Chapter 450
Sensing Zhan Feiyu's confusion, Lord Yao did not hide his intentions. "As far as I know, Master Jin Jiu has secretly contacted Young Master Min."
Money moves people! The Jin family's downfall stemmed from human greed. Several princes in the palace coveted the Jin family's vast assets. Various forces tacitly cooperated and acted together, and the Jin family's most profitable industries were already seized by them.
In the following days, Master Jin Jiu seemed to know that it was beyond redemption, and only then did he secretly meet with Young Master Min. Although Lord Yao did not ascertain the specific content of their conversation, it was nothing more than paying to resolve the crisis, exchanging money for a glimmer of hope.
Upon hearing this, Zhan Feiyu understood immediately. Young Master Min, as well as the other forces, had already divided the Jin family's assets in secret. If Lord Yao thoroughly investigated the Jin family at this time, he would offend several princes in the palace.
"My lord, rest assured, I will give you the list of the Jin family's assets tomorrow." Zhan Feiyu agreed without hesitation. When her teacher did not support any of the princes, they, master and disciple, had already offended those princes in the palace. The princes in the palace were narrow-minded. Previously, when the Jin family went on a killing spree, it was their reputation that was ruined. Several princes had fanned the flames, so Zhan Feiyu would not hesitate to cause trouble for her enemies.
She was well-read, understood the times, and was decisive. It was fortunate that she was a girl... Lord Yao, while taking a sip of tea, concealed the deep thought in his eyes. If she were a man, not only the princes but perhaps even the Emperor would not tolerate her.
Just as she was about to take her leave, the quietness made the ensuing commotion particularly noticeable. Zhan Feiyu looked towards the door in confusion and saw Steward Tian walking quickly behind Governor Yuan.
Lord Yao stood up. "It's getting late, I won't keep you, Miss. Zi Bai will escort Miss Zhan out."
"Yes, my lord." Xiao Zi Bai responded. Too many things had happened in the past few days that even if the sky fell, Xiao Zi Bai would not be surprised. He beckoned Zhan Feiyu to follow him out.
"Miss Zhan, please wait." Governor Yuan, without bothering to bow, called out to Zhan Feiyu, who was about to leave. He then explained to Lord Yao, "Reporting to my lord, when we sealed the treasury just now, we discovered that one thousand taels of silver notes were missing."
Steward Tian's face turned pale. He suppressed the panic in his heart, as he was responsible for counting the Jin family's belongings. Regardless of whether the thousand taels of silver notes were lost or stolen, Steward Tian could not escape responsibility.
The Jin family's money house was among those confiscated today. Silver was moved to the yamen box by box, not to mention the box of silver notes. Zhan Feiyu remembered that there were as many as thirty thousand taels of silver notes, but now only one thousand taels were missing, clearly indicating that they had been stolen.
However, only a portion of the box of silver notes was stolen. Zhan Feiyu smiled. This matter was becoming interesting.
Lord Yao looked at Steward Tian, who was speaking with trembling hands. Although he was an insignificant ninth-rank official, Lord Yao had seen Steward Tian's resume. He was also a scholar and had served in the county yamen for nearly thirty years. In comparison, he was not as composed as Zhan Feiyu, a young girl.
"Miss Zhan, please accompany me to take a look." Lord Yao glanced at Zhan Feiyu, as she was the chief accountant for the inventory this time.
As for why Zhan Feiyu was chosen, firstly, her mathematics was excellent, and the capable should be given more work; secondly, Lord Yao did not have time to conduct a detailed investigation of these accountants in Minhe Prefecture, so he could only use Zhan Feiyu to fill the gap.
"Yes." Zhan Feiyu replied obediently and followed Lord Yao towards the treasury.
Minhe Prefecture was not exactly in a state of extreme tension, but it was close. To dare to cause trouble at this time, and moreover, within the yamen, Zhan Feiyu did not know what to say. Was this audacity or utter foolishness?
On the open ground outside the treasury, Zhao Shensuan and the other accountants stood together, while the yamen runners and clerks who were moving and counting stood on the other side. At first glance, they were clearly separated.
Of course, there was one exception, and that was Shi Fan. He stood alone at the edge, with the constables and soldiers guarding them nearby.
Lord Zheng, who had received the news, also arrived. The lost thousand taels of silver notes were not a big deal in themselves, but the deeper meaning behind this action was crucial.
Lord Yao did not rush to search or interrogate. Instead, he questioned Zhan Feiyu, who was beside him. "You were with them registering the accounts during the day. Did you notice anything unusual?"
