Su Yunmo felt goosebumps rise all over her body. She exclaimed in shock, knocking over the empty bowl in her hand, "What did you say?!"
Ye Jingyu raised an eyebrow. It was rare to see her so surprised, and he couldn't help but look at her a few more times.
Su Yunmo knew she was being made fun of. She glared at him, maliciously scooped a large mouthful of food, and shoved it towards his mouth, saying fiercely, "Eat!"
Ye Jingyu frowned, thinking that this girl was becoming more and more resentful. However, he had no choice but to open his mouth and swallow.
"Back then, Ye Jingcheng spent a huge sum of money to befriend ministers. As a mere prince, he couldn't possibly manage on the Empress Dowager's annual income alone."
"Li Wan began as a minor clerk in the Ministry of Revenue. He then used the Emperor's favor to promote him step by step."
"The Ministry of Personnel was in charge of the national treasury, a large granary. It was convenient for them to switch things around."
Su Yunmo felt a chill.
She had always wondered how Zhao Fengchen, with his bandit-like nature, had accumulated so much wealth. She hadn't expected that the treasury silver was their capital.
This way of making money truly yielded endless profits!
Ye Jingyu swallowed the food with difficulty and continued, "Originally, this wasn't a big deal. After the former Minister of Revenue retired, Li Wan could have been promoted to Minister of Revenue."
"From then on, the Ministry of Revenue would be entirely in Ye Jingcheng's hands. Whether the treasury money was returned or not wouldn't matter much. It's just a pity that the Emperor suddenly sent Xie Zhengping to take office."
Su Yunmo glanced at him.
The phrase "not a big deal" was truly ironic.
"No wonder Zhao Fengchen was so eager to accumulate wealth before; he was trying to cover the deficit."
However...
"Why did the Emperor suddenly transfer Xie Zhengping there?"
She remembered that Xie Zhengping wasn't originally from the Ministry of Revenue. Moreover, he was a military officer and had no connection to the Ministry of Revenue.
Ye Jingyu silently shifted his gaze. "This King does not know."
Su Yunmo's eyelids twitched.
"I'd believe you if I were a fool!"
"You are truly capable, even interfering with the dispatch of officials. Weren't you not favored by your father?"
How many secrets was this man hiding?
Ye Jingyu shot her a cold glance. "This King is naturally not as good as you. I heard that Miss Su is getting along very well with General Su now and has never been kicked out of the mansion."
"Hmph!" Su Yunmo turned her head away, not wanting to talk to him!
They fell silent for a while.
Su Yunmo turned back to look at him. "Did you call me here just for this? Couldn't you have just asked Qianxue to say it?"
Ye Jingyu's face immediately darkened.
Qianxue retracted the foot that had stepped over the threshold and tilted her head up at a forty-five-degree angle towards the sky.
*I definitely didn't deliberately call the young miss here because Master wasn't eating.*
*This is all for official business!*
It was already very late when Su Yunmo left the restaurant.
Ye Jingyu was angry that he didn't send her.
However, Su Yunmo felt refreshed.
She had fed him an entire plate of fish today, and he had thrown up twice!
He deserved it!
On her way back to the General's mansion, Lülüo had prepared water for her to wash up.
As soon as Su Yunmo entered the door.
Lülüo came over and started nagging, "Miss, why have you been playing outside so late recently? It's very dangerous."
"The academy sent word that you've withdrawn from school? Madam was very sad after she found out, but since Madam dotes on you, it's not a big deal."
"It's just that the General seems very unhappy today for some reason."
Su Yunmo thought to herself, *What else could it be? Jealousy.*
Lülüo was still nagging.
Su Yunmo had already finished washing up, yawned, and kicked off her shoes to get into bed.
Seeing that she didn't want to talk, Lülüo sighed inwardly and helped her pull the covers up. "Miss must be tired. Let's get some rest early today."
Su Yunmo hummed, turned over, hugged her pillow, and closed her eyes.
Lülüo hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping herself, and then retreated from the room with a sense of loss.
*Does Miss dislike me? I'm the personal maid given to Miss by Madam, but Miss seems to prefer spending time with Ziyuan.*
Su Yunmo was unaware of Lülüo's thoughts.
