allendalepharm Chapter 152 Inspecting the Lai Family
Chapter 152 Inspecting the Lai Family
Chapter 152 Inspecting the Lai Family
Ningguo Mansion——
Following the audit of the accounts by the two masters of the Jinyiwei Mansion, the amount of money that the Lai family stole from the East and West Mansions was also compared one by one. According to the comparison of the account books in the past ten years, a total of 63 taels were missing.
As for the interrogation of Lai Da, he also confirmed the silver of the East Mansion. As for the silver of the West Mansion, Lai Da only vaguely said that there are many people in the West Mansion. Three 5 taels of silver.
Sister Feng just sneered and said, "5 taels of silver? 50 million taels of silver is about the same!"
He was obviously shocked by the numbers revealed by the few gentlemen checking the accounts.
Lai Da just complained and refused to admit it.
"Not honest! Brother Heng, look..." Sister Feng Danfeng asked with a stern look in her eyes.
Jia Heng picked up the teacup and said, "Sister-in-law Feng, there are many people in Xifu. Even if there is a deficit, Lai Da can't take it all by himself. However, even if there is no four to five million taels, there are still two to three million taels of silver. .”
There are four major butlers in the West Mansion, Lai Da, Lin Zhixiao, Wu Xindeng, and Shan Daliang, who are in charge of the outside affairs, while their four wives are the housekeepers of the inner house.
Except for Lin Zhixiao's family among the four housekeepers, which is considered to be well-behaved, the other three housekeepers have one or one, which is not a good thing.
But because of this, there are more people sharing the cake in Xifu, and Lai Da is not as happy as his brother Lai Er.
Lai Sheng had almost no one to restrain him in the East Mansion, as long as he coaxed Jia Zhen, the income and expenditure of the account books could be done as he wanted.
Sister Feng also heard Jia Heng's implication, and said: "Brother Heng means that we still have to check the account books."
Jia Heng nodded and said, "Ping'er has been away for a while, should he be back?"
Sister Feng Yurong paused slightly, and said, "Caiming, you go..."
"Second Mistress, Miss Ping is here." Just then, the woman outside the door said.
Ping'er hastily entered the hall, looked up at Jia Heng, met Sister Feng's questioning gaze, and said, "Second Mistress Lian, the elder of the West Mansion has brought the accountant at home, and he wants to check the account. I checked the account books, and they locked the door to prevent Wang'er from taking the account books."
When Sister Feng heard the words, her jade face changed slightly, and she said in a startled voice, "Master, he also wants to check the accounts?"
As he spoke, he glanced at Jia Heng, frowned and said, "Brother Heng, the Elder Master also needs to check the accounts, what should we do now?"
Because Jia Amnesty owns a private courtyard with a big black gas door next to the West Mansion, he also set up an accounting office to manage the financial revenue and expenditure.
Jia Heng frowned, and said in a deep voice: "It's really not profitable, and I don't see him doing investigations on weekdays. Now I heard that it is profitable, but I come to check the accounts. Chasing stinky flies, that's all."
Jia She is greedy for money and lustful, even worse than Jia Zhen, a proper scavenger.
When Sister Feng heard the young man sneering at her father-in-law, her beautiful and charming young woman's face showed some strangeness, she just pretended she didn't hear it, and asked in silence, "Brother Heng, what should we do now?"
After interrogating Lai Da just now, unconsciously, Sister Feng is inclined to let Jia Heng make up her mind.
Jia Heng pondered, thinking.
In fact, he didn't pay much attention to Jia She's audit. If Jia She, a young man who is good at eating, drinking and having fun, can see the way, he won't let the housekeepers Lai, Shan and Wu of Jia's house live happily. Moisturized for so long.
Suddenly, the old accountant smiled and said: "My lord, this family is very clever in concealing the accounts. If I don't check carefully, I will be deceived by it. If it is an ordinary person, it will be even more difficult. Rongguo wants to check the accounts. You might as well let them check it first, and wait until they find nothing interesting, and then worry about it!"
These few people are used to copying, and they know the price of every item purchased in the year. For example, in the way of fabricating transaction prices and shoddying inferior goods, in their eyes like a demon mirror, there is almost no one. hide away.
