The most romantic little emperor

Next, it was the report of Lu Yi, the commander of the Imperial Guards, "Your Majesty, I have conducted a thorough search and cleanup in Su Zhengfang's mansion, and the treasures I have found are astonishing."

"There are more than 25 million taels of silver, 1.47 million taels of gold, and more than 2,000 antiques, calligraphy and paintings, all of which are rare treasures."

"As for businesses such as shops, restaurants, and pawnshops, they are spread all over the capital, with a total of ninety-eight. In addition, there are more than one hundred thousand acres of farmland, and other treasures and valuables are too numerous to list one by one."

"In addition, I have not left any fish unharmed in the Su Mansion. Those who resisted in the mansion have been killed on the spot. The remaining 182 people, including the family members who escaped before, have all surrendered and are now detained in the imperial prison, awaiting your majesty's decision."

When everyone heard this, they all gasped in unison and were secretly amazed in their hearts.

The wealth of Su Zhengfang's family is so terrifying that it is simply unbelievable. It seems that he has been corrupt and accepted bribes and embezzled money from the national treasury during his years in office.

As soon as Lu Yi finished speaking, Luo Yang followed closely and immediately took over the conversation.

"Your Majesty, I have an important matter to report. I have seized a huge amount of wealth in the mansion of the Minister of War Wen Tai, totaling more than 9 million taels of silver, 430,000 taels of gold, more than 1,000 rare treasures, antiques, calligraphy and paintings, as well as more than 70 shops and restaurants, and 80,000 acres of land." Luo Yang's voice was sonorous and powerful, and every word hit the hearts of everyone present like a hammer.

He paused for a moment and continued, "In addition, the 183 members of the Wen family have all surrendered and none of them have escaped. They are now being held in the imperial prison, awaiting your majesty's judgment."

As soon as Luo Yang finished speaking, Lu Yi bowed again and continued to report.

After listening to the two people reporting to dozens of people in turn, Qin Hao's mind was already somewhat numb. He waved his hand slightly and said in a deep voice: "Okay, no need to report one by one, just tell me directly how much gold, silver, jewelry, fertile land, and real estate and shops we have obtained in this house-confiscation operation."

After hearing Qin Hao's words, Lu Yi and Luo Yang glanced at each other.

Then, Lu Yi stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, after a preliminary investigation, we have calculated the approximate amount of the confiscated property. The total amount of silver is more than 70 million taels, and the gold is also as high as 4 million taels. In addition, there are countless antiques, calligraphy and paintings, and it is roughly estimated that there are more than 20,000 pieces."

"As for commercial properties, we have found more than 800 of them, and the farmland is as high as more than 500,000 acres. But this is just the tip of the iceberg, the actual number must be much larger."

"In addition, as of now, 5,837 imperial prisoners have been detained. At the same time, the imperial guards have rushed to various places and joined forces with officials from various prefectures to investigate and prosecute the nine clans of the criminal officials who are in other places."

"Because this case involves a wide range of people, the people involved are all over the place, and the case needs to be handled across regions, I have not yet received any definite progress in the investigation."

Listening to the strings of cold numbers from Lu Yi's mouth, the ministers present were shocked at how these corrupt officials were so greedy and shameless that they could accumulate such huge wealth.

Even Qin Hao couldn't help but tremble in his heart. He knew very well that Daxia's financial situation was not optimistic, and the annual tax revenue was only more than 40 million taels.

The wealth accumulated by these corrupt officials of Su Zhengfang's interest group alone exceeded Daxia's tax revenue for three years.

This was undoubtedly a great irony for the imperial court.

However, this is just the tip of the iceberg, and things are far from over. There are probably still a lot of assets and wealth hidden in the dark.

Qin Hao's fingers tapped lightly on the table, as if tapping on the heartstrings of everyone present.

He thought deeply for a moment, then slowly ordered: "Lord Fan, I order you, the Ministry of Justice, to work with the Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate to bring these officials and their relatives involved in the case to trial as soon as possible."

"I don't care what means you use, you must make them speak and dig out those assets and wealth that are hidden in the dark or cleverly transferred one by one."

"I demand that no matter how valuable, not a single penny be spared. I will investigate all of them and recover them all back to the national treasury!"

"As you wish." Fan Wenhai bowed deeply, his voice full of respect.

At this moment, the atmosphere in the imperial study was subtle. Just as everyone was holding their breath, Dong Sicheng slowly walked out and broke the brief silence.

"Your Majesty, I have something to report." Dong Sicheng lowered his head slightly, with a hint of determination in his eyes.

Qin Hao nodded slightly, his voice low but with unquestionable majesty: "Speak."

Dong Sicheng frowned, as if he was under great pressure: "Your Majesty, the traitor Su Zhengfang's interest group is very far-reaching. Not only are the ministers secretly colluding, but also the Qinghe Cui family, Xingyang Zheng family and other aristocratic families are involved."

"These noble families are intertwined and have complicated relationships. How should we deal with them? Your Majesty, please give us your instructions."

He paused and continued, "Today, representatives of noble families in various places stationed in Beijing have expressed that they have already drawn a clear line between themselves and traitors like Su Zhengfang, and are willing to contribute money and food to the court to solve the current emergency..."

Everyone was talking about it. Obviously, this matter could be big or small, and every decision would affect the entire body, not to mention that it involved such a huge entity as an aristocratic family.

If it is not handled properly, it may cause great trouble, and even the entire Daxia country will suffer turmoil.

Once the news of Su Zhengfang's rebellion broke out, it swept across the entire capital like a violent storm.

Representatives of the major aristocratic families in the capital flocked to Dong Sicheng's residence, hoping that this powerful minister would come forward and plead with the emperor to seek a glimmer of hope for their families.

Qin Hao has lived two lives as a human being, so he naturally knows the interests involved.

The reason why Emperor Taizu was able to defeat Daliang and establish Daxia had a lot to do with the support of aristocratic families and gentry. It can be said that without their support, there would be no Daxia today.

Therefore, now is definitely not the time to take action against the aristocratic families. Otherwise, if one is not careful, the imperial court and the aristocratic families, as well as the gentry and wealthy families, may come into conflict and fall into an abyss of no return. This is not what Qin Hao wants to see.

After all, the history of his previous life told him that even a wise ruler like Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin, had to share the world with the aristocratic families in order to stabilize his rule.

Those like Wang Mang and Huang Chao who touched the interests of aristocratic families and gentry and wealthy families all had a good ending.

But facing those aristocratic families that were rich enough to rival a country, they were like giant termites, eating away at the foundation of Daxia.

If we don't turn a blind eye, the matter will continue to ferment and provoke strong resistance from those powerful families.

If we turn a blind eye, wouldn't that be inconsistent with Qin Hao's original intention and the interests of the court?