The destiny of all heavens begins in the Red Chamber

When the old lady recalled these things, her tone was full of indifference.

Jia Rong and Qin Keqing, on the other hand, did not have such strong backing and were filled with anxiety, so they could only decide to follow in the footsteps of the Rong family.

As for Master Zheng, at first he also thought that the old lady was right, why should he have to pay back such money?

Jia Huan only asked a couple of light questions, and he was speechless, his expression becoming quite interesting.

"When you borrowed money from the national treasury, were you given an IOU?"

"Is it even possible to reason with the royal family?"

Isn't this a joke? Is it possible that if the retired emperor acknowledges it, all the subsequent emperors will also acknowledge it?

His meaning was simple: wait for the Second Master Zheng's memorial to be submitted, and then see how the current emperor reacted.

At this time, the imperial court was short of money, so why not seize the opportunity and make the most of it?

Master Zheng breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, saying, "Huan-ge'er, you're right!"

If they really still owe silver, the Ning and Rong mansions together owe two million taels.

It is estimated that both the Shi family and the Wang family owe some amount of money, which together is estimated to be around one million taels.

The combined debts of the four major families in Jinling alone amount to a staggering three million taels of silver!

Even if only this silver were returned to the national treasury, it would be enough to reward several high-ranking officials of the third rank.

Thinking of this, my heart felt a surge of excitement!

Just then, a servant came from outside the door and announced: "Master, the two marquises from the Shi family have arrived!"

Master Zheng suddenly stood up, thinking to himself, "They've arrived."

He strode to the door to greet them, a smile on his face: "My two cousins ​​are here!"

"Cunzhou, what exactly happened? Why did you submit such a memorial to the emperor?"

Before even entering the door, Bowling Hou's voice could be heard clearly.

"Yes, Brother Cunzhou, you've really stunned the entire court this time!"

That voice belonged to Marquis Zhongjing; he had seen and heard it from afar during the New Year's banquet.

The three men entered the room and found only Jia Huan, a child, in the study. The two magistrates were taken aback for a moment but did not say much, only nodding in greeting.

Jia Huan hurriedly stood up to greet him, not daring to be negligent, as Master Zheng valued this most.

After they sat down, Jia Huan hurriedly and skillfully served tea and water.

"My two cousins, it's not that I want to cause trouble, it's just that I suffered quite a shock before!"

Master Zheng Er gave a wry smile and said helplessly, "My two cousins ​​should know about what happened before!"

"At that time, I was impeached by a veteran censor and was criticized for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. In the end, no one stepped forward to help stop me, let alone target the other party!"

"I'm extremely resentful. Why should I be the one to receive this?"

His tone was relatively calm at first, but he became increasingly agitated as he spoke, clearly indicating that he had a lot of pent-up emotions.

The two magistrates looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

Although they were all marquises, belonging to the highest rank of nobility, their actual official positions were not high.

One was a fourth-rank official of the Five Military Commissions, and the other was a fifth-rank official of the Ministry of War.

They are qualified to attend the small court assembly, but they rarely do, as they can't bear the embarrassment.

Even a grand court assembly is something I wouldn't want to attend if I had any excuse.

There was no way around it; their positions at the grand assembly were even ahead of their superiors' superiors.

Whether the Minister of War or the Commander-in-Chief of the Five Armies felt awkward or not, the two brothers were certainly in an extremely awkward position.

It's fortunate that the two brothers made excuses not to attend that grand assembly, otherwise the situation would probably have been even more intense.

Since Master Zheng is being targeted, they will definitely stand up for him!

Chapter 123 Unexpected Joy (Please Subscribe)

Just thinking about it, Marquis Baoling and Marquis Zhongjing could come up with it.

Just how much of a stimulus was that grand court assembly to the somewhat mild-mannered Second Master Zheng?

Perhaps at that time, Master Zheng was filled with helplessness and even despair?

Thinking of this, the two Shi brothers felt somewhat embarrassed, realizing that their visit had been rather presumptuous.

"Then what was the purpose of your submitting the memorial, Cun Zhou?"

After a moment of thought, Lord Baoling said, "If you need our cooperation, just let me know!"

Marquis Zhongjing nodded in agreement. After all, they were cousins ​​who had grown up together since childhood, and their relationship was quite good.

