Longzang

Chapter 457 Matters of the Imperial Court

Wei Yuan did not answer the Crown Prince's question directly, but said, "I am a short-sighted person. I can't see the future. I can only see the little place around me."

The Crown Prince smiled faintly and said, "Then how far did Lord Wei see?"

Wei Yuan pondered for a moment and said, "I mainly want to look west, but no matter which direction, there has to be a barrier a thousand or two thousand miles outside the boundary to feel at ease. If we can see Hanyang Pass, that would be best."

The faces of the civil officials all darkened.

The Crown Prince remained calm and said, "Hanyang Pass is a formidable pass in the world. If Lord Wei wishes to enjoy the scenery, that is not impossible. However, the best place to view the scenery of Hanyang Pass is from a high place in the west, looking far eastward to take in the full view."

Wei Yuan tapped the table lightly and said, "Your Highness is absolutely right. As long as I can see this magnificent pass, that's enough. There's really no need for me to go in again."

The Crown Prince smiled and said, "Then I wish Lord Wei a successful westward expedition, and that he may further expand the territory of the Great Jin!"

Wei Yuan smiled bitterly: "Going west is not so easy. Last time the Wu tribe attacked, the vanguard alone numbered 500,000, and five Youwu also came. My stronghold was almost destroyed."

The Crown Prince laughed and said, "With Lord Wei guarding the Western Regions, no matter how many Wu tribes come, they will surely turn misfortune into good fortune."

That's enough.

The group drank and chatted merrily, but before long, Wei Yuan, unable to hold his liquor, took his leave. This time, the Crown Prince escorted him all the way to the gate of the mansion, watching Wei Yuan's carriage disappear into the distance before turning back.

The Crown Prince then returned to the warm pavilion, where the wine and dishes were removed and replaced with tea sets.

The Crown Prince personally prepared the tea, and the officials seemed much more relaxed. One official remarked, "This Wei Yuan has quite the appetite; he actually wants Hanyang Pass! Doesn't that mean all of Ningxi Prefecture, spanning seven thousand li, will end up in his pocket?"

Another person scoffed, "Is he trying to acquire a piece of a prestigious family's foundation?"

The Minister of Works, who had previously shown Wei Yuan no kindness, now spoke solemnly: "Given the talent Wei Yuan has displayed, ascending to immortality is not entirely impossible. Although he is asking for too much now, he has seized the perfect opportunity. If we grant his request now, His Highness's throne will be secure. Moreover, once His Highness ascends to the throne, the West can rest assured, and we can focus on developing northward."

Unlike the Liao region, where even if one acquires land, it takes decades to gradually transform the Wu region, the Liao region can be transformed in just a few years.

The Crown Prince hesitated, saying, "Even if he can ascend to immortality, it will be several hundred years from now. I won't live that long after I ascend the throne. Is it really necessary to pay such a high price for something that will happen several hundred years from now? We need to discuss this matter more carefully."

An official suddenly said, "From what Wei Yuan said, it seems that the Azure Netherworld could expand to five thousand miles in the future. The two borders would then be ten thousand miles! I've heard that the Azure Netherworld is full of wonders, truly deserving of its name as a celestial stone. Wouldn't it be wonderful if Your Highness could take control of this land before he fully matures?"

The Minister of Works shook his head: "Wei Yuan is not so easy to deal with. Haven't you seen how the Xu family has suffered heavy losses several times? Now even the Xu family has stopped making a move."

The official replied, "Perhaps it's not that difficult, Your Highness. Please take a look!"

