Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 283 What a rip-off!

"Father!"

Yan Liang suddenly looked at Yan Shu.

Yan Shu's eyes flashed with a sharp light: "It's alright. I'll go take a look."

Yan Liang followed up, asking, "What should we do if His Majesty insists on severely punishing the Liu family?"

"If you insist on proceeding, then let's sacrifice Zhou Sheng! He's the most crucial person in this entire case!" Yan Shu turned his head: "You stay in the mansion and adapt to the situation!"

Yan Liang bowed.

When I looked up, Yan Shu was already gone.

He quickly turned his head and said, "Send someone to the Grand Commandant's residence to see what the Shen family is up to!"

……

Shen Bo returned from the Ministry of War and went straight to his study upon entering the mansion:
"Where is the eldest young master?!"

Mr. Yi, lifting his robe, hurried after him: "The young master is at home. Regarding the earlier military report from the southeast—"

Shen Bo suddenly stopped at the door, his imposing figure unable to conceal his anger: "You still bring it up? Bring him here! I have questions for him!"

Even with a formidable enemy at hand, the Grand Commandant remained as calm as Mount Tai. Yi Cheng rarely saw him like this, so he dared not ask any of his many questions and turned to leave for Bibo Pavilion.

The couple stayed indoors all day, but they mobilized their spies to gather information and dispatched personnel to Cheng Wenhui's side to prepare for a timely response.

I just heard from He Qu that Grand Commandant Shen from the Ministry of War has submitted a memorial to the palace, requesting the emperor to allocate military funds to Hu Yucheng. After that, the emperor dismissed Liu Zheng and summoned Yan Shu to the palace. The atmosphere in Bibo Pavilion gradually became more lively.

After seeing Cheng Wenhui off last night, Shen Qingzhou seriously considered what Lu Jie had said before their parting. First, he wanted to shift the blame to the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works by diverting the suspicion of the missing Ministry of Works files. Second, he wanted to emphasize that Grand Commandant Shen was a force to be reckoned with in resisting the Yan family's scourge on the court.

The first thing was easy; he just needed to send people to do it in secret.

The second thing, however, requires some thought.

Just then, Song En received a battle report from the southeast coast. Shen Qingzhou then wrote a letter to several veteran generals, explaining in detail several points and asking them to propose increasing Hu Yucheng's military pay at the morning meeting in the government office, so as to carry the fight against the Japanese pirates to the end in one go.

The coastal battles were crucial to the safety of the south, so they were naturally of great importance. Moreover, although Hu Yucheng was recommended by the Yan family, he was indeed quite skilled in military tactics. The old generals were persuaded, and after he laid out his reasons, Grand Commandant Shen obviously had no reason to object.

Everything was proceeding at a rapid pace, and Lu Jia and Shen Qingzhou were naturally delighted, immediately beginning preparations for the next step.

When Yi Cheng jogged in, the two were sitting cross-legged on a jade mat, heads to heads, whispering to each other.

Mr. Yi slapped his thigh: "My goodness, what have you done? The Grand Commandant is furious and might really be about to get angry!"

For over ten years, Grand Commandant Shen served on the frontier, and Mr. Yi was his strategist. During battles, the Grand Commandant's ruthless style instilled fear in the enemy, and his few words could silence his men.

However, ever since returning to the capital, due to her feelings of indebtedness towards Shen Qingzhou, she had been enduring and backing down in front of him. No matter how rude Shen Qingzhou was, Grand Commandant Shen never held it against her.

Wasn't that kind of situation frightening?
The two whispering figures looked up upon hearing this. Lu Jia stood up first: "Mr. Yi, what brings you here?" "Isn't this to invite the eldest young master?"

Yi Cheng looked at Shen Qingzhou: "Why didn't you even inform the Grand Commandant before handling the matter of requesting Hu Yucheng to allocate military funds today? You even joined forces with several old generals. This is acting first and reporting later!"
"—Let's hurry up and go. The Grand Commandant is waiting!"

He felt a pang of pain in his eyes just looking at the two of them. The delicate and sickly young master Shen was already a headache enough, someone you couldn't scold or beat, but who knew he would marry such a young mistress who had accomplished so much in her own family!
Although it's unclear whether the young mistress played a role, it's obvious that the two of them are in cahoots, which is certainly not something that Grand Commandant Shen, whose relationship with his son is still strained, would welcome.

Upon hearing this, Lu Jia quickly crawled back to Shen Qingzhou's side: "What should we do? Will Father hit you?"

Shen Qingzhou knew Mr. Yi's status in the Shen family, so why would he need to personally invite him under normal circumstances?
Not only did he come, but he was also in such a hurry, so it seems that Grand Commandant Shen's reaction was indeed a bit serious.

But how could he possibly have told me this beforehand?
It's impossible to get it done just by saying so.

In the matter of resisting the Yan family, he had tested Shen Bo's attitude many times, and each time the response he received was that he would never respond.

If he hadn't submitted his memorial requesting the transfer of military funds at this critical juncture, how could the emperor have put pressure on the cabinet? Without pressure, how could Yan Song have been stuck in the cabinet?

At this critical juncture, separating the Yan family father and son was also one of the keys to success.

"Don't worry," Shen Qingzhou patted her hand and stood up. "I can handle it. I'll paint your fan when I get back."

After that, he walked out.

Lu Jia glanced at the blank fan in her hand, casually gathered the paintbrushes on the table, then stood up and followed her out!

Grand Commandant Shen sat in his study, finding fault with everything. The tea his servants had brewed for him had already been changed three times.

He felt depressed.

Early in the morning, the government office held its routine meeting to discuss the war along the southeast coast. The war was progressing smoothly, which was good news. The veteran generals proposed increasing military pay to help the soldiers in the southeast intensify their efforts to combat the Japanese pirates, which was also a good thing. As Grand Commandant and Minister of War, he had no reason to object.

But just as the memorial was handed over, news came that Cheng Wenhui had submitted evidence to the palace, and then the emperor kicked Liu Zheng in the palace!

Does Shen Boneng not know about the Yan family's shady dealings in river transport?

This is something you absolutely must not get involved in!

Asking the emperor for money at this juncture is tantamount to urging him to conduct a thorough investigation of Zhou Sheng and the Liu family. It's also like forcing the Yan family to pay up the money they owe.
To put it bluntly, this is about offending the Yan family!
Having been in officialdom for so many years, he knew that the old generals wouldn't be completely bought off by that kid. After rounds of questioning, he knew exactly what was going on behind the scenes.
This guy!
This is a complete rip-off!

"Father."

Shen Qingzhou walked in and saw his father sitting behind his desk with a wrinkled face, still wearing his official robes. He couldn't help but lower his voice and coughed lightly twice: "I wonder what business Father has with me?"

Shen Bo glared at him: "You still dare to ask?"

Shen Qingzhou stood ramrod straight: "I don't know what Father is referring to. Please forgive me for not understanding."

"Don't play dumb with me!" Shen Bo said irritably. "How dare you interfere in military affairs and instigate old generals in the court? Aren't you afraid people will find fault with your father?"

Shen Qingzhou said, "The situation in the southeast coastal region is no secret. After hearing about it, I only gave a few normal suggestions. I would have dared to speak frankly even if the Emperor asked. I don't know how this has been linked to me interfering in the military affairs of the Ministry of War?"