SFS Chapter 142 Evidence of crime
Chapter 142 Evidence of crime
Zhao Yi invited Jiang Chao into the room to give his reply.
Jiang Chao walked in from outside, respectfully bowed to the two masters, and then reported: "Second Master, Second Madam, I have checked the case files at the Nanling Prefecture government office and interviewed the people who reported the case back then. The information about those children does not match that of Second Madam."
"We've already made some progress on your second grandmother's background, so there's no need to investigate any further." Seeing his tired and exhausted face, Zhao Yi said considerately, "You've had a hard time on this trip. Take a few days off before coming back to work."
"Second Master, I have something else to report," Jiang Chao said. "On my way to Nanling Prefecture, I rescued a merchant from Qingzhou. Fearing that he might be robbed by bandits again, he decided to travel to Nanling Prefecture with me."
"He was in the business of reselling grain. A few years ago, the harvest in Qingzhou was good, and he made a fortune. Last year, when there was a natural disaster, he happened not to be in the grain business. Instead, he saw that silk was very profitable, so he bought some silk. As a result, the goods were stuck in his hands, and he lost all the money he had earned."
At this point, Jiang Chao's tone became somewhat subtle: "He obtained a tea permit, and now that the new tea has been released, he has come to Nanling Prefecture specifically to exchange for tea leaves, intending to transport them to Qing Prefecture to sell, and save up some money for his son to donate for an official position."
"Buying an official position?" Shen Qingtan frowned, puzzled. "Didn't the Emperor strictly forbid accepting money, only allowing the acceptance of grain?"
Last year's natural disasters affected a wide area, and the granaries in various parts of the country were short of food. In order to help people donate their surplus grain, the government issued a document to alleviate the pressure of the disaster.
Emperor Jing'an then issued an edict stating that anyone who donated more than 800 shi of grain could become a tribute student and be qualified to serve as an official.
Jiang Chao replied, "He said that the officials in Qingzhou only accept silver, not grain."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingtan immediately understood that the officials in Qingzhou were using the disaster relief order to line their own pockets.
Zhao Yi, who was standing nearby, raised another question: "You said the harvests in Qingzhou were good in the past few years?"
Jiang Chao nodded: "Yes."
This is the key issue he needs to report.
Because Zhao Yi was in the Secretariat, he knew the situation in various places.
As Zhao Yi's confidant, he naturally knew some of the inside information.
For example, Qingzhou reported disasters for several consecutive years, either locust plagues or droughts, leaving the people with no harvest and requesting the imperial court to allocate funds for disaster relief.
Jiang Chao said in a deep voice, "I have inquired about the situation in Qingzhou. There is no disaster at all. Local officials have embezzled the grain and silver allocated by the imperial court for disaster relief."
Zhao Yi's gaze was icy. The officials in Qingzhou were lying about the disaster and swindling the imperial court out of disaster relief funds.
That's incredibly audacious.
The situation is even more serious than the exploitation of the people.
Once this matter is exposed, all the officials implicated will be beheaded.
Especially after the corruption case in Guanzhou, Emperor Jing'an was furious and declared in front of all the civil and military officials that he would kill any corrupt official he saw.
Once the Qingzhou case came to light, Emperor Jing'an, in order to establish his imperial authority, would absolutely not tolerate it.
They will only punish the guilty severely, making an example of them to deter others and intimidate all officials.
Shen Qingtan realized the seriousness of the matter and exclaimed in astonishment, "They really will stop at nothing to make money, they even dare to target the national treasury."
Zhao Yi said coldly, "The money used for disaster relief has always been transported to the disaster area level by level. Every time it passes through an official's office, 10% of the money is embezzled. Everyone has a dirty hand, so naturally they will help the group in Qingzhou cover it up and conceal the truth."
How could ordinary people know that the officials in Qingzhou had lied to the imperial court about the disaster?
Not to mention the officials who exposed Qingzhou.
If he hadn't worked for the Secretariat, he wouldn't have known about the situation in Qingzhou, let alone that Jiang Chao would have been aware of it. Even if Jiang Chao heard from merchants that there was no disaster in Qingzhou, he wouldn't have suspected anything was wrong.
This is precisely why the officials in Qingzhou are so rampant.
Unfortunately, the truth eventually came out.
"Whose dictatorship is Qingzhou?" As soon as Shen Qingtan uttered the words, a figure flashed into her mind, and she asked with a solemn expression, "Li Yuan?"
Zhao Yi nodded.
A dark glint flashed in Shen Qingtan's eyes, and she felt that heaven was favoring her in this life.
Before Emperor Jing'an went to Northern Qi as a hostage, Li Yuan's father was his tutor, and Li Yuan naturally became Emperor Jing'an's study companion.
Thinking of this, Shen Qingtan remembered another person.
This person was Marquis Chengen.
Marquis Chengen was once one of Emperor Jing'an's study companions.
"Second Master, I have a feeling that this matter is inextricably linked to Marquis Chengen." Shen Qingtan pondered, "Marquis Chengen and Li Yuan are from the same school, and their relationship is very close. He has already extended his reach to Guanzhou, would he let Qingzhou go?"
Marquis Chengen was a man of Prince Yu.
Prince Yu privately built an armory, which required a large amount of money to support due to its high material consumption.
Where does the silver come from?
They can only amass wealth by exploiting the people.
Before Zhao Yi could answer, Shen Qingtan suddenly remembered something else: "After Li Yuan's father passed away, according to ancestral rules, his coffin should have been taken to the ancestral home and buried in the ancestral graveyard. However, Li Yuan said that his father had broken with the clan and left a will before his death, refusing to be buried in the ancestral graveyard. Moreover, he had specially bought a feng shui treasure land before his death and strictly ordered his children and grandchildren to bury him there."
This matter had once sparked heated discussions, but Li Yuan didn't care at all. After his period of mourning ended, he went to Qingzhou to take up his post.
Shen Qingtan said thoughtfully, "That auspicious burial site is only a few dozen miles away from the capital. Every year during the Qingming Festival, Marquis Chengen would go to sweep Li Yuan's grave on his behalf."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi suddenly remembered that Elder Li was a pedantic and old-fashioned person.
The more someone is like this, the more conservative they are at heart.
Even if they break with their clan, they still hope to return to their roots and be buried in the ancestral grave after their death.
When Emperor Jing'an heard this news, he lamented to him, "My teacher is not only pedantic and inflexible, but also extremely stubborn. He would rather be a lonely grave than reconcile with the clan and be buried in the ancestral tomb."
Zhao Yi and Shen Qingtan exchanged a glance, their eyes revealing a deeper meaning.
Something just doesn't seem right about this.
“I once read in the Records of the Grand Historian how corrupt officials laundered silver. They used most of the silver they embezzled to buy land or to collect calligraphy, paintings and antiques.”
Shen Qingtan said with a smile, "The most interesting one is an official who buried all the silver and evidence of his crimes in the grave."
Zhao Yi understood the meaning behind Shen Qingtan's words. Li Yuan did not let his father enter the ancestral cemetery, but buried him in the suburbs of Beijing, which was to make it easier to avoid suspicion.
After all, his father had been the emperor's tutor, so who would dare to disturb his tomb?
If all the evidence were buried in his father's grave, no one would suspect anything.
"The Marquis of Chengen is accumulating wealth for Prince Yu, so he will definitely not destroy all the evidence. He will surely leave some evidence to save his own life."
Shen Qingtan had an idea: "If we want to know whether the Marquis of Chengen is related to the case in Qingzhou, or whether the evidence is buried in the cemetery, we can send someone to the cemetery to find out."