Chapter 305: Activating Xie Zhan
at night
Qin Sheng held Jiaojiao in his arms and sighed in his heart, his wife's body felt cool and comfortable.
In the darkness, Lu Songli was held in Qin Sheng's arms, with a look of despair on her face.
Make ice, make ice. Lu Mingzhi and his apprentices must find a way to make ice.
She had heard of making ice from saltpeter, but she didn't know how it was done.
But she didn't need to know. She had a small scientific research team under her. It was enough for her to tell them that saltpeter could be used to make ice and that saltpeter could be collected in the toilet.
Otherwise, she would die of heat if she held a big stove in her arms all summer.
Perhaps because he was thinking about leaving tomorrow, Qin Sheng was particularly clingy tonight.
Thinking of how well-behaved and obedient he was, and how he would do whatever she told him to do, Lu Songli felt completely soft-hearted.
Qin Sheng licked her all over like a big dog.
He even took her little hand and brought her to his place.
The scorching heat and velvety touch made Lu Songli's body surge with heat. Her skin was even stained with a thin layer of red.
The dim light of the oil lamp flickered. Through the curtain, one could see her moist eyes.
Qin Sheng couldn't help but bend down and kiss her face and her lips.
When he wanted to go deeper, Lu Songli covered his mouth with her hand.
If you continue like this, there will be an accidental discharge of the gun.
This person, knowing full well that they couldn't make it to the end, still wanted to play with fire!
Being stopped, Qin Sheng propped himself up and looked at her.
Lu Songli: "Goodbye, let's talk, okay?"
Qin Sheng blinked. Could he say that he just wanted to kiss and cuddle with her?
Lu Songli reached out, put her arms around his neck, and kissed him, "Be good, be obedient."
Qin Sheng lowered his eyes, looked at her, and replied in a hoarse voice, "Okay."
Qin Sheng knew that she didn't like being sticky. Thinking of the kiss he had just given her, he felt a little guilty. "Wait a minute."
He stood up, put on a pair of trousers and a coat, and went out.
He quietly walked out of the room, went to the yard to fetch a basin of water, and even went to the kitchen to scoop two buckets of hot water to mix it into warm water and brought it back to the room.
After a quick wash, the two of them lay side by side on the couch, holding hands.
The young couple talked about going to the South.
"This trip to the South will focus on Mr. Xue. We'll be back when we're done. Protect Mr. Xue, and most importantly, protect yourself."
"good."
"Take this brocade bag. If you accidentally run into Xie Zhan and he keeps giving you trouble or threatening you, don't be afraid. Just open the brocade bag. There's a way to deal with him inside."
Lu Songli was prepared for the possibility that Qin Sheng and Xue Xu would come into direct combat with Xie Zhan when they arrived in the south.
Qin Sheng nodded obediently, thinking that she might not be able to see it, so he said, "I understand."
Lu Songli faced him and whispered, "You must come back safely."
"Don't worry, Lili."
Chang'an
Minister of Finance Wu Chunyu has had a hard time recently, but he knows that the emperor should be even more upset.
Recently, the major camps in the court have become much quieter, for fear that any disturbance would anger the emperor.
Because he was the Minister of Finance, the emperor had been angry with him several times recently. But he had no choice, the treasury was empty, and he couldn't generate any money.
He didn't dare to blame the emperor, he could only blame those good-for-nothings in the southern regions, the governors and prefects! What else could they do besides asking the court for money?
Even if he was scolded, he didn't worry about his official hat. After all, he was an old minister in the emperor's palace, with the merit of following the emperor, and he was loyal to the emperor. Although his ability was not so outstanding, he could still manage the emperor's purse.
Song Mo was indeed very upset at this time. The problem in the South Land was still unresolved, and he couldn't pretend to be ignorant of it.
The floods in the South affected too many people. There had been a small civil unrest before, but it was quickly suppressed by his troops. But he knew that if the South's problems weren't resolved, they would surely lead to even greater unrest.
The key to solving the Southland problem is money.
Song Mo never knew that managing a country was so expensive.
Rescuing and relocating the affected people, as well as distributing food relief, is no small expense. Furthermore, due to the floods in the south, this year's grain harvest is doomed to fail, making it difficult to collect taxes this year.
Thinking of these problems, Song Mo felt a headache.
Zhang Xian whispered to comfort him.
Just then, Zuo Anmin came and said that he had something important to report. After he finished speaking, he kept looking at Zhang Xian.
Zhang Xian looked at the sky, the ground, and his toes, but didn't look at him.
"What's the matter?" Song Mo was feeling annoyed. Zuo Anmin said he had something important to report, but he remained silent. Was he just keeping him in suspense?
