knife

Chapter 160 A desperate move

"Sell this big house in Danyang!" Old Master Zhu slapped the armrest of his chair. "And sell all the shops too! Second son, calculate how much we'll get?"

“Father, there’s no need to calculate. All our family’s properties in Danyang combined can only fetch a maximum of 100,000 taels of silver. That was before. In the past few days, I’m afraid we won’t even be able to sell them for that price. Look at how many large houses have become empty these past two days! The court will definitely sell them to replenish the national treasury after taking them back. There aren’t many people who can afford these houses. At this critical juncture, I’m afraid that those with means will be eager to buy these houses sold by the court to please the Empress Dowager.” The second son, Zhu Cheng, said helplessly.

"No matter how much it sells for, put it up for sale first!" Old Master Zhu pondered for a moment and said, "Our family has good feng shui. Look, when the Empress Dowager came to power, although we lost some money, we escaped danger and the whole family was safe and sound. This time, during the Danyang Incident, our family also survived safely. Moreover, your eldest brother has returned from thousands of miles away and will be given an important position. What does this mean? It means that our house is protected by the gods! Perhaps someone will see this and be willing to pay a lot of money to buy it?"

Zhu Chi exclaimed in surprise, "Father, if these rumors get out, the Empress Dowager will surely find out, and I'm afraid it will displease her."

After pondering for a while, Old Master Zhu said, "It's all for the sake of the country. My Zhu family is sacrificing our family fortune to serve the country. The Empress Dowager shouldn't say anything. Also, Second Brother, sell all the remaining properties we have in Suzhou. The remaining farmland, shops, and workshops should be worth several hundred thousand taels of silver!"

"Father, you mustn't!" The Zhu brothers were both shocked: "What's left in our old home in Suzhou includes ancestral property, the old lady's dowry, and sacrificial fields for the ancestral hall. We can't sell any of these!"

"Your elder brother went to that harsh land beyond the Great Wall with the mindset of dying far from home, and with great difficulty, he earned a glimmer of hope for the Zhu family's resurgence. Whether we can survive against all odds and turn the tide depends on this gamble." Old Master Zhu said angrily, "Don't you understand now? Without the corresponding power, how can you protect any amount of wealth? These properties in Suzhou have been repeatedly harassed in the past two years. Why not take this opportunity to sell them all? With the Empress Dowager watching, I want to see who dares to try to seize them by trickery!"

Zhu Chi knelt down in front of Old Master Zhu with a thud, tears streaming down his face, and said loudly, "Father, I swear that I will go through fire and water to restore the family's reputation. I will buy back all the ancestral property that I sold today."

"Good, good!" Old Master Zhu laughed loudly, "Four years ago, I spent ninety percent of my family fortune to buy peace for my family. Today, I'm spending the last ten percent to buy a chance for my Zhu family to rise again. No regrets, no regrets!"

"Second son, go and do it!" Old Master Zhu waved his hand: "I still have something to say to your eldest brother!"

Zhu Cheng stood up, wiped away her tears, and strode away.

"Your second brother doesn't have much ability or wisdom, and that's actually my fault. I didn't raise him properly from a young age!" Old Master Zhu laughed. "But that's the custom of my Zhu family. Once the heir is chosen, everyone else can only be a supporting role. And you have not disappointed me."

"My second brother has worked so hard all these years supporting the family business!" Zhu Chi said softly. "We'll have to rely on him even more in the future. I'm afraid I'll have to be stationed outside the Great Wall more often!"

"The Maritime Silk Road sounds impressive, but putting it into practice will be fraught with difficulties!" Old Master Zhu sighed. "For us, it's a matter of life and death. The Anxi Protectorate outside the Great Wall has agreed to deal with Cai Ming in Xuanwu, right? If Xuanwu is blocked, then this Silk Road is just a castle in the air."

“Yes!” Zhu Chi said, “Minister Lin means that we should not only do business with the Anxi Protectorate, but also maintain contact with Andong. If this road is opened, I’m afraid that what they want will not only be silk, porcelain and tea, but also a large amount of strategic materials will be traded over there.”

"That's exactly what the Empress Dowager and the others want!" Old Master Zhu said. "That's why I dared to take this gamble. The demand for various strategic materials outside the Great Wall is enormous. But they themselves are extremely lacking. In the past, they relied on Qin for supplies, but in the past two years, Qin has been preoccupied with its own problems and also wary of Linghu Ye, so it has been vigorously prohibiting such materials from crossing the border. Therefore, once the Maritime Silk Road is open, these materials will be readily available, no matter how expensive they are! Don't the Yuan people need them? If we really open up this sea route, the Yuan people do have ports!"

"The Empress Dowager hopes that things will be even more chaotic on the Qin side!" Zhu Chi said, "Whether it's Andong or Anxi, stronger forces will be beneficial in containing Qin and Beiyuan."

"That's exactly right. I must say, although the Empress Dowager is young, her strategic vision is truly admirable!" Old Master Zhu said, "In the past two years, the Great Chu has shown signs of revival, which is all thanks to her."

"After this purge of Danyang, no one in the Great Chu will be able to shake the Empress Dowager's authority!" Zhu Chi said.

