Teasing the First Dragon at the Start

A gentle breeze blew by, and the doors and windows slammed shut, plunging the room into darkness. Nothing could be seen except for a faint sound of pain.

Chapter 290 Helping her maintain a dignified appearance

Time flies like water, and it's already morning.

Hu Su was fast asleep, her body resting on Bai Su's chest. Dried tear stains remained at the corners of her eyes, seemingly from the pain.

Bai Su woke up from her sweet dream, feeling the soft body she touched. She looked down at Hu Yi, who was fast asleep with his brows still tightly furrowed, and couldn't help but smile.

What an adorable little wife!

It was only the first time, yet he was so stubborn and defiant. Not only was he unwilling to admit defeat, but he also provoked himself.

As for the result, there's no need to elaborate.

Just by looking at the tear stains left in the corners of her eyes and her still tired and asleep, you can tell how badly she was scolded yesterday.

She's a terrible cook but has a huge addiction to food; that's probably what they mean by her.

Bai Su brushed a strand of hair from Hu Yu's face with her hand, and could clearly feel the beauty in her arms twitch unconsciously.

He then remembered that he had been defeated by Hu Yi last night.

The proud and stubborn princess gradually changed from disdain to panic and bravado, and finally to desperate pleading.

He couldn't help but chuckle to himself, wondering if she would dare to be so mischievous again.

However, there was nothing she could do about her miserable situation.

Hu Yi and Zheng Jie look very similar, but Hu Yi is petite and delicate, just like a young Zheng Jie.

Especially after she changed into a palace dress, her shapely and slender legs were covered by white stockings, making her look like she had acquired an attack speed set. Coupled with her repeated stubbornness and defiant attitude, and the blows she suffered, how could she not be miserable?

Bai Su wanted to gently push Hu Yi up, but found that the beauty in her arms was holding her tightly.

He could only start with the one hand that was tightly holding her, gently prying open the ten fingers that were clasped together.

You could clearly feel Hu Yu's soft, delicate body tremble; she must have woken up.

Bai Su gently brushed aside the messy strands of hair sticky with dry sweat from her cheek and said softly, "I have something to do at the Shao Mansion later. You should rest well. I'll be back as soon as I'm done with my work today."

Hu Yu didn't react at all upon hearing this, seemingly still fast asleep. However, his clasped hands easily loosened, allowing Bai Su to get up quickly.

Bai Su tucked Hu Yu into bed, tidied her hair, kissed her forehead lightly, and then left the room with the letter she had written.

Hearing the door close, Hu Yu on the bed opened his eyes.

Recalling what happened last night, a wave of intense shame washed over her, causing her cheeks to flush red. A burning pain shot through her body, making her afraid to move. She could only lie down carefully and fall into a deep sleep.

After all, she hadn't slept well all night and was extremely tired.

.......

.......

Shaofu (Minister of the Imperial Household).

Liu Ji and Mo Xun were sitting in the mansion, drinking tea and chatting.

"I know."

The door to the room opened, and Bai Su walked in.

Liu Ji, with his large, almond-shaped eyes, looked at Bai Su with some surprise: "Young Master, what brings you here today?"

Bai Su's lips twitched: "As the Grand Master of Ceremonies, in charge of the Imperial Household Department, what's so strange about me coming here?"

Liu Ji said, "Given your personality, if there's nothing else going on, you usually only come over to take a look after the sun is high in the sky, and then go home early to fish."

"You didn't slack off today and were on duty on time. That's really rare, isn't it, Boss?"

Mo Xun, standing to the side, also nodded slightly.

Clearly, they agree with Liu Ji's statement.

Liu Ji said with a grin, "Sir, just tell me directly, what do you need us to do today?"

"Am I that kind of unscrupulous boss...?"

Bai Su appeared righteous and indignant, but inwardly she felt a pang of embarrassment.

Because Liu Ji was right; he really did have something he needed them to do today.

"I came here today mainly to show my concern for my subordinates and to see you all. As for official business, that's secondary..."

"Hmph, a man's mouth is a lying devil..."

Liu Ji rolled his eyes at Bai Su with his large, almond-shaped eyes.

Mo Xun simply shook her head. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her delicate ear and looked up at Bai Su: "What are your orders, sir?"

Bai Su's expression turned serious, and she said, "I want you to help me investigate who is in charge of the salt business in this city..."

"Salt?"

The two exchanged a puzzled look, wondering why their master suddenly wanted to investigate this matter.

Bai Su did not offer much explanation.

Ever since he learned from Ji Liang and Chen Ping that the remnants of the six states had joined forces with the gentry and nobles, he had been thinking about how to eliminate these people.

As the saying goes, the best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans; the next best is to disrupt their alliances; the next best is to attack their army; and the worst is to besiege their cities.

Compared to simple military suppression, directly targeting their vitals is often much more effective.

After all, if you wipe out one rebel army, a second rebel army will emerge in the future. Only by uprooting the foundations of these six remnants of the nation can you completely eliminate them.

A large part of the power of these six remnant tribes is due to the hidden dangers left behind by the fact that when Zheng Jie unified the world, she did not completely eliminate the remnant tribes of the six remnants.

For example, although the State of Qi was destroyed, the sea salt and fine salt supplied to the palace in Qi were still controlled by the local nobles. These former foreign tribes still have considerable influence.

