Chapter 37 Jade Beauty Kills Four Square Beile Ye Supports Her
It was late at night and Yuyan fell into a deep sleep.
Yinzhen hasn't fallen asleep yet.
He looked at her beautiful face quietly. Fu Jin's peaceful and beautiful sleeping face made Yinzhen feel calmer and calmer.
His eyes were gentle.
People in later generations?
Recalling his previous conversation with Fujin, Yinzhen heard these words.
When Yinzhen first heard Fujin's thoughts, he was shocked, but now he is much calmer.
What else is unacceptable?
Perhaps, I had guessed it when I saw her face become so different.
Perhaps some people's temperament changes drastically after they recover from an illness, but it is very rare for the change to be so drastic.
Besides, Yuyan never thought about hiding anything. She was open and honest. She didn't seem to be afraid of being caught at all.
Yinzhen never thought of arresting her.
Yinzhen was thinking that he was just guessing at first, and he couldn't hear Fujin's thoughts completely, and sometimes he was right and sometimes he wasn't. Many times he probably didn't hear what Fujin was thinking.
It seems that he can only hear it when he is allowed to listen. But how can he be allowed to listen?
He is not quite sure.
This was not the first time that Yu Yan had exposed her true identity in her heart. She was so active in her heart, she must have thought about a lot of things long ago.
But it was not until more than half a year later that Yinzhen was able to hear her true feelings.
He guessed that it would take time, and it would also require Yuyan to let down her guard, and the relationship between the two of them would need to get closer.
What kind of afterlife is it?
It was difficult for Yinzhen to piece together the fragments of words in Yuyan's mind.
It is even more difficult to clearly understand what kind of person she is and why she is here through the fleeting glimpses of happiness in Yuyan's mind.
Yinzhen really wanted to know. He wanted to know everything about her.
This was a blessing bestowed upon him by God. If she had not come, how could he have taken a path completely different from that recorded in history?
That's a good thing.
Yinzhen's heart was calmer than ever before. Clearing away all distracting thoughts, he moved closer to her, kissed her lips gently, and fell asleep.
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The Cao family and the Li family held the banquet together.
Cao Yin's wife was a girl from the Li family, and Li Xu's wife was a girl from the Han family.
The banquet was held in the Cao family's house.
They invited Yuyan to come over, and those who accompanied her were all young wives of officials.
Watching plays, listening to music and appreciating flowers are all very elegant pastimes.
This is also the daily life of the wives of officials in Jiangnan.
There were no older women attending the banquet this time. Most of them were younger wives of officials, and they were basically the same age as Yuyan.
Yuyan could see that the distribution of age levels was all controlled by the Cao family.
The banquet was hosted by Mr. Li, which means that it was carefully arranged by Mr. Li.
Before Yuyan came to the banquet, she took a quick look at the list of officials from the highest to the lowest level in the four provinces of Jiangnan.
Time was limited and she could not memorize more, so she focused on memorizing the officials in Suzhou and Hangzhou, as well as the salt officials in charge of salt affairs in Lianghuai, all of which were closely related to Yinzhen's job.
If she wanted to find a way to deal with the mundane affairs in the Jiangnan officialdom, she would definitely know everything, but since Yinzhen was here, she didn't have to go far away.
You need to know the officials' preferences and resumes, as well as the women around them and their preferences. Knowing yourself and your enemy will ensure you are invincible when attending a banquet.
Yinzhen lived up to her expectations and even got portraits of the women around the officials so that she could remember them more intuitively.
I have to say that the artist who painted this portrait is really amazing. After seeing the portrait, when I see the person in person now, I can remember exactly what he is like.
She has an excellent memory, and her years of working on the front line and in leadership positions in hospitals have enabled her to quickly master these things.
He knew everyone at the banquet at once.
After understanding the situation, Yuyan understood Li's intentions even better.
Li had put a lot of thought into selecting the people. Not only were the people present young and lively, but they were all wives of officials, and they were all wives of officials involved in Yinzhen's mission.
This is to bring people along to test her.
It seemed that she had the highest status at the scene, but they were outnumbered and had great power, and they had sent so many expensive gifts, probably because they were really determined to pry her mouth open.
Yuyan curled her lips slightly, she didn't intend to keep her mouth shut.
Li and Han accompanied Yuyan on either side. Seeing Si Fujin smile, they both felt relieved.
It is said that the Fourth Prince is the iron-faced King Yan who is difficult to please, and the Fourth Fujin has a reputation for being upright and serious.
They were quite nervous about hosting this banquet, fearing that Si Fujin would not come to the banquet.
