Protect Our Clan Leader
Chapter 1109 - 78: Drain the Firewood from Under the Pot! Flip the Table Over_5

The words were hardly out of his mouth before the strong men all nodded in agreement, and even Old Liu couldn't help but nod.

Before, they had not been able to see it, but once the tax investigation began, many Prominent Families were exposed. Now, who doesn't know that Prince De Xin and Kang Commandery Prince are severely guilty of tax evasion?

To be blunt, they are the parasites of the Great Qian Land!

Can such self-serving people care about the livelihood of the people or the development of the country once they ascend to the throne? What they truly care about in their hearts is probably how much benefit they can gain from the power in their hands, how many opportunities they have to line their pockets, right?

The commoners might not have as broad knowledge as those from Prominent Families, but they have their own simple values and standards for judging people. Often, they can pinpoint the issue much more directly.

And under such stark contrast, the reputation of the Kang Commandery Prince's line among the folk had plummeted to rock bottom, while An Commandery Prince, Prince Dede, and the Great Qian Wang Clan, due to this tax investigation, saw their reputation and authority surge dramatically.

There were also people who dug up the fact that An Commandery Prince had previously provided disaster relief and donated money under a private name. Even many small details that usually went unnoticed by most were unearthed and became proof of their three families' benevolence and dedication to the welfare of the people.

For a time, the people were full of praise for them.

Naturally, the commoners were very supportive of An Commandery Prince.

However, the Prominent Families and members of the Imperial family, who kept "taking tumbles," were itching with hatred for An Commandery Prince. Especially some of the bigwigs who had a vote, out of spite they spread rumors saying, An Commandery Prince thinks he's so great? Well, he surely won't miss our vote!

Meanwhile.

Inside the Zhuozheng Pavilion.

Emperor Longchang was not lying leisurely in the deck chair as usual, having Old Yao massage his shoulders. Instead, he was sitting upright on the Taishi Chair behind the desk.

Old Yao also stood respectfully behind him with a whisk in hand, head bowed, demeanor grave, trying to reduce his presence as much as possible.

The desk in front of Emperor Longchang was once again piled with memorials.

In theory, these memorials should be dealt with by the Cabinet. However, these documents were all impeachments and censures against the acting Prime Minister Yin Da, Prince Dede, An Commandery Prince, and others.

Many others were accusations of tax evasion and all sorts of misdeeds against members of the Imperial family and some of the Prominent Family clans.

As the Cabinet was in a difficult position to handle these, the reading rights were handed over to Emperor Longchang.

At the same time, Meng Yuanbai was standing across the desk from the emperor, sweating profusely, his eyes downcast and face tense as he waited anxiously for the next command.

Even the usually boisterous litter of five wolf cubs was now quietly shrinking in a corner, not bothering Emperor Longchang as usual, clamoring for attention and treats.

The entire Zhuozheng Pavilion was suffused with a tense atmosphere.

"Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous," Emperor Longchang slammed the table and exclaimed in anger, "I never thought that within our Imperial family, there would be so many parasites. I had initially thought that it was only the line of De Xin that had gone too far. Others, at least, were not so rotten."

"But unexpectedly, compared to De Xin and Kang Commandery Prince, and certain members of the Imperial family, they seem like Tax Models!"

How true it is that you don't know the full extent until you investigate.

The situation with tax affairs in Da Qian had rotten far beyond what Emperor Longchang had anticipated.

Especially within the Imperial family, those who usually kept a low profile and stayed quiet had also committed acts like concealing whole estates, as if such deeds had become common practice. In serious cases, the taxed amount became the lesser part, while the concealed was the greater share.

Beyond tax evasion, many sordid and dirty scandals were also unearthed one by one.

For instance, one Commandery Prince had actually imprisoned large numbers of men and women, forcing them to breed continuously. Their children, after being brainwashed as they grew up, were used as slaves.

Such shocking revelations made Emperor Longchang feel as if his reign of several thousand years had been in vain.

"Could it really be as Wang Shouzhe once 'privately speculated', 'His Majesty loves war and grows impatient with domestic governance, showing signs of a fondness for glory'?"

"Your Majesty, there are those with ulterior motives operating behind the scenes, trying to muddy the waters," Old Yao reminded in a low voice.