These people will not only fail to appreciate Zheng Jie's kindness, but as time goes on, they will become wealthy beyond measure but powerless, harboring resentment and developing treacherous intentions.

As these people's power gradually grows, they will sooner or later repeat the Rebellion of the Seven States of the Han Dynasty.

Therefore, Bai Su wanted to take this opportunity to completely transfer control of salt and iron products to the imperial court.

The obedient man was given an official position and allowed to live the life of a wealthy man.

If they don't obey, then just accuse them of colluding with the remnants of the six states and send troops to forcibly arrest them.

If they catch the right one, they'll cut off one of the six rebels' fingers. If they catch the wrong one, it's not a big loss, since Sister Zheng has wanted to deal with these people for a long time, but she's just lacked a suitable excuse.

I simply did what Sister Zheng wanted to do, but didn't dare to do.

Liu Jihao bit her long nails, her large, almond-shaped eyes lost in thought. After a long while, she slowly said, "Nowadays, salt is mainly known from the Tian family of Qi and the widow Qing of Bashu."

"Especially the Tian family of Qi, nearly half of the salt merchants in the world are from their family, and even the fine salt supplied to the Xianyang Palace comes from the Tian family. Why do you ask about this, young master?"

Bai Su stroked his chin and said, "Back then, because the world had just been unified, we needed to win people's hearts, so we gave a lot of benefits to the remnants of the six kingdoms. Now that the world needs great order, it's time to pop these festering sores left over from the past."

Liu Ji keenly understood the meaning behind Bai Su's words and was immediately startled.

She said in disbelief, "Young Master, if you want to take action against the Tian family, I advise you to be cautious. The widow Qing from Shu is alright, but it's best not to make a move against the Tian family of Qi."

Bai Su asked curiously, "Why?"

Liu Ji said, "Young master, you may not know this, but the fine salt used by countless wealthy families in Xianyang and the entire Guanzhong region, and even the items used in the imperial palace, all come from the Tian family. If anything happens to the Tian family, the entire Guanzhong region will inevitably fall into chaos."

"When the State of Qi surrendered, His Majesty personally promised the Tian family, and he also has good relations with many people in the court. If you act rashly, Your Highness, you will easily be criticized..."

Although she didn't finish her sentence, the meaning was quite clear.

Firstly, the promise that Sister Zheng made to the Tian family of Qi back then meant that the other party had the moral high ground. If they wanted to take action, they would need a suitable excuse, at least to spread rumors and slander to cover it up.

Before you are absolutely certain of success, you need to be cautious when dealing with such a behemoth, otherwise you may end up getting pecked in the eye instead of hunting the goose.

Secondly, the Tian family was incredibly wealthy, with a distinguished background and good relations with many high-ranking officials and nobles in Guanzhong, who supplied them with fine salt and similar items at low prices.

Although it cannot be considered treason, many people have a favorable impression of the Tian family, and many would probably be willing to say a few good words for them in court.

If Bai Su were to suddenly deprive people of their benefits without proper preparation, it would certainly cause dissatisfaction among many people.

With Fu Su, Li Si, and others taking the lead, Bai Su, being alone, was easily targeted by everyone.

Bai Su smiled and said, "No need to worry, I already have a suitable plan. If they are willing to cooperate with dignity, I will give them a good ending. If they are not willing, hehe, I have plenty of ways to make them live with dignity. As for this fine salt, I have a way to completely replace them."

"To replace the Tian family of Qi?"

Liu Ji and Mo Xun exchanged a glance, their faces showing confusion.

Chapter 291 Even whiter than the Giant's body

"Young master, why did you suddenly have so much coarse salt prepared?"

Liu Ji's large, almond-shaped eyes looked at the coarse salt in the courtyard, and her delicate eyebrows couldn't help but twitch.

Bai Su sent people out to collect a large quantity of coarse salt, and what is currently in the courtyard is only a small portion of it.

He rubbed a handful of coarse salt between his fingers. The salt was not only the wrong color and the grains were coarse, but it also had various strange colors and a faint, peculiar smell.

If you take a mouthful of coarse salt, half of it will probably be a jumbled mess.

Ordinary people, constrained by the high price of fine salt, naturally had no choice but to eat coarse salt.

Even though the coarse salt had been sifted through a funnel by the vendors, its taste was still vastly different from that of fine salt.

Bai Su carefully tasted it and found that the grains were extremely coarse and had a strong bitter taste, which made him hold on for a moment before spitting it out.

Looking at the coarse salt in front of him, he suddenly understood why so many wealthy merchants and powerful figures were so eager to buy the fine salt from the Tian family of Qi. This stuff was indeed hard to swallow.

Bai Su saw Liu Ji and Mo Xun standing to the side, looking at her with curious expressions.

He then explained, "What do you think?"

Mo Xun had been with Bai Su for a long time and knew Bai Su's personality quite well. He knew that although Bai Su was frivolous, he was always a man of his word when it came to serious matters.

Looking at Bai Su's serious expression, she couldn't help but think of something and tentatively asked, "M-Master, do you perhaps intend to refine this coarse salt into fine salt?"

She shook her head as soon as she finished speaking; it was clearly impossible.

After all, the fine salt of Qi was made by boiling seawater and carefully selected from countless sources, while the coarse salt used by the common people was salt field salt, mine salt, and lake salt, which was relatively coarse and contained many impurities.

Therefore, it is cheap. If it could be easily purified, someone would have done it long ago.