Did the Seventh Prince attend court today?

Qin Tan secretly resented You Lu for breaking his principles, but when he thought of Emperor Wulong, Prime Minister Su, and Xu Zheng's attitudes, he felt relieved.

Having made up his mind, Qin Tan pressed down on his daughter's shoulder and said in a deep voice, "Since you are Shen Yuyao's good friend, you should save her from suffering. Go ahead and do it with confidence. Although our Qin family does not cause trouble, we are not afraid of trouble either."

This was the first time Qin Rongrong had seen her father so tough. She forgot to cry and murmured, "This is the first time I've ever seen my father so manly."

Qin Tan blushed and quickly changed the subject, "The fundraising is being overseen by Prime Minister Su. If you want to help Shen Yuyao, you can directly request an audience with Prime Minister Su."

Qin Rongrong waved her hands repeatedly, "Prime Minister Su is of high moral character and prestige, I dare not approach him. Father, please give this letter to Prime Minister Su for me, I'm going to stay with Mother!"

She slipped a secret letter into Qin Tan's hand and slipped away like a rabbit.

"Hey, you—" Qin Tan wanted to call the person back, but it was too late. He sighed helplessly and put the secret letter into his pocket. "The donation box has been set up, so I'll go take a look."

Actually, she was too afraid to go back to her room and face Meng Tianhong.

Qin Tan had five thousand taels of silver prepared and left the mansion with his men.

The Qin residence is near East Street. Turning left after leaving the residence will quickly take you to the bustling downtown area. At this time, the sun has not yet set, and pedestrians are hurrying along the street. Many people are gathered at the street corner to watch the excitement.

Qin Tan walked closer and saw a donation box at the street corner, with a table next to it. On the table were writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones, and a person dressed in the robes of a ninth-rank official was sitting behind it. A yamen runner was standing next to the donation box, carrying a gong and drumsticks.

This display of force was somewhat unexpected.

After watching for a while and seeing that no one came forward to donate, Qin Tan walked to the table.

The person behind the table immediately stood up and bowed, saying, "This humble official greets Lord Qin."

This person is a clerk from the Ministry of Revenue who was transferred here to register donation information. He has only been sitting here for a day and has not yet started making any donations.

Qin Tan nodded and said, "No need for formalities, I'm here to deliver the silver."

He had five thousand taels of silver brought to the table.

The steward was overjoyed and bowed deeply, saying, "Lord Qin, you are truly virtuous!"

He gave a wink to the bailiff beside him, who immediately struck a gong and announced loudly, "Minister of Rites, Lord Qin, has donated five thousand taels of silver!"

The crowd erupted in uproar.

Caught off guard by this sudden turn of events, even someone as thin-skinned as Qin Tan was so embarrassed that he dug his toes into the ground.

His face flushed, and he grabbed the clerk, asking, "Whose idea was this?"

The steward smiled and said, "It's the Prime Minister's idea."

Qin Tan cursed under his breath, calling him an old fox, just as someone loudly proclaimed, "Lord Qin is truly a diligent and benevolent official! Well done, Lord Qin!"

The call was met with enthusiastic applause and cheers from the onlookers.

Qin Tan felt even more ashamed, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into; this was far too conspicuous!

He wanted to leave, but was surrounded by the people who praised him endlessly, to the point that he dug out a five-courtyard mansion with his feet.

Among the onlookers were many officials sent by others to gather information. These people originally wanted to see which scoundrels had come to donate, but seeing this scene, they realized something was amiss and quickly turned back to their residences to report.

The idea of ​​having a longevity stele erected and being worshipped was already quite appealing, but now that people know that donating money can earn them praise, high-ranking officials and nobles are all out in force, carrying silver and banknotes to donate. Some well-informed local gentry and wealthy people are also getting involved, as everyone wants to stand out and gain a good reputation.

Who wouldn't want to be revered by all?

Compared to money, face and reputation are naturally more important to these aristocratic families.

It has to be said that experience counts. Prime Minister Su saw this clearly, which is why he cooperated with You Lu's suggestion and deliberately staged this whole thing.

Of course, this is also to prevent embezzlement. After all, all the money is recorded, and with so many eyewitnesses, even a small amount missing can be detected. Furthermore, those willing to spend money to maintain their reputation are all wealthy; who would dare to embezzle their money? And who would dare to offend so many people?

With Qin Tan setting a precedent, people kept coming to donate. The clerks were so busy keeping accounts that their hands cramped, and the yamen runners were hoarse from calling out names. In less than an hour, they had raised 50,000 taels of silver. And that was just from the donation boxes on East Street; the donation boxes on other streets hadn't even been counted.

Qin Tan finally managed to squeeze out of the crowd. He had arrived impeccably dressed, but now he was disheveled, his hair was askew, and his sleeve had been torn with a large hole. He looked quite pathetic.

He took a deep breath, his throat was parched, and said in a hoarse voice, "I have to hurry and find Prime Minister Su, or things will get complicated for the Shen family girl."

At this rate, the disaster relief funds will be raised soon, and he must deliver the letter to Prime Minister Su before then.

Inside the Prime Minister's residence, Prime Minister Su was drinking hot tea and listening to his advisors' reports. Hearing that the ladies, young ladies, and young masters of those aristocratic families were scrambling to donate money, he chuckled and said, "It was the young prince's idea of ​​carving a monument that reminded me. Otherwise, I wouldn't have thought of this. It can be said that I have not disappointed His Majesty and the young prince's high expectations."

Just then, the steward came in and announced, "My lord, Lord Qin requests an audience."

"This is a rare guest," said Prime Minister Su. "Quickly, please invite Lord Qin in."

When Qin Tan entered, Prime Minister Su, seeing his disheveled appearance, jokingly asked, "Lord Qin, have you been robbed?"

Qin Tan waved his hand and said with a wry smile, "Thanks to Prime Minister Su."

Without further ado, he handed the secret letter in his bosom to Prime Minister Su and said solemnly, "This child's life is now in Prime Minister Su's hands."

"Oh?" Prime Minister Su raised an eyebrow, dismissed the steward and his staff, and then opened the letter in his hand.

Inside the envelope was a petition in which Shen Yuyao explained her situation, promised to donate all of her maternal grandfather's dowry to the court for disaster relief, and exposed the fact that the Marquis of Yongchang was having an affair with his wife's younger sister and intended to murder her for money. Finally, she pleaded with the emperor to save her life.

Shen Yuyao didn't mention the Third Prince at all. Firstly, she wasn't entirely confident that she could implicate him, and secondly, she didn't have enough evidence.

The letter was signed and sealed, every word earnest and every sentence filled with tears.

After reading it, Su Chengxiang shook his head repeatedly. "Lord Xu mentioned this child to me. I didn't expect there to be so many twists and turns. She has suffered a lot. However, it is unfilial for a child to sue his father, and he will be punished with caning. If she wants to bring down Marquis Yongchang, she will probably have to suffer some more."

Qin Tan was surprised to find Shen Yuyao so pitiful and almost burst into tears. She said, "A loving father is a filial son. The actions of the Marquis of Yongchang are unforgivable. We cannot let him ruin such a good child."

He also has a daughter, so it's hard not to feel pity for him.

Prime Minister Su put away the letter and said, "The most urgent task is to bring Shen Yuyao out of the Yongchang Marquis's residence. Don't get involved in the rest. Tomorrow I will report on Shen Yuyao's donation of her dowry during the morning court session. As for suing the Yongchang Marquis, we need to discuss that further."

There was really no better solution at the moment, so Qin Tan could only nod.