In the beginning, he was ranked alongside An Shigeng as a spoiled brat.

Therefore, if you find any shortcomings, please forgive me!

Upon hearing this, Fusu and Huhai's initial enjoyment of the delicious food suddenly faded.

Zhang Xiaoshan's family does indeed have a female chef of god-like skill, a top chef whose dishes can stun all other chefs. Therefore, the food in the palace is really like showing off one's limited skills in front of an expert, making a fool of oneself.

"That's an increase in martial arts level!"

Although both cooking and carpentry are professions that rely on skills, control is actually extremely important.

Some rely on complete control of their hands, while others rely on their own experience and intuition. Therefore, when all of these are combined, that is where Chef Zhang's shortcomings lie.

Everyone has strengths and weaknesses, but Rong'er is simply good at everything.

"I see. No wonder Chef Zhang kept saying it was just a tiny bit off by 19."

The imperial chef was just an ordinary person, but what about Huang Rong?

That person was already a peerless master more than a decade ago, and it's believed that breaking through to the Grandmaster level now would only take a moment. Therefore, their level of control is incomparable to that of an ordinary person.

And how do you feel about it?

Having just advanced to the peerless realm, Emperor Ying Zheng's senses of touch became much more acute.

Therefore, with improvements in all aspects, plus Huang Rong being a top chef herself, how could Zhang Yuchu, an ordinary person, possibly compare to Huang Rong?

"By the way, what do you think of Fusu and Huhai, Young Master Zhang?"

Suddenly, the Dragon Emperor uttered a seemingly casual question, and Zhang Xiaoshan's eyes narrowed; this was a trick question:

"Prince Fusu is benevolent and kind, and can be a ruler who can maintain the status quo; Crown Prince Huhai is innocent and naive, and exceptionally intelligent!"

It was half true and half false; Zhang Xiaoshan wasn't an idiot with zero emotional intelligence.

Ying Zheng nodded in agreement, as this did not align with his own views, and then chuckled:

"I've heard that you haven't taken on any disciples yet. I wonder if Fusu and Huhai would be of interest to you?"

"Accept apprentices?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiaoshan shook his head without the slightest hesitation, showing no respect whatsoever to the Dragon Emperor Ying Zheng.

Being a good person is one thing, but he wouldn't easily agree to take on a disciple.

Moreover, he didn't even look down on the imperial prince and the imperial heir, let alone take them as disciples.

"Prince Fusu is benevolent and kind. Although I am used to taking a step back and seeing the bigger picture, once there is no way to retreat, I will definitely resort to ruthless measures."

Governing a country is different; it may seem to prioritize interests, but in reality, it focuses on maintaining balance.

However, some of Zhang's governing philosophies leaned towards a republican system based on equality for all, which was not suitable for an empire.

Upon hearing this, Prince Fusu's expression immediately turned somewhat disappointed.

Immediately, Zhang Xiaoshan looked at the expectant Crown Prince Huhai to the side and continued to refuse:

"The eighteenth prince, Hu Hai, was indeed innocent and naive, but he was also very playful."

Once you've learned a wide range of subjects, it's probably even harder to turn back.

In fact, Your Majesty should know that Zhang once trained a "disciple". Back then, he saw that the man made money by deception, so he taught him some tricks for performance. Later, this guy actually became the national advisor of the Song Dynasty!

Given Prince Huhai's temperament, if he were to follow me and study miscellaneous subjects, I fear he would remain idle and unproductive through the methods employed in those studies!

Emperor Ying Zheng's proposal was, in fact, a test.

But Zhang Xiaoshan, on the other hand, had perfectly valid reasons, almost stating them outright:

I don't like it!

They wouldn't even offer a stool, let alone a way to back down.

For a moment, the entire hall was eerily silent, but Zhang Xiaoshan paid no attention to it.

"Fusu is curious. What is this 'republic where everyone is equal' that you mentioned, young master?"

In the silence, Fusu broke the balance.

Zhang Xiaoshan glanced at Fusu, then shook his head and said:

"If it were just Your Majesty and Prince Huhai, I could speak freely, but with the prince here, I fear it might disturb his concentration!"

