"Uh..." Edward Carter was taken aback at first, then nodded vigorously in agreement and said, "That's right! There are the Minister and the Left Vice Minister above, and a whole bunch of officials and clerks below. Which one of them doesn't pocket a bit of money? But now only your grandfather is being punished—it's truly outrageous!"

Edward Carter, unable to contain his anger, gave a hard kick to the nearby rockery, hurting himself so much that he clutched his foot and hissed in pain.

"Don't tell me you only just thought of this..." Henry Carter looked at Edward Carter in disbelief—even he, who had just arrived, could immediately sense something was off. Could it be that this native-born official's son had never considered this before?

"You know, your father has always devoted himself solely to studying the classics and never managed household affairs," Edward Carter replied a bit sheepishly, lowering his voice. "As for the specifics, I really don't know much..."

"So Grandpa just accepted it?" Henry Carter thought to himself, Sir Zhao has been in officialdom for thirty years—surely he can't be that naive?

"Sigh, don't even mention it..." Edward Carter said, his face full of worry. "After the incident, your grandfather was locked up in the Censorate. Your uncle and I haven't seen him even once up to now..."

"Oh?" Henry Carter couldn't help but sit up straight, folding his arms in deep thought.

Sure enough, Edward Carter doted on Henry Carter greatly. Seeing him pretend to ponder, he didn't rush or interrupt, but simply waited quietly by his side.

Suddenly, the sound of heavy footsteps came from the direction of the decorated archway.

Chapter 3: Selling Off Grandpa's Land Without a Care

Edward Carter turned to look and saw his nephew, the eldest grandson of the Zhao family's main branch, Charles Carter, walking over listlessly.

"Second Uncle, my father asks you to come over—he has something to discuss." The blow Charles Carter had suffered was clearly heavier than Edward Carter's; even his voice was weak and dispirited.

"It's always your father who manages things—there's no need to consult me," Edward Carter shook his head. "Let him make the decisions about everything."

"Father has his reasons, Second Uncle. You'll understand when you go."

"Sigh, all right." Edward Carter glanced worriedly at Henry Carter and whispered, "Son, find a sheltered place to wait for a bit. I'll be back soon."

At this point, all the rooms in the inner residence had been locked by the buyers, leaving Henry Carter with nowhere to go for the moment. Besides, he wasn't at ease leaving the naive Second Master Zhao alone.

After all, everyone was in the same boat now.

So he followed along, wanting to help Edward Carter stay alert.

...

The Zhao residence was a large compound with five courtyards in depth, arranged from front to back as the entrance hall, front hall, main hall, inner residence, and the servants' quarters at the rear.

By now, those who had come to seize the property had already swept through the inner residence and main hall, and were now in the front hall, inventorying various furnishings and antiques.

The head of the household, William Carter, was also in the front hall, forcing himself to keep up appearances as he spoke with two officials and a man dressed as a wealthy merchant.

Both officials wore blue official robes—one had a fifth-rank silver pheasant badge on his chest, while the other had a xiezhi badge. Although the latter's rank was lower, he was a fearsome censor.

But at this moment, William Carter's gaze was fixed on the wealthy merchant, who wore a fox-fur lined brocade robe and a matching large hat.

"Brother Zhang, isn't this interest rate a bit too high?" William Carter, though dressed in casual home clothes, was still a dignified sixth-rank official of the court, yet now he was speaking humbly to a merchant. "You see, I didn't haggle over the price of the household items—couldn't you be a bit more flexible with the loan terms?"

"Sorry, Lord Zhao, I can't break the rules just for your family." The merchant, belly protruding, lounged in an official's chair, idly stroking the rosewood armrest as he replied, "Besides, your family's things may be plentiful, but how many are truly valuable? Our 'Deheng Pawnshop' is only giving you a price of twenty thousand taels out of respect for Minister Guo. How is it that you think we're taking advantage of your family?"

As he spoke, he pressed both hands on the armrests, making as if to stand up:

"Who else in Nanjing would lend to your family now? If Lord Zhao is still dissatisfied, feel free to seek someone else."

"And how long would that take?" The fifth-rank official said impatiently, "Our Minister is still waiting for a reply!"

"Don't worry, Assistant Ji, I was just saying. If Brother Zhang isn't willing, then forget it." William Carter quickly tried to appease his father's former subordinate. These days, he had been holding things together alone and was utterly exhausted, with not a trace of a proud minister's son's demeanor left.

"Let's get this over with—hurry up." The censor, who had been scowling the whole time, also spoke up: "Our office settles accounts every five days. The report is due tomorrow—no one will be able to cover for you then!"

After the censor finished, the Ministry of Revenue official gave Mr. Zhang a look.

Mr. Zhang pressed his middle finger on the table and pushed a promissory note that had been placed there earlier toward William Carter.

"Then please sign, Lord Zhao. For such a large sum, our 'Deheng Pawnshop' needs time to prepare the silver."

"All right, all right, I'll sign, I'll sign."

William Carter, flustered and anxious, was only thinking of getting his father out as soon as possible and returning life to normal. Now, after being pressured by the three of them in turn, he was completely at a loss.

As he signed and sealed the promissory note, his eyes red and his hand trembling, the three men all secretly breathed a sigh of relief.