Chapter 398 (1/2)
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t.i.tle: The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir
Chapter 398 - You brought that upon yourself (1)
Zhao Li began by saying, ”Regarding the matter of leading the troops for the military exercise, this emperor has great expectations for the two of you and hopes that the two of you can be of one heart and one mind as you help this emperor achieve his goals.”
As a place that was abundant in ore and had high grain production, Zhangjun was truly a lurking danger that was waiting to happen. Right now, there would be a shortage of grain even after the autumn harvest, and Zhangjun's granaries were empty. He could use the previous excuse of a grain shortage to send ten thousand soldiers over there as a military exercise. If Zhangjun Prince was unyielding, he would find an excuse to attack his fiefdom. If Zhangjun Prince was meek, he would collect all of the ore produced in Zhangjun by imposing a tariff. Either way, he would remove this threat through the use of a strong army.
He couldn't just sit and watch as Zhangjun Prince's territory became increasingly prosperous. If he waited until Zhangjun Prince revolted first, he might not be able to defeat him then.
Marquis Moyu currently controlled the Six Ministries, so he a.s.signed him as the deputy general for the army that would go Zhangjun to move him out of the imperial court. This would give him the opportunity to tidy up the Six Ministries. During the time that Ning Yuxuan was away, Xiao Tianyu would temporarily be put in charge of the Six Ministries.
Ning Yuxuan saluted with his hands. ”This subject will definitely not disappoint Your Majesty's high hopes.”
As Zhao Li deeply looked at him, his gaze swept over the matching pair of purple jade that was hanging on Ning Mingjie's and Ning Yuxuan's waists.
His heart slightly relaxed. In the end, Ning Mingjie and Ning Yuxuan were from the same clan and as close as brothers. He deeply believed in Ning Mingjie, and Ning Yuxuan naturally wouldn't abandon his older cousin. Moreover, seeing that the two cousins were close enough to wear matching jade waist accessories, they obviously must have a good relations.h.i.+p.
Still, he should wait until they left the capital before making Kangyuan his consort. He should also give Ning Mingjie something in compensation. Otherwise, even the most loyal of hearts would turn disloyal.
As Zhao Li contemplated this, he let out a long sigh. He didn't know how long Pengyue's anger was going to last this time. Anyways, she would always end up forgiving him.
---
While waiting for the road to Zhangjun to be completed, the emperor had Ning Yuxuan transfer over some of his work. Although the emperor had said it was just transferring some tasks, it was really seizing Marquis Moyu's power. Surprisingly, Marquis Moyu didn't resist. Other than control of the Ministry of Revenue, he slowly relinquished his control of the other ministries.
As a result, he gained plenty of free time to go looking for Ji Man every day.
---
Ji Man was very busy. Today, she had to personally go the countryside to collect the grain from the autumn harvest from certain tenant farmers. Taking advantage of the timing gap in the imperial court, she wanted to collect more grain. Previously, she had gotten most of her grain from Zhangjun, but she felt nervous because of the current political situation. She didn't need Zhao Zhe to tell her that it would become difficult to import rice from Zhangjun.
A trip to the countryside definitely wasn't romantic. Contrary to her imagination, there wasn't field after field of beautiful rice paddies. Instead, it was an endlessly long, b.u.mpy, and muddy trip. Ji Man didn't even dare to wear any nice-looking clothing.
So, she didn't know why a lord like Ning Yuxuan would want to come along. Sitting in a carriage that was as bouncy as a trampoline, he was still able to maintain a calm and composed demeanor. ”Why are you taking this trip yourself instead of sending your shopkeeper? Isn't he very competent?”