Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 401 Something big happened in the Ministry of Revenue's Treasury~
Yanzhi Hutong, Liuyi Residence.

It is a small garden that is quiet in the bustling city and runs a "happy business".

However, the fees are expensive.

Ordinary Beijing officials passing by could only stare blankly and dared not step in.

The rosewood door of the courtyard was closed.

Knock knock knock, someone is knocking on the door.

I opened the door and saw the maid bowing slightly:

"Fifth Master, good luck to you. You haven't visited me for a long time."

"Really? Why do I remember that I was here only last month?"

"One day without seeing you feels like three years. I miss you, Master Fifth."

"Sweet mouth."

……

As Master Jin Wu said this, he gave him a small gold ingot as a reward.

The hands are big, enough for an ordinary family to eat for 2 years, and it doesn’t have to be just porridge or wild vegetables. They can eat real food every day.

"Master Wu is here~"

As soon as the maid called out, the madam and the pimp came running out immediately, smiling like flowers and being attentive and enthusiastic.

Although it is late autumn,

But the garden is still green, and the water in the pond is still steaming.

rumors,

There is a hot spring under Liuyi Residence, which ensures that the ground remains green even in the cold winter.

"Good luck to you, Master Wu. I'll change your clothes for you."

"Ah."

……

The sturdy Master Jin Wu was wearing and wearing interesting things from head to toe.

The piece of mutton-fat jade on the melon-shaped hat alone is worth several hundred taels.

A brocade robe, tailor-made for him at a century-old brand in the capital.

The room was warm and cozy.
When I opened the door, I saw smoke rising. The pool was not big, but quite exquisite.

Master Jin Wu was enjoying himself comfortably. The maid even untied his braids, washed them, and then tied them up again with a red silk ribbon into a bow.

"Fifth Master, who would you like to serve today?"

"I've been a little tired of women lately, let's try something different."

The madam said with great joy:

"I see. There is a girl from Jiangnan with pretty hands. She is good at playing all kinds of musical instruments and singing. She looks more feminine than a woman."

Master Jin Wu suddenly stared at the madam:

"From Jiangnan? He doesn't have any connection with the rebels, does he?"

"Look at what Fifth Master said. We are decent businessmen. How could we possibly associate with rebels? Our ancestors are from Jiangxi and have been running a business in Guangzhou for a long time. We are definitely a good family with a clean record."

……

Jin Wuye bid 500 taels on the spot:
"Just him."

"Jiangxi is a great place. Although I have never been to Jiangxi in my life, I have always been fascinated by it."

The madam didn’t understand why Jiangxi was praised so highly, but it didn’t matter.

Master Wu and the rabbit were singing and grinding the millstone, having a great time.

at dusk,

He then staggered downstairs, praising repeatedly: "Three flat pieces are not as good as one round piece. Good, very good."

My energy is exhausted, so as usual I need to eat something good.

Rules of Liuyiju:

The guests don't order dishes. They eat whatever the cook makes.

"Fifth Master, please sit down for a moment."

"Move this table over here."

Wu Ye is in a good mood today and wants to eat his food near the window while enjoying the garden scenery.

It’s just a small table, but the material used is too exquisite and it’s very heavy.

But the two maids couldn't lift it.

As the turtle couldn't move, the cook rushed out to help, but too many people got in the way and he didn't know where to start.

……

"Get out of the way."

Master Jin Wu couldn't bear it any longer, so he bent down, stretched out his hand and took a deep breath, and lifted the table easily.

Easily moved under the window.
"Master Wu, you have great power. This table weighs at least 200 kilograms." The cook gave a thumbs up.

Master Jin Wu laughed:
"Wrong, 230 pounds."

"Fifth Master, how do you estimate this?"

"I work in the Ministry of Revenue. You'll know the importance of this after you've handled it."

The chef gave a thumbs up:
"Nothing, I'll go down and get busy. Today I'm going to serve my specialty - braised bear paws, a secret dish from the palace. Fifth Master, you're in for a treat."

