"If father-in-law doesn't accept the money... then... then I will kneel here and not enter the Yangxin Gate..." After saying this, Li Tuo was about to kneel down.
Li Lianying liked such a polite official and quickly stretched out her hand to support her. "Oh... Mr. Li, aren't you putting me on a rack to roast me? You're really ashamed of me, you're ashamed of me... Come on, I won't be polite to you anymore..." "
"I finally understand. If Mr. Li doesn't get promoted and make a fortune, that would be unreasonable!"
At this point, Li Tuo simply bowed deeply and said, "My good steward, I really have something to ask of you... I just beg you not to be promoted, and I beg your steward to say a few kind words in front of the Queen Mother. Don’t get promoted and just let me be this Zhang Jing honestly!”
"Ah? Why is this?" Li Lianying really couldn't figure it out. In exchange for 20,000 taels of silver, the requirement was not to be promoted? This man is mentally ill!
Li Tuo looked around to see if there was anyone around him and pretended to be sad and said, "Manager Li, please tell me clearly! I have never been a courageous person, otherwise I wouldn't have discovered Salonga's thief behavior early and not reported it! "
"The ransacking last night made even the lower-ranking official feel cold... That's also the home of Zhongming Dingshi. In terms of wealth, it can be compared to the Jia Mansion in the Grand View Garden!"
"What happened in the end? The prodigal son lost all his wealth to only forty thousand taels. In the end, the family was ruined!"
"I'm really scared, Xianguan. Do you think this person may seek wealth and honor in his life, but he also needs peace? It's a good job for Xianguan to guard Zhang Jing. If he can keep it, I'll only have this little blessing." Pay it forward!"
"Go up, I really can't hold on!"
Smart man, really smart man! Li Lianying stirred up Brother Thumb in her heart. They are all sophisticated figures in the officialdom. How can they not hear the subtext of these words?
Li Lianying knew that Li Tuo's words were only half-truths and half-falsehoods. Rather than being timid, it was better to say that this person knew how to hide his clumsiness and knew the truth of being at a high place.
Give me the punishment! Once the reward for this credit is over, it’s over! It would be better not to receive any reward, but to leave a small loss and regret in the heart of the superior.
If the Queen Mother has been thinking in her heart that she still hasn't rewarded Li Tuo with some credit back then, then that kid will be so pitiful! If the Queen Mother has this idea, then Li Tuo will get much more in the future than if he cashes in now!
Playing the long game to catch the big fish? Smart people, this is a smart person who can do business and earn interest!
"Master Li is a sensible person, so the Zajia family won't say anything more. I can't guarantee that it will be done for you... but I will definitely not fail it for you!"
"Oh...thank you, Mr. Butler, thank you, Mr. Butler!"
A perfect bribery was completed in the corner, and then the group quickly walked into the Yangxin Gate and saw the Empress Dowager Cixi fighting birds.
After Li Tuo kowtowed and saluted, Cixi was in a good mood and gave him a seat. "Li Tuo! You did a good job. You figured out the case in one night, recovered the gold, and arrested the person... Even the public opinion in the capital was He has also turned around, and he is indeed a capable person!"
"The Queen Mother is too generous... I just acted in accordance with the Queen Mother's orders! Without Lafayette's advice, I wouldn't have the ability..."
While talking, Li Tuo picked up the exciting details of last night's house raid and told them to Cixi. Some exciting details were such as Salong'a hiding in the elephant trunk pit, and the dark and shameless scenes between Little Oriole and Salong'a. Describe everything carefully.
What he said was like listening to storytelling, which made Cixi feel better!
"Oh, what a pitiful thing... Mu Zhang'a is also an old man in front of Lord Daoguang. Why are his descendants so unfilial and ruining the family's wealth like this?"
"By the way... Didn't you say before that Salonga smoked heavily and gambled money, and his family was ruined... How could he still get out 20,000 taels of silver?"
Li Tuo smiled and said, "The Queen Mother is wise! As the old saying goes, a centipeded insect will die without becoming stiff. Lord Mu Zhang'a is, after all, a top figure in the Daoguang Dynasty. He has a tree with deep roots and immeasurable financial resources..."
"For a big family like this, the family assets are not just gold and silver, but also land, real estate, loan and rent collection, jewelry, antiques, calligraphy and painting... and a series of other wealth that are put together to be a great family. What a home looks like!”
"By the way, there are also slaves... This person is also an important asset. Having more slaves means money..."
"No matter how prodigal Salonga is, he can't smash the mahogany windows in exchange for money! He can't keep all the furnishings in Duobao Pavilion... He can't sell all the bedding at home, right?"
"To put it more clearly, Mrs. Salon'a's dowry cannot be touched. It was given as a dowry by her natal family. Did Salon'a also pawn it?"
After saying this, it became clear. Cixi sighed, "Whose daughter is so unlucky to follow such a traitor? Even her parents' dowry was confiscated. What a sin!"
Li Tuo saw that there was something behind the words and wanted to do good deeds. He quickly smiled and said, "The Queen Mother is wise! The whole case has been made clear. It's just that Salonga has evil intentions because of his incompetence..."
"It has nothing to do with those women... I hope Lafayette will be noble and spare the lives of this family of women!"
Salonga's case can be big or small. He stole the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's gold seal in the Forbidden City. From a small point of view, this is called greed and shamelessness, but from a big point of view, it is intriguing... Why did you steal this if you didn't steal anything else?
Don’t you know the deep blood feud between the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Qing Dynasty? Once this case becomes serious and becomes a major political case, it is possible that the whole family will be executed, and at worst, the whole family will be sent to Ning Guta as a slave.
Cixi left her favorite starling behind and sat back on the sofa. She lightly lit the tea cup with her long fingernails, and Li Lianying quickly changed it to a cup of hot tea.
Cixi was also thinking, carefully pondering the balance of the court situation. Whether it was strict or loose could affect the whole body!
"Li Lianying...what's the news outside the palace today?"
"Queen Mother Qi... People all over the city are talking about Salonga's case, which is exactly what Lafayette thought!"
"Hey... today passed peacefully, but in the future, who knows how many days it will be peaceful?"
Can you change the opinions of the people in one day or one year? This is what Cixi was worried about, and of course Li Tuo could understand it.
Li Tuo knew clearly that what Cixi was hesitating about now was definitely not the dozens of lives. To the Queen Mother, human lives were just numbers, just ants. What she wanted was the stability of the government and the control of public opinion in the market.
At present, only by handling big cases and making the cases bigger can we divert people's attention more effectively!
Will it be ineffective if the case is too small?
Li Tuo said cautiously, "The Queen Mother...can you step aside...Oh, of course Mr. Li will stay. I have one more thing to report. I think the Queen Mother will feel much better after hearing this!"
Note: On April 1st and 2nd, when I go to the imperial capital, I can only update once a day. Normal updates will resume on the 3rd!
