Make Good Use of the Storage Space! The Shen Family!

Very soon!

This bandit stronghold was completely cleared out.

All forty-odd bandits were dealt with.

The many government soldiers dug a huge pit and buried all the bandits' corpses inside.

"Reporting to the Hundred Household Officer."

"There is a large amount of gold, silver, and jewelry inside the bandit stronghold."

"It was all obtained through their raids."

A General Officer hurried to Liu Lei's side and reported.

At those words!

Liu Lei waved his hand.

The soldiers followed one after another.

Zhu Ying was among them as well.

Very soon.

They arrived at a room at the very back of the bandit stronghold.

Through the doorway, they could see more than a dozen chests filling the room. Their lids were open, revealing Hongwu Tongbao copper coins, silver, a small amount of gold, and gold and silver jewelry.

"These bastards actually plundered this much wealth." Liu Lei could not help but be startled at the sight.

"Hundred Household Officer."

"These bandits may not have been ordinary bandits."

"And a few dozen bandits could not possibly have looted so much gold, silver, and treasure."

Zhu Ying spoke up.

Liu Lei turned to look at Zhu Ying and asked with a smile, "Say whatever you have in mind."

"This subordinate killed five bandits today. From the way they fought, I could tell these bandits were not a disorganized rabble. They seemed well-trained."

"And their accents were not those of our Ming Dynasty. They sounded like the accents of those Jianzhou Tatars beyond the border." Zhu Ying said slowly.

Hearing this.

Liu Lei nodded. "You're right. The moment we exchanged blows, I noticed it too. These bandits moved as one and were definitely no ordinary bandits. It seems they may truly be barbarians from beyond the border who entered our Ming Dynasty to cause trouble."

"Enough."

"Move all this wealth out and transport it back to the county seat."

"These bandits are connected to the Tatars. We still need to report this to the Thousand Household Officer, who will then report it up the chain. This is not something we can handle." Liu Lei smiled and waved his hand.

"This subordinate accepts the order."

The soldiers all accepted their orders.

Looking at so much gold, silver, and treasure, every soldier's eyes gleamed.

However.

With Liu Lei and the two General Officers present.

None of them dared take anything.

This was the Hongwu Era of the Ming Dynasty. Old Zhu had zero tolerance for corrupt officials, and military discipline was even stricter. If they dared steal anything, at best they would lose their heads; at worst, their entire clans would be exterminated.

"These bandits really were rich."

Zhu Ying walked up to a chest and clicked his tongue at the silver inside.

However.

I have one cubic meter of storage space. No one would notice if I took some.

Besides, this was plundered by the bandits and hasn't been inventoried yet.

Thinking of the storage space on the panel he had activated, Zhu Ying felt a faint surge of excitement.

At once.

Zhu Ying crouched down, placing one hand inside the chest and supporting its bottom with the other, as if testing how heavy it was.

"Kid Zhu."

"It's so heavy. You can't lift it alone." An old soldier beside him said with a laugh.

"I just wanted to see how heavy a chest of silver is. I've never seen this much silver before." Zhu Ying replied with a chuckle.

Holy shit.

It really works.

I just put one hundred taels into the storage space, and no one noticed.

Don't be greedy. This much is enough. One hundred taels of silver is enough for an ordinary family to live without worries for several years. Zhu Ying calmed himself. Looking at the hundred taels of silver lying in his storage space, he was overjoyed.

Naturally, no one could have noticed any part of the process.

They set off for the city!

This bandit stronghold was more than ten li from Ansha County, and it would take time to return to the city.

Beiping Prefecture!

The Shen Family, known as the greatest wealthy family in Beiping Prefecture and even hailed as the wealthiest family in the entire Ming Dynasty.

Throughout Beiping Prefecture, there was a popular saying: the Shen Family's wealth rivaled the national treasury; the Shen Family was rich enough to rival a nation.

And the Shen Family's patriarch, Shen Wansan, was acclaimed as the richest man in the Ming Dynasty.

