Ming Lanruo paused again: "Oh, no, our Majesty instructed you to do it."
Shangguan Hongye looked at her steadily, his handsome face was calm——
"No, I did not take action, nor did I instruct anyone to take action. Duke Ming Guo is not only your father, but also the pillar of the country. I am reluctant to take action."
He paused and twitched his lips helplessly: "But among the people I brought here, some of them are my father's people, and I can't control them."
There were some words that he originally didn't want to say to Ming Lanruo so quickly, but now that Duke Ming Guo was poisoned, it was an opportunity to talk.
Ming Lanruo's face was extremely cold, as if he was examining the authenticity of Shangguan Hongye's words.
Shangguan Hongye looked at her frankly.
Ming Lanruotu suddenly said: "Although my father is a scholar, he also holds a high position. He has experienced many storms and waves. The Xiao family was destroyed that year, and many people were purged by His Majesty. As an in-law who married the only daughter of the Xiao family, my father
They all saved themselves."
In addition to being born well, my father was also a very smart person who could assess the situation. However, he was too young and lost to the imperial power. He tried his best to save her mother but only her daughter.
She paused: "But this time in Northeast Xinjiang, my father fell into the hands of these Gujiazhai gangsters so easily. Have you ever thought about why?"
Shangguan Hongye was stunned: "Of course it's because this Gujiazhai is a red-blooded remnant, it's extraordinary..."
"It's because the prefect of Gujiazhai and Heiliaocheng colluded with the prince's people, so my father suffered a tragic accident. Do you really think that the prince himself is brave enough to collude with these people, and His Majesty doesn't know about it?"
Ming Lanruo interrupted him coldly.
Shangguan Hongye is not an idiot. After listening to what Ming Lanruo said, his expression changed slightly: "You mean the father knows that the prince is colluding with people in Gujiazhai?"
Ming Lanruo chuckled and took a long sip of porridge: "Your Highness, you have the support of military commanders. The current queen is still your biological mother. You are also a capable prince who can fight in the world with martial arts and can join the Ministry of Justice to solve cases."
"Why does it seem that there is nothing, even the high-ranking civil servants in the court headed by my father have a neutral attitude, but the prince who is just a smart man can sit firmly in the crown prince's position?"
Shangguan Hongye was silent for a while and then said calmly: "Because my eldest brother is very smart about making money. Over the years, he has been helping my father handle some dirty things to make money."
Such as the black market, such as the mutual market on the border of Northeast Xinjiang.
Ming Lanruo asked again: "Do you still remember that when we got here, we learned that Northeast Xinjiang borders Beijin and Goguryeo. There is mutual trade every year, and a large amount of money goes into the household department under the prince."
Shangguan Hongye nodded: "Remember, those large sums of money were transferred back to the northeastern border in the name of maintaining border stability and resisting harassment by the Beijin people. Therefore, the Tang magistrate and Gujiazhai almost did not pay taxes to the court.
So very rich."
"Then do you think all this money is really divided between Tang Zhifu and Gujiazhai?" Ming Lanruo put down the porridge bowl in his hand.
Shangguan Hongye was stunned and looked at Ming Lanruo, his eyes flickering uncertainly: "What do you want to say? Of course the prince will have a share of the money?"
Ming Lanruo raised her long eyelashes and chuckled: "Does His Majesty the King of Qin still want to deceive himself? Without His Majesty's acquiescence, do you think His Majesty the Crown Prince would dare to do this with the money from the border trade? That would involve several countries' diplomatic relations!"
No matter how powerful the prince is, the emperor is not dead and is still very suspicious and ill. How can the prince completely dominate the household affairs?!
"I mean, at least half of that money went into His Majesty the Emperor's private treasury!" Minglan smiled.
In this court, where there is imperial power, there is also the power of officials to check and balance each other. The emperor cannot completely do whatever he wants.
Otherwise, why did Emperor Ming make it so complicated when he wanted to kill the Xiao family, and why did he have to secretly collude with the people of Beimeng and Houjin?
He just issued an imperial edict casually. Why wouldn't everything be fine if he just copied and beheaded everyone in the family? What kind of fake landslide would it take to wipe out the family?
Because there are still people in the world and there are people with human hearts. If this emperor is not crazy enough to want to be like King Zhou of Shang Dynasty, and be overthrown by the people of the world with one heart and one mind, he will be able to do everything with a good reputation.
But even though Emperor Ming tried his best to kill the entire Xiao family, he also found various reasons to exile or kill so many ministers who did not support his ascension to the throne during the late emperor's time.
But in recent years, haven't there been people plotting rebellion in the name of the Xiao family or the late emperor?
Because there were various hidden dangers in the Tianming Dynasty under the iron-fisted rule of Emperor Ming. He had to rely on the ministers and aristocratic families, but also had to guard against them, so he had the East-West Factory and the Jinyiwei.
