Cao Wei didn't know what was going on. It wasn't even her usual work time yet, but she was suddenly summoned to the palace.
She yawned and took a nap in the carriage. When she got off, she tossed the driver a tip as usual, then half-closed her eyes, put her hands in her pockets, and lazily walked inside.
"Lord Jiang is indeed very late."
Xie Yanhua's words were laced with sarcasm. Everyone in the hall had arrived except for her; even the king had come, yet she was the slowest.
The King of Wu quickly waved his hand, "Mr. Xie, there's no need for further words. Minister Jiang, please take a seat."
Cao Wei bowed lazily, "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Before Cao Wei came in, she gave the eunuch a small tip and asked him to get her some steamed buns and mantou. She had been eating breakfast every day lately, and she was feeling a bit hungry if she didn't eat now.
Xie Yanhua certainly saw Cao Wei's actions; his back teeth were almost worn down. Everyone else, including the king, saw it too, so no one reprimanded Cao Wei. He could only swallow his words, turn his head away, and try to avoid seeing her.
"South Korea has broken its contract and surrendered to Zheng. Zheng's army is about to be stationed in South Korea and is already on its way. I'm afraid their target is not South Korea, but Wu, which borders South Korea!"
Xie Yanhua's expression grew increasingly grave as he recalled the numerous messages that had been relayed back. "There's intelligence that an envoy from Zheng has gone to Zhao to seek an alliance."
Cao Wei ate the steamed buns and drank the hot soy milk. So it turned out that the State of Zheng was going to form an alliance with the State of Zhao to attack the State of Wu? No wonder the king looked so anxious. She chewed and chewed. She felt that there was not enough sugar in the soy milk today. The steamed buns were really delicious, like handmade buns.
After finishing her meal, she washed her hands in the basin brought by the eunuch. Just as she was wiping her hands, the king asked, "What is your plan, Minister Jiang?"
She just finished eating; her blood hasn't even returned to her brain yet. What thoughts could she possibly have?
But it doesn't matter, saying whatever you want won't make a difference. "It's probably not a good time to have a conflict with Zheng."
Xie Yanhua felt that his patience with Cao Wei was almost at its limit. "Now is certainly not the time. The national treasury is empty, but the population is not lacking. If we go to war, where will the military funds and provisions come from?!"
Cao Wei didn't expect Xie Yanhua to be so bothered by the 10 billion yuan subsidy for farmers, and to keep trying to stop it.
She looked around the hall, its decorations numerous since she first entered the palace. The tables and chairs had been replaced countless times. Even the king's clothes were disposable—not to mention the king, aside from the impoverished advisors and strategists, the noble families always wore different clothes each time she saw them. And they still didn't have money?!
Cao Wei's expression gradually turned cold, her face becoming somewhat stern. Every single item before her was valuable, and if these things were sold, they could feed countless people. Couldn't Xie Yanhua see this?! What annoyed Cao Wei even more was that Xie Yanhua showed no interest whatsoever in these luxuries laid out before him, his eyes only fixed on the meager resettlement allowances distributed to each farming household.
Yes, even during wartime, the living standards of these aristocratic families cannot be lowered, but taxes are increased on the poor. What was originally enough to eat 80% of the day may eventually be reduced to less than 20%.
Cao Wei glanced at the faces of the others in the hall and at the king's face, and she knew that Xie Yanhua was now able to say it openly again, and that no one else was objecting, because they had probably already decided to increase taxes.
Cao Wei's eyes sharpened for a second, then she returned to her lazy demeanor, saying nonchalantly, "If the national treasury doesn't have money, we can borrow it!"
Xie Yanhua frowned. The national treasury was empty, so they were going to borrow money?! What kind of nonsense was this?! Borrow?! From whom?! Did Zhao still intend to attack their Zheng state?!
Sure enough, everyone else also had complicated expressions on their faces.
"Let's borrow grain and troops from the State of Zheng."
The ruler of Wu pondered for a moment, "Without collateral, how can Zheng lend us the money?"
Cao Wei's gaze fell on the crystal-clear jade seal on the table in front of the king.
Xie Yanhua suddenly shouted, "Let's borrow the Wu Kingdom's jade seal, or just surrender!"
It must be said that after Cao Wei finished speaking, no one else said anything, but their expressions kept changing.
"What if the State of Zheng does not return the imperial seal?"
Listening to the others' discussion, Cao Wei really didn't want to talk. It was as difficult as ever to talk to people who weren't on the same wavelength. But fortunately, she still had a bit of professional ethics and patiently explained, "Who said that the troops and supplies have to be returned?"
Xie Yanhua pressed further, "If you don't return it, wouldn't the imperial seal...?"
As he was talking, he suddenly realized something and looked sharply into Cao Wei's bright eyes.
【Huh?! How did they agree to that?!】
[No, I don't quite understand, why did Xie Yanhua suddenly stop talking?!]
[They can even borrow troops and supplies?!]
[Sure, you can borrow them. This happened during the Three Kingdoms period too; they even borrowed entire cities. But once borrowed, they're usually very difficult to return. ┓( ′?` )┏]
[You can do that?! But using the imperial seal as collateral isn't a good idea, is it?!]
What's wrong with it? It's just a broken rock.
Even if it's just a broken stone, it's still a broken stone with extraordinary significance!
No, their national treasury is so empty right now, how are they going to pay it back? I don't think they can possibly do it.
[Heh, pay it back?! This guy never even considered paying it back. Xie Yanhua is supposed to be a poison master, but his thinking is too limited. It feels like that title of poison master can be given to someone else now.]
[Xie Yanhua isn't really a "poison master" in the end; at most, his methods were a bit too dirty. The production team definitely wouldn't approve of that. Throwing excrement like that—who would agree to that?!]
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