Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 891: Chapter 891: The Last Silver

Zhulan had no intention of attending Sir Lau’s wedding feast. Given her seniority, it was most suitable for Lady Li. Zhulan handed the invitation to Lady Li, ”In three days, you go with the gifts.”

This was the first time Lady Li would attend a wedding feast alone, even if it was for a family that had established ties through a betrothal. She was still somewhat nervous, knowing the Lau family had few relatives in the capital, but many officials they knew. The wedding would be crowded with officials’ family members, and as a commoner, she felt apprehensive. ”Mother, am I going alone?” she asked.

Zhulan understood Lady Li’s concerns and thought for a moment before saying, ”Take Yu Lu with you.”

Lady Li had hoped to go with her mother-in-law; sadly, her mother-in-law would not be attending. It was a relief to have a daughter go with her. ”Then I’ll take Yu Lu with me,” she resolved.

Zhulan hummed in response, ”Old Madam Song has already prepared the gifts, you can take them back with you later.”

Lady Li clutched the invitation, ”Alright.”

At the Ministry of Revenue, Xiao Qing was asking Zhou Shuren, ”Do you really have no other solution? If you don’t, I’ll have to call Qiu Yan back.”

Zhou Shuren remembered the generous gifts Qiu Yan had brought him from Jianghuai. Qiu had been quite lavish. Better not to drag Mr. Qiu into this, especially since upon Qiu Yan’s return, he had noticed Qiu Yan’s receding hairline getting worse. ”Your subordinate had an imperfect plan last night, which I intended to refine before presenting to you,” he said.

Xiao Qing waved his hand dismissively, ”Then write it quickly.”

The New Year was approaching, and he wanted to complete his tasks flawlessly and enjoy the holiday in comfort, rather than being disturbed throughout the celebration.

Zhou Shuren left. He had initially planned to delay for a day, but now he had no choice. Without using up two hours, the plan was written, thoroughly reviewed twice, and after ensuring no errors, it was sent to Xiao Qing.

After reviewing the plan, Xiao Qing’s first reaction was that Zhou Shuren was truly a genius to come up with such a scheme, ”A good plan.”

Zhou Shuren said, ”We only need the Emperor’s approval, and then the Ministry of Revenue can appraise the prices of antiques and paintings.”

Xiao Qing didn’t hesitate, ”I’ll enter the Palace right now.”

Zhou Shuren had no intention of following. His mind was fixated on manipulating the outcome from the shadows. The Grand Master of Writing wouldn’t get his hands dirty; the scheme he came up with would certainly require his own efforts. It was time to strike up a conversation with the Ministry of Works and make a batch of boxes with a few secret marks.

Inside the Palace, the Emperor examined the proposal presented by Xiao Qing and commented with a single word, ”Brilliant.”

Xiao Qing followed up, ”It’s largely a gamble on luck, but it can arouse curiosity. I believe we can handle half of the antique paintings and calligraphy in the capital.”

The Emperor laughed heartily, ”Zhou Shuren’s mind is indeed lively. This is a good method; let the Ministry of Revenue proceed with it.”

Xiao Qing said, ”Then I shall take my leave, as there are many intricate matters to prepare.”

After Xiao Qing had departed, the Emperor fiddled with the Jade Pendant at his waist, the scheme providing him with quite a bit of inspiration.

Back at the Ministry of Revenue, Xiao Qing summoned Zhou Shuren, ”The task is yours to complete, and I expect a flawless execution. Ask for whatever you need.”

Zhou Shuren produced the Zhezi requesting silver from the Ministry of Works, ”Your subordinate requires a significant number of boxes. Would you see if the Ministry of Works’ Zhezi is approved?”

Xiao Qing, in a good mood, replied, ”Bring it here, I’ll stamp it.”

Zhou Shuren smiled, handing over the Zhezi, ”I will visit the Ministry of Works shortly.”

”Good.”

Zhou Shuren returned to his room and instructed Zhang Jinghong, ”In a moment, take some people and estimate the market value of the antique paintings in Silver Coin, I need the total amount of Silver Tael as well as the total amount of antiques and calligraphy.”

This was Zhang Jinghong’s first assignment, and judging by Zhou’s expression, he knew it was of great importance. ”Your subordinate will ensure accurate tallies,” he affirmed.

Zhou Shuren trusted Zhang Jinghong, appreciating his meticulous nature, ”Mm.”

