Chapter 26: Raid the Su Family!

Su Tong never sought favor from the powerful, yet he was well aware that he had long been a thorn in the side of certain influential figures.

However, he had always conducted himself with utmost caution, never giving anyone a handle to use against him.

He had never embezzled so much as a single tael of silver, let alone twenty thousand.

Moreover, the Deputy Governor’s office had never actually disbursed any disaster relief funds.

It was clear that Zhao Mingshan was framing him.

“Lord Zhao, throughout my career, I have conducted myself with integrity—answerable neither to His Majesty’s grace nor to the common people. When have I ever embezzled even half a tael of silver?” Su Tong’s expression darkened.

But Zhao Mingshan was no fool; without evidence, he would never have boldly come to accuse him.

“Liang Shucheng,” Zhao Mingshan called out.

Liang Shucheng hurried forward. “A few days ago, I saw Prefect Su sneaking around, carrying boxes with a group of men through the back gate of the Su residence, urging them to hurry. I was hiding and caught a glimpse inside the boxes—they were filled with silver.”

Upon hearing this, Su Tong couldn’t help but laugh bitterly.

Liang Shucheng was a despicable man who had tricked his granddaughter and previously come to propose marriage with five hundred taels of silver.

He had brazenly boasted, saying “Thirty years on the west bank of the river, thirty years on the east—never underestimate a young man’s poverty.”

And yet, this was the truth?

He had indeed misjudged him; Liang Shucheng was a thoroughly contemptible scoundrel.

“How dare you slander a government official!” Su Tong erupted in anger.

He should never have let Liang Shucheng go; he should have arrested the villain and thoroughly investigated the origins of that five hundred taels.

But he hadn’t expected the man to harbor resentment and bring Zhao Mingshan to cause trouble.

Zhao Mingshan’s face suddenly darkened, and he snapped coldly, “Liang Shucheng, Su Gong is a paragon among officials in Liangzhou Province. What punishment do you think you deserve for slandering a government official?”

“Deputy Governor, I dare not slander any official. Everything I say is true—the stolen funds must be hidden in the Su household. Please search it,” Liang Shucheng knelt, repeatedly kowtowing.

“Very well, I will investigate. If you have slandered Su Gong, I will not let you off!” Zhao Mingshan waved his hand.

“Search!” he commanded.

Su Tong could clearly see that Zhao Mingshan had colluded with Liang Shucheng, putting on a show in front of him.

But since Zhao Mingshan insisted on searching, then let him.

He did not believe Zhao Mingshan would find anything in his home.

Not long after, several soldiers returned to the front yard carrying a box, placing it before Zhao Mingshan.

“My lord, please examine it.”

Su Tong’s eyes widened as he recognized the box.

“This—this is too blatant a frame, Lord Zhao!” he exclaimed.

“What did you say?” Zhao Mingshan’s face twisted with anger.

He opened the box to find it filled with silver.

“This is the silver I found during the search of your residence. And you accuse me of framing you?” Zhao Mingshan roared.

Such a crude trick was beneath him.

If it weren’t for the twenty thousand taels, he wouldn’t have troubled Su Tong at all—it would only bring trouble upon himself.

But now he had no choice; he had to act as the blade to clear his own path forward.

Staring at the box, Su Tong suddenly felt as if struck by lightning, staggering backward, utterly frozen.

He recognized the box—it was the very one Liang Shucheng had recently used to carry the silver.

He had suspected the money’s dubious origins and had even thrown the silver and the box out of the Su residence.

So how had this box returned to his home?

“Prefect Su, feeling guilty?” Zhao Mingshan sneered coldly upon seeing Su Tong’s hesitation.

“I—I…” Su Tong faltered.

It was over. The mud smeared on his pants meant ruin.

Finding this box in his home was enough to destroy his reputation utterly.

“With both witness and evidence, Su Tong, what more do you have to say?” Zhao Mingshan demanded.

Su Tong stammered, a thousand words on his tongue, yet not a single one emerged.

“Su Tong, I have long regarded you as an elder and respected your character, holding you as a model. But I never expected you to wear two faces, to dare embezzle disaster relief funds! You have grievously disappointed me!” Zhao Mingshan thundered with righteous indignation.

“Seize him!” he commanded, waving his hand.

Two soldiers stepped forward, forcing Su Tong to his knees.

“Ransack the Su residence!”

The soldiers immediately sprang into action, tearing through the house like bandits, overturning and smashing everything.

The commotion drew a crowd outside the gates, all eager to witness the spectacle.

“What’s going on? Why is the Su residence being searched?”

“Su Gong was known as an honest and upright official. Could this be a frame?”

“Yes, he always helped us neighbors and never acted arrogantly.”

...

Before long, the entire Su estate had been turned upside down.

Valuable items were piled in the front yard; worthless ones were smashed on the spot.

The whole Su residence looked like a wasteland.

The irony was that apart from the five hundred taels, the silver and valuables uncovered did not exceed that amount.

This was all Su Tong had accumulated over more than thirty years in office!

Though five hundred taels was a fortune to ordinary folks, for a fourth-rank prefect, it was pitifully little.

Su Tong’s annual salary was just over a hundred taels, supplemented yearly by some court rewards.

His son and daughter-in-law had died young, and almost all the money had been spent on his granddaughter.

The painstaking savings were only meant to provide for Su Hanwei after his death.

Now, framed and disgraced, he likely would never recover.

Finding so little silver did not surprise Zhao Mingshan.

The old stubborn Su Tong was unlikely to have much wealth.

Though the money was lacking, the vacant prefect position was a continuous source of income.

That was how Zhao Mingshan intended to curry favor with the local gentry.

If he could install his own loyalists in office in the future, all the better.

“Take him away.”

At this moment, Liang Shucheng was utterly bewildered.

He had expected Zhao Mingshan to find a great deal of silver when ransacking the Su household.

But after a lifetime as a prefect, Su Tong had barely amassed five hundred taels—not nearly twenty thousand.

If Zhao Mingshan demanded more silver from him, what could he do?

He couldn’t produce even a single tael now.

After Zhao Mingshan and his men left, Liang Shucheng hurried away as well.

At that moment, a distraught Su Hanwei returned.

Seeing the sealed notice posted on her family estate, she was instantly sobered.

She checked several times to be sure she hadn’t come to the wrong place.

What had happened? Why was her home sealed?

What about Grandfather? Surely he hadn’t been taken away?