Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 927 Winner Takes All!
They had actually come to talk to Tuoba Jing about the last day of the Xianyang Feast, but seeing this scene upon arrival, there wasn't much to say. They simply exchanged a few words and that was it.

At the moment, the turmoil at Xianyang Square had not completely subsided, but Chang'an City was busier than ever. Wanted posters were plastered all over the streets and alleys, and the commotion of arrests and raids on homes continued day and night, but this did not delay the almost frenzied money-making frenzy that was approaching the end of the Xianyang Grand Event.

The final grand banquet before the closing ceremony was held on the site of the former Xianyang Palace, the same place where Tuoba Jing screened movies. There were no special ceremonies; they simply brought together the best vendors from the food street for everyone to enjoy themselves.

Envoys from all nations, wealthy merchants from various regions, high-ranking officials of the court, and other figures who had made an appearance at the grand event were all gathered in small groups, holding wine glasses, their faces beaming with smiles, but their thoughts were all different.

Over the course of the past month, many people have made a fortune, while others have been living in fear and trembling. Still others are planning how to deal with the ongoing political storm in Chang'an after the grand event ends.

Li Zhi attended the event with his parents. Today, he wore an apricot-yellow princely robe, and his posture was much more upright; he was almost as tall as Xia Lin. However, his eyes kept glancing towards the entrance, revealing a hint of nervousness. Today was not only the closing ceremony of the grand event but also the final round of the selection for the Crown Prince's consort. Later, at this banquet, His Majesty and he, the Crown Prince, would jointly decide on the final choice.

His mind was in turmoil, with Pei Wan and Cui Lin flashing through his thoughts. Just as he was lost in thought, his arm was suddenly grabbed tightly, and a strong smell of alcohol mixed with mutton rushed into his nostrils.

"Zhi'er! What are you standing there for? Today is your special day!" Tuoba Jing's loud voice drew the attention of many people around him.

He was dressed like a peacock with its tail feathers spread out today, his brocade robe was embroidered with gold thread, and his hair was slicked back. He had one arm around Li Zhi and was holding a wine cup in the other, so he must have drunk quite a bit.

The young woman next to me from yesterday seemed out of place among the group of elegantly dressed ladies. She kept her head down, acting like a maid, and remained silent.

"Uncle..." Li Zhi called out helplessly, his voice trembling with pain from the tight grip.

"Forget about Uncle!" Tuoba Jing waved his hand dismissively. "You'll see what Uncle has to offer later! I'll make sure you get a few that you like!"

His voice was quite loud, and the expressions of several noble ladies and their families who were vying for the position of Crown Princess subtly changed.

Xia Lin and San Niang sat in the main seats, watching the commotion. San Niang's complexion had improved somewhat after a few days of recuperation, but she still looked tired. Looking at Tuoba Jing's demeanor, she couldn't help but frown and whisper to Xia Lin, "Look at him! What kind of behavior is this! Bringing a girl from that kind of place here..."

Xia Lin was slowly slicing a golden-brown roasted lamb leg with a knife. Hearing this, she didn't even look up: "As long as he's happy, that's fine. As long as he doesn't cause trouble, he's already doing very well. Besides, I find that girl quite pleasing to the eye; she's much better than those pretentious ones."

Third Sister glared at him, but didn't say anything more.

At this moment, the master of ceremonies announced loudly that the final selection of the Crown Princess had begun. The eight noble ladies who had survived the rigorous selection process stepped forward one by one to pay their respects to His Majesty and the Crown Prince. Each of them was dressed in their finest attire, like eight delicate flowers vying for attention under the lamplight.

Today, Cui Lin wore a pomegranate red long dress, a gold flower on her forehead, and her eyes shone with a confident brilliance. She stepped forward, her posture elegant, and recited a congratulatory message in a clear and crisp voice, clearly something she had prepared carefully.

When it was Pei Wan's turn, she was dressed in a simple, elegant moon-white dress, with only a simple jade hairpin in her hair. Compared to Cui Lin's dazzling appearance, she was like a white lotus quietly blooming under the moon.

She bowed gracefully, her voice low but clear and steady: "Pei Wan greets His Majesty, Marshal Xia, His Highness the Crown Prince... and His Majesty the Emperor of Great Wei."

