Counting money until his hands cramped and waking up from dreams laughing at a mountain of treasure — this was the true portrayal of Yu Wenhua Ji’s entire day.
After the court session ended, he led the army from house to house to conduct searches and seizures.
Since he had landed such a lucrative assignment, he naturally did not pass up the chance to skim some off the top.
In the end, one third of the Magic Crystals and treasures donated by the various officials ended up in his own pocket! The remaining two thirds were transported to the National Treasury — his future pocket.
The amount of Magic Crystals placed into the National Treasury was 2,080,000,000, while another 1,000,000,000 had ended up in his hands.
Even Yu Wenhua Ji had never seen such a windfall in his entire life.
When he saw the figures, his heart and liver could not help but tremble violently.
However, while the Civil and Military Officials had finally endured that difficult day, they did not realize it was only the beginning.
The next day, during the morning court session.
Qiao Xiaoxian once again entered the court while carrying Jiang Ke’er.
This time, before the officials could speak, Qiao Xiaoxian took the lead and said, “Yesterday, my dear subjects mentioned that matters should be handled one by one. Now that the matter of the National Treasury is settled… it is time to handle your affairs.”
The officials felt a sense of impending doom.
They hurriedly tried to think of excuses to slip away or find a way to block Qiao Xiaoxian’s words.
However, they watched as Qiao Xiaoxian waved her dragon-patterned sleeve.
Over 100 Recording Crystals rolled to the feet of one official after another.
They triggered automatically, projecting vivid images toward the ceiling of the palace!
One filthy scene after another overlapped, creating a chaotic and lively display that turned the officials’ faces deathly pale.
‘How… how was all of this recorded?’
These crystals were packed with recordings of their secret, illicit dealings. They ranged from small instances of accepting bribes to major details of embezzling resources, and even the specific logistics of how they profited from the national disaster!
Where on earth did this person get so many pieces of incriminating evidence?
The officials panicked.
Qiao Xiaoxian spoke calmly, “I do not ask for much. Return all the income you obtained through deception, extortion of the people, and the embezzlement of military pay and taxes to the court… This is within the realm of reason and is a standard punishment according to the Laws of the Great Si State. It is not excessive, is it?”
‘Not excessive, my foot!’
‘You total trickster! Why didn’t you issue the fines yesterday!’
Among all the court officials of the Great Si State, whose family assets were clean? Who among them relied solely on that meager salary to survive?
Whose family estate was not comprised of one percent salary and ninety-nine percent illicit property!
‘This is even more ruthless than yesterday. Yesterday, you wanted half; today, you want our very lives!’
Even if these Recording Crystals did not contain every single detail, the evidence stored within them was enough to strip a layer of skin off every official present!
‘Why didn’t you do this first? Dividing first and then subtracting to maximize the skinning… are you trying to show off how good you are at math, you bastard Emperor!’
Tucked into Qiao Xiaoxian’s arms, Jiang Ke’er almost could not stop herself from laughing out loud.
Although she still could not fully accept Qiao Xiaoxian, this series of maneuvers… was truly satisfying!
During the time of the Epidemic Poison, she had been buried in work every day, yet she constantly heard news of certain people becoming overnight millionaires by profiting from the apocalypse.
There were reports of Medical Halls being overburdened because patients took fake medicine, and news of supplies failing to arrive because they were being auctioned off in the streets.
At that time, the ones she hated most were those beasts who not only failed to help but actively dragged the group down.
Among those beasts, the Human Sects accounted for fifty percent, while the other fifty percent were all high-ranking officials in the court of the Great Si State.
Jiang Ke’er originally thought that once the Epidemic Poison vanished, there would be no further opportunity to investigate these matters.
After all, the public’s memory lasted only three days.
Once the plague passed, who would care about what happened during the outbreak?
But Qiao Xiaoxian remembered.
Whether it was for the sake of squeezing out wealth or something else, Qiao Xiaoxian’s actions this time caused Jiang Ke’er’s favor toward her to increase… a tiny bit? Yes, just a tiny bit!
“Great job!” Jiang Ke’er whispered excitedly into Qiao Xiaoxian’s ear.
Qiao Xiaoxian’s heart skipped a beat, and her fists clenched secretly.
In an instant, her heart was filled with a mix of emotions.
She leaned in toward Jiang Ke’er’s ear and whispered back, “This is the first time you have praised me.”
Jiang Ke’er curled her lip. “You wouldn’t actually be happy over something so simple, would you? With your cunning… hmph, I don’t believe it.”
Qiao Xiaoxian smiled happily. “It does not matter. As long as I can make you happy, that is enough.”
Jiang Ke’er’s face flushed slightly. “Too fake!” she said.
“Heh.” Qiao Xiaoxian gave up on explaining and simply laughed. Seeing Jiang Ke’er happy was enough for her.
The officials could no longer hold it in and began to wail in the middle of the hall.
Some knelt on the ground in despair, crying and begging for mercy; some refused to comply even upon death, claiming they had no money and she could take their lives instead; and others were so panicked they lost their sanity, attempting to flee the palace to escape with their families.
Qiao Xiaoxian cleared her throat and said solemnly, “There is no need for everyone to worry. Although according to the Laws of the Great Si State, your corruption and lawlessness are heinous crimes that deserve the execution of your entire families… considering your years of service and the fact that you have contributed to the Great Si State, you only need to pay the fine.”
This was too ruthless.
Yu Wenhua Ji’s eyes twitched as he looked at the officials. This double-skinning operation was something even he had not expected.
Among the crystals on the ground filled with evidence, there was no evidence against the Yu Wen family.
This allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief, and he once again chose to side with “Prince Hao of Qin.”
‘Let them be stripped.’
This layer of skin was being removed reasonably and with proof. It even complied with every law of the Great Si State, making it so logical that people were speechless.
With ironclad evidence, what else could they do?
However, amidst the excitement, he thoroughly noticed the change in Prince Hao of Qin.
His personality was a world apart from his previously timid and submissive self!
What worried him even more was the source of this evidence.
He had never heard of Prince Hao of Qin being in contact with any intelligence Organization, yet today, he had produced a mountain of evidence that even the Great Si State’s court could not obtain!
This meant that Prince Hao of Qin likely had long-standing ambitions for the throne.
He was not content with remaining a puppet forever.
His current behavior was a display of his fangs, a declaration of his stance that was starting to pose a threat!
Yu Wenhua Ji sneered. ‘So what?’
The Military Tally was in his hands.
No matter how much the boy struggled, it was useless.
However, since the situation had changed and the National Treasury was now full… there was no need to keep him around!
Tonight! Tonight, he would call the army into the Imperial Capital, kill Prince Hao of Qin, and declare himself Emperor!
‘But for today, making money is the priority.’
A smile spread across Yu Wenhua Ji’s face. Once again, he led the army through the streets of the Imperial Capital, visiting houses one by one.
“Since you have committed a crime, you must accept the punishment! I will not execute your nine generations today; just pay the fine!”
Amidst waves of wailing, most of the valuable and rare items from the officials’ homes were packed into Great Cosmos Bags and transported to the National Treasury and the Yu Wen family’s storehouses.
That night, Yu Wenhua Ji did not rest.
He immediately gathered his troops and charged toward the Emperor’s Bedchamber!
“Prince Hao of Qin, you have lived long enough!”