She wanted to sleep early tonight and wake up early tomorrow for something.
The next day, Su Yunmo indeed got up very early and went to the front hall.
Zhou Wanyou looked at her with some surprise. "Momo, you don't have school today, why aren't you sleeping in?"
Normally, when the little one went to school, she had to be called several times to get up.
Su Yunmo hugged Zhou Wanyou's waist and stood on her tiptoes, acting spoiled. "Lülüo said Mother is going to the Xie Mansion, and Momo wants to go too. Momo wants to see Godfather~"
Xie Zhengping had just arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, and he was likely unfamiliar with the accounts, making him easy to be fooled.
Otherwise, Ye Jingyu wouldn't have told her about this. Since he had told her, she had no choice but to get involved.
"I'm going too!" Su Qingtian strode in from outside, his eyes glaring like a tiger.
Zhou Wanyou picked up the child and said with a smile, "Brother Yi, didn't you say you had military matters today and needed to go back to the barracks to check on them?"
"It's fine now!" Su Qingtian glared at Su Yunmo with a dark face.
*This little rascal is always trying to conspire with Xie Zhengping to steal my wife. How can I not keep an eye on her!*
Acai came in from outside. "Madam, the carriage is ready."
"Got it." Zhou Wanyou pinched Su Yunmo's face. "Let's go see Godfather~"
The words "Godfather" made Su Qingtian's face darken a few more degrees.
Su Yunmo felt that if she threw General Su into a coal pile at this moment, she wouldn't be able to find him.
Unless she poked him with a stick; whichever part was soft was him.
The carriage headed towards the Xie Mansion.
Madam Xie had received the news early and had prepared tea and snacks.
As soon as the servant announced their arrival, Zhang Lingyin darted out from inside the house.
Unlike ordinary women, she wore a red tight-fitting outfit and a whip coiled around her waist. Her hair was neatly tied up. She didn't look like someone from the capital, but rather like someone from the martial world.
"Xiao Wan, you're finally here! I've been waiting for you all morning." She spoke briskly, her gaze falling on Su Yunmo, and she unceremoniously snatched Su Yunmo over.
"Oh my, this is our daughter! So cute. Her face is so soft! Much cuter than our own little ones when they were young."
Su Yunmo's face was contorted by her rubbing. She bravely put on a smile and called out softly, "Hello, Godmother~"
"Good, good, good!" Zhang Lingyin kissed her face fiercely, smearing it with saliva.
Su Qingtian watched from the side, curling his lips in disdain.
*These two have no ambition. What's so great about this little girl?*
*Why is everyone so fond of her?*
"Don't be so boisterous, you'll scare the child," Xie Zhengping said, following closely behind from the main hall.
"Godfather~" Su Yunmo was genuinely happy this time.
"Ah, Momo, you're such a good girl." Xie Zhengping hooked her nose, picked her up, and then exchanged a smile with Zhou Wanyou.
Su Qingtian immediately bristled and stepped forward, subtly blocking Zhou Wanyou.
Zhou Wanyou smelled the scent of jealousy filling the courtyard and chuckled helplessly. She said to Zhang Lingyin, "After sitting in the carriage for a while, I'm a bit tired. Let's go inside for a cup of tea."
"I was so busy doting on the child that I forgot about you." Zhang Lingyin stepped forward, hooked her arm, and led her inside.
Xie Zhengping said, "I won't entertain you further. A carriage has arrived from the Ministry of Revenue, and I cannot be late for my first day in office."
Zhou Wanyou had come to congratulate him on this matter. Now that he had to leave, she beckoned Su Yunmo to come over.
Su Yunmo hugged Xie Zhengping's neck and buried her head in his shoulder. "I don't want to. Momo wants to go with Godfather~"
Su Qingtian glared and reached out to snatch the child. "No! Your Godfather is busy, don't disturb him!"
*How can I let that man get close to this little girl?*
*You'er dotes on her so much. If she says a few good words about Xie Zhengping to You'er later, won't Xie Zhengping's status in You'er's heart surpass mine?*
*This kind of thing is absolutely not allowed!*