Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 765 Idea_1

Chapter 765: Chapter 765 Idea_1

The Third Prince, Zhang Jingxi, sneered inwardly. The fake Fifth Brother was getting smarter and smarter. With a cold expression, he stood up, "Since the main character isn’t returning home, I’ll take my leave too. Second Brother, I shall depart first."

The Fourth Prince, Zhang Jingshi, curled the corners of his mouth, "Fifth Brother and Shen Yang, interesting."

The current Fifth Brother, interesting indeed!

Zhang Jinghong accepted the tea that Shen Yang handed over and sneezed twice.

Shen Yang asked with concern, "Is the Fifth Prince feeling unwell somewhere?"

Zhang Jinghong spoke faintly, "I am fine, it’s just that too many people are talking about me."

In the Fifth Prince’s residence, Zhang Jingyang squinted his eyes. It was more than interesting. Not only was the Fifth Brother fake, but he also wasn’t sure if this Shen Yang was real or not. How foolish. Now that the fake Fifth Brother had gone to find Shen Yang, they dared to squat outside the Fifth Prince’s residence waiting to ambush him, yet they did not dare to approach Shen Yang’s home. They were uncertain about the Emperor’s attitude towards Shen Yang.

The next day, at the Hanlin Academy, Chang Lian had just entered the building, which was unusually lively today. Scholar Lv curled his lips, "Look how smug he is."

Chang Lian was a bit confused since he had just arrived and didn’t know what had happened, "What’s going on?"

Mr. Lv lowered his voice, "Yesterday, the Fifth Prince stayed at Shen Yang’s house, and this morning he ended up slipping that fact, bragging as if he and the Fifth Prince were on great terms."

Chang Lian was surprised. The Crown Prince treated Shen Yang differently, and the relationship between the Fifth Prince, who shared the same mother, and Shen Yang was also good. Frowning, he really couldn’t figure it out. In his eyes, except for his academic prowess, Shen Yang’s emotional intelligence was not particularly high. The one thing the Hanlin Academy didn’t lack was people with academic skills, and he couldn’t see any other merits in Shen Yang.

Seeing Zhou Changlian in deep thought, Mr. Lv asked in a low voice, "Do you know something?"

Chang Lian came back to his senses, "What could I know? Alright, let’s not worry about him, let’s go back to work."

Mr. Lv was not satisfied. In a room full of scholars, he couldn’t compete with Zhou Changlian who had a father with a promising career, nor could he compete with those who had a stronger background. Shen Yang had a similar background to his, so why couldn’t he match up to Shen Yang?

Inside the Palace, Zhou Shuren remained after the morning court session with the Grand Master of Writing, which today was about the resettlement of the southern flood victims. The Minister of Personnel and scholars from the Cabinet also stayed behind.

The Emperor asked, "The rains in the south have stopped, and the water levels are receding. Now, this has led to many people being displaced. Do you have any good strategies for their post-disaster resettlement?"

Zhou Shuren sighed. The floodwaters had receded, and the mud houses of the farmers were mostly destroyed and uninhabitable. Homes needed to be rebuilt, lands reorganized, and the bodies of humans and animals properly disposed of to avoid an outbreak of epidemics.

There was so much to be done in the aftermath; yes, and there was also the issue of feeding the people, as they currently had no grain. Finally, the levees needed to be repaired.

Xiao Qing frowned as he heard each suggestion; all these would require no small amount of silver.

Upon hearing the suggestion to open the granaries and distribute grain, Zhou Shuren couldn’t help but sigh internally. The grain from the granaries had not been saved sufficiently before the floods struck, and in recent days, some had been allocated for disaster relief. There wasn’t much left in the northern granaries to begin with; for instance, two-thirds of Jinzhou Province’s grain had been taken to support the army’s efforts post-New Year.

The situation was similar in all the northern provinces; even the capital’s granaries didn’t have much grain left. And now they were instructed to open the granaries and distribute grain, but there was no grain to give.

The Emperor furrowed his brow and looked at the Minister of Revenue, "Minister Xiao, do you have anything to say?"

Xiao Qing pursed his lips, "Your Majesty, this time it isn’t me being tightfisted—there really is no grain."

