txolops Chapter 51 Our Family is Really Rich
Chapter 51 Our Family is Really Rich
Jiang Feng knew that Dugu Tuo would be purged, but he did not expect the purge to come so quickly.
He had just parted ways with Dugu Tuo at noon when Yang Jian imprisoned him, giving Dugu Tuo almost no chance to react, as if Yang Jian had planned it all along.
After a little thought, Jiang Feng understood.
How could something that happened in the palace possibly escape the notice of the naturally suspicious Yang Jian?
It's possible that Yang Jian was already preparing to arrest Dugu Tuo the moment Wang Yuanzhi uttered the words "cat demon."
This cat demon can harm the queen today, and it can harm him tomorrow. It's impossible for him to put his life in danger.
Upon learning of Dugu Tuo's arrest, Empress Dugu went to the emperor to plead for his release, but no matter what she said, Yang Jian refused to agree to release him.
Left with no other choice, Empress Dugu returned to the Jiaofang Palace and went on a hunger strike to show her attitude.
Upon hearing the news of the Lonely Empress's hunger strike, Jiang Feng brought Cui Ying and Ao Ying to the Jiaofang Palace.
"My dear Empress, why are you going on a hunger strike for no reason? I haven't even cured your illness yet. If you make yourself sick from starvation, the Prince of Jin certainly won't be willing to exempt my land from taxes!"
Jiang Feng earnestly advised, "Why don't you wait until I cure your illness before you go on a hunger strike?"
Ao Ying looked puzzled: "What is a hunger strike?"
Jiang Feng said, "I'm not eating."
Ao Ying gasped in horror, her face contorted with fear: "Why would you be so foolish? You'll starve to death if you don't eat!"
Jiang Feng rested his chin on his hand and pondered, "That's not necessarily true. A hunger strike only means not eating. You can secretly eat snacks. You won't starve to death."
Empress Dugu stared in disbelief: "..."
Is it possible to do it this way?
But that makes a lot of sense, since no one says you can't eat snacks during a hunger strike!
Seeing the smiling Empress Dugu, Jiang Feng knew she had accepted his proposal. He breathed a slight sigh of relief, but his expression became serious.
"Your Majesty, give me your personal seal, and I'll go find Xu Ani for you!"
Empress Dugu had someone bring her a small seal engraved with her name, saying, "This is the seal I used before I got married. You can take it. I will give the order that everyone in the Dugu family will obey your command."
As she spoke, she sighed softly.
"If things are beyond our control, we must cut our losses decisively, and we must not let A'tuo's matter implicate Erlang."
Seeing that she had already prepared for the worst, Jiang Feng didn't say anything more and left the palace with Cui Ying and the others.
Before long, the group arrived at Dugu Tuo's residence.
After examining Empress Dugu's seal, Shan Jun looked at Jiang Feng with a conflicted expression.
He was originally summoned back by Dugu Tuo to deal with Jiang Feng, but now he has to take orders from Jiang Feng. This reversal of roles makes him feel the impermanence of life.
Jiang Feng cut to the chase: "Where does Dugu Tuo keep all his money?"
Shan Jun said, "Most of the money is in Datong Casino. There are two in Daxing City and one in Chang'an City."
Jiang Feng was slightly surprised: "Three casinos? Your master has quite the appetite. Isn't he afraid of overeating?"
In the early years of the Kaihuang era, Emperor Yang Jian promulgated laws stipulating that gamblers would be punished with caning and have their property confiscated, and that officials who participated in gambling would be dismissed from their posts and exiled.
However, the sons of noble families indulged in sensual pleasures and no one could control them. They often gambled away money, slaves, and land, spending lavishly. Naturally, some people wanted to profit from them.
There's also some money that can't be smuggled out. You go to a casino, deliberately lose a ten or twenty percent, and then it's all clean.
Therefore, casinos are very profitable. Even for someone of Dugu Tuo's status and position, owning three casinos would make many people envious and secretly plot against him.
Shan Jun explained, "Yang Xuangan and Yuwen Huaji were involved in the casino, so it was essentially a three-way partnership, with each party responsible for one room."
Although the other two casinos also share in the profits, the one primarily controlled by the Dugu family is the Datong Casino in the southern part of the city.
