Chapter 147: Making a Fortune Daily

Faced with Zhang Qicheng’s such direct and unreserved words, even Prince Qi, who often prided himself on possessing the composure of a statesman unshaken by the collapse of Mount Tai, could not help but wear a look of utter astonishment!

Have official dealings really become this unrefined nowadays?

Or has the general atmosphere of the times changed so much that I, having stayed in Jiangling City for too long, have completely lost touch with the officials back in the capital?

Seeing Prince Qi’s unexplained shock, Zhang Qicheng decided to strike while the iron was hot. "Your Highness, please do not say things like our acquaintance is too shallow to speak of deep matters, or suspect that I am a man unworthy of trust.

I dared to be this bold before Your Highness only because I received guidance from Attendant Xi.

Does Your Highness know why I managed to scrape together so much silver during my previous tenure, yet ultimately only ended up dismissed from office without anyone pursuing the matter deeply?"

Gleaming white silver—no one in this world dislikes it. Prince Qi wore a hesitant expression. He had not yet completely abandoned his vigilance against this civil official, but he figured that since this fellow was so fond of talking, letting him explain his method of raking in silver while making a clean getaway wouldn't be a bad idea!

"Lord Zhang is joking. If Lord Zhang truly engaged in embezzlement, how could you possibly be reinstated? It must be that someone intentionally framed you. His Majesty the Emperor is wise and brilliant, naturally discerning right from wrong and seeing into the finest details. That is why Lord Zhang was able to return to office and even be promoted several ranks to become the Prefect of Jiangling Prefecture!"

Even at this point, Prince Qi remained quite reserved, causing Zhang Qicheng to hold him in slightly higher regard.

Although Zhang Qicheng had never dealt with members of the imperial clan like him before, he had heard plenty of tales about how muddle-headed and foolish this bunch could be.

Even so, Zhang Qicheng did not believe that Prince Qi would fail to fall into his trap.

After all, the money-making scheme he was about to propose was never intended to harm Prince Qi from the very root. To make the plan succeed, Prince Qi naturally had to be brought along to make a tidy profit.

Yet he had not expected that even after exposing his own foundation, the other party remained completely impervious... Just how many times had this fellow been back-stabbed by that dead ghost Su Shenchang in the past?

Although Prince Qi was heavily guarded, the two of them were simply not playing in the same league.

After just a few remarks, Zhang Qicheng had even guessed why Prince Qi was so deeply suspicious: this direct uncle of the reigning emperor had undoubtedly been thoroughly disciplined through underhanded means by Su Shenchang—who had since died at the hands of assassins—and had learned his lesson the hard way.

No matter, an imperial scion like Prince Qi was still far too innocent before Zhang Qicheng; inciting him to make money together was by no means a difficult task.

However, Zhang Qicheng could not help but silently吐槽 (吐槽) about the former prefect, Su Shenchang.

The imperial scions of this world were all treasures; how could anyone catch just one and torment him to death?

Such crude execution!

"Your Highness, right here before your esteemed self, Your humble servant speaks my mind without reservation. Once I step out of this room, I shall deny ever saying a word of it."

Although Prince Qi's words had been firm, his expression had already betrayed his true inner thoughts, and Zhang Qicheng was not afraid that this fellow would backstab him. "Raking in silver is something anyone can do. Anyone sitting in that position, even if they understand nothing, will still have people endlessly delivering silver to their doorstep!

Your Highness is born of noble stock, so naturally you look down upon such petty and sordid practices. Yet Your Highness must still understand the ways of the world. After all, you are a member of the imperial clan, the direct uncle of the reigning Emperor. You must also help the Emperor keep a watchful eye on the affairs of this realm.

Some officials are insatiably greedy, daring to grab any kind of silver whatsoever, until they inevitably arouse the wrath of both gods and men and throw away their own miserable lives sooner or later!

There are other officials who bully the weak and fear the strong, targeting only ordinary commoners to wreak havoc, plunging their governed territories into misery and suffering. While they may not face mortal danger, they ultimately lose their conscience. But most importantly, how much grease can you possibly squeeze from the heads of common folk? Short-sighted, ignorant, and reviled by the populace—such men are scorned by the wise!

Regarding this, your humble servant has gained some insights.

