Because of the strong liquor, the meal was quite enjoyable.

"Nephew, since this device works so well, and we still have five or six empty rooms in the house, let's make more of these devices tomorrow and make a bar together!"

Jing Zhe nodded; this was exactly what he was thinking.

"Nephew, in your estimation, how much spirits can you make in a day?"

Jing Zhe thought for a moment and said, "From morning to night, forty or fifty jars should be about right."

"Forty or fifty jars..."

Zhang Xuexian muttered a few words, looking somewhat disappointed.

He's already lost over a thousand taels of silver. If he only has forty or fifty jars of strong liquor a day, when will he ever be able to break even, let alone make a profit?

Jing Zhe saw his expression and laughed, "I heard that a bowl of ice wine in Jingzhou City costs five hundred coins?"

Zhang Xuexian nodded.

"There's more than one ice wine shop in Jingzhou that can sell it for such a high price. And the spirits that can only be drunk by relying on tributes from barbarians must cost much more, right?"

Zhang Xuexian's eyes lit up, and he immediately understood.

Compared to the price of ice wine, it wouldn't be unreasonable for a bowl of strong liquor to sell for one or two taels of silver or even more. Wouldn't a jar of strong liquor sell for four or five taels?

Thinking that he could earn three or four hundred taels of silver a day, Zhang Xuexian couldn't contain his excitement. "In that case, let's start making wine tomorrow, and I'll go out to sell it the day after tomorrow!"

Jing Zhe looked at him and shook his head, "There's no rush to sell this strong liquor."

"Not in a hurry to sell?"

Zhang Xuexian almost blurted out, "I'm anxious."

"Uncle, please calm down. The Prince of Jin's heir is clearly targeting the Zhang family. There are countless eyes watching us. If he finds out we can make strong liquor and uses underhanded tactics, how will we sell it?"

Zhang Xuexian nodded solemnly, yet with a hint of reluctance: "Then what should we do?"

"If Uncle trusts me, I'll take care of this!"

He was the one who made all the strong liquor, so Zhang Xuexian had no reason not to trust him and nodded repeatedly.

After dinner, Jing Zhe, under the pretext of "market research," slipped away with Hanhan and disappeared into the night of Jingzhou.

...

There are two sides to the story.

When Jing Zhe arrived at Zhang Xiaoyu's house, a heated debate was taking place in the Anguo court.

In the Golden Palace, the morning court session, which usually ended as early as 9:00 AM, had been delayed by several hours.

Emperor An, the current ruler of Anguo, sat on the dragon throne with a gloomy and melancholy expression. The court was noisy, and the civil and military officials were arguing fiercely over a certain matter.

"Your Majesty, I believe that the intention of the Third Prince of Southern Qi in coming to Jingzhou this time is not merely for exchange. They want to use the guise of exchange to severely damage the morale of the scholars and generals of our An Kingdom. Their intentions are despicable!"

A young official stepped forward, holding a memorial to the throne, and said...

The noisy courtroom paused for a moment. Everyone looked at the young censor as if he were a fool. Everyone knew the intentions of the Third Prince of Southern Qi who brought his envoy to the capital. Why was he pretending?

With a brain like that, how could he be an imperial censor?

Go home and farm!

"Your Majesty, I believe that this marriage alliance is a viable option! Southern Qi is currently a powerful military force. Among the four kingdoms surrounding my An Kingdom, they are the strongest, as evidenced by their recent battle with Yue on the border!"

Upon hearing this, the civil and military officials in the court fell silent. The development of Southern Qi in recent years was obvious to all, especially the combat power of its army, which was probably unmatched even by two Anguo.

Hearing this, everyone felt even more apprehensive. If Yue were replaced by An, could they win?

The old man who was speaking was very satisfied with everyone's reaction. He stroked his gray beard and smiled, "The eldest prince of Southern Qi died young, the second prince was weak and sickly, and only the third prince was the most favored by the emperor of Southern Qi."

I've heard that the third prince of Southern Qi is proficient in both literature and military strategy. His talent in poetry is even greater; at a young age, he was virtually unmatched in Southern Qi. In recent years, he has also studied military strategy, and it is he who has been in command of Southern Qi's foreign campaigns, which is why they have won so many battles!

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Moreover, I've heard that this Third Prince is handsome and has an extraordinary bearing. If the princess were to marry him, it wouldn't be a bad thing..."

Before he could even finish speaking, he was rudely interrupted by someone next to him.

"Hey Bai, are you an envoy for the Third Prince of Southern Qi? If he's so good, why don't you marry your daughter to him? Oh, I forgot, you old bird can't even have a child!"

Unexpectedly, a simple court dispute instantly turned into a personal attack. The old man with the gray beard pointed his trembling finger at the burly man who was speaking, too angry to speak!

"His Majesty!"

He thought about it and realized there was really nothing to say to this kind of wild and uncivilized man, so he could only ask Emperor An for help.

"Minister Bai, you may leave now..."

The long-bearded old man stopped talking, glanced at the man who had confronted him, gave a cold "snort," and retreated.

"My dear minister, what suggestions do you have?"

At this moment, a middle-aged man stepped out from the crowd. He was none other than the current Prime Minister, Zhu Tong. He bowed respectfully and spoke eloquently.

"Your Majesty, throughout history, looking at the affairs of various nations, no country has ever achieved prosperity through marriage alliances. How long can marriage alliances ease tensions? One year? Two years? What about eight or ten years later? Marriage alliances are merely a means, not an end; they only bring temporary peace! I urge Your Majesty to reconsider!"

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!"

Zhu Tong was of high status, and as soon as he finished speaking, he received a response from nearly half of the people in the court.

"good!"

Emperor An seemed to have been waiting for this answer. He glanced at Zhu Tong and his eyes were full of satisfaction.

The elderly man surnamed Bai, Bai Qingyuan, who was the Grand Tutor of Anguo, stepped forward again: "Your Majesty, I understand the reasoning that Prime Minister Zhu is making, but have you all considered that if we don't have a marriage alliance, we won't even have a brief period of peace?"

Emperor An frowned, somewhat displeased, but more so with helplessness and self-blame.

That was his most beloved only daughter!

Although he is a father, he is also a monarch. He cannot only think about himself, but must think about the people of the world!

As a father, he had to sacrifice his daughter's happiness for the peace and prosperity of the people; no one could understand his pain.

Seeing Emperor An hesitate, Bai Qingyuan stepped forward again and said, "Your Majesty, the Southern Qi is currently very powerful. After finishing the war with the Yue Kingdom, it has been recuperating and is poised to move north. We cannot hesitate any longer!"

"I understand!"

Emperor An glanced at him, his eyes filled with anger. Bai Qingyuan saw it, but he felt little fear.

"Let's end the morning court session here. It's been going on for so long, I'm sure all of you are tired. Go back and rest!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty, regarding the matter of the marriage alliance..."

Bai Qingyuan was still unwilling, but then he saw Emperor An stand up and walk towards the inner hall, waving his hand as he went.

"I still need to discuss this matter with Mo Chen."

"..."

————