Cao Song took the wooden stick from his wife's hand and looked at Cao Cao with a sinister smile.

"You traitor, look at the stick...!"

"Ah~..!"

With a loud shout from Cao Song, screams of agony echoed throughout the Cao residence.

"Phew, that feels so good!"

After beating his son, Cao Song walked out of the living room feeling refreshed, and didn't forget to stretch his arms.

Just then, the guard at the gate led a young eunuch from the palace in quickly.

"This humble servant greets the Grand Minister of Agriculture. By imperial decree, the Grand Minister of Agriculture is summoned to an audience!"

"Your subject Cao Song obeys the imperial edict!"

Cao Song had been so busy beating his son that when he learned that the emperor had summoned him, he remembered that there was another important matter. So he quickly called his coachman, Old Xu, and they hurried to the palace.

Inside the Deyang Palace, Liu Hong sat with his eyes slightly closed behind his desk, with Lü Qiang and Zhao Zhong standing beside him.

Across from the emperor's desk, Zhang Rang's elder brother, Zhang Zhong, was excitedly recounting his various experiences in the Western Regions to Liu Hong.

"Your Majesty, on my recent journey to the Western Regions, I passed through Shanshan, Gaochang, Qiancheshi, Yanqi, Wusang, and Kucha... Those places are rich in fruits, grapes, dates, and various nuts, as well as many exquisite jade stones, making them quite prosperous..."

Liu Hong smiled and asked, "Are the common people richer, or are the kings and nobles richer...?"

Zhang Zhong was taken aback: "Kings and nobles are rich!"

Liu Hong continued, "And what about the common people? How do they compare to the people of my Great Han?"

"this....."

Zhang Zhong was slightly taken aback, and quickly lowered his head, not daring to say anything more.

Liu Hong looked at Zhang Zhong and said in a deep voice, "Tell the truth!"

"promise!"

Zhang Zhongying replied, then cautiously said, "Your Majesty, the people of the Western Regions, like the Qiang and the grassland people, are merely the private slaves of those nobles and kings."

Those nobles and kings, however, were quite shrewd in their judgments and did not treat their people too harshly, so their lives were better than those of the people in the border regions of the Han Dynasty!

Liu Hong nodded, his expression somewhat grave: "No wonder our Great Han has been unable to completely control the Western Regions for so many years, so that's how it is..."

If the people of the Western Regions can survive, they will naturally submit to their nobles and kings. With the support of the people, the kingdoms of the Western Regions can easily rebel.

Seeing this, Zhang Zhong quickly said, "I believe that with Your Majesty here, in a few years, the people of our Great Han will far surpass them..."

"Heh, you're quite the smooth talker."

Liu Hong was clearly pleased with Zhang Zhong's flattery, and then asked again, "How do the Western Regions countries view our Great Han Dynasty now?"

Zhang Zhonggong replied respectfully, "Your Majesty, most of the kingdoms in the Western Regions hold our Great Han in awe, but Shanshan, Gaochang, and Houcheshi seem to harbor disloyal intentions!"

Liu Hong nodded. What Zhang Zhong said was not much different from the intelligence that Cheng Yu had sent.

"Your Majesty, I purchased a large quantity of cotton on my trip to the Western Regions. Knowing that Your Majesty is fond of this product, I am now willing to offer it all to Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty will accept it!"

Liu Hong chuckled lightly: "Oh? If you were to give them all to me, wouldn't you have made a wasted trip?"

Zhang Zhong immediately bowed his head: "Your Majesty, my family has received great favors from you, and it is only right and proper for us to serve you!"

Liu Hong smiled and said, "Alright, I understand your intentions, so I will accept them!"

Then Liu Hong looked at Zhao Zhong beside him and said, "Make arrangements to have the Zhang family join the Royal Merchant Guild and allocate them some trade quotas!"

"promise!!"

Zhao Zhonggong responded to the order.

