We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

Emperor Zhou Rui personally proposed marriage, yet Zheng Ye'er still dared to make things difficult for the Third Prince, subtly rejecting the emperor in this way.

Could there be no support behind this?

Most people wouldn't have that kind of confidence.

What bothered Zhou Tiancheng even more was that Zhou Tianze chose to let the matter drop!

What is he afraid of, and why doesn't he dare to retaliate?

"Steward Liu, what's the deal with this Zheng Ye'er?"

Zhou Tiancheng could not hide his curiosity.

Steward Liu cautiously offered a reminder.

"The Duke of Protectorate is a master of leading troops and has great prestige in the army. Offending him is equivalent to offending 30% of the soldiers in the world. Even the Third Prince would not dare to act rashly."

Zhou Tiancheng understood.

If he can win over Zheng Ye'er, wouldn't he have won over a third of the soldiers of Daqian?

At that time, who would dare to kill him, and who would be able to kill him?

As for whether he would offend Zhou Tianze, he and Zhou Tianze were irreconcilable enemies, so he didn't care about adding Zheng Ye'er to the mix.

The only thing to be careful about is that this matter should not be rushed.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhou Tiancheng spoke.

"I've taken this to heart, but it's not the right time to propose marriage in person."

"Firstly, my reputation is utterly ruined, and secondly, we have a lot of things to do. The Eastern Palace is a huge place that needs to be rebuilt, and we can't spare the time for now."

This is not something Zhou Tiancheng is making up.

That afternoon, Zhou Tianze sent someone to deliver the official seal of the Prefect of Jingzhao and the land deed of Zuichunfeng.

After discussing with Steward Liu, Zhou Tiancheng felt that things should be done sooner rather than later, so they postponed the grand banquet to three days later.

the next morning.

He first went to work at the Jingzhao Prefecture.

He dismissed and sent away the Junior Magistrate appointed by Zhou Tianze, who was in charge of the work in the Jingzhao Prefecture, and then randomly selected someone to temporarily take over the position of Junior Magistrate of the Jingzhao Prefecture.

In the afternoon, I went with Steward Liu to Zui Chun Feng to finalize the scale and scope of the banquet.

But when he was truly intoxicated by the spring breeze, Zhou Tiancheng felt as if he had traveled back to the future.

Zui Chunfeng is located in the heart of Kyoto's East Market, covering an area of ​​about 10,000 square meters, which is about the size of a 400-meter running track.

The building has seven floors and is mainly made of wood. It is decorated with carvings of dragons and phoenixes everywhere, making it a beautiful and exquisite structure.

In addition, there are countless ornaments and rare items.

This is the Daqian No. 1 Restaurant that Zhou Rui mentioned has an annual profit of 500,000 taels of silver!

After taking over, Zhou Tiancheng glanced at the account books briefly and immediately marveled at them.

A restaurant with an average spending of about ten taels of silver per person, which is equivalent to five thousand yuan per person, how could it not make money?

He immediately summoned Steward Liu.

"On the day of the banquet, everyone is welcome on the first floor. There will be someone to guard the staircase. There will be two challenging questions, one for literature and one for martial arts, on the left and right sides. Those who can solve the questions can go to the second floor, where the banquet will be doubled in scale."

"The third floor will be set aside specifically for officials and dignitaries; they should be treated with the utmost hospitality."

Manager Liu felt a chill run down his spine!

"Your Highness, I'm afraid the money might not be enough."

Zhou Tiancheng was somewhat curious.

"Approximately how much silver will it cost?"

Manager Liu went to settle accounts and didn't return for a while.

"Two thousand taels of silver."

Zhou Tiancheng was somewhat dazed and subconsciously did some calculations.

Two thousand taels of silver may not sound like much, but to put it another way, one million yuan, is that enough?

What dazed him even more was that such a large Eastern Palace couldn't even come up with one million!

"Steward Liu, are you saying that the Crown Prince's Palace can't even come up with two thousand taels of silver?"

Zhou Tiancheng didn't believe it!

The truth is that the Crown Prince's Palace not only couldn't come up with the money, but it was also in arrears with the wages of the eunuchs and palace maids!

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince's Palace hasn't paid monthly wages for half a year. I know the amount of silver in the treasury; it's only around five or six hundred taels, which is indeed a bit tight."

"What about the silver?"

Zhou Tiancheng was confused. Where did the money go?

"Buying horses, tigers, lions, stones, women—the Emperor fined them to compensate the families of the deceased, as well as the Crown Prince's clothing, fabrics, fruits, and food..."

He can just open his mouth and say it.

The expenses reported by Manager Liu made Zhou Tiancheng feel somewhat depressed.

Is this prince spending money like that?

No wonder he has such a bad reputation!

But what about the deceased's family?

When Zhou Tiancheng asked the question, Steward Liu gave him a long, meaningful look.

"Your Highness, do you believe that the Rong Kingdom only presented Guli as a concubine to the Emperor?"

Zhou Tiancheng thought about it. Guli was indeed very beautiful, but it was obviously too stingy for Rong Kingdom to send only her to Daqian.

Manager Liu sighed.

"In fact, the Rong Kingdom presented a total of twenty beauties!"

"Twenty? What about the others?"

Zhou Tiancheng was puzzled.

Didn't Zhou Rui give all the people to him back then?

What about the rest?

Manager Liu remained calm.

"He's dead, so bury him in a mass grave. You killed him, Your Highness."

Zhou Tiancheng was taken aback. When did he kill someone?

He quickly realized what was happening.

The Rong Kingdom sent twenty women, but in the end only Guli survived; the others were all played to death by the Crown Prince.

He also knew where he had given himself away, allowing Steward Liu to see through his identity.

Because Guli didn't die!

A prince who plays with and kills women as easily as eating and drinking, actually let a Guli go?

How could Manager Liu not suspect that he was an imposter?

"Are many people aware of this?"

Zhou Tiancheng subconsciously lowered his voice.

Steward Liu shook his head slightly.

"Others may know some things, but they don't know the details. To be precise, everyone says the Crown Prince is cruel, but Your Highness, you are ten times more cruel than they describe!"

What does that mean?

It means that Steward Liu and his team have been keeping things secret all along!

The real crown prince is ten times more terrifying than the rumors circulating among the people!

No wonder Zhou Rui was so determined to change the crown prince.

If someone like that became emperor, it would be the end of the world!

Zhou Tiancheng hesitated for a moment, then turned to Steward Liu and spoke.

"Could Zui Chunfeng cover the money first?"

"Such a large restaurant must have a daily turnover of more than two thousand taels of silver, right?"

Manager Liu sighed and reminded Zhou Tiancheng.

"Your Highness, in fact, many of the restaurant's managers, accountants, cooks, and waiters have already told me that they want to leave Zui Chun Feng."

"They don't trust you."

"I can keep them in check for three more days, at most until the banquet ends, but this requires money to maintain. It's all about the daily cash flow. If I run out of money, I'm afraid I won't even make it to the banquet. I really can't come up with that kind of money!"

Zhou Tiancheng then realized the seriousness of the matter.

His reputation was so bad that nobody wanted to work for him.

So what if this so-called number one restaurant in the Great Qian Dynasty ended up in his hands?

Without anyone working, even the most luxurious restaurant is just a building; it can't generate any profit except for selling the goods!

"So... I need to find a way to completely change my image in their eyes on the day of the banquet, otherwise, forget about attracting talent, I won't even be able to manage this restaurant!"

Zhou Tiancheng took a deep breath, inwardly groaning.

Your Highness, even in death you are not at peace, and you still have to come up with such a difficult problem, which is comparable to a math Olympiad problem!