Chapter 773: The Next Six Parts, Finding Out the Bottom Line

Zhou Shuren took a quick look and thought, no wonder Mr. Xiao was angry. This time, for the purchase of grain and resettlement construction in the south, the Ministry of Revenue's money was flowing out like water. Now, every time a sum of money was spent, the adults felt pain.

Xiao Qing gritted his teeth and said, "Ministry of Personnel officials, bah."

He really wanted to raid the homes of some officials in the Ministry of Personnel, these fat rats!

Zhou Shuren knew that the Shangshu would not agree, so he put it aside and stopped paying attention to it, asking, "Sir, you asked us to come here, but do you have something to tell us?"

Xiao Qing, "I was so angry with the Ministry of Personnel that I almost forgot my business. I have asked the emperor for a half-month leave. I will go back to my hometown tomorrow. You two must guard the Ministry of Revenue while I am away."

Speaking of asking for leave, Xiao Qing's mood improved. Since he became the Minister of Revenue, this was the second time he had asked for leave in so many years, and it was a half-month long leave. This time he was able to take the leave thanks to Zhou Shuren, who was not young anymore. This time he could finally go back to his hometown to arrange his future affairs.

Qiu Yan's heart tightened. This month, Zhou Shuren attended court while the Shangshu Lord was away. Wasn't it that Zhou Shuren was the only one attending court? The emperor had always paid attention to Zhou Shuren, and this time Zhou Shuren was even more conspicuous. Qiu Yan felt that his luck was very bad, so he tried his luck. "Sir, don't worry, I and Lord Zhou will take good care of the Ministry of Revenue."

Zhou Shuren felt a little dizzy. Lord Xiao was not in the Ministry of Revenue, and it was not the morning court session, so the ministers of various ministries came to see him. The thought of it made his scalp tingle.

Xiao Qing continued, "As for the expenditures of the Ministry of Revenue, everything will be discussed after I return. You can delay as much as possible. If you really can't delay, it must be allowed by the emperor. Qiu Yan, you have been in the Ministry of Revenue for a long time, so the Ministry of Revenue will be handed over to you. Shu Ren, you help Qiu Yan."

Qiu Yan didn't think being in charge of the Ministry of Revenue was a good job. He was in charge, which meant he was the one who offended people, but Zhou Shuren had just arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, so he couldn't give in. Giving in would prove that he was incompetent, and it would mean that he had completely submitted to Zhou Shuren and would have to follow Zhou Shuren's lead in the future. He was really in a dilemma. He held his breath and lowered his head and said, "Yes."

Zhou Shuren didn't think that he could relax just because Qiu Yan was in charge. The ministers of various departments were old foxes. Just thinking about it gave him a headache. "Yes."

Xiao Qing explained some more things, and temporarily handed the seal of the Ministry of Revenue to Qiu Yan. Finally, he said, "I will leave first. See you in half a month."

After saying this, he left without any regrets.

Zhou Shuren silently watched Mr. Xiao walk out with big strides. It was as if the burden on his shoulders was gone, and he walked in a very comfortable pace.

The corners of Qiu Yan's mouth twitched. For some reason he also wanted to take a leave!

In the evening, Zhu Lan learned that the Minister of Revenue had asked for leave, and patted Zhou Shuren on the shoulder sympathetically, "With capable subordinates, the Minister dared to ask for leave. You did a great job."

If the Ministry of Revenue is still short of money and has to live in misery, Lord Xiao would not dare to ask for leave. When it comes to the importance of a capable assistant, Lord Xiao's asking for leave is proof of that!

Zhou Shuren, "......."

He also felt that it was his fault. After Lord Xiao left, Lord Qiu often sighed at him!

Zhulan sympathized with Zhou Shuren, and then told him about the discovery of Yao Houfu, "I think Yao Er Xiaojie's brother, Yao San Gongzi, is just pretending to be stupid."

"How do you know?"

"I've observed that Yao Yao is too calm. The calmer he is, the more it indicates that there is a problem. It's possible that Third Master Yao suddenly became stupid because he listened to Yao Yao's words."

This Second Miss Yao has always had a strong sense of crisis and has done many things to prepare for a rainy day.

Zhou Shuren pondered, "It seems that this Second Miss Yao must have discovered something. Even if she hasn't discovered it, she has noticed something."

Zhulan, "I guess so. I see that County Lord Shen doesn't believe it and keeps testing him."

"County Lord Shen is not a simple person. The Yaohou Mansion is really a place of trouble."

Zhulan put down the comb in her hand and said, "In a few days, someone should propose marriage for Yushuang, so you should pay more attention to her."

"I've made a note of that."

Zhulan was really sleepy. She had stayed in Yao Hou Mansion for a long time today and she was very tired.