Lord Zheng withdrew his gaze from Zhao Shensuan and the others and waited leisurely for Zhan Feiyu's answer.
"To be able to take a thousand taels of silver notes from a box in full view of everyone, perhaps it was a spur-of-the-moment decision, a joint operation." Zhan Feiyu smiled, a hint of mischief in her eyes. "Perhaps there is a thief hidden among us."
Because it involved money, those responsible for counting were grouped in fours, supervising each other, precisely to prevent anyone from pilfering.
With Lord Zheng present, Zhan Feiyu did not need to worry about finding the silver notes. Questions would be asked, searches would be conducted, and finding the thousand taels of silver notes was only a matter of time.
Shi Fan, who was isolated, was considered handsome among the accountants, some with mustaches and others with wrinkled faces. The usually stern Lord Yao cast a rare, teasing glance at Zhan Feiyu.
Zhan Feiyu's scalp tingled. "Shi Fan has a great talent for mathematics." So, the idea of matchmaking was just the lord's overthinking.
Lord Yao stroked his beard and smiled. After a pause, he said, "The bridge is steep, the horses are swift, the river is long, and the white birds are high. The mist is light, only moistening the willows; the wind is strong, wanting to blow the peach blossoms. Leaning against the three-story pavilion, rubbing the seven-treasure sword. Yu Lang is the youngest, and the green grass envies his spring robe. I am old."
"Do not say the sun is setting late; the clouds are still filling the sky. Under your governance, the people live and work in peace and contentment, so why speak of old age." Zhan Feiyu's words were not flattery. With the Emperor's reliance on Lord Yao, Lord Yao would definitely be reappointed. Only after Longyou Dao stabilized in a few years would he be recalled to the capital, and his return would undoubtedly be a promotion.
"This is impossible, it wasn't me!" A shocked shout interrupted the conversation between Zhan Feiyu and Lord Yao.
"If it wasn't you, then who? These silver notes were found on you!" Steward Tian glared fiercely at Shi Fan.
These accountants were under his jurisdiction. Now that something had happened, and it was personally discovered by Lord Zheng of the Provincial Surveillance Department, Steward Tian felt like killing Shi Fan.
Steward Tian, who had been temporarily seconded to the yamen, had hoped to use this opportunity to advance further, perhaps even be promoted to county magistrate. Now, he would be grateful if he was not implicated or held accountable.
Shi Fan stared blankly at the stack of silver notes in the guard's hand, completely unaware of when they had been slipped into his possession.
Zhao Shensuan and the others had been cleared of suspicion. At this moment, everyone looked at Shi Fan with disdain. However, because Lord Yao and Lord Zheng were present, Zhao Shensuan and the others dared not act presumptuously and could only express their contempt for Shi Fan with their eyes.
The "thief" was found so quickly. Lord Yao sized up Shi Fan, who was anxiously trying to explain but couldn't, concluding that he was indeed young and panicked when faced with trouble.
"You worked with them for a day. What do you think?" Lord Yao asked in a low voice.
Zhan Feiyu withdrew her gaze. "We were only responsible for registering the accounts and the final calculations. Shi Fan had no opportunity to steal."
The constables and clerks of the yamen were responsible for counting the property, and they were in groups of four. Unless Shi Fan was a true master thief, these silver notes could only have been planted. Zhan Feiyu was more inclined to believe that someone from the yamen had stolen them and then framed Shi Fan.
"After calculating accounts all day, we were all dizzy and disoriented. Moreover, there were many people and it was chaotic. Even if someone bumped into him, Shi Fan probably wouldn't have noticed." Zhan Feiyu's wrist was still sore.
Not to mention Shi Fan and the others, who had to write and use an abacus for calculations, working for nearly five hours, they would only be more tired.
Lord Yao did not express his opinion. At this moment, Lord Zheng was questioning Shi Fan.
Just as Zhan Feiyu had said, they were so tired that their eyelids would close on their own. Moreover, the constables all wore the same clothes, as did the clerks, so he couldn't recall who he had physical contact with or when the silver notes were slipped into his possession.
"Back in Nanxuan Prefecture, you created fingerprint powder." Lord Yao spoke again. He was not in charge of judicial matters, but he had heard of the benefits of fingerprint powder. All prefectural yamens, the Ministry of Justice, and the Provincial Surveillance Department had adopted it.
"Fingerprints should not be extractable from silver notes." Zhan Feiyu shook her head. Silver notes were made of paper, and any fingerprints left would be very faint. It would be impossible to extract fingerprints with fingerprint powder. More often, this fingerprint powder was used to compare fingerprints on murder weapons. When there was blood, extraction was much easier.