Hearing this, Jia Heng nodded, then turned to Sister Feng and said, "Lai Dacai's confession already includes a few large sums of money related to ink corruption, which add up to 5 to [-] taels. Let's count it first! As for the account books Put it aside first, I will take people to search Lai Da's house, if you delay any longer, carefully let them transfer the property and run away!"
When Sister Feng heard the words, although she felt that she was not satisfied, she also knew that Jia Heng's words were reasonable, and said: "Then let's ban Lai's family first, and then we will slowly reconcile the accounts when we come back."
But Jia Amnesty and Mrs. Xing first took the accountant and servants to seal up Lai Da's manager's mansion, and then went to Rongqing hall to report to Jia's mother.
In Honor Hall——
Mother Jia looked at Jia Amnesty and Madam Xing who were coming hand in hand, and said calmly, "Since you are sick, you should go back and rest well. What are you doing here in such a hurry?"
The mandarin duck behind him paused for a moment with the hand pinching Jia Mu's shoulder, knowing that this meant that the elder was ill last night and did not come to the Rongqing Hall for the banquet.
Baoyu, Daiyu, and Tanchun on the side have strange expressions.
Jia Amnesty pretended not to hear Jia Mu's sarcasm, smiled and said, "Mother, just early in the morning, Wu Xindeng, Dai Liang and Qian Hua came to look for me and said that Dong Bian'er wanted to investigate our accounts. I have a ghost in my heart, so I have to come to the door to beg for mercy! My son thought, there is a lot of trouble in the East Mansion, if we can check it ourselves, I will bring the accountant of the mansion to come over, and take all the account books of the silver warehouse and the third storehouse in recent years. Sort it out and prepare for the audit."
Jia Mu frowned, and said suspiciously: "Didn't you just check Lai everyone, why did you also check the bank and the warehouse?"
Li Wan explained: "Master Lai is in charge of things, and whatever is spent must be withdrawn from the treasury."
"Mother, there is a big problem with the accounting of these three people. By the way, there is also Lai Da. The son heard that he was taken by the patriarch. This son is strange. Even if he checks Lai Da, it has nothing to do with the clan. Jia Amnesty pretended to be puzzled and said, "Besides, how can you bother the patriarch with such trivial matters?"
Now Jia Amnesty is reasoning about the clan affairs, and between words, he pinches his nose and recognizes Jia Heng's patriarch's name.
Jia Mu said: "Brother Heng is a helper, and has already sent Feng girl to ask Lai Da."
This is also what Jia's mother thinks is appropriate, because Sister Feng is not only Jia She's daughter-in-law, but also Mrs. Wang's niece, and it is most appropriate for her to assist her.
Jia She said: "Ms. Feng is naturally a smart person, but this is our own housework, and it is always unreasonable for the clan to intervene."
When Jia Mu heard this, she said, "Do you want to check the accounts?"
Her son can't sit still when he hears money, and he hasn't found out how many shortfalls he has.
Jia She said: "We can't take care of the affairs in the East Mansion. In the West Mansion, the son will pay the bill first. If he can check it himself, he won't bother others. Mother said yes."
When Jia Mu heard the words, she hesitated for a while.
But after thinking about it, it seems that there is nothing wrong with it.
Check the accounts, who is not checking?
Thinking of this, Mother Jia thought for a while and said, "Let's go through the account books first."
Jia Amnesty got the permission, he was overjoyed and said, "Mother, my son is going now."
As he said that, he left Rongqingtang with Mrs. Xing and Wang Shanbao's family.
After Jia Amnesty left, Tanchun frowned her beautiful eyebrows and thought, "I'm afraid this account book is not so easy to check."
But this is a matter for the elders. She is young and not very talkative.
Jia Mu said, "Yuanyang, you also go to Dongfu to see what's going on with Brother Heng."
She was also a little curious in her heart, this brother Heng checked the accounts in the East Mansion, how many deficits he could find out, and how he planned to deal with the Lai family.
Yuanyang responded, got up and left.
But it is said that Jia Heng led ten guards in brocade clothes and headed for Lai's house.
