After the mistress of the Marquis' Mansion was reborn, she divorced and married the prince!

"This is a good job. Who is in charge of this?" asked the emperor.

He Hongxi said quickly, "The emperor ordered the Ministry of Revenue to take charge of this matter, so it should be under the jurisdiction of Lord Wang, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue."

The emperor smiled and nodded, "Yes, yes. When you return to the palace later, order Minister Wang to come to the Imperial Study to see me. I have always been clear about rewards and punishments. Minister Wang did a good job on this matter, so I will naturally reward him."

He Hongxi quickly responded, "Yes, Master!"

In the yamen, in order to prove what he said was true, Qi Liang ordered someone to fetch the account books of Caiyunxuan for the production of this batch of cotton-padded clothes.

The prefect of Jingzhao looked at the account books presented to him and nodded.

The account books are clear and concise, with each expenditure classified into different categories. Even he, who is not good at reading account books, can see them clearly.

He handed the account book to the chief clerk next to him. The chief clerk was good at accounting. After taking a look at the account book, he started to calculate with the abacus.

The chief clerk nodded to the prefect and said, "Your Excellency, the cost of a cotton coat is indeed controlled at around one tael of silver, with an increase or decrease of no more than fifty coins."

"In addition, through the production and sale of these cotton-padded clothes, we have helped more than 300 poor children support their families."

When people inside and outside the yamen heard this, their eyes changed when they looked at Qi Liang.

The people outside the government office nodded one after another, "This is what a Confucian businessman is like!"

"Being trustworthy and loyal, being benevolent and serving the country! Such a good businessman is still framed! Is there any justice in the world?"

"My Lord, justice must be done!"

"The people of Kyoto are all watching you!"

The prefect looked outside the court and saw the people surrounding the court in three layers, all of them staring at the court with burning eyes.

He suddenly felt a lot of pressure.

"boom--"

He slammed the gavel.

Chu Yanchen, who was sitting there listening, gave him a dissatisfied look.

Why are you always clapping? You just scared him.

"quiet!"

The prefect shouted, "Li Zhirong falsely accused Qi Liang, the owner of Caiyunxuan. Do you know your crime?!"

Li Zhirong's face froze.

How did this become a false accusation?

"Sir, this is a misunderstanding... I didn't know the cost of this cotton coat could be so low!"

"No! When we made cotton clothes, the cotton wasn't this soft and warm! You, you're not using cotton!"

Li Zhirong suddenly shouted.

Qi Liang remained calm and said, "If you don't believe me, Mr. Li, you can open the cotton-padded jacket in your hand and take a look."

"Li Zhirong, the facts are right in front of you, and you are still quibbling! Are you going to frame Caiyunxuan?" The prefect just wanted it to end quickly.

Prince Jing sat aside while the people were shouting outside.

He didn't want to be a gun in Li Zhirong's hand.

“I dare not, I dare not…” Li Zhirong quickly shook his head.

Qi Liang was so calm and composed, there was no way to find any evidence against him.

"Your Excellency, it was Li who misunderstood. Li withdraws the lawsuit..."

When the people outside heard this, they cheered at first.

Before the prefect could breathe a sigh of relief, they started shouting again.

"Such a false accusation, framing a good person! Can you just withdraw the lawsuit?"

"Master, you can't let this false accuser go!"

"Caiyunxuan was clearly doing good things, but it had to suffer this unexpected disaster! This is not fair!"

The people shouted loudly.

The prefect glanced at Chu Yanchen's face.

Chu Yanchen was seen sitting quietly in the spectator seat, watching coldly without saying a word.

The prefect was a little unsure. Which side did this gentleman stand on?

Chu Yanchen glanced over with a serious and cold look.

The prefect suddenly felt as if a huge mountain was pressing down on his back.

He no longer dared to think about the little thoughts in his mind - since he was unsure of Prince Jing's attitude, the safest way was to deal with it impartially.

Handle it according to the law and Prince Jing will not be able to find any fault with him!

The prefect slammed the gavel, and Li Zhirong falsely accused Caiyunxuan, affecting Caiyunxuan's business and reputation.

He must apologize to Caiyunxuan in public and pay fifty taels of silver as compensation.

Originally he was to be caned ten times, but Li Zhirong was willing to pay an additional fifty taels in compensation in order to avoid the caning.

Qi Liang also agreed with a smile.

Li Zhirong left the yamen with a pale face.

This time he really lost both his wife and his army. He lost his cotton, his reputation, and his money.

But Li Zhirong didn't know that his losses were far more than that.

Because of this incident today, Jinshang Cloth Shop and Caiyunxuan became famous in Kyoto.

People flocked to Caiyunxuan, saying that the clothes in Caiyunxuan were of good quality and low price.

That’s a quality that even our peers say “the cost cannot be just one or two ounces of silver”!

With testimony from colleagues, we are honest and trustworthy.

Li Zhirong was not too worried about the people's popularity. Ordinary people didn't have much money in their pockets, and Jinshang Cloth Shop mainly did business with the rich.

These ordinary people were not their target customers in the first place.

But what he didn't expect was that when the case spread, even wealthy people rushed to pursue Caiyunxuan.

"The reputation of the Confucian businessman has spread all over Kyoto!"

"The nobleman gave him money to do charity, and this matter has spread in Kyoto. Sooner or later, it will reach the ears of the emperor! Let's donate money too!"

"This is a good thing that benefits the country and the people. From now on, all the fabrics in our house will be ordered from Caiyunxuan!"

"Nowadays, if you don't have one or two pieces of Caiyunxuan's mink, you'd feel embarrassed to go out!"

Whether it is for doing good deeds, to leave a good impression on the emperor, or to keep up with the latest trends.

The eyes of the wealthy people in Kyoto were all fixed on Caiyunxuan.

When Li Zhirong realized this, he really panicked and realized that he had failed completely.

Of course, this is something.

The trial of the case is over.

That "plain and unpretentious" carriage slowly drove away from the yamen gate and headed towards the palace before the people dispersed.

The emperor returned to the imperial study, changed his clothes, and ordered someone to summon Minister Wang Honglue to see him.

When the young eunuch summoned Minister Wang to see the emperor, he smiled and congratulated him, "Congratulations, Minister Wang, you have done a great job. The emperor is going to reward you!"

Although Minister Wang was a little surprised, he was very happy in his heart.

King Cheng asked him to give all the cotton to Li Zhirong, but he didn't expect that Li Zhirong was so capable!

He had worked diligently as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue for so many years, but had never had the opportunity to receive praise from the Emperor.

Unexpectedly, he was praised for this matter even though he didn't contribute anything?

At this time, good luck has arrived and it is unstoppable!

Minister Wang was in high spirits.

"The emperor also asked you to bring that scholar merchant with you to see him."

The young eunuch smiled and said, "The emperor admires the Confucian merchant's calm and composed demeanor. Maybe he will become the emperor's appointed imperial merchant!"

Minister Wang's eyes lit up and his heart warmed.

He just helped a little bit, but he helped Li Zhirong become a royal businessman?

Oh, his luck really turned around!

Being appointed as the Imperial Merchant, what a great honor! Wouldn't Li Zhirong be so happy?

Can he be left out of the benefits in the future?

Not only does Li Zhirong need his benefits, but even King Cheng has to remember his kindness!

Add to that the emperor’s praise... I’m happy just thinking about it!

I originally thought that his career would end with his position as Vice Minister.

Unexpectedly, by chance, he actually has the possibility to move up to a higher level!

Wang Honglue smiled so much that his eyes narrowed into a line, and his heart was even happier.