"An auction? Is it going to be another secret formula being auctioned off this time?!"
At the auction of the sugar-making secret recipe, Madam Huang, the matriarch of the Chen family, the richest family in He County, who won first place, couldn't help but mutter to herself as she held the invitation sent by the Prince of Yue's Mansion.
What do you care what she's auctioning?
It was Chen Guang who spoke; he was Huang's husband and the head of the Chen family.
The Chen family has been in Lingnan for over two hundred years, making them a truly established local family.
Of course, such a family history is nothing special for a true aristocratic family.
They could only be considered local powerful families at best.
However, the Chen family still maintained a certain level of respectability in He County.
The head of their family is very good at assessing situations.
When Cui Boyong arrived, the Chen family tried their best to curry favor with him and attach themselves to the governor's mansion.
Even if the King of Yue were to come and take up his fiefdom later, according to his status, the King of Yue would be more noble than Cui Boyong, the governor.
The Chen family still sided with Governor Cui.
It wasn't until Helian Jue revealed his sharp claws and killed Cui Boyong in the street that the powerful clans of Yuezhou were finally intimidated.
The Chen family was most terrified; they had chosen the wrong side.
Every day, Chen Guang worried that the King of Yue would settle scores later, and that the Chen family would be the chicken used to frighten the monkey.
He tried every means to establish a relationship with the Yue King's Mansion, but the Yue King's Mansion simply refused to accept his visiting card.
When the conventional approach failed, Chen Guang decided to try "wife diplomacy."
He instructed Lady Huang to invite Princess Yue to a banquet under the pretext of appreciating flowers and worshipping Buddha.
However, Xie, like Helian Jue, was a woman with a strong personality.
Princess Xie preferred to go to construction sites and farms rather than attend banquets hosted by the women of the household.
He returned all the gold, jade, and gemstone jewelry, as well as the embroidered fabrics and other items sent by the Huang family, showing no interest whatsoever.
For a time, the Huang family even considered sending gold and silver bricks directly to the Xie family.
Chen Guang was somewhat rational and stopped Huang Shi from acting recklessly—not all women are like Cui Boyong's wife, Zheng Shi!
Princess Xie was born into the Xie clan of Chen Commandery, and was a direct descendant of the main branch. She married the Prince of Yue, so she was never short of money or good things.
Just by looking at how Princess Xie built her palace and recruited soldiers in such a grand manner after arriving in Yuezhou, one can tell how wealthy she is.
Compared to her, their so-called number one family in He County is nothing at all!
Directly giving away gold and silver bricks?
Too vulgar, and it's easy to make a fool of yourself.
The main road was blocked, and even the backyard was an option, but there was no way to get there.
The Chen family was at their wits' end.
At this very moment, the Yue King's Palace issued a notice announcing the reconstruction of He County and the construction of a new Crescent Moon City.
The local powerful families, led by the Chen family, did not believe that the Yue King's Mansion was acting in the best interests of the local people or for the greater good of He County.
They simply assumed this was another round of extortion by the Yue King's Mansion.
Their goal is to use the cheap wasteland near Crescent Moon City to "extract" central land within Hexian County.
One is worthless, the other is extremely valuable; the price difference is enough for the Yue King's Mansion to make a fortune.
"What a greedy Helian Jue! He's even more cruel than Cui Boyong!"
The patriarchs of several powerful clans, including Chen Guang, cursed inwardly.
But no matter how much they cursed, they were still afraid of the tens of thousands of elite soldiers under Helian Jue's command.
Tens of thousands, not just a few hundred or a few thousand.
Powerful families like the Chen family also kept private soldiers and retainers.
Each family has three to five hundred people.
The major families combined could gather about three thousand people.
However, three thousand men were still no match for Helian Jue's tens of thousands.
And family members know their own affairs.
Their private army was at best slightly stronger than the local people in the mountains.
Helian Jue's personal guards rode valiant warhorses and wore gleaming armor.
Just standing there, they exuded a sharp, murderous aura.
These are truly elite troops, not a rabble like their private soldiers.
If they couldn't win by force, the powerful clans had no choice but to back down.
"Exchange! It's just exchanging valuable land in He County for crescent-shaped wasteland. We'll just consider it money spent to buy peace!"
Chen Guang made a decision with no other choice.
The other clan leaders were unwilling, but they had no other choice but to agree.
As a result, the major clans "actively cooperated," and the renovation of the old city of He County and the construction of the Crescent Moon New City were all successfully completed in accordance with the Yue King's Mansion's plan.
Afterwards, Chen Guang and other clan leaders discovered:
Hmm, it seems like we didn't lose out by exchanging this land.
Moreover, during the construction of the two new cities, these powerful families did business with the Yue King's Mansion and made a fortune.
Gradually, they seemed to realize a fact—
Unlike Cui Boyong, King Yue did not come to Yuezhou to exploit the land, nor did he seek personal gain at the expense of the public.
The King of Yue truly regarded Yuezhou as his "home" and devoted himself to its management and development.
On this point, the interests of the Yue King's Mansion are aligned with those of the major powerful clans.
"Actually, the Prince of Yue's residence is not bad, it's just that sometimes his policies are too 'strict'."
Chen Guang and others couldn't help but complain during their "small meetings".
Their so-called "harshness" was not that the Yue King's Palace implemented any oppressive policies or ruthlessly exploited the people.
In fact, the Yue King's Palace was quite kind to the common people.
Its various strict measures were all aimed at restricting the major powerful clans.
The most typical example is sugar production.
Yes, the imperial court issued a decree prohibiting private individuals from making sugar.
However, the emperor is far away in Lingnan.
Many of the imperial decrees could not be implemented in Lingnan.
Besides, Lingnan is a vast and sparsely populated region with a warm climate and abundant resources.
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