Young Master Gao? Call me Little Grand Secretary!

Gao Zhao is in a very bad mood right now.

Just now, he was carrying a huge sum of nearly 90,000 guan (a unit of currency), and that sense of fulfillment gave him the confidence to walk down the street and look at everyone with his head held high!

In just a short while, he was left with only a little over seven thousand strings of cash!

It's just enough for an average family to cover their expenses for about three hundred years!

This made him very anxious and uneasy!

What can you do with this little bit of money?

How many times can I visit Li Shishi?

I'm afraid I won't be able to spend money so lavishly anymore, let alone indulge in extravagance and debauchery!

It's illogical to worry about this and that when you earn money honestly and cleanly with your own wisdom!

That damned Song Dynasty is doomed!

He grew angrier and angrier, so much so that he didn't even notice Guo, who was striding towards him.

"You little beast, do you have even a shred of respect for others? You've made your uncle vomit blood! I'm sending you to Kaifeng Prefecture to be punished!"

Guo had come for him, and when she saw her younger brother's miserable state, she felt both heartache and anger. Upon hearing that it was Gao Zhao who had suffered this misfortune, she was immediately filled with rage and rushed over without thinking. While cursing, she raised her hand and slapped him.

"Snapped!"

Hearing the cursing, Gao Zhao snapped out of his daze. He was already in a bad mood, and seeing that she still wanted to slap him, he wasn't about to let her get away with it. He grabbed her wrist as she slapped him!

Although his health isn't the best right now, he's still more than capable of handling a woman!

"You wretched child, how dare you fight back!" Madam Guo was even more enraged, shouting, "Guards, go and fetch the people from Kaifeng Prefecture! Arrest him! I will definitely punish him for disobedience!"

Gao Zhao remained unmoved by her outburst, his eyes fixed on her coldly as he said in a chilling voice, "Go and fetch him! Go now! I also need to file a complaint with the Kaifeng Prefecture! I want to ask what crime the stepmother, in collusion with her brother, should be punished for framing her heir!"

"You...you're talking nonsense...who...who framed you!" Guo's face turned pale. If this got out, her reputation would be ruined!

She was already childless, and coupled with her vicious nature, she had no way out but to hang herself!

"Nonsense? Heh..." Gao Zhao sneered repeatedly: "I have a loan agreement with Qianyinpu, and it's registered with Kaifeng Prefecture. You know perfectly well what Guo Weize's relationship with that Qianyinpu is!"

Guo's eyes widened in panic, and she quickly said, "I don't know... Please don't slander me..."

"Is that so? I am the Commander of the Palace Guard, the adopted son of a close minister of the Emperor. Would Guo Weize dare to do this without your authorization?"

Gao Zhao could tell from her expression that she was involved in this matter, so he immediately said, "That's perfect. I have some connections with Censor Huang Baoguang of the Censorate, so I'm sure he'll be happy to find out the truth for me!"

"You...you dare!" Madam Guo shouted, her voice trembling with fear. "If you summon the censor, your father's future will be ruined!"

"If your future is ruined, it won't be because of me! You can't want to harm me and then forbid me from fighting back! I'd rather die than lose! I'm just a playboy, why would I care about my reputation!"

Seeing that she was resorting to using Gao Qiu to blackmail him, Gao Zhao knew she had run out of tricks. He flung her hand away, turned to the stunned maid, and said, "Didn't you hear me tell you to go to Kaifeng Prefecture to report this? Go now!"

"No, you're not allowed to go!" Guo was thrown off balance by him, but she didn't have time to scold him and quickly stopped the maid.

"Ha!" Gao Zhao scoffed, stepping past him and walking forward. After a few steps, he raised his voice again, "Mother, next time you want to deal with me, please be prepared, lest you lose both your wife and your army! Haha..."

Seeing his arrogance, Guo was trembling with anger. She pointed a finger at him and cursed in a trembling voice, "You little beast, you wicked wretch, just you wait!"

After cursing for a while, Guo remembered that she had forgotten to mention the money. Knowing that she would not get it back from Gao Zhao, she angrily went to find Gao Qiu.

As soon as she barged into Gao Qiu's study, before she could even speak, Gao Qiu threw a stack of warrants at her!

"This..." Madam Guo was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening. She nodded and exclaimed, "How can it be so little! That little beast borrowed 100,000 strings of cash!"

"Do I look like a sucker to you?" Gao Qiu scoffed. "The 100,000 strings of cash are salt certificates, not real money!"

"But that's my brother..."

"Your brother is harming my son!" Gao Qiu glared, his voice cold. "Do you want me to settle this score with him?"

Guo choked for a moment, then forced a smile and said, "No way! He didn't know Gao Zhao had borrowed money. Didn't he rush to cancel the loan after finding out today?"

"Alright! I'm too lazy to argue with you about this!" Gao Qiu said sternly, tapping the table. "That's all the money I have. If you don't want it, I'll return the salt permit to him!"

Guo, still somewhat unwilling, said, "You've taken too much!"

"Don't talk nonsense! What money do I have to pay!" Gao Qiu said unhappily, "When Gao Zhao paid for the shop, they slashed his hand, leaving him with only 90,000 strings of cash. Of that, 30,000 strings were returned to them to settle the debt. The remaining 60,000 strings are to be offered to the Emperor!"

Guo exclaimed in surprise, "Why are you giving the officials so much money!"

Gao Qiu explained, "That money exchange has a stake in Liu Guojiu behind it. It involves a member of the imperial family, and it's such a large sum of money. This money is too hot to handle, so naturally I have to hand it over to the Emperor!"

Guo's eyes lit up and she said, "Why don't you just return the money to them directly?"

"Foolish!" Gao Qiu's face darkened, and he scolded, "My money was neither stolen nor robbed. If I return it to him directly, people will think that my Gao family is afraid of him, which would damage the reputation of my Gao family! I hand the money over to the officials, and it is none of my business if they ask for it back later."

After thinking it over, Guo realized that the Imperial Concubine was the most favored by the Emperor, and that if the Imperial Uncle were to ask for the money, there would be no problem. So she happily reached out to take the money.

Unexpectedly, Gao Qiu grabbed her arm and pressed her down. She looked up in surprise, only to hear Gao Qiu say calmly, "Bring me Gao Zhao's loan agreement!"

Guo frowned, displeased, and said, "Would I lie to you about something like this? You don't even believe me about this?"

Gao Qiu sneered, "You've been talking for so long, mentioning your brother and the emperor's brother-in-law, but not a single word about my Gao family! Tell me, what do I have to believe in you? And why should I believe you?"

Guo's face suddenly turned pale; she hadn't expected Gao Qiu to have such a terrible impression of her.

However, she was not to be outdone and took out the contract and threw it over.

"Is that enough now?" Guo glared at him fiercely.

After Gao Qiu confirmed that everything was correct, he waved his hand, and Guo turned and left angrily.

As Gao Qiu watched her departing figure, he suddenly sneered. She still wanted to ask the government for money; she was truly blinded by greed!

Did they think the Emperor still favored one of the concubines as before?

I haven't seen her for months, and I didn't even take her illness seriously!

Money? Ha! This so-called imperial brother-in-law probably won't even be able to get into the palace!