Shen Yu glared at him: "In the end, are you punishing me or punishing His Majesty?"
Shen Yu didn't forget that after the last incident, he was bedridden for several days. Rather than punishing Shang Junlin, it was better to say that he was rewarding Shang Junlin.
"Of course, it's punishing me. A Yu can do whatever you want."
Shang Junlin's voice was as soft as a whisper, with an inexplicable ambiguous meaning, like a hook that crossed Shen Yu's heart.
The two were very close to each other. Shen Yu could clearly feel the change in the man's body, so she deliberately rubbed against him. As she wished, she saw the change in the man's face.
"What did His Majesty do wrong?" Shen Yu deliberately said, "Why does he need to be punished?"
Seeing that his goal was not achieved, Shang Junlin's heart flashed with a touch of loss. He wanted to feel A Yu's enthusiasm and initiative again, but he didn't show it on his face: "A Yu said no need, so there is no need."
Shen Yu's eyes moved, then she grabbed Shang Junlin's collar and slightly narrowed her eyes: "This is His Majesty's request, don't regret it when the time comes."
"Naturally."
Shang Junlin couldn't ask for more.
Shen Yu let go of her hand and withdrew from the man's arms: "Let's talk about this at night."
Shang Junlin's goal has been achieved, so he didn't mind waiting for a while. He walked to the soft couch and sat down, then said: "A Yu, do you know how much surprise those kings gave me?"
"Is His Majesty talking about the supplies they sent to Subei?" Shen Yu followed and sat on the other side.
"Yes, it really opened my eyes. They said that the things in their hands are more abundant than the national treasury. It's really not a joke." Shang Junlin knew that these vassal kings were extremely rich. Otherwise, they wouldn't have given so much gold and silver just to please Shen Yu. However, he didn't expect that they had so much more than he had imagined.
Not only Shang Junlin, but the other officials who received the news from the Supervisory Minister also sucked in a breath of cold air. If it weren't for this opportunity, they would probably never have known that the vassal king had so many things in his hands.
"No wonder the previous kings were so wary of the vassals."
"Isn't that so? Look at all these, and this is just one fief. Compared to the treasures in the national treasury, this isn't the only fief in the Great Huan Dynasty."
"At that time, His Majesty said that the vassals should also contribute. Who was against it? They even said that the vassal kings were also in a difficult situation, so we shouldn't force them. Is this their difficulty? Have too much money to spend? "The Minister of Revenue couldn't help but raise his voice.
After working together for so many years, all the officials knew the temper of the Minister of Revenue, so they were not surprised.
"Don't be in such a hurry to get angry." The Minister of Works patted the Minister of Revenue's shoulder and reminded him, "Isn't this just the first batch of supplies? Subei needs more than this."
"You're right. If I had known that they had enough money and supplies, I would have asked for more. Fortunately, it's not too late. His Majesty's method of collecting and sending out batches is really good."
When the others heard this, the corners of their mouths silently twitched, and they silently mourned for the vassals who were targeted by the Minister of Revenue.
The Minister of Revenue sorted out the list and hurriedly prepared for the next stage of the collection of supplies. This time, he felt that if he didn't make the vassals bleed for the next batch, he wouldn't be the Minister of Revenue anymore!
The vassals didn't know that the things in their hands were already targeted by the Minister of Revenue.
"Your Highness, with so many things, do we really have to send them to Subei?" The steward of the Prince's Mansion was at a loss.
"If we don't let them," the vassals were also very helpless, "The court and the people of the world are watching. The people have already contributed. If we don't do anything, do you think His Majesty doesn't have enough and thinks we're an eyesore?"
Did the vassals want to take out these things? Of course not. Who would complain about having too much money?
But their way out had already been blocked. If they didn't give it, wouldn't it be announcing to the world that they were disloyal to the Great Huan Dynasty? They were just deterred by Shang Junlin at the beginning of the year, and now they didn't want to face him at all.
"The people this Prince left in the capital have contacted His Majesty. His Majesty said that if we perform well this time and His Majesty is happy, not only will the past be forgotten, but we will also be rewarded by the court. This Prince doesn't want anything, as long as His Majesty doesn't look at this Prince."
He was very clear that anyone who was targeted by Shang Junlin wouldn't have a good ending.
Look at Prince Li, how glorious was he at the beginning, but now he was removed from the imperial family. Then look at Prince Yue, who was still trapped in the capital. He didn't want anything in this life, he just wanted to live the rest of his life in peace.
There were many vassals who had the same idea. They had seen Shang Junlin's cruel side with their own eyes and knew how ruthless he was. Those who could live peacefully until now weren't stupid. They couldn't fight against Shang Junlin before, let alone the current full-fledged Emperor.
However, it was still necessary to feel the pain.
Prince Yue's fief.
Because Prince Yue himself wasn't there, the officials sent by the court worked together with the officials of Prince Yue's fief to raise the money.
Shang Junlin had sent people in advance to find out how much the Prince Yue's fief could contribute. The officials sent by the court knew clearly how much the Prince Yue's fief could contribute. The final decision wouldn't exceed the capacity of the fief, and it would also make the Prince Yue's accumulated wealth bleed.
Prince Yue was still in the capital, and the situation was unknown. The officials of his fief naturally didn't dare to play any tricks, so the whole process was very smooth.
"If Prince Yue knows this news, I don't know how angry he will be." After listening to Shang Junlin, Shen Yu couldn't help but laugh.
"I will let someone tell him." Shang Junlin's tone had a trace of disgust.
