Longzang

Chapter 818 Earned Too Much

The court fell silent for a moment, then the Crown Prince stepped forward and said, “From Bishui to the border is a distance of eight thousand li. Even the lowest grade of road would be extremely expensive and take more than ten years to build. I believe this matter concerns the foundation of the nation and must be handled with care. At this time, we are still at war with the Ji Kingdom and it is not advisable to undertake large-scale construction.”

King Zhao said, "These are the words of an experienced strategist; let's put this matter aside for now."

Li Chengfeng bowed his head and said, "Yes, sir."

The Crown Prince skillfully concealed the smugness in his eyes. His fourth brother had grown rapidly in recent years, with a strong army and influence, and was already threatening his own position. Therefore, the Crown Prince was extremely wary of him.

For some reason, my usually shrewd fourth brother suddenly acted foolishly today, actually proposing to build a highway. Is this something a prince should suggest?

After the court session, King Zhao summoned Li Chengfeng to his study. His face immediately turned cold as he said, "You must know how much a ten-thousand-mile-long highway would cost. All for your little Biyue River? Tell me, what are you trying to achieve by suddenly making such a suggestion in court?"

Li Chengfeng was prepared and said, "Father, although the construction of this road will cost a lot, it will definitely be worth the money. Your son has prepared a memorial on the tax silver that Bishui has contributed to Great Zhao over the past year. Please take a look."

King Zhao took the money and was immediately moved, exclaiming, "Forty million taels? That much?"

“Although Bishui Yongmin’s population is less than a million, its tax contributions have already exceeded one-tenth of the Great Zhao’s annual revenue, and this is just the beginning,” Li Chengfeng said.

King Zhao carefully read through the memorial, then pointed to a line of numbers and asked, "What does this division mean? How come this item is over twenty million?"

Li Chengfeng said, "Your subject has made considerable profits from trade with Qingming. Therefore, I have taken the liberty of allocating 70% of the profits from these trades to Your Majesty's private treasury, which is this allocation. The remaining 30% has been used to recruit soldiers and artisans, and to settle the people and cultivate the land."

King Zhao's expression softened considerably, and he asked, "Is there such a thing? How come I had no idea?"

"Trade volume has only started to increase significantly in the past year. After I had done the statistics, I just delivered all the goods to the treasury last month. There has been no mid-year inventory yet, and the report has not been submitted, so Father did not know about it."

King Zhao nodded, then carefully read the memorial again. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "It is truly rare for you to have such filial piety. However, is trade with Qingming so profitable?"

"Qingming produces high-quality goods at low prices. When resold domestically, whether it's armor, swords, brocade, or even firearms and ammunition, the profits are doubled. Currently, the Great Zhao only has trade with Bishui and Qingming. All goods pass through my territory, making them easy for me to control, and the profits won't flow into outsiders' pockets."

King Zhao understood Li Chengfeng's unspoken meaning. Li Chengfeng's monopoly on trade between Zhao and Qingming was what brought him such enormous profits. He pocketed the lion's share of these profits. While opening up trade across the entire territory would increase tax revenue, this profit sharing would be lost.

King Zhao asked, "What does this matter have to do with your plan to build the imperial road?"

Li Chengfeng said, "Currently, the transportation of goods in Bishui relies on flying boats. The existing land roads are intermittent and take a long detour, adding more than 6,000 li out of thin air. But if we just open up the mountain in the middle of Yicang Mountain and carve out a road, the land distance can be shortened by a full 8,000 li, almost to a straight line, and heavy-duty trucks can pass through."

"Cargo airships aren't enough; we need heavy-duty trucks?"

Li Chengfeng said, "What I wish to transport are spirit wood, coal, and ore."

A glint flashed in King Zhao's eyes, and he said slowly, "I sent you to the Western Regions to keep Wei Yuan in check and to see if we could take Qingming back. But you've managed to expand this business so much."

Li Chengfeng remained silent for a moment, then said, "...Your subject has no choice, we've just made too much money."

King Zhao remained silent, then said, “No wonder the national treasury has been quite full recently, and the Grand Steward of the Inner Palace is no longer complaining about being poor. Originally, I was thinking of using one-tenth of the annual revenue to drive a wedge into the Western Regions. I didn’t expect that not only was that one-tenth of the annual revenue not spent, but you also made back one-tenth. If it weren’t for this two-tenths of the annual revenue, I would have to think carefully before I decided to wage war against the State of Ji.”

After saying that, King Zhao took the sand table, activated it with his magic power, and carefully examined the terrain for a while. He said, "The Yicang Mountain here is not very high, only about a hundred feet high. Hmm, if two or three Imperial Guardians can help, it can be carved out in a few months."

Li Chengfeng was overjoyed and knelt down, repeatedly saying, "Thank you, Father!"

King Zhao ordered him to rise and sighed, "I have always valued your military leadership abilities, but you are now adept at making money. Do you no longer want the throne?"