Master Jin Wu was very satisfied.

He modestly took out a gold ingot from his sleeve and gave it to the cook as a reward.

……

The cook took it respectfully and turned to leave.

As soon as he entered the kitchen, he took a ladle and rinsed the gold ingots repeatedly with a complicated expression.

"Master, what are you doing?"

"Don't worry about the kids. Is the soup ready?"

"All right."

Bear paw is one of the eight delicacies and the preparation process is very sophisticated.

Blanch, debone, and slice.

Each slice must be two centimeters thick and five centimeters wide to ensure that it is flavorful.

Then put the dish on the plate.

Place them in order: a piece of bear paw, a piece of bamboo shoots, a piece of ham, and a piece of mushroom.

Wrap the entire plate with a piece of clean gauze, then take another plate and turn the ingredients upside down, then place the duck legs, pork elbows, ginger and green onions on top.

Wrap the gauze in folded form, secure it with a special bamboo rack, put it into the pot, and stew it for 1 hour and 2 minutes.

Remove the bamboo frame and gauze, and remove the side dishes such as pork elbows and duck legs.

Finally, pour the broth made from the old hen and the big drake over the steamed bear paw slices, and the dish is ready.

If you can eat this dish, you must be rich or noble.

……

"Braised bear paws are here."

Such a grand dish would naturally require exquisite tableware, including silver spoons, ivory chopsticks, gold bowls, and jade chopstick holders.

Master Jin Wu, who was used to big scenes, was calm and composed. He stretched out his chopsticks and flipped through the food, then smiled and said:
"This is taken from the black bear's left paw!"

"Master Wu, you are amazing. You are a true gourmet. You have seen and tasted it all."

Facing the chef's compliments, Master Wu smiled reservedly and began to concentrate on enjoying the dish.

It is said that Emperor Qianlong in the Forbidden City loved this dish very much.

Now, he also eats the emperor's favorite dishes.

This blessing, tsk tsk ~
When my father was alive, he said: If you live by the mountain, you eat from the mountain; if you live by the water, you eat from the water; if you live by the treasury, you eat from the treasury.

……

After eating and drinking, Master Jin Wu threw down another silver note.

He walked away slowly with his hands behind his back.

At first glance, the steps he took seemed at least those of a minister.

The kitchen apprentice looked at the back and asked in a low voice:
"Master, what is the rank of this Fifth Master?"

"Nothing."

"what?"

"The Fifth Master works in the Ministry of Revenue, and is a keeper in the silver vault."

"what?"

"What are you talking about? Are you surprised that a Ku Ding can afford Liu Yi Ju?"

The apprentice nodded.

The cook smiled. His father used to be the royal chef in the palace, so he was quite knowledgeable compared to ordinary people.

But he didn't want to talk to his apprentice.

Just reminded:
"I am a cook, I only care about cooking for you, I don't ask or listen to anything else. Learn your skills well, treat Ni'er well, don't mind your own business, I am just a cook, I don't care about anything else, I will have food to eat for generations."

"Yes, master."

The cook looked unhappy and looked at his apprentice:

"I don't have a son, only a girl. You two have been childhood sweethearts, and you are my apprentice. Tell me, what should you call me?"

"father."

"Hey, you're not stupid. Close the door. I'm in a good mood today, so I'll teach you another secret dish."

……

Master Jin Wu was a clerk in the Ministry of Revenue’s silver treasury. He was a bannerman and held a hereditary vacancy.

His grandfather is Ku Ding, his father is Ku Ding, he is also Ku Ding, and if nothing unexpected happens, his son will also be Ku Ding.

Arriving at the Ministry of Revenue's Treasury,

The atmosphere seemed a little tense.

The familiar doorman from the past stood straight, holding his knife.

“This is weird~”

He wandered into the vault to work.

Ku Ding's daily job is to move boxes of gold and silver.

Master Jin Wu felt a little regretful that there was no silver from Jiangxi's treasury today.

The silver in Jiangxi's treasury has no edges, while the silver in Guangdong's treasury has clear edges.