Inside the main hall of Shen Mansion!

The somewhat aged Shen Wansan sat in the seat of honor, with his many children seated on either side.

"Father."

"Everything has been taken care of."

"That boy has already been entered into the Daning Prefecture Military Registry."

The Shen Family's eldest son, Shen Rong, said with a hint of cold amusement.

"Once one enters the Military Registry, one cannot leave until the war ends. Only those crippled in battle or those who have served for thirty years may retire. Moreover, Daning Prefecture is a border prefecture. Not only is the Northern Yuan there, but many barbarian tribes as well. Bandits are everywhere, making it even more dangerous than the Military Registry in the interior prefectures."

"Zhu Ying has no chance of returning alive." Shen Wang said with a smile as well.

"Mm."

Shen Wansan nodded.

"For the prosperity of our Shen Family, we have ultimately wronged him."

"But compared to the prosperity of our Shen Family, Zhu Ying alone amounts to nothing. Now that he has entered the Military Registry, the marriage agreement between our Shen Family and him no longer exists."

"Rong'er."

"You will personally go to Lü Mansion in Ying Tian Prefecture. If this succeeds, our Shen Family's position will become even more secure." Shen Wansan said to Shen Rong.

"Please rest assured, Father."

"Fourth Sister will certainly marry Young Master Lu Hao as a concubine." Shen Rong immediately promised.

"Yan'er has no objections to this matter, does she?" Shen Wansan asked again.

"Fourth Sister never liked Zhu Ying in the first place. Now that she can marry into the Lü Family, she naturally could not ask for more." Shen Rong immediately said with a smile.

"That is good." Shen Wansan nodded in satisfaction as well. "A legitimate daughter of our Shen Family is naturally not a match for some fallen brat."

Hearing this.

Shen Wansan's many sons all smiled, their faces full of excitement.

Who was Lu Hao?

He was the younger brother of the current Crown Prince's Consort, Lü clan. Though she was currently only the Crown Prince's Consort, all affairs of the Eastern Palace were under Lü clan's control. Moreover, Lü clan's son was now the Crown Prince's eldest son. He was highly likely to become the future master of the Eastern Palace, while Lü clan would become the Crown Prince's principal consort and perhaps even the Empress of the dynasty.

Such a fine opportunity to attach themselves to power.

How could the Shen Family possibly let it slip away?

Merchants valued profit above all else.

For profit, they would do anything.

And Shen Wansan would be even less willing to miss such a good opportunity to establish ties with the imperial family.

"Father."

"To prevent Zhu Ying from speaking ill of our Shen Family in the future, I believe we should see this through to the end." Shen Rong suddenly said.

At those words!

Shen Wansan's expression changed slightly. After thinking for a moment, he nodded. "Handle this matter as you see fit. If you need money, withdraw it from the estate treasury."

"Please rest assured, Father."

"I will handle this beautifully and leave no evidence against our Shen Family." Shen Rong immediately smiled.

Outside the hall.

Crash.

The hall doors were thrown open.

A stunning young girl in a pale blue dress ran into the hall. Her lovely face was filled with fury, and her expression was grim.

"Father."

"How could you treat Brother Zhu Ying like this?" Shen Yu'er demanded angrily.

At the sound of her voice!

Shen Wansan and his many children all turned their gazes toward Shen Yu'er.

But upon seeing her, everyone secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"This has nothing to do with you."

"Leave."

Shen Wansan said coldly.

"If you did not want Fourth Sister to marry Brother Zhu Ying, you could have simply told him directly. Why did you have to treat him like this? Why do you want to put Brother Zhu Ying to death?" Shen Yu'er asked furiously.

"A concubine-born daughter—since when were you allowed into the main hall?"

"Leave."

Shen Rong frowned and barked coldly.

"Leave."

Shen Wansan could not even be bothered to spare Shen Yu'er another glance.

Shen Yu'er's face was filled with resentment and helplessness, while the concern in her eyes had become almost tangible.

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