Their dissatisfaction stemmed from their own aunt, Madam Jia Shi, and they also knew that although Master Zheng was the head of the Rong Mansion, he couldn't make decisions on certain matters.

For example, if the connections of the Beijing Garrison were handed over to Prince Teng, the Second Master Zheng would have no say in it at all.

Given his somewhat pedantic nature, he probably doesn't even know what kind of connections the Beijing garrison has.

"I want to climb up, climb up quickly!"

Having said all that, Master Zheng was ready to go all out.

Of course, he was completely at ease with his two cousins, with whom he had a decent relationship.

"With my abilities, it's not an easy thing to get into the ranks of high-ranking officials!"

Lord Zheng Er was very self-aware and said with a wry smile, "But I want to be promoted as soon as possible, so the only way is to please the current emperor!"

The two marquises of the Shi family nodded silently. They longed to climb the ranks, but opportunities were few and far between.

Hearing what Master Zheng said, he was enlightened, but unfortunately the Shi family had too few bargaining chips to offer.

"My two cousins, you may not have experienced it firsthand, but the feeling of being impeached and unable to defend yourself on the spot, not knowing what the future holds, is truly awful!"

After explaining the reason for his sudden risky act, the Second Master Zheng continued, "Actually, it's very simple to please the Emperor. All you need to do is know the most pressing issue right now and be able to help solve part of it!"

At this point, his eyes lit up and he said loudly, "Isn't the most troublesome issue right now the problem of money and food?"

"The fact that the national treasury was in debt presented a good opportunity for a breakthrough, so I took the risk and submitted my memorial!"

The two lords of the Shi family nodded repeatedly, fully understanding the thoughts and actions of the Second Master Zheng.

“I understand Cunzhou’s feelings, but bringing up the matter of the national treasury’s debts is likely to provoke public anger!”

Bowling Lord warned, "This is no joke!"

“My two cousins, we’re all really relatives, so I won’t hide anything from you!”

After a moment's hesitation, Master Zheng decided to tell the truth, since he might need the support of his two cousins ​​from the Shi family later, which was very important.

He had no desire to continue experiencing the feeling of being isolated and powerless in the imperial court.

"Did you know that the Ning and Rong families also owe the national treasury a total of two million taels of silver!"

With a serious expression, the Second Master Zheng uttered a startling number.

"What, two million taels?"

The two marquises of the Shi family were startled, their faces filled with disbelief.

A storm raged in my heart. I never would have imagined that the Ning and Rong families were also major debtors of the national treasury.

"If I repay the debts owed by the Ning and Rong mansions, what will be the current reaction?"

At this point, a look of excitement appeared on the Second Master Zheng's face, and he said leisurely, "I understand now that my two cousins ​​have come to our door. They are deliberately trying to collect the debt owed to the national treasury!"

"I'm afraid the first person to repay the debt will be set as a benchmark, and they'll definitely reap the rewards!"

The two marquises of Shijia were greatly encouraged, and a burning passion rose in their hearts!

They want promotions too, they dream about them!

Their father, Lord Shi, rose to the position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, equivalent to the Grand Secretary!

This shows just how glorious the historians were at their peak!

As a result, when it came to their generation, because of the matter of deposing the crown prince, the two brothers were honored as marquises of the highest rank, but their actual official positions were pitifully low. How could they not have any thoughts in their hearts?

"Brother Cunzhou, do you mean you want to use the national treasury debts of Ning and Rong prefectures as a stepping stone?"

Marquis Zhongjing said directly, "That's a good idea!"

The Second Master Zheng looked embarrassed, unsure of how to respond.

He couldn't bring himself to say anything too blunt; it was very different from his usual behavior and beliefs, and it showed a bit of the scholar's reluctance to talk about profit.

"I'll explain this to my two uncles."

At this moment, Jia Huan stepped forward and said frankly, "Actually, it was my nephew who encouraged my father to do this. Please don't take offense, uncles!"

The two historians turned their gazes to Jia Huan, their eyes filled with inquiry and uncertainty.

"Ahem, my two cousins, don't doubt it, it's true!"

Master Zheng explained, "Huan-ge'er has read a lot of history books at the clan school and is quite interested in historical materials. He can find prototypes in historical materials to match some of the current situations!"