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

Zheng Rong was clear-headed and saw through Zhou Tiancheng's situation at a glance.

Even if you give him power, it's useless if he doesn't have anyone under his command!

Today, others may fawn over him for the sake of a Minister of Justice; tomorrow, they may betray him, the Crown Prince, for other reasons.

That's the important part.

The crown prince's foundation has not been established, so there is no need for him to hold one or two positions!

It would be better to save them up and let the Emperor remember his debt to the Crown Prince.

Zheng Rong also took his leave, leading Zheng Ye'er out of the tent and all the way to the outskirts of the hunting grounds.

This is a place where people gather.

A large crowd of people stood outside the guards, craning their necks to watch what was happening inside.

Before even getting close, Zheng Rong could hear the commotion from the other side.

But the sound gradually decreased, until finally, there was complete silence!

Zheng Ye'er looked around curiously until she saw Zhou Tiancheng.

"Father, the Crown Prince is over there. Let's go take a look."

She pulled Zheng Rong toward Zhou Tiancheng, but before they even got there, she stopped.

Zheng Rong also figured out why the people had suddenly quieted down.

At this time, Zhou Tiancheng was visiting the families of the fallen soldiers one by one.

He stood there with red eyes, holding several plain white paper bags in his hands, each containing a portion of the silver he had collected.

"I'm sorry, they died in the hunting grounds trying to save me. This is a small token of my appreciation. If you ever encounter any trouble in the future, you can ask someone to ask me."

The family members wept uncontrollably, repeatedly saying it was alright, that dying in place of His Highness the Crown Prince was their honor.

But as soon as they turned around, they cried even more bitterly.

All of this was witnessed by the surrounding people!

After Zhou Tiancheng left, they could no longer contain their curiosity, and some even went to ask the families of the National Protection Army what had happened.

As a result, everything that happened at the training grounds and hunting grounds was brought to light.

The people were stunned.

Is this the real crown prince?

"I heard that in order to allow the soldiers to train with peace of mind, he even took all of their families with him. For those who didn't want to go, he sent people to plead on their behalf. His Highness is too kind to these soldiers, isn't he?"

"These people were taken away by the Crown Prince and feasted at the Drunken Spring Breeze banquet! That one table must have cost five or six taels of silver, right?"

"The Crown Prince is so generous, completely different from what others have said before! Most importantly, these soldiers were all personally trained by the Crown Prince; they're incredibly skilled!"

The more the people talked, the more outrageous it became.

That's just how they are; they like all kinds of story-based things.

If a spoiled prince suddenly becomes an extraordinary figure, then he must have been extraordinary before. They were deceived, and it must be the work of bad people.

Isn't it obvious that this person is a bad guy?

Third Prince!

"It's all the Third Prince's fault! I really thought he was a wise prince, but he was exposed during this competition. Not only did he use his power to sabotage the competition, but he also hired someone to assassinate the Crown Prince. How shameless!"

"Those rumors were definitely spread by the Third Prince to deceive us. The Crown Prince is the good guy!"

The public's opinion immediately changed.

In just two days, their reputations underwent a complete reversal.

No one calls the Third Prince a wise prince anymore; saying it again will only invite ridicule!

Why would a wise king cheat in a military training competition?

Why would a wise king assassinate his own brother?

This is not a wise king, he's just a clown!

The Crown Prince, however, is the true hero, and the key is his approachable nature.

A series of praises were bestowed upon Zhou Tiancheng.

Meanwhile, the results of the training competition were also released.

As expected, the Crown Prince won first place. Hou Feng was no match for Lin Tong, especially in small-scale team battles. Hou Feng's tactics were far less agile than Lin Tong's.

Zhou Tiancheng has also been busy these past two days.

He went to the gambling den to exchange his silver, and then took out a portion of it and handed it over to Steward Liu as previously agreed, asking him to pass it on to the families of the brothers who died in battle.

Of course, the surviving members of the National Protection Army also received a share, since they had also made contributions, but they just didn't receive as much silver.

Another major event was the arrival of the Ten Ghosts of Fengcheng.

Zhou Tiancheng originally planned to use the money to redeem the betting agreement, recruit people first, and then open the lottery station.

However, the defection of the Ten Ghosts of Fengcheng delayed his lottery station business, so he had to settle the Ten Ghosts of Fengcheng first.

Welcoming guests and arranging accommodations are the most basic things to do.

In addition, Zhou Tiancheng also learned about the abilities of the ten people.

Take the second son for example; he is better at logistical coordination and battlefield planning and deployment.

The fourth and fifth brothers are acquaintances; one likes to study weapons, and the other likes to study mechanisms.

As for Xiao Shi, he's a young man who likes to run around, so sending him to the reconnaissance battalion is the perfect solution.

What surprised Zhou Tiancheng the most was his third son.

This person has his own intelligence network!

"I'm just doing this job to make a living; fighting is my main mission."

The third brother spoke modestly.

But in fact.

He has his own shops, and his business spans more than a dozen prefectures in the Great Qian Dynasty, all of which are involved in the buying and selling of intelligence!

He was also the main source of income for the Ten Ghosts of Fengcheng!

Zhou Tiancheng couldn't help but ask him.

"What kind of information do you guys buy and sell in this line of work?"

"Who is buying and selling this information?"

The third brother quickly provided the answer.

"Actually, our line of work is shady, it's low-class stuff, there's nothing to talk about."

"Since Your Highness is interested, there's no need for me to hide it from you."

"These messages are mainly divided into two categories: one is from the local area, and the other is from the entire Daqian."

"In the former case, locals would come to us to hire murderers for revenge. As a result, we were regarded as accomplices by the imperial court, as villains by ordinary people, and as rats by real villains. That's why I say our line of work is shady."

"The latter is mainly made by merchants who need to know information about other regions, such as weather and disasters, so they can make preparations in advance."

Zhou Tiancheng clicked his tongue twice.

So this is the intelligence system of the Great Qian Dynasty?

That doesn't sound very good.

Just then, the third brother suddenly dropped a bombshell.

"In addition, we also have intelligence transactions with government departments. You know the secret police, right? There are some places where the secret police can't get involved, so we're the ones who gather the intelligence."

"For example, the Northern Xia Kingdom recently arrested a group of people who claimed to be citizens of the Great Qian Dynasty and possessed a large seal. Now, the Northern Xia envoy is on his way to the capital with this seal."

"Selling this kind of news to the Imperial Guards could fetch at least five hundred taels of silver!"

Zhou Tiancheng was a bit of a money-grubber, but at this moment he couldn't listen to the five hundred taels of silver at all; his mind was full of the official seal.

"You mean, the Northern Xia envoy is on his way to the capital?"

"What exactly is this large seal? Is there any more specific information?"