The legitimate daughter becomes cannon fodder? Rebirth to overthrow the system's fatality

Because of the war between Dongling and Northern Qi more than ten years ago, the number of people participating in the war in Dongling was 200,000 more than that in Northern Qi, but Northern Qi was well-equipped, and the war eventually ended with Dongling ceding land and paying compensation.

At this point, Emperor Zhaolie learned his lesson and allocated half of the national treasury's silver to the Ministry of Works and the Shenjinying every year.

The compensation naturally came from taxes, and the people suffered terribly. It was only in recent years that Emperor Zhaolie reduced taxes and levies, allowing the people to breathe.

Due to the low tax revenue, the first half of each year is still relatively okay, but the end of the year is the most difficult time.

At this moment, a major event occurred that shocked the government and the public.

First, the warship caught fire for no reason, and by the time the fire was put out, the warship had been burned beyond recognition.

It took the Ministry of Works two full years and hundreds of thousands of taels to build this. Emperor Zhaolie was furious and ordered the Ministry of Justice to conduct a thorough investigation.

Luan An, the assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice, is an expert at investigating cases. He is a meticulous and stubborn young man.

He had only been in charge of the case for a few days, and although the cause of the fire had not yet been found, he had discovered a huge secret.

There were hundreds of sheets of warship blueprints and materials, but Luan An still discovered that the materials left after the warship burned did not match the purchased materials.

This report immediately attracted the attention of Emperor Zhaolie.

"Investigate! Investigate thoroughly for me!"

He borrowed from Peter to pay Paul, and never dared to lack the money from the Ministry of Revenue even at his own expense, for he was afraid that the humiliation of more than ten years ago would happen again.

"These bastards are so greedy for money!"

The prince, who got wind of the situation, was so anxious that he was running around in circles. Even the queen, who was usually calm, could no longer sit still.

"How does Liang Yi do his job? How could a good ship catch fire? Aren't there people patrolling day and night? And you, you know how much your father values ​​the Ministry of Works, how dare you tamper with this! This is clearly your opportunity to show your abilities, but now it has become a fatal handle for you." The queen looked very disappointed.

"Mother, I know that the emperor values ​​the Ministry of Industry. The money came quickly, so... Damn it, there are so many soldiers guarding the warship, how could it catch fire! And burn like that!"

If the fire had been put out as soon as it started, the ship would not have been dismantled and Luan An would not have discovered the secret on the ship.

"For now, the only solution is to sacrifice the chariot to save the king. Return all the silver you took from Liang Yi."

"Go back? After so many years, so much money has been spent almost all, why do you have to go back?"

"You have to return it even if you haven't returned yet, and you have to act quickly. You should deal with your properties as needed. Tomorrow morning, I will discuss this with your uncle. You should deal with Liang Yi first and make him shut up."

"Yes." This is not difficult. As long as his family is controlled, there is no need to worry about Liang Yi being disobedient.

……

People's joys and sorrows are different. The Queen and her son are like ants on a hot pan at this moment, while the Virtuous Concubine and her son are in high spirits.

"Mother, I'm afraid the prince's party will be seriously injured now."

The virtuous concubine took the gold-inlaid fruit fork and elegantly picked up a small piece of fruit flesh and put it into her mouth, her eyes slightly curved.

"Old Five's move is really powerful. That's why I say a dog that bites doesn't bark. Fortunately, this dog is for our use."

"Father hates corruption the most, let alone corruption in the Ministry of Works. This is really courting death. The fifth brother is also very capable. He only took a look at the muskets and warships and knew that the materials used were insufficient. He also came up with such a dirty trick and caught the crown prince with such a big handle."

"What a pity. Even with Wei Tiankuang around, we cannot use this incident to overthrow the prince." Concubine Xian sighed and shook her head.

"Even if I can't bring him down, I can at least let Father see his true colors!"

