55: Lord Wang, we meet again.

"Wait, why are you here again?"

Lu Qianyuan had just finished assembling his men when he saw Mo Yingqi approaching, already dressed in his flying fish robe and carrying his family's japanese sword.

Before he could finish, Fang Wenbo shoved him. "Stop talking nonsense. It's The Emperor's will. Mo Yingqi is participating in the investigation of the corrupt officials on this list, but only for today."

"You don't seem happy about it. If it weren't for... never mind. Commander Qianhu, what's going on?"

In the past, Mo Yingqi actively participated in official duties because he wanted to be promoted quickly.

But it was different now. When he heard he was being sent away from the Princesss Residence to perform official duties, it was like receiving a pardon!

Although he wasn't tired or sick of it at all, he still needed to... get some fresh air, right?

"Minister Shen submitted an urgent memorial containing evidence of corruption among officials in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region, along with a list." Fang Wenbo rubbed his temples.

"Out of ten, at least nine are related to Grand Chancellor Zhou, and the remaining one... even if they aren't his Disciples, they are still somewhat connected."

"There aren't many people, and the officials vary in rank. The problem is that after all this, I'm afraid the The Emperor has completely broken ties with Grand Chancellor Zhou."

"It is said that Grand Chancellor Zhou left with a dark expression after court today."

Mo Yingqi wasn't surprised. Regarding the matter of establishing the Crown Prince, Zhou Chutian was the one who lacked virtue first.

Since you wanted to incite the princes and the families behind them to stir up trouble, then the other side would directly make you lose face.

Anyway, it was true that the border needed military pay, but the question was, could the national treasury not afford it? How could that be possible?

Since the founding of the Daxing Dynasty, the Great Ancestor pacified the world, continued to wage war abroad, emphasized domestic development, and pioneered overseas trade, doing business with foreigners while learning technologies that the Daxing Dynasty lacked.

The monarchs through the ages might have had their struggles, but from the Great Ancestor to the present, the Daxing Dynasty implemented various new policies that previous dynasties didn't have. The country was rich and the people strong, and the national treasury was becoming increasingly full, not to mention the help and coordination from Partridge Sky in the shadows.

But the problem was, the The Emperor's intention was... why should this money come from the national treasury?

And don't even think about increasing taxes to clear the border.

What was Shen Xian doing, acting so drastically in the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region?

It was to extract military funds from these corrupt officials.

When the common people face disasters or hardships, it can come from the national treasury, as much as needed.

When there is war at the border, it's actually the same treatment.

But this time it was different. You're corrupt, right? Then you pay for the military funds!

And today in the imperial court, the The Emperor directly stated: "If there's too much, I won't return it; if there's too little, I will make up the difference!"

"Well, that's something... I'm quite good at." Mo Yingqi thought for a moment and suddenly smiled. "Commander Qianhu, if possible, could you let me handle this?"

"Well... that's possible, but you must be careful. The The Emperor doesn't want to wipe them all out at once; some are to be sent to the Imperial Prison, others..."

"Rest assured, I understand." Mo Yingqi waved his hand. "I'm very familiar with this; I already did it back in the Northern Territory."

"Oh... huh?"

Mo Yingqi's words stunned Fang Wenbo, Lu Qianyuan, and Tang Jingzhong.

What do you mean you already did it?

"Anyway, just don't worry about it. This is very simple; just watch me work." Mo Yingqi smiled. "No need to talk about those being sent to the Imperial Prison, Commander Qianhu..."

"I understand that; I've already sent people. The most troublesome ones are those not being sent to the Imperial Prison." Fang Wenbo pointed behind him. "The Pacification Commissioner is currently playing hide-and-seek again, not even showing his face. I'm afraid he's gone to the Grand Chancellor's residence to offer advice, right?"

"But why is the The Emperor going through all this trouble?" Lu Qianyuan couldn't quite understand. "Wouldn't it be better to just send them all to the Imperial Prison?"

