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

"Announce it quickly."

The heavy cotton curtain was lifted.

A heart-wrenching cough entered the warm chamber before any figures could be heard.

"Cough cough... cough cough cough..."

Yu Qian, supported by two young eunuchs, walked in with faltering steps.

This once-powerful and renowned official, who once served as the military governor of the Nine Border Regions and dismissed three generals with a single word, now has a full head of white hair.

Years of hard work and the ravages of time have made his body appear hunched and frail.

His face was sallow, but his deep-set eyes still revealed an unshakable fortitude and clarity.

"Your humble servant Yu Qian greets Your Majesty..."

Yu Qian struggled to perform the full salute.

Zhu Jianji hurriedly walked down the imperial steps and personally reached out to help him up, his face full of concern.

"Grand Secretary Yu, please do not stand on ceremony! Your Excellency is unwell and should be recuperating at home. How can you trouble yourself to come to the palace in such cold weather?"

"Someone, bring a seat! Serve ginseng tea!"

Yu Qian sat down on the soft chair and took a few breaths.

He waved his hand and pushed away the ginseng tea that the eunuch brought.

"This old minister knows his days are numbered. But I dare not neglect the affairs of the court for even a day. I have come to the palace today to present His Majesty's memorial regarding his intention to send troops to the desert."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Jianji's eyes twitched slightly, but he still maintained a respectful smile on his face.

"Your Excellency, I am well aware that war is a matter of great importance to the nation. Although the Oirat have retreated, their treacherous intentions remain. Our Great Ming is now strong and well-equipped, with abundant granaries. This is the perfect opportunity to seize the moment and completely annihilate them."

"When the late emperor was alive, he was often worried about border troubles. My actions are also for the sake of peace and tranquility for the Ming Dynasty for a hundred years."

Zhu Jianji spoke with great righteousness and awe.

Yu Qian looked at the impassioned young emperor before him.

His deep gaze seemed to see through his hypocritical facade, reaching straight to his restless ambition.

He did not directly refute those grand national and familial principles.

Instead, he took out a small sandalwood abacus from his sleeve and gently placed it on the table next to him.

Upon seeing the abacus, Zhu Jianji's heart skipped a beat, and a familiar sense of revulsion welled up inside him.

What he hated most since childhood was his father tapping this thing next to his ear.

Now even Yu Qian has started to learn this trick!

"Your Majesty says the granaries are full, and this old minister does not deny it."

Although Yu Qian's voice was weak, his enunciation was clear and forceful.

He stretched out his withered fingers and fiddled with the abacus.

"But war is never about how much silver is in the treasury, but about whether the money spent can recoup the cost."

Yu Qian raised his head, his upright gaze fixed on Zhu Jianji.

"Your Majesty intends to send an army of 100,000, departing from Shuozhou and penetrating five hundred li into the desert. This old minister has calculated the costs for Your Majesty."

"With an army of 100,000 men and horses, the daily consumption of grain and fodder is 3,000 shi (a unit of dry measure). As the army ventures deep into barren lands, the supply routes are long and the losses during transport are as high as 70%."

"This means that for every shi (a unit of dry measure) of grain consumed by soldiers at the front, more than three shi of grain must be transported from the Taicang granary for laborers in the rear."

"If the army is fighting abroad for half a year, the cost of provisions alone will be two million taels of silver from the imperial treasury."

Yu Qian's fingers moved continuously across the abacus.

The crisp sound of the abacus beads seemed particularly jarring in the warm pavilion.

"The desert is bitterly cold, and warhorses suffer enormous losses. For each warhorse lost, the compensation and replacement cost fifty taels of silver. In the event of an encounter battle, the losses of swords, spears, bows, crossbows, gunpowder, and firearms are countless."

"If soldiers are injured or killed, according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, full compensation must be paid, which will cost another 1.5 million taels of silver."

Yu Qian stopped what he was doing and pushed the abacus toward Zhu Jianji.

"Your Majesty, this old minister dares to ask: The army's march into the desert cost nearly four million taels of silver. Even if we achieve a great victory and behead thousands, how many bushels of grain and how many taels of tax can we bring back to the Ming Dynasty from that barren Gobi Desert?"

