I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 232 Falling into the trap
In early October, a children's rhyme suddenly began circulating in various parts of Luoyang:
Millions of taels of silver vanished without a trace, Wuwei City fell and the general died, tens of thousands of civilians were slaughtered, and the truth was revealed to be that they had colluded with the enemy!

"Bang!" The Crown Prince slammed his fist on the table. "Who on earth is so vicious as to spread such rumors? He better not let me catch him, or I will tear him to pieces!"

"Your Highness, why be upset? It's just a nursery rhyme that a child sings because it's catchy. Rumors stop with the wise, Your Highness."

"Bang!" The teacup slammed against the wall, right next to Master Zhang's ear, and Master Zhang immediately shut his mouth.

"This nursery rhyme has now spread throughout Luoyang, and almost every household's child is singing it," said the aide sitting next to him. "Although rumors are said to stop with the wise, many voices can melt metal and three men can make a tiger. If many people believe a rumor, even if it is false, it will be taken as true."

These words struck a chord with the Crown Prince, and his expression softened. "What good plan does Mr. Xu have?"

Xu Liang waved his feather fan and said, "I am not very talented, but I have three volumes: upper, middle, and lower."

The crown prince sat back in his chair, speaking humbly, "I am all ears."

"The first part, naturally, is to find out the whereabouts of the 1.5 million taels of silver. Once the silver is found, everything will fall apart on its own."

Master Zhang's attitude was unfriendly, "Cao Yang is dead..."

Are you suggesting that the Zhang family and the Crown Prince be imprisoned and tortured to extract confessions?

Xu Liang ignored him and said, "The best course of action is to take out this 1.5 million taels of silver."

Master Zhang scoffed, "Is Mr. Xu getting old? He forgets what he just said as soon as he turns his back. What's the difference between your middle and best strategies?"

The crown prince said coldly, "Guards, show the guests out!"

The eunuch standing outside immediately pushed the door open and forced Master Zhang to leave.

"Does the gentleman mean that I have to hand over this 1.5 million taels of silver?"

“That’s right. As long as we find this 1.5 million taels of silver and prove that it has nothing to do with the fall of Wuwei City or even treason, the problem will naturally be solved.”

The crown prince, feeling a pang of heartache, hurriedly asked, "What's the worst option?"

"The worst strategy is to use one's own weapon against oneself, to use even bigger rumors to quell the rumors, but..."

However, treason was already the most horrifying thing for the royal family and civil and military officials. It would be too difficult to create an even bigger rumor.

The Crown Prince was well aware that the only solution now was to take out 1.5 million taels of silver from his private treasury.

Xu Liang reminded him, "His Highness hasn't visited Consort Wu in a long time."

The prince's eyes lit up. "Thank you for the reminder, sir. I will go see her in a little while."

“Your Highness is too kind. It is my duty to deal with troubles for Your Highness,” Xu Liang said, standing up and calmly bowing before leaving.

The Crown Prince sat alone in his study for a long time, then had lunch with the Crown Princess, and then spoke with Consort Tang for a while. But that night, he surprisingly went to Consort Wu's place.

Consort Wu was overjoyed. She hadn't seen the Crown Prince for a long time. After a night of tenderness, Consort Wu, whose eyes were filled with thoughts of the Crown Prince, immediately wrote a letter back to her family.

The Wu family took the message from Consort Wu via carrier pigeon very seriously. The head of the Wu family personally picked up the letter and read it through, his expression grave. "Consort Wu needs 1.5 million taels of silver in cash, and she wants it hidden at the address given in the letter." "1.5 million taels of silver in cash?" Second Master Wu asked in surprise. "What does the Crown Prince need so much silver for?"

The Wu family head rebuked, "Does the Crown Prince need to explain to you what he wants to do?"

"But the Crown Prince is asking for far too much," complained Master Wu. When his family sent their eldest daughter to the Crown Prince's residence, they gave her a dowry of one million taels of silver. After the Wu family daughter entered the Crown Prince's residence, she wrote back several times asking for money. Later, when she gave birth to a son and was promoted to the rank of Liangdi, the Wu family sent a congratulatory gift worth hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.

If you calculate carefully, the Wu family has given nearly three million taels of silver since the Wu family girl entered the Crown Prince's residence!
The key point is that the Wu family didn't benefit much!

To date, only one member of the Wu family has entered officialdom, but he only became a minor seventh-rank county magistrate! The Wu family's efforts and rewards are completely unbalanced!

In other words, the Great Yu does not allow the sale of titles and official positions; otherwise, the money the Wu family gave to the Crown Prince would be more than enough to buy a fifth-rank official position!
The Wu family head certainly had a ledger in mind, but merchants were of low status. If the Crown Prince wanted it, could the Wu family refuse?
Master Wu Er plopped down in his chair. "Where would the Wu family possibly come up with 1.5 million taels of cash these days?"

Since the King of Wei entered the Ministry of Revenue, the Wu family's business has been severely suppressed, and their income has been greatly reduced compared to the past. Moreover, the Wu family's other businesses have also been squeezed, especially the spice business, which has almost reached the point where no one cares about it!
It's all that damned Flower Dew Shop's fault!

The head of the Wu family sighed, "No matter what, we have to come up with this money. If we offend the Crown Prince, all of the Wu family's previous investments will be wasted."

“Then we’ll have to sell our farmland and shops,” said Master Wu, his back hunched over with heartache. “But buying and selling shops takes time. If we sell in a hurry, we’ll probably be forced to lower the price.”

The Wu family is famous for its salt business. Even though the profits from trading salt are no longer as high as before, the Wu family cannot give it up!

"Let's gather all the clansmen to contribute money," the Wu family head decided. "The Wu family has been supporting them all this time, and now it's time for them to repay the Wu family."

The order was given immediately, and the Wu family complained and argued incessantly. However, under the powerful and authoritative pressure of the Wu family head, the clansmen still obediently contributed money to raise 1.5 million taels of silver.

The head of the Wu family personally transported the hard-won silver to the north and hid it in a sealed-off estate under Cao Yang's name.

The Crown Prince was overjoyed to receive news that the Wu family had taken care of things. After making the arrangements, he bribed the jailer and sent a message into the Ministry of Justice prison.

Officials implicated by Cao Yang and imprisoned immediately requested a reduction in their sentences. Upon receiving the news, officials from the Ministry of Justice rushed to Cao Yang's estate not far from Luoyang. They dug three feet into the ground and drained the pond before finally finding the hidden 1.5 million taels of silver under a thick layer of silt, which was half a person high.

"Sir, although this silver is old, it doesn't look very new," the official who opened the box to inspect it whispered. "This silver doesn't look like it's been sealed for more than ten years."

"Never mind that! How much silver is it?"

"One million and a half taels!"

"Let's go!" the official ordered, and the constables loaded the chests full of silver onto the carriages and headed back to the capital.

Prince An, who had just finished his business, stood in front of the Ministry of War and watched as dozens of carriages drove up in a grand procession and stopped at the Ministry of Justice across the street. Only after asking did he learn that they had found the embezzled silver.

Prince An was greatly alarmed, but remained outwardly calm. He immediately went to the Mu family to inform them.

Grand Secretary Mu put down the watering can and said, "I understand."

"Uncle, the embezzled silver has been found. What use is that nursery rhyme now?"

"How could it be useless?" Elder Mu said shrewdly. "This 1.5 million taels of silver is evidence of the Crown Prince's treason!"

Otherwise, why would the Crown Prince have paid the difference out of his own pocket?
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