"emperor."

Ran, the military supervisor from the northern desert, knelt respectfully, holding a painting high in his hands.

Gu Yuchen glanced at him, then put away the memorial and casually leaned back on the dragon throne. Only after Zhao Xi took the painting did he speak: "Tell me, what was it like going to the northern desert?"

Eunuch Ran said in a low voice, "This old servant went to the northern desert in disguise. Starting from Dingzhou, I went from one prefecture to another. I could clearly feel that the people of the northern desert all respected His Highness Prince Qin."

Just then, Gu Yuchen slowly stood up and glanced at the painting.

The painting depicts a simple scene of prosperity in several prefectures in northern Mongolia.

Looking at these portraits, Gu Yuchen couldn't help but raise an eyebrow slightly: "Little Six really has some talent."

His tone was flat, revealing no emotion whatsoever. Even Zhao Xi, who had been by his side for so many years, couldn't help but feel a little worried for the young prince.

What does the Emperor mean by this? Is it genuine praise, or is he already on guard?

Gu Yuchen raised his chin, and Zhao Xi hurriedly stepped forward to put the scroll away, then stood aside with her eyes lowered, holding it.

Only then did Eunuch Ran continue, "This old servant has been in the military camp for a year. The young prince only went to Quanzhou twice. Once was to take Consort Xian to Jiangnan and meet with Commander Qi before leaving. The other time was when he returned from Jiangnan and brought gifts for Commander Qi and General Lu."

Gu Yuchen had a half-smile on his face: "Oh? Is that so? Then they didn't exchange letters?"

Gu Yuchen knew that Gu Yuzhi had taken Consort Xian to Jiangnan, because Gu Yuzhi had sent a letter via Hei Yuan before their departure.

Even after arriving in Jiangnan, Gu Yuzhi's actions did not escape his notice.

Every day, he would either take Consort Xian to a restaurant for a delicious meal, go to a jewelry store to look at the latest jewelry, or take Consort Xian to play on the canal for a few days.

Life was indeed as carefree and comfortable as he described in his letters.

For an emperor who had finally ascended the throne and eliminated internal and external troubles, he thought that the kind of life Gu Yuzhi described was a waste of time.

But whenever Gu Yuzhi sent him letters describing scenes, with paintings of food that seemed to still be steaming hot, Gu Yuchen suddenly felt that being an emperor was really tasteless.

Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king.

But he, the ruler of the world, failed to properly appreciate the beauty of the world and savor its delicacies!

Thinking about it that way, I'm actually a little angry!

Gu Yuchen stared intently at Eunuch Ran, making Eunuch Ran break out in a cold sweat.

He unconsciously swallowed: "I have not discovered any clues of private contact."

General Lu is indeed the top martial arts expert in the palace, but they don't know that Eunuch Ran is considered the top martial arts expert in the Sang Dynasty, and is even on the list of martial arts masters.

So, during the two times the young prince met General Lu, he clearly heard what they said, and it really had nothing to do with rebellion. On the contrary, when the young prince talked about going to Jiangnan to eat delicious food, his tone was very smug.

Eunuch Ran repeated their conversation verbatim. When Gu Yuzhi boasted about what delicious food he had eaten and what scenery he had seen, Gu Yuchen's face darkened even more.

His reign as emperor was less interesting than that of a prince!

Zhao Xi glanced at the Emperor out of the corner of his eye, then quickly looked away.

The young prince is popular with the people, and his fiefdom is overseen by a great Confucian scholar like Mr. Cheng. While he may not be as wealthy as a country, he is certainly one of the richest men in the country.

It's understandable that the emperor would feel apprehensive.

However, the young prince never showed the slightest covetousness for the throne. Even when a master like Eunuch Ran was monitoring him, he didn't notice anything amiss.

Logically, the Emperor should be at ease, so why does he look so unhappy?

Zhao Xi was so frightened that he didn't dare to breathe, feeling that the emperor's thoughts were becoming increasingly unpredictable.

After Eunuch Ran finished reporting everything in detail, Gu Yuchen was about to wave him away when Eunuch Ran took out a letter from his pocket: "Your Majesty, this is what His Highness asked me to give you after I left."

Gu Yuchen gave Eunuch Ran a cold look before having Zhao Xi present the items.

The letter from Gu Yuzhi inside the envelope was very brief.

“Brother, I am doing very well in the Northern Desert. I have plenty of fertile land, trading companies, academies, and charitable institutions. I am not short of money at all. Therefore, I have decided that Xinliang should continue to pay taxes like other cities.”

The entire Xinliang region belongs to Gu Yuzhi. Any wasteland reclaimed in the northern desert belongs to Gu Yuzhi. Whether it's one acre or one hundred acres, there's no need to pay taxes. This is the treatment that the royal family gives to princes.

But Gu Yuchen never expected that Gu Yuzhi would ask to pay taxes voluntarily. According to Eunuch Ran, tens of thousands of acres of wasteland in Xinliang have been reclaimed, not including the unreclaimed wasteland.

Once the population of Xinliang increases, those wastelands will naturally become less of a concern.

It can be said that Xinliang will definitely be a major taxpayer in the Sang Dynasty in the future.

At that moment, a strange emotion suddenly welled up in Gu Yuchen's heart, a bittersweet feeling that blurred his vision.

He suddenly remembered the old monk's words: Gu Yuzhi was the lucky star of the entire Sang Dynasty.

He suddenly gave a self-deprecating laugh and slowly put the letter away.

On the one hand, he felt that Xiao Liu's previous upbringing was similar to that of the Cold Palace, and he was also young, so he held Xiao Liu in some contempt.

On the one hand, he was wary of what Xiao Liu had done, always fearing that he would try to seize his throne.

But now, seeing this letter, he understands that Xiao Liu is not unaware of his situation, nor is he unaware of his suspicions. That's why he voluntarily paid the taxes, both to dispel his suspicions and for his own safety.

However, at this moment, Gu Yuzhi thought of the sentence in his letter: he was not short of money at all...

Gu Yuchen suddenly laughed and said in a low voice, "You don't lack money, but I do!"

The successive wars between Jiangnan and Beidi were indeed victories for them, but they also nearly emptied the national treasury.

The northern desert is alright, but the Jiangnan region still needs repairs: the canals, the city's dikes, the damaged city walls, and so on—every single thing is waiting for him to pay for it.

Although the situation has improved, Gu Yuchen believes that he is not an emperor who is content with the status quo; expanding the territory is his ultimate goal.

Therefore, replenishing the national treasury is his most important task.

Gu Yuchen squeezed the letter, and for some reason, he felt that Xiao Liu was someone who understood his ambitions.

Xiao Liu has already done this much for himself, so what reason does he have to be suspicious anymore?

With his guard down, Gu Yuchen felt much more relaxed. He suddenly burst into laughter: "Let's go see the gift that Xiao Liu brought me!"

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