I Think We'd Better Forget It

Evans Manor, Study Room

Lily Evans rubbed her brow as she looked at the two documents in front of her, appearing slightly troubled.

"This is the total amount of silver in the national treasury, plus this year's tax revenue. Why is it so little?" Lily Evans pressed her fingers to her brow.

The reporting official looked troubled and said, "Chancellor Evans, the Kingdom of Qin has just been founded, and you have only recently arrived from the capital. You may not be familiar with the situation here. The truth is, Charleston was never wealthy. The prominent families in the city are all named Zhao. The previous governor, Zhao Jun, naturally protected his own, so the Zhao family evaded taxes. The honest citizens and merchants didn’t have much silver either, and the taxes collected were squandered by Zhao Jun. Now, there’s hardly any silver left."

"What about taxes from other regions? The taxes for the first half of the year should have been delivered to the court, right?" Lily Evans’s tone grew more serious. "The southeast is vast and there are wealthy areas. Just the porcelain-producing town of Jingzhen should generate considerable tax revenue. Where is that silver?"

"This... this..." The official hesitated for a long time, looking awkwardly at Quentin Qian, who stood nearby.

Lord Quentin Qian stood calmly with his hands on his belly, feigning ignorance. He said to the official, "Chancellor Evans is asking you a question. Why are you looking at me?"

Sweat began to bead on the official’s forehead as he spoke to Lily Evans in a much quieter voice: "Chancellor Evans, the various regions of Qin are all controlled by large families. The wealthy areas belong to the Three Great Houses. Most officials are from those families, even those in charge of taxes... As for the details, I really don’t know."

Lily Evans’s frown deepened as she looked at Quentin Qian, whose face showed smug satisfaction.

Of the Three Great Houses, the Qian family is the most powerful. In other words, outside of Charleston and the West River Plains, although the territory is nominally part of Qin, the officials are all from the old guard—mainly members of the Three Great Houses, especially the Qian family.

Naturally, these clansmen listen to Quentin Qian, not to the Qin royal court.

Lily Evans looked at Quentin Qian and said, "Lord Qian, you know those regions best. Do you have anything to say?"

Quentin Qian coughed twice, dug at his ear, and shook his head, feigning deafness. "I'm getting on in years; I don't know anything. Besides, those officials are appointed by the royal court. I was just a commoner before—how could I possibly have any say in official matters?"

He was clearly refusing to cooperate!

Seeing Quentin Qian's shameless performance, Lily Evans was momentarily speechless.

Su Li tapped the table lightly. "Convince them? Or replace them?"

Quentin Qian chuckled. "Chancellor Su, you’re bold. But if you want to replace them, you’ll need the support of the people. Otherwise, the families will unite against you."

Su Li raised an eyebrow, her voice light but pointed: "I see. Then I suppose we’ll have to let the people decide."

The room fell silent, tension thick in the air as Su Li and Quentin Qian locked eyes—neither willing to back down.