With their family background, they had close ties with the royal family. The Cao family was the one who drove the emperor on his annual southern tours, and the princes naturally maintained good relations with them as well.
It would be easy for the subordinates to find out the preferences of the princes and concubines because of such a relationship, but it was just that the Fourth Beile and the Fourth Concubine were not known what they liked.
The fourth prince was the iron-faced Prince Yan, and no one dared to provoke him. The fourth Fu Jin was sick and weak and rarely went out, so he didn't know how to please the outside world.
Fortunately, Li spent a lot of effort, mobilized his old connections in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and had close contacts with the capital, so he was able to find out some information.
In the spring, after Si Fujin recovered from his illness, he went out for a walk. He was no longer as sick as before. Although I don't know what Si Fujin likes, it's always right to make it lively and festive.
The emperor left in anger, and the Cao family could breathe a sigh of relief.
My husband meant that we just need to serve the Fourth Prince and the Fourth Prince well. The task of collecting the money fell on the Fourth Prince, and if the Emperor did not give any orders, they would just hide and let the Fourth Prince do it himself.
Inviting Si Fujin to the banquet was to test the waters and to show our attitude, to welcome Si Fujin back to Suzhou Xiaozhu, but as for other matters, the Cao family is powerless and cannot help.
The Cao family is also in a difficult situation, and they have no choice.
The Cao family can't make a breakthrough, let alone other people. We still have to rely on the Fourth Prince to take charge of the situation.
Now that I see Si Fujin is enjoying the show, it will be easier to talk to him when the banquet starts.
Jiangnan cuisine is exquisite.
The economy and culture here are very developed.
In fact, they have developed very quickly. Yu Yan has a lot of help in this. The development of Angel's Wings and Moon-like Scar has made the machinery manufacturing industry flourish. However, due to Kangxi's wishes, the prosperity is also a private prosperity.
But this is actually something that cannot be controlled at all.
The machine manufacturing industry is now mixed with the manual manufacturing industry and is difficult to separate. The vested interests include the bureaucratic groups in Jiangnan. In order to protect their own interests and convenience, they will not and dare not report the incident.
Yinzhen told her that some bold businessmen had already started to get involved in the machinery manufacturing industry. Without the endorsement of the government, they were tempted by the huge profits and would take action sooner or later.
Yinzhen meant to wait and see what would happen. Yuyan didn't say anything at the time, but she was thinking that she should wait and see.
Who knows what will happen if there are no restrictions? This is a new situation.
After enjoying great convenience in life, what they pursue is a life with both material and spiritual abundance.
To enjoy, to be refined.
Music of stringed instruments, delicacies from land and sea, if it weren't for what they were wearing, Yuyan would even feel like she was still living in modern times.
This kind of extravagant life has been the same since ancient times.
"I heard that not only Lord Cao, but Lord Li has also been feeling unwell."
Yuyan smiled, looked at the official's wife who happened to meet her eyes, and said with a smile, "Lord Yan Zhengsun, it seems that he is also sick?"
She smiled with a gentle expression, and from the beginning of the banquet until now, she had been gentle and warm, making people feel like they were in a spring breeze. Everyone was thinking, it was great that Si Fujin was so approachable and easy to get along with now.
When these words came out, everyone's heart skipped a beat, and they felt that Si Fujin was not like that. She was smiling, but the light in her eyes was very cold, like a sword, piercing people's hearts.
The official's wife on the opposite side seemed to feel guilty. She lowered her head and did not dare to look at Yu Yan.
Li poured wine for Yuyan: "Fujinrong, everyone was busy because of the emperor's arrival a few days ago. I'm not afraid of Fujin's jokes. They all said they were strong and could handle the busy schedule. But the emperor still fell ill after returning to the capital."
Yuyan said, "The person is sick. You don't even take care of your husband. Why are you holding a banquet here? Are you celebrating your husband's illness?"
Yuyan's words were merciless, but she said them with a smile, which made everyone shocked. No one expected Si Fujin to say that.
Si Fujin is upright and serious, how could he be such a person who speaks without restraint and without scruples?
Yuyan saw that they were surprised but trying to hide it, and she smiled happily in her heart.
After watching a whole day of plays and eating a lot of delicacies, Yuyan was tired of watching and eating, and was too lazy to accompany them in the play anymore.
How could Li control the pace of this banquet and the plot of the test?
Li was stunned and smiled bitterly, "Only Fu Jin has the heart of a bodhisattva to think of this. If it were someone else, they would never think this way."