"The The Emperor naturally has his reasons for doing this; we just need to do our job well." After saying this, Fang Wenbo looked at the Flying Fish Guard behind him. "Tell the brothers, get ready to move out!"

Except when ordered to confiscate properties, the Pacification Bureau rarely moves out in such a grand manner.

Among the people of the capital, there is a saying: "If you see this group wearing flying fish robes in the daytime, especially in a large group, for those officials, it's like seeing the ghost soldiers passing by in broad daylight!"

"Minister of Rites?" Mo Yingqi saw the first name on the list at a glance—it was the Minister of Rites who had just submitted a memorial requesting The Emperor to establish the Crown Prince early. "Embezzled 5,000 taels of silver?"

"It's a tribute from the Jiangsu and Zhejiang region; this guy took 5,000 taels." Fang Wenbo said with some amusement. "When officials from other provinces come to the capital, the The Emperor and our office usually turn a blind eye to such tributes. Generally, they don't dare to send too much; 1,000 taels is already the limit."

Actually, it's understandable. In terms of the salary issued by the imperial court, even for a first-rank official, it's only two or three hundred taels a year.

Many officials of the Daxing Dynasty are from noble families or have businesses at home. If they occasionally accept such tributes, as long as it's not excessive, the Pacification Bureau pretends not to see it.

As the old saying goes, a horse doesn't get fat without night grass. Especially for officials in the capital, although the Daxing Dynasty is ruthless against corrupt officials, it's not appropriate to not let them have a single bite of meat...

So, accepting some tributes, as long as it's not excessive or flashy, and doesn't interfere with official duties or involve malpractice, it just passes.

Officials from other provinces sending these usually aren't looking for anything major, at most some minor matters regarding promotion or transfer, such as wanting to go to the south, the north, or back to their hometowns.

"And this one transaction was from the year before last." Tang Jingzhong, sitting on his horse, took out the wuchang register and flipped through it. "However, this Minister of Rites used these 5,000 taels to set up some businesses, and in the past two years, he has earned tens of thousands of taels... Commander Qianhu, this isn't much, right? Compared to the ones later on, this Minister of Rites..."

"Deal with him last. Go to the one with the most first." Mo Yingqi thought for a moment. "Who has the most?"

"Lord Wang."

"...There are many Lords with the surname Wang in the capital. Tang Jingzhong, you need to be clearer about this."

"Oh, it's that Lord Wang whose daughter you almost sent to the Bureau of Music and Dance."

Mo Yingqi couldn't help but raise an eyebrow upon hearing this: "Is he afraid his beautiful daughter won't end up in the Bureau of Music and Dance? How much did he embezzle?"

"Nearly 100,000 taels, but that's not the point. The point is that he has two Estates under his name that were bestowed upon his family by the late Emperor." Tang Jingzhong was speechless. "These two Estates have major issues, but the Wang family's situation is special. This Lord Wang's father was the late Emperor's teacher. The The Emperor's intention is to confiscate his property, have Lord Wang himself enter the Imperial Prison, and leave his family members unaffected."

Saying this, Tang Jingzhong looked at Mo Yingqi: "Alright, stop thinking about sending his daughter to the Bureau of Music and Dance. Accumulate some virtue!"

"...I never thought about it from the beginning; I was just trying to scare him, okay?"

Mo Yingqi was genuinely only trying to scare him when he said he would send his daughter to the Bureau of Music and Dance.

But for Lord Wang, that wasn't just scaring him, because the Pacification Bureau really was capable of doing such things.

So when he saw the Flying Fish Guard in his courtyard, especially Mo Yingqi smiling and waving at him, Lord Wang's legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Hello, Lord Wang, we meet again." Mo Yingqi even waved his hand in a slightly punchable way. "People, you just can't look into them too closely. You should know that not only did you harbor the Rebel Prince's family, but you also embezzled and took bribes. Last time, I would have taken you directly to the Imperial Prison."

"So, Lord Wang, the The Emperor gave you a chance... The problem is, you really couldn't grasp it!"