Longzang

Chapter 1087 The So-Called Treaty

Prince Ji was engrossed in reviewing memorials when he suddenly stopped writing and lingered for a long time on a memorial submitted by Sun Chaoen, reading it intently and repeatedly.

This memorial was submitted by Sun Chaoen to impeach Xiao Jingyuan's son, Xiao Feixue, accusing him of taking advantage of the summer floods to forcibly acquire land at low prices, with the newly stockpiled land exceeding 10,000 hectares in just August and September.

This memorial is rich in evidence, accompanied by several maps and account books. Each county has detailed markings indicating which piece of land was acquired, when, and how much silver was spent on each piece. The land marked on these maps alone totals over 8,700 hectares. The account books record every expenditure in meticulous detail, with every expense documented.

The problem is that Xiao Feixue has already reached the Perfected Dharma Aspect stage and can break through to the Imperial Realm at any time. It is said that the Xiao family has been secretly preparing for this for several years. It is quite interesting that Sun Chaoen suddenly impeached Xiao Feixue at this time.

Prince Ji put down the memorial and ordered someone to summon Sun Chao'en to the palace.

A moment later, Sun Chaoen entered the imperial study and bowed in greeting. Prince Ji looked at him carefully and said meaningfully, "Half a month has passed, and you've gotten even darker, my dear minister."

Sun Chaoen chuckled and said, "It has darkened, and it has become stronger."

Prince Ji waved his hand and said, "Sit."

Sun Chaoen sat down to the side, and Prince Ji asked, "Is that desolate realm really so magical?"

Sun Chaoen said, "The Desolate Realm alone is not that magical. It requires the use of corresponding mental techniques, and after returning, you need to take the corresponding pills to maintain your body. But these are not the key points. The key point is to go with Wei Yuan. He will shield you from the terrifying power of the Great Sun in the Desolate Realm, but retain the part that tempers your body. Only in this way can you achieve twice the result with half the effort and improve your aptitude."

"How long do you need to recuperate after each trip?" King Ji asked again.

"Given my constitution, it would take me more than ten months to recover. But with Your Majesty's abilities, it should take about three or four months to recover."

Prince Ji nodded and said, "You are one of the few people in the court who will tell me the truth. As for having some selfish motives, who doesn't? Hmph, those who want to be remembered in history, I think they have the strongest selfish motives!"

Sun Chaoen laughed and said, "Is Your Majesty worried about building a new palace again? Actually, this matter is easy to handle. It's just that I currently hold a lot of positions. If I take on another one, many people will be envious."

Prince Ji's eyes lit up, and he asked, "Do you have a plan for the new palace?"

Sun Chaoen said, “Since the rebellion was quelled, the country has been recuperating for the past five years, and the national treasury has finally shown some improvement. However, the people have suffered too many losses, and the annual income is insufficient. The current national treasury is far from enough to support the construction of Yuntai Jinque. Therefore, not only the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue oppose it, but all the officials also oppose it.”

Prince Ji's face darkened: "I know these things myself, do you need to tell me?"

Sun Chaoen smiled mysteriously and said, "But even with the current national silver reserves, the Yuntai Golden Palace can actually be built."

Prince Ji's eyes lit up: "How should it be built?"

“If the Cloud Terrace and Golden Palace were to be built, according to tradition, it would naturally be handed over to the Ministry of Works. However, if such a large project were handed over to the Ministry of Works, then from top to bottom, layer by layer, each level would take a lot of benefits. In the end, less than half of the celestial silver used for the construction of the palace would probably be left. Therefore, the first priority is not to hand it over to the Ministry of Works. As a second choice, I would like to transfer myself to the position of Minister of Works.”

Prince Ji was taken aback: "The Ministry of Works dares to embezzle half of it?!"

"With layers of embezzlement and resale, pocketing only half would be considered quite honest. If we could bypass the Ministry of Works, or if I, as Minister, directly transfer the projects to trusted individuals, most of the money could be used for the palace. But in this way, the officials wouldn't get any benefits, and the Ministry of Works wouldn't get any either, so naturally everyone would oppose it. That's one point."

Secondly, the construction of the Cloud Terrace Golden Palace is extremely difficult. The Ji Kingdom currently has a very limited number of craftsmen capable of building it, making it impossible to guarantee the construction time and resulting in exorbitant costs. During this process, those with ulterior motives can obstruct the project at every turn, either by monopolizing key materials or controlling core craftsmen, thereby achieving their goal of embezzling construction funds.

Prince Ji snorted, his eyes flashing with murderous intent, and said slowly, "Do they not know how important this matter is to me? Anyone who dares to sabotage the construction of the Cloud Terrace Golden Palace is an enemy of me!"

Sun Chaoen asked cautiously, "May I ask, Your Majesty, what is the reason for this?"

Prince Ji slowly said, "My destiny is flawed, and I need to build the Cloud Terrace and Golden Palace to suppress it at a critical moment in order to change my luck. This is a huge secret. You have done a good job in the past few years and solved countless troubles for me, so I am telling you this matter."

Sun Chaoen said, "Your Majesty, I understand. Anyone who opposes the construction of the Cloud Terrace and Golden Palace is pushing His Majesty to his death."

Prince Ji nodded and said, "If I cannot survive this calamity, I will kill all those involved, leaving none alive, so that they may be buried with me!"

Sun Chaoen said, "If Your Majesty has this determination, I do have a solution: entrust the construction of the Yuntai Golden Palace to Qingming."