Shen Yu found that Shang Junlin now showed more and more emotions in front of him. When he first entered the palace, he almost felt that Shang Junlin was an angry monarch.
"I don't know what those people are worried about. It's been so long, but they still haven't made a move. Do they really think that Your Majesty won't do anything to Prince Yue?" That was why they were fearless and let Prince Yue stay in the secret prison.
"Maybe it's because they can't even take care of themselves. A Yu, do you still remember those people who spread rumors? The Supreme Court got a lot of useful information from them and destroyed several of their strongholds in the capital."
"Didn't you say that those people couldn't get anything out of them?"
"At first, they didn't know much. Later, they caught a small leader of a force in a teahouse. Although this person's status wasn't high, he knew a lot. After being treated by the Supreme Court, he told them all the information he knew."
The Supreme Court had caught so many people, but they still didn't get anything. The officials of the Supreme Court were also anxious. It wasn't easy to catch someone who knew something. They used all the means they could to get more information out of him.
Hard work paid off. They really did get a lot of useful information. Although they hadn't caught the mastermind behind the scenes, that day wasn't far away.
The Minister of Revenue acted quickly. In less than half a day, he drew up a new donation plan. He didn't delay and directly asked to see the Emperor.
Shang Junlin wasn't very happy that his two-person world with Shen Yu was interrupted. Shen Yu just happened to want to see what the Minister of Revenue was going to do, so he proposed to go together.
Imperial Study.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty." The Minister of Revenue respectfully saluted the two.
After the donation, the Minister of Revenue's view of Shen Yu changed greatly. When he saw Shen Yu this time, the excitement in his eyes couldn't be ignored.
"This is the next step of the plan. Your Majesty, Your Majesty, please take a look." The Minister of Revenue presented the memorial.
Eunuch Meng took the memorial and put it on the Emperor's desk.
Shang Junlin opened it and looked at it with Shen Yu.
The contents of this memorial were all against the vassal kings. Shen Yu, who was used to cheating the vassal kings, silently lit a candle for the vassal kings who were about to be ruthlessly exploited by the Minister of Revenue.
This was simply stepping on the bottom line to ask for things from the vassal kings. The vassal kings couldn't afford it.
Too ruthless.
"Your Majesty, as the vassal kings, since they enjoy the treatment of the Great Huan Royal Family, they should do their best for the Great Huan Royal Family. What's more, they are His Majesty's relatives. It's normal for them to solve problems for His Majesty …"
The Minister of Revenue talked a lot. The central idea was nothing more than that the vassal kings should contribute money and effort. Otherwise, they would be sorry for the people and the Great Huan Royal Family.
For the first time, Shen Yu knew that the Minister of Revenue was so eloquent.
Shang Junlin's knuckles knocked on the table. His voice was as calm as ever: "Take it out for discussion in the court tomorrow."
This was passed. The Minister of Revenue was overjoyed. Then, he looked at Shen Yu with expectant eyes: "Does Your Majesty have anything else to add?"
"Daren's method is perfect." Under such a gaze, Shen Yu felt a little pressure and couldn't help but pull Shang Junlin's sleeve.
Shang Junlin chuckled and helped Shen Yu out: "Well, you go prepare for this matter. Discuss it with the Prime Minister first."
The Minister of Revenue slightly withdrew his gaze: "Your Majesty."
After the Minister of Revenue left the palace, he went straight to the Prime Minister's residence. The Prime Minister and Jiang Huaiqing were drinking tea in the courtyard. When they heard that the Minister of Revenue came to visit, they asked the housekeeper to bring him directly.
Jiang Huaiqing poured a cup of tea and handed it to the Minister of Revenue: "Daren, please."
The Minister of Revenue was indeed thirsty. He took the cup and drank it in one gulp, saying: "I just went to the palace to see His Majesty. His Majesty asked me to take it out at the morning court tomorrow."
"It was drafted so quickly?" The Prime Minister was shocked by Fang Daren's speed.
"I had some ideas before. Today, I just put in the specific amount. It's not troublesome." The Minister of Revenue roughly explained his idea, "That's it."
Even though he knew that the Minister of Revenue's performance was amazing, the Prime Minister still twitched his mouth after hearing it, "His Majesty agreed to this method?"
The Minister of Revenue nodded: "I originally wanted to ask if Your Majesty had anything to add. Unfortunately, Your Majesty didn't say anything."
The Prime Minister understood. If he added a little more, maybe the vassal kings would directly rebel. The Minister of Revenue was really amazing.
"Your Majesty, if we let the Minister of Revenue do this, will there really be no problems?" Shen Yu sat next to Shang Junlin and rested his chin on one hand.
Shang Junlin was reviewing the memorials. When he heard this, his hand paused slightly: "He knows what he's doing."
"That's right. If he doesn't know what he's doing, how can he be in this position for so long? I'm worrying for nothing." Shen Yu yawned, "I'll go wash up first."
Shang Junlin continued to review the memorials, but he was a little absent-minded. After waiting for a while, he didn't see Shen Yu return. He put down his brush and walked towards the bedchamber.
Mu Xi was waiting outside. When he saw Shang Junlin, he was about to salute but was stopped by Shang Junlin: "No need. Is Your Majesty inside?"
"Yes."
After receiving an affirmative answer, Shang Junlin pushed open the door. Dense hot air hit his face.
"Your Majesty, are you here to receive your punishment?" A young man wearing only red underwear walked barefoot. His half-wet hair scattered in front of his chest and behind his back. He was as beautiful as a demon.
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