My aunt is Queen Ma

Chapter 121 Untitled
The most exciting event in Guangzhou recently has undoubtedly been the housewarming banquet of the Wan family.

Almost everyone in Guangzhou with any status or position was present.

Even the Guangzhou Provincial Governor sent a congratulatory gift, which shows how extensive his connections and how powerful he was.

In fact, the rise of the Wan family has only occurred in the last ten years or so, and it was thanks to the Hu people that it prospered.

Previously, the largest and most important maritime trade ports were Fuzhou and Quanzhou.

The most powerful maritime merchants were concentrated in these two cities.

In Guangzhou, they can only be ranked second or third. The Wan family has some influence in Guangzhou, but in the entire maritime business circle, they are just a small fry.

At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, a group of non-Chinese, mainly Persians and Arabs, dominated these two cities.

In the seventeenth year of the Zhizheng era, internal strife among the Hu people sparked the Yisibaxi War, which lasted for ten years.

These two most important seaports in China were razed to the ground.

Many maritime merchants lost their homes and families in the war.

The worst affected was Quanzhou, which lost its title as China's premier seaport and never recovered until Ma Yu's time travel.

Fuzhou and Quanzhou were hit by disasters, so people had to switch to another port to do business.

Guangzhou possesses natural advantages and a rich historical and cultural heritage, which has attracted a large portion of the business.

The head of the Wan family at the time was also an ambitious man. He used all his wealth to buy ships and seize the vacant trade routes.

They successfully rode the wave of opportunity, and their family wealth expanded rapidly.

On the surface, they control over a hundred merchant ships of various sizes, but no one knows how much money they actually have.

I heard they also keep a group of outlaws at sea.

He was incredibly powerful; even the government had to give him some face.

In the past, during times of war, the old patriarch of the Wan family was well-versed in the art of self-preservation and acted with great discretion.

However, a few years ago, the old patriarch Wan passed away, and his son Wan Baoquan succeeded him as patriarch.

The new head of the Wan family has a style of doing things that is completely different from his father's; he is extremely high-profile.

They rallied a large number of maritime merchants and formed a Guangzhou Chamber of Commerce, showing a strong intention to monopolize Guangzhou's maritime trade.

At the beginning of the year, he disliked the dilapidated state of his ancestral home and spent a huge sum of money to build a massive mansion.

This mansion exudes luxury in every aspect.

The two stone lions at the main entrance are carved from white marble, with a grand shape, smooth lines, and lifelike expressions.

It's clearly the work of a master.

In front of the screen wall is a Taihu stone that is more than two feet tall, with a unique and beautiful shape, worth at least a thousand gold pieces.

The houses inside the courtyard are even more luxurious, with carved beams and painted rafters.

One of the two-story buildings was constructed entirely of Phoebe zhennan wood, and its value was beyond monetary measure.

As the saying goes, laymen watch the excitement, while insiders watch the door.

Many experts can tell at a glance that these carvings are not something that ordinary craftsmen could make.

They all asked him which master craftsman he had found, and even asked him to recommend one, saying that price was not a problem.

Wan Baoquan simply smiled and remained silent.

It can be said that today's housewarming banquet completely satisfied Wan Baoquan's vanity.

I was so happy; the money was well spent.

After this incident, my position as president of the chamber of commerce will surely be as secure as Mount Tai.

Wan Baoquan sat in his chair, envisioning a bright future.

At that moment, a young man in his early twenties walked furtively past the main hall, seemingly wanting to go out.

His face darkened, and he shouted, "Wan Mingzhe, get back here!"

Wan Mingzhe sensed something was wrong and could only return dejectedly.

"Father, what did you call me for?"

Wan Baoquan was even angrier: "I'm asking you the same question, what are you going to do?"

"Judging by your outfit, are you planning to go to the docks again?"

"It's infuriating! I told you to study hard, but you won't. All you think about is going into business."

Seeing that he had been discovered, Wan Mingzhe decided not to hide it any longer and argued:

“What’s wrong with doing business? My family has been in business for generations, why can’t I learn to do business?”

Wan Baoquan retorted angrily, "What do you know? The social hierarchy is: scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Merchants have the lowest social status."

"Now that the new dynasty has just been established, the system of rites and laws has not yet been finalized, so we merchants can still show off a bit."

"Once the system is established, we won't even be qualified to wear silk. What's the use of having a lot of money then?"

Wan Mingzhe retorted, unconvinced, "But merchants aren't allowed to become officials, so what's the use of my studies?"

Wan Baoquan explained, "As I just said, the new dynasty has just been established, and the system of rites and laws has not yet been determined. Even the household registration has not been re-registered."

"With our family's wealth, getting you a good citizenship would be a piece of cake, wouldn't it?"

"Then you can spend money to have the provincial governor recommend you for an official position, and you'll be able to become an official."

Wan Mingzhe retorted, "Aren't you afraid of being reported? Do you really think those people are idiots?"

Wan Baoquan said, "We didn't make you a high-ranking official right away. If you go to a remote place and become a low-ranking official first, who would report you?"

