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Madam Qin, Qin Heng, and the others were all very clever. They changed into slightly worn but thick clothes and did not wear any gold, silver, or jade ornaments.
However, the children’s clothes still looked new, which displeased Wu Yuchun. “The women cannot wear silver ornaments on their heads. And these children, they are dressed too well, change them!”
The children were indeed dressed well. Currently, the Qin family had five children in Chang’an. The eldest were the eight-year-old twins of Qin Heng, Qin Han, and Qin Jia. There were also the two daughters and one son of Qin Sanlang, Qin Zhao, the son Qin Yu, the daughter Qin Zhen, and the newborn daughter.
In addition, the second son, Qin Yan, in the northern border, had two sons and a daughter. The fourth son, Qin Ming, had two sons, but as he and the fifth son were twins, and the fifth son died shortly after marriage, Qin Ming had adopted one of his sons. After the changes in the northern border, Qin Yan planned to bring his wife, children, and his younger brother and nephews back to Chang’an for the funeral, and they were probably on the way.
At this moment, Madam Qin and Nie Yunniang only used two silver hairpins to secure their hair, but they were told not to wear them. These two silver hairpins were not pure silver, but only silver-plated.
At a loss, Lu Songli took out two wooden hairpins and handed them to the two women. “Madams, use these wooden hairpins instead. And, Sister-in-law, here is a headscarf for you. You just gave birth, don’t catch a cold.”
The two women removed the silver hairpins and re-arranged their hair with the wooden ones.
As for the children, Lu Songli signaled for Qin Sheng to open the woven basket and take out suitable clothes for the children to change into. Madam Qin helped after fixing her hair, and Nie Yunniang also wanted to help, but she had just given birth. Qin Zhao asked her to sit and rest, while he went to help.
The children’s clothes may have looked unattractive, but they were made of good material, a mix of fur and leather, very warm.
Seeing this, Wu Chunyu didn’t say anything and just made a light hum.
“Please proceed,” Lin Ran said. As long as he escorted them to the Great Prison, his job would be considered done.
At that moment, the assistant warehouse minister responsible for checking the accounts hurriedly arrived. “Lord Wu, the numbers of the Qin family’s assets don’t seem right.”
Lu Songli looked at Qin Heng, Qin Sheng, and the others. What was going on? Was the account not balanced?
Qin Heng immediately understood what the problem was.
The Qin family’s account manager had been an elderly person for many years, loyal to the Qin family, but with only average accounting abilities. In the past, when there were no major movements in the mansion, he managed fine. But recently, with large sums of money coming in and out of the house, he couldn’t handle it. He had wanted to find a new accountant to solve the problem, but it was difficult to find a good accountant who was both skilled in arithmetic and loyal.
The discovery of this issue was expected, so he was not worried at all.
And knowing that the account book couldn’t be destroyed, if it was destroyed, the superiors might think that the Qin family was hiding a large sum of money, which would be even worse.
Wu Chunyu took a look at the Qin mansion’s account book. As the Minister of Revenue, he was quite skilled in accounting.
After looking for a while, he questioned Madam Qin and Qin Heng, “What’s going on?!”
Qin Heng replied, “We recently held a wedding, which cost quite a bit.”
Wu Chunyu stared at him and asked, “Your Qin family spent so much money on a wedding?”
“Yes.”
The assistant warehouse minister added, “The dowry and gifts for the wedding of Qin Sheng and Lu Songli are included in that, but the numbers don’t match.”
Qin Zhao chimed in, “The wedding was rushed, and the items needed for the betrothal and wedding were many, and the quality couldn’t be too low, so we spent a bit more money. But the items are still in the warehouse.”
His point was that the money was still there.
The problem is, the stuff in your warehouse isn’t worth that much money!
Wu Chunyu understood. The Qin family’s implication was that their wealth had shrunk, and they were the ones who suffered?
The Qin family insisted that all the money was spent on the entire wedding.
Wu Chunyu, who was responsible for confiscating the Qin family’s assets, was furious. The Qin family’s wealth had shrunk by nearly one-fifth of what they had estimated. Who would willingly be the one taken advantage of like this?
All the extra money was gone! “Your Qin family has some warehouses that are empty enough for mice to run around in! Is that normal?”
“It’s normal.”
“You’re telling me this is normal?”
“Which family doesn’t spend money on a wedding?”
“Which family spends so much unnecessary money on a wedding?”
“My family does.”
No wonder Wu Chunyu was angry. He was one of the officials who secretly supported the Fourth Prince, and he knew this morning that the Fourth Prince might ascend to the throne. So when Lin Ran sent someone to call him, he was still very happy, thinking it was a good opportunity. As the Minister of Revenue, he knew better than anyone about the state of the national treasury. By transferring the Qin family’s wealth to the national treasury, he could gain some merit and earn favor in front of the new emperor, and maybe even get promoted.
But now, it was clear that the total amount of the Qin family’s wealth didn’t match up. With such a significant shrinkage, if he presented it to the new emperor, he might end up with the impression of being incompetent!
