The Mute Wife Who Brings Prosperity

Chapter 841 - 798: The Fish in the Kitchen Must Be Steamed (Part 2)

The areas on his back where he was whipped were burning with pain, and tears streamed down Feng Chuan’s face, "Mother, please save me."

The Eldest Princess of Qing Shui was about to speak when Vice Minister Li interjected: "After searching all night, we’ve finally found those scoundrels who bullied my daughter. They’re currently waiting in the government office, and I hear your family already arranged for a petition to claim justice for my daughter. So let’s not just sit here; let’s go together and let the Lord Governor conduct a thorough trial to identify the vile criminal who plotted against my daughter. Once found, I’ll make sure he can’t walk for the rest of his life!"

They’ve found the people; how could they not know who did it?

Upon hearing his father-in-law’s words, Feng Chuan’s vision went dark, and he fainted with fear.

The Eldest Princess of Qing Shui’s face turned livid with rage. According to the plan, they were supposed to submit the petition to the government office at dawn today to create a scandal, ruining Mrs. Li’s reputation. Either she would request to step down or willingly become a concubine, relinquishing the position of the main wife. In the worst case, the Feng family would issue a Divorce Letter to expel her.

Regardless of the situation, it should have been under her control. Who would have thought Vice Minister Li would suddenly interfere? How did he even find out about it and locate those people?

Vice Minister Li glanced at the Eldest Princess of Qing Shui’s expression, sneered, stood up, and strode out of the Princess Mansion, heading straight for the government office.

...

Following this incident, Vice Minister Li undoubtedly gained the upper hand by making those burly men confess in court that Feng Chuan and the Eldest Princess were behind the conspiracy, aiming to divorce Mrs. Li to marry a girl from the Jiuli Clan. Naturally, the Eldest Princess could not admit it, and the in-laws remained deadlocked in court.

With national policy at stake, Chen Prefect dared not make rash decisions. He postponed the trial and submitted a report to the Cabinet, detailing the entire affair.

At that time, the Cabinet and Six Ministries were in discussion, and Zhao Xi was sitting at the head table when the report arrived.

Prime Minister Zhang Sheng frowned after reviewing it.

Zhao Xi sensed something was amiss and said, "There are no private matters in the Political Discussion Hall. If there is any issue, Mr. Zhang, do not hesitate to speak up so everyone can weigh in."

Zhang Sheng hesitated but finally stepped forward and reported honestly: "Your Majesty, it’s a case from the Shuntian Prefecture Government, suspected to be related to the newly implemented national policy. Prefect Chen dared not decide and submitted a report asking for my advice."

"What case? Tell us about it," Zhao Xi gestured.

Zhang Sheng hesitated, glanced at everyone, and ultimately recounted the incident at the Eldest Princess of Qing Shui Mansion.

Upon hearing it, the senior officials were instantly shocked.

Zhao Xi remained silent, his cold and stern demeanor revealing no emotional response.

The policy of intermarrying with the Jiuli Clan was initially proposed by Song Yuanbao, and Zhao Xi merely nodded in agreement. Its implementation was left to the Cabinet to coordinate.

Naturally, the Ministry of Revenue is the primary office of Chu Country, so the Cabinet would certainly approach them to implement the national policy.

However, the fact that the Ministry of Revenue agreed to reduce taxes by seventy percent surprised Zhao Xi. He looked at Minister Xun from the Ministry of Revenue, "Minister Xun, have you considered how many merchants exist worldwide? The seventy percent tax reduction amounts to tens of millions of Silver. If the Ministry of Revenue continues like this, the National Treasury will face a significant deficit next year. What will you use to fill this gap then?"

Minister Xun kneeled on the ground, "Your Majesty, failing to set a limit on tax exemptions is indeed negligence on our part. But this seventy percent tax must be exempted; otherwise, the benefits are too low, and merchants won’t consent to intermarriage."

Zhao Xi understood that a ruler’s statement might be easily made, yet it’s challenging to implement within various government offices. Moreover, given that the people of Chu Country greatly resist the Jiuli Clan, allowing intermarriage is inherently difficult. He did not overly trouble the Minister of Revenue, instead, he left one instruction: draft the new tax exemption standards within three days to prevent similar incidents from occurring again.

...

The Cabinet and Six Ministries discussed the matter for three days, during which the case involving the Feng and Li families was postponed for three days, and Xu Shu remained detained for three days.

However, during these three days, the external public opinion had completely shifted; no one was discussing the humiliation of Mrs. Li anymore. Instead, everyone was debating the national policy, such as the recent incident where the shopkeeper of a certain store wrote a Divorce Letter and expelled his wife after a fierce quarrel, or the wife of a certain wealthy merchant suddenly dying.

Before the Feng family’s matter surfaced, no one linked these events with the national policy of "intermarriage." Once the Feng family’s issue emerged, many realized that every few days, a woman would encounter trouble in the capital, whether through separation, divorce, or unexpected death.