ounding in his chest, a frantic thump-thump that sent shivers down his spine and made his skin crawl.With a thud, Chen Tong knelt down in the main hall."Your Highness, someone has indeed sent me to de...Chapter 141: Xu Changqing's Opportunity

At this moment, the once desolate wilderness was bustling with people due to the arrival of the Imperial Guard and disaster victims. The construction of the refugee camp was also proceeding in an orderly manner under Li Chen's personal supervision.

Most eye-catching was the outline of the camp outside, with twenty tall poles, nearly ten meters long and three meters high.

Nearly every wooden pole had a body hanging from it.

In the middle was the body of former Capital City Magistrate Jiang Zhou, and on the other nineteen poles were all the direct participants in this case of Jiang Zhou's corruption, that is, his accomplices.

Some were from the household departments, some from the capital's palaces. As long as they appeared in Jiang Zhou's ledger, the Jinyiwei would directly apprehend them, bypassing even officials from the Ministry of Justice, Dali Temple, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate. They would be escorted here and after verifying their identities, sent straight to the afterlife with a single blade.

Former disaster victims, those still physically capable, would pick up stones from the ground and throw them at the corpses.

No one feared, but instead hated him with gritted teeth.

Because the Crown Prince said that these were corrupt officials who embezzled the very grain they should have used to feed and save lives. Such corrupt officials, even in death, deserve to be reviled and remembered for their stench.

On the one hand, it is to assist in disaster relief and transport grain from warehouses.

On the other hand, it was also to test the waters with the Crown Prince.

"Your Highness."

Seeing Xu Changqing's sorrowful expression, Li Chen bowed deeply. He then used a branch to stir the campfire, making the flames burn more fiercely. The branches crackled and popped in the fire, sparks flying out, adding a touch of warmth and flickering light to the cold winter night.

"Can the task be done" Li Chen asked.

Xu Zhangqing immediately replied: "Done, this time the Ministry of Revenue has transferred 20,000 shi of grain and it has already been delivered to the site, but..."

Xu Changqing knew that the Crown Prince was not a soft-hearted person. He clasped his hands and continued, "The problem is that the Ministry of Revenue is short-staffed right now. The most important thing is the capital's government offices responsible for the execution. Almost all officials, from top to bottom, have been implicated in the Jiang Zhou case. Now we have food and supplies, but we lack people to manage them."

Li Chen said indifferently, "At this time, you go and communicate with the Ministry of Officials. First, draw some manpower from other departments to temporarily deal with the current situation. After that, for the vacancies in the Ministry of Households and the vacant positions within the capital city, this palace will fill them as soon as possible."

Looking at Xu Changqing, Li Chen said, "Draw up a list of candidates for the positions that need to be filled in the Ministry of Revenue."

Xu Changqing's mind raced, his eyes burning with intensity as he looked at Li Chen.

Su Jinpa, who had been silent all along beside him, seemed to sense that Li Chen was about to say something confidential. So, he took the initiative and said, "I'll go check on my brother."

Su Jinpa was just about to get up, Li Chen raised his hand and pulled her palm, letting her sit down.

"Is there anything you can't listen to Just sit here honestly."

"After that, Li Chen continued to hold Su Jinpa's hand without letting go and said to Xu Changqing: 'Now you are the left servant of the Ministry of Finance, a third-rank official. While the Minister of Finance is also a third-rank official, because he leads a department, his position is higher and more powerful. This half-level jump seems within reach but is actually a qualitative change. According to the rules of the officialdom, if there are no special reasons, you will probably stay in this position for another year and a half, then be transferred to a local post, and wait until an empty position for Minister of Finance opens up before being promoted back to Beijing.'"

Xu Changqing was so excited that his body trembled slightly. He knew that the prince said these things because he was already considering his future. The following words would most likely decide the direction of his official career.hen would publicly interrogate Li Junze, making him speak out, and Zhao Xuanji, a thousand-year fox like that, couldn't help but take action to kill Li Junze himself.If Zhao Xuanji hadn't stabbed Li J...