"In the final analysis, it is the king's money..."
Aoxue went to the nearest Daming Bank and confirmed that the six gold banknotes were genuine.
But when the bank teller asked if he wanted to open an account and make a deposit, Aoxue hesitated.
Aoxue had already thought about it when she got the goods from Lin Na and left Ambassador Clothing Store.
Although the six pieces of goods were deceived from Lin Na, in the final analysis they were produced by the King's factory.
The benefits originally provided to employees at approximately cost price will eventually flow to the European and American markets after being resold.
If these six pieces of goods are sold in the West, the king's business will sell six less pieces and lose at least five hundred silver coins.
Taking these three hundred silver notes as his own is equivalent to stealing the profits of the factory and stealing the king's money.
If you "borrow" it yourself without your Majesty's permission, that would be considered stealing.
Even if he finds an opportunity to pay it back in the future, it will at least be charged with embezzlement of public funds.
Aoxue hesitated, and in the end she had no deposit, so she returned to New Rome Tea Shop with cash.
Aoxue felt increasingly uneasy as she walked back and forth in the huge house.
What on earth are we going to do with all this money?
I can do whatever I want, but only with the king's support.
In the final analysis, my ability to achieve these gains depends on the authority of the king.
Without the authority of the King to back him up, he might also be able to temporarily obtain these things through deception and intimidation.
But those who have been deceived and intimidated will definitely seek revenge after realizing that they were just bluffing.
Without the authority of the king, even if he has the ability to make huge profits, he will not be able to truly enjoy that wealth.
I have just started working for the king, so the king's trust in me must be very limited.
If you have your own little idea at this time and use the king's trust and authority to make profits for yourself...
Once discovered by the king, he may lose everything immediately, or even disappear directly.
It was really lucky that I got the opportunity to get close to the king unexpectedly, but I couldn't be fooled by this small gain.
Even if it is a relatively large profit... I can't let myself ruin the bright future of climbing into the king's bed for this.
The most important thing now is to gain the king's trust as much as possible, and then gradually turn it into favor.
If she were a personal maid like Empress Chunxiang, she would probably be fine even if she stole all the ten thousand items.
The key is that after reaching that status, there is no need to embezzle property for the sake of good clothing and food.
Even if you really want money, you can ask the king directly for it openly.
That way it's absolutely safe whether you get it or not.
The question is, how can I be favored?
The king seems to have no interest in his own body. The king does not need a slave girl like himself.
The maids around the king are much better than him.
She was a Japanese woman, and she was born a slave. She had not been raised at home since she was a child, so she could not dream of becoming a concubine.
Aoxue fell into deep confusion and couldn't see where her future was.
"Can I just be an ordinary subordinate? Work for the king like an ordinary man? Work?"
I desperately want to sell my appearance and body to the king, but the king is not interested in this. The king values his ability.
As a woman, she was supposed to be dependent on men, but now she has to do things on her own to make money.
Aoxue's outlook on life and values are trembling and distorted.
My skin is meaningless. The only thing I can do for the king is what I am doing now.
So if I have really done everything the king told me very well, can I get the chance to climb into the king's bed?
After making such great achievements that you can ask for rewards yourself, can you then directly ask for the king's blessing?
Although the chance is definitely very slim, this seems to be the only direction...
Aoxue felt that she had finally found her goal in life.
In order to climb into the king's bed and do everything the king tells me.
After hesitating and thinking for a long time, Aoxue finally decided to report to Chunxiang.
In the Mengxian Castle, when it was evening, sisters An Xiaona and An Xiaofu followed Zhu Jingyuan back to their room.
Chunxiang also returned to her room, leaned on the recliner and flipped through a book in boredom. Suddenly, a maid came over and reported:
"Sister Chunxiang, the female worker named Aoxue came to see you and said she had something very important to report."
Chunxiang frowned subconsciously after hearing this, and said with some doubts in her heart:
"What is this woman doing here now? It's only been three hours since she left. How can she gain anything?"
However, this woman's work cannot be seen in the light. She can only deal with herself directly and cannot ask others to tell her.
So Chunxiang asked the servant to bring Aoxue in, and then turned away the others.
Aoxue gave a general summary of what she had done in the afternoon.
It was a rough statement, but everything was said without any cover-up.
Including defrauding six pieces of goods from Lin Na, going to New Rome Tea House to find Aunt An and selling them, and getting six gold coins.
He also talked about the fact that he had obtained the right to use the New Rome Tea House, and the general direction in which Aunt An took the people to escape.
Finally, Aoxue also expressed her speculations and thoughts:
"That old bitch may have a channel with Tessie, or she may be part of the channel.
“But I think the more critical thing is to find a way for them to transport things out of the island.
