Dugong

Chapter 78 Plunder from Merchants
Among the twelve directorates of the Inner Palace Attendants Bureau, the Directorate of Imperial Cuisine was the most lucrative, as it controlled the Imperial Kitchen and the Tribute Office, and could easily rake in a large sum of money.

The Imperial Horse Stables were far inferior, but they were not poor.

Horses, especially imperial horses, were extremely valuable. One horse was worth as much as dozens of eunuchs, and the best feed for them was better than what ordinary people ate.

If something has value and is consumed, it can naturally earn money.

Li Ping'an keenly sensed that there was something wrong with Qing Si Trading Company. Since it was not appropriate to ask about this in public, he instructed, "Everyone else go to work. Those with official positions should come with me to the duty room to talk."

Eunuch Ji got up and led the way on the left front, hunched over with a fawning expression on his face.

Grandpa Gao reacted just as quickly, leading the way on the right front, bowing and scraping with a smile on his face.

The two of them crawled with their faces almost touching the ground, relying on their inner energy and lightness skills.

The other eunuchs cursed the two old bastards for being shameless and hurriedly crowded around, respectfully escorting Li Ping'an into the Imperial Horse Stable's duty room.

The interior layout is similar to that of the Imperial Kitchen, with a tall armchair at the front and two rows of low tables and chairs on either side. Calligraphy scrolls with phrases like "clean hands and a clear conscience" and "upright and honest" hang on all four sides, echoing the sentiments of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemums, essentially highlighting what is lacking.

Li Ping'an slowly walked to the grand master's chair, which had already been wiped clean. He lifted his bright red official robe and slowly sat down, placing his hands on the arched armrests and looking down at the green and blue officials below who were bowing their heads.

Perhaps it's the exquisite craftsmanship of the admiral's chair, or perhaps it's the feeling of comfort and ease that comes from looking down from above.

Having served in the palace for six years and through two reigns, my family has become quite a figure!

"Jie Jie Jie..."

Li Ping'an couldn't help but let out a strange laugh, his smugness overflowing, as if he had eaten a hundred or eighty steamed buns.

The eunuchs below were all shrewd and adept at flattery. They knew exactly how to please their master, so they all knelt down, kowtowed, and shouted.

"Greetings, Admiral."

"Good good."

Li Ping'an nodded in satisfaction, but instead of having everyone sit down, he asked, "Eunuch Ji, tell me about the origins of the Qing Si Trading Company?"

"In reply to your question, sir, the owner of Qing Si Trading Company is named He Yong, and he was originally a horse doctor in the East Market."

Eunuch Ji recounted in detail: "About twenty years ago, He Yong by chance cured an imperial horse, which earned him the appreciation of Eunuch Tao, the then head of the outer stables, who would summon him from time to time to treat the imperial horse..."

The outer stables were located outside the capital, not far from the Beijing garrison.

Training warhorses for the Beijing Garrison and the Imperial Guards was one of the duties of the Imperial Horse Administration.

"After He Yong made some money, he opened the Qing Si Trading Company and began to get involved in horse trading. Through Eunuch Tao's connections, he sold a lot of horses to the outside stables."

Eunuch Ji continued, "As the business grew, Eunuch Tao alone couldn't handle the situation, so He Yong donated 90% of the business's profits to the officials of the Imperial Horse Administration free of charge..."

For the next decade or so, almost all transactions at the Imperial Horse Stables were handled by the Qing Si Trading Company, including not only horses and materials, but also custom-made horse tack, stable repairs, and so on.

He Yong started from scratch as a horse doctor and amassed a huge business in just over a decade, making him a legendary wealthy businessman in Dongshi!

"Tsk tsk tsk, willing to give up 90% of their profits, what a bold move."

Li Ping'an exclaimed in admiration, "Everyone knows that giving away money can win people's hearts, but few can actually do it: Where is Eunuch Tao working now?"

Eunuch Ji replied, "Not long after Eunuch Leng was promoted to Admiral, Eunuch Tao was beheaded in court for embezzling a huge amount of money."

Li Ping'an pursed his lips and said, "It seems that Eunuch Tao is unwilling to share any money."

