Li Hanru decided to carry it himself.

Shen Min had the same thought.

He had a hand in this too... Better that he step out and take it on himself than that the whole army fall. It would save His Majesty's face, and it would save Ning Chen.

The Great Xuan truly did need Ning Chen.

Li Hanru and Shen Min came out of the ranks at the same moment.

Each of them looked at the other without meaning to, and each gave a slight start, and in the next second each understood what the other was thinking.

Li Hanru signaled Shen Min with his eyes. He would carry it.

One man was enough to be sacrificed for this.

But Fan Taihe had plainly come prepared this time, and prepared thoroughly.

Before Li Hanru could open his mouth, Fan Taihe said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, beyond this your subject has one more matter to lay before you."

"When the marquis cut his way through the North Royal Court and took the King of the Left Court alive, the stores he seized were far more than the little that went into the treasury."

"Of those stores the marquis held back half for himself, and had Feng Qizheng, a silver coat of the Inspectorate, take them to the black market and turn them into silver notes... Seven hundred thousand taels of it."

"Your subject has already had the black market man who changed the notes taken into custody. He can be brought face to face with the marquis at any time."

Every eye in the court came to rest on Ning Chen at once.

Ning Chen's eyes contracted. He had not thought Fan Taihe would dig even this up.

Today was going to be hard to get past.

The scheme to squeeze the ministers' silver touched the Xuan Emperor, Li Hanru and Shen Min.

Holding back the stores and turning them into seven hundred thousand taels touched many more.

If they dug further, every man who had taken silver would be pulled in with him... Pan Yucheng, Qi Yuanzhong, Yuan…