"Once the new dynasty's legal system is established, who will be able to investigate this matter?"

“Once the previous generation has passed, you will be a true scholar.”

"By then, our family will have both money and manpower."

“It is not impossible to be like Pu Shougeng, who, as a merchant, took charge of a city or even the entire maritime trade.”

Wan Mingzhe: ? ? ?

He thought his father had gone mad. If it were the middle or late stages of a dynasty, when the court was gradually losing control over the local areas, there would be some justification for what he was doing.

Such practices at the beginning of a new dynasty... even the Yuan Dynasty would not have tolerated them.

However, Wan Baoquan was completely absorbed in his own world and wouldn't listen to his advice at all.

They even sent someone to escort him to the backyard to supervise his studies.

Even after dealing with this rebellious son, Wan Baoquan was still furious.

Pu Shougeng was a Hu person, and the people who started the Yisibaxi War were also Hu people.

If they can do it, why can't I, a Han Chinese, do it?
Besides, didn't I say that I would let you keep a low profile and lay low for now, so that your status as a soldier could be stabilized?

Let's wait until the previous generation passes before we start making plans.

If one generation isn't enough, then two generations will. I'm doing this for the long-term benefit of my family.

Being young and inexperienced, I couldn't understand my father's long-term plans.

"This unfilial son is infuriating!"

"No, we must discipline him properly."

Just then, his trusted confidant, Wan Tong, rushed over, looking rather disheveled.

This made Wan Baoquan even more dissatisfied, and he scolded, "What kind of behavior is this, all flustered and in such a state? How will you ever work with me on important matters in the future?"

Normally, Wantong would have apologized long ago, but this time he ignored his reprimand and approached him, whispering:
"Master, something terrible has happened! We just received news that something has gone wrong in Fengyang."

Wan Baoquan's heart skipped a beat, and he disregarded all decorum, hurriedly asking:
"What happened?"

Wan Tong then recounted how Liu Bowen went to Fengyang to investigate a case, and how almost all the officials in charge of the construction of the imperial city were investigated.

Wan Baoquan gasped: "Isn't Zhao Yanjun one of Prime Minister Li's men? How could he be investigated? Doesn't Prime Minister Li care?"

Wan Tong said helplessly, "Prime Minister Li has resigned due to illness."

Wan Baoquan was at his wits' end: "Why is he resigning at this time... Did Zhao Yanjun and the others expose this matter?"

Wan Tong shook his head and said, "Our people reported that Minister Liu is still investigating the embezzlement of rations, and we haven't heard anything else."

Wan Baoshan breathed a sigh of relief: "Embezzling money and grain is punishable by death according to the law, but it won't implicate the whole family."

“But if this matter comes out, it would be a heinous crime that would result in the extermination of three generations of their family. They wouldn’t be that stupid.”

Wan Tong said worriedly, "There are quite a few people involved in this matter, but I'm afraid some of them won't be able to handle it."

Wan Baoquan said, "But we always deal with them as overseas businessmen."

"The only one who truly knows our identities is Zhao Yanjun; he wouldn't be foolish enough to expose this."

"However, it's better to be safe than sorry, so we should still make preparations."

"Make contact with those people at sea. If things don't look good, guide them to break through Guangzhou." Wantong hesitated and said, "Master, are we really going to do this? You should think it over carefully."

"Once you do that, there's no turning back."

A ruthless glint appeared on Wan Baoquan's face: "Do you think we have any way back?"

Then he reassured her, "Don't be afraid, this is just in case, it's not like we'll definitely take this route."

"Besides, at worst we can leave the Ming Dynasty, seize a piece of land in Southeast Asia, and settle down. Wouldn't that be more carefree and happy than staying here?"

A million alpacas were stampeding through Wan Tong's mind. Why not live a perfectly good life instead of building this mansion just for the sake of appearances?

Let them build it then. I don't know what got into them, but they actually dared to steal materials for building the imperial city and even had royal craftsmen process them.

Something happened over there, and instead of trying to use money and connections to smooth things over, they're planning a rebellion.

If the old patriarch knew this from beyond the grave, he would probably be so angry that he would rise from the dead.

Unfortunately, he was just a servant and couldn't change anything.

He knew Wan Baoquan's personality well: arrogant, headstrong, and ruthless.

He frequently collaborated with Zhang Shicheng's former subordinates who had fled to the sea to plunder other people's merchant ships.

They even cooperated with Japanese pirates.

If I dared to offer any more advice, I would probably not escape death.

Therefore, he not only couldn't object, but also pretended to agree and helped to fill in the gaps:

"Sir, it's best not to tell those people overseas exactly what they're planning to do."

"Just tell them that there's a big deal coming up."

"To prevent them from knowing too much and using it to blackmail you."

Wan Baoquan said with dissatisfaction, "Do you need to tell me these things? Go and get things done."

Wantong quickly replied, "It was my fault for being so talkative. I'll take care of it right away."

Watching his hurried departure, Wan Baoquan snorted coldly.

