After reading my mind, Daddy, why don't you smile?

Of course, such vulgar words cannot come out of the mouth of a king.

Emperor Jianxi looked gloomy, took a long breath, and said, "It's good that you have this intention, but the country has its own laws and the family has its own rules. Cheng Qian has committed an unforgivable mistake. If I don't punish her, how can I establish my authority and make laws?"

Shangguan Shu's eyebrows were tied into a knot.

What mistake did Zhao Ying make that made Emperor Jianxi hold on to her and punish her?

So... rather than letting Emperor Jianxi punish him, it would be better to let Shangguan Dan take charge...

Shangguan Shu's eyes flashed, and his upper body stood up from the ground.

After thinking for a while, he said, "Since Princess Chengqian has committed an unforgivable crime, she should be dealt with according to the law. I suggest that this case be sent to the Dali Temple for trial!"

Emperor Jianxi raised his eyebrows and looked at Shangguan Shu speechlessly.

Send it to Dali Temple?

He just wanted to punish Cheng Qian, he didn't want her to die!

Boy, you don’t know what your wife did, do you?

Killing the queen and the mother, deceiving the king and the father!

Any one of them is enough to make Cheng Qian drink a pot of wine!

No, why is this kid in such a hurry?

Isn’t it just kneeling for one night?

He won’t let Cheng Qian kneel to death!

When Cheng Qian can no longer hold on and passes out, won’t he have a way to let her go back?

Ask, ask, ask! Why don't you ask your "wife" outside what she did?

Emperor Jianxi thought that Cheng Qian would probably tell Shangguan Shu the truth when he returned, so he did not intend to hide it.

"No need to send it to the Dali Temple."

"Your Majesty, what do you mean?"

"Don't you want to know why I punished Cheng Qian?"

"I'll tell you!"

Emperor Jianxi sneered and told him in detail how Zhao Ying and Zhao Cong had driven out Empress Xiaomin and had tried every means to hide the truth from him.

After saying this, Emperor Jianxi felt a little relieved.

Shangguan Shu was unhappy.

His eyes were dull, his thin lips were half-open, and his body was like a rigid stone statue. There was even a rare trace of confusion in his eyes.

Zhao Ying...

Shangguan Shu used to wonder from time to time. He had been gentle, modest, calm and sensible since childhood, so why were his five children more naughty and mischievous than the last?

Cheng Jing asked him to "lie on the ice to catch carp" in winter, Wan'er stuffed a toad into his quilt, Bai Lin put his collection of books in the water to wash, Qi You caught a snake to make a belt for him...

Not to mention Yueer...

Now, he finally had the answer.

The long speech that Shangguan Shu had prepared to plead for mercy was apparently wasted.

What else could he say?

No wonder……

No wonder……

Shangguan Shu sympathized with Emperor Jianxi, and his blood boiled immediately. His face became stiff and he fell silent.

At this time, the Minister of Revenue, Mr. Bai, came to see the emperor.

Emperor Jianxi let people in.

Lord Bai bowed to Emperor Jianxi and did not forget to greet Shangguan Shu, "The prince of Zhenguo is here too..."

Lord Bai's eyes were full of gossip when he looked at Shangguan Shu.

It was obvious that he had been curious about Zhao Ying and the prince all night.

Shangguan Shu nodded, "Master Bai."

After the two exchanged pleasantries, Lord Bai began to report, "Your Majesty issued an order this morning to allocate 2 million taels to the 300,000 disaster victims in Lingnan for the purchase of food and resettlement."

Emperor Jianxi frowned, "Yes, what's wrong?"

Lord Bai knelt down and said, "Your Majesty, please forgive me. Originally, two million taels would have been enough to resettle three hundred thousand disaster victims. However, I learned from the chief official, His Royal Highness Prince Shou, that the grain-producing areas along the river had harvested the grain early this year. Not only did the grain supply drop significantly, but the local people along the river also had no grain to eat. They had to eat inferior crops such as corn and sweet potatoes."

"Several large grain producers took the opportunity to hoard grain, raising grain prices by more than three times compared to the same period last year!"

"That is to say, the food purchased with two million taels is only enough to keep 100,000 disaster victims alive. The other 200,000 are probably..."

"Prince Shou has personally gone to the local officials and gentry to negotiate the purchase of grain."

