"Lord Zhuang, what Lord Mi said is true. Our Da Gan is indeed full of hidden talents and outstanding individuals. First, there was the extraordinary talent of Mr. Sun, and then there was the business genius of the behind-the-scenes manager of Qiankun Hall."

"If things continue to develop in this way, Da Gan will surely prosper in the future, attracting all nations to pay tribute!"

Zhuang Qishi stroked his beard once more and nodded in approval.

"Indeed, what the two adults say is correct!"

"Although the way of commerce is considered a lowly profession and not worth mentioning, it is not difficult to see from the items produced by Qiankun Hall that the manager behind it must be an extraordinary person. Such ingenious ideas are rare in the world, and such a talent should not be limited to the development of the art of commerce."

At this point, Zhuang Qishi cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Li Gancheng: "This old minister hopes that Your Highness will select the best and appoint the most capable person, invite him to come out of seclusion and assist you, make this behind-the-scenes manager of Qiankun Hall a minister of the Prince's residence, grant him the title of Jinshi, and let him come out of seclusion to assist Your Highness!"

"Although I have never met him, I know that if such a talent were to receive guidance and instruction in various essential academic subjects, he might become Your Highness's right-hand man in the future!"

"..."

Li Gancheng was completely speechless, too embarrassed to know how to respond.

Yao Tian was already grinning from ear to ear, his smile even wider than AK's, but he didn't say a word.

Seeing that Li Gancheng remained silent and did not offer any opinion throughout, Zhuang Qishi assumed that Crown Prince Li Gancheng was somewhat embarrassed and felt that this merchant did not need him, a member of the royal family and heir apparent, to lower himself to visit him, and he immediately became somewhat displeased.

As the Grand Tutor to the Crown Prince, he naturally had the responsibility of instructing the Crown Prince.

At this moment, Zhuang Qishi disregarded the occasion and directly offered his advice.

"Your Highness, in ancient times there were magistrates who bowed three times to great sages to come out of seclusion. A ruler should not only know how to manage his ministers, but also have the ability to recognize talent!"

"A fine horse is common, but a discerning eye is rare. Great sages have been few and far between throughout history. One should not look down on someone's background simply because they come from a humble origin..."

Sun Jian was getting a headache listening to the old man's incessant chatter.

His Highness the Crown Prince isn't responding to you; he must have his reasons and his unspeakable difficulties. Why are you, old man, keeping asking?

And shouldn't the saying in later generations be, "A thousand-mile horse is common, but a discerning eye is rare"?

How come it changed when it came to Old Deng?

Moreover, very few people in the entire Daqian region know that he is the behind-the-scenes manager of Qiankun Hall.

Even the emperor himself was keeping it a secret, so how could Li Gancheng reveal it in front of so many people?

Sun Jian ignored Zhuang Qishi and instead took a bite of the meat that Chun Qiong had brought him.

After chewing a few bites, Sun Jian's eyes lit up.

Holy crap!

Sure, this tastes great!

Venison cooked over a low flame is incredibly fragrant, juicy, sweet, and has a wonderfully chewy texture.

Paired with their own Forget-Worry Valley product, it's truly top-of-the-line!

I never expected that Magistrate Chun would know how to enjoy himself so much!

After taking a couple of bites, Sun Jian poured himself a small cup of Forget-Worry Valley wine. Just as he brought it to his lips, intending to drink it all in one gulp, he suddenly felt that the aroma was a little off.

Sun Jian leaned closer and took a sniff, then frowned.

I tried taking a sip...

"puff!"

Sun Jian spat out the Forget-Worry Valley from his mouth.

Holy crap!

Fake alcohol!

His sudden action startled everyone, even bringing Zhuang Qishi, who had been advising Li Gancheng, to an abrupt halt.

Everyone turned to look, their faces full of confusion.

"Brother Sun, what's wrong?"

Li Gancheng also looked puzzled. His brother Sun was not usually like this. What was wrong with him today? Why did he suddenly do this?

Sun Jian pursed his lips helplessly, not in a hurry to answer Li Gancheng's question. Instead, he stood up and took a small sip of the Forget-Worry Valley on Lord Mi's table next to him, and then spat it out on the ground again.

Others might not have noticed anything from Sun Jian's reaction, but Li Gancheng and Yao Tianzheng seemed to have figured it out.

"Sir, could there be something wrong with this wine?"

Yao Tianzheng then asked Sun Jian a question.

Sun Jian frowned, first nodding to Yao Tianzheng, then cupping his hands in a gesture of respect to Li Gancheng and saying, "Your Highness, this Forget-Worry Valley wine is counterfeit, or you could say it's fake."

What! ?

Fake alcohol?

Oh my god...

After hearing Sun Jian's words, everyone was stunned. Mi Zhu, Xing Kang, and several other ministers hurriedly took a small sip of the Forget-Worry Valley wine on the table, but they did not find anything wrong with it. On the contrary, they found the wine to be excellent, with a lingering fragrance and an unforgettable aftertaste. Their puzzled expressions deepened.

Sun Jian rolled his eyes at the group of people helplessly, thinking to himself with disdain.

Why are you looking at me like that...?

You guys are drinking my family's Forget-Worry Valley for the first time, how could you possibly tell the difference between real and fake!

Li Gancheng, Yao Tianzheng, and the others had tasted this Forget-Worry Valley before, and they also took a small sip to try it. Although they couldn't tell the difference between the real and fake, the taste and concentration were indeed far inferior to the Forget-Worry Valley that Sun Jian had given them to taste.

"Fake alcohol??"

Upon hearing Sun Jian's words, Chunqiong's eyes widened in fright, and her whole body began to tremble.

"This...this! This can't be right!"

"This wine, I... I bought it from a winery in Gaoling County at a high price!"

Magistrate Chun, who had already been terrified by Crown Prince Li Gancheng, was now publicly accused by the rising star Lord Sun of presenting him with counterfeit wine. His legs went weak, and he knelt down with a thud, stammering as he spoke.

Everyone saw that Chunqiong was almost in tears, kowtowing and begging for mercy, and they all asked Sun Jian if he had made a mistake.

Chunqiong was, in the end, just a minor seventh-rank county magistrate, a nobody. How could he possibly dare to lie in front of His Highness the Crown Prince? That would be a capital offense.

He couldn't possibly go bankrupt just to get the crown prince to execute him in a fit of rage, could he?

Sun Jian looked helpless and rolled his eyes at the ministers who were speaking up for Chunqiong.

Sun Jian didn't know what Chunqiong was thinking, nor did he want to think about it, but the wine was undeniably fake.

You know perfectly well what's going on with the Forget-Worry Valley you produced yourself.

This wine is clearly a high-quality counterfeit of Wangyou Valley, and it's even a concoction.

Sun Jian originally thought that the rampant counterfeit goods in later generations was one thing, but he did not expect that counterfeit goods would be just as rampant in this feudal era.

"Sir, are you sure there's something wrong with this wine?"

"Yes, sir, have you tried it or...?"

"Sir, how exactly did you determine that this wine was fake? Or how did you identify that it wasn't produced by Qiankuntang?"

Sun Jian's face darkened, and the corners of his mouth twitched.

"hehe……"

"How else can we identify it?"

Holy crap…

I'm coming clean, I'm not pretending anymore!

I originally wanted to interact with you as an ordinary person, but instead I was met with skepticism.