"I have an idea."
"Tell me about it?" Ye Lingfeng became interested. Ling'er's ideas were always good; she was a clever and quick-witted girl.
"You said the annual taxes from the imperial court are quite good, and the harvests in various places are also decent. Although some places have experienced disasters, they shouldn't be as poor as they are now. So tell me, where did all this money go?"
She didn't continue after she finished speaking, but as clever as Ye Lingfeng was, she understood perfectly well.
The money all went into private pockets, and these people were all big corrupt officials. Each of them probably had more money in their own private coffers than the state had. It's outrageous!
"Why doesn't Your Majesty take it from them?"
Ye Lingfeng narrowed his eyes, his gaze filled with a chilling light. He was looking for an excuse to make an example of someone, and he needed money right now, so this was the perfect time. But who should he target first?
Seeing Ye Lingfeng's expression, Hai Ling knew who he was considering targeting, so she gave him a suggestion.
"The Ministry of Revenue has always controlled the nation's silver. When this silver flows out, it inevitably passes through their hands. If you walk by the river often, how can you avoid getting your shoes wet? So..."
Upon hearing this, Ye Lingfeng knew who would be targeted first, and immediately summoned Shi Zhu and Shi Ju, who were outside the door, and gave them orders.
"You two immediately take men to investigate Minister of Revenue Zhou Nian and Vice Minister of Revenue Zhao Zhu. Remember, you must find as much evidence as possible of their embezzlement and bribery. Also, the Ministry of Revenue has account books. Carefully take them out. There must be something in them. Everyone, go your separate ways. I need everything by tomorrow morning."
"Yes, I will take care of it right away."
Shi Zhu and Shi Ju accepted the order. They were originally from the Cold Demon Palace and did this kind of work. Not to mention anything else, they had a lot of information, so it wasn't very difficult to find out who it was. Now they were in charge of the Feather Guards under their command, which was to do any job for the Emperor.
Inside the study, Shizhu and Shiju withdrew, and Hailing looked at Ye Lingfeng. Seeing that his complexion had improved, she smiled and spoke.
"Your Majesty is busy, Ling'er should go back now."
As she was about to get up, Ye Lingfeng grabbed her hand and said, "Come on, I've kept you company today. You've been a great help to me. Let's go back."
Now all that's left is for Shi Zhu and Shi Ju to obtain the evidence of the Minister of Revenue and others' crimes. They can arrest them tomorrow, and then search the residences of Zhou and Zhao. They believe they can find a lot of silver, which will solve the problem of grain supplies in Dengzhou. His problem will then be solved.
Moreover, he took advantage of the capture of Minister of Revenue Zhou Nian to make those in the shadows panic. As for what Zhou Nian would reveal in the end, that was what those people should worry about, not him.
The two left the study. Xiao Luzi, who was outside the door, saw that the Emperor's expression was gentle and there was a smile on his lips as he led the Empress out. He finally felt relieved and wiped the sweat from his face. It seemed that the Empress was the Emperor's nemesis.
Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling returned to Qingqian Palace.
Hai Ling mentioned that she wanted to leave the palace the next day. Shi Mei had told her that the four heads of the Cold Demon Palace's Halls would be waiting for her at the Wind Pavilion, so she naturally had to go out to see them.
Ye Lingfeng narrowed his eyes, feeling somewhat uneasy. The four heads of the Cold Demon Palace were not benevolent figures, and he would be uneasy if he didn't go. He lazily replied, "I'll accompany you out of the palace after the morning court session tomorrow."
"But don't you have official business to attend to tomorrow?"
Hai Ling thought of the pressing rice problem in Dengzhou, and how many things in the imperial court were inseparable from him, the emperor.
Ye Lingfeng was well aware of Hai Ling's thoughts, but he didn't care much.
"Everything else comes second to your safety."
One sentence warmed her heart, and Hailing smiled sweetly. It turned out that a man's sweet words were a good thing, filling her heart with happiness at all times.
The two returned to Qingqian Palace and stayed together all night in their bedroom. Instead of continuing their previous intimacy, they laid out a large sheet of paper on the bed and analyzed the current situation in Beilu with great interest, noting its advantages and disadvantages. They marked everything on the paper, which made their minds much clearer and gave them a more comprehensive and vivid understanding of what to do.
Currently, there are several core forces in the court of Beilu: the Prime Minister, the Western Palace, the Cang Prince's Palace, the Ningnan Marquis's Palace, and the Ji family. As for the Anyang Prince's Palace and the Zhaoyang Prince's Palace, they are all royal families, so it is impossible for them to have any open involvement with them. But what they do in private, no one knows.
