I'm a humble concubine. My acting skills are off the charts. You can check my performance.

On the day Shen Jiyao left Kyoto, Zhao Fangyu did not go to see her off. Shen Wan and Quan Shi went instead, and Zhao Fangyu asked them to bring a message.

"The Fourteen States will eventually reach the north."

The Fourteen States sells fragrant dew. At her suggestion, the Fourteen States in Jiangnan opened the first specialty section.

Specialties are naturally sold at high prices, and cheap items cannot enter the gates of the Fourteen States.

Zhao Fangyu's study is located in the same place as Zhou Qinghe's, separated by a wall.

Zhou Qinghe broke through the original wall and made a moon-shaped door in the middle. If anyone came, it would be covered with a screen.

"Why can't you even take two steps?"

Zhou Qinghe came directly from the moon cave door and pinched Zhao Fangyu's hand to test the temperature.

In late spring, the weather is unpredictable. It was so hot a few days ago that we had to put ice basins in the wind. Now, after several heavy rains, people have started to put on their spring clothes again.

Zhao Fangyu glared at Zhou Qinghe and fiddled quickly on the abacus with his hands.

Building an underground palace requires a lot of money.

Zhao Fangyu has the silver, but the problem lies with the people.

Zhou Qinghe originally wanted to hide the Xiangyun Gang to avoid exposure and to prevent someone around her from being disloyal and leaking secrets, thus ending her life.

Now that his waterway arrangements have been completed, he can rest assured.

"Do you know the Xiangyun Gang?"

Zhao Fangyu paused his hand that was fiddling with the abacus, and wrote down a number on the paper with the slender pen. He then looked up at Zhou Qinghe. His clear and bright eyes were as clear and penetrating as a cool mountain spring.

Zhou Qinghe replaced Zhao Fangyu's tea with a tonic drink, and despite Zhao Fangyu's increasingly subtle gaze, he moved an armchair and sat next to her in a dignified manner.

"This is the backup plan I left for you."

The surprise in Zhao Fangyu's eyes pleased Zhou Qinghe. He leaned back in the armchair and said softly:

"The Jiangnan region is full of waterways, which not only connect Shangjing and Jiangnan, but also lead to the sea."

"I originally thought that it would be best to send you back to Longxi from Jiangnan. If necessary, I could also send you to the sea to avoid a disaster."

Zhou Qinghe had similar ideas to Zhao Fangyu, but she didn't have so many people under her command, so she couldn't achieve such a scale.

The Xiangyun Gang is an old gang that has been active in the waters of Jiangnan. Originally, they were just a low-ranking gang that did some robbing and robbery, but later they took advantage of the floods and started a legitimate business on the waters.

Now it has been completely cleaned up and is one of the best in the Jiangnan water transport gang.

When Zhou Qinghe saw Zhao Fangyu's willow-like eyebrows slightly raised, he felt so satisfied that he couldn't express it in words.

He is a man, and he can't let Zhao Fangyu plan everything for him.

"In addition, the Xiangteng Gang is also my people on the waterway."

Zhou Qinghe took Zhao Fangyu to his study. Under Zhao Fangyu's increasingly clear gaze, he slowly opened the secret compartment, took out two strange-shaped tokens, and placed them in Zhao Fangyu's palm.

The cool texture of the metal gives people goose bumps subconsciously.

The weight of some heavy hands was not a burden at all in Zhao Fangyu's eyes!

I'm really sleepy and I need a pillow.

Whatever you want, you will get it.

Zhao Fangyu put the two tokens back into the secret compartment and said to Zhou Qinghe, "I'll leave them here for now."

Zhou Qinghe trusted her, so she naturally trusted Zhou Qinghe as well.

Zhou Qinghe's eyes were smiling, and his gaze was so gentle that it was a little sticky, as if it was mixed with some sticky honey, which had already pulled out fine sugar threads before it was touched.

Zhao Fangyu's cheeks turned red. He quickly returned to his study and continued to use his abacus.

Zhou Qinghe did not stop her. He watched Zhao Fangyu leave in a graceful manner. The hairpin in her hair swayed back and forth like a kitten's tail, making people dizzy.

Now that he had the manpower, Zhao Fangyu asked Zhou Qinghe for a personnel list of the Xiangyun Gang and the Xiangteng Gang.

Zhou Qinghe didn't have this thing on hand, so he could only tell Zhao Fangyu a specific number. Zhao Fangyu calculated it first. Zhou Qinghe sent a letter, asking the Xiangyun Gang to include a form when delivering goods to the Fourteen States.