Even Fusu was momentarily stunned by Zhang Xiaoshan's refusal. Was this preferential treatment?

But Ying Zheng's curiosity was piqued, and he looked at Fusu and couldn't help but ask:

"Go down!"

"Yes, Father!"

Fusu naturally knew that the Dragon Emperor wanted to get to the bottom of things, but Zhang Xiaoshan was somewhat reluctant to talk to him about it.

"You get off too!"

Hu Hai, who was in high spirits, had no choice but to get up and take his leave after being given a cold shout by Emperor Ying Zheng.

Although he was somewhat unwilling, he dared not disobey the orders of the Dragon Emperor Ying Zheng.

"Young Master Zhang, I would like to hear what this 'republican system' you speak of is?"

"Your Majesty also knows that the Zhang family has a great deal of knowledge about the West, so I, Zhang, am also familiar with the ancient systems of Western countries, such as the Holy Roman Empire."

Its predecessor, the ancient Roman Empire, was a republic for a period of time, also known as the Roman Republic.

Its empire had no emperor, but was composed of a Senate, a ruling council, and tribal assemblies…

As Zhang Xiaoshan slowly explained, and because the original Roman republican system was combined with democratic elements, it had an unprecedented impact on Emperor Qin Shi Huang!

"Your Majesty should now understand why I, Zhang, did not say these things in front of Prince Fusu."

The empire has just been established and needs a powerful hegemon to stabilize the situation. Moreover, Prince Fusu cannot suppress those with lofty ambitions. If the empire is impacted by such ideologies, it will be extremely detrimental to the empire.

"Your words have truly broadened my horizons!"

"Just some small countries."

Because of the small number of people and the confederation of city-states, this seemingly perfect system came into being.

If this were within the empire's borders, and people's hearts were in turmoil, that would be the rhythm of a chaotic world, which is why I, Zhang, did not want Prince Fusu to know.

The young master is kind and compassionate; he might pity the oppressed common people and grant them some rights, but in reality, they could be exploited by those with ulterior motives. Then…

Imperial order has collapsed, and chaos has returned!

Emperor Ying Zheng nodded upon hearing this.

"Poor families" are not the same as the lower classes. Poor families still have the opportunity to study. In fact, most of them are those who have fallen noble families.

However, among the truly impoverished people, those who can change their fate through education are less than one-tenth of the children from poor families.

However, after the Zhang family invested heavily in building the private school, the outcome was different.

Even the teaching materials were translated word by word by top Confucian scholars by the Zhang family and then distributed to various private schools.

The banquet ended somewhat unhappily after Zhang Xiaoshan refused to accept any apprentices.

As for the idea of ​​a republic, it was deeply buried in the Dragon Emperor's heart.

I originally thought it was just Zhang Xiaoshan's casual refusal, but I never expected that the so-called republic and democracy really exist!

As the overlord of the Nine Provinces, the Dragon Emperor naturally would not allow the spread of such ideas.

If it weren't for his fear of Zhang Xiaoshan's unparalleled strength and the three bronze-armored warriors he carried with him, he would have kept Zhang Xiaoshan here even at a great cost.

···

Not long after Zhang Xiaoshan left Xianyang Palace, the Ba family was sent out of Xianyang to Sichuan to consolidate their business.

However, the Zhang family suddenly intervened in the Sichuan business, acquiring mercury at double the market price.

This wouldn't have been a big deal, but not long after the Zhang family entered the scene, another mysterious force also entered Sichuan and Chongqing, buying up 510 cinnabar from all over the country at high prices.

I originally thought it was all the Zhang family's influence that was provoking the empire.

However, as the Luo Wang (a network of intelligence) investigated, they discovered that these were two different forces.

Not long after the Zhang family acquired Mercury, the mall began to stock glass mirrors and significantly upgrade its lighting. Even after the Dragon Emperor found out, he said nothing.

After all, the Zhang family was a legitimate business, and he was amazed when he looked at the glass surface that resembled a 'magic mirror'.

Therefore, he had nothing to say about the mercury being used in the Zhang family.

The Zhang family even provided a magical device—a mercury thermometer!

