After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

"Oh."

Zhu Boqing smiled and drank the medicine that the maid handed him, spoonful by spoonful.

He could no longer taste the medicine that others considered more bitter than bitter herbs.

"So it seems that Cuiwei has lost to Prince Qi this time?" Zhu Boqing sighed slightly.

The maid helped him lift the blanket up a little.

"Not really," she shook her head. "This time, Miss really hit King Qi where it hurts. At least she knocked out the purse that King Qi and King Gui shared, which is quite impressive..."

"As for Sujin Pavilion, although you, as its elder brother, will have to contribute some money, as long as officials are sent to kill a batch of merchants who hoard cotton and control the price increase of cotton to within three times, the imperial treasury can still withstand it."

"Hmm...it's just that the merchants from the Northern Dynasty made a lot of money this time," she said with a displeased expression.

Zhu Boqing frowned and said, "What if we just ask Dou Yuan to produce the contracts he signed with those merchant groups in Shandong and Shanxi?"

Dou Yuan… Dou Yuan is indeed a good man, worthy of being called a strategist. If he hadn’t served as a staff member for the Prince of Qi, but had instead honestly taken the imperial examinations and entered officialdom, what harm would it have done to him being given a position as Vice Minister of Revenue?

Zhu Boqing's eyes darkened, and he let out a sigh of regret.

Six months ago, Dou Yuan had already signed cotton purchase contracts with those merchant groups at fair prices. If Dou Yuan were to produce these contracts, Su Jin Pavilion could naturally weather this crisis with ease.

The maid pursed her lips and covered the emperor's cold hand, saying, "In that case, Miss has lost this round."

Zhu Boqing said calmly, "If the Northern Dynasty wins, then the Great Liang loses. Cuiwei can lose, but the Great Liang cannot."

The maid thought for a moment, then raised her head and said seriously, "No. If Miss loses, then Daliang loses."

"Well……"

Zhu Boqing was taken aback for a moment, but after thinking about it, he smiled and said, "Heh...you're right...we really can't let Cuiwei lose."

If Dou Yuan really makes a move this time, then the King of Qi might rekindle his ambitions.

King Qi was a man capable of great things.

A while ago, he ordered Wang Daban to bring Zheng Qiudao, the mastermind behind the assassination attempt on Cuiwei, to the Qi Prince's residence.

King Qi knelt down and cried out that he was wronged. He then beat his concubine—Zheng Qiudao's only daughter—to death in front of Zheng Qiudao. While beating her, he asked Zheng Qiudao, "Which year and month did I or my confidant give you such a vicious order to assassinate my niece?"

Zheng Qiudao's eyes were bloodshot, but his teeth had been pulled out, so he could not bite his tongue to commit suicide. He could only watch helplessly as his daughter was beaten to death. But until the very end, he could not produce any evidence to prove that the King of Qi or Dou Yuan had given him the order.

Subsequently, King Qi entered the palace to kowtow and beg for forgiveness, tearfully pleading that he truly did not know where Zheng Qiudao got such a wolfish ambition to become a meritorious minister who supported the emperor... But how could I be a dragon... King Qi belittled himself and beat his chest in despair.

Zhu Boqing comforted him for a few words, and then directly beheaded Zheng Qiudao.

This person is of no use; it would be better to use him to appease King Qi.

"Hmm..." Zhu Boqing slowly nodded, "Then let the imperial treasury cover the cost." He smiled.

"If my brother-in-law goes to Chen Ruhai and gets him to agree to use the imperial treasury to pay for it, instead of letting his small trading company pay... if my brother-in-law goes to Dou Yuan—"

The emperor's smile faded, replaced by a hint of helplessness.

"Then let the people below stop it... and also tell Cuiwei that her husband should... be a wealthy idler from now on," the emperor said, his voice gradually lowering.

When Zhu Boqing first learned that Cuiwei had fallen into poverty and had found him a brother-in-law, he was so anxious that he coughed up a mouthful of black blood.

He believed that it was due to his own negligence that his sister had been forced to marry a rural farmer.