"We are all women, and we don't know much about the principles. We just know the rules of the officialdom. If our husbands don't give us orders, we will know it ourselves. Prince and Fu Jin are staying in Jiangnan. If we don't say anything, and the news gets out, our backs will be broken."
These words were said in an extremely humble manner.
Yuyan could hear her skill in confusing right and wrong.
Yuyan also laughed and said, "So you guys have to pretend to be strong even if your face is swollen, and you have to do enough superficial work. If you do it well, it will be spread that I ignored the illness of the adults and still went to the banquet, and the prince didn't care about you. Everyone in the Jiangnan officialdom is sick, but the prince is not forgiving and insists on collecting the losses. If this is not ignorance, what is it?"
Li looked terrified: "Fujin, this is not what we meant!"
The Cao family was Kangxi's slave, and Li Xu was also Kangxi's slave.
They only kneel to Kangxi and listen to Kangxi.
So what if the Fourth Prince is a prince? Cao Yin and Li Xu are officials now, and the female relatives present are all official relatives. Yinzhen is not the leader of the Eight Banners, so there is no need for him to kneel, let alone for them to kneel to Yuyan.
Unless Yinzhen got hold of something against them, Cao Yin and Li Xu would have to kneel.
When Yuyan pointed it out, Li and others were terrified, but they just apologized and told Yuyan that they had never meant that and asked Si Fujin not to think that way.
Yuyan sighed in her heart and decided to give them a big one.
Yuyan had just eaten her fill and did not want the person arranged by Li to serve her. Xiaohong came over and quietly helped Yuyan wash her hands and got herself dressed.
Yu Yan went straight to the first seat in the hall and sat down, staring at the officials and their wives who were attending the banquet in the room.
They didn't know what Yuyan was going to do, and didn't understand why Si Fujin left early.
None of them moved, but they all looked at Yuyan, because they had heard the conversation between Yuyan and Li just now, and there was hidden anxiety in their eyes.
They thought that the banquet was going to be a great success and should be proceeding in the way they had planned, but how come the situation suddenly changed?
Yuyan saw everyone's reactions. She was certainly not worried about what these women would do. Before she came, Yinzhen had made all the arrangements in secret, otherwise he would not have let her come at ease.
Yuyan is now thinking, why does our prince have to be so busy and nagging all by himself? Is there no one else in the entire Qing Dynasty who can take on this responsibility?
Yuyan's gaze was fixed on Li's face.
Cao Yin was almost entirely the work of the literati in Jiangnan, and Li was not an unknown person.
Yu Yan smiled slightly and said, "In the 40th year of Kangxi, the 41st year was reimbursed for the official use of the government and the silver allocated by the Ministry of Finance, with a total of 58,212 taels, 3 qian and 3 fen, and the remaining silver was 46,978 taels, 6 qian and 7 fen; in the 41st year of Kangxi, the 42nd year was reimbursed for the official use of the government and the silver allocated by the Ministry of Finance, with a total of 58,212 taels, 3 qian and 3 fen, and the remaining silver was 46,978 taels, 6 qian and 7 fen; in the 42nd year of Kangxi, the 43rd year was reimbursed for the official use of the government and the silver allocated by the Ministry of Finance, with a total of 46,978 taels, 6 qian and 7 fen. The amount of silver retained by the emperor and the government and the silver allocated by the Ministry of Finance was 57,733 taels, 3 qian and 3 fen, leaving 47,266 taels, 6 qian and 7 fen; in the 43rd and 44th years of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, 61,479 taels, 7 qian and 9 fen and 6 li were reimbursed for the amount of silver retained by the emperor and the government and the silver allocated by the Ministry of Finance, leaving 43,520 taels, 2 qian and 4 li... In the past ten years, the total amount of silver remaining was 386,841 taels, 9 qian, 2 fen, 3 li and 4 hao.
"But there is no storage, which means Cao Yin lost everything."
"According to the confession: When Cao Yin was managing the salt tax, he used the excess silver he should have received in the 34th, 39th, 41st, and 43rd years of the reign of Emperor Kangxi to compensate for the merchants' debts of 1,160,000 taels. During Cao Yin's tenure, since the 35th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, all the surplus silver he received from merchants was used for emergency purposes in advance, so he exchanged 70 taels for 100 taels, or 80 or 90 taels for 100 taels. The scale was small, so only 94 taels were given for every 100 taels. Cao Yin used full silver to compensate for the merchants and exchanged the full amount. In total, 378,800 taels were shortchanged, and the merchants should compensate and repay the national treasury."
"Mrs. Cao, do you think I am wrong?"