"I can see that," Emperor Longchang said coldly. "The Kang Commandery Prince first admitted his faults, and then one thing after another keeps coming to light, making it seem like he's not that bad after all. We have to admit, this move shows quick reflexes and could very likely create an opportunity for him to turn the tables at the last minute."

"I had underestimated the Kang Commandery Prince before. It's just a pity that Ming Yuan was so stubborn and didn't listen. I had told him before that he needed to learn the heart of an emperor, instead of acting like a rash young man."

"Now look at the state of things. If the clan relatives were to choose between the Kang and An Commandery Princes, most would likely choose the Kang Commandery Prince. The human heart, oh, the human heart!"

"Let it be, let Ming Yuan and Wang Shouzhe suffer a big loss this time and give them a vivid lesson. Reform is not so easy to achieve."

Had it been easy to reform, he would have done it 800 years ago; why would it have dragged on until now?

"Wang Shouzhe is clever by nature with numerous strategies at his disposal. Unfortunately, this move has backfired, offending too many people and inadvertently helping the Kang Commandery Prince 'win hearts.' When I am free, I will give him some pointers. In using strategies, one must consider the words 'human nature.'"

As Emperor Longchang commented sentence by sentence on Wang Shouzhe and the An Commandery Prince,

Meng Yuanbai suddenly spoke, "Your Majesty, regarding the Kang Commandery Prince, I discovered something peculiar while investigating taxes. I did not dare to conclude on my own and can only present it for Your Majesty's inspection for a final decision."

After saying this, he presented some data reports.

Emperor Longchang glanced at them and his face gradually grew grave, "Meng Yuanbai, the points you've marked with the red pen are very clear. Your point is that, apart from tax evasion, the Kang Commandery Prince's residence also has a large amount of mysterious funds moving in and out, unaccounted for! Moreover, the total funds, as well as the timing of these transactions, roughly match up with the accounts discovered in the Zhao Zhikun smuggling and treason case..."

"Indeed, Your Majesty," said Meng Yuanbai tremblingly, "To avoid error, I especially had it verified multiple times. There really is that much mysterious capital moving silently, and the timings all align with the account books, which are clear and cannot be fabricated."

"Do you realize that you are accusing the Kang Commandery Prince of being the mastermind behind the 'Zhao Zhikun smuggling and treason case'?" Emperor Longchang said with a chilling expression, "Are you now siding with the An Commandery Prince? Would a Quasi Emperor's Son engage in smuggling and treason? Why don't you accuse me of smuggling and treason then?"

Scared out of his wits, Meng Yuanbai broke into a sweat, his body going weak as he nearly lost the ability to stand, yet he still managed to stiffly say, "That's not... I had no such intention; I merely reported what I found."

At this moment,

The Imperial Guard Commander Little Jizi hurried to the Emperor's presence and reported in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the Vice-Commander of the Imperial Guard, Chen Jinglong, and the Director of the Judicial Department, Chen Jinghu, have arrived together to seek an urgent audience with Your Majesty. They say there's an important matter to report."

"What is the matter?" The current chaos had already tried Emperor Longchang's patience, "If they don't make it clear, tell them to leave."

"Your Majesty, the Chen brothers claim, claim that... they have captured Zhao Zhikun, who was fleeing from his crimes. And in order to atone and lessen his punishment, Zhao Zhikun is willing to confess the mastermind behind the smuggling and treason case," Little Jizi answered, trembling.

After finishing, he buried his head low, pale-faced and sweating, not daring to look up at Emperor Longchang's expression.

"What!?"

Emperor Longchang trembled.

In the next instant, a spark of comprehension flashed across his mind, and he understood everything. It wasn't that Wang Shouzhe's tax investigation was of poor caliber or lacking in meticulous planning, but that he was actually pulling a "feint to the east, attack in the west," outsmarting everyone!

Wang Shouzhe hadn't failed to consider 'human nature,' he simply didn't care and directly dealt the Kang Commandery Prince a "drain the firewood from under the pot."

As long as another Quasi Emperor's Son was disqualified, what was there to decide? Whose vote would it matter?

When the time came, everyone would only have one choice... that would be the An Commandery Prince, Wu Mingyuan!

Whether you wanted to or not, you had to choose him!

...

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.