Zuo Anmin felt sad, so he could only avoid targeting Zhang Xian and said seriously, "Your Majesty, do you still remember Xie Zhan?"
Zhang Xian's eyes flickered when he heard this.
Song Mo was stunned for a moment.
Xie Zhan? Of course he remembered.
He had believed Xue Huaimin's words and plotted for the Crown Prince's death in the northern border. He thought it would remain secret, but little did he know that the late Emperor had seen through it all.
It was Xie Zhan's appearance, reminders, and advice that allowed him to respond appropriately to the late emperor's questioning. It was also the reason why the late emperor, despite his strong dissatisfaction with him, tolerated his ascension to the throne.
What impressed Song Mo the most was what Xie Zhan said to him.
He said that for the late emperor, his son's ruthlessness was not a concern; what he hated most was his son's stupidity! The heir needed to be smart, courageous, and decisive; all other shortcomings could be ignored.
It can be said that his access to the throne was due to two major contributors: Xue Huaimin and Xie Zhan. Without Xue Huaimin, he would have had no chance. Without Xie Zhan, he would have stubbornly refused to acknowledge his position when confronted by the late emperor. Given his madness at the time of the late emperor's death, he would have certainly not met a good end.
Compared with Xue Huaimin, Xie Zhan is still better.
If it weren't for what happened later, Xie Zhan would probably have been his right-hand man now.
What did Zuo Anmin mean when he mentioned Xie Zhan at this time?
"I remember Xie Zhan. He and his family seemed to have been exiled to Lingnan?" Song Mo said in a deep voice, "Lord Zuo, why did you mention him?"
"Your Majesty, it's like this. Gold has been discovered on Zhuya Island in the South!"
Song Mo:!!!
"Really?" He suddenly thought of something, "Did Xie Zhan discover it?"
"Your Majesty, please listen to me in detail."
"Lord Zuo, please speak."
So Zuo Anmin talked about how after Xie Zhan and his family were exiled to Lingnan, Xie Zhan was spotted by the Chen family, one of the six major families in the south, because of his talent, and was forced to serve the Chen family by using his relatives.
Song Mo was not surprised, nor did he think that this was false. After all, he had experienced Xie Zhan's abilities.
"The gold mine was discovered on Xiao Zhuya Island, the easternmost of Zhuya Island. This piece of land originally belonged to the Chen family, and the head of the Chen family gave it to Xie Zhan for management. A while ago, Zhu Congwen, the eldest son of the Zhu family, one of the six major families in the south, used his power to coerce Xie Zhan into buying Xiao Zhuya Island from him for 200,000 taels."
"Xiao Zhuya Island was originally only worth 100,000 taels. To pressure the other party, Xie Zhan offered 200,000 taels. However, the other party still bought Xiao Zhuya Island despite the high premium. Xie Zhan sensed something was amiss. After the transaction, he sent people to secretly monitor Xiao Zhuya Island. They discovered that the Zhu family was secretly mining gold!"
Bang! Song Mo slammed the table, "How ridiculous!"
These aristocratic families are just restless! No wonder he, the emperor, is so poor, and the court is so poor. With such parasites around, how could he not be poor?!
"Come here, investigate! If we find out that the Zhu family is illegally mining gold, they will be severely punished!"
Zhang Xian secretly shook his head. Tsk tsk, this Zhu family is going to be confiscated and exterminated. The emperor is desperate for money, and the Zhu family has fallen into his hands. There is no way he can be lenient.
"Your Majesty, in addition to reporting the Zhu family's illegal gold mining, Xie Zhan also stated in the letter that he is willing to help Your Majesty solve all problems caused by the disaster in the south. Please trust him and agree to his request. He is willing to issue a military order."
Zhang Xian: Wow, you are so arrogant.
Song Mo raised his eyebrows. Xie Zhan meant to solve the problem in the Southland for him without using the newly discovered gold mine.
After all, if the gold mines of Xiaozhuya Island were to be used, who could solve the problem of the Southland? Xie Zhan didn't need to file a military petition.
"I agree. Since he has issued a military order, if he fails to do it, he knows my temper." He wants to see how Xie Zhan solves the problem in the South! If Xie Zhan can really solve it, then he will have made a fortune.
Zuo Anmin understood that Xie Zhan's report was meritorious, and the emperor had temporarily forgotten the incident of the Xie family's dependence on the Chen family and their disobedience to the rules after arriving in the South. Now the emperor was giving him a chance to see if he could truly solve the Southland problem. If he did, there would be a reward. If he couldn't, then wait and see.
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