Li Zhi looked at her, and his heart stirred inexplicably. He remembered that she had looked just as simple and plain last time, but Cui Lin had mocked her for being too plain. Now, amidst all the splendor in the hall, her simplicity seemed all the more unique.

Next came His Majesty's inquiry, testing their virtue, talent, and insight. The questions weren't particularly tricky, but responding appropriately in such a setting was no easy feat. Cui Lin answered fluently, her words witty and subtly assertive, while Pei Wan's replies were concise and sincere, occasionally glancing at Li Zhi with a piercing gaze.

Li Zhi was feeling puzzled, but Tuoba Jing beside him was already getting impatient. He took a big gulp of wine, slammed the wine cup on the table with a loud "thud," drawing everyone's attention back to him.

"What are you dawdling about!" He stood up, his voice louder than the music: "Choosing a wife isn't like taking the imperial examination! Look how nervous the kids are!"

He staggered into the center of the room, his gaze sweeping over the eight noble ladies. Finally, he raised his hand and pointed directly at Pei Wan and Cui Lin: "In my opinion, these two are perfect! Just right! Zhi'er is so young, what's wrong with having a couple more caring people? Keep them both! It's settled then!"

The entire venue fell into a deathly silence.

Everyone was stunned by the Wei emperor's astonishing words. The position of Crown Princess has always been limited to one person! How could he possibly choose two at the same time? This was utterly disregard for propriety!

Cui Lin was taken aback at first, then her face broke into uncontrollable joy, which she quickly suppressed, though the smile on her lips was impossible to hide. She glanced at Li Zhi quickly, her eyes burning with desire.

Pei Wan also trembled, raised her head in disbelief, looked at Tuoba Jing, then at His Majesty on the throne, and finally her gaze fell on Li Zhi, with a hint of panic and helplessness.

Li Zhi was completely stunned, his mouth agape, unable to utter a single word for a long time.

"Nonsense!" Third Sister's face turned pale with anger, and she slammed her hand on the armrest. "Tuoba Jing! This is an internal affair of my Li Tang Dynasty. How dare you interfere here!" "Hey! You're being unreasonable!" Tuoba Jing raised his head. "According to the national system, shouldn't your Li Tang Dynasty address me as Your Majesty? Didn't you establish your country because my ascension to the throne was illegitimate? You established your country to uphold the legitimacy of the Great Wei Dynasty. Now that the evidence is conclusive, I am the legitimate ruler. Shouldn't you also address me as Your Majesty, understand? I've given you ample face, and you still dare to yell at me?"

"Alright!" Xia Lin finally put down the knife in his hand, cutting off Tuoba Jing's even more incoherent words. He rubbed his temples, his face showing no anger, but rather a hint of amusement: "I'm telling you, aren't you torturing my son?"

"What's the point of roasting!" Tuoba Jing said nonchalantly, "Men have many wives and concubines, that's common! Especially the Crown Prince! It's settled then! Let's see who dares to say a word against it!" He glared and scanned the entire room, his domineering aura intimidating many who wanted to object.

Just then, Pei Wan, who had been silent with her head down, suddenly took a deep breath and took a small step forward. She raised her eyes, her gaze no longer evasive, and looked directly at Li Zhi. Her voice was clear, carrying a hint of desperate courage:

“Your Highness,” she said softly, a faint blush rising on her cheeks, “If…if Your Highness does not despise me, I…am willing to serve Your Highness together with Sister Cui.”

These words struck like another thunderbolt, leaving everyone present stunned and speechless. The Pei family's young lady actually... actually said such a thing in public?

Cui Lin also looked at Pei Wan in astonishment, her eyes filled with disbelief. She never expected that this seemingly aloof woman, who had rejected the Crown Prince's advances last time, would be so proactive now!
Li Zhi looked into Pei Wan's eyes, which seemed to hold a thousand unspoken words, and saw the reckless blush on her face. His heart trembled. He suddenly understood how much pressure his previous rejection had put on her and the Pei family. This time, she was unwilling to miss out again, even if it was in such a shocking way.

