Da Ming: Father, step aside, I'll be the prime minister!

Chapter 227 Dissatisfied? Go ahead and sue me!
Zhang Yunxiu's words were full of sarcasm.

It even sounds a bit arrogant.

Some people in the crowd were inevitably annoyed.

Especially the student Wang Shiqi.

The last time he carefully escorted that glass statue of a Confucian sage to Jiangnan, he wanted to make a fortune and win his father's favor.

However, Wang Shizhen's attempt to present the glass statue to Xu Jie backfired, causing Xu Jie to faint.

Enraged by this, Wang Shizhen sent four or five letters to Wang Shiqi, all filled with insults, and even cut off his source of funds for withdrawing money from the money exchange in the capital.

How could this not infuriate Wang Shiqi?
He was furious, but dared not confront Zhang Yunxiu directly, so he hid in the crowd, occasionally uttering a curse.

“Zhang Shiyuan! You’re still trying to confuse the public. I think you’re the one who caused this price drop in glass. If Xishan hadn’t been selling glass one after another, how could the market price of glass have kept falling?”
This is fraud!
"Do you dare let us go into the Western Hills and see if your warehouses are piled high with goods?"

"Fraud?"

Zhang Yunxiu found this remark even more amusing. He looked at the bloated gentry and merchants below and sneered.

"When you were making your money, did you ever think that the Xishan Auction was a fraud?"

He glared, raised his eyebrows, and questioned sharply.

“Did I, Zhang Yunxiu, ever hold a knife to your necks and force you to buy Xishan glass?”
How much silver did you earn from Xishan Liuli before?
Why didn't you think of giving some to me, Zhang Yunxiu, back then?
Now that the price of this glass has dropped, you still want a refund? How come you get all the good deals in the world?

Motherfucker!
This outburst left Yu Xiangdou, who was standing to the side, stunned.

How can they be so self-righteous?

But the gentry and wealthy merchants below were completely red-faced, their faces flushed red.

If it weren't for the presence of the Imperial Guards, they would have rushed up and torn Zhang Yunxiu to pieces.

Especially that old gentryman from just now, his body was trembling, and he pointed his withered finger at Zhang Yunxiu and said.

"Is there no justice left in this world? It was clearly the Erxishan Auction House that cheated people, yet they're so aggressive! This old man..."

The old gentry looked pitiful, pretending to be an old farmer, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

“Scamming?” Zhang Yunxiu no longer restrained his anger. “You all keep saying that Xishan is scamming, but do you have any evidence?”

"You dare to make baseless accusations and attack me like this? Do you really think my Imperial Guard is just for show? Do you really think royal property can be trampled on at will?"

Seeing Zhang Yunxiu emphasize the word "royal" so heavily, some nobles in the crowd were immediately filled with indignation.

"Zhang Yunxiu! Do not use His Majesty's authority to intimidate others. Xishan is already in a state of utter chaos and must be investigated! You, as a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, are knowingly breaking the law."

The other person wanted to continue speaking, but Zhang Yunxiu interrupted him directly, saying with a sneer.

"Is this the Earl of Xing'an? You keep saying that my Western Hills are in ruins, but what evidence do you have?"

"you!"

Marquis Xing'an, Xu Mengyang, was speechless. Even though they had invested a huge amount of silver, there was really no clear evidence to prove it.

If they did have anything, it would only be contracts and physical glass objects, but these things would be nothing more than side effects for them.

The contract even contained phrases like "purchase is final" and "no refunds or exchanges."

All the conditions are favorable to Xishan, so how can you fight against Zhang Yunxiu?
For a moment, the nobles were somewhat dejected, and many turned their gaze to Zhang Rong, the Duke of England, who was standing to the side, hoping that he could step in and make a decision.

Zhang Rong remained silent.

Seeing that these people had no fighting ability, Zhang Yunxiu also seemed uninterested.

He waved his hand and said.

“Xishan is a property bestowed by His Majesty. You have gathered a crowd to cause trouble, and you could have been arrested and punished.”

However, considering that this is your first offense, please disperse quickly and I will grant you temporary leniency today.

If you still feel wronged

Zhang Yunxiu spread his hands and said, "Then go and inform this magistrate!"

Be confident!

These words enraged the gentry and wealthy merchants below, who gritted their teeth in fury.

This person is incredibly arrogant! Yet they are completely powerless against him!

"Zhang Shiyuan! Do you really think there's no one in this world who can deal with you?"

In the crowd, Wang Shiqi jumped up, almost fainting from anger.

But when he saw the menacing eyes of the Imperial Guards around him, his voice immediately became much softer, and he shrank back and hid in the crowd.

Not to mention the others, who are used to being pampered and spoiled, how could they dare to do anything outrageous?

Thus, the gentry and wealthy merchants who had gathered outside the theater, though harboring resentment, slunk away in their own way.

"I'm not leaving! My money! Ah!"

The old gentry slumped to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

"If you don't return the money, I'll smash my head against this Western Hill and die!"

Zhang Yunxiu looked at this person with considerable disdain.

In feudal times, you old codger, you still want to try this "extortion" scheme?
He gave the order to the Imperial Guard.

"Drag this man out of West Mountain. We can't let him die inside West Mountain. If he's going to die, let him die outside!"

