The Marquis doesn't support his beloved wife's ambitions, so I'll take the imperial e

After Jiang Zhenxue finished checking the last account, she closed the ledger and handed it to Kang Mingyan, who was standing next to her: "The three shops in Yunyang County, as well as the business with Zhiweizhai, will depend on the two of you from now on."

Kang Mingyan took the account book, feeling as if it weighed a ton: "Xue'er, are you really sure? Xiao Qingyan is in the capital. If you go there now, aren't you just walking into a trap?"

"It's not a net, it's a chessboard." Jiang Zhenxue's gaze fell on the red dot in the center of the map called "Capital City," her eyes frighteningly calm.

"In Yunyang, no matter how well I do, I'm just an ant outside his chessboard, my life and death in his hands. Only by stepping into this game and standing on the chessboard can I become the one playing the game."

She looked at the two men in front of her, each with a different expression, yet both genuinely worried about her, and smiled.

"He's using me as a pawn, so I'll put myself in the position that he least expects and that will give him the most headaches."

Shen Yu said in a deep voice, "Does sister intend to turn the tables and take control?"

"That's right." Jiang Zhenxue nodded. "Yunyang is our foundation and our escape route. What you need to do is guard this place and provide me with a steady stream of money and people. I want Xiao Qingyan to know what he can't sever ties with."

Kang Mingyan took a deep breath. He saw an unprecedented ambition and determination in Jiang Zhenxue's eyes. He knew he couldn't dissuade her.

"Alright." Kang Mingyan nodded solemnly. "Go with peace of mind. With Shen Yu and me in charge, the business in Yunyang County won't fail. If you need anything, just send a message back, and the Kang family will raise the funds even if it means going bankrupt!"

"There's no need to go bankrupt," Jiang Zhenxue patted his shoulder. "Wait for me to bring you a mountain of gold from the capital."

Three days later, an inconspicuous blue-canopied carriage quietly drove out of the north gate of Yunyang County.

Inside the carriage, Jiang Zhenxue leaned against the soft pillows, closing her eyes to rest. She didn't bring many people with her, only a coachman and two bodyguards hired at a high price from retired veterans.

Her trip to the capital was not to flee from disaster, but to expand her territory.

What she wanted to bring was not a burden, but a powerful tool to immediately establish herself in the capital.

The fleet from Guangzhou Prefecture was already heading north day and night. Meanwhile, the skilled craftsmen from Nanjing Prefecture had received her offer of a hefty sum, sparing no expense.

She used Xiao Qingyan's scheme to cut off her financial resources, forcing herself to complete the initial accumulation of capital at an unprecedented speed.

Now, she's going to that biggest den of iniquity, to turn all the schemes he's laid on her, with interest, into capital for her conquests.

The horse-drawn carriage rumbled along, heading north.

The difficulty of the journey lies not in the hardships of eating and sleeping in the open, but in the huge, unknown whirlpool ahead.

But Jiang Zhenxue felt no fear, only excitement at the imminent placement of her piece at the center.

……

The capital city, the residence of the Marquis of Ningguo.

The air in the study was so cold it felt like it could freeze.

Dressed in black, Xiao Qingyan sat upright behind his desk, his handsome face etched with an unyielding frost. He had only been away from the capital for a little over a month, yet the political situation in the court had deteriorated to this extent.

"Speak," he said, his thin lips barely moving, his voice devoid of any warmth.

Night Hawk knelt on one knee, his expression more solemn than ever before: "My lord, the First Prince's men have done a flawless job. All the forged transport documents used old files and official seals from three years ago, and the accounts are also meticulously detailed. The official in charge of the transport that was identified committed suicide in prison the day before yesterday, and all leads have been cut off."

"Committed suicide out of fear of punishment?" A cold smile curled at the corner of Xiao Qingyan's lips. "To silence him, isn't it?"

His long, slender fingers tapped lightly on the cold table, producing a dull sound.

"People will die, but ships won't." He raised his eyes, his unfathomable phoenix eyes flashing with a hunter's sharpness. "Investigate those so-called 'grain transport ships,' investigate their origins, investigate the families of all the shipwrights who handled them. Tell the people of the Dali Temple to dig three feet into the ground and find them alive for me."

"Yes." Night Hawk accepted the order.

"Furthermore," Xiao Qingyan's voice grew even colder, "tell the Third Prince not to panic. This play has only just begun. Since the First Prince dared to set this up, he should be prepared to be uprooted."

Night Hawk felt a chill run down his spine; he knew that the Marquis was truly determined to kill.

Just as Night Hawk was about to leave, he suddenly remembered something, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "My lord, there's news from Yunyang..."

Xiao Qingyan paused for a moment as he tapped his fingers on the table.

The tension that had been building up over the past few days due to court affairs was strangely eased for a moment when he heard the name "Yunyang".

He picked up the cold tea beside him, took a sip, and spoke in a calm tone, but with less of the murderous aura he had shown earlier.

"Speak." Involuntarily, the woman's face, whether baring her teeth and brandishing her claws or smiling sweetly, appeared in his mind.

"Is she threatening to close the shop again? Or is she running out of money?"

In his mind, if her source of paper was cut off, even if she had extraordinary abilities, she wouldn't be able to hold on. At this moment, she was probably furiously waiting for his people to "appease" her.

Nighthawk lowered his head even further, his voice carrying a hint of hardness that he himself was unaware of.

"Neither."

"Miss Jiang's business... is doing very well. She launched a 'literary polishing' service, charging ten taels of silver per page, and it's very popular. Qingyun Pavilion's revenue has actually increased instead of decreased."

"Snapped!"

The white jade teacup in Xiao Qingyan's hand shattered upon impact.

Warm tea mixed with crimson blood dripped down his well-defined fingers onto the expensive rosewood table, leaving a glaring stain.

He seemed oblivious to the pain, staring intently at Night Hawk with a look that seemed to want to slowly torture him.

Nighthawk was terrified and immediately knelt on the ground: "My lord, please calm your anger!"

A deathly silence fell over the study.

After a long while, Xiao Qingyan finally managed to squeeze out a few words through gritted teeth: "She... certainly has some tricks up her sleeve."

He thought he had laid a trap, but to his surprise, the other party simply dismantled his trap and wove it into a beautiful garment, which they then wore.

The anger of being mocked and provoked burned in his heart with excruciating pain.

"Anything else?" He slowly wiped the bloodstains from his hands with a silk handkerchief, his movements elegant, but his eyes were terrifyingly sinister.

Night Hawk dared not raise his head, and could only grit his teeth and deliver the most devastating news.

"Miss Jiang... she set off for the capital three days ago with her entourage."

The moment the words left his mouth, the temperature in the entire study seemed to plummet to freezing point.

Xiao Qingyan stopped wiping.

He slowly raised his head, his gaze passing through the window and looking towards the distant south.

On that handsome face, which always seemed icy and menacing, a look of utter astonishment flashed across his face. Then, that astonishment was replaced by a raging, unvented fury.

Finally, all emotions settled into an eerie, unsettling calm.

He smiled.

A low laugh echoed in the empty study, carrying an indescribable self-mockery and coldness.

it is good.

What a beautiful scene of Jiang Zhenxue!

He shielded her from the open and covert attacks of the capital, fearing that she might be affected by this murky water in the slightest.

He thought he had placed her in the safest place, clipped her wings, and left her no choice but to stay put and wait for him to return.

But she took flight on her own.

Instead of fleeing to the farthest reaches of the earth, it flew straight towards him, the eye of the storm.

What is she going to do?

Are we here to show him our power? Or are we here to...declare war?