That's not all. No matter how much goods Sun Jian brought to his shop, they were always sold out as soon as they hit the shelves.

His prices haven't gone up, but the prices of street vendors are getting higher every day.

Nowadays, quite a few people make a living by reselling products from Sun Jian's shop.

It is unclear whether this was because Sun Jian was appointed as the deputy commander of the Tiger Guard.

In any case, Sun Jian's workshop has only produced two things so far: fine salt and a wine called Forget-Worry Valley.

When Sun Jian's shop first opened, Emperor Ganwu had already ordered his servants to go and make purchases.

It must be said that Sun Jian's fine salt was indeed more refined than that of the imperial kitchen, and tasted better!

It's said to be even more effective! Eating too much of the fine salt from the imperial kitchen is harmful to health, supposedly due to mineral poisoning.

"Mineral poisoning?"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Qianwu immediately recalled that in the Juxian Tower in Hongnong County, Sun Jian had warned him against consuming elixirs of immortality, as they contained mercury and lead, which could cause poisoning…

Emperor Ganwu at the time found it quite amusing.

Emperor Ganwu could never understand how Sun Jian managed to obtain such a complex and difficult-to-refine salt at such a low cost, and how he was able to mass-produce it.

He sent people to investigate the Sun family's residence, and the result was that they used coarse salt blocks to purify and obtain fine salt.

As the ruler of a country, he didn't take such a trivial matter concerning his subjects to heart.

He initially thought Sun Jian was merely trying to acquire wealth through some tricks, but instead, he believed that paying taxes to the country would be a win-win situation, until the emergence of the high-proof liquor "Forget-Worry Valley"...

Emperor Ganwu then realized that Sun Jian's abilities were truly hidden, and that he was not someone who knew little tricks, methods, or opportunistic gains.

"His ambition is to become the greatest merchant and amass wealth from all over the world!"

"Good lad! Just how much more are you hiding..."

How many secrets does he still hold?

If refining salt is just a trivial matter, then the Valley of Forgetfulness is where they truly demonstrate their extraordinary abilities!

Because the best-selling and most popular product is this Forget-Worry Valley!

Not only were restaurants, brothels, and other establishments frantically buying up goods, but officials of all ranks, royalty, and high-ranking people were also hoarding them.

Emperor Qianwu also tasted it himself, and he praised it highly, calling it a fine nectar and heavenly wine!

Because no wine in the world can compare to it, not even come close.

Sun Jian sold a bottle of Forget-Worry Valley for ten to twenty taels of silver, but it could be resold for several times that price, and even then, the supply couldn't meet the demand, which shows how popular it was...

Emperor Ganwu pulled himself out of these thoughts, frowned, and turned his gaze back to Mi Zhu, the Minister of Revenue.

Upon closer reflection, there are simply too many strange and outrageous things about Sun Jian.

It is not unreasonable for Mi Zhu, the Minister of Revenue, to make such remarks.

Even the founding emperor, Emperor Qianwu, felt that Sun Jian was difficult to control...

"Minister Mi, how should I investigate this matter, as you suggest?"

"This old minister...this old minister dares not speak presumptuously!"

Emperor Ganwu's lips twitched, somewhat speechless.

Now that we've come this far, you're going to tell me now that you wouldn't dare to speak recklessly?

So what was the purpose of the examples and the things you brought up earlier?

"Speak freely, I won't blame you!"

Emperor Ganwu remained calm and composed.

"Your Majesty, rumors are circulating throughout our Great Gan that Sun Jian is either an immortal banished to earth or a demon incarnate..."

Before Minister of Revenue Mi Zhu could finish speaking, Yao Tianzheng frowned and immediately interrupted him.

"Lord Mi! Be careful what you say!"

"How dare you utter such words offend His Majesty's ears!"

That being said, Yao Tian was actually worried that these remarks would have a negative impact on Sun Jian.

Leaving aside the issue of immortals being banished to the mortal realm, if this idiot insists on steering the conversation towards the topic of demons and monsters, then he will truly be harming Sun Jian.

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But in any case, the emperor is the true Son of Heaven, wise and powerful. Since the emperor employed Sun Jian, yet he called Sun Jian a monster, wouldn't that make the emperor unable to judge people and unable to distinguish between loyalty and treachery?

Minister of Revenue Mi Zhu was immediately frightened by Yao Tianzheng's remarks and knelt down to pay his respects to Emperor Qianwu, saying, "This old minister knows his crime, Your Majesty. This old minister has misspoke and begs Your Majesty to punish me."

Before the emperor could speak, Yao Tianzheng added, "Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven, the Emperor of Men, wise and mighty, and you employ people without regard to convention. How could rumors and gossip shake your authority?"

"Your Majesty, please forgive Lord Mi's crime!"

Emperor Ganwu did not speak. He first glanced at Yao Tianzheng, his lips curling up as he muttered to himself, "Old man." Only then did he let Mi Zhu get up.

Emperor Ganwu's thoughts were not shared by others.

In his view, all of Sun Jian's deeds were beneficial to the people, whether it was the new grain varieties or his risky proposal to deal with the locust plague.

Therefore, Emperor Ganwu dared to conclude that the rumors circulating among the people that Sun Jian was a "deity banished to the mortal realm" might be true, but the rumors that Sun Jian was a "reincarnation of a demon" were somewhat of a deliberate attack.

Those who could spread such rumors and create panic among the people were none other than the few people Sun Jian had offended...

However, Emperor Ganwu saw through it but didn't say anything, and didn't dwell on the issue too much.

His biggest concern was whether Sun Jian would be loyal to Crown Prince Li Gancheng when he ascended the throne; he didn't care about anything else.

Emperor Ganwu said earnestly, "There are always some strange and bizarre rumors circulating among the people. Such remarks should not be heeded."

"Minister Mi is concerned about the country and has no crime to be punished."

After expressing his views, Emperor Ganwu said, "Although there are some strange things about this Attendant Sun, I believe he is a person of conscience. We will investigate the strange things in detail later. At the very least, since Attendant Sun was killed in the capital, I have never seen him take revenge on anyone. On the contrary, everything he has done has benefited the country and the people."

"How can someone who has made such a great contribution to my cause be misled by rumors and make unfounded speculations? This matter should not be mentioned again in the future; let's just let it go."

At this point, Emperor Ganwu pointed at Yao Tianzheng: "Minister Yao, please investigate carefully the rumors about Sun Shidu that Minister Mi mentioned."

Upon hearing this, Yao Tianzheng immediately understood. His eyes lit up, as if he had thought of something, and he quickly cupped his hands and bowed in greeting.

"Your humble servant obeys the imperial decree!"

"Alright, that's enough for today. I'm getting tired. You may all leave."

"Your Majesty, we obey your command. We take our leave..."

...

Outside Kyoto, the Tiger Warriors' camp.

Time flies, and three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Since Sun Jian decided to start his investigation with the army's accounts three days ago, there has been no progress whatsoever.

Forget about progress, we haven't even found a single clue!