“As long as we find this method and cut off their passage out of the island, we can completely cut off the source of smuggling.
“Besides, although this old bitch didn’t tell me, there must be secret rooms and other facilities in that tea shop.
"Your Majesty, you can arrange for someone to investigate carefully. You should be able to find something."
Chunxiang was quite surprised when she heard this. She didn't expect this woman to be so simple and rude, and she rushed directly to the opponent's stronghold.
Moreover, this simple and crude plan is really quite effective, and a large amount of information can be obtained directly.
After hearing this, Chunxiang thought about how to respond to Aoxue.
After Aoxue hesitated for several seconds, she reluctantly took out the six gold notes:
"Also...this is...the payment I got back from selling six pieces of Lin Na's goods today.
“I thought about it, although I deceived these goods from Lin Na, in the final analysis they are goods from the factory.
"The money I got after selling it should be the king's money after all..."
Chunxiang immediately laughed after hearing this:
"If you can think of this, it means that the king has not misjudged you.
“It also shows that you have a brain, but it’s still not enough.
"Do you still remember why you were fined by the king?"
When Aoxue heard the compliment, her face suddenly lit up with joy, and then she immediately became confused again:
"I was fined because I purchased...and then resold welfare goods..."
Chunxiang smiled and said:
"Then who did you sell it to?"
Aoxue's eyes widened suddenly:
"I... sold it to Lin Na, and then I got it back..."
Chunxiang continued to explain:
"Yes, since you have taken back the things you resold, if you return the things directly, it is equivalent to voluntarily returning the stolen goods, and the corresponding losses will be wiped out.
“According to Your Highness’s custom, the intensity of punishment is determined by the damage caused.
"After you return the stolen goods, you no longer need to pay the fine of two hundred and fifty five silver notes.
“The factory only needs to impose basic punishment on your behavior itself, and the level of punishment can be reduced based on the circumstances of surrender.
“The period of inability to enjoy employee benefits, take general examinations and promotions can also be shortened from one year to three months.
"But after you got those stolen items back, you immediately sold them again on your own initiative. Isn't this equivalent to reselling welfare goods for the second time?
"The total price of this resale is three hundred silver notes. According to the original penalty standard, the triple fine is nine hundred silver notes.
"According to the latest punishment standards issued by Shopkeeper Lin, he will be fined ten times and fired, plus three years of forced labor."
Aoxue felt like her brain was going to explode.
How many years of salary is nine hundred silver notes?
Ten times the fine, three thousand silver notes, how many years' salary is it?
The key is that there are also expulsions and three years of forced labor, which can kill people.
Aoxue felt an unprecedented amount of regret and regret, and her body was swaying so much that she almost fell:
"No...Mother, you can't do this..."
Chunxiang felt very relieved when she saw Aoxue's panic, but she didn't force her too much:
"Don't be so excited, I know you have a mission,
"According to the king's request, we will test the smuggling channel merchants at a price of no less than fifty silver notes.
“So I won’t punish you like that.
"I just want to remind you that you need to find your position and understand your true identity.
“The way you do things in the future and the angle of thinking must be consistent with your own identity.
"Otherwise, you may make as many mistakes as you want, and you may die in the end without even knowing how you died."
Aoxue recovered from the huge panic. After breathing a sigh of relief, she saluted Chunxiang very seriously:
"Please also ask the empress to teach me..."
Chunxiang nodded lightly with satisfaction:
“You are now the King’s man, and you are actually an official employee of the Great Food Country, no longer an ordinary citizen and worker.
"You can think of yourself as a plainclothes Jin Yiwei. If a Jin Yiwei finds something stolen for the people, what should you do?"
Aoxue thought for a while:
"Should it be returned to the original owner?"
Chunxiang nodded:
"Yes, if you had thought so at the time, you would not have done anything wrong and would not have sold the stolen goods directly."
Aoxue changed her perspective and recalled what she had done today, and she had a new question:
"If I were Jin Yiwei, could I use deception to get back the stolen goods from Lin Na's hands? Is this considered a violation?"
Chunxiang said immediately:
“It’s not a violation if you’re sure it’s stolen goods, so you can only get the stolen goods back, but you can’t just take extra things.
"If a thief only steals two dollars, you can't rob his whole family, let alone kill him directly.
"Furthermore, the stolen goods must be turned in and registered as soon as possible, and your superior organization will decide how to handle them.
“Because for a thief or a smuggler, the money and goods he carries are basically illegal gains.
“Most of them should be returned to their owners and those whose interests have been violated by him.
"If you handle the stolen goods yourself, whether it is for personal use or for sale, it is at least embezzlement and corruption."
Aoxue nodded sadly and solemnly:
"I understand...then, what should I do with the six gold coins I got back and the right to use the house?"
