Da Ming: The system granted me immortality; I clock in every day.

Gu Yannian, holding an ivory tablet, stood at the head of the assembled officials.

His expression remained calm and composed, as if all this farce had nothing to do with him.

"I have something to report."

Wang Zhen's voice was hoarse.

The hall was silent; no one dared to provoke trouble at this critical juncture.

In the deathly silence, Gu Yannian stepped out of the line with steady steps.

Upon seeing Gu Yannian step forward, Zhu Qizhen's body involuntarily trembled, and he gripped the armrests of the dragon throne tightly with both hands.

He knew that this old scoundrel had come to kick him while he was down and to see him make a fool of himself.

"Your Majesty, Grand Secretary Gu Yannian, has a memorial to the throne."

Gu Yannian's voice was gentle and calm.

"Prime Minister Gu...what is it you wish to report?"

Zhu Qizhen gritted his teeth and forced out a few words.

Gu Yannian bowed slightly and took out a memorial from his sleeve.

"Your Majesty, I have heard that Your Majesty, out of compassion for the people, intends to sell several imperial estates and shops under the name of the Imperial Treasury to provide relief to disaster victims. However, Huitong Bank is run by merchants who do not know the importance of their actions and dare to make a scene outside the Meridian Gate to demand repayment, which is unbecoming of them."

Zhu Qizhen was stunned.

He had assumed that Gu Yannian would launch a major impeachment in court against him for competing with the people for profit and engaging in smuggling.

Unexpectedly, Gu Yannian used the high-sounding reason of "selling the imperial estate to provide relief to disaster victims".

It covered up the scandal of him, the emperor, using high-interest loans to smuggle goods!

Has this old scoundrel changed his ways?

Before Zhu Qizhen could even feel happy, Gu Yannian's next words plunged him into despair.

"The royal family's dignity must not be dishonored, and the national treasury must not stand idly by and watch the nation perish."

Gu Yannian's tone shifted, revealing an undeniable decisiveness.

"Your Majesty, I have ordered Minister of Revenue Chen Jian to allocate 390,000 taels of silver from the imperial granary, including principal and interest, to pay off the debt owed by Huitong Bank. The land deeds and shop deeds have been recovered by the Ministry of Revenue."

Zhu Qizhen suddenly raised his head and looked at Gu Yannian in disbelief.

Did you pay off his debt?

This miser actually spared no expense, taking 390,000 taels from the Taicang treasury to settle his debts?!

"Prime Minister Gu...is this true?!"

Zhu Qizhen's voice trembled with excitement.

Gu Yannian raised his eyes.

Those deep, dark eyes stared directly at the young emperor on the dragon throne, a mocking sneer curling at the corner of his lips.

"Of course it's true. However, even close brothers should keep clear accounts. The silver in Taicang is the hard-earned money of the people of the world, and it cannot be wasted."

Gu Yannian raised the folding tablet in his hand, his voice booming like a bell.

"Your Majesty proposes that, effective immediately, all four imperial estates in the suburbs of Beijing and the pastures of the Daning Guard, along with their associated fields and workshops, shall be transferred to the Ministry of Revenue."

"This will settle the debt of 390,000 taels. The imperial estate is hereby abolished and will never be re-established!"

Zhu Qizhen was struck dumb.

Take it over to the Ministry of Revenue!

His imperial estate!

The land he painstakingly fenced off!

"Prime Minister Gu! That's my private property!"

Zhu Qizhen roared in frustration.

Gu Yannian looked at him coldly.

"Does Your Majesty perhaps want the world to know that the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty owes money to the banks and refuses to pay, acting like a deadbeat? It is perfectly reasonable for the Ministry of Revenue to use silver to buy these fields."

"If Your Majesty is unwilling, you may send Huitong Money Shop to Shuntian Prefecture to file a complaint and have the land confiscated. Your humble servant will not stop you."

Zhu Qizhen was speechless, his face turning purplish-red.

He dared not let things escalate.

If the whole world knew this, his prestige as emperor would be completely destroyed.

"Alright...assign it to the Ministry of Revenue!"

Zhu Qizhen squeezed out these words through gritted teeth, his heart bleeding.

Gu Yannian, however, had no intention of giving up.

He continued, "In addition, the 13,000 farm laborers recruited by the Da Ningwei grassland have now become unemployed vagrants after the imperial estates were abolished."

Upon hearing the word "zhuangding" (a type of official in the imperial guards), Zhu Qizhen felt a headache coming on.

Those gluttons and scoundrels were his nightmare.

"Then, according to Prime Minister Gu's opinion, how should this be handled?" Zhu Qizhen asked in a desperate manner.

Gu Yannian snapped his fan shut, a shrewd calculation flashing in his eyes.

"The Yellow River dike suffered from flooding last year and needs a large number of laborers for repair. I see that those farmhands are all burly and have huge appetites; they must be excellent at physical labor."

"Your Majesty proposes that these thirteen thousand men be immediately incorporated into the Ministry of Works' River Management Battalion. They shall be dispatched to both banks of the Yellow River to dredge sand and carry stones to build dikes. They shall be provided with three meals a day, but no wages or food allowance shall be paid."

"In this way, the problem of displaced people is solved, and the expenses of the imperial court for river repairs are saved. This is a win-win strategy."

Inside the main hall, the assembled officials were all terrified.

Ruthless! Absolutely ruthless!

The emperor spent hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to support his "private army" with the best meat and vegetables.

With just a casual remark from Chief Minister Gu, he was turned into a free laborer digging mud on the banks of the Yellow River!

Such ruthless scheming, devouring people without spitting out the bones, is unmatched in the world.

Zhu Qizhen sat on the dragon throne, his eyes rolling back in his head.

He slumped weakly against the back of the chair, as if all his soul had been drained away.

He lost.

A complete and utter defeat.

He thought he had learned the basics of business acumen.

He then wanted to challenge this giant who controlled the economic lifeline of the Ming Dynasty.

As a result, from the moment he borrowed the money, every step he took was within Gu Yannian's calculations.

They bought silk at high prices, imposed heavy taxes on it in port, dumped it to drive down prices, and forced debtors to seize land.

In the end, even the people he recruited were squeezed dry by Gu Yannian, who used them to repair the Yellow River dike.

In this year-long power struggle, the Grand Secretary didn't move a single soldier.

With just a few scraps of paper from the market and a few decrees, they utterly annihilated the Ming emperor, leaving him with nothing and bankrupting him.

"Granted...granted..."

Zhu Qizhen waved his hand weakly.

"On behalf of all the people of the world, your humble servant thanks Your Majesty for your great kindness."

Gu Yannian bowed respectfully and returned to the queue.

The court session is adjourned.

Supported by two eunuchs, Zhu Qizhen left Fengtian Hall like a walking corpse.

He turned around and took a deep look at the handsome figure standing in the center of the hall, dressed in a purple-red python robe.

That deep-seated fear and helplessness.

It completely destroyed the last bit of pride in his heart.

He understood that as long as Gu Yannian was alive...

Zhu Qizhen was destined to be a caged bird trapped in an abacus forever.

War? A power struggle?

That's all wishful thinking.

From that day on, Emperor Zhu Qizhen of the Ming Dynasty completely gave up any thoughts of causing trouble.

Every morning, he would go to the Wenhua Hall on time and obediently take his abacus.

After checking the accounts of money and grain submitted by all the provinces, he dared not overstep the bounds in the slightest.

Because he knew that if he dared to have any improper thoughts again...

That Grand Tutor has a hundred ways to make sure he doesn't even get to eat dinner tonight.