Because of this, all colleagues in the silver treasury curse the mothers of Cantonese people every day.

Ku Ding's unique skill - collecting silver on dry land, those Cantonese people are clearly trying to kill us men! !
……

When I left the warehouse after work,
There were a few strangers outside, who looked like officials. They stared at him coldly with unfriendly eyes.

"Treasurer Wang, who are they?" "Shut up,"

The Treasurer's stern attitude says it all.

The person who comes is not kind, I'm afraid~
……

"Take off your clothes."

The 40 Kudings immediately did as they were told and took off their armor on the spot.

After long-term physical labor, they all have a dignified demeanor and a sturdy body, which is very different from those Beijing bannermen who carry bird cages.

Treasurer Wang was very calm and continued to give orders:
"Clap your hands and stamp your feet."

Everyone still did as they were told.

"Jump high five times."

"Cross over 12 poles."

After going through the court-prescribed procedures, the treasurer bowed respectfully:

"Butler Liu, we have completed the inspection. None of the 40 guards in the Ministry of Revenue's silver vault smuggled anything."

"Run, run along this open space. No one is allowed to stop until I say stop."

Seeing that everyone was reluctant, Heshen's steward Liu Quan waved his hand and the soldiers transferred from the Infantry Commander's Office immediately drew their swords.

The 40 Kudings had no choice but to start running in circles.

1 lap~5 laps~10 laps~
Something unexpected happened!
Clang! A silver ingot magically fell to the ground.

Making silver in broad daylight?

Treasurer Wang bit his back teeth:
"Take it!"

Ku Ding, who accidentally dropped the silver ingot, was held down. He said nothing and just looked at his companions silently.

I ran 5 more laps~
Bang, bang, the whole scene was in chaos.

Gold and silver ingots fell to the ground one after another.

Liu Quan covered his nose, feeling extremely disgusted:
"Take them all."

"My Lords? I have only helped up to this point, following the Master's orders."

"Butler Liu, you have worked hard. Take care, Butler Liu."

……

The Ministry of Justice, the Dali Temple, and the Censorate, commonly known as the "Three Law Departments", were the most luxurious lineup in the Qing Dynasty's judicial system.

It represents the will of the emperor.
He came to try the "Ministry of Revenue Silver Treasury Ku Ding theft case".

This matter is of great importance, and the Infantry Commander's Office has dispatched 200 soldiers to assist.

In order to avoid taboos, the Minister of Revenue Heshen did not show up at the entire event.

of course,

None of the adults present would be crazy enough to try to bring down He Daren.

There are not many crazy people in the circle. Crazy Qian Feng is dead, and the rest are all mentally healthy people.

Heshen also served as the Minister of Revenue, and to this extent he was "not showing favoritism and sacrificing personal relationships for the sake of justice."

Therefore,
Your loyalty is evident to all.

……

The chief treasurer, two assistant treasurers, one treasurer, six clerks, and 2 storekeepers were kneeling in the hall.

Just six months after taking office, the doctor, who thought he had little to do with the case, was the first to defend himself:
"Sir, I am innocent. I am new here and I don't know the inside story."

The Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate sitting in the middle:

"So you mean, these people below did it?"

"Yes Yes!"

The doctor's face twitched and he decided to cut off all ties with these bastards.

This move immediately brought backlash.

A Kuding said angrily:

"Doctor Ding, the brothers give you 12000 taels of silver every month, which is 72000 taels of silver for half a year. You won't forget it, right?"

"Slander, you are slandering me."

……

The Left Censor-in-Chief laughed.

As the top gunner in the Censorate, he is very good at finding loopholes and contradictions in what others say.

The people working in the Ministry of Revenue's treasury were not united, but each had his own ulterior motives.

suddenly,

The Dali Temple Secretary, who was in charge of counting the treasury silver, came hurriedly with a gloomy face and whispered a few words to the Dali Temple Minister.

The Dali Temple Chief Justice, whose eyes were always narrowed, suddenly widened.

"The trial is temporarily adjourned."