Old Master Zhu nodded and said, "The last bit of friendship between the old prime minister and General Xiang will probably be exhausted this time. Many of their family members were involved, but it seems that the Empress Dowager has not arrested these people. But friendship is something that can only be used once it is exhausted."

"Father, there is one more thing I would like to ask you!"

"Speak!" "It's about the Demonic Sect!"

"Why are you suddenly mentioning them?" Old Master Zhu frowned.

"Outside the Great Wall, I met a martial artist who could wield the Phoenix Flame, and this person had an extraordinary relationship with the Anxi Protectorate, with whom we are going to cooperate this time."

"Isn't that highly unlikely? The Demonic Sect's strength in the north was almost completely wiped out decades ago with He Qingqiu's defeat and death. How could they reappear in the far north beyond the Great Wall?" At this point, Old Master Zhu suddenly paused: "Could it be that He Qingqiu had some backup plan back then? That's highly unlikely! You didn't see wrong?"

“Father, you also know about the Phoenix Fire technique. It’s unforgettable!” Zhu Chi said. “The steward of the Tai’an City Lord’s Mansion punished a guy who violated the city’s rules. That guy was quite skilled, but in the end, he was burned to ashes by the Phoenix Fire. Outsiders don’t recognize the Phoenix Fire, but I have seen a detailed description of this martial art in Tianluo’s archives, so I can’t be mistaken.”

"He Qingqiu cultivated the Phoenix Flame back then!" Old Master Zhu murmured. "The fierce battle she fought before her death shocked the world, and the Great Qin suffered a great loss of strength as a result! Three Xiantian cultivators and Kou Zhong, who had one foot in the Divine Travel realm, were killed and one was seriously injured. It was only on that day that everyone realized that He Qingqiu was actually the Holy Maiden of the Demonic Sect."

"Having cultivated to that level, is it possible to no longer discern the Phoenix's Departing Flame?"

"Even if He Qingqiu had reached the Divine Ascension stage, or even the Innate stage, if he wanted to conceal it, you would no longer be able to determine the cultivation method he practiced!" Old Master Zhu sighed. "He Qingqiu's exposure provided the Great Qin with some legitimate excuses for wiping out the Crown Prince's faction back then, and our Great Chu was extremely shocked at the time. As a result, we even carried out a large-scale purge of the Demonic Sect within our country, because the Demonic Sect's deepest infiltration was not in Qin, but in our Great Chu!"

"No wonder Minister Lin repeatedly instructed us to thoroughly investigate the relationship between Li Kaixin, the city lord of Tai'an City, and Li Dachui, the deputy protector of Anxi Protectorate." Zhu Chi suddenly realized, "Minister Lin must be worried that they might be colluding with the Demonic Sect, raising a tiger to cause trouble. Speaking of which, I heard that the Five Pecks of Rice Sect has started causing trouble again in the south, and has actually occupied more than ten counties in one fell swoop?"

"Lin Yunqi went personally; those people are no match for him!" Old Master Zhu said disdainfully. "Tens of thousands were killed, and more than a dozen bandits, the leaders of the Five Pecks of Rice sect, were captured alive by Lin Yunqi and beheaded right there at the execution ground. The Empress Dowager has always had only one word for these people: kill!"

“Our Empress Dowager is far too bloodthirsty!” Zhu Chi shook his head slightly: “Thinking about it carefully, since she came to power, the number of people who have died must be counted in the hundreds of thousands.”

"If she were a soft-hearted person, could she have achieved what she has today?" Old Master Zhu laughed. "Back when she first married into the royal family, she was timid and ashamed to be seen by others, a world of difference from now. But this is a good thing for our Great Chu. Just look at the Great Qin, chaos is about to come, and having a great ruler is a blessing for our Great Chu."

Deep within the palace, Jiang Qian listened to Lin Yunqi's report and couldn't help but laugh heartily.

"Is the Zhu family really going around proclaiming that their house has good feng shui and can ward off bad luck?"

Lin Yun nodded and said, "Empress Dowager, should we reprimand them? They're taking your grace for granted!"

"No, no, no!" Jiang Qian shook her head and said, "They are selling their houses and ancestral lands for the sake of the country. Such behavior should be encouraged and supported. Minister Lin, why don't you lend them a hand? Tell them that I am planning to give the Zhu brothers an important position, and that I am also planning to invite Old Master Zhu back to the court to serve as an official."

"In that case, the house they're selling will probably be worth a hundred times more!"

"It's great that someone's buying! This money will be used to help Zhu Chi open up the Maritime Silk Road. The one who will benefit is Great Chu, right?" Jiang Qian said. "We can make money and cause some trouble for Qin and Northern Yuan. Isn't that wonderful? Linghu Ye is single-mindedly focused on entering the pass, and Xiao Changche is obsessed with launching a northern expedition against Yuan. Let's add some fuel to their fire, hahaha! It's beneficial without costing anything, and we even make money. How wonderful, how wonderful!"

"Then I will take care of it immediately. But do you really want to invite the old man from the Zhu family to return to court as an official?"

"During this period, the old guys have killed too many. Having a few more white-bearded old men in the court makes them seem more stable and reassuring. Old Zhu has experienced great ups and downs, great sorrow and great joy. He must have seen things clearly by now and knows how to be an official! Let others see that as long as you work for the court, the court is never stingy with rewards."

(End of this chapter)