With wives as numerous as clouds and soldiers as numerous as a million, you say he's a useless

Ye Cheng'an's gaze also fell on He Qinghan's face.

It must be admitted that He Qinghan is extremely beautiful, and she exudes a wild and untamed charm.

However, Ye Cheng'an's decision to capture her but not kill her was not solely due to her appearance.

It was for her superb martial arts skills.

"Commander Jiang, do you think there's any way to convert someone else's internal energy into one's own?" Ye Cheng'an asked.

"Ah?" Jiang Zhanji frowned, his face solemn. "This humble general has never heard of such a bizarre thing. However, the Misty Rain Pavilion might have some clues."

"Yanyu Pavilion?" Ye Cheng'an raised an eyebrow slightly. "You mean Yanyu Pavilion where Leng Yuheng is?"

Jiang Zhanji nodded. "On the surface, Yanyu Pavilion is just a brothel, but it's not. Yanyu Pavilion is a well-known assassin organization in the martial arts world, and it also sells all kinds of information. I see that the young master has a good relationship with their leader, Leng Yuheng. Perhaps we can try our luck there."

"Okay, I understand. Tonight, I'll ask Leng Yuheng if there's any way to take He Qinghan's internal energy for my own use," Ye Cheng'an said, enunciating each word clearly.

Inside the iron fence, He Qinghan's face turned deathly pale upon hearing Ye Cheng'an's plan.

Everyone says that this young master of the Northern Border is kind and benevolent, but in her opinion, that's not the case at all. Ye Cheng'an is simply a devil!

A colossal devil!

It was more terrifying than anyone she had ever seen.

Did he know that after absorbing a person's internal energy, the person whose internal energy was absorbed would become a cripple?

Do they even realize how cruel this is?

Even some of the most unorthodox and unorthodox sects in the martial arts world wouldn't dare to cultivate such a heaven-defying technique. How could he possibly dare to do it?

Isn't he afraid that if people discover his outrageous actions, everyone will have the right to kill him?

Ye Cheng'an didn't care how much his words shocked He Qinghan. After returning to the eldest son's residence, he asked, "How did the Hundred Flowers Bloom Festival go today?"

Zhu Yu said, "Reporting to the eldest young master, 100,000 sets of our ready-made clothing have been ordered, and 200,000 jars of Dukang wine have been ordered..."

"Hmm, not bad. After this battle, the reputation of my textile factory and Dukang wine has been established. The Nine Dragons Alliance can no longer threaten me." Ye Cheng'an was in a good mood. "The textile factory should officially start operation now."

"And the distillery also needs to be managed by a trustworthy person..."

As Ye Cheng'an was speaking, a group of people escorted Pei Zhongyi and his son Pei Tianyang in. "Young Master, this father and son tried to escape in the chaos, but fortunately you saw through their plot beforehand and told us to wait at the Pei family residence!"

Ye Cheng'an's gaze swept coldly over the two of them. "Patriarch Pei, Young Master Pei, we meet again."

Pei Tianyang gritted his teeth and sneered, "Ye Cheng'an, you insidious and despicable villain, you saw through my Pei family's conspiracy long ago, didn't you? You've been setting a trap all along, luring us into it!"

"You've wanted to destroy the Pei family for a long time!"

Ye Cheng'an sneered, "Wrong! It was clearly the Pei family who wanted to take over my spinning wheel and attacked me first. If you hadn't tried to attack me, I wouldn't have played along, would I? So from the very beginning, you were the insidious and despicable ones!"

"You are the ones who brought the Pei family to this state. Colluding with the enemy and betraying the country is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of your family!"

Pei Zhongyi knew that at this moment, he and his son were like fish on Ye Cheng'an's chopping board, completely at Ye's mercy. So, unlike his son who barked wildly, he knelt obsequiously at Ye Cheng'an's feet, saying, "Young Master, please spare us. We really know we were wrong. If you spare us, we will definitely share the Nine Dragons Alliance's trade routes with you. My son and I will serve you as your slaves and servants, making you money, making you lots and lots of money. You have seen our abilities."

"You'll definitely not lose out by sparing our lives."

Ye Cheng'an remained unmoved. "A gentleman loves money, but he earns it in a proper way. I don't need your methods. I can make money just as well without exploiting ordinary people and merchants!"

"Uncle Zhang, lock them all up in the dungeon and await the royal court's judgment."

"Furthermore, all civilians who participated in the arrest of Pei Zhongyi and his son today, regardless of gender, will become workers under my command, Ye Cheng'an. Women can join the textile factory, and men can join the winery, with double their monthly wages—six taels of silver a month!"

"Furthermore, I'll take one-tenth of the monthly net profit and give it to you as bonuses. From now on, we'll make money and get rich together!"

