Early in the morning, Wei Dongling dutifully went to the Ministry of Revenue to check the accounts. Her actions not only made the officials in the ministry feel nervous but also filled the civil and military officials in the court with trepidation. They were all afraid that the Fifth Princess might uncover something, which would lead to a series of investigations and confiscations of property.
After the court session, Xu Shun from the Inner Court Office and La Mei were sent to the princess's residence. They said that the Fifth Princess had recently exposed many corrupt officials who had embezzled public funds and taken bribes. The "Ninth Prince" had ordered generous rewards and allocated forty - eight prime street shops in the name of the Fifth Princess.
Wei Dongling carefully examined the list and nodded in satisfaction. With these shops under her name, just the rent would be enough for her to support her whole family. Why would she need to sell milk tea or make pearl balls anymore?
La Mei covered her mouth and smiled softly. The Fifth Princess had always been fond of money. Now that she had obtained these shops, she must be extremely happy. La Mei was even happy for her.
Wei Dongling took out some silver coins from her sleeve and rewarded everyone. Pointing to one of the shops, she asked Xu Shun, "Eunuch Xu, this shop is on Egret Street, right? If I remember correctly, the residence of Lord Yu, the Censor - in - Chief, should not be far from this shop, right?"
Xu Shun leaned over to check the address and nodded. "Exactly!"
Wei Dongling squinted her eyes and sighed. "The Yu Mansion is really a nice place. It not only has a great location but also has a layout that I like very much."
La Mei replied, "If the Fifth Princess likes it, we can choose a similar - sized mansion near the Yu Mansion. The internal layout can be directly replicated by the Imperial Household Department. We can build an identical one."
Wei Dongling glanced at La Mei non - committedly and nodded with a soft smile. "It sounds good, but it just lacks something."
Xu Shun, being an expert at reading people's expressions in the palace, quickly stepped forward and bowed. "Your Highness, Lord Yu has served three emperors. He has experienced many things. I absolutely don't believe that he has remained completely clean."
Wei Dongling glanced at Xu Shun, with a faint smile on her lips. She pretended not to understand and asked, "I wonder what you mean by that, Eunuch Xu?"
Xu Shun bowed and said, "Lord Yu may have some old and hidden accounts that need to be investigated. I beg Your Highness to entrust this matter to me. I will surely live up to Your Highness's promotion."
La Mei beside them widened her eyes in surprise. So this was what the Fifth Princess meant when she said she liked the Yu Mansion? Eunuch Xu could instantly figure out the Fifth Princess's thoughts and even volunteered to take action against Lord Yu!
La Mei's face looked a bit ugly. Eunuch Xu really deserved to have served the Empress Dowager for so many years. She was far inferior to him.
Wei Dongling smiled gently. "Eunuch Xu, just do what you want. I'll cover for you if anything goes wrong."
"Yes!"
Wei Dongling pretended to mutter absent - mindedly, "It seems that there are only a few days left until the end of the national mourning period, right?"
Xu Shun nodded and replied, "The national mourning period is twenty - seven days, and twenty - one days have passed. I'll take my leave first and hurry to finish this matter."
Sure enough, Xu Shun knew how to handle things well. Wei Dongling waved her hand, and Xu Shun left after receiving the order.
Three days later, Wei Dongling was in Yaoguang Pavilion, teaching Qi Jinlan how to calculate the net profit of the milk - tea business in the past few days. Xu Shun came again.
Xu Shun held a stack of documents and stepped forward to report his achievements in the past few days to the Fifth Princess. The documents were filled with red - marked evidence of Lord Yu's embezzlement over the years. Many old matters in the past were overlooked because the late emperor trusted Lord Yu. Now, Xu Shun had dug them all out, adding fuel to the fire.
Wei Dongling skimmed through the documents and sneered coldly. "Lord Yu is really bold! Immediately present these documents to His Highness the Ninth Prince for review and ask the Ministry of Justice to file a case and arrest him quickly."
"Yes."
Wei Dongling immediately got up and waved to Pin Hao at the door. "Come with me. We'll leave the palace right away."
If it weren't for the noble and respected Grandma Yu's protection, Yu Zixi's childhood would have been very difficult. After much thought, Wei Dongling decided that she couldn't let the old grandma be affected by the changes in the Yu Mansion.
So, she and Pin Hao rushed out of the palace and headed straight for the Yu Mansion.
When the two of them entered Grandma Yu's courtyard in the Yu Mansion uninvited, Grandma Yu was drinking tea in the inner room. The servants beside her were shocked to see the uninvited guests in the courtyard and angrily waved their hands to drive them away.
Wei Dongling stepped forward and curtsied. "I'm Wei Dongling. Greetings, Grandma Yu. How have you been?"
The servant stood still and turned to look at Grandma Yu's expression. Grandma Yu sized up Wei Dongling and murmured, "You... You're Miss Wei, Zixi's girl?"
Wei Dongling nodded repeatedly with a smile. "Thank you, Grandma, for still remembering me! I'm here to take you to meet someone. It's related to Zixi. Please come with me."
"Zixi?" Grandma Yu lowered her head and sighed. Her eyes turned red, and she murmured softly, "I haven't seen Zixi for a long time. Where is he now? Is he okay? Why hasn't he come back for so long?"
Wei Dongling nodded repeatedly to comfort her. "Zixi is fine. He has always been worried about you. He has been too busy recently to come back to see you, so he asked me to come and pick you up for a short stay. Please pack up and come with me."
Grandma Yu was a bit hesitant and asked, "Why are you in such a hurry?"
Wei Dongling nodded but said nothing.
After much hesitation, Grandma Yu finally waved her trembling hand and told the maid beside her to go into the room and pack a few changes of clothes.
After packing up, the group was about to leave the courtyard. At the corner of the corridor, they unexpectedly ran into He Yao, the County Mistress of Rong'an, whom they hadn't seen for a long time.
He Yao had originally wanted to come and pay respects to Grandma Yu when she saw her from afar. But when she looked up and saw Wei Dongling attentively supporting Grandma Yu, chatting and laughing with her! He Yao was first shocked, and then her face turned red visibly. Her beautiful eyes, full of anger, stared fiercely at Wei Dongling, and she roared, "Wei Dongling! Why are you in the Yu Mansion?"
Her father, He Jingyao, was still locked up in the prison of the Ministry of Justice, and it was said that his leg had been broken! He Yao had repeatedly wanted to visit him in private, but her husband, Yu Xingze, had always refused on the grounds of being worried about the Yu Mansion being implicated.
And all of this was caused by this hateful woman, Wei Dongling! She had not only snatched her beloved but also caused the He family to end up in such a situation!
When enemies meet, their hatred grows. Seeing Wei Dongling acting coquettishly and smiling sweetly in front of Grandma Yu, He Yao was so angry that she was on the verge of exploding. Her eyes were full of hatred, and she wished she could tear Wei Dongling to pieces.
Wei Dongling was not surprised at all. She raised her eyebrows and smiled. "Oh, isn't this the County Mistress of Rong'an, He Yao? Long time no see. How have you been recently? Your husband should treat you well, right? It's been a long time since your wedding. Have you conceived a child for the Yu family?"