Scholar Ding frowned, "Minister Xiao, the granaries can’t possibly have no grain at all. Harvest time is approaching soon. Minister Xiao, don’t withhold grain unnecessarily."

Xiao Qing rolled his eyes inwardly, "Scholar Ding, you don’t know because you’re not in charge of the household. There really isn’t any surplus grain in the capital’s granaries."

The Emperor was also aware and signaled for Mr. Ding to stop, "Scholar Xiao, calculate the approximate amount of silver needed for Jiangnan and bring it to me tomorrow."

After giving a few more instructions, the Emperor signaled the ministers to withdraw.

Zhou Shuren thought silently, it was another day of being part of the background, he found that after being promoted, there were even fewer opportunities to speak, but it was good, not speaking meant not offending anyone.

Unfortunately, before he could enjoy the moment, the Emperor said, "Zhou Shuren, you stay behind."

Seeing Grand Master of Writing Xiao look at him, Zhou Shuren was also confused, not knowing why he was being called.

Xiao Qing was also taken aback, it was the first time he saw confusion in Zhou Shuren’s eyes, and he had a smile in his gaze, "I will return to the Ministry of Revenue first."

"Yes."

Several scholars also glanced over, their brows furrowed tightly, and then they left one after another.

Xiao Qing narrowed his eyes and walked slowly with his hands behind his back; the Six Ministries and the Cabinet restrained each other, and out of all the scholars, he found Scholar Ding the most annoying.

The Minister of Personnel walked slowly too, waiting until there was a distance from the others ahead, and said softly, "The Emperor really values Zhou Shuren. I don’t think you’ll be sitting in your Minister’s seat for more than two years."

Xiao Qing replied, "At least the Ministry of Revenue has a successor. Unlike the Ministry of Personnel, which is a mess. I’m not criticizing you, but you’d be better off dealing with your own ministry rather than stirring up trouble."

The Ministry of Personnel was in disarray, the most intense place for intrigue within the Six Ministries. Still, he couldn’t help thinking that if they could seize all the embezzled assets, the Ministry of Revenue could enjoy a few rich years.

The Minister of Personnel choked, huffed, and walked away quickly.

Inside the government hall, the Emperor gestured for Zhou Shuren to sit, "Just now I saw that you had some thoughts. Now it’s just us. Speak your mind."

Zhou Shuren did have thoughts, but he had kept silent because he was the Vice Minister of Revenue and it was not his place to speak over his superior, Grand Master Xiao. But thinking of the people lacking food, having long served as a Magistrate, he was used to worrying about the people and felt a heavy heart, "I may be speaking out of turn, if I say something incorrect, please forgive me, Your Majesty."

The Emperor raised an eyebrow, truly intrigued, "Speak. It’s just you and me here, and what’s said today will not leave this room."

He was also protecting Zhou Shuren, knowing full well that it was best for him to keep a low profile for now.

Zhou Shuren carefully said, "The Ministry of Revenue currently has a total of 2.78 million taels of silver."

There had been more expenses recently, including rewards for the soldiers and various departmental costs; otherwise, they would have had over three million taels of silver.

The Emperor knew clearly, "So?"

"I think, although our dynasty lacks grain, our neighboring countries have some. I have served as the Prefect of Jinzhou, where Pinggang is located. I am familiar with the comings and goings of some merchant ships; I also know well the merchandise traded with neighboring countries. Some of these countries have abundant grain, which is why I wonder if we could go abroad to purchase grain."

Having served as the Prefect of Jinzhou, he knew the province like the back of his hand, aware of everything. Foreign merchant ships would come to sell grain, and by personally going to purchase it, he was sure the price would be much lower. However, it would still need to be a disguised operation. Ideally, it would be the naval forces disguised as merchants to make the purchase, which would allow for military training as well, killing two birds with one stone.

The Emperor looked at Zhou Shuren, who understood Jinzhou Province through and through. He had seen many Magistrates, but none were like Zhou Shuren. The Emperor stroked his beard, appreciating Zhou Shuren’s great talent.

Zhou Shuren bowed his head, silently pleading not to be noticed anymore. If it weren’t for the people, he truly wouldn’t have wanted to speak up. He only hoped that when the time came to retire, he would be able to do so smoothly!