The scene froze completely. His Majesty's face was grim, the ministers whispered among themselves, Tuoba Jing was smug, Cui Lin's mind raced, and Pei Wan stood stubbornly, her pretty face flushed.

In the midst of this eerie silence, a junior official from the Ministry of Revenue scrambled to the throne, disregarding etiquette, his voice trembling with barely suppressed excitement:

"Your Majesty! Marshal Xia! The preliminary results of the accounting are in!"

This shout temporarily broke the deadlock in the selection of imperial concubines, and everyone pricked up their ears. Everyone wanted to know just how much real money this grand event in Xianyang, which had lasted for a month and caused a sensation throughout the land, had actually amassed.

The official was panting heavily, his face flushed with excitement: "After deducting all expenses, the net profit... the preliminary calculation of the net profit has reached... has reached forty-eight million taels of silver! This doesn't even include the long-term benefits brought about by the surge in commercial taxes and smooth logistics in various regions! Forty-eight million taels, Your Majesty!"

"How...how much?" Even Xia Lin raised an eyebrow.

"Forty-eight million taels!" the official almost roared. "Cotton cloth from the Western Regions, silk from Jiangnan, furs from the northern deserts, spices from Lingnan... just these few major commodities alone have exceeded one hundred million in transaction volume! And then there are the new waterwheels and loom models; the orders signed are booked up for three years to come! Persian merchants almost got into a fight at the entrance of the Maritime Trade Office over buying glass mirrors..."

He rattled off a string of numbers and examples incoherently, each number like a hammer blow striking everyone's heart. Forty-eight million taels! That's almost equivalent to the imperial court's annual revenue during its most prosperous period!

The crowd, who had been arguing endlessly about the Crown Princess, were now completely overwhelmed by the enormous sum. Even Tuoba Jing temporarily forgot about matchmaking, muttering with his mouth agape, "Damn... so much? I couldn't even spend that much making ten movies..."

The shock of the enormous profits instantly dispelled the awkward atmosphere of the previous concubine selection farce. Different expressions appeared on everyone's faces: greed, shock, ecstasy, calculation…

Looking at the diverse expressions on people's faces, and then at Pei Wan and Cui Lin standing in the middle, whose fates had been drastically altered by a single sentence from their scoundrel uncle, Tuoba Jing, Li Zhi felt a sense of turmoil. He had certainly made a fortune, but the troubles that followed were likely far more devastating than the forty-eight million taels of silver.

He subconsciously looked at his father, only to see that Xia Lin had picked up the knife again and continued to slowly slice the piece of lamb leg, as if the earth-shattering numbers and the mess in front of him were not as important as the piece of meat in his hand.

At this moment, Third Sister leaned close to Xia Lin's ear and said, "Are you just going to watch this scoundrel make a fool of himself?"

"The Crown Prince's selection of a consort is something your people are trying to pressure me with etiquette. In principle, there can't be two Crown Prince consorts, but..." Xia Lin pointed to Tuoba Jing, who was standing with his hands on his hips, poised to debate with a group of scholars: "The principles of etiquette are there; you do have to address him as Your Majesty. According to etiquette, the Li Tang dynasty is a separatist regime, a feudal lord-level entity. Look at what he just said—who didn't hear it? And who dared to stand up?"

After saying that, he coughed, stood up, and said, "Since two is okay, how about three?"

After saying that, he beckoned to Xiao Wu and called her to his side: "I also have someone in mind, why don't we choose one together? Let me introduce her to everyone. This is my apprentice, and also Zhi'er's senior sister. They grew up together since they were little. Anyway, I don't think one or two more will make a difference. How about 'Three Months of Radiance'?"

"Huh?" Third Sister's resentment, stemming from her general background, resurfaced: "Then I have someone in mind too! Wei Dingfang!"

General Wei was taken aback, then stood up and said, "This humble general... I'm afraid it's not suitable for me?"

His words drew laughter from everyone present, even the Third Madam couldn't hold back, but in the end she still pointed at him and said, "I've taken a liking to your daughter. She's just like me when I was young. Since she can be one, two, or three, then she can be four! So count your daughter in too."

Li Zhi stared in astonishment at the several unruly adults in front of him, unsure of what to do.

(End of this chapter)