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Chapter 539 - 399: The Infamous Reputation
Chapter 539 - 399: The Infamous Reputation
Chapter 539: Chapter 399: The Infamous Reputation
The palace eunuchs remained silent as cicadas in winter, their fear of Zhou Yi deepening even further.
“Why aren’t you hurrying to gather the money?”
Zhou Yi ordered those around him, “Follow them, and make sure to search thoroughly; not a single copper coin can be missed!”
“As you command.”
His subordinates swiftly took action, grabbing the godsons of Eunuch Zhu and searching their residences for gold and silver.
The palace’s violent institution, the Palace Guards, practiced the Epiphyllum Treasure Tome, a cultivation technique that drastically shortens life. The eunuchs of the other eleven divisions rarely practiced martial arts, and even if they did, it was only for strengthening the body and to no avail as resistance.
...
Zhou Yi said with a smile, “Godfather, I have long heard of your golden furniture, and today I shall feast my eyes.”
Eunuch Zhu struggled to rise from his chair and walked toward the rear hall of the Imperial Oversight Division. He was panting and gasping after just a few steps, his old and pale face drenched in sweat.
Sweat streamed down his face, leaving traces of gullies, revealing the thick rouge and powder he had applied.
Zhou Yi quickly stepped forward to support him, “Godfather, you’re putting yourself through too much.”
They arrived at the rear hall.
Eunuch Zhu pointed at the red lacquer tables, chairs and stools, “These are all cast in gold. These floor tiles are golden on the surface with clay fired over them, and these pillars, hollowed out and filled with molten gold…”
As Eunuch Zhu pointed and explained, Zhou Yi observed all around him. The room was indeed as the songs had described: a Golden Cavern!
Eunuch Zhu pointed to the wall behind the bed, “Go tear down that wall.”
Zhou Yi promptly stepped forward, channeling his True Qi and striking the wall.
Boom!
The wall’s surface shattered and fell away, revealing a wall cast entirely in gold that dazzled brightly.
“Hss! This wall…”
Suddenly.
The trembling Eunuch Zhu leaped up, aiming a palm strike at Zhou Yi’s back. His surging True Qi formed a palm as large as a fan, both solid and ethereal.
Hum!
The sound of a great bell chimed as Eunuch Zhu cried out in pain. The terrifying rebound force broke his wrist.
Zhou Yi turned into a golden giant two and a half meters tall, looked back at the unwilling Eunuch Zhu, and said with a smile, “Old Lu was right indeed. Eunuch Zhu, your strength ranks high in the palace!”
“Damn that Lu Ping’an!”
Eunuch Zhu cursed inwardly, and continued to charge with the Child’s Pounce technique.
However, the gap in their strength was too great. Zhou Yi’s fist, as large as a bowl, hammered down and sent Eunuch Zhu flying into a golden pillar, shattering his internal organs.
Zhou Yi casually walked over, stepping on Eunuch Zhu’s head.
“Godfather, you go first. Your relatives outside will soon be looking for you, and you can reunite with your whole family in the underworld!”
Spurt!
The head burst open, dyeing the exposed gold bricks in blood red.
Standing in the Golden Cavern, Zhou Yi personally put an end to past grievances, feeling a sense of relief that made him laugh heartily up at the sky.
“Heh heh heh heh!”
…
Returning to the main hall.
Zhou Yi sat in the Taishi Chair, waiting as his subordinates carried in box after box of gold, silver, and jewels.
It took more than half the day before they finished searching thoroughly.
Dismantling Eunuch Zhu’s Golden Cavern proved to be the most troublesome, particularly the entire golden wall. They had to cut it into bricks with knife edges powered by True Qi.
Wen Dianbu reported, “My lord, the total value of the gold, silver, and antiques amounts to 1.7 million taels!”
“Still short by three hundred thousand taels?”
Zhou Yi commanded his subordinates to bring the record of the Imperial Oversight Division’s members, skimming through it and circling the names he found displeasing, “These individuals must have embezzled silver. Investigate each one rigorously!”
“We need two million taels, even if it means killing all the Imperial Oversight Division, that amount must be met!”
“As you command.”
His subordinates took the list and set out to seize those members whose names were circled, quickly gathering the required three hundred thousand taels.
Wen Dianbu whispered, “My lord, some of these people own residences, shops, and farmland outside. Should we account for those?”
