Chapter 135 This King is Very Sincere

Upon hearing the words "Prince An invites you," Jiang Yu was startled, but she showed no sign of it on her face. Of course, she didn't say she didn't know Prince An. Since this person had stopped her, he must have recognized her identity.

But Jiang Yu stood there without moving, neither agreeing nor refusing. She couldn't be sure whether this person was truly Prince An's man or not.

The man seemed to have seen through Jiang Yu's thoughts and turned to look at the second floor of the teahouse by the roadside. Jiang Yu followed his gaze and saw Prince An sitting by the window on the second floor, dressed in black. After their eyes met, Prince An raised the teacup in his hand to her.

Jiang Yu didn't know why she had run into Prince An here, but she clearly couldn't refuse his invitation. Without much thought, she strode towards the teahouse, with Shou'an and Chengfu immediately following.

Upon reaching the second floor and entering Prince An's room, Jiang Yu found that Prince An had changed his seat and was now sitting at a tea table some distance from the window. Jiang Yu walked over, cupped his hands, and bowed to Prince An, saying, "This humble official greets Your Highness Prince An."

Prince An looked her up and down, and finally said, "I almost didn't recognize you, Lady Jiang, in your attire. Please have a seat."

He gestured for her to sit down, and Jiang Yu, without hesitation, sat opposite him and said, "I just felt like coming to Nancheng for a stroll. Men's clothes are cheaper."

Prince An nodded noncommittally, picked up the teapot, poured a cup of tea, and then placed it in front of Jiang Yu. His fingers were somewhat large and looked very strong.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Jiang Yu said politely, then picked up his teacup and took a sip.

Prince An also picked up his teacup, tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp, then said, "I remember that we met on the day Lord Jiang first arrived in the capital. At that time, I felt that Lord Jiang was no ordinary person."

Jiang Yu smiled modestly, "Your Highness flatters me, it's all just for survival."

Prince An looked down at the teacup in front of him, and after a while said, "I'll get straight to the point."

Jiang Yu smiled at him, and Prince An looked at her deeply and said, "Lord Jiang should be able to sense that I have no ill intentions towards you or the Duke of Chu's mansion."

"This humble official thanks Your Highness for the information you provided earlier." Jiang Yu reached out to pour tea for Prince An. Her slender, fair fingers held the porcelain teacup, making her appear even more exquisite and eye-catching.

Prince An's gaze lingered on those beautiful fingers for a moment before he asked, "Lord Jiang, have you made any discoveries?"

Jiang Yu placed the teacup in front of him. "Does Your Highness think I have made any discoveries?"

Since the other party had already made a guess and even followed her here, it would be rather unwise to deny it outright now. Moreover, Prince An hadn't left a bad impression on her; in fact, he had shown goodwill twice before. Jiang Yu felt there was no need to reject him immediately.

However, their interests did not intersect with Prince An's, and their relationship was not very deep, so she would not completely trust Prince An.

At this moment, Prince An's voice rang out, "Lord Jiang has discovered the problem with the military supplies, hasn't he?"

His voice was certain, and Jiang Yu was shocked, but her smiling face betrayed no emotion. She countered, "Has Your Highness discovered anything amiss with the military supplies?"

Prince An leaned back in his chair, looking at Jiang Yu with a half-smile, "Lord Jiang, I am very sincere."

Jiang Yu met his gaze for a moment, then asked, "Does the royal family possess a collection of Mohist books? Is Prince Rui studying those Mohist books?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Prince An's face darkened. "Lord Jiang is a smart man. He should understand that matters concerning Prince Rui are not something that ordinary people can inquire about."

It was as if many sharp spikes suddenly sprouted from his body. Jiang Yu was taken aback, but then, remembering what she had heard about the relationship between Prince An and Prince Rui, she understood.

She explained, "I am merely interested in the works of the Mohists."

Prince An looked at her with deep eyes. Seeing her frank expression, he softened his tone and said, "The royal family does indeed have a collection of Mohist books."

He didn't mention Prince Rui, and Jiang Yu naturally didn't either. She said, "I've come today because I'm somewhat interested in HSBC Ironware Workshop."

Seeing that she had shown some sincerity, Prince An's expression softened. He picked up the teacup in front of him, drank it all in one gulp, and then said, "The Huifeng Ironware Shop was opened after the expansion of the army. The owner, Hong Yong, is from Liuzhou County and appeared out of nowhere. However, he has a very close relationship with Xiang Yong of the Military Equipment Bureau."

Jiang Yu: "So, when the Ironware Division was unable to take on more weapon forging, Xiang Yonghe outsourced some of the weapon forging to HSBC Ironware Workshop?"

Prince An nodded. "It is said that there was an accident at the Ironware Bureau that killed three blacksmith masters."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yu clenched her fist. "What accident?"

Prince An: "Explosion! It's said that an apprentice had a happy occasion at home and bought a lot of firecrackers, which he placed in the blacksmith's workshop. Somehow, the blacksmith's furnace tipped over, igniting the firecrackers, and they exploded."

Jiang Yu: "...Didn't the Dali Temple do anything about it back then?"

Prince An looked at her and said, "The Dali Temple investigated, and the result was an accident."

A silence fell over the room. Something about this matter seemed suspicious. After a while, Jiang Yu said, "I was checking the Ministry of Revenue's official documents from the past few years in the archives. I found that in the 16th year of Jinghe, it took 6 jin of iron to forge a spear. In the 17th year of Jinghe, it took 6.5 jin. By the 18th year of Jinghe, it took 7 jin."

Prince An's expression was very solemn. Half a pound or a pound of iron didn't amount to much silver, but the sheer quantity was staggering. Considering the expansion of the army over the past two years and the losses of the old spears, it truly was a massive number.

Moreover, while spears were made in this way, armor, saddles, and other weapons and supplies were also made at HSBC Ironworks. Are there similar cases for these items?

At this moment, Jiang Yu's voice rang out again, "Armor, saddles, and other military supplies made in the ironworks all require an increased amount of iron."

Prince An pursed his lips, and after a while looked at Jiang Yu and asked, "What do you plan to do?"

Jiang Yu: "We cannot report to the Emperor immediately, lest we alert the enemy. We should investigate the matter thoroughly first, and then inform the Emperor."

Prince An understood that this was only part of the reason. The reason Jiang Yu didn't say was that by investigating the matter thoroughly before reporting it, the Duke of Chu's mansion would have more leverage. Of course, in this complex court, Jiang Yu's approach was understandable.

“If you need anything, just let me know,” he said.

Jiang Yu looked at him silently. Agreeing to his request meant that their Chu State Duke's Mansion would be in a cooperative relationship with Prince An from now on. Prince An was no ordinary prince; he was a prince. As long as one was the emperor's son, he had the potential to vie for the throne, and almost all of them harbored this ambition.

Seeing her silence, Prince An turned to look at the calligraphy and paintings on the wall, holding his cup. He gave Jiang Yu time to think, after all, this was no small matter. But after a while, he still didn't hear Jiang Yu's voice.

Turning around, he saw Jiang Yu staring blankly at the cup in front of him, seemingly lost in thought. Knowing this was a difficult decision, he put down the cup and said, "Lord Jiang, don't forget, I am in charge of the Embroidered Uniform Guard."