With a wave of his hand, a map appeared, and he drew a route from the northern edge of the desolate mountains, saying, "I've heard that Qingming has recently been purchasing large quantities of silk brocade. There's only one way out for so much silk brocade: trade with the Witch Clan. Since it's trade, if Qingming can do it, the Xu family can naturally do it too. Why go through Qingming again?"
Therefore, Your Majesty only needs to have an inside agent within the Xu family organize a trade route to the Wu tribe. After one or two such instances, the Xu family will inevitably become emboldened and cut off all their silk supplies to Qingming. This trade route cannot be moved north, and it borders Qingming to the south. Given Wei Yuan's temperament, how could he possibly allow the Xu family's caravan to profit right under his nose?
Even if he doesn't send a large army to intercept them, he'll disguise himself as bandits and block their path. And once the Azure Nether Realm expands here, he'll directly set up checkpoints. In that case, Wei Yuan and the Xu family will inevitably have renewed animosity, and if we just add fuel to the fire, another great war might break out.”

The Minister of Works seemed to be thinking for a moment, then said, "This plan is feasible! We can also give Wei Yuan a warning, so he won't be too arrogant."

The crown prince nodded slowly.

Back at his residence, Wei Yuan first reviewed his meeting with the Crown Prince and felt that he had handled it well. The Crown Prince wanted Wei Yuan to stay out of the struggle for the throne, so Wei Yuan took the opportunity to propose his conditions, which included the entire Ningxi Prefecture, including Hanyang Pass.

The Prince of Jin would definitely not agree to this condition, nor would the Xu family. If Hanyang Pass fell into Wei Yuan's hands, he would be able to attack or defend at will, not only blocking the Xu family's westward advance but also using Hanyang Pass as his base to constantly threaten the Xu family's heartland.

Therefore, Wei Yuan didn't actually intend to obtain Hanyang Pass, especially since the Crown Prince's word wasn't final. What Wei Yuan wanted was the territory outside Hanyang Pass. Furthermore, even if the Crown Prince refused everything, it wouldn't matter; as the Left Chancellor said, Wei Yuan wouldn't need to do anything, and he would naturally be the winner.

The matter of vying for the throne is too early for Wei Yuan. The first priority is for the young Prince of Chu to survive.

As Wei Yuan pondered, a thought suddenly struck him. He pushed open the door and went out, only to see Zhao Tong standing in the courtyard. It was already late at night, past midnight. He wondered what Zhao Tong's purpose was in visiting at this hour.

Zhao Tongdao said, "The Holy King has issued an edict summoning Lord Wei to an audience immediately."

"Alright, please wait a moment, Eunuch Zhao."

Wei Yuan turned and went back into the house. When he came out, he had a box in his hand, which he handed to Zhao Tong, saying, "Inside are ten Netherblood Youth Pills. You, Eunuch Zhao, are well aware of their effects. We've produced more now, so I brought another box. Although these pills don't conflict with other longevity medicines, they shouldn't be taken in excess. With your cultivation level, two pills are advisable, and it's best not to take a third." "Oh dear, what can I say? But such a treasure is impossible to refuse… Ah! Fine, from now on, I'm on the same side as Lord Wei!"

Wei Yuan smiled and said, "In my heart, you and I have long been family."

“Let’s go. We don’t need a carriage this time. The King is not in the palace, but at the Vajra Zen Monastery outside the city. I’ll lead the way, and the two of us will fly there.”

The two then took flight into the night, heading towards the outskirts of the city. Zhao Tong carried a magical artifact that controlled the great formation, and he and Wei Yuan passed through the city's protective formation without any hindrance, flying all the way to the Vajra Zen Temple atop the mountain outside the city.

Zhao Tong led Wei Yuan into the back of the Zen temple and headed towards a side hall.

As Wei Yuan passed a lotus pond, he suddenly stopped and looked into the pond.

Although it was the dead of winter, the Vajra Zen Temple felt like late autumn. The Merit Pond was clear and not frozen. Several lotus flowers bloomed in the pond, all ordinary white lotuses.

Wei Yuan sensed something entangled beneath the pool, trying to understand it. This was an entanglement of fate, and if Wei Yuan hadn't cultivated into a human being with heightened perception of fate, he probably wouldn't have noticed such an entanglement.

However, since Wei Yuan had noticed it, he had his own way of dealing with it. Wei Yuan guided the entanglement into the fortune array of mortals, and then casually pulled out some mortal fortune and put it into the array, connecting it with the entanglement.

