The people outside were talking a lot. Being recruited by the imperial court was a good thing for the ancestors, but something seemed wrong. The minister of the Ministry of Industry seemed not to spend a penny.
The shopkeeper smiled respectfully and asked: "I don't know how much silver the imperial court plans to pay to buy the design drawings of this bicycle. This craftsman is a servant of the master who signed a contract of sale. Is this expropriation against the rules?"
The Minister of Industry didn't expect that he would actually talk back. He felt dissatisfied and said angrily: "The imperial court needs silver to requisition it. Even if the head of the Ministry of Industry receives a plaque of praise, you are taking advantage of it. The status of merchants is already low."
Although the shopkeeper was a slave who was bought and sold before, his courage and demeanor have changed greatly after training in the palace, and with Princess Che as his back, he is not afraid.
He raised his voice and said to the people outside: "Sir, the owner has spent countless efforts to develop and manufacture this bicycle. The cost is huge. Even if the court takes a fancy to it, there is no reason to bully the people and rob it."
Everyone nodded in agreement. The laws of the imperial court were laid out there. This bicycle cost five hundred taels of silver each. He asked for the design drawings when he opened his mouth. This gentleman had such a loud tone.
Seeing this, the Minister of Works suppressed his anger and said: "I did not steal openly. As a citizen of Beidi Kingdom, you should dedicate yourself to the country."
The shopkeeper retorted mercilessly, "Your Excellency is an important official of the imperial court. Merchants pay taxes to support the imperial court. Your monthly salary comes from the people. If you want to talk about dedication, why do you still receive your monthly salary?"
The Minister of Works was furious, "How dare you, an ordinary citizen, talk to me like this? I asked you to take it out just to give you face. Don't toast me and you will be fined."
He had just been so angry at the Minister of Industry, how could he be pointed at the nose and humiliated when he got into the home of a common man?
The shopkeeper looked at the door. Prince Che's Mansion was not far from the shop. The news must have been passed back. "The common people do business innocently. If you want to rob openly, you must go to the government office to beat drums and complain."
The Minister of Works sneered, "You want to go to the government office, right? I will take you there and capture him for me."
Ordinary people dared to challenge the government and were imprisoned in cells and tortured without fear of being unable to spit out anything.
The people who were watching the excitement outside saw that the officers and soldiers were about to arrest people, and they immediately backed away in horror.
The Minister of the Ministry of Works loudly said to everyone: "This person stole the design drawings of the Ministry of Works and opened a shop privately to make money. I will escort him to the government in accordance with the law to suffer punishment."
"Your Excellency, the Minister, stole the design drawings from the Ministry of Industry one by one. Do you have any evidence? I don't know if you can bear the crime of framing a family member of the royal family."
Zhao Bi and He Shi opened the way in front.
Wen Jinhe stepped into the shop and stared at the Minister of Industry with sharp eyes.
Butler Li followed closely and frowned when he saw that the shopkeeper had been held by the officers and soldiers. Chief Jian was lawless and even bumped into Prince Che's head.
The Minister of Works secretly shouted, "There are only three princesses in Beidi Kingdom, and he has seen the other two. Could it be that the person coming here is Li Junche's princess."
Man Qiu stepped forward and scolded, "If you see Princess Che, you are not polite. Could it be that you don't take our princess seriously?"
After the speculation was confirmed, the Minister of Industry immediately felt that his trip was rash. He hurriedly came to the door without finding out the details of the other party and provoked the wrong person. "I am humble enough to pay homage to Princess Che."
The officers and soldiers holding the shop owner instantly let go of their hands and fell to their knees.
Wen Jinhe walked up to the Minister of Industry and said in a cold voice without anger: "This shop is the private property of this princess, and the blueprints were drawn by me myself. Your Excellency came to rob us openly and tried to frame the blame. If you take If you don’t produce evidence, don’t blame me for pursuing it to the end.”
The minister of the Ministry of Industry lay on the ground in fear, "Reporting to the princess, bicycles are convenient and easy to use. The Ministry of Industry intends to develop and produce them for use by the army. This is why I came to ask for my opinion. If I have offended the princess, please forgive me."
"You are going to arrest my concubine's people and take them to the government. Are you asking for your opinion? It's ridiculous to be so simple. If the person who opens the shop today is just an ordinary citizen, wouldn't it be in vain for you to oppress me?"
Wen Jinhe had no intention of taking this matter lightly. This man's behavior was no different from that of a robber. He must have oppressed the people as an official.
The people watching were talking a lot.
"I have long heard that the minister of the Ministry of Industry is a dishonest official. I didn't expect that today, Princess Che will be harmed. He wants to rob the princess of her private property. Jane's head is not safe."
Ignoring the shivering body of the Minister of Works, Wen Jinhe ordered the shopkeeper to close the door, and then took the head back to the palace.
Shopkeeper Li hurriedly sent someone to tell Li Junche that the Minister of Industry was Li Zhilin's man. It would be a pity not to take advantage of such a good opportunity to overthrow him.
When the Minister of Industry saw Wen Jinhe leaving with someone, he hurriedly got up from the ground, pushed away the crowd, and hurried to Prince Lin's Mansion.
After Li Junche received the news, he rushed back home as soon as possible.
The minister of the Ministry of Industry oppressed the people and took away other people's money, which was spread all over the city by the people who witnessed it.
After hearing the news, the censor immediately began to write a memorial to ask for his participation.
The censors in the Inspectorate wrote various criticisms and exaggerations. In their writings, the charges against the Minister of Industry were infinitely magnified, and several charges were listed. They were submitted that afternoon.
Wen Jinhe frowned and sat on the chair. Unexpectedly, he was stared at by people from the Ministry of Industry as soon as he took out something.
When Li Junche entered the door, he saw Wen Jinhe sitting there with a thoughtful expression on his face. He let his servants take off his armor, walked to the side and sat down and said, "Leave this matter to me, you don't have to worry."
Wen Jinhe looked up at Li Junche and asked, "My lord, do you think this matter has something to do with the emperor?"
Li Junche smiled and shook his head, "Father, I definitely can't do this. It must be the minister of the Ministry of Industry who is eager for success and profit. This matter has made a big fuss. I will give you an explanation tomorrow morning."
In the morning of the next day, the censor was about to convict the minister of the Ministry of Industry and asked the Minister of the Ministry of Industry whether he had instigated it.
Everyone in the court and the public looked at the minister of the Ministry of Industry who was kneeling on the ground and kept silent. Didn't they see that Li Junche, who was standing in front, had a livid face.
Some officials under Li Zhilin stood up to plead for the Minister of Works, saying that the actions of the Minister of Works were for the consideration of the imperial court.
If that bicycle is really useful, it would be a good idea to send it to the military headquarters.
The censor pointed out on the spot that the behavior of the Minister of Industry was no different from that of a robber. The people in the city condemned the court officials one after another. Without heavy punishment, it would be difficult to quell the public anger.
The emperor, who was sitting on the throne, never thought that the minister of the Ministry of Industry who had given him a bicycle yesterday would actually do something that violated the laws and regulations of the court, in the name of serving the country.
Yesterday afternoon, more than a dozen memorials were handed over in succession, all of which were written by him.
Although the emperor didn't like Wen Jinhe, she was Li Junche's princess after all, and the evidence on this matter was conclusive, so there was really nothing to investigate.