This Wantong guy just likes to think he's so clever. If it weren't for the fact that he's relatively loyal, I would have replaced him long ago.
-
Liu Bowen looked at the confession in his hand, his expression growing increasingly solemn.

He had previously suspected that these people might be reselling materials from the imperial city, which was a serious crime that would implicate many people.

Fearing to alert the enemy, he kept a completely secret.

The official statement has always been that they are investigating a case of withholding food rations.

Secretly, however, he ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guard to intensify their investigation.

Such a big case certainly couldn't have been handled by just one or two people; there must have been quite a few people involved.

One person can be stubborn, but not everyone can be stubborn.

Under the 18 kinds of torture instruments used by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, someone eventually couldn't withstand it and confessed everything.

If one person confesses, it becomes pointless for the others to continue denying it.

Many more people suffered mental breakdowns and revealed everything.

After reading these people's confessions, Liu Bowen couldn't help but gasp in shock.

They are truly lawless.

They falsified accounts to embezzle materials used in the construction of the imperial city, processed them, and then sold them to powerful and wealthy families.

Because the hole was too big to be covered up by simply making up accounts, they began to cut corners on the construction of the imperial palace.

In many places where white marble was intended, ordinary granite or bluestone was used instead.

In many places where golden nanmu was needed, sandalwood or agarwood were used instead.

In many places where sandalwood and agarwood were needed for the main beams, inferior woods such as jujube wood were used instead.

Not to mention the various rare stones, which were directly resold.

The value of the items mentioned in these confessions alone is over 200,000 strings of cash.

He originally thought that it had only been less than a year, so how much could these people possibly embezzle?

But now he realizes that he had underestimated the greed in people's hearts.

The key point is that this is not all, because Zhao Yanjun and others did not confess to the biggest leaders.

Once they all confess, the amount may increase further.

These people are truly courting death.

Liu Bowen could already imagine Zhu Yuanzhang's furious expression.

However, he still did not make the matter public, for a very simple reason.

The buyer hasn't done the research yet.

To dare to buy materials for building the imperial city is truly audacious.

Even if he didn't want to escalate the situation, he felt he had to dig all these people out.

Otherwise, there will be endless troubles.

However, according to the testimonies of those officials, only Zhao Yanjun and a few others knew the identity of the buyer.

Zhao Yanjun and the others knew that this was a crime punishable by the extermination of their entire clan, and they were all stubbornly refusing to admit it.

The news of my arrival in Fengyang couldn't be kept secret; I'm sure the buyers have already heard about it.

Although they were misled by the embezzlement of food rations, it certainly wouldn't be able to keep it a secret for long.

No, we must get a confession as soon as possible, lest things get complicated.

He couldn't care less about taboos at that moment, and summoned Ping Changyuan, a centurion of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and said:

“Commander Ping, you must be aware of the seriousness of the matter.”

"Now, no matter what method you use, you have to get them to talk and get the list of buyers within three days."

Ping Changyuan said respectfully, "We've been waiting for your words, sir. Don't worry, we'll get their confessions in less than three days."

In his heart, he was thinking, "What kind of rules are you talking about when you're interrogating a prisoner?"

If you had let us act freely earlier, we would have gotten a confession by now.

However, he was only a centurion and dared not lose his temper in front of Liu Bowen, the prime minister.

With Liu Bowen's permission, Ping Changyuan immediately returned to the prison and found several of the most skilled interrogation experts.

They managed to get someone to talk and obtain part of the list in just one day.

As I said before, once one person speaks up, it's pointless for the rest to persist.

Others also gradually relented.

However, this list is still incomplete; some buyers were contacted directly by Zhao Yanjun, and the others were unknown to him.

Zhao Yanjun, as expected of the main culprit in the case, is stubborn as ever.

To this day, he still hasn't uttered a single word.

Ping Changyuan had to give a thumbs up: "You are the toughest person I have ever met."

"I have one last trick up my sleeve. If you can hold on... then I'll have no choice but to ask for help from above."

Zhao Yanjun said weakly, "Use whatever tricks you have..."

Ping Changyuan laughed and said, "Don't worry, this move won't hurt you at all."

He leaned close to Zhao Yanjun's ear and whispered:
“I have already sent people to Yingtian to bring your wife and children over.”

"By the time……"

After hearing what he said, Zhao Yanjun's eyes nearly bulged out, and he excitedly cursed:

"You beast, you beast, I will haunt you even if I become a ghost."

Ping Changyuan laughed and said, "You will definitely become a ghost, and your whole family will become ghosts."

"But before that, take their statements, otherwise you know what will happen."

"I think you don't want what I just said to actually happen, do you?"

Zhao Yanjun glared angrily at Ping Changyuan, as if he wanted to devour him alive.

However, Ping Changyuan remained unmoved and just looked at him with a mocking expression.

After a long while, Zhao Yanjun suddenly lowered his head, like a defeated rooster:
"I'll confess."

Upon obtaining all the confessions and seeing the names of the people involved, even Liu Bowen, who was used to seeing the world, felt a chill in his heart.

Write a letter to Zhu Yuanzhang immediately, urging him to take action.

(End of this chapter)