"Lord He, did I hear that right?"
He Yin's expression finally softened, and she said with a forced smile, "His Majesty's decree cannot be wrong."
Zhao Cheng, with a sour face, said, "Is my brother-in-law really that greedy? This is much more expensive than paying taxes honestly!"
"Your Highness, please be careful with your words." He Yin couldn't help but cough again.
Zhao Cheng complained, "I've become someone who works for him!"
"Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the earth, all people are subjects of the king. His Majesty's willingness not to restrict you and to allow you to do business without any worries is already a sign of great magnanimity."
He Yin advised, "Although I am in charge of the Ministry of Justice, I still know a bit about business. His Majesty wants your profits to be split 50/50, but how much profit you make depends on the numbers in your accounts, doesn't it? I've reviewed so many cases, and I've never seen a merchant's accounts that are accurate."
Zhao Cheng immediately said, "Lord He, your idea is excellent! Thank you for your guidance!"
He was about to bow when he said that.
He Yin quickly supported Zhao Cheng's head and shouted, "Your Highness, don't trick me! I never taught you to deceive the emperor!!"
Zhao Cheng said gratefully, "Lord He may not seek credit, but I, Zhao Cheng, cannot forget your kindness!"
"I'm begging you..." He Yin was almost speechless. She said, "If you're going to do this, will I ever dare to tell you the truth again?"
"Hahaha..." Zhao Cheng laughed and said, "Just kidding, just kidding. His Majesty is not only His Majesty, but also my brother-in-law. We're all family. How could I lie to him? If I agree, then it's a 50/50 split!"
Zhao Cheng patted He Yin on the shoulder and said, "Moreover, I think Lord He is right! Without His Majesty's support, let alone Yun Jing County, I wouldn't be able to take over Jiang Yang County. I would only be able to do business in Yan Chuan City and Jing Dong County for the rest of my life. Where would I have the opportunity to make more money?"
He Yin muttered, "So now you only have Jiangyang County and Yunjing County? You've taken over the entire Southern Zhou market..."
Zhao Cheng waved his hand dismissively, saying, "We don't make much money with Southern Zhou! The profits are all going to those two bastards, Yang Qingzhi and Zhou Jinghuan! I was forced to sign this agreement with Yang Qingzhi!"
Upon hearing this, He Yin was startled and immediately understood Zhao Cheng's meaning.
The accounts of the Southern Zhou were handled by Yang Qingzhi, so the imperial court couldn't access them. Judging from Zhao Cheng's tone, it seemed that the Southern Zhou didn't intend to share its profits with His Majesty.
Zhao Cheng's business in Dajing only involved three prefectures, while Southern Zhou had ten.
By giving the profits from three counties to His Majesty and keeping the profits from ten counties in his own hands, Zhao Cheng still made a killing!
Seeing the change in He Yin's expression, Zhao Cheng didn't care that He Yin had guessed his thoughts. It was a matter of unspoken power struggle anyway.
If you see through something but don't say anything, life goes on as usual.
Moreover, five percent of the profits from the three counties was no small sum, enough to improve the quality of Yuan Xiu's private life.
Because of war and disaster relief, the treasury of the Great Jing Kingdom was almost empty. It was only thanks to Xu Shouli's appointment that the treasury was revitalized. However, the treasury was still poor, so Yuan Xiu's private treasury would not be much better. With the profit sharing from the three counties, this poor emperor could become rich overnight.
He Yin asked, "Did the prince consort agree?"
Zhao Cheng scoffed, "It's already been verbally ordered, how can I disobey?"
"That's good. Then I can go back and report." He Yin bowed to Zhao Cheng and said, "Since the Prince Consort is alright, I will go with the Right Prime Minister."
Zhao Cheng asked, "Lord He, won't you go and see the Champion King and Lord Cai?"
He Yin shook his head and said, "I will not make decisions on matters that His Majesty has not instructed us to do. These 20,000 troops were pieced together from Shangyang County and Jiangyang County. The sooner they return to their posts, the more at ease His Majesty will be."
