, shouting, "Go find her! Go find her! And you'd better not come back after you go!"
Jiang Mingyi said helplessly, "Princess, please calm down. This matter is of great importance. I just want to ask her for clarification and then think of a way to rescue my elder brother. Please don't be unreasonable."
However, Princess Qingping ignored him and pushed him outside, slamming the door shut with a "bang".
Jiang Mingyi gritted his teeth, said nothing, and turned to leave.
A moment later, in the princess's room, the window made a slight creaking sound, and a figure appeared beside the princess, pulling her into his arms.
“Dark Five!” Princess Qingping exclaimed softly, her tone revealing no surprise but rather a hint of excitement.
"It's been several days, and the princess still won't let him go out." Anwu eagerly found her lips, his tone carrying a hint of resentment.
Princess Qingping, panting, said, "Didn't he just use this as an excuse to make trouble today? Don't worry, I'll give the order in a moment that he's not allowed to come in tonight!"
"Look at his pathetic appearance, Princess, how can you still stand it?"
"You're still the most handsome, alright..."
...
Over there, Jiang Mingyi first went to the county princess's mansion, but as expected, he was stopped outside and not allowed to enter.
He then went straight to the Yong'an Marquis's residence to find out the origin of the mooncake box belonging to the Gao family.
Upon learning that it was indeed a mooncake box sent by a wealthy businessman, Gao beat her chest and swore to the heavens that she knew nothing about it.
Jiang Mingyi had no choice but to inquire about the wealthy merchant again, keeping him extremely busy.
On the other side, Xiao Youran and her mother were distributing Mid-Autumn Festival gifts to the workers at the Xiamajie construction site. The gifts were mooncakes, two for each person, and even the children were given two each.
The workers praised the masters with beaming smiles, saying, "Thank you, masters! Thank you, masters!"
Mrs. Su smiled and nodded, "A family reunion is nothing. A couple of mooncakes are just a reminder. I hope you can have a family reunion every year."
The children jumped and skipped with joy, chanting, "Reunion, reunion, complete reunion!"
Xiao Youran secretly opened her little notebook and saw that her luck value had unknowingly increased to more than 600 points. She felt that the contribution of rice and flour was well worth it.
At this moment, four boys lined up in front of her and bowed deeply to her, saying, "Thank you, County Princess, for saving our lives!"
Xiao Youran looked up and saw that the face looked somewhat familiar.
Who are you...?
The eldest boy laughed and said, "My surname is Song, and I am Song Dalang. These are my younger brothers, Erlang, Sanlang, and Silang."
He clenched his fist. "We four brothers are naturally strong!"
Xiao Youran suddenly remembered, "So it was you guys!"
They were the same group of teenagers who beat Yan Jin's lazy and good-for-nothing older brother so badly he vomited blood at the soup kitchen outside the city that day.
She asked, "Are you all able to eat your fill now?"
Song Dalang nodded and said, "We work hard and eat without being polite. How could we not have enough to eat? We have to thank the county magistrate for all of this. Your words have changed the fate of the four of us brothers."
The other three also sincerely stepped forward to express their gratitude.
Xiao Youran heard a cheer, and her little notebook flashed in her mind, "Quick, quick, make them thank me!"
Xiao You Ran: ……
Did you contribute anything?
However, she still said, "If you really want to thank me, just say, 'Thank you, baby.'"
Song Jia Silang had learned about Xiao Youran's tricks from the porridge stall in the east of the city. Although he didn't understand why the young county princess was so insistent on "thanking this baby," they simply obeyed her orders.
Then four clear voices rang out, "Thank you, baby."
It feels so incongruous to thank myself.
Xiao You Ran only heard four "ding ding ding" sounds, like heavenly music.
The little notebook shone even more alluringly, now displaying more than seven colors. Then, an even more flamboyant line of text appeared: "It's already 5 o'clock! Keep it up! I believe in you, Master!"
Xiao You Ran: ……
I don't need your approval, thank you.
It took me so much effort to earn these few points of gratitude. Do you know how hard it was for me?
After thanking him, Song Dalang took his three younger brothers to continue working.
He easily lifted a large log, then directed Erlang and Sanlang to carry two large baskets of blue bricks, and had the youngest Silang carry a bag of sand.
The four young boys swaggered forward, attracting countless stares.
After observing for a while, Yu Shier stood in front of Xiao Youran and said, "Little County Princess."
Xiao Youran looked at the phoenix feather embroidery on his chest with great delight, "Chicken Wing Bro, what's up?"
Yu Twelve didn't know why the young county princess was so happy to keep calling him Chicken Wing Bro, but business was important. "Those four brothers from earlier are naturally strong and genuinely grateful to you. They would be very suitable to be trained as your personal guards. Master mentioned before that he would look for an opportunity to train a few more loyal and capable guards around you. How about... you take those four brothers under your command?"
Xiao Youran's eyes widened. "You mean...you're planning to train those four to be my people?"
She emphasized the word "I".
Yu Shier nodded firmly, "Yes!"
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