The three presiding judges hurried to the back hall.

"Are there any results from the inspection of the silver vault?"

"Sir, the shortfall is 179 taels."

"what?"

The three men's faces turned pale, as if they had fallen into an icy cave.

"How to do?"

"Quick, report to the emperor on horseback. Also inform the officials in the Military Affairs Office."

……

No one expected that nearly 180 million taels of silver would disappear.

There was silence in the house.

Although the temperature was low, everyone was sweating profusely.

"It broke the sky."

"Do you think he knew about it beforehand?"

The Left Censor-in-Chief of the Censorate shook his head.

If I had known, I wouldn't have made this mistake.

really,

When Heshen, who was on duty at the Grand Council, heard about it, he fell off the kang.

"My Lord, are you okay?"

Zhang Jing, who was standing next to him, quickly helped him up.

"I'm fine, I'm fine."

Heshen had just taken two steps when he tripped over the threshold again.

The Manchu and Han officials of the Grand Council rushed over again, shouting and working together to help Lord He up again.

Yu Minzhong was not on duty today and was said to be sick again.

……

"Heshen, tell me, where did my money go?" Qianlong was furious as never before. He pointed at Heshen's nose and said, "How did you manage the Ministry of Revenue? This is 180 million taels, not 8 taels, but 18 taels."

"I am guilty of death. I made a mistake. I can't think of the people under me~"

Heshen had nothing to say but to kowtow and admit his mistake, tears streaming down his face.

He looked terrified on the outside, but was relatively calm on the inside.

Who did it? When did it start? Were the three consecutive treasurers involved? How could I not have noticed it beforehand?
Qin Si took a glance and found that his master's hands were shaking. He was really furious.

"Master, please take care of your body."

"Take care? How can I take care? The treasury is so empty, what should we do on the front line?"

"Your Majesty, I will definitely recover the missing silver."

The Left Censor-in-Chief, the Grand Justice, and the Minister of Justice also kowtowed and expressed their determination to recover the money.

Qianlong slowed down his tone and said coldly:

"Minister of Revenue Heshen, you are negligent in your duties and will be fined one year's salary. If you cannot recover the money, you, Heshen, will make up the missing silver yourself."

"Yes, slaves follow the order."

"Investigate, thoroughly investigate. This is outrageous and unheard of."

……

Heshen and three others left the Yangxin Palace and went out of the Longzong Gate.

"And sir, do you see?"

"Investigate, confiscate the property! From the keeper to the doctor, confiscate everything. After that, we will conduct the trial."

"Whoo."

Looking at the three people's leaving backs, Heshen suddenly slapped his forehead.

"Liu Quan."

"Master, what are your orders?"

"Doctor Yinku Ding, is there anything~"

"Doctor Ding comes every three months and gives 3 taels each time."

"Clean it up."

"Yes."

Liu Quan left quietly.

In prison, there are a hundred reasonable ways of dying waiting for Doctor Ding~
……

This is a big matter.

He Shen called his younger brother He Lin:

"There's something wrong with the silver treasury, and I think there are also serious problems with the silk and paint treasury. Let them explain themselves before the court gets serious about it. I can guarantee that I won't touch them."

"Brother, what do you mean?"

"Pay the silver. From the doctors to the warehouses, all of them should gather together. If any warehouse has less than 30 taels, don't blame me for being ruthless."

"Okay, I'll do it right away."

The Ministry of Revenue has three major warehouses: the Silver Treasury, the Satin and Silk Treasury, and the Pigment Treasury.

The silver treasury is the heaviest, and the last two are also lucrative positions.

The one who had a conflicting idea with Heshen was Qianlong!

Qianlong suddenly thought of his own purse - the Guangchusi of the Imperial Household Department.

The Guangchusi had six warehouses for silver, leather, porcelain, satin, clothing, and tea.

He asked hesitantly:

"Qin Si, you said that the Ministry of Revenue's treasury has a huge deficit, will the Ministry of Grain and Oil also~"

(End of this chapter)