Eunuch Gao chimed in, "Your Excellency is wise. I heard from my godfather... ptooey, ptooey, Eunuch Leng that he privately discussed with Eunuch Tao about giving him half of the share, but Eunuch Tao flatly refused."

Eunuch Tao believed that he had discovered and supported the Qing Si trading company and even shared silver with his colleagues at the Imperial Horse Administration, so he was entitled to such a large share of the profits.

Little did they know that the size of one's contribution was not the standard for distributing money; power was!
Under the pretext of investigating corruption, Eunuch Leng killed Eunuch Tao, but Qing Si Trading Company continued to operate as usual without any impact.

Li Ping'an asked, "When Eunuch Leng was transferred to the Directorate of Ceremonial, who got his share of the money?" "It's still in Eunuch Leng's hands."

Eunuch Ji said, "The former governor did not dare to cut off Eunuch Leng's share of the profits, but instead took an extra 30% from me and He Yong."

Li Ping'an ordered, "From now on, all their share of the money will be transferred to our family."

"As ordered."

Eunuch Ji glanced at everyone, and none of them dared to object. As the saying goes, a local official is more powerful than a distant one, and besides, the governor was personally appointed by His Majesty, so even Eunuch Leng could not control him.

Li Pingan tapped the armrest repeatedly, then asked after a moment's thought, "Does He Yong have any other backers?"

Eunuch Gao replied, "It shouldn't be. If He Yong were to climb up to a more powerful backer, Eunuch Leng would definitely find out, and the amount of silver allocated to the Imperial Horse Administration would be much less."

There is no such thing as a powerful backer without effort. All of Qing Si Trading Company's business comes from the Imperial Horse Administration. However, there are not many powerful backers in the capital who can overpower the Imperial Horse Administration.

Li Ping'an then asked, "Do you know how much silver He Yong has earned in total?"

Eunuch Ji and Eunuch Gao shook their heads slightly. They had only served in the Imperial Horse Administration for four or five years. After being promoted, they inherited their predecessors' money and only cared about taking the money and not about the accounts.

The duty room was quiet for a moment.

Hou Gonggong, the head of the hay yard who was standing at the end of the line, stepped forward, bowed, and reported.

“This servant has been working at the Imperial Horse Stables. Based on the purchase and consumption of fodder, I have roughly estimated that He Yong has made at least several hundred thousand taels of silver through the Qing Si Trading Company.”

Grandpa Gao exclaimed in surprise, "He Yong is a first-class citizen, how could he have so many?"

"The accounts of Qingsi Trading Company are in He Yong's hands. Nominally, he is responsible for one share, but the specific amount is entirely up to him."

Eunuch Hou said, "We sent people to track He Yong. Although we didn't get the account books, we saw that he had several large houses in the capital and kept more than a dozen mistresses."

"That's unreasonable!"

"How dare you take our money!"

"To keep so many mistresses, he deserves to be executed..."

Upon hearing this, the eunuchs immediately erupted in a commotion, it was unclear whether they envied He Yong's large mansion or were jealous of his dozen or so concubines.

Seeing that the atmosphere had calmed down, Li Ping'an waved his hand to quell the noise.

“This fellow, a mere horse doctor, has prospered thanks to our Imperial Horse Administration. He dares to steal and embezzle, he is truly a disgrace and must be severely punished.”

Eunuch Ji agreed, "You're right, sir. We must get our money back."

The eunuch glared and said, "What do you mean, your money? That's all the adults' money."

"You're all wrong, that's His Majesty's money!"

Li Ping'an rose and bowed to the Hall of Diligent Governance: "We have recovered the silver that He Yong embezzled, and it is only right that we send it to the Imperial Treasury. His Majesty eats no more than fifty taels of silver per meal and wears no more than eight sets of clothes for all four seasons. We, as servants, are very ashamed and must share His Majesty's burdens."

Eunuch Ji quickly chimed in, "Your Excellency is right. Your Excellency's loyalty to His Majesty is as clear as day."

Li Ping'an sat back in the armchair, then changed the subject.

“The money will be sent to the imperial treasury, and we will share the profits from the houses, shops and land that He Yong bought. We won’t have worked so hard to investigate the case for nothing.”

"Thank you for your generous gift, sir."

The crowd hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed, their shouts becoming much more enthusiastic and sincere than before.

(End of this chapter)