The crown prince, seeing that he still wouldn't speak, felt it was pointless.

As he stepped out of the dungeon, his eyes took on a colder glint.

"Is there still no news from the Emperor?"

The New Year is almost here, and the Emperor has suddenly disappeared.

Where could that old man have gone?

"Your Highness, the Emperor left a message saying he was going to experience the lives of ordinary people."

"However, the old general did not receive any guests."

"Heh, old general? You've lost all your soldiers, what kind of old general are you?"

The Crown Prince snorted coldly. Once that old man is dead, neither the Wu family nor the Zhou family will survive.

"Your Highness, we have no money left."

Food is too expensive these days. The harvest in the south was also terrible last year; there simply wasn't enough to eat.

While Xu San could obtain grain, the price was too high.

He also had someone try to negotiate the price, but they said there wasn't one.

The prince's storeroom is almost empty; some unused items have been sold off.

But it still couldn't hold up.

In the end, the only option left was to use the national treasury, but that old guy...

"Isn't that grain Han Luoxue's?"

The crown prince was also hesitant to believe the news, but the information uncovered by his subordinates was undeniable.

"Yes, Your Highness, it has been investigated. Han Luoxue only knew one of the managers of Xuanyuan Pavilion, and she made a fortune based on that relationship."

"However, Xuanyuan Pavilion isn't stupid; they must have made their own money from the grain."

"Moreover, I have inquired and found that the Xuanyuan Pavilion's grain is mainly sourced from other countries."

"The Zhou family's things also came from there. We tried to contact their people, but they didn't agree."

Xuanyuan Pavilion still travels between several countries.

The Crown Prince then abandoned his plan to send men to annihilate them!

However, he didn't want to continue being this sucker.

What is the normal price of grain? Even with transportation costs, it shouldn't be this expensive.

"Your Highness, it has been raining in the south recently, so next year's harvest should be good."

Next year? We'll have to wait until then to talk about it.

The prince's eyes were dark and unfathomable.

"Continue to contact Xuanyuan Pavilion."

The crown prince's eyes turned cold. Perhaps he could start with the Zhou family.

"Make arrangements for the Zhou family..."

The crown prince lowered his voice and gave a few instructions.

"come out!"

The prince's sharp gaze turned to a certain direction, where the trees rustled and a graceful figure emerged.

Gradually, it became clear that he was extremely uneasy.

The crown prince waved his hand, signaling the man to leave first.

"Princess?"

"Your Highness, I've come to invite you to dine with me. Today is New Year's Eve..."

Mengyao avoided eye contact with the Crown Prince.

"You heard everything just now?"

"Your Highness, I..."

Mengyao wanted to refute and deny it, but she didn't dare. The Crown Prince hated being deceived more than anything, and if she were lying, she couldn't bear the consequences.

"Hehe, tell me, what did you hear?"

"Your Highness, I..."

Mengyao's eyes were red. She never expected that the Crown Prince had taken a liking to Han Luoxue some time ago.

She also ordered people to take action, but before Han Luoxue could be dealt with, the Crown Prince had a new target.

"Your Highness, Han Luoxue is not the owner of the grain, so perhaps she could..."

"Mengyao, I think I told you about your value..."

"I know, but..."

She was filled with resentment. Zhou Jie, whom she had always regarded as a younger sister, she had never imagined that this woman would marry the Crown Prince alongside her.

"What should and shouldn't you say?"

"Mengyao, be a good girl and get pregnant as soon as possible. The position of Crown Princess will always be yours."

The Crown Prince looked at Mengyao's delicate figure, and his expression suddenly changed:

"I'll give you two more months. If there's still no news, it's hard to say who will be the eldest son."

Mengyao clenched her fists tightly. She hadn't expected the Crown Prince to take a concubine so soon.

If another woman gets pregnant first, her status is no lower than hers...

It's uncertain whether the Crown Prince will continue to make her his Crown Princess.

"Your Highness, I understand."

She can't just sit here and wait to die!

However, she has been taking care of her health, but there has been no news. What can she do?

The Crown Prince took the Crown Princess's hand, and the two left together.

If you didn't know, you'd think they had a really good relationship.

...

"Ouch, that hurts so much..."

This was the first time that Old Lady Li had been beaten like this.

When they got home, the three sons' expressions changed drastically when they saw their mother being carried in.

"Second Uncle, what's wrong with my mother...?"

"Village head, how could my mother..."

However, the villagers dropped off the person and ran away without offering any explanation.

It was only after Old Lady Li calmed down that she recounted the situation, and in the end, she didn't forget to give Han Qiang and Han Luoxue a good scolding.

"That little vixen doesn't look honest at all, and she's too ruthless in her actions."

Old Li said with a huff:

"She's just a vixen. That old man who just arrived, maybe it was that slut who made him feel good."

"What's so great about an old man? Once my leg heals, I'll tie her up and we'll teach her a lesson on what it means to be a man."

The third brother leered and swallowed hard.

The other two also secretly swallowed.

"Ouch, son, it hurts so much!"

The old woman from the Li family cried out in pain. Hearing their mother's cries, her three sons exchanged glances, and the second son spoke first:

"Mother, where is the grain you requested?"

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