Chapter 201 Lost Son
Imperial study.
The underground heating made the place as warm as spring, but the prince of Rong'an Marquis's Mansion felt so suffocated that he couldn't even breathe.
He knelt on the ground, shaking all over.
The emperor's face was gloomy, and he stared at the prince of Rong'an Marquis's mansion with an eagle-like gaze. He was silent for a long time, until a layer of fine beads of sweat oozed out of the prince's forehead. Then he said, "Explain the matter of the account book to me."
The sound was not loud, but every note was like thunder rolling over the head of the prince of Rong'an Marquis's mansion.
He opened his mouth, but no sound came out of his throat.
The emperor leaned forward a little and stared at him intently, "Raise your head and look at me."
The prince was so frightened by the emperor's wrath that he collapsed from his kneeling position. "That account book, yes, someone is trying to frame the Rong'an Marquis's Mansion."
Trembling, the prince tried to argue.
After saying the first sentence, his emotions were slightly relieved. He took a deep breath and continued, "If not for this, not everyone would have received an account book. I haven't completed the statistics of this account book. The shop is the business of the imperial merchant. How can others have a real account book? They are all made up."
The emperor smiled grimly, "If that's the case, where is the real account book?"
Before coming here, he had put the fake account book that he had delivered to Rong An Hou yesterday in his pocket. Upon hearing this, he handed it over respectfully, "This one is the real one."
The chief eunuch walked over, took it, and brought it to the emperor.
The prince was in a hurry to take it at that time. There was even a comment from Marquis Rong'an on it. However, on the way to the palace, he had already thought of his response.
"After I had compiled the account book, I felt that there was something wrong with it, so I showed it to my father. It was because of reading the account book that my father became worried and his condition worsened.
This account book... looks like it has been tampered with, like it is fake."
The prince did not say that he had forged the account book, but only said that he also felt it was fake.
The emperor would not be easily fooled by him, "Really? Since this account book seems to be fake, please have someone check the account now."
As he spoke, the emperor gave an order, "Let the Minister of Revenue and the Vice Minister of Revenue come to my imperial study to check the accounts in person."
The prince was stunned.
Turning around, he saw that the door of the imperial study was opened, and the boxes containing account books that he had originally hidden in the cellar of Rong'an Marquis' Mansion were now carried into the imperial study by several eunuchs.
As soon as he saw the box, the prince of Rong'an Marquis's mansion lost all color in his face.
Soon after, the Minister of Revenue came in with two assistant ministers, each holding an abacus under his armpit.
The emperor waved his hand, blocking their greetings, and pointed to the table next to him, "Count right there. Count the accounts one by one according to the order in this account book!"
The emperor handed the account book handed over by the prince of Rong'an Marquis's Mansion to the Minister of Revenue.
The three court officials received the order and began to settle the accounts.
The auspicious beast incense burner in the corner of the imperial study was emitting wisps of green smoke, and even the best sandalwood could not suppress the increasingly frightened heart of the Prince of Rong'an Marquis's Mansion.
The crackling sounds of the abacus beads were like hammering into his heart.
He was almost frightened to death by the torture of this sound.
The emperor didn't say another word. He picked up the memorial beside him and began to review it as if no one was around.
The chief eunuch took a look at the clothes on the prince and saw that a large area of his back was wet with cold sweat.
Two hours later, the abacus in the hands of the Minister of Revenue stopped, and the Prince of Rong'an Marquis's Mansion was like seeing the ghost of death. His pupils were dilated with fear. He watched the Minister of Revenue walk around the table and come forward to pay his respects, and he could hardly breathe .
"Your Majesty, there is something wrong with this account book."
The emperor stopped reading the memorials and looked up at the Minister of Revenue. The two account books handed over by the Minister of Revenue were taken by the chief eunuch and placed in front of the emperor.
"I registered the account books in the box according to the order of accounting in this account book, and found that the fifth account, the eighth account, and the nineteenth account did not match. I recalculated according to the account books in the box, and these items should be profits rather than losses."
After a pause, he seemed to be hesitating about something, and finally decided to say it.
"The accounts I prepared are exactly the same as the one that was circulated throughout the court this morning."
Bang!
Before the Minister of Revenue could finish his words, the Young Master of Rong'an Marquisate lost his breath, and his eyes went dark as he fell forward.
The emperor gave him a cold look and snorted, "Throw him into the prison and wait for your punishment."
When the news reached the Rong'an Marquis's mansion, Rong'an Marquis, who had just woken up, was so frightened that he almost fainted again.
He had no disease before, but now he is really sick.
Unfortunately, the third young lady of Rong'an Marquis's mansion didn't know Rong'an Marquis's mood, and she was still talking to Rong'an Marquis's wife in the corridor: "Fortunately, Daddy and Big Brother don't have much father-son affection, otherwise Daddy would be very sad if Big Brother went to jail.
Big brother is really something. He actually caused such a mess, causing our Rong'an Marquis Mansion to have to pay him money to make up for the deficit.
It's really a jinx."
The Third Miss of the Rong'an Marquis's Mansion originally said this to the Crown Prince's wife. She couldn't stand the Crown Prince's wife's usual self-righteous attitude.
She didn't know that Marquis Rong'an, who had been in a coma since early morning, had just woken up at this time, and she didn't know how Marquis Rong'an felt about the "unlucky brother" she called him.
Marquis Rong'an was lying on the bed in the study. He was so shocked and angry that he couldn't even muster the strength to sit up.
He stared with his eyes wide open and a ferocious look on his face. He wanted to use force, wanted to make some sound, wanted to make some movement, but he couldn't lift his hands before they fell heavily, and he couldn't lift them up again.
His heart ached.
His most valued legitimate son, his most beloved eldest son, was captured just like that.
The emperor will never let it go regarding the profits and losses of the imperial merchants.
He is afraid that this time he will have to bury his young one.
The immense pain in his heart made Rong Anhou cry out in a low voice. His throat seemed to be blocked by wet cotton and he finally let out a low and hoarse roar, "Ah!"
A sudden noise was heard in the room, causing several masters who were talking in the corridor to rush into the room. They saw Marquis Rong'an slumped on the bed with his head tilted, and the blood from the corner of his mouth had wet a large area of the pillow.
The doctor took Marquis Rong'an's pulse in panic, but no matter how good his medical skills were, he could not stop him from vomiting blood for several days in a row.
On this side, Marquis Rong'an fell seriously ill.
The entire Rong'an Marquis Mansion was shrouded in a layer of panic.
Not only was he worried about the health of Marquis Rong'an, he also had to pay for the huge hole in the account books between the profits handed in by the Marquis Rong'an's Mansion and the actual profit calculated, and at the same time he had to take care of the affairs of the Marquis Rong'an's son in prison.
The prince is the Marquis’ biological son.
Her son's crime was most likely punishable by death, and Lady Rong'an cried her heart out.
The palace welcomed the first grand palace banquet in recent days.
The envoy from Zhao State was driven out of the Prince's Mansion by Su Qingqing. The emperor, who had just received a huge sum of money, was in high spirits and held a welcoming banquet for him.
