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

Spring of the fourteenth year of the Yongle reign.

The dead of winter in Shuntian Prefecture had just ended, and the ice on the canal outside the city cracked, making a dull snapping sound.

However, the ice in the Ming Dynasty court was completely ignited by a farce at Bianyifang last winter.

That day, the Left Censor-in-Chief witnessed firsthand the personal guards of Prince Zhu Gaoxu of Han committing violence in the street, even attempting to kill officials appointed by the court.

This matter caused a great stir, and the censors of the Censorate were like wolves smelling blood.

Dozens of impeachment memorials flew into the Forbidden City like snowflakes.

Although Emperor Yongle, Zhu Di, favored his second son, who had made outstanding contributions in the Jingnan Campaign.

However, faced with the indignation of the entire court, he had no choice but to issue an edict to reprimand them.

The military power of the two guards of the Prince of Han's residence was stripped, and Zhu Gaoxu was ordered to reflect on his mistakes behind closed doors.

But for Zhu Gaoxu, who was used to being arrogant, this was an utter disgrace.

Instead of repenting, he secretly instructed his henchmen to throw excrement and dead dogs at the gate of the censor who led the impeachment at night.

Their arrogance has only increased, not decreased.

Inside the Wenhua Hall, Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi was so worried that he ate a large bowl less of the imperial rouge rice for breakfast.

"This second son is simply insane! Father is about to inspect the northern frontier, and he is acting so recklessly right under the emperor's nose. All the memorials from the ministers are piling up on my desk as regent."

"If I punish them severely, it will damage the harmony between brothers, and Father will surely blame me for not caring about my siblings. If I let them off lightly, those censors in the Censorate will tear the roof off the Eastern Palace!"

Zhu Gaochi, dressed in a bright yellow casual robe, paced anxiously in the main hall.

Gu Yannian sat at his desk in the side hall, holding a fine Chengni inkstone in his hand, grinding ink slowly and steadily.

[Ding! Today's attendance complete. Attribute point gained +1.]

"Add to the spirit."

Gu Yannian silently recited this in his heart.

As a cool breeze entered his mind, his mind became increasingly clear.

Inside the main hall, Zhu Gaochi's heavy breathing and the chirping of sparrows on the branches a hundred paces away could be clearly heard.

Zhu Gaochi circled around a few times and then habitually walked into the side hall.

He plopped down in the armchair opposite Gu Yannian and took a big gulp of the herbal tea on the table.

"Yan Nian, you've always had a clearer perspective from the sidelines. Tell me, what should I do this time?"

Zhu Gaochi stared at Gu Yannian, his eyes filled with deep helplessness.

Gu Yannian stopped writing with the ink stick, washed his hands with water, and then spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Your Highness is the Crown Prince, and His Highness the Prince of Han is a Prince. This is a matter of the Imperial Family. I am but a lowly seventh-rank clerk, and I would never dare to speak ill of the Imperial Family."

"Stop giving me that bureaucratic nonsense!"

Zhu Gaochi glared at him, annoyed.

"There are only the two of us here. How could I not know how many tricks you're up to? Speak freely, and I will forgive you."

Gu Yannian bowed slightly, his gaze falling on a stack of Ministry of Revenue account books on the desk, and said in a calm tone:

"Since Your Highness has granted permission, I will tell you a trivial story about a merchant in the countryside. In my hometown, there was a wealthy merchant who had two sons. The eldest son managed the family business, but the younger son associated with a group of ruffians who caused trouble in the market every day. When they injured people, the eldest son would have to pay compensation and clean up their messes."

"If the eldest son disciplines him, the old father will feel that the eldest son is intolerant."

Zhu Gaochi listened intently; the story of this wealthy merchant was practically a mirror image of the current state of the dynasty.

Gu Yannian continued:

"Later, the eldest son consulted an old accountant. The old accountant said that the reason the second son was able to support those hooligans was because of the monthly allowance his wealthy merchant father gave him and his private businesses. So the eldest son used the excuse of checking the accounts to cut off the income of several silk shops and rice shops under the second son's name."

"In less than half a month, those scoundrels, unable to get their reward money, naturally scattered like monkeys when the tree fell, and even turned around and bit that second son."

