Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

"You said you'd close for three days, and now it's been three days and you're still not open. If not you, who else can we turn to?"

Hearing this, Shen Jingwan couldn't help but feel a surge of grievance in her heart. Her eyes reddened slightly, and she explained with a choked voice, "I just happened to see the notice, and out of kindness, I hurried over to tell you ladies the news. I didn't expect that my good intentions would not only not benefit me in the end, but I was blamed by you!"

However, Madam An didn't seem to be willing to let Shen Jingwan off easily, and continued to question, "Now you've completely given up everything? It was because you told us that the Hengfu Bank was owned by the Third Prince that we were so confident in depositing all our money there! Otherwise, who would be so bold as to hand over so much money to someone else to manage?"

The other ladies nodded in agreement.

Faced with such accusations, Shen Jingwan hurriedly shook her head and waved her hands, hastily defending herself: "Oh, this is really unfair to me! I never said that the bank belonged to the Third Prince! Besides, it was indeed through my hands that I helped the ladies deposit the silver into the Hengfu Bank in the beginning, but after that, didn't each of you get the corresponding vouchers and seals in your hands? With those things, you can withdraw the silver freely. From that time on, this matter has nothing to do with me anymore!"

Shen Jingwan refused to admit it even if she was beaten to death.

After hearing Shen Jingwan's words, all the ladies were very angry, and some of the hot-tempered ones were ready to attack.

"What are you doing?" An angry shout suddenly sounded like thunder out of the blue.

The originally noisy and tense scene suddenly became quiet. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a person walking quickly not far away. When they looked closely, they found that it was the third prince!

Seeing that the person coming was the Third Prince, the people who had been so arrogant and domineering immediately became like eggplants hit by frost. Their arrogance disappeared instantly and they all became obedient.

After all, they dared to challenge the unnamed Shen Jingwan, but they would never dare to act rashly when facing the Third Prince.

At this time, a noble lady in gorgeous clothes walked out of the crowd. She was the wife of Marquis Jingyang who was in the lead.

She bowed slightly to the Third Prince, then spoke, "Third Prince, please help me and the others! We all believed Shen Jingwan's words and deposited our family's money into the Hengfu Bank. But who could have imagined that the bank would be closed for three days for some unknown reason? I'm worried that our hard-earned money will be wasted, so we've been forced to come here to ask for an explanation."

As Xiao Yuanlang listened to the wife of Marquis Jingyang's story, his eyes unconsciously swept towards Shen Jingwan who was standing beside him.

At this time, Shen Jingwan was so scared that her face turned pale. She lowered her head and didn't dare to look him in the eye.

Seeing this situation, Xiao Yuanlang already understood in his heart that what these people said was probably true.

After a moment's silence, Xiao Yuanlang slowly said, "Ladies, please go back for now. I will investigate this matter thoroughly. Once I understand the whole story, I will give you a satisfactory explanation."

His voice was low and powerful, carrying an irresistible majesty. Everyone present was silent, not daring to say another word.

The ladies exchanged glances with each other. Although they were unwilling, they knew that it was not appropriate to continue to entangle at this moment, so they had to bow and leave.

After everyone had dispersed, Xiao Yuanlang suddenly turned to look at Shen Jingwan, his eyes flashing with anger, and asked with gritted teeth, "Shen Jingwan, you're such a jerk! Not only did you squander all the money in the mansion, you even acted as a broker."

Upon hearing this, Shen Jingwan's body trembled uncontrollably. She fell to her knees with a plop and explained incoherently, "I...I just...wanted to take some money from this to supplement the family income. I really didn't know that Hengfu Bank would suddenly close down..."

However, her defense seemed so pale and powerless in front of the furious Xiao Yuanlang.

Xiao Yuanlang ordered grimly, "Go open the warehouse and carefully count how much silver is left. Also, sell off all the items that didn't come from the palace. There are a few families we can't afford to offend right now."

After saying that, he turned to look at Shen Jingwan, a stern look flashed in his eyes, and then he ordered: "Go back to the Shen family quickly and ask Madam Shen Er to find a way to get some money for the emergency. I know Madam Shen Er has quite a bit of savings."

Hearing this, Shen Jingwan's heart sank.

Want her to go to the Shen family to ask her second aunt for money?

Not to mention that my second aunt has always been at odds with me, just talking about the grudges between her and Shen Chuning, my second aunt must have hated me to the core, so how could she easily lend her money?

Shen Jingwan knew clearly that with only the assets in the mansion, these holes could not be filled in a short period of time.

So, she continued, "Your Highness... From what I have seen, I'm afraid I can't gather so much silver."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Yuanlang, who had been relatively calm, suddenly roared in anger, "You useless woman! How much money did you handle in this matter? If your negligence has ruined my great cause, even if you die a thousand times, it will not be enough to atone for your sin!"

Being scolded by Xiao Yuanlang like this, Shen Jingwan was so frightened that her whole body trembled and she almost couldn't stand steadily.

But she knew she couldn't show weakness at this moment. After calming herself down, she quickly feigned confidence and replied cautiously, "Your Highness, please calm down. Please listen to me. Although we are facing a crisis, there may be a turning point."

Hearing this, Xiao Yuanlang was slightly stunned. The anger on his face subsided a little. He frowned and asked, "Oh? What do you mean?"

"Your Highness, think carefully. Regardless of the reason, those gentlemen have already been tied to our ship! As such, they have no choice but to fully support you. After all, only by supporting you can they have a chance to recoup their investment in the future; but if they dare not support you, all that money will be wasted! So, no matter how things develop in the end, we will definitely not be the ones to suffer."

Hearing this, Xiao Yuanlang couldn't help but frown and asked, "Are you asking me to threaten them?"

Shen Jingwan shook her head gently and quickly explained, "Your Highness, you have misunderstood my intentions. How can this be considered a threat? It is merely a political investment made by the adults before they understand the situation. Besides, once Your Highness successfully ascends the throne, who in the world would dare to ask you for money?"

Shen Jingwan's words made Xiao Yuanlang fall into deep thought.

Time passed minute by minute, and after a long while, he slowly said, "I will handle this matter with discretion, but you must not slack off in the investigation of Hengfu Bank."

After Xiao Yuanlang turned around and left, Shen Jingwan, who had been worried all the time, finally felt a little relieved.