Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 50 This is the real emperor
Zhu Youjian knew that the Ming Dynasty's treasury had long been emptied by his elder brother and the corrupt officials in the court, leaving it even emptier than his own face.

At the beginning of the year, those old guys in the cabinet could cry to him for half an hour in court over various expenses for robbing Peter to pay Paul.

But now, overnight, 630,000 taels of silver have been obtained so easily.

Most importantly, this money was obtained honestly and legally!

The Donglin Party is big, the world is big, but can it be bigger than the label of treason and collusion with the Jin dynasty?
And this is just the beginning!
Without any pause, Zhou Quan continued his report.

"A total of 350,000 taels of silver were seized from 17 Shanxi merchant shops and guild halls in the capital."

Its warehouse contained a large quantity of silk, tea, medicinal herbs, as well as ironware, grain, and furs from beyond the Great Wall, all of which were intended to be shipped there. The preliminary estimate was approximately 250,000 taels of silver.

His 53 properties, including shops, warehouses, and residences for caravan crew members, located in prime locations in the capital, are valued at approximately 200,000 taels of silver.

Furthermore, their core ledgers revealed approximately 120,000 taels of unsettled commercial debts in various regions.

The confiscation of silver from the above seventeen Shanxi merchant strongholds totaled approximately 880,000 taels.

Eighty-eight hundred thousand taels!
When this enormous sum, even larger than the previous one, was clearly uttered from Zhou Quan's mouth.

Zhu Youjian felt his breath catch in his throat.

Six hundred and thirty thousand taels plus eight hundred and eighty thousand taels.

One million five hundred and ten thousand taels!

Overnight.

This applies only to the capital city.

He brought in more than 1.5 million taels of silver in net income for this nearly empty national treasury!
What does this feel like?
This is an unprecedented and exhilarating pleasure!
It is an unparalleled sense of satisfaction to drag out those parasites who are usually high and mighty and sanctimonious, who talk about the way of sages in front of him, and trample them underfoot, and then take back the people's hard-earned money they have embezzled with interest!

This is what an emperor should be like!
It's not about engaging in meaningless debates with those eloquent but distorting officials in the imperial court.

It's not that we're blinded by the hypocrisy hidden beneath the flowery language of official documents, leaving us powerless.

Instead, he used the most direct and effective means of violence to carry out his will! To reclaim what rightfully belonged to this country and to him, the Son of Heaven!

A surge of intense heat rose from the depths of his chest, as if to ignite his internal organs, and then instantly spread throughout his limbs and bones.

Zhu Youjian felt that every pore on his body opened up comfortably at this moment.

He rose from the throne that had left him stiff with embarrassment, walked to the imperial desk, and reached out to pick up another account book from the pile of bloody evidence—a book that had been seized from the Shanxi Merchants' Guild Hall.

Opening the book, one finds another, even more shocking list, meticulously written in a mercenary handwriting.

"Tian Shichun of Xuanfu Town has presented five hundred taels of gold to the barefoot man in exchange for five hundred sets of new-style muskets."

"Li Zonghan of Jizhou presents twenty fine horses from beyond the pass, requesting convenient passage through the pass at night three times a month."

"Ministry of Revenue, Qian Shilin, presents charcoal and two thousand taels of silver as a gift, requesting a three-month deferral of the tax payment for this firm."

……

Familiar or unfamiliar names, like a string of fish caught on a fishing line, dart listlessly across the paper.

One dirty deal after another, betraying national interests and selling out the lives of soldiers on the border, were laid bare before his eyes.

As Zhu Youjian read on, he suddenly chuckled softly.

The laughter was initially suppressed, just a soft chuckle coming from deep in the throat.

But soon, the laughter grew louder and more unrestrained, eventually turning into a loud, boisterous laugh that echoed throughout the entire warm pavilion.

"Haha...hahahaha..."

Zhu Youjian laughed, laughing so hard he almost fell over.

In that laughter was a pent-up anger, an extreme disdain for those self-righteous fools, and the exhilarating taste of power—the power to decide the life and death of thousands with a single word and to change the course of the world with a single thought! Wang Chengen was so frightened that he knelt down on the ground, burying his head deep in the carpet, his whole body trembling like a leaf.

He had seen the Tianqi Emperor and witnessed Wei Zhongxian's arrogance, but he had never seen or heard such chilling laughter.

Only Zhou Quan remained kneeling there motionless, like a lifeless sculpture, as if everything outside was irrelevant to him, and his world consisted only of the emperor's orders.

After laughing for a long time, Zhu Youjian slowly stopped.

His gaze fell on Zhou Quan again, with a hint of satisfaction and warmth.

"comprehensive."

"The minister is here."

"I am very satisfied," Zhu Youjian said, each word distinct and clear in his voice. "You have done very well."

"It is my duty to share Your Majesty's burdens," Zhou Quan replied, offering the same standard answer devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

"What a fine example of being dutiful." Zhu Youjian sneered, his smile carrying a hint of approval but even more coldness.

He strode up to Zhou Quan, looking down at this sharpest and most obedient tool of his.

"I want you to continue the trial."

"Interrogate Zhou Yanru and other officials and the managers of those Shanxi merchants separately. Use all the means of your Western Depot. I don't care what methods you use, whether you skin them alive or burn them like firecrackers, I only want one result."

His voice was low, yet carried a chilling undertone.

"That is, to dig out for me every single name they're still hiding, every name they've ever been associated with!"

"Not a single one can be missed!"

"Your subject obeys the decree," Zhou Quan replied in a deep voice, a hint of excitement at being given a mission finally appearing in his tone.

"Go," Zhu Youjian said softly, waving his hand. "I'll be waiting for you."

"My lord, please retire."

Zhou Quan respectfully kowtowed, then stood up, turned around, and quickly walked out of the warm pavilion.

He arrived like a ghost.

He left like a ghost.

When Zhou Quan's figure completely disappeared into the gray-blue light outside the door.

Zhu Youjian slowly walked back to his desk.

He looked at the mountain of evidence, reeking of blood, and at the lists of confiscated items containing astronomical sums.

Zhu Youjian knew.

Like the case of Zhu Chunchen, this series of events and cases is not the end, but a long and endless internal war!

He, the emperor of the Ming Dynasty, was far from truly secure on his throne.

Meanwhile, those Donglin Party members who might still be sleeping soundly in their mansions, or who might have already heard the rumors and are preparing to unite in court today to launch an attack on him, clamoring for him to give the world an explanation...

Zhu Youjian smiled again.

Explain?

I'm an emperor, who can I answer to!

(End of this chapter)