It was still early at this moment, and Emperor Chongping said to let him go back and wait for his will, but the edict for the title of knighthood drafted by the cabinet is upright, and the procedure is a bit cumbersome, and there are six subjects that need to be done, which are clearly issued at home and abroad, so during this period of time, Lai can be restrained first. Home.
The Lai family also lived in Shenjing City, and their residence was in Yongningfang, a few blocks away from Ningrong Street, not far away.
Jia Heng asked Jiao Da to take a good look at Lai Da with his servants, and then took the account books drawn up by the two accountants of Jinyi Mansion, and under the retinue of Qu Lang and ten Jinyi guards, he rode a fast horse and went to search Lai's house.
Yongningfang Lai's House
This is a vast house with vermilion eaves and green walls, carved beams and painted buildings. It is smaller than the Ningrong Second Mansion, but in Shenjing City, it cannot be bought by a family with hundreds of thousands of guan.
There were actually two young servants at the door, sitting on a long bench, knocking sunflower seeds and chatting.
"Sorry~"
Suddenly at this moment, several riders arrived, galloping like lightning, and immediately the young man in brocade tugged the reins, who roared and neighed, and the boy at the door suddenly stood up, looking in horror at a group of people wearing flying fish suits and embroidered spring knives. official errand.
"Who are you...?" The servant was bold.
Jia Heng got off his horse, pressed the Xiuchun knife on his waist, looked at the almost smaller Rongguo Mansion, and said coldly: "Is this Lai Mansion?"
"It's Lai's mansion, my lord... ah..." The little servant trembled back, and suddenly let out a painful moan.
But Jia Heng lashed the young servant with a whip, and said coldly: "Go to the backyard, let Lai's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law all come to the flower hall in the front yard!"
"Qu Baihu, block the back door with two people first, don't let them escape!" Jia Heng said to Qu Lang who was beside him.
Qu Lang responded, turned around and directed the two Jinyi guards, and the two Jinyi guards went to the back door on horseback.
In the backyard, Nanny Lai was having breakfast, accompanied by her grandson Lai Shangrong and Nanny Lai's two wives.
Because Fu Shi was invited to the banquet yesterday, and it was not until Haishi, Madam Lai went to bed later and woke up late in the morning, so she had to eat breakfast and lunch.
This nun was wearing a lavender silk shirt, her skin was fair, her hair was well-groomed, and she was well maintained. She was in her early [-]s, and her skin didn't have too many wrinkles. It was obvious that she usually used pearl powder to apply to her face. .
His grandson Lai Shangrong accompanied him to talk.
The two daughters-in-law of the Lai family, the eldest daughter-in-law said: "Old lady, what does Fu Shi say?"
The Lai family doesn't know what kind of mentality it is, not only is the residence completely "cottage" Rongfu, but even in private, they are mostly old lady, madam, grandma. If there is no accident, in a few years, they will learn Rongfu again. The government donated a Tongzhi to Jia Lian and a county magistrate to Lai Shangrong.
Nanny Lai picked up the ivory chopsticks, picked up a shiitake mushroom, put it in a porcelain bowl in the Xuande Kiln of the former Ming Dynasty, and said with a contemptuous smile: "How can I say it, Fu Shi is also a money-seeker, and he accepted the money and agreed." Come down, if you want to come tonight, you can meet the prison boss, and then you can spend more money, first save Sheng'er's life, let him go to Jinling, wait for the limelight to ease in a few years, and then take it over."
The second daughter-in-law of Lai looked haggard, and when she heard the words, her eyes turned worried, and she said: "Old lady, I have made you worry."
"Daughter-in-law Sheng, the family doesn't speak two different languages, and Sheng'er is also implicated by Brother Zhen of the Dongfu." Lai Mammy said consolingly, "If it wasn't for that Xu Fu Yin, who is a fool Yes, Sheng'er doesn't need to suffer during this time."
Lai's daughter-in-law frowned and said, "Now the patriarch in the East Mansion is a son of a side branch, and the West Mansion is afraid of him. Yesterday, a meal was set up to welcome the man in the East Mansion."
