Zhu Fei approached and presented the wrapped deer blood. "Your Majesty! This has a great tonic effect on the kidneys. It will surely help Your Majesty maintain your virility and prowess!"
"Great! This thing is awesome!"
Qin Yu feigned a loud, shocked laugh, raising his voice several notches to deliberately carry it out the doorway.
Upon touching beneath the wrapped deer blood, a soft object was indeed found.
Without making a sound, he took out a secret letter delivered by the Flying Guillotine.
In his letter, Li Geng wrote simply and clearly.
As Qin Yu instructed, he dispatched a small team to secretly monitor the North Continent Iron Mine.
As expected, a major military event occurred at noon today!
A small scout team of Xiongnu suddenly attacked, killing nearly a hundred guards with cruel methods, and finally set fire to half of the mountain!
Qin Yu was overjoyed after reading the letter!
It seems my Empress has kept her promise!
For Sima Lie, the North Continent Iron Mine was his very lifeline! It was something of utmost importance!
With half the mountain burned down, the iron ore mine will be unable to generate any output in the short term, and that old guy must be in a complete mess!
In this way, Sima Lie will have no time to worry about himself, and Zhang Tang can also go all out to make a big splash in the disaster area!
Qin Yu suddenly clapped his hands and praised loudly.
"Excellent! General Zhu, you did a wonderful job! It's exactly what I like!"
"Yes! Your Majesty's happiness is more important than anything else."
Zhu Fei could certainly tell that the emperor's words had a hidden meaning; on the surface, he was praising him, but in reality, he was affirming Li Geng.
This is a way of getting him to respond to Li Geng!
"In that case, Your Majesty, please enjoy your meal. This humble subject shall take his leave!"
Qin Yu glanced in the direction of the Prime Minister's residence, his gaze immediately turning sinister and cold.
The iron mine has been burned down. Let's see what you old man do now!
Just in the direction his gaze fell, Tan Wu, who had just come out of the palace, headed straight there.
Upon arriving at the Prime Minister's residence, he immediately entered, guided by the servants.
Upon seeing Sima Lie, Tan Wu revealed an expression even more unsightly than one of crying.
"Prime Minister~"
Tan Wu felt like a punching bag, caught in the middle, neither side willing to listen to anyone. Every step he took felt like walking a tightrope – dangerous and terrifying!
He decided to report everything that had happened because of the national debt to Sima Lie in order to find a solution.
Just as she was about to speak, a steward rushed in to report.
"Reporting to Master! An urgent message has arrived from the Second Young Master! He requests that you open it personally as soon as possible!"
Second child?
Sima Lie's heart tightened. He wouldn't usually send urgent letters unless the situation was truly urgent. He took the urgent letter and opened it immediately!
"The Beizhou Iron Mine was attacked and suffered heavy losses. Upon seeing the news of the fire burning the mountain, he was stunned and stood there as if struck by lightning!"
That was his largest and most important iron ore mine.
A large portion of his revenue comes from the output of iron ore mines, which can be considered his important source of wealth.
Moreover, the North Continent Iron Mine is of excellent quality and is also a source of pig iron for the entire army's equipment manufacturing!
It can be said that without the North Continent Iron Mine, they would not even know where to make up for their military pay, and before long, the combat effectiveness of the entire army would be greatly reduced.
He angrily and frantically began to curse!
"That's my iron ore mine! Damn Huns, I'll send you all to hell sooner or later!"
The overwhelming rage made even the servants at the door tremble, and Tan Wu was forcibly interrupted from casting a spell, standing there trembling with his head down.
Qiu Beiming, standing to the side, frowned, seemingly startled and vaguely guessing what was going on.
"Prime Minister, I've come to see an urgent letter."
After reading the whole thing, Qiu Beiming, though not as furious as Sima Lie, still looked very serious.
After a moment of contemplation, he quickly racked his brains and then frowned as he began to analyze the situation.
"Prime Minister, in my opinion, this matter is probably not so simple!"
"Such methods are unlike those of the Xiongnu; they seem more like those of the Zhao family!"
The incident happened suddenly and was indeed strange.
As a vital source of wealth for Sima Lie, the Beizhou Iron Mine is undoubtedly heavily protected, with numerous checkpoints surrounding it, making an attack quite difficult.
If they really had enough manpower to launch a surprise attack, they would have to start from the north, travel a long way, bypass checkpoints, and cross mountains and valleys on the shady slopes of those valleys.
The mountains surrounding the North Continent are rugged and difficult to traverse, and are infested with dangerous wild boars and wolves. It is extremely dangerous to come here to gather supplies!
Once their people are arrested, they also face the risk of intelligence leaks.
If I were a Hun, I wouldn't do something with less than a one percent chance of success.
Moreover, the area around the North Continent Iron Mine has been deliberately designed with many deceptions; without a map, it would be absolutely impossible to find the iron mine accurately in one go!
It's difficult to be an outsider, but it's easy to act on one's own people!
Upon hearing this, Sima Lie suddenly realized what was happening, and his anger flared up even more. He smashed the teacup beside him to pieces!
"The Zhao family! You are all despicable scoundrels, traitors who betray their own family!"
"Where is Sima Jing? Quickly tell Sima Jing to kill that bitch Zhao Lan!" Broken teacup shards splashed all over Tan Wu, one of them even flying upwards and cutting the back of his hand.
Oh shit.
Why did this happen at such an inopportune time!
Tan Wu had just made up his mind that he would definitely seek justice and a solution from the Prime Minister.
Now that he has suffered such a huge blow and is overwhelmed with his own problems, wouldn't it be pointless to bring it up again?
Without daring to think too much, Tan Wu slunk away quietly without even saying goodbye.
In contrast to the turmoil and terror at the Prime Minister's residence, the Imperial Palace on the other side was peaceful and serene, a scene of harmony and laughter.
While Zhao Lan was away, Qin Yu spent time with his sister-in-law after he had some free time.
After playing and laughing all afternoon, when it was time to eat, Qin Yu waved his hand and ordered a hot pot to be made in the kitchen.
The ingredients in the palace were not ordinary. With previous experience, the kitchen sliced luxurious items such as bear paws, shark fins, abalone, and matsutake mushrooms into thin slices to be used as ingredients for hot pot.
This is completely different from the common ingredients of my previous life. One bite and you'll be blown away by how delicious it is!
He was also hungry, so he couldn't wait to pick up a chopstick and wolf it down!
After devouring his food for a while, Qin Yu suddenly looked up and realized that Zhao Yan was sitting still, not even touching her chopsticks.
"Eat! Why aren't you eating? This is absolutely delicious!"
The pungent aroma filled the entire room, and even the maids and eunuchs outside the door were secretly drooling as they peered inside.
Qin Yu simply couldn't believe that anyone in this world could resist the temptation of hot pot if they didn't find it delicious.
Zhao Yan seemed a little embarrassed. It was clear that she really wanted to eat, as her gaze remained fixed on the hot pot. However, she appeared quite hesitant.
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