This is a loss of nearly two million taels, and this is only part of the items, not all of them.
This does not include the money Cao Yin borrowed and embezzled from salt merchants and government treasury during his several southern tours. If all of this is added up, a conservative estimate would be three to four million taels of silver.
In fact, the investigation on Yinzhen has not yet been fully launched.
They came to test him simply because the investigation had not yet begun. They refused to cooperate in the hope that Yinzhen could fool them and then everyone would be happy.
In fact, even Kangxi might not know exactly how much money Cao Yin had lost.
Because Cao Yin didn't dare to say it at all. He didn't dare to tell Kangxi all these items. Kangxi wouldn't blame him, but it was difficult to make up for such a large number.
Kangxi knew that Cao Yin was in trouble, so he covered up for him in the past few years, allowing him to stay in the position of Lianghuai Inspector of Salt and Salt, and let him supplement his income with money.
But how can such a huge deficit be made up so easily? Not to mention making up for it every year and then losing money every year.
If Cao Yin does this, the snowball of losses will only get bigger.
Then one day, Cao Yin felt that there was no other way out, and even counting on the emperor was of no use, so he simply cancelled the deal.
Only Cao Yin knew how much he had lost and how the accounts were calculated. Even Li Xu might not know.
The public accounts of the government office cannot be trusted, Cao Yin must have had private accounts. This account can only be kept by Cao Yin, and I am afraid that even Li has never seen it.
Yuyan relied on her extraordinary memory to know everything. When the elders in the family were still alive, she knew her family's origins when the family tree was compiled one year.
At that time, the hospital's business was not so busy. She was really curious, so she ran to the old house at home and returned to the ancestral land with the elders of the family.
They visited old places and imagined the glory of the family in the past.
Yuyan went directly to the library to look through the county annals and found the record of her ancestors serving as officials.
After flipping through the books, I came across the records of my ancestor's service as an official during the reign of Emperor Kangxi.
I happened to be in Jiangnan, where I was a colleague of Cao Yin and Li Xu. However, my ancestors were very proud of themselves, so they moved to another place within a year. I just watched Cao Yin and Li Xu's flowers bloom and the fire boiled oil.
Of course Yuyan will not go looking for her ancestors now. Everyone should live their own lives.
At that time, she was so curious and energetic that she thoroughly looked up the records of her ancestors' official duties and the events that happened in those years.
She had just seen the memorial about Cao Yin and Li Xu being confiscated by Emperor Yongzheng, and then she memorized it by heart.
I thought she had forgotten it after reading it, but when I searched her memory, I found that she actually memorized it.
What should she be thankful for? She should be thankful for her parents’ strict teaching when she was young. It is not difficult for her to memorize.
Yuyan was sure that she was now carrying Cao Yin's private account.
What came out of her mouth entered the ears of so many people. Every one of the people in front of her was implicated and no one could escape.
I am afraid that before tomorrow, Cao Yin’s private accounts will be spread tonight, and everyone will know that the losses from the salt tax in Lianghuai are huge.
Li's face turned pale, and Han could hardly sit still.
What is Si Fujin talking about? How did Si Fujin know about her husband's private account, and how did he know it in such detail?
Could it be that the Fourth Prince has already investigated all the losses and obtained solid evidence?
But even if we don't have any hard evidence, if we write down the accounts and check them one by one, everything will become clear.
Everyone looked pale. It was over, all over.
Li and Han looked at each other, and Li immediately stood up and said to Yuyan, "Please come to the inner hall to talk to me."
Han also stood up. There were many people present, and she had to pacify these women and not let anyone go out and talk nonsense.
The maid beside Li came over and whispered, "Madam, the Fourth Prince is here. Prince said he is here to take Fu Jin home."
They dared not not come to report. The guards brought by the Fourth Prince surrounded the Cao family with ferocious looks.
It seemed that if Si Fujin was not invited out, Si Beile would bring people to force his way in.
Yuyan smiled brightly upon hearing this: "Madam Cao, let's talk about this another day. Our Prince is still waiting for me to go home with him. Bye."
Li didn't dare to stop, and she knew she couldn't stop.
I was unwilling in my heart, but I was more afraid.
She invited Si Fujin to the inner hall for a talk, not because she wanted to do anything to him.
This matter is really too serious for her to make the decision. She must first stabilize Si Fujin and then ask her husband to solve the problem. But now, she can only respectfully send Si Fujin out.
After Yuyan left, Li hurried to look for Cao Yin and her brother Li Xu, while Han stayed to stabilize the situation.