Suddenly, the water in the Merit Pool surged, and an unopened lotus bud floated to the surface, then bloomed into an ordinary white lotus. It turned out that the Merit Pool was also a treasure of fortune, capable of manifesting corresponding fortune.

Wei Yuan was very satisfied to see the white lotus flower. If he hadn't been careful just now and had been caught by that entanglement, who knows what kind of fortune it might have created.

If a vibrant green lotus were to bloom, that would be truly interesting. Wei Yuan has always disliked this kind of flower.

After passing the Lotus Pond of Merit, we entered a side hall. The hall was filled with spiritual energy and the strong scent of incense and prayers. The interior was simply furnished, and the shrine was empty, with dents indicating what had originally been enshrined inside.

The Prince of Jin sat cross-legged on a futon, like a statue. An incense burner burned before him, from which wisps of smoke rose.

The side hall was small, but exceptionally high and spacious. Incense burned brightly in the incense burner, and several thick candles sat on the floor beside it, their melted wax having solidified on the floor. In the candlelight, the shadow of the Prince of Jin was projected onto the wall—huge, ferocious, and constantly writhing.

The Prince of Jin opened his eyes and gestured to a prayer mat beside him, which Wei Yuan then sat down on.

"The reason I summoned you to this place is to tell you that there is not much of a barrier between us as ruler and subject. The fate of the Western Jin Dynasty rests largely on your shoulders. We are truly interdependent, sharing both prosperity and adversity."

The Prince of Jin's voice was somewhat strange, as if he was a little impatient and had a hidden pain in it. When he spoke, Wei Yuan seemed to hear two people speaking at the same time. Although their voices were very similar, Wei Yuan could still tell the difference.

The Prince of Jin paused for a moment, then said, "The national treasury is empty, and the expenses of the new army are much higher than expected. If this continues, I'm afraid I'll have to sell off the ancestral treasures in the palace. Do you have any ideas?"

This question was unexpectedly direct, and no longer condescending, but rather like asking a friend. However, Wei Yuan knew that in history, when a monarch asked such a question, a subject had to be careful. If he got carried away and truly confided in the monarch, he would be close to the extermination of his clan.

Wei Yuan said, "There is a method that can be effective within a year."

"Oh, what method?" The Prince of Jin became interested.

"Exchange grain for mulberry. To be more specific, it means converting the grain fields in several counties in western Ningzhou into mulberry groves to produce mulberry silk. Your Majesty should own a considerable amount of land in Ningzhou, which I believe can all be converted into mulberry orchards. To be frank, Your Majesty, I currently possess a type of ice mulberry, whose mulberry silk is called ice silk, truly the finest of silks. However, the quantity of ice mulberry in the first few years is limited. If Your Majesty wishes to convert the land into mulberry orchards, I can give you all the ice mulberry seedlings from the first two years."

"Tell me carefully."

Wei Yuan then explained in detail some of the current practices in the seven prefectures of Ningxi.

After hearing this, the King of Jin asked, "Then why do I plant mulberry trees instead of weaving brocade? The Wu tribe needs brocade, not silk."

Wei Yuan said, "The difference between the price of brocade in the Wu tribe and the price of silk in Ningzhou is the potential profit margin for this business. The more brocade the Wu tribe obtains, the lower the price of brocade will be. The more brocade we produce, the higher the price of silk will be. Therefore, this potential profit margin will only shrink in the future, until it disappears completely. During this process, the price of silk will only rise and not fall, and we can also impose taxes on silk."

A cold glint flashed in the King of Jin's eyes as he asked, "If all the fields are planted with mulberry trees, what will the people eat? What will the soldiers eat?"

Wei Yuan was confident in answering this question, saying, "Of course, we can't convert all the fields into mulberry fields, but even if Your Majesty doesn't convert them, someone else will, and quite a few will. Since converting to mulberry fields is inevitable, and we can't convert them all, why don't you convert them first, Your Majesty? After you've done it, you can then prohibit others from doing it. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

(End of this chapter)