Concubine Xian shook her head: "Doesn't your father know that the crown prince is not useful? He has no one to rely on in the court, and he has to rely on the Wei family. As long as the Wei family is not overthrown, even if this matter is serious, the crown prince will at most be reprimanded. This insignificant punishment is better than asking him to spit out the silver."

Chu Ze heard this, although he felt it was a pity, he had to agree.

Who asked the Wei family to produce a military general?

Seeing the smile disappear from his face, Concubine Xian said softly, "Don't feel sorry. At least this time we were able to get rid of one of the crown prince's confidants and make him bleed heavily."

……

The cicadas chirp sadly in autumn, and the crickets sing in sorrow.

The chirping of cicadas finally disappeared in the autumn, and the night became much quieter.

Inside the house, Chu Heng was playing chess with his left and right hands, and Chi Zhang pushed the door open and came in.

"Your Highness, here is the news from Master Luan."

Chu Heng put down the chess piece and took the note.

After reading it, he burned the note to ashes.

"Let him hold off for two days until Chu Jing gathers the money."

"Yes."

"Anything else?"

"Your Highness, of the fifteen treasures you mentioned, thirteen have been placed in the warehouse, but 'Tide' and 'Phantom Bell' have not been found yet."

"There is still a month left, hurry up and look for it."

"Yes."

……

The atmosphere at the next morning court session was particularly solemn.

The Minister of Works Liang Yi, who was showing off his power in the court a few days ago, has been taken into custody. Everyone knows that the person behind this is probably impossible to pry open.

Emperor Zhaolie snorted coldly: "Why? Weren't you very talkative in the past? Why are you all mute today?"

Emperor Zhaolie glanced around and finally stopped in front of him: "Crown Prince."

The prince trembled and took a step forward: "Father."

"Tell me, how should we investigate this matter?"

"Father, Liang Yi is so audacious that his family should be confiscated and his clan should be exterminated."

The prince's party looked at each other.

Although I had already guessed it, I still felt a chill in my heart when I heard the prince say it himself.

"Old Three, you go ahead."

"Father, Liang Yi deserves to die, but we should also investigate whether there is someone behind this. The national treasury is empty now, and we must find out where the silver ended up!"

Emperor Zhaolie looked at his ministers and said, "You all speak."

"Your Highness is right. I second your opinion."

"I second the proposal."

"I second the proposal."

Emperor Zhaolie frowned and said, "You only know 'I second the motion' all day long. Can you say anything else?"

At this time, Cheng Zongyang stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, this case is serious. There are many officials involved, including some in high positions. I think it would be difficult for the Ministry of Justice to investigate alone. I think we should let someone with a higher status and position investigate this case together with the Ministry of Justice."

"Who do you think is suitable?"

"I think the Fifth Prince is very suitable. He has little involvement in the court and is a prince. He has a high status and can be impartial."

To put it bluntly, his foundation is shallow. Although he is not favored, he is still a prince and is not afraid of offending others.

Everyone was shocked when they heard this.

Is Cheng Zongyang trying to help his son-in-law get promoted?

The prince's faction was also very satisfied. They felt relieved because the Fifth Prince was one of their own.

Chu Ze was also very satisfied. The Fifth Brother and the Crown Prince were at war to the death, and he would definitely make the Crown Prince suffer.

"I second the proposal."

"I second the proposal."

"I second the proposal."

"minister……"

"Alright, alright, don't second the motion. Then Lao Wu will bring the Ministry of Justice to investigate together!"

"My son, take your orders."

"Old Fifth, I give you a privilege. If anyone involved in this matter refuses to cooperate with the investigation, you have the right to execute him first and report him later."

All the ministers were shocked.

Even the Crown Prince and the Third Prince have never had such privileges. It seems that the Emperor is really angry this time.

However, if the Crown Prince or the Third Prince had this privilege, the court would be in chaos, and I don’t know how many officials would suffer.

Emperor Zhaolie's eyes fell on Chu Heng.

This is a test for him to see if he can handle power.