Ordinary folk have no grease to squeeze; it is simply not worth the trouble to plague them.

The powerful and noble clans—they are not to be trifled with, and one must commit not a single transgression against them.

Your Highness, just think: besides these two kinds of people, who else is left in this world?

That is right!

It is those wealthy households and local squires!

Such people possess no deeply intertwined network of powerful relations at home, yet their family fortunes are quite substantial. Raking in silver from them—that is the proper and righteous course of action!

Of course, one must not act too rashly, nor strike too harshly. Such matters require one to proceed slowly and steadily.

The intricacies of this cannot be finished even if spoken of for three days and three nights. Once a person truly masters it, not only will they rake in plenty of silver, but they will also earn the reputation of being an upright and capable official!"

Having said this, Zhang Qicheng picked up his teacup and gulped down the tea fiercely, as if he were truly parched, and abruptly stopped talking.

This time, it was Prince Qi who grew somewhat impatient.

The convoluted schemes of these civil officials are truly numerous! Why had he never thought of these things before?

If someone were simply spouting empty words and making random claims, Prince Qi would never easily believe them. But Zhang Qicheng himself was the best living example: his reputation as an official was poor, and rumors had it that when he previously governed a region, he had scraped it clean to the bedrock. In the end, because he went too far, he merely suffered dismissal and was left to idle at home, and when all was said and done, there wasn't even a clear criminal charge against him!

What was even more terrifying was that this man's reputation within the imperial court and the civil official system was not bad at all!

As for this reinstatement and promotion by several ranks, aside from firmly hugging Consort Chen's coattails, this ability to assess the shifting tides of power was truly something to look at with new eyes!

Such a person wanting to bring him along to rake in silver... is safe!

Yes, among Prince Qi's thoughts, the most prominent word was safety!

Zhang Qicheng had just taken office, and his predecessor Su Shenchang had died a sudden death while in office, leaving the entire officialdom of Jiangling Prefecture completely unprepared. If not for this, the position of prefect would never have fallen to Zhang Qicheng.

Under such circumstances, Zhang Qicheng was likely at his most isolated and helpless. For him to pull strings and draw closer to him in such a direct manner could never be for the purpose of entrapping the Emperor's direct uncle!

Zhang Qicheng had acted slightly over the top, making even Prince Qi feel that his words were overly direct and somewhat crude.

Yet this did not prevent Prince Qi from confirming one thing: Zhang Qicheng was sincerely inviting him to make money together!

With that premise established, that was enough. If Zhang Qicheng—a mere civil official—was not afraid, what did he, a member of the imperial clan, have to fear?

If Zhang Qicheng failed to handle things well, he might be dismissed, imprisoned, or lose his small life.

And as for himself? At worst, his own beloved nephew would just issue another imperial edict of reprimand. What did that amount to!

This matter can be done!

"Lord Zhang is a man of quick speech and swift actions, quite to this Prince's liking!"

Once his mind was made up, Prince Qi could no longer hold back his composure. To reiterate: compared to Zhang Qicheng, his political acumen was simply too low. Were it not for his status as a Prince of the Blood, he would probably have been played to death without even understanding how it happened! "Regarding what Lord Zhang just said about making silver together, I wonder what kind of profitable business you have in mind?"

Seeing that Prince Qi truly could not hold back and took the initiative to ask, Zhang Qicheng knew in his heart that this matter was already settled!

Members of the imperial clan were nothing more than parasites dwelling within a shell—truly vulgar and crude indeed!

"Your Highness, the greatest difficulty facing the entire Jiangling Prefecture right now is constructing embankments to survive the flood season. And currently, the most effective material is a novel kind of mortar called cement!

The magistrate of Danyang County is my junior fellow apprentice. Both the upper and lower reaches of his jurisdiction were struck by floods, yet he relied entirely on this stuff called cement to keep the Danyang County river embankments intact, scoring massive political achievements!

It won't be long before everyone realizes the merits of cement. By then, whoever can provide cement will make an absolute fortune!

Since your humble servant knows this ahead of time, I naturally will not let such an opportunity slip away in vain. If Your Highness does not disdain it, let us partner up to run this cement business... Your humble servant guarantees that before the flood season passes, this venture will yield thousands of taels of gold every single day!"