Ye Cheng'an's words were very simple and easy to understand, but these simple words deeply shocked the hearts of many people.

They were just ordinary people who didn't understand any grand principles or appreciate romance. For them, a raise was the most effective form of reward.

In addition, the eldest son's wine and cloth have already been pre-ordered in large quantities today, and one-tenth of the profits will be given as bonuses to them. This truly lives up to Ye Cheng'an's words about making a fortune together.

Apart from the eldest son, it would be difficult to find such a philanthropist in the world.

Immediately, the people knelt down, chanting, "Young Master, you are so righteous! Young Master, you are so righteous!"

In the distance, Zhao Xuefu watched this scene quietly and murmured, "See? I told you, Ye Cheng'an must have already come up with a plan to repel the enemy, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to defend Yong'an City to the death."

"But he repeatedly refused to tell me the truth, trying to scare me into leaving..."

"It seems he truly despises the imperial court."

"Princess, should we return to the capital? A forced marriage won't be happy," Ning Shuang said.

Hongluan also showed a hint of worry, but she thought much more than Ningshuang. The eldest son was so capable, but he was unwilling to get too entangled with the princess. Did this mean that he expected to become an enemy of the court sooner or later?

Is that why you were unwilling to start this ill-fated relationship?

"Princess, I believe the eldest son is no ordinary person. We fear that staying here will not change his mind. Why don't we return to the capital?" Hongluan suggested.

However, Zhao Xuefu's gaze was incredibly resolute. "Who said that? You haven't seen my backup plan yet."

"The reason why Ye Cheng'an repeatedly rejected me before was because he felt that I was deliberately creating an ambiguous atmosphere and did not really want anything to happen between us. But if I were to actually do it, he would definitely find it hard to resist the charms of a beautiful woman."

"Tonight, you two will help me prepare some things. No matter what, I'm determined to take him down in one fell swoop!"

Upon hearing Zhao Xuefu's words, both Ning Shuang and Hong Luan were startled.

"Princess, isn't this inappropriate? If His Majesty finds out, he will surely punish us severely!"

"Yes, Princess, you are of noble birth, how could you lower yourself to such a degree for Ye Cheng'an? Even if you truly love him, you should wait until after you are married..."

"Alright, you don't need to say anymore. No one can change my mind. Ye Cheng'an, I'm determined to have him!!!"

Zhao Xuefu spoke each word with firmness and strength.

Originally, she came to the Northern Territory under the guise of rewarding someone to probe their strength, but she did not expect that this young master of the Northern Territory would bring her so many shocks one after another.

After the locust eradication, they were able to achieve a victory against overwhelming odds, winning such a perfect and enormous win in a completely unfavorable situation.

Even if the Emperor knew about such actions, he would be astonished and would certainly approve of her approach.

Of course, it doesn't matter if you don't agree, anyway, she's already done it.

If Ye Cheng'an really doesn't want to return to the court with her and become her husband, then she will truly stay in the Northern Border and become his wife!

Seeing Zhao Xuefu's unyielding demeanor, Ning Shuang and Hong Luan had no choice but to obey.

That day, Zhao Xuefu looked forward to the night more than ever, because only when night fell could her plans be put into action...

After arranging everything, Ye Cheng'an had Zhu Yu drive to Yanyu Pavilion.

Leng Yuheng seemed to have known he would come, and specially had a table of extremely sumptuous dishes prepared.

"Young Master, you've finally arrived," Leng Yuheng said with a smile.

Ye Cheng'an sat down at the table. "Palace Master Leng seems very happy."

Leng Yuheng said, "How could I not be happy that the imprisoned dragon has been freed? The eldest young master even asked me about it, and aren't you the same?"

"After this battle, not only will my Misty Rain Pavilion no longer be subject to the Nine Dragons Alliance, but you, Young Master, will also no longer be subject to him."

"Shouldn't we raise a glass to celebrate our shared victory?"

"However, I came to see Pavilion Master Leng today not just for a simple celebration," Ye Cheng'an said.

"What was the eldest young master's purpose?" Leng Yuheng asked, slightly taken aback.

Ye Cheng'an asked, "Master Leng should know many people in the martial arts world. Have you ever heard of any method to convert the internal energy of others into one's own?"

Leng Yuheng was startled, and his gaze towards Ye Cheng'an suddenly became extremely serious. "Young Master, are you serious?"

"Do you know how evil the kind of martial arts technique you're talking about is? If you use it, the righteous sects of the martial arts world will surely regard you as an evil practitioner?"

Seeing that Leng Yuheng didn't reject him right away, but instead worried about what might happen to him after using it, Ye Cheng'an instantly grasped the key point...

Leng Yuheng might actually have the cultivation technique he's looking for here!

He needed to figure out how to get Leng Yuheng to teach him this cultivation technique...