Only then came the existence of Cang Qiao, the "sword" that shocked the officials.
Cang Qiao is an extremely powerful humanoid weapon in every sense. Of course, you can also say that it is the most powerful eagle dog in the hands of Emperor Ming.
Ming Lanruo's bright eyes curved into two slender, cold crescent moons, and she took a sip of the tea in her hand.
But even so, if Emperor Ming wanted to use money privately, he could not touch the treasury at will.
The six ministries of the treasury all have to budget together for annual expenditures, including building bridges and roads, constructing water conservancy projects, subsidizing farmland, providing disaster relief... and military expenditures. The expenditures are huge, and they often cannot make ends meet.
Emperor Ming wanted to build a Taoist palace for a long time, but all the ministers objected to using money from the treasury. He had no choice but to use private treasury.
Not to mention, the women he loves, he wants to give this reward, that reward... spend money like running water.
In this way, if Emperor Ming wanted to secretly develop financial resources, he would naturally rely on the prince to make money.
The prince is a good money-maker, otherwise the black market would not be managed "in order" by him.
This is why when the black market was destroyed later, Emperor Ming was so angry that he almost vomited blood, beat the prince half to death, and even almost wanted to kill him.
But in her previous life, the prince was on guard against her as a double agent, so she vaguely heard about the black market and thought it was a private transaction.
Who would have thought that he has a princely and royal background.
Therefore, until her death, she did not know how powerful this black market was.
"But how can the black market alone be enough? Every year, His Majesty has to take care of the vassal kings and those royal family members who supported his palace changes. These cannot go to the national treasury, so he needs more money."
Ming Lanruo said contemptuously and playfully: "What can make money faster than border trade? Our Majesty is a very powerful person."
Without being powerful or ruthless, he couldn't wipe out the late emperor's family in just three days, and there was almost no big turmoil in the court.
Shangguan Hongye looked at Ming Lanruo, gritted his teeth and said coldly: "Impossible, my father is so afraid of the Red Blood Legion and the Xiao family. If he knew that these people were members of the Red Blood Legion, he would have destroyed them long ago!"
Ming Lanruo smiled: "Our Majesty may know, maybe he doesn't..."
She paused and said calmly: "Just pretend he doesn't know."
If Emperor Ming knew about it, he must also know that Gujiazhai was no longer what it was back then with the Red Blood Legion, and was just released to ruin the reputation of the Xiao family and the Red Blood Army.
If Emperor Ming didn't know, then the prince hid this secret. Anyway, it wouldn't affect Emperor Ming's earning a lot of money.
"So, Your Highness, do you understand now?" Ming Lanruo suddenly poured him a cup of tea.
Shangguan Hongye looked at her coldly: "What do you understand?"
He hated drinking her tea the most. Every time she poured tea for him, she was forcing him to do something, which would make him feel very bad.
Ming Lanruo smiled: "I understand that what happened to my father was the result of the collusion between the Crown Prince, Tang Zhifu and Gujiazhai. It is even possible that His Majesty was conniving at this matter behind his back."
Seeing Shangguan Hongye's expression look bad, she put the tea into his hand with malice: "You should understand that even if you write a memorial to the prince and collude with the red-blooded remnants, you will not be able to remove the prince from the throne."
The most he could do was to let Emperor Ming beat the prince again and temporarily ground him.
Who told the father and son, Emperor Ming and the Crown Prince, to make money together in Northeastern Xinjiang?
Since the wolves are collaborating with each other, how can the wolf really kill the wolves?
Emperor Ming admired the prince's ability to fish for side affairs!
"And His Royal Highness, he can completely evade that he didn't know that Gujiazhai was related to the Xiao family and the Red Blood Legion. Those who don't know are not guilty." Ming Lanruo's smile was so bright that Shangguan Hongye found it dazzling.
He stared at her for a long time with a gloomy face: "Do you really like to see me frustrated and defeated at the hands of the prince? The prince will never let you and your family go when he ascends the throne."
Why on earth could Ming Lanruo analyze everything about the situation so deeply that he could even see some blind spots that he had not seen for a while?
She was as sophisticated as a counselor who had been immersed in power for many years, which he had never understood.
Was it Cang Qiao who taught her?
Ming Lanruo smiled a little more gently: "I just hate others threatening me, especially you."
Have a baby with him?
It’s almost like giving birth to a big-headed ghost!
After the incident in Tianlao, even when Cang Qiao tried every means to force her to be willing to be with him, she never gave in.
How could he possibly succumb to Shangguan Hongye's tricks!
…
Shangguan Hongye looked at her coldly. For some reason, those words "especially you" made him suddenly feel a suffocating pain in his heart.
It's not easy to breathe anymore.
He suddenly pinched her tea-serving wrist, Danfeng's eyes were full of coldness: "Then who threatens you, don't you hate it? Cang Qiao?"