Through today's banquet, Hai Ling realized that the people they could win over at the moment were the Ningnan Marquis's Mansion and the Cangwang Mansion. The Ji family was naturally not a problem. As for the Xi Mansion, since it involved the Empress Dowager and the Protector of the State, Hai Ling suggested that they not disturb them for the time being and maintain a wait-and-see attitude. The one they could target right now was the Prime Minister's faction.
The Prime Minister is still a powerful official second only to the Emperor, and given the current situation in Northern Lu, he has probably done quite a few bad things.
Hai Ling sat up straight and said with a smile, "Winning over the Ningnan Marquis's mansion is a piece of cake. I believe that based on my relationship with them, they will definitely be interested in us. If we can win over Wen Bin, the heir of the Ningnan Marquis's mansion, to the court to serve as an official, then we will definitely be able to use them. Moreover, I sent people to inquire about the people of the Ningnan Marquis's mansion, and what they do is generally not too outrageous."
Ye Lingfeng nodded, his long, beautiful eyes misting over, signaling Hai Ling to continue.
"Another group we can win over is the Cangwang Mansion. The Cangwang is still a non-royal king. His ancestor was a meritorious official who was later granted the title of non-royal king. This is the only non-royal king in Beilu. Although they have always been very secretive and few people in their clan hold high positions, they control the economic lifeline of Beilu. Therefore, their power should not be underestimated. The Cangwang heir, Xi Hanzhi, and the Ningnan Marquis heir, Wen Bin, grew up together and have always been on good terms. Moreover, the Ningnan Marquis Mansion and the Cangwang Mansion are also close. We have a higher chance of winning them over. Besides, the Cangwang Mansion has never had much entanglement with the court, so they cannot threaten the court. As for the economic lifeline, we can quietly extract some of it, as long as we are not controlled by them."
Hai Ling looked up at Ye Lingfeng and saw that he didn't speak, but his eyes showed that he agreed with her opinion, so she continued to speak.
"As long as we win over these two forces, our chances of winning will be much greater. With the addition of the power of our Ji family, the Emperor will not need to worry about those insects causing trouble."
After she finished speaking, Ye Lingfeng let out a long breath. His unfathomable eyes, like the dark sky, shone with a magnificent and intense light. He reached out and pulled Hai Ling's small body close, giving her a long and lingering kiss.
“I’ve been thinking about these questions, but unfortunately no one has been there to ponder them with me. Now, after having a conversation with Ling’er, I’m truly enlightened. You are the one who understands me bestowed upon me by God.”
Hailin chuckled after he said that.
Actually, she enjoyed discussing these things with him. The two of them would grow closer because of these little details, and their relationship would get better and better.
However, throughout history, women have been forbidden from interfering in court affairs, and the harem has been explicitly forbidden from interfering in politics. Serious offenses could result in the execution of the entire family. This is not an isolated incident in history.
He never stopped her from expressing her ideas; instead, he allowed her to express her views more freely and comfortably, and he would adopt them as long as they were correct.
Only in this way will she sincerely give him advice. If he were just an ordinary, pedantic person, she wouldn't even speak up, since it's not something she absolutely has to say.
After tidying up, the two washed up and rested in each other's arms. Nothing happened that night. The next day, as soon as Ye Lingfeng got up, he received some evidence of illegal activities by Shi Zhu and Shi Ju regarding Zhou Nian, the Minister of Revenue, and Zhao Zhu, the Vice Minister of Revenue. Ye Lingfeng glanced at it and his expression changed drastically. He never expected that the lowly Minister of Revenue would be so audacious, repeatedly embezzling cash from the national treasury and diverting it to unknown places. He had also accepted a large amount of bribes and fabricated false accounts.
Furthermore, this Minister of Revenue was promoted by Prime Minister Zhongli himself. It seems that the Prime Minister has long held absolute power. Well, this time he wants to see what Zhongli will do. Does he think he's a fool because he hasn't made a move, or does he think he doesn't dare to touch them?
Ye Lingfeng, exuding a chilling aura, stormed off to the morning court.
During the morning court session, in front of all the civil and military officials, he threw down evidence of illegal activities by Zhou Nian, the Minister of Revenue, and Zhao Zhu, the Vice Minister of Revenue. Zhou Nian and Zhao Zhu were so frightened that their faces changed drastically. They knelt down in the hall, trembling like fallen leaves, unable to utter a single word.
The entire court was shocked. They never expected the emperor to be so powerful, so easily obtaining evidence of Zhou Nian and Zhao Zhu's misdeeds. It seemed that only now did these people truly understand the emperor's ruthless methods. Everyone was in a state of panic and prepared to quickly clean up their own messes.
However, with Zhou Nian and Zhao Zhu arrested, no one knows whether they will be implicated.
If these two don't confess, fine; but if they do, I'm afraid they'll all be in trouble.