Once the group decided on their plan, they split up to carry out their respective tasks.

Zhou Lingyin was in charge of obtaining permits for the sea routes along the way.

Yin Jin'an instigated a small squad within the naval force under Duke Xun to defect and become his subordinates, providing escort for the ships. Their mission was to fight pirates along the route, defeat the pirates, and bring their ships back onto the sea lanes.

Li Yunmu recruited several county officials from the former subordinates of the Duke of Yingguo. After conquering the cities in the wilderness, they were stationed there to manage the cities.

Xie Yu said he wouldn't participate, but he was still worried. He secretly divided fifty of his "Black-Clad Guards" and gave them to Xie Zhaozhao. The leader was Xie Jiuliang, a former group leader.

The Black-Clad Guards are the Xie family's core assets, controlled by each successive clan leader and young clan leader.

Only the clan leader and the young clan leader know the exact number of people; this is the Xie family's top secret.

Xie Zhaozhao instructed Yunyang to take 100,000 taels of silver to first purchase a batch of ready-made blue and white porcelain from the Xie family kiln, and then to go to Baiyue to find Yunhe and Dongqin to purchase goods for this voyage and accompany the ship as an escort.

Yunyang led a newly trained batch of 150 soldiers, while Xie Jiuliang led the 50 black-clad guards. The two of them, one openly and one covertly, went to Baiyue.

Cooperate with Dong Qin to take Baiyue City first.

***

Gu Shaoyu returned from Jiangnan and swiftly presented the results of his investigation in the imperial court. The evidence was conclusive and irrefutable.

The crown prince watched helplessly as his plans in Jiangnan were completely ruined and his people were all exterminated.

The Empress said to him, "Grand Secretary Gu is a man of deep thoughts. He may have evidence to check you. The reason he hasn't taken action is probably because he doesn't have solid evidence. All you can do now is to observe from the sidelines."

If the crown prince were to step forward at this moment, it would be concrete evidence.

The Crown Prince gritted his teeth in hatred, but could only watch helplessly as Emperor Hui uprooted his years of hard work. He hated Emperor Hui and Gu Shaoyu to the core.

Emperor Hui took action against the officials in Jiangnan, replacing almost all the salt administration officials.

The prince gritted his teeth and endured it, almost turning into a thousand-year-old tortoise.

After dealing with Gu Chengyan and the "Tu Qianyue" ice shop, the Crown Prince suddenly felt much more confident.

He was no longer listless as he had been in court, but instead full of confidence.

"Your Majesty, our Great Gan is now a powerful nation. Your son has an idea: to open the Silk Road, to connect the east, west, north, and south, to facilitate the exchange of goods and services, and to make Great Gan truly famous throughout the world, so that all under heaven may come to offer their congratulations."

His grand pronouncements and vivid descriptions of a grand plan immediately captivated the court officials.

Emperor Hui was also very interested and asked him to explain in detail.

The prince spoke eloquently, outlining his vision for the Silk Road: "It will be implemented in two phases: the land Silk Road and the maritime Silk Road..."

After listening, the court officials asked many questions, which the crown prince answered in a very logical and reasonable manner.

Emperor Hui nodded repeatedly, "That sounds good. What does Grand Secretary Gu think?"

“Your Highness’s idea is excellent, but I wonder how much money it will cost?” Gu Shaoyu said.

The prince said, “Opening up the land Silk Road, using a large quantity of silk and porcelain to exchange for sugar, spices, and high-yield crop seeds, would probably cost ten million strings of cash. Further calculations of the costs would be needed separately.”

That means even ten million strings of cash wouldn't be enough.

The Crown Prince and the Duke of Cheng'en calculated that the cost of a caravan's round trip would be approximately 500,000 strings of cash.

But they couldn't have reported 500,000 strings of cash; they reported twenty times that amount.

The Duke of Chengen and he had calculated that opening a trade route was more important for a country than expanding its territory. What was ten million strings of cash?

The court fell silent immediately.

The current period of great national strength is considered one of the best since the founding of the People's Republic of China, with an annual treasury revenue of 20 million guan.

But using half of the national treasury to open a trade route? That's too risky!

In case of war, in case of natural disasters...

So those who had been praising it all fell silent.

The Crown Prince wasn't in a hurry. He looked at Gu Shaoyu and said, "The Grand Secretary should be very supportive, right?"

Emperor Hui glanced at Gu Shaoyu suspiciously.

Gu Shaoyu was also puzzled: "Your Highness, do I look like a traitor?"

He offered no comment, only telling Emperor Hui, "Your Majesty, I think the Crown Prince's idea is excellent and we can discuss it further."

Emperor Hui nodded and praised the Crown Prince for his thoughtfulness.

The Crown Prince smiled and looked at Gu Shaoyu. Gu Shaoyu's heart pounded. Was he certain that Gu Shaoyu would agree?

Ordinary court officials leave court at noon, while cabinet officials don't leave until after 1 p.m. Gu Shaoyu took some time at noon to visit the Ministry of Revenue.

He said to Xie Yu, "Go back and tell the young lady that I will come over at 1-3 PM to discuss something with her."

Xie Yu wondered what he and his sister could possibly discuss.

Upon returning to his residence, he immediately informed Xie Zhaozhao of the news.

"Brother, did the Grand Secretary say what it is about?"

Xie Yu shook his head: "In the Ministry of Revenue, with so many people watching, the Grand Secretary didn't say anything."

"So what happened in the imperial court today?"

Xie Yu is currently only a sixth-rank official and is not yet qualified to attend court before the emperor. However, there are some important messages that the Minister of Revenue must relay to his department upon his return, especially matters concerning money.

"Today, the Crown Prince proposed to open a Silk Road, a trade route from the west to the Kingdom of Xiandou, which would require ten million strings of cash."

Xie Zhaozhao immediately understood that this was Guan Yingying's idea!

This is two years earlier than Guan Yingying opened the Silk Road in her previous life!

In other words, Guan Yingying has now persuaded the Crown Prince.

Ten million strings of cash? That's incredibly audacious!

Gu Shaoyu came to see her, was it for this reason?

At 1:00 PM, Gu Shaoyu arrived at the Xie residence by carriage.

Originally, Xie Yu wanted to follow, but Gu Shaoyu said in a serious tone, "When we came out just now, His Majesty rewarded me with a basket of fresh lychees. Brother, please take them to Grandmother?"

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