Zhao Cheng clasped his hands in a fist salute to He Yin and said solemnly, "Lord He is truly a pillar of the Emperor and a pillar of the nation!"
"Stop flattering me, or you'll get beheaded." He Yin bowed to Zhao Cheng: "Your Highness, farewell."
"Lord He, take care on your journey."
Watching He Yin leave, Zhao Cheng and Zhao Huan exchanged a glance from afar, and Zhao Cheng waved to his father.
Zhao Huan and his group headed north.
Along the way, He Yin, who was originally riding alongside Zhao Huan, fell slightly behind and came to He Zhi's side.
"Big brother."
He Zhi, with an expression neither happy nor sad, said, "I severed ties with the He family long ago."
“Then you’re also my older brother, we share the same blood.” He Yin said earnestly, “You haven’t changed your name, which shows you still care about your family!”
He Zhi remained silent for a while before saying, "With so many eyes watching here, recognizing me won't do you any good."
He Yin said, "I recognized you when I went to the Right Prime Minister's residence last time, but I was afraid of disturbing your life, so I didn't acknowledge you. But recently, Father has been mentioning you often..."
He Zhi asked, "How is his health?"
"I'm dying." He Yin shook her head and said, "I've been lying in bed for more than half a year, and I often think of you. I hope I can see you one last time."
He Zhi said in a deep voice, "After he dies, bury him far away from my mother and sister."
"Big brother..."
"Lord He, I haven't been to Yunjing County often and I'm not familiar with the situation here. You should ask someone else!"
He spurred the horse tightly, deliberately shouted something loudly, and rode forward.
He Yin sighed.
...
Muqiaokou.
In order to put pressure on the Southern Zhou to release the prisoners, Yuan Zhang, who always prioritized the overall situation, gradually reinforced the troops at Muqiaokou to 50,000 men. As a result, Zhao Cheng was shocked by the imposing array of troops when he arrived at the outer perimeter of Muqiaokou.
Fifty thousand soldiers stood there in perfect formation, and even without expression or movement, they exuded a terrifying aura of power.
Fortunately, not long after Zhao Cheng left, Yuan Zhang and his son came to greet him.
Yuan Zhang held Zhao Cheng's hand tightly and said, "Your Highness, you've had to go through all this trouble!"
Just as Zhao Cheng was about to reply, Yuan Qi unexpectedly knelt down on one knee before Zhao Cheng, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Victorious General, this humble general thanks you for saving my father's life!"
As he spoke, he bowed deeply to Zhao Cheng.
This startled Zhao Cheng, who gratefully went to help Yuan Qi up.
Although Yuan Qi was granted the rank of general, his official rank was not as high as Zhao Cheng's. At this time, he addressed Zhao Cheng by his military title and referred to himself as "this humble general," which was not wrong.
But the problem is his kneeling before Zhao Cheng.
His surname is Yuan, and Zhao Cheng cannot accept that.
"General Yuan, get up quickly, don't hurt me!"
Yuan Qi said solemnly, "The grace of saving a life is greater than the heavens, and it is only right that I kneel to thank you on behalf of my father. General Zhisheng, you don't need to worry. You are not an ordinary subject. You are the Prince Consort of Jingguo and a member of the imperial family. It is not presumptuous of you to accept a bow from me, your peer."
After a brief analysis, Zhao Cheng realized that Yuan Qi's words made sense, and he couldn't help but think more highly of Yuan Qi.
Zhao Cheng helped Yuan Qi up and said sincerely, "On the night of the fierce battle at Muqiaokou, General Yuan led the Dajing infantry and took the lead, jumping into the side carriage and fighting bloody battles. He was fearless and brave. I saw it all."
"To be honest, I have great admiration for General Yuan!"
Zhao Cheng clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yuan Qi and said, "With a young general like General Yuan, the future of Great Jing is secure!"
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