"The men in Jia's mansion are fighting fiercely in their nests, but our family is implicated!" Upon hearing this, Nanny Lai was furious.
Turning to look at Lai Shangrong at the side, with kind eyes, he said, "Shang Rong."
Lai Shangrong smiled and said, "Grandmother."
"Grandmother has nowhere to ask for help this time, so I understand that it is not good for our family to not have an official position. After a few years, when you are older, grandma will donate an official position to you."
When Lai Shangrong heard this, he was overjoyed.
Lai's daughter-in-law was also overjoyed, only Lai Sheng's daughter-in-law was somewhat sad.
In this family, her men contributed the most, but now it's the big house who gets the benefits?
"Old lady, lady, it's not good, a group of Jinyi guards came in the yard..." Just as the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were talking, a servant hurried to the wing and said.
"Jin Yiwei?" Nanny Lai's complexion changed suddenly. Could it be that she spent money on activities for her son?
"Shang Rong, hurry up and see what's going on." Nanny Lai was terrified, but she forced herself to be calm, and ordered her grandson to go.
But after a while, Lai Shangrong did not respond. Looking up, he saw Lai Shangrong's face was pale, and he said, "Grandmother, there are Jinyiwei outside."
Seeing Lai Shangrong's timid look, Nanny Lai scolded: "Your heart is evil, I don't know how your grandfather and your father have suffered for two or three lifetimes, how did you earn such a timid thing like you!"
Jia Heng's face was already grim, and his eyes were gloomy as he entered the main hall of Lai's mansion. Along the way, as far as he could see, there were jagged rockeries, pavilions, pavilions, and pavilions, and he entered this hall, and the furniture was also made of high-quality wood.
"The chairs for guests in the main hall are all yellow rosewood chairs, and the servants are more respectable than the master!" Jia Heng tapped on the chairs with a gloomy gaze.
He remembered clearly that Nanmu chairs were only used in Jia's Rongqing Hall.
Behind him, Jin Yiwei Qu Lang ordered, "You two stay in the front and back yards, and don't let him in and out at will! You two go to the warehouse to supervise the warehouse, and the rest follow me to the backyard to get people!"
Even though there were only eight or nine Jinyiwei, they acted resolutely, in groups of two and two, and acted separately.
Instead, Jia Heng was the only one left in the hall, waiting with his hands behind his back.
The surrounding servants were too frightened to move, and looked at the brocade-clothed boy in fear.
Not long after, Qu Lang and several Jinyi guards drove a group of women with hair full of pearls and emeralds and silks from the backyard.
"My lord, everyone is here." Qu Lang clasped his fists together and gave orders, leading four guards in brocade clothes to guard the entrance of the flower hall.
Nanny Lai looked at the brocade-clothed military officer with his hands behind his back facing her, and asked bravely, "My lord, what crime did my Lai family commit? Motivating people like this?"
After all, he had served the old Duke, and when things were imminent and inevitable, he managed to regain his composure.
Jia Heng suddenly turned around and said with a sneer, "Nurse Lai, do you recognize me?"
"This lord... who are you?" Mammy Lai met those sharp, gloomy eyes, subconsciously, and said in a surprised voice.
Jia Heng said in a deep voice: "My official, Jia Heng, is the patriarch of the Jia clan. Since your son Lai was promoted to the governor of Ningfu, he has embezzled 63 taels of my father's Zhongyin. Now, in the name of the patriarch, I am recovering the shortfall! , I am in command of the emperor's own army, and I heard that your Lai family spent money and bribed the junior officials of the Jingzhao Yamen, intending to help Lai Sheng out of death, the emperor's decree ordered the case, how can you allow you to deceive the emperor!"
Without waiting for Nanny Lai to respond, Jia Heng shouted: "Come on, tie up this dog!"
Jia Heng never took the words of Mother Jia's respect for Nanny Lai, if he didn't ruin the family of these dog slaves, he would be sorry for the flying fish suit he was wearing.
Nanny Lai looked as if she was struck by lightning, her face was slumped, and she shouted: "Master Heng, I want to see the old lady, I am an old slave of Jia's mansion, I have done my best for Jia's mansion, I have served the old Duke... "
(End of this chapter)