Granny Gao hurriedly wiped away her tears and said, "Your Majesty, on the roster, we old servants only receive one tael of monthly pay, while the cooks in the manor receive five taels and the maids receive two taels. But we are not picky and do not care, as long as we can serve the Prince well."
Now he seemed even more loyal, not caring about the money, only wanting to cook for Sheng Jingyu.
The emperor repeatedly flipped through this register and then closed it again.
The Empress said with pity, "Your Majesty, these old women have served in the mansion for many years without ever receiving a raise in their monthly wages, yet they still serve you wholeheartedly. This shows their loyalty."
"They just want to repay Consort Yu's kindness. Why shouldn't we grant their request? Besides, they are all old servants in the household and are used to Jingyu's food and drink."
The Emperor sighed as he thought of the deceased Consort Yu.
He abandoned the idea of punishing them and even developed some resentment towards Su Wenyuan.
The old people who have been employed in the mansion for so many years, how could they not be satisfied with a slight increase in their monthly salary?
He's still young and not very smart.
“Since it was left behind by Consort Yu, she won’t feel at ease if you leave. Princess Chen, there aren’t many people in the Prince’s mansion, so there’s no need for two kitchens. If you like those cooks, you can combine them into one place, but the monthly salary must be the same.”
The emperor returned the list and delivered a verdict in the case.
The old women breathed a sigh of relief at the same time. Old Granny Gao hadn't felt this happy in a long time. She looked at Su Wenyuan with a smug expression.
The Empress was also pleased, but she was still too inexperienced to be in charge of the Prince Chen's residence.
Sheng Jingyu thought Su Wenyuan was out of options and was about to speak when he saw Su Wenyuan calmly stand up.
She walked to the emperor's side, took the register, and handed him an account book, which was still open.
"If Your Majesty wishes to use them, I have no objection, but please read this account before making a decision."
The Emperor casually took it, intending to perfunctorily flip through a few pages and then let it go.
It's not uncommon for subordinates to embezzle; most people just turn a blind eye and let it go. Why bother making a fuss about it?
Su Wenyuan also saw through the Emperor's attitude and added, "They haven't received a raise in their monthly wages over the years, but the amount of silver they've embezzled is no small sum."
The emperor flipped through the documents with little interest, and before he had finished reading them, several more testimonies were presented to him.
“They were beaten yesterday, and this morning I found out that it was all the servants in the manor, except for those in the kitchen. They have been withholding everyone’s monthly wages for years.”
"They even cheated their superiors and withheld food. If these people in the manor wanted to eat something good, they had to find a way to bribe them! They all harbored resentment, which is why they took action against them."
Su Wenyuan didn't just wait idly all morning.
They found a few efficient people and got all the bad things they had done over the years out of them.
"They would rather not have their monthly allowance than leave. Does Father think it's out of gratitude?" Su Wenyuan questioned.
The emperor showed little reaction to the account books, but his anger grew as he looked at the testimonies presented.
How could a few old women have been able to commit evil deeds in the mansion for so many years?
Without needing any prompting, Granny Gao retorted directly, "Slander! It's all slander! The Emperor can't believe it. The Princess Consort doesn't like us and has brought some false testimonies to slander us."
The others also stubbornly denied it, but if it were true, nothing they said would matter.
The Emperor looked at the testimonies with a troubled expression. Now everyone was giving their own version of events, and it would take some effort to investigate.
It's just a matter between the servants in the mansion, why make such a big fuss? The emperor must have too much free time.
As for the account books, the Emperor only glanced at them before putting them down.
Given the Emperor's attitude, Su Wenyuan was also anxious. Verifying the testimony wasn't difficult; she just needed to find two people to go to Prince Chen's residence.
But the emperor couldn't just wait there all the way back and forth.
The Empress noticed the stalemate and suggested, "Since there are objections to this matter, let's investigate it thoroughly before making a decision. Your Majesty, please go back and rest. I will take care of it."
Su Wenyuan's face was grim. If the matter were handed over to the Empress for investigation, it would be covered up in a muddled way.
After that, Granny Gao and the others became more restrained in their behavior, and she couldn't find anything wrong with them, so she couldn't chase them away!
The emperor also began to consider leaving, and just as he was about to take the opportunity to depart, he heard Sheng Jingyu, who had been silent all along, let out a long sigh.
The Emperor had almost forgotten about him. After he came in, he said one sentence on behalf of Su Wenyuan, and then said nothing more.
“Jingyu, what do you think we should do about this? The old women don’t believe what the princess said, saying that the princess is slandering her.”
Sheng Jingyu smiled bitterly and said, "My first reaction was also disbelief. They were all sent by my mother, so I naturally trust them. But what Father is looking at is something I heard with my own ears, and all the servants in the mansion can testify to it."
Even though Sheng Jingyu testified, the Empress still felt the evidence was insufficient.
"Perhaps the people in the manor are afraid of you. They just go along with whatever the princess asked!" The empress accused Su Wenyuan of coercing and inducing her to confess.
The Emperor fell into deep thought. Sheng Jingyu's eyes flashed, and then she said quietly, "Isn't there still the account book? So many old accounts from years ago, which the Princess Consort has been investigating for many days."
"Thanks to Your Highness, I now know that the servants in the manor have been taking advantage of my blindness and acted with impunity. Since I can't see, they can hide it from me however they want."
The moment the word "blind" was uttered, everyone was stunned.
Sheng Jingyu was quite averse to this matter and rarely mentioned it.
Upon hearing this, the emperor felt a pang of heartache, and his anger flared up.
He picked up the ledger that had been put down again.
Everyone else can be greedy, but the people in Prince Chen's mansion cannot, simply because Sheng Jingyu cannot see it.
The Empress's face darkened, realizing that Sheng Jingyu was once again favoring Su Wenyuan.
"Do you all admit it or not? If you don't, I'll send people to investigate. Once the investigation is complete, you'll all be executed!" The Emperor was so angry that he walked right up to them and kicked them several times.
Su Wenyuan felt a little uneasy when she returned to Sheng Jingyu's side.
Although Sheng Jingyu spoke nonchalantly about his blindness, this act of reopening old wounds must have made him uncomfortable.
We shouldn't have let Sheng Jingyu come today.
Seeing that the Emperor was angry and intended to investigate thoroughly, the group had no intention of hiding anything anymore.
"Your Majesty, we were just confused for a moment..."
"Your Majesty, spare my life! I admit that I have taken some money over the years, but it was all given to me by her!"
"My money was also meager, and I didn't take much, nor did I ask the servants in the mansion for any money."
They started implicating each other, and before long, they all confessed. The testimony that Su Wenyuan submitted was without any problems.
See, it's such a simple matter, but the Emperor cares. He can find out the answer with just one sentence.
The Emperor was furious and shouted, "How dare you even mention repaying a debt of gratitude? Is this how you repay a debt of gratitude?"
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