A murderous glint appeared in Prince Ji's eyes, but Sun Chaoen remained fearless, quietly awaiting a reply.

King Ji snorted and said, "What does Wei Yuan want now?" "Wei Yuan wants the eight prefectures to remain within the Ji Kingdom, but he wants the Xiang and Han prefectures to be transferred to him."

Prince Ji's gaze shifted, and he said slowly, "If he can truly accomplish this, what good would it do to grant him the two prefectures? If he isn't granted them, the two prefectures will become dead zones. But is that all?"

"Wei Yuan also wants the right to trade freely throughout the entire territory, and the total commercial tax of the Qingming caravan shall not exceed 10%. If Your Majesty can agree to this, the subsequent 25 years of reparations can be waived."

Prince Ji seemed to be deep in thought, and after a moment he said, "He would rather have trade than pay reparations. Does he think he can gain more from trade than from plunder?"

Sun Chaoen remained calm and said, "This humble subject does not know."

Prince Ji frowned in thought, then said, "Never mind, this matter isn't that important. But can the people of Qingming truly build the Cloud Terrace and Golden Palace?"

Sun Chaoen said, "The Ministry of Works has given a cost of 110 million taels for the Yuntai Golden Palace. The actual construction cost should be around 50 million taels. However, if all the raw materials are purchased from Qingming and all the construction craftsmen are hired from Qingming, the cost can be reduced by half. The national treasury currently has 15 million taels of silver in reserve, and there is still a shortfall of 10 million taels."

"Where did this ten million come from?" Prince Ji frowned.

Sun Chaoen said, "This is why I want to investigate Xiao Jingyuan and his son. If Xiao Jingyuan's son, Xiao Feixue, achieves the Imperial Realm, then there will be two Imperial Realm experts in one family, which will be difficult to control. We should take action now. Not only can we confiscate tens of thousands of acres of land, but we can also seize a set of resources for advancing to the Imperial Realm. These fields and family assets can be worth several million taels of silver."

"Over the years, I have amassed over three million taels of silver through extortion, bribery, and other corrupt practices. If I were to contribute these, I could roughly raise enough to cover the debt."

Prince Ji's tightly furrowed brows finally relaxed, and he said, "Then wouldn't you have suffered a huge loss?"

Sun Chaoen said, "I have embezzled and accepted bribes, and my wealth is ill-gotten. Now that Your Majesty is in need, I should contribute it all. If the money is gone, I can earn it back slowly."

Prince Ji was slightly moved. He walked out from behind his desk, patted Sun Chaoen on the shoulder, and then asked, "Are you confident in capturing Xiao Feixue?"

"This matter requires a two-pronged approach. First, we must ask the Chief Eunuch of the Embroidered Uniform Guard to intervene and intimidate Xiao Jingyuan. Second, we must promise not to harm Xiao Feixue's life or disrupt his cultivation path, but only to take away most of his family's wealth and Imperial Resources. With the Xiao family's resources, they will naturally be able to save up another set of Imperial Resources in a hundred years."

When Xiao Feixue achieved the Imperial Realm, Xiao Jingyuan was already nearing the end of his lifespan, and the Xiao family essentially only had one Imperial Realm member. Xiao Jingyuan should understand the King's intentions and wouldn't risk taking such a dangerous path.

Prince Ji nodded and said, "This plan is excellent! My dear minister, you are indeed a pillar of the nation!"

Sun Chaoen hurriedly replied, "I'm just trying to share the King's burdens."

Prince Ji suddenly said, "When Cai Miao enters the palace tonight, you should come along too. I will have Xu Shang perform a dance, so that we, as ruler and subject, can enjoy it together."

Sun Chaoen was taken aback and hurriedly said he dared not.

Prince Ji laughed and said, "What's there to be afraid of? As long as you handle the Yuntai Golden Palace matter well, you will be second only to the emperor and above all others. Xu Chang's dance is just an advance payment."

……

Above the celestial heavens, Cangwu suddenly opened his eyes, looked at the earth below, and said slowly, "There are still more than four years until the contract with Wei Yuan expires, but the time is ripe. The Great Array of Absolute Heaven and Earth Refining the World is ready. In just a few days, the array will be set up and the Lord's commission will be completed. I don't need to waste any more time here."

He slowly walked out of the cave, summoned several disciples, and instructed them to prepare to activate the great formation. Then, Cangwu left the cave to find Prince Ji.

Several days later, Cangwu and King Ji stood atop the celestial heavens, quietly awaiting the opportune moment.

The eight prefectures were deathly still, and for thousands of miles there was no sign of human habitation. Everything was ready.

……

At the border of the Ji Kingdom, Wei Yuan stood in the air, looking down at the million-strong army that was ready to go, and pointed in the direction of the Ji Kingdom!
As the suppressing formation withdrew, the military morale surged like a vast ocean, spreading for thousands of miles! The million-strong army split into several routes, crossed the border, and stormed into the Ji Kingdom!
Wei Yuan's ambition in this battle is to sweep through the eight prefectures and then completely occupy the Xiang and Han prefectures. His million-strong army, brimming with fiery spirit, is comparable to tens of millions of ordinary people. Wei Yuan wants to see how Cangwu intends to subdue the eight prefectures.

The million-strong force was merely the vanguard; Wei Yuan had another two million troops stationed in the rear, ready to provide support at any time.

As for the ten-year agreement that the two sides made back then, in Wei Yuan's eyes now, it was nothing more than a piece of waste paper.

(End of this chapter)