“My Lord, these are the account books seized from the Wu Family Silver House. Please review them with Master Zhong,” Ren Zhong presented his findings to Lu Wuxie.
Lu Wuxie briefly scanned the ledgers and handed them to Zhong Li, then asked Ren Zhong, “How many Wu Family Silver House branches are there in Jinzhou?”
“Replying to my Lord, Jinzhou has a population of over a million. Aside from the imperial silver houses, the Wu Family Silver House has a total of eight branches.”
“Eight?” Zhong Li asked in surprise. “Linzhou only has three, and Jincheng has five. Why so many in Jinzhou?”
Ren Zhong explained, “It is because Wu Xingyan was originally from Jinzhou, and the Wu Family Silver House first prospered here.”
Lu Wuxie nodded and picked up where Zhong Li left off, “What is his relationship with the Yue family?”
Ren Zhong understood Lu Wuxie’s implication, as the quat grass was initially discovered from the Yue family.
“Currently, the Yue family has some business dealings with the Wu Family Silver House. As for whether there was a deeper connection, after the Yue family’s incident, their decline made further investigation impossible,” Ren Zhong answered truthfully.
Zhong Li placed the ledger on the table. “I just looked through the Wu Family Silver House’s account books. Since the Wu Family Silver House has eight branches in Jinzhou, why do the records show…”
“My Lord, my Lord, something is wrong, my Lord!” Before Zhong Li could finish, a young constable rushed in. He seemed unfamiliar with their ways, likely a recent appointment.
“Impudent!” Ren Zhong shot the constable a look. “Do you not see my Lord present?”
The constable realized his mistake and knelt on one knee. “My Lord!”
Lu Wuxie paid little attention to such formalities and waved his hand, “What is the matter that requires such urgency?”
The constable glanced at Ren Zhong, and seeing no objection, said, “My Lord, Master Zhong, another group has arrived outside, demanding an explanation from the yamen!”
Zhong Li was confused by the incomplete statement.
Ren Zhong coughed lightly and explained, “It’s like this. As Master Zhong just discovered, the Wu Family Silver House’s accounts are problematic. Most of them are showing losses. In Jinzhou, apart from the imperial silver houses, the Wu Family Silver House is the largest. Many of the common people’s savings are deposited there. Now that the Wu Family Silver House is in trouble, their silver should rightfully be returned to the people. Yet… many people have not received their due money.”
Zhong Li understood, likening it to a bank being shut down and the people’s deposits being spent by the bank, leading to unrest when the money cannot be retrieved.
“May I ask, Sir Ren, I heard the young man say ‘another group.’ Is this the first time the people have come?” she inquired.
Ren Zhong sighed. “They’ve been causing trouble almost daily. It hasn’t been quiet for the past month.”
As he finished speaking, a loud bang echoed from outside.
Everyone in the inner hall froze for a moment. Soon, several strong young men rushed to the entrance and shouted to those inside, “We heard officials from Dali Temple were sent, is that true?”
Zhong Li was about to rise when Lu Wuxie’s lips tightened. He pressed her arm and slowly stood up, asking, “Yes, what of it?”
The strong men exchanged glances. One, who appeared to be the leader, drew a saber from his waist and struck himself a few times with the flat of the blade. “The Wu Family Silver House’s troubles are the court’s affair. We are just common folk, earning our honest living. Now that this has happened, you must give us an explanation.”
Lu Wuxie stepped forward, looked at the saber in the man’s hand, and flicked it.
The saber rang with a crisp metallic sound.
“A good blade. Are you a blacksmith?” Lu Wuxie asked.
The man looked bewildered, not understanding why Lu Wuxie would ask such a question. He nodded, “Yes!”
“How much did you deposit in the Wu Family Silver House?” Lu Wuxie asked again.
The man replied, “One hundred taels of silver. That was for my brother to save for his wife. And my wife, with her belly so large… she’s due to give birth soon, and we’ll need money then too.”
As he spoke, he gestured to his pregnant belly, his face filled with grievance.
Lu Wuxie asked again, “How long did it take you to save this hundred taels?”
The man held up five fingers. “Five years.”
“And what about you all?” Lu Wuxie then asked the others who had accompanied him.
Several men began to speak in a flurry.
Zhong Li knew the people suffered, but she hadn’t imagined that some people would take ten years to save just ten taels. The sudden disappearance of the Wu Family Silver House was tantamount to taking half their lives.
After listening to them, Lu Wuxie looked at the leader, “Can you represent the common people here?”
The man was still somewhat bewildered but obediently nodded.
Lu Wuxie tossed a remark, “Wait,” and turned back into the inner hall.
Zhong Li knew what he intended to do and handed him all the account books she had previously examined.
Lu Wuxie walked up to the man with the ledgers. “This is the current cash of the Wu Family Silver House. As you can see, there isn’t a single coin.”
“This…” The man looked dejected, his eyes reddening as he gazed at the numbers in the ledger.
Lu Wuxie patted his shoulder and took another ledger. “It’s not entirely hopeless. As Master Zhong and I were looking through these accounts, we discovered something. While the Wu Family Silver House has no cash, it possesses considerable land and other businesses in Jinzhou. I’ve briefly reviewed them; if the court intervenes to sell these properties and allocates the remaining silver from the Wu Family Silver House in Jincheng, your money should be fully repaid, with interest.”
“That’s great!”
“Yes, with interest!”
…
The crowd began to murmur, their expressions softening slightly.
Suddenly, one person looked at Lu Wuxie and said, “What you say is good, but you mentioned diverting silver from Jincheng. Who are you, to wield such authority?”
As this person spoke, the crowd erupted again.
Lu Wuxie glanced at Zhong Li.
Zhong Li took a token from her bosom and walked towards the crowd. “This is an imperial decree from the Emperor. Seeing this token is equivalent to seeing the Emperor himself. If my Lord says this money can be used for the people of Jinzhou, then it shall be!”
As soon as she finished speaking, the crowd surrounding the yamen no longer voiced objections. They all knelt on the ground, shouting, “Long live the Emperor, long, long live the Emperor!”
Lu Wuxie and Zhong Li exchanged smiles.
After the people had all risen, Zhong Li called the man she had been speaking with earlier to her side. “Brother, I need your help with something.”
The blacksmith, seeing the fair-faced woman before him, blushed. “Please speak, Madam.”
Zhong Li handed him a slip of paper prepared by Ren Zhong. “This is the land purchased by the Wu Family Silver House in Jinzhou. The yamen is short of manpower, so we would trouble you to locate these remote areas, to facilitate our subsequent sales. Would that be alright?”
“Leave it to me, Madam. Just wait for good news!” The man, hearing the request, nodded repeatedly. He then led the few companions who had come with him and quickly departed.
“I didn’t expect you to have such a skill, Li’er,” Lu Wuxie said, his eyes full of admiration for Zhong Li’s actions.
“Jinzhou is vast, and Ren Zhong has limited manpower. The common people are our best partners,” Zhong Li replied with a smile.