Zhou Shuren followed the young eunuch and let out a long sigh. He had put in a lot of effort these days, and the Ministry of Revenue was a very stressful place. In just a few days, he felt like he would live a year less.
Inside the main hall, the royal family was looking at the memorials leisurely. They were in a good mood today. Not only did they receive 500,000 taels of silver, but there would be more in two days. The silver for resettlement after the flood in the south and for repairing dams had also come out. The royal family, who used to be impatient at the beginning of the memorials, could now read them attentively.
The emperor didn't even raise his head when he heard the footsteps. "Did you find out?"
The prince asked for leave from his father when he went to see Zhou Shuren. He could not hide it from anyone when meeting a minister in the palace, so he might as well be frank. "No, Zhou Shuren's reply seemed strict but he left some room for error. My son still has doubts in his heart."
The emperor didn't want to get serious about it. Whether Zhou Shuren made some small moves behind his back or not, the result was good, and there was no need for him to investigate. "Sometimes it's better to be confused. You are still too young."
This matter took a lot of effort and it was not worth it.
The prince bowed his head and accepted the instruction, "Son, I understand."
The emperor continued, "Whether it's Zhou Shuren or the officials, it's not too late to trim them. However, if they challenge us again and again, there's no need to be soft on them. Son, you have to have your own standards for measuring officials."
His standards are not suitable for the prince, so the prince has to find his own standards and bottom line. Once the prince knows how to use and control them, he will be able to rest assured.
In the evening, Zhou Shuren returned home, which surprised the whole family.
Zhulan asked, "Why did you come back today?"
Zhou Shuren moved his shoulders and said, "The money has been calculated. Now that we have the money donated by the Xu family, the Ministry of Revenue is no longer in a hurry. Let's all go home and rest today."
Zhulan took some clothes to change into, and while Mrs. Song was out, she asked, "How much did the Xu family donate?"
"Five hundred thousand taels of silver."
Zhu Lan's eyes widened. "Oh my god, they just took out 500,000 taels of silver. The Xu family really hid it well."
And it took a whole day's work. The tip was only received yesterday. This was not raised money, but the Xu family's existing deposit.
Zhou Shuren sighed, "I can imagine so much. When we first met the Xu family, they were just a small business. It's only been a few years, and with the support of the crown prince, their fortune has increased by who knows how many times."
Zhulan grasped the key point, "So the sea merchants really make money. However, Mr. Xu is also a character. The small merchants we saw at the beginning might also be pretending to be from the Xu family!"
Zhou Shuren changed his clothes and said, "Who knows, this time the Xu family got what they wanted."
Seeing that no one was in the room, Zhou Shuren whispered to his wife what he had said to the crown prince, "Go to the study room later, I'll talk to Chang Lian, and you can also talk to the third son's wife."
Zhulan nodded, "I understand."
At the dinner table, Chang Lian waited for his father to take a seat. "Dad, regarding the donation of silver, once the Hanlin Academy has finished counting it, it will be sent to the Ministry of Revenue tomorrow."
Zhou Shuren ate two mouthfuls of food to fill his stomach before asking, "You are a scholar, how much did you donate?"
Chang Lian said, "My family is well-off, so I donated ten taels. The other Shujishi's families were not so well-off, so some donated one or two taels. However, the most in our family was ten taels."
Rong Chuan answered, "There aren't many people in our house, and the most we have is ten taels."
Zhou Shuren said he understood and that everyone should do what they can. "Send it early tomorrow so that they don't have to wait in line behind."
In the past, you had to queue up to pay money, but this time you have to queue up to collect the cash.
Chang Lian was extremely curious, "Dad, what about you? How much silver are you going to donate?"
Zhou Shuren just remembered that he hadn’t mentioned it to his wife yet, “Five hundred taels, the Zhou family just came to Beijing, although they moved several times, they haven’t been checked.”
Zhulan, "... ..."
Ah, another five hundred taels are gone. Zhulan is worried about spending so much silver at once. It’s still a few months before the silver is due. She had been calculating how much she would spend, but now she’s a little short of money!