Facing Xie Zhi's questioning, Su Xing pretended to be flustered and said what he had already thought of, "I went into the warehouse to check. The fire was burned very cleanly, and there was an indescribable smell.
The night watchman said the fire started inside the warehouse. But I don't quite understand. Only Shopkeeper Shen has the key to the warehouse, and no one else can get in. How could the warehouse suddenly catch fire for no apparent reason?
Xie Zhi scoffed, "It's on fire inside? Could it be haunted? Isn't there a fireproof water tank in the yard?"
Su Xing shrank his neck and whispered, "There's not much water in the water tank. Manager Shen said that fires usually don't happen in winter."
"He's stupid, so are you? Why do you listen to him in everything? Are you the second in command or his yes-man?"
Su Xing kowtowed repeatedly, "I know I was wrong. Please help me, Master. When Master Shen comes, he will definitely put all the blame on me."
If the chief manager is willing to lend a hand, I, Su Xing, will swear to obey his orders and work solely for him from now on."
The princes competed for the support of court officials, and the managers of a government office also competed for the support of the servants below.
Shen Yi's mother was Duke Lu's wet nurse, and Duke Lu really trusted Shen Yi, otherwise, with his brain, he would not have been able to become the head manager of Baiyi Silk Shop.
There was a hint of amusement in Xie Zhi's eyes. "Haven't you always had a good relationship with Shen Yi?"
Su Xing looked aggrieved. "Manager Chen is the head manager and has the trust of the Duke. If I still want to be the second manager, I can only have a good relationship with him. The head manager should understand this."
“Okay, get up and wait for Shen Yi to come!”
At this time, Shen.Sha.Yi was still crying to Chen Ziyuan in Jingzhao Prefecture, and repeatedly asked Chen Ziyuan to make the decision for him.
Chen Ziyuan, out of respect for Duke Lu, tried to hold back, but finally couldn't. "Shopkeeper Shen, after all you've said, why did Prince Ping burn your shop?"
"Of course it's because Prince Ping and my Duke are at odds. Prince Ping injured my Crown Prince and now he's burned down my shop. Prefect Chen, you must report this to the emperor.
The goods in those three warehouses were all meant to be sold before the Lunar New Year. They were worth over 600,000 silver coins. If they were burned, what would our silk shop sell before the Lunar New Year?
The person Chen Ziyuan sent to invite Chai Shijing came back. It happened to be a day off today, so Chai Shijing came with him.
After everyone saluted, Chai Shijing sat down and asked, "Master Chen, the yamen runner said someone sued me for burning my shop?"
Chen Ziyuan briefly stated Shen Yi's words.
Chai Shijing's expression suddenly turned extremely grim. "A single shop sold over 600,000 taels of silver worth of goods in just over two months. Duke Lu's servants are truly capable. They earned a year's worth of salt profits in just a few months."
Shen Yi then remembered Duke Lu's instructions, and his face suddenly lost all color. God was really going to kill him. "I, I won't sue!" After saying that, he stood up and wanted to leave!
Chai Shijing glanced at Yiming, and Yiming stepped forward and grabbed Shen Yi.
Shen Yi struggled hard, "Isn't it okay if I don't sue? Is Prince Ping going to take people's lives lightly?"
Chai Shijing ignored Chen Yi and turned to ask Chen Ziyuan, "This prince has been wronged by this cunning servant. Now I want to go before His Majesty to make my case. Sir Chen, would you be willing to come with me?"
Could he say no? Chen Ziyuan's smile remained unchanged, "Of course I am willing!"
Chai Shijing instructed Yiming, "You personally send this cunning slave to the cell and keep an eye on him from there."
The people sent by Xie Zhi saw Chai Shijing and Chen Ziyuan coming out of the yamen and getting on the carriage before they arrived at the gate of Jingzhao Prefecture.
He thought to himself that he was a step too late and quickly ran back to report to Xie Zhi.
Xie Zhi felt that things were going to get bad, so he got up and went to find Duke Lu.
Duke Lu first scolded Shen Yi, then changed into court clothes and entered the palace.
The interest on salt has always been a concern for Emperor Jianning. All the salt in Dayong is sold by the government. You can imagine how huge the amount is, but in the end, only a little over 400,000 taels are handed over to the court each year.
Now Chai Shijing told him that he could earn more than 400,000 taels in just a few months from just a silk shop. How could he feel balanced?
Just when he was about to send someone to summon Duke Lu, the young eunuch came to report that Duke Lu had arrived.
After paying his respects to Emperor Jianning, Duke Lu knelt down to apologize to Chai Shijing, "It was your servant who wronged Prince Ping. Please forgive me, Prince Ping. I will rectify the situation when I return and will never cause trouble for Prince Ping again."
Chai Shijing leaned sideways and said, "Duke Lu, please stand up quickly. I cannot accept your generous gift."
Emperor Jianning looked at Li Xi and said, "Go and summon Gao Qi."
Duke Lu didn't dare to stand up or look up. He could probably guess why Gao Qi was summoned.
In recent years, the emperor has always been dissatisfied with Gao Qi because the salt interest was too little. In order to curry favor with him and the prince, Gao Qi gave him a lot of silver, which was all earned through empty pockets.
When Emperor Jianning saw Gao Qi, he could no longer contain his anger. He picked up the memorial on the desk and threw it at Gao Qi, "You useless piece of shit!"
Gao Qi was so frightened that he kept apologizing and looked at Duke Lu from time to time, hoping that Duke Lu would plead for him.
Emperor Jianning threw another memorial, "Gao Qi, I want to ask you, at the beginning of the year, I mentioned to you that I wanted you to renovate the salt farm. Have you done so?"
"It has been rectified. I have already laid off a number of people."
"Rectified? Then why is there no effect? The salt profits in the first eight months are only 2,600 taels more than last year. If you, the Salt and Iron Commissioner, don't want to do this anymore, you can just say so!"
Gao Qi immediately kowtowed and begged for mercy. "Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have been discussing the reform of the salt industry with the people in the Salt and Iron Bureau. Please give me some more time, Your Majesty. I will give you an explanation!"
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