"promise!"

Following Zhang Yunxiu's instructions, two Imperial Guards, one on each side, carried the old gentleman, who was like a lump of mud, out of the house.

Its constant wailing along the way shattered the hopes of those who still harbored any illusions.

Inside the Xishan Thousand Household Office.

Zhang Rong's face was ashen as he stared intently at Zhang Yunxiu, his eyes practically murderous. He slammed his hand on the table and said...

"You brat! What exactly do you want? None of us have offended you. Just how many pieces of glazed tiles does Xishan have?!"

His eyes were bloodshot; that was tens of thousands of taels of silver, something many people couldn't earn in their entire lives.

But in these Western Hills, in just half a month, hundreds of thousands of taels of silver vanished into thin air!

The nobles following behind Zhang Rong were also full of complaints at this moment.

"Yes, Magistrate Zhang, we are all of the same ilk. It's one thing for you to cheat the merchants, but why do you cheat us too?"

"How about Magistrate Zhang makes an exception and refunds all the money to us?"

Among the crowd was Yang Wei, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, who spoke tremblingly to Zhang Yunxiu.

"Prefect Zhang, this old man is suffering!"

Zhang Yunxiu's lips twitched. Why did he feel like this old guy always said the same thing?

Seeing that Zhang Yunxiu was still nonchalant and indifferent.

Zhang Rong grew increasingly anxious and stamped his foot as he spoke.

"You brat! You made me gather everyone here, and now that everyone's here, you'd better give me an explanation!"

"An explanation?" Zhang Yunxiu asked with a slight smile. "What explanation?"

Zhang Rong laughed angrily: "Still playing dumb here, you brat, you even dare to deceive this old man. The Xishan glazed tiles are worth a fortune, don't you, Zhang Shiyuan, have any connection to that? It's just that... Jingji..."

"economics."

Zhang Yunxiu corrected him.

He then looked around at everyone, his gaze finally settling on Zhang Rong.

"What does Uncle mean?"

"We've lost so much money, you have to come up with a solution!"

After saying that, Zhang Rong pulled Zhang Yunxiu aside and lowered his voice to say something.

"You brat, still causing trouble here! It's one thing for you to cheat merchants, but why drag us into it? I may tolerate you, but will the officials of the court tolerate you? Don't let a small matter cause you to lose a big one!"

Zhang Yunxiu frowned and spoke loudly.

"Does Uncle mean I should return the silver to Xishan?"

From within the crowd, a nobleman sighed and said, "Prefect Zhang, your Xishan family is wealthy and powerful; please give us some money back. We are truly poor."

Zhang Yunxiu's lips twitched. These people are really shameless; they can even bring themselves to say the word "poor."
But he had already made up his mind and said it very firmly.

"No refunds, not a single penny can be refunded. If all else fails, go and see His Majesty, and see if he'll give you a refund!"

"Zhang Shiyuan!" Zhang Rong grabbed Zhang Yunxiu by the collar. "I know you must have a way. Tell me quickly!"

Asking the Wanli Emperor for a refund? That would be incredibly audacious. These days, even one's own mother can't touch the emperor's money. If they were to ask the emperor for a refund, they would be courting death.

The people present were as if their mother had died; one moment they were filled with grief, the next they were filled with anger, as if Zhang Yunxiu himself was the murderer.

Zhang Yunxiu looked somewhat aggrieved, and his lips twitched as if he was about to cry.

“Hey—everyone here today is an uncle or elder, and also my family. We’re all family, so let’s not be like strangers.”

He looked very sad.

"If you insist on asking, then I will not hide it from you. Something happened in Xishan."

Zhang Rong's heart skipped a beat, and he widened his eyes as he spoke.

"What did you say, you brat?"

The British Duke's mansion invested almost all of its savings into the West Hill workshops.

The price of glass has already dropped again and again. If something else happens at the Xishan workshop, Zhang Rong will really tear Zhang Yunxiu apart alive.

Zhang Yunxiu wiped away his tears, revealing a sorrowful expression.

"Hey~ Uncle, you don't know this~ Xishan Glass Workshop suffered a great disaster a few days ago. The boiler in the glass workshop somehow exploded!"

It seems there are some petty people who can't stand the prosperity of my Xishan Glass Workshop!

It is feared that Xishan will find it difficult to produce glass in the future.
My nephew's hard work has been ruined in an instant, if only...

"The boiler exploded?"

Zhang Rong looked puzzled, but upon seeing Zhang Yunxiu's behavior, he immediately recognized it as a "trick".

He said angrily.

"Zhang Shiyuan! Even now, are you still going to try to deceive this old man like this?"

But Zhang Yunxiu was wiping away his tears while making faces.

"Uncle, don't you remember? The boiler at Liulichang in Xishan exploded last time, I saw it with my own eyes! I even told you not to tell His Majesty."

"You brat, what nonsense are you spouting now, old man?"

As Zhang Rong was speaking, her face suddenly froze.

By this time, some people in the hall had already figured out what was going on.

"Economics! This is economics!"

Yang Wei slapped his thigh and said, "Zhang Tongzhi is absolutely right. The glass workshop was indeed blown up. I saw it when I came to Xishan the other day."

He must have blown up!
How could it not explode?

(End of this chapter)