Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 234 I can't ignore it

Since Liu Zheng had something on someone else, Yan Shu couldn't personally intervene. He vented his anger and then sent someone to Shuntian Prefecture.

Just as she sat down, Madam Yan walked in: "The mess left by Jiang Mingyi isn't over yet."

"Why are you bringing her up?" Ever since the incident, Yan Shu couldn't stand the sight of Jiang Mingyi; he usually wouldn't even bother calling her by name. Yan Shu said impatiently, "From now on, just pretend she's dead! There's no point in embarrassing her!"

“But Jiang Mingyi has come after me!” Madam Yan pushed two pieces of paper in her hand over: “Look at this.”

Yan Shu's expression changed after he saw it clearly. "What is she trying to do?"

"What she wants to do is obvious, isn't it?" Madam Yan's face was as stern as an iron plate. "She is by no means a docile person."
"She will never give up until Lu Jie divorces her. Even if he does, she won't stop until he's dead!"

"She's an illegitimate child, yet she managed to scheme her way up to become the wife of a high-ranking official. That's incredibly lucky! She'll never give up on the wealth and glory she has now!"

Yan Shu stared at the picture of the fan for a moment, then crumpled it into a ball: "Even if she returns to the Lu family, does she intend to make a comeback?"

"Why not?" Madam Yan said deeply. "She has a firm grip on our weaknesses. In her view, as long as we are around, she will not fall."

Yan Shu turned and glanced at her, his brows furrowed.

Madam Yan hit the nail on the head. Even if Madam Jiang falls to the dust, with the status and power of the Yan family, as long as they are willing to help her, how could she possibly collapse?

At the beginning, both sides shared common interests and never thought that they would turn against each other. Who would have thought that the Wei family would suddenly cause such a change?

"No matter what, she knows too much about us, and it's really not appropriate to let her go out."

The couple exchanged a glance, and then Madam Yan sat down: "But there's a problem right now. The Lu family has locked her up in a Taoist temple, and we can't see her."

"If we act quietly, I've heard that the guards there are all people sent by Sister Jia, so it might be difficult to bribe them. And it's hard to guarantee that we won't leave any traces."

"Isn't she supposed to be coming back?" Yan Shu also sat down. "Then let her come back first."

……

With the commotion at the Liu family's place, Liu Zheng didn't go to the Ministry of Works for several days in a row, and naturally had even less time to go to the Ministry of Revenue.

That day, the emperor summoned Lu Jie to the Qianqing Palace, where even the emperor inquired about the matter: "Is it true that Liu Zheng accepted three thousand taels of silver from local officials?"

The Yan family had been entrenched in the court for so many years, and memorials accusing them never stopped throughout the year, but the emperor relied on the Yan family to do his bidding and never seriously investigated the matter.

With the Yan family protecting them, Liu Zheng and his ilk were never harmed, even when they were occasionally reported to the palace.

It's really not worth pursuing this three thousand taels of silver.

Lu Jie bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have only recently taken up my post in the Ministry of Revenue and have not yet had time to pay attention to this matter."

The emperor picked up a brush and drew a talisman, raised an eyebrow at it, and then handed it to the Taoist priest Bai Qingxuan beside him.

"I've heard that the teahouses in the capital have been quite lively these past few months. After watching the Yan family's play, they've already started watching the Liu family's play. I've also heard that you haven't been spared either."

Lu Jie looked at the ground and said, "To be honest, Your Majesty, it is precisely because I am preoccupied with my family affairs that I have no time to attend to other matters. However, once I leave the palace, I will immediately go to Shuntian Prefecture to inquire about the Liu family's case and then report back to Your Majesty in detail."

The emperor dipped his brush in vermilion, touched the tip of the brush to the white porcelain dish several times, and then glanced at him: "No need."

Lu Jie looked up and then left the palace.

It wasn't until he got into the sedan chair that Lu Jie was able to relax his tense shoulders.

Upon returning home, before Yang Bonong could even speak, he asked, "What happened to Guo Lu? How did he get arrested by the Liu family?"

“I’m completely baffled as well,” Yang Bonong said, closing the door behind him as he followed her inside. “Before this, there was no news of Guo Lu at all, but just a quarter of an hour ago, Lu Rong found out that the young lady had visited the Jiang residence a few days ago.” Lu Jie was stunned: “Why is it her again?”

Yang Bonong shrugged.

Lu Jie paused for a moment, then paced a few steps before asking, "Besides the Jiang family, where else did she go?"

"Inside the Taoist temple."

Lu Jie nodded, his eyes flashing slightly.

Right now, the only person who can keep an eye on Guo Lu is Lu Jia.

Originally, this whole thing was just meant to trip up the Liu family, but unexpectedly, Lu Jia got involved, which made things complicated.

This girl!
Why are you in such a hurry?
Couldn't we have waited a bit before taking action?
Yang Bonong could see his worry: "Miss is probably still holding a grudge. Didn't she say before that she had a score to settle? She won't let this go until it's settled. You should just let her be."

Lu Jie rubbed his forehead in annoyance: "But the Emperor just asked about the Liu family's case."

"Oh?"

This is quite surprising. "What does Your Majesty mean?"

Lu Jie let out a long sigh and told him what had happened: "The Liu family has deep ties with Tanzhou Prefecture. I heard that He Ping of the Embroidered Uniform Guard went on an official business recently, and no one knows where he went. However, Zhou Sheng, the deputy prefect who was brought to the capital by Tanzhou Prefecture for destroying the dike and flooding the fields, is still in the imperial prison."

"And Su Yin, the Grand Master of the Imperial Household, whose brother-in-law was working in the Five Cities Garrison, was recently transferred to the Imperial Prison as a jailer."

"As you know, although the Crown Prince is already the Crown Prince, he is not favored by the Emperor because of the saying 'two dragons cannot meet.'"

"Since the people guarding the prison are from the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, news of Zhou Sheng's case must have reached the Qianqing Palace from time to time."

Yang Bonong pondered, "Does Your Excellency mean that the Emperor is dissatisfied with the Liu family?"

Lu Jie paced around twice and said only, "If it was just a casual question, the Emperor would know the amount of three thousand taels of silver. If he intends to hold someone accountable, he would come to me to ask."

Just as Yang Bonong was about to reply with "Your heart is hard to fathom," he caught a glimpse of a figure sliding outside the window, followed by a knock on the door: "Master, Lord Yan has arrived."

The two people inside the room immediately met each other's eyes.

Yang Bonong said, "The Liu family is currently embroiled in trouble, and the Yan family should be busy cleaning up the mess. What brings Lord Yan here?"

Lu Jie paused, and the worry from before resurfaced on his brow: "What else could it be? Isn't it all Jia'er's doing?"

……

Yan Shu did not bring any wine or food today. Not only that, but a stern look appeared on his face.

"The divorce is only a few days away. When Yingjie gets married, only her father will be there, but her mother will not be present. How does Lan Chu plan to handle this?"

Lu Jie said slowly, "To tell you the truth, I had planned to bring her back in the next couple of days, but I just found out that Guo Lu was involved in Lao Liu's case. He actually colluded with the actors outside to set Lao Liu up in a honey trap!"

"Guo Lu doesn't have that kind of brain. Could it be that someone is instigating this behind the scenes? And who could be instigating him?"

"I think we should just let this go, to avoid causing any more trouble."

Yan Shu then picked up his teacup as well: "After all, she still has the identity of Madam Lu, so we still have to release her."

"As for when she gets back—I'll have your sister-in-law come over and give her a good talking-to."

Lu Jie glanced at him: "Have you thought this through? This is your idea. If something goes wrong later, I won't be responsible."