Transmigration: Reverse Exploitation, the System Works for Me

Seeing that her eyes were red again as she spoke, and that she was about to cry again, the emperor quickly interrupted her thoughts, "What's wrong? Has your father's condition worsened?"

Yu Ying'er shook her head, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your concern on behalf of my father. His illness has not relapsed. It was my own fault..."

"My sister is leaving the palace this time for two reasons: first, to visit our father, and second, to retrieve the dowry left by my mother. These things are not worth a fortune, but they are still my mother's keepsakes, a memento she left for me."

Tears streamed down Yu Ying'er's face. "Who would have thought that when you returned, my mother's dowry was all gone?"

She covered the lower half of her face with her sleeve, grimaced, and gasped for breath; it really hurt!

The emperor now understood. "You want me to uphold justice for you?"

Yu Ying'er shook her head, "I wish to ask you to send someone to help me find my mother's dowry items. I don't need too many, just one or two pieces will suffice. As the saying goes, seeing an object reminds one of a person, but I have nothing to show for it."

Is this idiom used correctly?

Yu Ying'er was somewhat uncertain.

The Emperor sighed. Consort Zhuang's life before entering the palace was even more miserable than he had imagined. The Yu family's second wife dared to embezzle and misappropriate even the first wife's dowry; one could imagine what her attitude was towards the young daughter left behind by the first wife.

"I understand. I will have this matter handled. Once your mother's belongings are found, I will send someone to deliver them to you."

Yu Ying'er's eyes lit up with joy; her big, wet eyes sparkled like a little animal's, making one's heart soften.

The emperor looked at her with amusement, "You're a mother now, why are you crying like a little kitten? Luckily, our little prince is still young and doesn't understand, otherwise he would probably laugh at you, his mother."

Yu Ying'er pouted, "Anyway, only the Emperor will see it. As long as the Emperor doesn't say anything, no outsiders will know. Besides, although I am now a mother, I am still the Emperor's concubine. With the Emperor around, I have someone to rely on, so I don't have to suffer in silence if I am wronged."

"You!" The emperor looked helpless, but he was happy inside. Being trusted and relied on so openly by his concubine gave him a great sense of satisfaction.

"Go to the side hall to tidy up before returning to Zhongcui Palace. Otherwise, if others see you, they might think I scolded or punished you."

If things go wrong, news will spread that she has fallen out of favor.

"Your Majesty, I thank you. I will take my leave now."

No sooner had she left the Hall of Mental Cultivation than the Emperor appointed the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards to go to the Yu family.

When Commander Shumulu arrived at the Yu family's residence, the house was bustling with activity.

Madam Ma refused to hand over the Yu family's account books and the keys to her private treasury no matter what she said. The government officials were determined to force their way in, but Yu Chonglin stopped them.

Without proofreading, there is naturally no way to trace it.

Although the officials wanted to please Consort Zhuang, Yu Chonglin was her biological father. As the saying goes, even an upright official finds it hard to settle family disputes. They were also afraid that the father and daughter would eventually reconcile and come back to cause trouble for them.

Xiao Lianzi wanted to tell the officials not to worry, but he couldn't say it out loud.

Commander Shumulu arrived at this time.

Xiao Lianzi naturally recognized Commander Shumulu, and immediately stepped forward with shining eyes to greet him, "This servant, Xiao Lianzi of Zhongcui Palace, greets Commander Shumulu."

His aunt's reinforcements have arrived!

Upon hearing that he identified himself as a palace maid of Zhongcui, Commander Shumulu smiled and returned the greeting with clasped hands. "You are too kind, Eunuch Lian. I have been ordered by the Emperor to retrieve the dowry items of Madam Yu for Consort Zhuang. Do you have a list of Madam Yu's dowry?"

Xiao Lianzi immediately handed over the dowry list archived in the government office, saying, "Yes, yes, please take a look, Commander."

He bowed and stood before Commander Shumulu, turning his head to look at Madam Ma, who was surrounded by people. "We servants are asking the stepmother to bring out the account books so that we can trace the whereabouts of the old lady's dowry."

Although Ma and Yu Chonglin did not know Commander Shumulu, they recognized the uniform that belonged exclusively to the imperial guards.

The couple instantly lost all will to resist; the Emperor had intervened!

Commander Shumulu took the dowry list and glanced at it briefly. "Now that we have a direction to follow, let's hurry. I need to return to the palace to report to the Emperor."

Xiao Lianzi revealed a victorious smile and looked at Yu Chonglin and his wife with a mocking expression: "My lord, my lady, please stop dawdling."

What could the two do? Even if they were unwilling, they dared not disobey the emperor's order. They gave the keys when they were entitled to them and made way when they were entitled to them.

After obtaining the account books and comparing them, the officials quickly discovered clues in the Yu family's public accounts.

"Lord Shumulu, please take a look, Eunuch Lian."

The officials circled several pieces of furniture and two plots of land on the dowry list and the Yu family's account books.

"Among the dowry of the second daughter of the Yu family, there was a set of rosewood dressing boxes with mandarin ducks and lotus flowers, a pair of long-necked porcelain vases with magpies on branches, and a set of writing implements with the theme of 'plucking the laurel in the moon palace.' None of them had any purchase records and they matched the old lady's dowry list."

"The two plots of land in the dowry of the four daughters of the Yu family are five mu of medium-sized paddy fields in Zhao Village, ten miles outside Beijing, and five mu of sloping land in Wangjiahe, next to Zhao Village. These two plots are in the exact same location as the land in the dowry of the old lady."

Commander Shumulu looked at Yu Chonglin and Madam Ma, "Do Lord Yu and Madam Ma have anything to say about this?"

Yu Chonglin, panting heavily, turned around and slapped Ma Shi hard across the face. The force was so great that Ma Shi immediately fell to the ground, dizzy.

"You short-sighted fool! Has my Yu family ever starved you or fallen so low that we can't afford a dowry for our daughter? How dare you secretly use Wu's dowry without my knowledge!"

When Yu Chonglin mentioned his first wife, he wanted to call her by her name to show more intimacy, but he hadn't thought of her for more than ten years. He couldn't remember her maiden name for a moment, so he had to use "Wu Shi" instead.

Commander Shumulu and Xiao Lianzi, impatient with his crude performance, asked, "Since neither of you has any objection, then this must belong to the Empress's birth mother. Who are the two daughters of the Yu family married to? How far are they from the capital?"

The officials had already ascertained this, and immediately replied, "Your Excellency, the husbands of both of my daughters are from families in the capital, and both are families of officials."

"That's convenient. You two should immediately take people to the husbands' homes of the two women from the Yu family and retrieve the items."

As for whether such actions would have a negative impact on the two Yu family daughters who married out, sorry, that's not within Shumuluchaha's scope of consideration. His task is to find the dowry of Consort Zhuang's birth mother.

Just as Commander Shumulu issued the order, the person checking the private accounts on the other side exclaimed with delight, "Sir, we've also found Ma's private accounts."