"Now it's only the first year, wait until next year or the year after, the grain production numbers will continue to increase. Prince, you must exercise patience and restraint," Teacher Dai advised earnestly.

Prince Yu suppressed his inner excitement, which surged like a turbulent tide, and said slowly, "I understand. Moreover, the Court alone can tally such a vast amount of grain, not to mention the enormous quantities hidden by the Powerful and nobles. We now have a mountain of silver coins and are fully capable of openly purchasing these grains. In this way, military rations will no longer be a problem for us."

Teacher Dai nodded slightly and replied, "This is ultimately an economic affair, it's better to let Minister Wang handle it."

"But I've heard that the Wang Family and Xu Qing have been getting close," Prince Yu frowned immediately upon hearing this.

Teacher Dai remained calm and said leisurely, "Prince, currently, you are surrounded by Northern aristocrats, and most of the key ministers in the Court are from the North. Only Minister Wang is from the South, and for this reason alone, it's enough for you to use him greatly."

Upon hearing this, Prince Yu's heart suddenly tightened, and he quickly bowed to Teacher Dai in gratitude: "Teacher, thanks to your reminder, otherwise I almost made a great mistake."

Teacher Dai sighed silently in his heart, lamenting that although the Prince was already middle-aged, he still didn't consider matters thoroughly. Back when His Majesty ascended the throne as a teenager, he could already manipulate the veteran ministers in the Court with ease, and Xu Gongming was the same. The gap between them was indeed vast.

However, Teacher Dai had long resolved never to betray Prince Yu, even if it meant risking everything.

He continued, "Minister Wang previously served as the Minister of Revenue. If he is responsible for this matter, it will surely allow you to rest easy. If the Prince is still worried, I will personally visit him to explain the stakes, ensuring Minister Wang does not become a hindrance to you."

"Then I'll trouble Teacher to make the trip," Prince Yu said gratefully.

"With pleasure," Teacher Dai replied respectfully.

…

…

Wang Gong, upon hearing of Teacher Dai's visit, dared not delay and quickly opened the main door to welcome him.

The host and guest entered the private study and sat down, the room quiet except for the occasional chirping of birds outside.

Teacher Dai chuckled coldly and said, "Minister Wang, you've accomplished quite a feat lately."

Wang Gong was startled, fearing that his secret dealings with Xu Qing had been discovered, his heart instantly racing.

Unexpectedly, Teacher Dai shifted his tone and continued, "The master of Jile Tower is not to be trifled with; Minister Wang, be cautious of being implicated by such associations."

Wang Gong secretly breathed a sigh of relief and explained, "I heard that the Blood Drops under the Prince are everywhere, so even my little affairs couldn't escape their eyes. Alas, I'm forced to tread carefully since I'm the only Southerner among the key ministers in the Court."

Currently, Xu Qing's mentor, Lord Wu, serves as the Governor of Liao Dong, standing at the center of a storm.

In addition, Xu Qing's father-in-law is in Yunzhou, inspecting the Border Town as an Assistant Minister of Military Affairs. These two people, close to Xu Qing, are in the North, isolated and in a difficult predicament.

However, both Old Feng and Old Wu have resolutely refused Xu Qing's invitation to return to the South, determined to stay rooted in the North. Old Feng is one thing, but Lord Wu's firm resolve is truly unexpected.

Yet, Teacher Dai knew well that Lord Wu was originally from the North; if he fled easily, what would become of his family? He could only grit his teeth and hold on.

Fortunately, both are now local officials and are not at risk of being openly bullied in the Capital. Moreover, Prince Yu, considering he cannot entirely cut ties with Xu Qing for the time being, has accepted their appointments in local positions but has imposed a blockade on them regarding military rations.

Nevertheless, Xu Qing secretly provides a lot of support by leveraging merchant caravans. Regarding this, Prince Yu finds himself helpless.

Because, amusingly enough, his official Princess's family is doing business with Xu Qing, how could he stop it? If it weren't for his son in Yingtian Prefecture, Prince Yu would have already considered deposing the Princess and letting the Concubine Feng ascend. Yet, who would have thought that Concubine Feng's father was also aligned with Xu Qing.

Therefore, Prince Yu is always somewhat suspicious, feeling that everyone around him seems to be colluding with Xu Qing. Fortunately, the Blood Drops have not found any treasonous behavior, otherwise, Prince Yu would never show mercy.

On the other hand, Wang Gong expressed his grievances, claiming that he could only go to Jile Tower and mingle with Northern Powerful and nobles to avoid isolation, as he had no other choice.

Teacher Dai understood this, explaining the purpose of his visit.

Hearing that it was about using silver coins to purchase military grain, Wang Gong felt a wave of relief and immediately said, "Tell the Prince, never to purchase grain directly from the Powerful and nobles with silver coins, as this will undoubtedly cause great trouble."

Teacher Dai appeared puzzled upon hearing this.

Wang Gong then explained in detail, stating that doing so would give the Powerful an opportunity to manipulate grain prices.

Teacher Dai suddenly understood and said, "Luckily I came to consult with you first, or else I really would have made a major mistake."

Wang Gong patted his chest to assure, "Leave this matter to me, I will not disappoint the Prince."

Teacher Dai bowed in gratitude, and the two discussed for a while longer before parting.

Before departing, Teacher Dai said meaningfully, "Minister Wang, when in office, take care of business. This is also advocated by the Young Protector Xu, do not fool yourself."

Watching Teacher Dai leave, Wang Gong suddenly broke into a cold sweat. He wondered silently how much this old fellow really knew.

Now Wang Gong was more suspicious that Teacher Dai's claim of being unfamiliar with economic affairs was really a test. If he had not thoroughly considered matters from Prince Yu's perspective, perhaps... Fortunately, he had received Xu Qing's prior warning to fully assist in Prince Yu's reforms, or else...

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.