Ministry of Works, Mr. Fang warmly greeted the sudden appearance of Zhou Shuren, ”Deputy Minister Zhou, what wind blew you here?”

Zhou Shuren rattled the memorial to the throne and the case containing silver notes in his hand, ”What do you think, Deputy Minister Fang?”

Deputy Minister Fang was surprised. The Ministry of Works had to send several memorials every month, and it was good if even one got approved. This month one had already been approved, but unexpectedly, the Ministry of Revenue had approved another Zhezi and Deputy Minister Zhou himself had come to deliver it, ”Deputy Minister Zhou, please come in.”

It must be something that needed the Ministry of Works’ attention.

Zhou Shuren had already handed over the memorial and the box of silver notes to Deputy Minister Fang. Since the Minister of Works was not present today, it sufficed to speak with Deputy Minister Fang without beating around the bush, ”The situation is like this, the Ministry of Revenue needs some boxes, and I remember the Ministry of Works has some wood piled up, so we would like to request the Ministry of Works to make some boxes. The wood consumed by the Ministry of Works will be compensated by the Ministry of Revenue in silver, and later on, the Ministry of Works will only need to report how much silver Coin is required for the reimbursement.”

Deputy Minister Fang looked at Zhou Shuren with a puzzled gaze. His words seemed to have a suggestive undertone. He ventured to ask, ”That batch of wood isn’t cheap.”

Zhou Shuren didn’t care, as the current state of the Ministry of Revenue was quite affluent and if this operation went well, the silver provided for the Ministry of Works would be available, since after all, it’s just robbing Peter to pay Paul without touching the reserves.

He had given the Ministry of Works some leeway because they were really strapped for cash.

Deputy Minister Fang didn’t get a direct response but seeing Deputy Minister Zhou’s smile, he got the hint and was particularly enthusiastic, ”When does the Ministry of Revenue need them?”

”The sooner, the better. As you know, the New Year is coming, and everyone wants to have a peaceful celebration,” Zhou Shuren explained.

Deputy Minister Fang indicated that he understood, ”I will expedite the process.”

Zhou Shuren added, ”I’ll deliver the exact dimensions to the Ministry of Works first thing tomorrow morning.”

”Understood.”

That evening, Zhou Shuren was quite pleased with himself. Chang Lian asked, ”Father, what good thing happened today?”

Zhou Shuren didn’t hide it and explained the situation.

Chang Lian wasn’t very interested. The third wife’s family wasn’t planning to buy antiques and paintings. The Ning family had given him some before, but he intended to use his silver to invest in properties.

Chang Zhi was indeed interested, but the thought of spending his wife’s silver made him lose interest. He hadn’t thought much about it before, but now that he considered it more, his face wasn’t thick enough, and he only spent his monthly allowance.

Zhou Shuren thought the two boys would want to participate, but after they both merely acknowledged with a sound and continued eating without even asking, he asked out of curiosity, ”Are you really not interested?”

Chang Lian shook his head, ”Your son has his eyes on a few pieces of land.”

Chang Zhi replied, ”Your son doesn’t have that much silver.”

Zhou Shuren looked at the second and the eldest, ”What about the two of you?”

The eldest was conflicted. The first wife’s family wasn’t wealthy, and the recent betrothal of Ming Teng had cost a significant sum. Although the autumn harvest had brought in a fair income, more was subsequently spent on the daughter’s dowry, ”Your son has nearly spent all his silver.”

Chang Li, having a more comfortable financial situation and being from a wealthier home with a higher income, had no presentable antiques or paintings from the second wife, ”Your son wants to give it a try.”

He was different from his brothers; he was restless at heart.

After dinner, Zhou Shuren returned to his room for a chat with his wife, ”During dinner, I realized that among our sons, the second one has the most silver Coin.”

Zhulan commented, ”The eldest is honest and not particularly daring. The family fortune of the eldest wife’s family grew slowly, mostly from Lady Li’s dowry. The second one is bold and the most shrewd; you know the fortune he has made over the years. The third one is mainly focused on his official career; when he has the silver, he invests in properties, so he doesn’t have much silver on hand. The youngest is still spending his monthly salary.”

Zhou Shuren stroked his chin, ”Let Chang Li try his hand overseas for a few years. That boy has the ability to settle down and do well overseas.”