Zhu Jianji was rendered speechless by the barrage of calculations, his face turning pale and then red.

He gritted his teeth and argued:

"Is the might of our Great Ming Dynasty only measured by such a paltry sum?! If we don't fight, and the Oirats return, harming the people of the nine border regions, how will that be accounted for?"

"The might of the Ming Dynasty lies not in waging war to conquer barren lands, but in the fortification of its nine border cities, the well-fed and clothed soldiers, and the peaceful and prosperous lives of its people!"

Yu Qian did not back down, his voice trembling slightly with excitement.

"When the late emperor was alive, he scrimped and saved to survey military settlements, all to leave the Ming Dynasty a solid foundation to prepare for natural disasters and man-made calamities, not for the emperor to use to gain temporary military glory!"

Yu Qian stared intently at Zhu Jianji and said, word by word:

"As long as this old minister has a breath left, he will never approve such a wasteful and wasteful bill that only spends money and doesn't bring in any revenue!"

"If Your Majesty insists on sending troops, then step over the corpses of this old minister first!"

"Cough cough... cough cough cough!"

His heated words exhausted Yu Qian, and he began to cough violently.

A mouthful of bright red blood sprayed onto the white silk handkerchief.

Zhu Jianji looked at the glaring blood, a suppressed pleasure flashing deep in his eyes.

But on the surface, he immediately put on a look of panic.

"Your Excellency! Please take care of yourself! I... I acted on impulse. Since Your Excellency thinks it is inappropriate, let's put the matter of sending troops on hold for now."

"Quickly, summon the imperial physician!"

Yu Qian waved his hand, pushed away the eunuch who came forward to help him, and forced himself to stand up.

"It is a blessing for the Ming Dynasty that Your Majesty can heed loyal advice. This old minister... takes his leave."

Yu Qian walked unsteadily towards the outside of the hall.

That hunched back resembled a flickering candle about to burn out.

Yet they still stood firmly in front of Zhu Jianji's inflated ambition.

The heavy cotton curtains fell, and the warm room returned to silence.

The submissive look on Zhu Jianji's face vanished instantly, replaced by a layer of chilling frost.

He glanced at the sandalwood abacus on the table, grabbed it suddenly, and slammed it hard onto the floor tiles.

The rosewood frame shattered, and the copper beads scattered all over the ground, making a chaotic, brittle sound.

"You old scoundrel! Relying on the legacy of our father, you dare to act arrogantly and oppress me at every turn!"

Zhu Jianji's face was contorted, and his fists were clenched tightly.

Wang stood to one side, looking at the abacus beads scattered on the ground, then cautiously approached and said in a sinister tone:

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. The Imperial Medical Academy has already concluded that Prime Minister Yu's health is failing, and he is nearing the end of his life. Your Majesty is the supreme ruler; you only need to be patient for a little longer."

"Once that old tree withers and decays, won't His Majesty be able to use the Ming Dynasty's wealth however he wants?"

Upon hearing this, the anger in Zhu Jianji's eyes gradually subsided, turning into a bottomless darkness.

"You're right. I can wait."

He stepped down the steps and kicked a rolling abacus bead away.

"The silver in Taicang will sooner or later belong to me. I will not only sweep across the desert, but also build a thousand-ton treasure ship to sail to the South Seas. All the land under the sun and moon will become the subjects of the Great Ming!"

"No matter how clever Yu Qian's schemes were, he ultimately couldn't outwit fate!"

Jiangnan, Suzhou Prefecture.

Gu Yannian leaned back in the rocking chair, watching Uncle Fu sweep up the fallen leaves.

"This new emperor is far more cunning than his father. However, if his ambition is left unchecked, it could lead to disaster."

Gu Yannian fanned himself with a palm-leaf fan, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Yu Qian was terminally ill, and that lock would soon break.

Once Zhu Jianji breaks free from his constraints, the Ming Dynasty's accumulated national strength over decades will inevitably be unleashed in an unprecedented way.

"The big show is about to change actors."