"I have come specially to pay my respects to the Imperial Concubine." Wen Hejun knelt respectfully on one knee and saluted Imperial Concubine Wang.
Concubine Wang gazed at the handsome young man before her, her heart rippled with emotion. She knew full well that she had married the King of Shu purely for the benefit of her family, and she had never truly respected him. In her eyes, he was nothing more than a vulgar man, ignorant of romance and obsessed with political schemes. However, the appearance of Wen Hejun caused her long-frozen heart to begin to falter.
She gently opened her red lips and said softly, "Get up, Master Wen. There's no need to be so rigid about etiquette between you and me."
There was a subtle expectation in Concubine Wang's tone. She longed for further communication with Wen Hejun and hoped to establish a deeper emotional bond between them.
Wen Hejun stood up and looked at Concubine Wang, noticing a strange look in her eyes. He immediately realized something was amiss, and he hurriedly said, "Concubine Wang, the five million kilograms of refined salt shipped from Wei to Shu has arrived. Please send someone to carefully count it."
When Concubine Wang heard the word "refined salt," her foggy thoughts suddenly cleared up. She knew that even though she was feeling uneasy, this was not the time to indulge in fantasies. So, Concubine Wang quickly ordered the city guards she had brought with her from Chengdu to conduct an inventory.
Meanwhile, Concubine Wang did not ignore Wen Hejun's presence. She began to chat with him, asking about his life experiences in Wei and some interesting past events. An hour passed unnoticed, and the city guards completed their inventory. The results were satisfactory: 5 million kilograms of refined salt were exactly the same.
Concubine Wang was about to have the city guards transport the refined salt into Rongcheng when several groups of officials in splendid brocade robes suddenly appeared at the city gates, each accompanied by dozens, if not hundreds, of servants. The man at the front asked, "Concubine Wang, are you really going to let the Wang family handle these five million kilograms of refined salt alone?"
Then another man stood up and said with dissatisfaction in his tone, "Noble Concubine Wang, are you really planning to eat all the food by yourself? You won't even share a sip of soup with us?"
The minister's words sounded a bit harsh to Concubine Wang's ears.
Concubine Wang's gaze swept over everyone present. This was a group of Shu ministers, all of whom came from the Shu aristocracy and had close ties to the Wang family. She knew that the reason she and her son were able to firmly control the Shu court was entirely due to the support and help of these nobles.
Concubine Wang smiled slightly. She knew clearly what these nobles were thinking. They just wanted to get a share of the profits from the refined salt distribution.
She feigned composure and replied, "My Lords, you have misunderstood. How dare my Wang family monopolize such a huge profit? This refined salt is a matter of national importance, and I must ensure its safe transport to Rongcheng and its proper distribution. After all, this concerns not only the interests of my Wang family, but also the prosperity and stability of the entire Shu Kingdom."
However, these ministers didn't buy Concubine Wang's story. When the refined salt arrived in Chengdu, Concubine Wang immediately took it all to the palace. Under these circumstances, would they dare to cause trouble there? After all, the palace was Concubine Wang's territory, and they were well aware of the consequences of causing trouble there.
The Shu Kingdom's Prime Minister, Huo Gaofei, ignored Concubine Wang's words and said directly, "No, I don't care about anyone else. I only want 200,000 kilograms of refined salt. I want to transport it from here today."
Huo Gaofei was not a foolish man. He knew very well that they were now outside the city of Rongcheng, where the troops of Wei were stationed. He and his men could still force Concubine Wang.
If I allow Concubine Wang to transport the refined salt into Chengdu, and then force her to give me some of the refined salt in front of the people of Shu in Chengdu, my reputation will plummet.
Forcing the royal family to hand over their interests would be seen as a sign of disrespect for the royal family in the eyes of the people of Shu.
Huo Gaofei knew very well that if he forcibly demanded refined salt under such circumstances, he would not only offend Concubine Wang, but also lose the support of the people of Shu, which would be extremely detrimental to his political future.
After Huo Gaofei expressed his opinion, the other ministers also realized the seriousness of the situation. They stopped remaining silent and began to make their own demands. Some claimed they needed 100,000 kilograms of refined salt, while others said 50,000 kilograms would be sufficient. The scene became chaotic, with ministers scrambling to express their demands, as if a fierce battle was about to begin.
Upon witnessing this, Concubine Wang knew she had to act quickly to quell the dispute. If the situation continued, the distribution of refined salt would escalate into a serious conflict within her group. This would not only affect the stability of the group as a whole but could also spark civil unrest within Shu. Therefore, she decided to take immediate action to prevent the situation from escalating further.
When Concubine Wang was hesitant and at a loss, an old man suddenly appeared in the crowd. This old man was none other than Wang Batian, the current patriarch of the Wang family.
Wang Batian walked up to Concubine Wang and said to her, "Give them all the refined salt they need."
Wang Batian then turned to the ministers from Shu and continued, "I can give you refined salt, but you should already know its price. I don't intend to make any profit from this. You only need to pay the full payment for the refined salt to the Wei personnel responsible for escorting the refined salt. In addition, the Wei people have come thousands of miles to transport the refined salt, so you will also be responsible for their food."
After hearing Wang Batian's words, all the people present said to Wang Batian respectfully: "Mr. Wang, you are truly kind and righteous." Then, the entourage of the Shu officials and the city guards began to act. They planned to take away the carriages from the Wei people and enter Rongcheng to unload the goods.
Wen Hejun suddenly stood up and blocked everyone's way. Everyone present was confused and looked at Wen Hejun, wanting to know what his intentions were.
Wen Hejun said, "Everyone, you should all be aware of the preciousness of war horses. If these ten thousand horses leave our control, I will be unable to report to the emperor if any accident occurs. Therefore, I would like to ask the concubine Wang and the others to take the trouble to personally drive the carriage to transfer them. This way, you can also check the weight of the refined salt to ensure it is sufficient."
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