Chunxiang placed the six gold banknotes on the table next to her:
"Let's talk about money first. The income from your first mission must be divided according to the rules set by His Highness for you.
"Half percent is your personal income, which is fifteen silver notes, but it must be used to offset your fine.
"Two hundred and fifty-five silver notes, after deducting fifteen silver notes, there are still two hundred and forty silver notes.
“It was supposed to offset everything, but now it can only offset fifteen silver notes.
"How do you feel now?"
Aoxue said with a sad face:
"Now I feel regretful, sad, and annoyed. I want to die..."
Chunxiang smiled:
"It's okay to feel sad. Only when you feel sad can you remember the lesson of this time."
Aoxue agreed with a sad face:
"I will never forget it in my life..."
Chunxiang nodded lightly:
"It stands to reason that although the stolen goods you sell are the same as the goods you hold that can be sold.
"But, logically speaking, I shouldn't allow you to use the goods you have on hand to replace the stolen goods you sold.
"It's just... you did a pretty good job this time. You found the clues so quickly, which can be considered a credit.
"The key is that you are honest enough to tell you the process of getting the stolen goods back and selling them, and handing back the three hundred silver notes.
"Instead of thinking about hiding these things by myself and pocketing the payment of these three hundred silver notes.
“Such choices and behaviors should certainly be rewarded.
"So wait until tomorrow, I can try to ask His Highness to treat the stolen goods you sold as the goods that should be sold.
"Consider four of the items in your hand as stolen goods that you should return.
"If His Highness agrees, the two can be offset and the fine you should pay will be waived.
"This is equivalent to you recovering eighty-five silver notes from Lin Na, but you haven't turned it over yet.
“In the future, we will just have to pay off the stolen money step by step.
"Of course, the premise is that His Highness's gift allows this to be done. If His Highness does not allow it, then you have to continue to pay the fine."
Chunxiang gave him a stick and a sweet date. It should be said that it was a carrot. He just hung it up and didn't give it to him.
Aoxue was so grateful that she almost knelt down, but Chunxiang kept shouting out:
"Thank you, ma'am, thank you so much, ma'am..."
After calming down for a few seconds, Aoxue couldn't help but ask:
"Mother, why do you have to wait until tomorrow? It's just getting dark now..."
Chunxiang subconsciously looked in the direction of Zhu Jingyuan's room:
"Because a girl in the family was taken in by His Highness today, and I won't bother you at this time..."
Aoxue was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously swallowed hard:
"I'm so envious..."
After hearing this, Chunxiang couldn't help but frown, and then immediately changed the topic and continued to explain the distribution of the money:
"According to His Highness's arrangement, 20% of the smuggling proceeds will be used to fund your activities.
“That’s sixty silver notes, which can be sent directly to you now.
“Used to hire people, find out information, purchase necessary tools, etc.
“But this money belongs to public funds and must be strictly accounted for.
“You don’t know much about reading yourself, so I will send a girl to help you.
"I help you manage your money, and I also supervise you and remind you not to do the wrong thing again."
Aoxue promised seriously with complicated emotions:
"I understand, thank you, ma'am."
Chunxiang continued:
“In the end, you just got the right to use the shop, and the name on the property deed is still the original owner.
"The crime of the owner of the house has not been made clear. It is mainly for your mission to continue. It is not appropriate to alert the enemy now.
“So the store will remain as it is for the time being and will be left to you to manage and use as a base for organizing channel activities.
“However, with the crimes of those smugglers, there is no chance of retaining such assets if caught.
“So the final result of the house was confiscation, and now it has to be managed as a kingdom asset.
“So while you are using it, you must not destroy or resell the contents.
"That's your office, is that understandable?"
Aoxue listened and said repeatedly:
"I understand, I understand, it is the working place that the king allows me to use in order to complete my mission.
"If Aunt An and her channel still want to receive goods, they will definitely come back there and contact me.
"My Majesty, please ask Your Highness for instructions. Even if you find their traces, don't arrest them until you figure out their smuggling methods.
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"Let me find a way to gain their trust and find out how they send the goods out of the island."
Aoxue was very satisfied with this decision.
It is impossible for you to directly obtain the ownership of the house.
Now that I have obtained the permission from Chunxiang, I can live in it with confidence and boldness.
There is no need to go back to the cramped two-room dormitory with my parents, two brothers, one sister, and a family of six.
The urban area of Mengxian County is not big to begin with. Now that I have a bicycle, living in the store will not affect my work.
Chunxiang also nodded slightly and said:
"You were right as you said before, but the key now is to find a way for them to smuggle.
"You said that Aunt An was not caught because we don't know how they left the country.
"The officials from the Yamen and the people from the West Factory were all ready to follow, but they all suddenly lost track.
"The next step is to see if they dare to contact you again."