But when he later learned that his brother-in-law was only twenty years old, and was acquainted with Shangguan Xiu from the Zhenguo Marquis's family, and had shone brightly at the North-South Poetry Gathering, he suddenly became doubtful and his emotions became complicated.

His brother-in-law wrote several excellent poems at the poetry gathering, which allowed the Southern Dynasty to firmly surpass the Northern Dynasty... This was something he never expected, and it could even be said to have far exceeded his expectations.

Next, the enemy decisively defeated Black Tiger Mountain. Although it did cost a lot of money, not to mention their spectacular one-day siege, the sophisticated gunpowder and improved trebuchets they developed alone were enough to recoup the costs.

So... he did have his fantasies too.

He fantasized that his sister's future husband might be a prodigy like the Grand Prince Consort Shangguan, someone she could rely on.

The problems that Su Jin Pavilion encountered this time were certainly unrelated to her brother-in-law. Not to mention her brother-in-law, even he only learned about the true situation of Su Jin Pavilion this morning.

Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice; without money, the other party naturally can't solve the problem.

However, the other party can go to Cuiwei and honestly explain the situation, or they can go to Chen Ruhai to borrow money, but they absolutely cannot go to Dou Yuan.

If the other party is truly intelligent, even if Uncle Qi did not reveal his identity, it should not be difficult for him to see that Cuiwei and Uncle Qi are at odds.

Knowing this, instead of going to Cuiwei and Chen Ruhai, he went directly to Dou Yuan... This is tantamount to bowing down on behalf of his wife... Rather than that, it would be better to be a wealthy idler, composing poems every day.

A young eunuch, with a hunched back, hurried into the main hall, his footsteps silent.

"Your Majesty," the young eunuch whispered, "the son-in-law has returned to Datong Street."

"Oh?" Zhu Boqing chuckled. "Did he go to see Chen Ruhai? Or Dou Yuan?"

"No, neither," the little eunuch said in a panic. "The young master is looking at three shops of Sujin Pavilion, and he plans to invite cotton farmers and merchants from Songjiang Prefecture to dinner tonight."

"Oh..." Zhu Boqing narrowed his eyes slightly, "Inviting you to dinner?"

……

……

Ning Nan encountered Fatty Chu and his group in front of the silk shop on Datong Street.

They weren't kicked out, and the literary gathering was quite lively, welcoming students like them.

However, the silk shop was right across from Xianyue Tower. When Chu Pangzi and Zhao Jing saw him, they ran over and tried to pull him to the literary gathering.

Ning Nan declined with a wry smile, saying that he had other things to do.

Chu the Fat Man curled his lip and said, "Brother Bai Xuan, not to be rude," he looked Ning Nan up and down, "although we know you're rich and have a house on Datong Street, clothes make the man, and gold makes the Buddha. Your clothes aren't exactly shabby, but going into this Sujin Pavilion... is still a bit of a blunder." The Fat Man rolled his eyes.

Not to mention Fatty Chu, even Zhao Jing and the others looked helpless, knowing what Fatty Chu was talking about.

Just by looking up at the sign for the Sujin Pavilion made of small-leaf sandalwood, and then at the guests coming in and out, one can tell that if people like us go in, we'll probably get a few dirty looks.

Brother Bai Xuan was naturally much more presentable than them. He, Zuo Yong, and Zou Tianju even had patches on their clothes.

Ning Nan laughed and said, "I'll just go in and take a look, it's nothing... Gentlemen, you should all go back to the literary gathering first."

Chu the Fat chuckled and said, "Brother," he patted his expensive black satin robes, "Hey, don't say I'm not being fair. Don't worry, with me, the young master of Wu Yue Money Exchange, here, even if their shop is arrogant, they won't dare to give you the cold shoulder!"

Uh… Ning Nan’s smile froze slightly. This was the third shop they’d visited. They’d just meet the manager and get acquainted with him, and that would be it… Speaking of which, would Su Jin Ge bully its customers because it’s a big business? That definitely needs some serious reorganization.

At this moment, Liu Xin, the old man who had gone in earlier, brought out the shopkeeper. The two of them, with their backs bent, hurried to welcome the shop's new owner.