Li Chengfeng said, "Father, you are in the prime of your life, and the throne is still a long way off. Why think about that now? We must enrich the country and strengthen the army. Only when the country is rich can the army be strong. Father, you still have plenty of time to build an unparalleled empire. What I am thinking about now is to share your burdens."

King Zhao nodded slightly and said, "You're quite good at using retreat as a strategy." For some reason, upon hearing this, Li Chengfeng suddenly broke out in a cold sweat.

……

Wei Yuan received a reply in less than half a month after sending the letter to Li Chengfeng. Upon reading that the King of Zhao had decided to build a road through Yicang Mountain, Wei Yuan sighed, realizing that it was now difficult to wage war against Zhao.

At this moment, the State of Zhao was waging war against the Western Jin and the State of Ji respectively, and it also sent hundreds of thousands of laborers to build roads. Moreover, Yu Jing took charge of opening up mountains, and the state's strength had reached its limit.

King Zhao's move was tantamount to telling Wei Yuan, "I no longer have the strength to attack you. You can go do whatever you want."

Wei Yuan understood this calculation perfectly. Just because King Zhao was not making a move now did not mean he would not be able to in the future. Once the war with Jin or Ji ended, the Zhao army could cross the border and attack again at any time.

Whether King Zhao's offer of goodwill was genuine or merely a delaying tactic, Wei Yuan didn't care. Qingming had expanded too rapidly, and Wei Yuan needed time to digest it, streamline its internal affairs, improve the lives of its people, and then launch a westward campaign. In a few years, when King Zhao had more time, he would find Qingming had only become more difficult to conquer.

Wei Yuan then spread out a map and began studying the western terrain. At that moment, a thought flashed through his mind: Was Hongye dead or alive?

His wives and children, whether real or fake, were all under Wei Yuan's close surveillance. But after several years of surveillance, Wei Yuan still couldn't find any who resembled Hongye's biological son.

In terms of talent, these children can all be summed up in one word: mediocre.

……

Xiaojia Ancestral Home.

The weather was exceptionally hot that day. The sun hung in the sky as if it could no longer stay there, appearing much larger and lower than usual. The sunlight poured down on the earth like fire, making people afraid to go outside.

Many elders and high-ranking officials in the clans suddenly sensed something and looked up at the great sun in the sky.

Suddenly, the great sun in the sky distorted and dripped a drop of fire, which fell towards the ancestral secret realm!

This drop of fire, when it first left the great sun, was just a tiny drop, but it grew bigger and bigger until it eventually became a huge lake of flames that had been poured out!

Elder Yu Jing, who was on duty at the ancestral land, suddenly opened his eyes and exclaimed, "This is the True Fire of the Sun! Who in the clan is undergoing tribulation?!"

Before the servants could answer, another red sun rose in the secret realm, meeting the descending fire. The two suns collided, and in an instant, a hot wind swept across hundreds of miles, turning the world into a pure white expanse!
For a moment, all the Dharma Aspect cultivators were blind, and only a few Elder Yu Jing who had rushed over saw that in the center of the pure white flames stood an immortal with ancient clothes, beautiful features, and a vast and lofty aura, holding a blazing immortal sword in his arms, the intensity of which was no less than that of the great sun in the sky.

This immortal's demeanor was extraordinary, and all the elders of Yujing recognized his origins; he was none other than Shaoyang Xingjun!
The sword is the Great Sun Immortal Sword, which is fine; the Xiao family has produced more than one in their ancestors' history. But the one wielding the sword is not an ordinary immortal, but the Lesser Yang Star Lord, which is quite remarkable.

Daoji Immortal Sword Great Sun has cultivated to the point of forming a Dharma form. Theoretically, the most perfect sword-wielding immortal should be the Sun Star Lord. However, the Lesser Yang Star Lord is actually no less impressive, lacking a bit of blazing intensity but possessing many more variations.

Both star deities exist only in theory; it is unexpected that someone has actually cultivated the Lesser Yang Star Deity today.

At least among the Xiao family members who cultivate the Immortal Sword, there is no one like him before, if not someone who will never be surpassed. Judging from this Dharma Form, this child is likely to be the next Immortal Ancestor of the Xiao family. At least, the current Immortal Ancestor was slightly inferior to this child when he was in his Dharma Form stage.

At this moment, a clear and melodious voice, like the sound of a chime, echoed from the ancestral land below: "Who awakens first from the great dream? I myself know my own life's lessons..."

Then Xiaoyu broke through the barrier and stood side by side with Shaoyang Xingjun, her demeanor as graceful as a god!
Despite being in front of a group of Yu Jing elders, Xiao Yu showed no signs of nervousness or restraint, and calmly said, "After years of seclusion, I have succeeded today. In these past few years, has anything happened that concerns me?"

Looking at Shaoyang Xingjun beside Xiaoyu, the elders of the Xiao family dared not act presumptuously. One of them said, "There's nothing else of great importance. It's just that someone wrote you many letters, which are all kept in your study."

(End of this chapter)