"That's unreasonable!"

Emperor Jianxi was furious, "This bunch of profiteers are making money from the country's misfortune!"

He had thought of the problem of rising grain prices earlier and allocated more silver, but he did not expect that this group of unscrupulous merchants would increase the grain price three times!

After deducting the allocation from the Ministry of Revenue, the money was embezzled and exploited by officials at every level... These two million taels could only support a hundred thousand people, and it was already a great achievement to support eighty thousand!

Getting angry won't solve the problem. Emperor Jianxi took a deep breath and asked, "How much can the Ministry of Revenue allocate now?"

"Your Majesty, at the end of the year, the Ministry of Revenue collected 8 million taels of tax silver from the five southeastern provinces, with a total of 10 million taels of silver in cash. 2 million taels will be used for the disaster victims in Lingnan, 2 million taels will be used for military pay in the Northwest Camp, and 5 million taels will be used for..." He glanced at Shangguan Shu, "for the military pay of the southeastern and southwest armies previously commanded by Prince Shangguan."

Emperor Jianxi was so worried that he could kill a fly between his brows.

Maintaining an army costs money, but he feels uneasy when there are fewer soldiers.

And Hyomin also said that if he were to go and fight Japan, or even raze it to the ground... the army would be small in number!

There have been repeated provocations from foreign tribes around Great Chu, who have been eyeing it covetously.

This army must not be withdrawn!

Emperor Jianxi thought about it and said, "Let's give the remaining one million taels to the disaster victims!"

"As for the rest... I'll think of a solution, and you go back and think of a solution too!"

"Yes! I will take my leave."

After Lord Bai left, Shangguan Shu said calmly: "Your Majesty, I have a way..."

……

It's noon.

Zhao Ying finally couldn't hold on any longer, and her frail body fell to the ground. She squinted her eyes to avoid the glaring sunlight, her delicate face pressed against the rough tiles, and her breathing became heavier.

"Isn't this my superior aunt?"

Hearing the voice he hadn't heard for a long time, Zhao Ying's body stiffened, then he clenched his teeth, supported himself on the ground with both hands, and raised half of his body.

I looked up towards the source of the sound. Who else could it be but Hu Yanxue who had just been released?

Hu Yanxue stared at her with sarcasm, hatred, disgust and jealousy in her eyes. The many negative emotions intertwined on her face, making her look somewhat hideous.

Next to Huyanxue was Concubine Shu, who looked at her with the same mocking eyes.

Shufei finally saw through Zhao Ying's joke, but couldn't find anyone to talk to, so she went to find Zhao Yao, but she hadn't woken up yet, and the little mute was still pretending to guard the bedroom, not letting anyone in.

Fortunately, Xueer was released.

Concubine Shu was eager to bring Hu Yanxue here, firstly because she missed her granddaughter whom she had not seen for a long time, and secondly, she wanted to bring her to see the retribution in this life!

Zhao Ying has fallen out of favor!

Concubine Shu laughed in a sinister way and scolded Hu Yanxue, "Nonsense! Your aunt Chengqian is deeply favored by His Majesty, how could His Majesty punish her to kneel in the street?"

After saying that, she turned her gaze to Zhao Ying's face, pretending to be surprised and covering her mouth, with an incredible expression, "Your Highness, why are you kneeling here?"

So stupid it makes you want to laugh.

Zhao Ying glanced at the two of them with an expression on her face, then turned away, ignoring them.

How could Concubine Shu let her go?

Concubine Shu stepped forward to help Zhao Ying up, but withdrew her hand when Zhao Ying was in front of her.

"Your Highness, please get up quickly. The ground is so cold. Don't freeze yourself!"

Knowing that Zhao Ying was punished and couldn't do whatever he wanted, he still said this, which was enough to make people angry.

The corners of Zhao Ying's lips curled up into a cold smile, "How about you kneel for me?"

Concubine Shu was stunned for a long while, then smiled back, "How can that be possible? Your Highness has been punished by His Majesty to kneel here, how can anyone else replace him?"

"Since you know that I was punished by my father to kneel here, why do you still want me to stand up? Madam Shufei, do you want to disobey the order?"

When Concubine Shu heard this, her brows darkened and the smile on her face disappeared completely.