Liu An saw An Ge Lao's dejection but didn't know how to comfort him.
Strictly speaking, they were brothers in misfortune.
None of them have won the Emperor's favor.
"Brother An," Liu An said dejectedly, "could it be that that eunuch Qi Yong is giving us trouble again?"
“Impossible,” An Qingyun shook his head. “His Majesty is always rational when it comes to matters of principle, and the slander of petty people will not have any effect.”
"Does it mean they really dislike these old bones of ours?"
Upon hearing this, An Qingyun gave Liu An a look of utter contempt, feeling that this guy had been staying at the manor for too long, living a life of extreme comfort, and had lost his mind.
Is it possible to be like myself?
Liu An is called a Grand Secretary, but the whole world knows that he follows the Lady Protector of the Nation. Although he still has a position in the court, it will not be the same as before.
More likely, it will go from the light to the shadows, becoming a sharp knife.
As for himself, he was merely a guest of the manor, and in essence, he remained the chief minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty and the leader of all civil and military officials.
I'm getting more and more irritable.
Along with that, she felt a slight jealousy towards the naive and innocent Liu An.
Sure enough, there are advantages to being stupid; the emperor was completely unprepared.
“That’s right,” he said maliciously, “we’d better think of something quickly, or even a god can’t save us.”
After saying this, he turned and went to the study.
"That's right, we really need to think of a way."
On the other side, Jiang Nuan invited Eunuch Yuan to a side hall.
He went straight to the point, asking, "What is the purpose of your visit?"
“Madam,” Yuan Gongzheng said, straightening his expression, “His Majesty attaches great importance to rice-fish farming and has asked me to investigate it, intending to promote it in Guangdong and Guangxi.”
"Anything else?"
Upon hearing this, Eunuch Yuan waved his hand, signaling the people on both sides to step back, before speaking, "The corn has been found."
"What?" Jiang Nuan exclaimed in surprise, "So fast? The people who went out to sea are back already?"
“It wasn’t from the sea,” Eunuch Yuan explained awkwardly. “His Majesty searched all the barbarians who entered the country and found it on a group of Persian merchants.”
Like robbers, they stripped people naked and robbed them clean. Eunuch Yuan really doesn't want to talk about the specific details.
After he finished speaking, Eunuch Yuan handed over a purse.
The palm-sized pouch was filled with seeds; by sight, there were dozens or even hundreds.
"That's all?"
"Yes, they were also obtained from elsewhere and were called gold growing in the ground, which was very precious."
"What does His Majesty mean?"
"I would like to trouble you, Madam, to cultivate more seeds, preferably enough for next spring."
“He really dares to think like that,” Jiang Nuan’s lips twitched. “What about those Persians? What should we do with them?”
“They were thrown out directly,” Eunuch Yuan explained hesitantly. “They are barbarians, not worthy of being called human. His Majesty has already been exceptionally merciful by not killing them.”
They are barbarian vassal states; isn't your emperor a robber?
If Jiang Nuan hadn't heard it with her own ears, she would never have imagined that Ji Xuan would do such a thing.
Suddenly, an idea struck him, and he asked, "Does your master have a particular fondness for stealing things?"
"How could this be?" Eunuch Yuan exclaimed in shock. "How could Madam misunderstand His Majesty like this?"
“First they robbed a bunch of adults, and now they’re robbing traveling merchants,” Jiang Nuan touched her nose. “It’s hard not to make people misunderstand.”
"His Majesty was forced into this situation," Eunuch Yuan explained guiltily. "The national treasury is tight, and there was really no other way."
Jiang Nuan didn't believe this at all.
Throughout history, others have treated merchants like easy targets, robbed civil and military officials, and even their own people—it's utterly ruthless.
Thinking about it this way, it's just robbing some traveling merchants from out of town, nothing to be surprised about.
"Only corn?"
“There are still many things,” Yuan Gonggong clapped his hands, and immediately someone carried in a box. “His Majesty has sent me a copy of everything that has been looted. Madam, please see if there is anything you can use.”
Jiang Nuan opened the box and felt like she was being blinded by the light.
"Jewelry, spices, jade, daggers?" Jiang Nuan turned her head subconsciously. "What are these for?"
"His Majesty said he would bestow this upon the lady to play with."
"What a tycoon!"
He pursed his lips and continued searching, then suddenly rubbed his eyes in surprise, "You all managed to steal the rubber seeds?"
"it works?"
"It works, but it can't be grown in our Great Zhou, however..."
"But what?"
"Ahem," Jiang Nuan coughed lightly, embarrassed, "There's a large rubber plantation not far from next door; we can just rob it."
“Madam, please don’t joke,” Eunuch Yuan said awkwardly. “The Great Zhou is a land of propriety; how could we do such a despicable thing?”
He paused, then squinted and asked, "What specific benefits?"
"It can be used to make rain boots and raincoats."
"That's all?"
“Of course not,” Jiang Nuan hesitated, unsure how to explain. “It is a strategic material, but the Great Zhou is not currently in need of it for its development.”
How does it compare to military rations?
“It’s not comparable for now,” Jiang Nuan said with a headache. “It’s a basic raw material that almost every industry needs, but the Great Zhou hasn’t developed to that level yet.”
"As long as we can compete again in the future, that's fine."
Grandpa Yuan nodded slightly, having made up his mind.
Regardless of whether we need it or not, we'll grab it first.
"Madam, why can't this plant be grown in the Great Zhou?" This was something that Eunuch Yuan found hard to accept.
In his view, there was no better place than the Great Zhou.
“If the climate isn’t right, it won’t survive, just like oranges grown in the south become trifoliate oranges when grown in the north. However,” Jiang Nuan had some ideas, “maybe there will be a chance in the future.”
"Does Madam have a solution?"
"Perhaps!"
Jiang Nuan was also unsure.
"Madam, are there many other things in the world like rubber?"
"Of course, for example, spices from the Western Regions, jade from Da Guang, saffron from Persia, ginseng from Korea, bird's nest from Java, and various mineral deposits from Russia..."
After speaking all at once, Jiang Nuan felt tired. "The world is so big that it exceeds our imagination. While we shouldn't underestimate ourselves, we also shouldn't be narrow-minded."
"Hiss, are all of these real?"
Grandpa Yuan's breathing became rapid.
"Of course, Korean ginseng was still a tribute item, and I don't need to say more about its effectiveness. The others are no less impressive."
“So,” Grandpa Yuan squinted his eyes, “there are so many wonderful things in the world.”
Then, with a heavy heart, he lamented, "It's a pity that these things have fallen into the hands of barbarians; such precious things have been tarnished!"
"Don't overthink it," Jiang Nuan shrugged. "Everyone treasures good things; few people don't know their value."
“No,” Yuan Gonggong said with great certainty, “they just don’t know what’s good for them.”
"Whatever makes you happy."
Jiang Nuan was also tempted, but what could she do when the item was with the other person?
Are you really going to rob it?
It's not that simple!
The Great Zhou hasn't even solved its own problems yet, and it's already trying to conquer the world? Are you sure you're not joking?
"Madam, if..."
“There are no ifs,” Jiang Nuan interrupted him directly. “You have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time. The internal troubles of the Great Zhou have not been resolved yet, so don’t think about anything else. Be careful not to take too big a step and make a mess of things.”
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