“Do they? Let me see.”
Zhou Yi took the account book, gave it a few glances, and then tore it to shreds, “There are none now. Those ownerless residences and shops will be allocated to our brothers in the prison to live and do business in.”
Understanding, Wen Dianbu bowed, saying.
“Thank you, my lord, for your generous gift.”
…
The next day.
Two million taels of ill-gotten silver were sent to the inner treasury.
The Orthodox Emperor was very pleased and repeatedly praised Zhou Yi as the National Dynasty’s most loyal official.
“When my subjects perform meritorious deeds, I must reward them. Since Zhou Aiqing is capable, he should take on more responsibilities. Let him assume the positions of Metropolitan Governor and Supervisor as well!”
“Long live Your Majesty, long live, long long live!”
Zhou Yi bowed his head in thanks repeatedly. With the Metropolitan Governor’s office having suffered heavy losses, losing more than half of its officials from governors to attendants, it was easy to install his own people in power.
From then on, he had an additional seal of the Metropolitan Governor and Supervisor at his waist.
The two seals, cast in brass, clinked as he walked, a sound that was immediately pleasing to the ear.
…
As the news spread, the palace was abuzz.
Eunuch Zhu, who had operated the Metropolitan Governor’s office for decades, was not someone a few supervisors promoted by the Orthodox Emperor could rival, and yet he had now fallen to a junior who had only been in the palace for nine years.
Zhou Yi suddenly became a highly favored figure in the court, his power was palpable.
Originally, only the inner servants paid attention to Zhou Yi, but now even princes and concubines began to extend their goodwill.
The Orthodox Emperor was now forty-one, and given the average age of emperors, he was no longer considered young. Some matters were already stirring undercurrents!
That day.
In the Hall Patrol.
Zhou Yi sat on the Taishi Chair, with two newly-appointed adopted sons respectfully serving tea on either side.
The imperial tea, reputedly even better than what the emperor drank, was sent by Eunuch Zhao, the Supervisor of the Imperial Household. Unfortunately, the paper seal had been damaged in transit, so it was disposed of by the Imperial Household Office itself.
“Eunuch Zhao, in charge of the Imperial Household, handles all the tribute items. Just by reporting some losses, silver flows out like a sea…”
Within the Bureau of Imperial Servants, the Hall Patrol’s power was second only to the Ceremonial Department. However, in terms of profit, it didn’t even rank in the top five, unlike the Imperial Household, the Imperial Stable, and the Department of Food and Drink, which were all exceedingly wealthy.
“What does their wealth matter when our fists are strong? We beat them, and their silver becomes ours!”
Zhou Yi sipped his tea gently, his face warm and kind, yet in his heart, he was calculating how to take over the Imperial Household from Eunuch Zhao.
At that moment.
An elderly voice came from outside the door.
“Little Jingzi from the Scripture Pavilion, requesting to see Eunuch Zhou.”
The corners of Zhou Yi’s mouth lifted slightly as he said in a tone neither warm nor cold, “Please come in, Jing Gonggong. As a senior in the palace, I cannot compare to you in any respect.”
Jing Gonggong, hearing this, immediately looked fearful, aware that the fearsome man before him still remembered the past incident.
Bending his back upon entering the hall, Jing Gonggong did not care about his age and kowtowed on the ground, begging for mercy.
“Eunuch Zhou, I did not recognize the great man before me. Please, a grown man does not dwell on the past mistakes of children, spare little Jingzi this time, and in the future, I will surely repay you generously!”
Whoosh!
Zhou Yi blew gently on his tea, slowly took a sip, and watched Jing Gonggong for a long while.
“Jing Gonggong, I am not one to bear grudges. If you do one thing for me, not only will I forget the past, but you can come to me with any difficult matters in the future!”
Jing Gonggong’s brows furrowed. He dared not agree hastily, as there were too many deadly tasks within the palace.
“Eunuch Zhou, may you first speak of what it is?”
“This task is but a simple effort for Jing Gonggong.”
Zhou Yi said slowly, “My own cultivation has reached its peak, the only thing missing is a technique to break through to the Innate level. Jing Gonggong, you have watched over the Scripture Pavilion and sorted martial arts techniques. You must have seen quite a few, haven’t you?”
Kneeling on the ground, Jing Gonggong could clearly feel True Qi swirling around his neck, knowing that one wrong word could mean his head would part from his body!