Zhu Gaochi was startled and tapped his chubby fingers heavily on the coffee table twice.

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes.

"Cut off their money and supplies..." Zhu Gaochi muttered to himself.

The reason why Zhu Gaochi, the Prince of Han, was able to act tyrannically in the capital and raise a group of assassins was because of this.

It wasn't just the small amount of princely stipends issued by the imperial court that mattered.

He illegally seized land in the capital region and secretly interfered in the private sale of salt and iron; this was the source of his vast underground power.

"Well done! What a fine old accountant!"

Zhu Gaochi stood up, the gloom on his face vanishing.

"Doesn't the second son like to cause trouble? I don't believe that those desperate thugs in his household who only care about money will work for him even when they're starving!"

Zhu Gaochi strode back to the main hall and immediately summoned several trusted officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Censorate.

He did not order the arrest of the people in the Prince of Han's residence, but instead used the pretext of "investigating the military farms and private salt trade in the capital region".

They swiftly and decisively began to cut off Zhu Gaoxu's clandestine sources of income.

Gu Yannian sat upright in the side hall, picked up his brush again, and dipped it in thick ink.

He didn't touch the swords of the court, but gently removed a crucial cornerstone from this vast sea of ​​accounts.

As for when this crumbling edifice of the Han King will collapse, he only needs to brew a pot of fine tea and quietly observe.

The world is bustling with people all for profit. Cutting off profit means cutting off the foundation of that invincible madman.

Summer of the fourteenth year of the Yongle reign.

The sweltering heat in Shuntian Prefecture remained as dry and intense as ever.

Although the construction of the Forbidden City was slowed down due to the Ministry of Revenue's tight budget.

But the workshops in the suburbs of Beijing are still bustling with activity.

Ever since Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi cut off several of the Han Prince's secret sources of income in the spring under the pretext of investigating land reclamation, Zhu Gaoxu's life has become increasingly difficult.

The hundreds of martial arts assassins and outlaws he kept in his mansion were all wolves who wouldn't act without personal gain.

Now that the reward has been halved, there is naturally a lot of discontent.

Zhu Gaoxu was seething with anger and had nowhere to vent it.

He still harbors a grudge against the "mysterious expert" who ambushed his personal guard commander at Bianyifang last winter.

He dispatched a large number of men to secretly search inside and outside the capital, vowing to tear the martial arts master who had crippled his confidant's knee with a grain of sand to pieces.

On this day, Gu Yannian was dispatched by the Wenhua Hall to the Military Equipment Bureau in the suburbs of the capital.

Check the accounts for a batch of muskets and waist knives that are about to be sent to the Nine Garrisons.

Inside the arsenal, the furnaces roared, and the sound of hammers striking metal was deafening.

Gu Yannian was wearing a blue cotton round-necked shirt, a square scarf over his head to shield his eyes from the sun, and a roll of account books in his hand.

Accompanied by several minor officials from the Ministry of Works, they carefully inventoried the weapons that had just been put into storage.

[Ding! Today's attendance complete. Attribute point gained +1.]

"Add to strength."

Just as Gu Yannian finished checking the last box of muskets and was about to sign and seal the document...

The door to the Ordnance Bureau's warehouse was kicked open roughly.

"Bang!"

Two heavy iron-clad wooden doors slammed against the wall.

Accompanied by a series of chaotic footsteps, Zhu Gaoxu, the Prince of Han, entered with a fierce expression, surrounded by a group of armored guards.

The artisans and clerks of the Ordnance Bureau were so frightened that they all knelt down and trembled.

Zhu Gaoxu didn't even glance at the people on the ground, and walked straight to a row of newly forged goose-feather swords.

He casually pulled out a knife, flicked it with his finger, and the blade emitted a buzzing sound.

"What a bunch of good-for-nothings! This kind of soft, limp scrap metal is hardly worthy of being equipped by my guards?"

Zhu Gaoxu cursed angrily, gripped the knife with both hands, and exerted force.

With his innate superhuman strength, he actually managed to break the hundred-times-refined steel goose-feather saber in two.

It was thrown to the ground with a clatter.