"This humble servant is deeply grateful for Your Majesty's great kindness!"

Zhang Zhong was overjoyed and immediately kowtowed to express his gratitude. Being able to join the Royal Merchant Guild would be enough to propel the Zhang family to new heights.

"Alright, from now on you just need to do your jobs diligently. I will not treat you unfairly. You may now leave!"

"This humble servant takes his leave!"

Zhang Zhong also bowed respectfully and took his leave, only turning away when he reached the entrance of the hall.

Not long after Zhang Zhong left, Cao Song also strode into the hall.

After the emperor and his minister exchanged greetings, Liu Hong first asked, "How did the Grand Minister of Agriculture's investigation at the West Market go today?"

Cao Song respectfully replied, "Your Majesty, those goods from the Western Regions are indeed of high quality, and the nobles of Luoyang are quite fond of them. I believe we can organize another caravan to the Western Regions!"

"Oh? So they only like those products...?"

Liu Hong chuckled softly and gave Cao Song a strange look.

"Well...!"

Upon hearing this, Cao Song blushed and didn't know how to respond.

"Forget it, I can't be bothered with those things. Grand Minister of Agriculture, let's talk about cotton!"

"promise!"

Liu Hong was not particularly concerned about the fact that powerful figures, including Cao Song, had a fondness for women from the Western Regions; his primary concern was the cotton industry.

Cao Song then reported, "Your Majesty, this year we planted 500 mu of cotton north of the Yellow River, and the yield was 1,300 jin!"

Liu Hong smiled and said, "Not bad, the output is quite good!"

"Yes, Your Majesty. According to reports from my observers, although cotton prefers water, it does not have high requirements for soil. It can grow in ordinary fields. Therefore, I believe that it can still grow in places with low grain yields, such as You, Bing, and Liang, except for the major rivers and lakes."

The vigorous promotion of cotton will not have a significant impact on the grain output of the Han Dynasty!

Liu Hong nodded in satisfaction: "Well, that's good. The imperial caravan brought back a lot of cotton seeds this time. As for promoting cotton, the Grand Minister of Agriculture will be in charge. He should work with the people at the Agricultural College to revise the guidelines for planting cotton as soon as possible!"

"promise!!"

Liu Hong then asked, "In your opinion, how does the cotton produced in the Yellow River region compare to that from the Western Regions?"

Cao Song thought for a moment and then said, "Your Majesty, according to my observation, the cotton from the Western Regions has a high yield, is soft, snow-white, and has strong silk, making it more effective at keeping warm!"

Liu Hong's expression shifted: "So, if we want high-quality cotton, we'll have to get it from the Western Regions!"

Cao Song nodded: "Not bad!"

"Haha~, great, this is good news!"

At this point, a brilliant idea suddenly popped into Liu Hong's head, and he burst into laughter.

"Your Majesty, what's wrong...?"

Seeing the emperor suddenly burst into laughter, Cao Song, Zhao Zhong, Lü Qiang, and the others in the hall were taken aback.

After laughing, Liu Hong looked at Cao Song and asked, "Does the Grand Minister of Agriculture know the story of Qi's conquest of the Hengshan Kingdom?"

Cao Song was taken aback, then said, "Hengshan State is rich in weapons. Back then, in order to attack Hengshan State, but not wanting to lose any soldiers, Qi State adopted Guan Zhong's strategy and purchased a large number of weapons from Hengshan State. As a result, the entire Hengshan State abandoned land cultivation and other industries and focused on blacksmithing."

Meanwhile, the State of Qi used this opportunity to sell grain and other goods to the State of Hengshan at high prices. After Hengshan stockpiled a large amount of weapons, Qi suddenly stopped buying from them and cut off their food supply. Ultimately, Qi conquered Hengshan at a very low cost.

At the end, Cao Song paused, then his eyes lit up: "Does Your Majesty intend to use this to deal with the Western Regions...?"