Jiang Feng nodded and said, "Take me there, shut down that casino, and take stock of the money inside."
Shan Jun frowned: "Such a big matter, you have to give me a reason, right? The casino's turnover is staggering; even closing it for a day would result in a massive loss of money!"
Jiang Feng said, "Have you forgotten what cat ghosts were originally used for?"
The mountain tiger suddenly shuddered: "Taking lives and transferring the deceased's wealth!"
"Yes, Xu Ani must have hidden a lot of secret techniques for controlling cat ghosts. I'm sure that if Dugu Tuo dies, his family property will be immediately transferred away by Xu Ani using cat ghosts."
Even if Dugu Tuo were still alive, she could very well find a way to steal the money.
The mountain king cried out in alarm, "Follow me!"
After saying that, he hurriedly led Jiang Feng and the others to the Datong Casino.
After explaining the seriousness of the situation to the casino manager, the casino immediately began clearing people out, and several accountants also began counting the valuables.
Jiang Feng wasn't in a hurry. After having dinner with everyone at the casino, Shan Jun finally came to him with the summarized account book.
"The calculations are complete. Currently, the total amount of collateral held by the Datong Casino includes 20,000 hectares of fertile land, over 60,000 servants, and approximately 100 million strings of cash in other properties, silver, and jewelry!"
Jiang Feng was so shocked by the numbers that he almost dropped the melon in his hand.
Ao Ying tilted her head and asked, "A lot?"
Jiang Feng snapped out of his daze: "Remove the 'ma' part, this money is enough for you to eat roast suckling pig three times a day for tens of thousands of years! And you could eat until you're stuffed every single time!"
A chilling glint flashed in Ao Ying's eyes: "Jiang Feng, our family is really rich!"
Jiang Feng looked at her with a gratified expression and said, "Yes, I only just found out how rich our family is!"
The mountain king's face showed a look of terror: "Wait, what are you doing? This money isn't yours!"
Jiang Feng gave a friendly smile: "Oh dear, look how scared you are!"
Empress Dugu treated me like a son or nephew, and I've always considered the Dugu family my own. Who would steal money from their own family?
The mountain god breathed a sigh of relief and then wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
At this moment, Jiang Feng's expression turned serious, and he said, "This money is not safe now. I'll transfer the money to my name first, and then take it back."
Even if Dugu Tuo dies, Xu Ani will not be able to use magic to move the money.
Shan Jun felt his mind was still foggy: "After doing this, whose money is it? Yours, or the Dugu family's?"
Jiang Feng laughed and said, "Are you stupid? I'm just passing the money around. In the end, isn't all this money still in the Datong Casino?"
The mountain king suddenly understood: "Alright, then you go ahead and do it. Do you need my help?"
Jiang Feng said, "No need, just send someone to guard outside."
Upon hearing this, Shan Jun immediately organized his men to surround Datong Casino completely.
Jiang Feng arrived at the warehouse, took a deep breath, and unleashed his powerful magic at full force, casting the Five Ghosts Transporting Wealth Technique.
With the blessing of powerful magic, the five ghosts arrived in batches, moving the wealth from the storeroom to the Wishing Temple, and then bringing the money back.
By the time Jiang Feng finished, it was already midnight.
Looking at all the valuables still in the storeroom, Cui Ying frowned. "What exactly are you planning? I don't believe you've wasted all this time and won't take a single penny."
Jiang Feng looked puzzled: "What money? Isn't all of this my money?"
Cui Ying rolled her eyes: "Didn't you say that this money would ultimately be kept at the Datong Casino?"
Jiang Feng said matter-of-factly, "That's right, I'm temporarily storing the money here. If Datong Casino decides they don't want it anymore, I'll just move it somewhere else. I didn't force anyone to buy or sell, nor did I have to occupy their warehouse!"
Cui Ying: "..."
Good heavens, as long as we swindle all of Dugu Tuo's wealth, Xu Ani won't be able to steal it, right?
[Your compassion prevented Xu Ani from stealing Dugu Tuo's family fortune. Your boundless love moved Heaven, and you are rewarded with mastery of the "Cat Ghost Technique".]