After expressing his gratitude, Cheng Tingrui stood up from the ground.
Its plain-colored figure is very upright, standing like a bamboo pole.
He glanced at He Youyou almost imperceptibly.
Zhao Changqing stood straight, his body stiff.
My heart was pounding.
He cautiously turned his head to see He Youyou's reaction.
Countless thoughts raced through my mind as I pondered how to explain all of this.
He Youyou looked bewildered and shocked.
"Hanzhang, why does he call you King of Yue?"
Zhao Changqing's eyes flickered, his expression somewhat unnatural: "I was just recently conferred this title; before that... I wasn't in Jizhou."
"Yue... are you the King of One Words?"
The character "一字王" means "Prince".
The character "王" (Wang) means "prince of the second rank".
Only those who were very close to the emperor could be granted the title of "One-Character King".
They are either brothers or father and son.
"yes."
"So... what is your relationship with the emperor?"
“He is my elder brother, from the same father and mother.”
"And who is your nephew, Zhao Wenqi?"
"The Second Prince of the Current Dynasty."
Zhao Changqing was extremely cautious at this moment, not daring to conceal anything.
He answered whatever she asked.
"Wow! Now I have two connections in the royal family!" He Youyou exclaimed with delight.
This reaction was unexpected by everyone.
Zhao Changqing stared at her blankly: "You...aren't angry?"
"Why are you angry?"
"The fact that I concealed my identity..."
He Youyou waved her hand: "Hey! If I were you, I would also keep it a secret. How can you just expose this kind of identity to outsiders? What if you get targeted by malicious gangsters? You'd be in trouble."
An outsider?!
Zhao Changqing felt as if he had been stabbed in the heart.
Who are the outsiders?
He didn't treat her like an outsider.
Could it be that, in her heart, he was an outsider?
Hearing this, Cheng Tingrui smiled and agreed, "Youyou makes a good point. Your Highness must be careful in everything you do when you are out and about. A wise man does not stand under a dangerous wall. Your Highness's precious body should not be placed in a dangerous place."
Zhao Changqing slowly inhaled and then exhaled.
He Youyou, however, seemed oblivious to his emotions and continued, "Your Highness, my son and I will rely heavily on your care in the capital. How about I pay you some protection money?"
"No need." Zhao Changqing snapped out of his thoughts. "Taking care of you is my duty. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, just come to me."
"Okay, then let's visit each other more often in the future."
He Youyou happily saw Zhao Changqing off.
After watching his figure leave, He Youyou turned around and went back into the courtyard.
But then they saw Cheng Tingrui standing under the courtyard wall, one hand touching the wall, lost in thought, seemingly pondering something.
He Youyou laughed: "Minzhi, why are you facing the wall?"
Cheng Tingrui turned around, a faint smile on his face.
"Youyou, your yard... how come even the walls are newly built? The mortar on them hasn't even dried yet."
He Youyou walked up to him, stood beside him, and looked at the wall as well.
"Oh, it's newly built? You know so much, I didn't even notice."
He Youyou invited him inside to sit down.
"Minzhi, you came to see me today, is there something you need?"
Cheng Tingrui sat down opposite her and smiled calmly: "I heard you bought a house in the Imperial Academy, and I was so curious that I rushed over to see it for myself. I never expected to run into the King of Yue here."
He Youyou poured him some tea: "I have to say, Zhao Changqing is quite thoughtful. He just sent over a lot of everyday items, which I was just short of and needed urgently. Look, even the teapot, tea set, and tea leaves were just delivered by him. And here they are, just in time to come."
Cheng Tingrui's gaze swept over the boxes on the ground.
Seeing his state, He Youyou quickly said, "I was busy entertaining guests and didn't have time to tidy up. This is a mess, it doesn't look right. Please excuse me."
Just then, Steward Qian returned, and He Youyou asked Old Qian to lead a few people to put the things on the ground back in order.
Cheng Tingrui held the Yue porcelain cup and sipped the tea: "The porcelain is tribute porcelain, and the tea is also top-quality tribute tea. It's probably a gift from the palace. This time, I'm lucky to be able to taste this tribute tea too."
He Youyou rested her chin on her hand, squinted her eyes and pondered, "We must hold onto the King of Yue's powerful backer tightly."
Cheng Tingrui's hand, which was holding the teacup, froze in mid-air.
My gaze travels through the tea to see the reflection within.
"Youyou, what do you want?"
“Minzhi, you have been in business for many years, so you should know that in this era, all land under heaven belongs to the king, and all people within the borders are his subjects. Under the emperor’s power, everything is extremely fragile. If the court wants you to prosper, you can prosper; if the court wants you to perish, you can only perish. We businessmen cannot survive a single round under the heavy hammer of the court.”
In feudal dynasties, the government lacked a basic sense of contract.
A businessman's personal property is completely unprotected.
Merchants in ancient society have always been obsequious and flattering to officials and the imperial court.
Because, in the eyes of feudal rulers, wealth originally belonged to the court and to the emperor alone.
Even if a businessman is wealthy, he is merely a custodian of wealth.
Ultimately, all the wealth in the world belongs to the rulers.
Moreover, political power is the primary means of resource allocation, and businessmen can only profit by relying on power.
Cheng Tingrui certainly understood this principle and was aware of the interdependent relationship between merchants and the government.
“Youyou, I will take care of the relationship with the government. You don’t need to worry about that. You… don’t need to curry favor with the King of Yue.”
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
