She reached out to grab it, but before she could touch the sable, its hind legs kicked her hand away, almost injuring her. Seeing this, Fan Zehao grabbed it by the scruff of its neck, tightening his grip. "Wife, I'll kill this little thing right now. I'll bring the meat to you for soup, chop up its paws for the dogs, and keep the fur to make you a big cloak."
Zhao Jiaqi quickly stopped him, saying, "Enough, you're getting carried away. This little thing is quite cute. We'll feed it some meat tonight and release it into the mountains tomorrow!"
Looking at the sable, which wasn't very big, she wondered how many such sables it would take to make a cloak.
Never mind, she already had a cloak, so why add more embellishments.
As soon as she mentioned releasing it, he felt quite wronged. After chasing it all day and finally catching it, it was going to be released.
"Wife, since we're not killing it, why don't we keep it and let it be your pet!"
He was still reluctant to release it.
This fluffy, intelligent little cutie, let alone women, he himself as a grown man was extremely fond of it. Or perhaps, they could send it back to their daughter; he believed Yumeng would like it too.
"Nature is its home, let's release it!" Zhao Jiaqi said firmly.
Ever since Big Wolf died, she had been heartbroken for a long time. Later, she simply stopped keeping pets, as her heart couldn't bear such pain anymore.
Seeing the dejected look on her face, Fan Zehao knew she was thinking of Big Wolf again. Although his wife didn't say it, she couldn't get over that hurdle in her heart.
He had originally thought his wife would like it, but he didn't expect it to evoke such sad memories.
He casually threw the sable to Shi He, giving him a look. Shi He, somewhat bewildered, carried the sable away, sighing inwardly that they had chased it all over the forest for a day, only to have to release it in the end.
The twenty-second day of the twelfth lunar month, Beijing turned to heavy snow.
The Chief Executive had investigated all the officials in Beijing and their sons. Anyone found to be keeping a mistress, no matter how secretive, was discovered by the Chief Executive. The number of people keeping mistresses and their addresses were clearly marked. Not a single wealthy family in Beijing was spared.
Soon, Song Xin led the way, and General Shi Haoming of the Beijing suburbs, along with his subordinates, entered the city and arrested people according to the addresses.
They were arrested with pinpoint accuracy. The citizens of Beijing, seeing orderly troops entering the city and arresting people everywhere, thought it was a rebellion and quickly returned to their homes, locking their doors tightly.
In a swift operation, all the people who needed to be arrested were caught within a morning. Song Xin waved his hand, and all those mistresses were thrown into prison, awaiting the storm that would arrive at the morning court the next day.
Song Xin clutched the secret imperial decree in his sleeve, feeling emboldened, a smile on his lips.
Shi Haoming touched the saber at his waist and said to Song Xin, "The Emperor's move is truly ruthless. He's fattened up these sheep, and not only can he fleece them, but he can also eat them. Who knows, these sheep might even be able to pull carts and do manual labor. Our Emperor's schemes are getting deeper and his methods are getting crubler!"
"Haven't you heard? Without ruthlessness, one's position is unstable. Besides, who told these bastards not to behave? Who can they blame?" Song Xin snorted coldly, then flicked his sleeve and left.
Shi Haoming frowned and shouted behind him, "Look, look, at such an old age, he's still so argumentative. I was just praising the Emperor for having more imperial composure. It's a good thing, and you're still giving me the cold shoulder."
Although he said this, his footsteps still followed Song Xin. This old man's temperament was becoming more and more erratic.
When he was happy, he treated him as if he were his own brother, almost worshipping him as an ancestor. When he was unhappy, his face was more unpredictable than a March sky, changing as it pleased, and turning his back faster than flipping a book.
It was as if he were ill!
A few days later, silver flowed into the national treasury like water. In the capital, you could see faces stretched long and corners of mouths drooping downwards. These were undoubtedly people who had kept mistresses and been fined. At this moment, their feelings were all the same.
Their hearts were bleeding, the expression of someone who had kept a mistress. Those who had kept two or three mistresses were almost limping when they walked out, and their faces even had some color, such as green, purple, or a mixed blue-purple.
Of course, there were also those who couldn't get out of bed. It was a pity that no one had managed to keep five. Fan Zehao and Zhao Jiaqi had hoped for a few more free laborers.
"This result is not bad. These ministers' family fortunes are quite substantial. I'm wondering if we should conduct another sudden search of their households' accounts. Are there any corrupt officials?"
Seeing that the national treasury had gained nearly ten million taels, and that catching about fifty mistresses could earn so much, he wondered if the ill-gotten gains from finding corrupt officials would be even higher.
Fan Zehao, on a whim, said this to his wife beside him. To his surprise, Zhao Jiaqi directly shot down his expectation. "Don't go looking for trouble. Which official is pure? If you're so insistent, not only the ministers in court will be arrested, but even the county magistrates will be taken away. Who will manage so many affairs then? You yourself?"
Fan Zehao: "I'll arrest one minister, and then I'll arrange another." He didn't believe that there was anyone who didn't like being an official.
A few days ago, she felt that his mind had become sharper, but now it seemed it was only a momentary cleverness.
Zhao Jiaqi poked his forehead. "Can you guarantee that the person you arrange will be an honest official?"
Seeing that he had fallen silent, she slowly said, "Instead of arranging an unfamiliar person to take office, it's better to keep the old ones. After all, you've used such methods regarding mistresses, and these ministers have all witnessed it. Even if they want to be corrupt, they won't dare to be too blatant. At least, these people won't oppress the common people. If they go too far, you can pull one out as a warning to others. Wouldn't that be better than replacing all the ministers!"
Only after experiencing his decisive methods would those officials become intimidated.
Without experiencing it, they would at most just hear about it, but their courage wouldn't lessen just by hearing. Therefore, periodically, those who were too ostentatious would be brought out to be paraded.
Fan Zehao pondered his wife's words slightly, finding them quite reasonable. He then kept this matter in mind and decided to deal with them after they had "fattened up" a bit more.
At the end of the twelfth lunar month, many vegetables had grown in the warm pavilion. They also bought a sheep from Ran Zhe's father-in-law's house. For the New Year, they planned to have hot pot and grilled skewers.
Unexpectedly, however this wind blew, it managed to bring two great deities over.
As soon as he saw Huangfu Xian, Fan Zehao grabbed him by the collar, ready to go outside and spar. However, he was blinded by a letter.
Huangfu Xian proudly said, "This is a letter written to you by Auntie and my two nephews. If you hit me, I won't give you this letter."
Fan Zehao had been caught by his Achilles' heel. He reluctantly moved his gaze from the letter to Huangfu Xian, let go of him, and said unhappily, "A gentleman's revenge is never too late. My revenge has always been..."
The letter in front of him flashed before his eyes, and Huangfu Xian smirked, "If you threaten me again, I'll really burn it!"