The temperature can be precisely measured by the rise and fall of mercury, for example, by using 100 degrees Celsius as a benchmark, which greatly impressed the Dragon Emperor.

The Dragon Emperor naturally couldn't refuse to promote things that benefited the country and its people, so the Zhang family obtained a 'license' to acquire mercury.

But the other force was completely provocative.

The Luo Wang organization, after investigating thoroughly, discovered that a mysterious force from Jiangnan was acquiring cinnabar solely to refine Five-Stone Powder.

Not only did he sell the Five-Stone Powder to the imperial nobles, acquiring a vast fortune, but he also planned to purchase large quantities of cinnabar for export overseas. Even Emperor Qin Shi Huang was furious when he learned of this.

After all, internally, Five-Stone Powder can destroy a person's spirit, cause hallucinations, and ultimately turn them into a useless person;

Selling it to external customers would require a large amount of cinnabar, which would be detrimental to his plan to refine the elixir of immortality.

Therefore, the Dragon Emperor was furious at this mysterious force and ordered the imperial army to cooperate with the Net to wipe it out!

In addition, in order to stabilize the mercury and cinnabar business, the Ba family was sent back to Sichuan to take over the mercury and cinnabar business.

After all, in Sichuan and Chongqing, the Ba family was truly the number one merchant family.

As for Madam Baqing, she still wore an expression of disbelief after receiving the imperial edict.

She hadn't expected the Zhang family to act so swiftly and flawlessly, allowing their Ba family to escape the vortex of the empire.

Chapter 627 The White Lotus Reappears: The Five-Stone Powder Business Empire

"What a terrifying Zhang family!"

Inside the Super Mall, Madam Baqing returns to Sichuan and consolidates the business there.

However, Bajur, the successor, remained in the heart of the capital and became the person in charge there.

Firstly, as hostages, they would put the empire at ease;

Secondly, the super mall is a gold mine, with a high density of people.

Especially recently, after Zhang Xiaoshan modified the lighting with glass mirrors, the multiple lampshades diffused light and the mirror reflected light, making the entire pedestrian street as bright as day, and at night it can be called a city that never sleeps.

The surge in foot traffic and booming business alone has allowed the Ba family to fully recover all their losses in Sichuan and Chongqing.

What shocked Baju'er the most was the sheer size of the Zhang family; she never expected that the Ba family would actually return to Sichuan in such a short time.

The sheer power of the energy made Bajur realize the distance between the Ba family and the Zhang family.

The Ba family was merely a merchant family, but the Zhang family could steal and manipulate events right under the empire's nose.

"perhaps···"

Thinking of that fleeting, mysterious figure, Baju'er couldn't help but blush slightly.

The title of Widow Qing meant that widows in the Ba family were not like those in other families, and there was no possibility of them remarrying. Even if Madam Ba Qing wanted her to remarry, Ba Zhu'er understood that without the title of Widow Qing, the relationship with the empire would be severed.

Moreover, having already become the richest woman in the empire, as the heir of the Ba family, she is not someone that just anyone can catch Bajur's eye.

Whether she was a handsome man with looks surpassing Pan An or a learned and romantic scholar, Baju'er had long passed the age of an innocent young girl.

Considering the Zhang family's terrifying reputation, and the legendary womanizing nature of this young master Zhang, perhaps this is someone I can rely on.

She's not a submissive woman; she wouldn't think of clinging to a man.

On the contrary, having grown up by Ba Qing's side, she is an absolutely strong-willed woman, completely inheriting Ba Qing's iron lady style.

"I've prepared a generous gift; I'm going to pay a visit to Miss Su Chan!"

Baju'er knew that the key to getting into the Zhang family was Miss Su Chan.

After all, in Zhang Xiaoshan's eyes, even though she was a direct descendant of the Ba family, she was nothing more than a pretty skeleton.

To get closer to someone, you first need an absolute stepping stone.

She knew that this Miss Su Chan came from a scholarly family. Su Chan was not her original name, but a stage name she used when she was living among the common people.

To rise from humble beginnings in the Zhang family, like the former Manager Feng, to become a powerful manager, is definitely not something a weak woman can achieve.