“Don’t play word games with me. Just be honest and tell me, where did that money go?” If there was a table, Wu Chunyu would have slammed it.
Qin Sheng impatiently said, “Aren’t we confessing already? It was taken by someone. Do we have to spell it out for you?”
Lu Songli protected the children behind her, while Qin Heng, Qin Zhao, and Qin Sheng negotiated in front. Listening to the whole story, she probably understood what was going on.
In fact, all the cash had been spent on purchasing gifts for the wedding.
Because later on, Qin Heng had consulted with her, and Lu Songli had shared her experience without reservation.
Qin Heng: I’ve learned. So, this scene unfolded before them.
Qin Heng also sighed, “Yes, it was all taken by someone else, and we couldn’t do anything about it.”
“Are you guys the ones who got taken advantage of?” Wu Chunyu couldn’t bear it anymore, almost calling them fools.
“We didn’t want this either. But there was no choice. The wedding date was so tight, and we had to prepare so many things in such a short time. If we didn’t offer a high price, others wouldn’t sell.”
Wu Chunyu choked up. Was it all the Empress Dowager’s fault after all?
In fact, except for Qin Heng and Qin Zhao, who knew a little, the other members of the Qin family didn’t know that Qin Sheng was getting married and that so much money had been spent on this wedding.
If they hadn’t been confiscated before, hearing such news would have made them somewhat uncomfortable. Just think, they wasted an extra twenty percent of their wealth. Now, even if they didn’t spend it, it would still be confiscated. At least spending it would make some noise and feel more comfortable!
In the end, Qin Heng said, “Our family’s accountants are getting old, and some of them don’t remember things clearly. Lord, please bear with us. Anyway, all of the Qin family’s finances are in the house, so we can slowly sort it out.”
“Chapter 125 Money Drifting Away (3/3)”
He implied that, Lord, you should be more open-minded. Some of the money is still in the house, and what’s gone is gone.
Lin Ran and the others didn’t care about this. They were only responsible for catching or killing people. When both sides finished arguing, they prepared to take the captives and leave.
“Wait!” Wu Chunyu couldn’t swallow this anger. “The clothes you are wearing may be fine, but I suspect there is hidden wealth inside, so we need to inspect it before letting you go.”
Upon hearing this, the Qin family’s faces turned grim.
Wu Chunyu didn’t care, she directly ordered, “Go, find a woman to come here!”
Lin Ran and the others didn’t move, as this matter was not their responsibility.
Sheng Huai’an shook his head inwardly. Wu Chunyu was truly foolish. The Qin family had clearly anticipated certain things in advance and made corresponding preparations. In other words, although they were now in custody, they still had power behind the scenes. By offending the Qin family in this way, what benefits could be gained? Checking would only help recover the missing silver?
“Inspection is fine, but I disagree with any physical contact. Find a room, we will undress ourselves, she can only watch!” Lu Songli raised her chin slightly, speaking firmly.
Wu Chunyu was about to retort but was stopped by Sheng Huaixing. “Lord Wu, the request of Lady Lu, the wife of the Sixth Young Master, is quite reasonable.” He emphasized the word “Lu” to remind him of whose daughter the woman in front of them was.
Wu Chunyu was not stupid. With Sheng Huaixing’s reminder, he understood. But he felt that without the former Emperor Kang Cheng, Lu Desheng was like a toothless tiger.
“Alright, let’s do it this way. Finish the matter quickly and don’t delay us any further.” Sheng Huaixing made the final decision.
Naturally, the inspection revealed nothing. The woman was diligent, keeping a close eye on the movements of the women, even personally feeling the clothes they took off, but found nothing.
As they were being escorted to the prison, the only thing the Qin family were worried about was Qin Ming lying in the side hall.
At that moment, the Lu family received news that Madam Jiang had arrived with her two sons, and the two groups coincidentally met.
Even if they met, there wasn’t much to say between the two sides.
“Mother, eldest brother, third brother and sister-in-law, A Sheng, if you don’t mind, we can entrust the arrangements for Fourth Brother to my parents, is that alright?”
“Sure, we’ll trouble Uncle and Aunt.”
Qin Sheng didn’t say much, just tightly held her fingertips.
Lu Songli said, “Mother, this matter will be handled by you and Father.”
Madam Jiang, with red eyes, nodded repeatedly, “Don’t worry, your father and I will handle this well.”
Meanwhile, in the palace, the Fourth Prince was also facing troubles. Because the day before, Emperor Kang Cheng did not officially appoint him as the heir apparent. At this time, the Third Prince had returned to Chang’an City from his fief. Although the Prince Gong, a royal relative, presented a testament appointing the Fourth Prince, Song Mo, as the next emperor, and the Empress Dowager also testified that the late Emperor had mentioned appointing the Fourth Prince as the next emperor, the Second Prince and the Third Prince questioned this decision, and Song Mo could not be crowned forcefully.