Upon hearing Liu Hong's question, Li Ying and Chen Fan exchanged a glance, somewhat puzzled as to why the emperor would ask such a simple question.

Li Ying said, "It's because the profits from the Nine Tripods are so great that they've become greedy!"

"That's right, it's greed!"

Liu Hong smiled and continued, "Do you know the value of the things I bestowed upon the Xianbei envoys?"

Chen Fan thought for a moment and said, "The cost is seven million coins, and the selling price should be fifty million coins!"

"Yes, in the Han Dynasty it can be sold for 50 million coins, worth 60,000 shi of grain...! So on the grasslands it can be exchanged for cattle, sheep and horses worth at least 400 million coins..."

As he finished speaking, Liu Hong's lips curled up slightly, and he looked at the two of them with a meaningful gaze.

Li Ying's expression shifted: "Your Majesty means... the Xiongnu might steal the rewards you gave to the Xianbei...?"

"Heh~, it's not just a possibility, it's a certainty that they'll be kidnapped...!"

Liu Hong chuckled and said with great confidence.

"Your Majesty is right. Something worth 60,000 shi of grain is enough to feed 30,000 able-bodied men for two months. It is indeed enough to cause a frenzy among the tribes of the grasslands..."

Li Ying nodded. Those things would be considered valuable even within the Han Dynasty, let alone on the grasslands.

Liu Hong's eyes gleamed: "Yes, how could Tan Shihuai let the easy prey that was already in his mouth be snatched away...?"

After saying this, Liu Hong looked at Li Ying and said in a deep voice:

"Grand Commandant, you can send a message to General Zhang, instructing him to send someone to exaggerate the value of those rewards as much as possible and reveal it to the Xiongnu. At the same time, you should also secretly provide the Xiongnu with a batch of damaged weapons and armor!"

"promise!!"

Li Ying bowed and replied.

Then Liu Hong looked at Chen Fan: "Recently, the School of Engineering has been researching new methods of steelmaking, which is why a large number of inferior ironwares have been piled up in the warehouse."

The Grand Tutor can send a message to Ding Yuan, the Prefect of Jiuyuan, instructing him to secretly support a local powerful figure and sell the ironware to the Xiongnu and Xianbei on the grasslands!

"This...would the grasslands even want those inferior products?" Chen Fan stared blankly at Liu Hong.

Liu Hong waved his hand: "It's inferior quality for us, but it's no less valuable than fine iron for the grasslands. They'll definitely be scrambling to get it!"

"Moreover, this way, the engineering department can recoup its research costs from them and have more funds available to research even better things."

"If they use those iron tools, then the Han Dynasty can develop corresponding weapons and armor, which would be a win-win situation!"

Chen Fan's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty is wise! In this way, the grasslands will forever be subject to the Han Dynasty! Your Majesty's plan is indeed far-sighted, and this old minister admires it!"

Liu Hong smiled and waved his hand: "Oh, what scheme do I have? This is just an advantage in technology."

As long as the Han Dynasty's technology and industry remain forever ahead of theirs, reaching a level they can never reach, then neither the grasslands nor the Zhou states will be more than a piece of paper, easily broken by our Han Dynasty...!"

Science and technology are the primary productive forces; this statement applies to any era.

Then Liu Hong looked at the two of them with a solemn expression: "This matter must be kept secret for now, and no one else must know about it!"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty!!"

Chen Fan and Li Ying also nodded solemnly.

"Alright, you two ministers, you may go and get back to your work!"

"We take our leave!"

After Chen Fan and Li Ying left, Liu Hong sat back down at his desk, picked up a research report from Hua Tuo, and began to examine it carefully.

The report outlines the various difficulties currently faced by surgery, the most important of which are the issues of developing new drugs and various surgical procedures.

After all, developing new drugs and performing surgeries requires a lot of experiments and repeated testing. Only after confirming that there are no problems can they be deployed and used on one's own army and civilians.

However, this requires a large number of "test subjects".

"Sigh... it seems I'll have to go down this path eventually..."

After reading the report, Liu Hong rubbed his forehead and sighed helplessly.

After only a moment's hesitation, Liu Hong took out paper and pen, preparing to write a secret letter to Cheng Yu.

Shortly after the secret letter was written, Liu Hong sealed it and looked out of the palace.

"Someone come here!!"

"exist!!"

A member of the Imperial Guard who was on duty outside the hall strode in.

"What are your orders, Your Majesty?"

Liu Hong picked up the secret letter and handed it to his personal guard, saying in a deep voice:

"Immediately take this secret letter and rush to Liangzhou to deliver it to Cheng Yu!"

"promise!!"

Liu Hong looked at his guards with a solemn expression: "And... this letter must be personally delivered to Cheng Yu. No one else must know its contents!!"

"Please rest assured, Your Majesty!!"

The guard nodded heavily, then carefully placed the secret letter into his pocket.

"Consider this your forgiveness..."

Watching his guards leave, Liu Hong murmured something softly before closing his eyes.

Medical advancements undoubtedly bring enormous benefits to a nation, but they are also fraught with bloodshed and cruelty.

......

By afternoon, Dou Miao and the others who had gone to the Taiping Sect to pray for the emperor also returned to Luoyang.

Dou Miao's imperial edict praising Zhao Ning and ordering him to be recommended as a filial and incorruptible official also caused a great stir through the Henan governor's report.

In an instant, the name Zhao Ning spread to the ears of all the scholars and officials in Luoyang.

"What is the Empress Dowager trying to do? How can she allow a powerful merchant to be recommended for the civil service examination...?"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!