The next day, during the morning court session, Zhou Shuren went alone. Although he did not stand in the front, Lord Xiao's seat was empty, so he became quite conspicuous.

Zhou Shuren felt the scrutiny and thought to himself, these people are very well-informed. Since they know the reason, why are they still looking at him?

He was more concerned that the Crown Prince had finally come to court.

Zhou Shuren was particularly excited. The Crown Prince's attendance at court meant that Sun Liao's matter had a result. Compared with the Crown Prince, Lord Xiao's absence from court was a small matter.

Zhang Jinghong submitted a memorial, "Mr. Sun's crimes have been thoroughly investigated. Your Majesty, please make a judgment."

The Emperor already knew the contents of the letter, so he pretended to glance at it, put it down and said, "Prince, do you have anything to say?"

The prince said expressionlessly, "I have nothing to say. I hope your Majesty will make the decision."

The emperor glanced indifferently at his other sons, who were all standing there in silence. They were so happy in their hearts that Sun Liao's case had a result. They wanted to seriously injure the prince, but they didn't even put on an act. They were still too naive.

Zhang Jinghong was trembling in his heart. He had received a hint to investigate impartially, so he dared not not investigate. After thinking for a while, he said, "I think the Crown Prince is not clear about this. It is all Sun Liao who is so audacious that he deceives his superiors and deceives his subordinates. I hope the Emperor will understand."

The emperor took another look at Zhang Jinghong. He used to be full of flaws, but now that he knows his true identity, he has become more clear-headed. "Do you have anything else to say?"

Lord Qi stepped forward and said, "I feel that the Crown Prince has been wronged. I hope Your Majesty will give me your wise judgment."

Zhou Shuren was surprised that Lord Qi, who was just in the background, spoke, and then fell silent. He understood thoroughly that Lord Qi was the emperor's iron-fisted supporter, and he would do whatever the emperor told him to do. He first spoke for him, and now he was cooperating with the emperor and the prince in acting.

Afterwards, the ministers all realized that the emperor had deep feelings for the prince. Those who stood on his side understood that it was impossible to overthrow the prince all at once, and more and more ministers spoke up for the prince.

Your Majesty, "The Crown Prince is right, but he is also responsible for failing to supervise properly. The Crown Prince should put down the political affairs at hand and learn again."

"Your son obeys your order."

Some of the ministers in the court could not turn back. What did it mean to learn again? What did they learn?

Afterwards, all the ministers knew what to study, and the prince followed the Minister of Personnel to the Ministry of Personnel.

Zhou Shuren was in a good mood as he watched the Crown Prince getting into the Minister of Personnel's carriage. What was he talking about relearning? The Crown Prince had actually gone to the six ministries himself to get a general understanding, which showed that the Emperor didn't trust anyone.

The prince personally investigated the situation and sympathized with the Ministry of Personnel. The application for silver had just been sent to the Ministry of Revenue. Where did the silver received last time go? This time the Ministry of Personnel had run into trouble.

Minister of War, Lord Li, "The carriage of the Ministry of Personnel has gone far away, why don't you get on the carriage?"

Zhou Shuren greeted him, "Master Li."

Lord Li sighed, "Xiao Qing really trusted the Ministry of Revenue. He really took leave when he said he would let me go."

Zhou Shuren wanted to get on the carriage, "Sir Li, the Ministry of Revenue still has something waiting for me, so I will go first."

Mr. Li patted Zhou Shuren on the shoulder and said, "Okay, you go first."

Zhou Shuren staggered down. The force was so great that his shoulders and the corners of his mouth were pulled onto the carriage.

It was almost noon when Xue Han came back with her two nieces. Zhu Lan asked, "Why did you come to my place instead of going back to the yard to change clothes and eat?"

Xue Han explained, "Today when we went to the Meng family, you know that Miss Liu didn't get along with my daughter. She told my daughter that it's okay and that I don't care, but she told Yu Shuang that it's rare for the Zhou family to have a beautiful woman, and the Zhou family won't easily let her go. Yu Shuang was going to marry into a rich family. I got angry when I heard that, so I had a quarrel with her. So I came back to tell you first, so that if the Liu family comes to your house, you can know the reason."

Zhulan said to her good friend, "It's not just a quarrel!"

Yu Lu answered, "My aunt said Miss Liu was crying. Miss Liu ran too fast and fell down."

I was really enlightened today. My aunt was very rude to me and every word she said was harsh. Miss Liu was so embarrassed that she ran away and fell down. I guess Miss Liu won't go out for a while.

One chapter, now I’m going to sleep. Two chapters will be updated tomorrow at noon. If I get up early, I will update as early as today.

(End of this chapter)