The underground palace is no small project. If it is a royal underground palace, it will take several years to build and require massive construction.

But the underground palace that Zhao Fangyu wanted was far less magnificent. It was more like a larger secret room than an underground palace.

The purpose of this underground palace is to store food and supplies, and it is relatively simple and quick to build.

Zhao Fangyu chose a location on the map.

The materials in the underground palace must be transported in large quantities, and the best way is to pretend that these materials have gone out to sea.

Others will not care where you are going.

But to go out to sea one has to go through the Maritime Customs, which is a hurdle that is difficult to pass.

Zhao Fangyu's plan of breaking the whole into smaller pieces was a little too slow.

Seeing that Zhao Fangyu was thinking seriously, Zhou Qinghe put down a gauze curtain on the side and turned around to go out to find Master Wu to practice more.

The two of them are busy with their own things, and the little time they spend together every day is no longer as unbearable as it was when they first got married.

·

Before Zhao Fangyu could figure out how to transport the supplies into the underground palace, the Cui family did another big thing in the court.

The night Zhou Qinghe got some news, a carriage slowly came out of the palace, silently arrived at the Third Prince's residence, picked up the Third Prince, and slowly entered the palace in the dark night.

In the imperial study, the emperor looked at the memorial submitted by Cui Zimin and became very angry.

His eyes, already somewhat cloudy, still stared at the densely packed small characters on the memorial without giving up.

The expectations in my heart have not been realized, and the more I look at the things above, the sadder I feel.

As soon as the third prince came in, he knelt on the floor of the imperial study. There was a layer of carpet on the floor, so it was not as difficult as he had imagined.

But the most unbearable thing was the tense situation in the imperial study that was about to break out into flames.

The emperor said nothing, and occasionally looked at the third prince with a cold and angry look. He didn't move, and the third prince was so scared that he dared not move.

The people in the imperial court already knew the inside story and were standing by wishing they could become invisible. Xiao Quanzi has now been promoted and is following behind Qian Jiangping.

Fang Erqing also became the new aunt, staying in the shadow of the palace gate with a teacup in her hand.

The only moving thing in the imperial study was the wisps of green smoke from the incense burner. The wisps of white smoke were erratic, rising slowly and then suddenly changing direction...

The atmosphere was so depressing that it was almost suffocating. When the emperor was angry, millions of people died. Every hair of the people in front of the emperor was tense.

What happened today, let alone leaking out, if the emperor is unhappy and vents his anger, all of them will have to accompany him to the underworld.

The emperor looked at the memorials submitted by Cui Zimin bit by bit. The official script was elegant and upright, so there was no question of it being difficult to read clearly, and the emperor was not at the stage of presbyopia.

It was clearly written in black and white on the paper, who was handing over, who was embezzling, and who was transporting. The emperor wished he was presbyopic so that he couldn't see what a bastard his son, who was kneeling upright in front of him, was!

The third prince sensed something was wrong. He asked people along the way but couldn't find out a single word. It was obvious that he was in trouble. Seeing the emperor so furious, he had to suppress his anger and his face turned pale.

The more the emperor looked at it, the faster he turned the rosary with his fingertips. But no matter how much he turned the rosary, his anger could not be dispelled.

"I have invited famous teachers to your banquets over the years, and this is all you have learned?"

The emperor's tone was somewhat calm, but the suppressed anger and the rapidly spinning rosary beads all revealed his true mood at the moment.

Even the best calming incense could not soothe the emperor's mind.

The emperor has always been attentive in teaching his sons.

Daliang values literature, and the best scholars in the world are all in the capital. The most respected scholars in the court were all pulled in by him to be the tutors of the princes, and they took turns teaching them, ranging from poetry to political achievements and people's livelihood, major events in the world, and countless teachings of sages from ancient times to the present. However, they were unable to cultivate the humanity of this evil boy!

The emperor never expected that his path to becoming a wise ruler would be ruined by his own son!

"Having prostitutes in the army, forcing Meng's son Erlang to go to war for you, not educating your wife properly, and letting her commit crimes, these are not serious matters."

To those in power, these are nothing but minor flaws in a flawless jade. As long as they are determined to correct their mistakes, it will only take a moment to correct them.

When the day comes when the Third Prince ascends the throne, not even a single note of these events will be left in the history books.

But the Third Prince embezzled disaster relief funds, which is something a monarch cannot do!

The royal family already enjoys offerings from the people, and they work for the welfare of the people. Even if they can't let the people live and work in peace and contentment, at least they can't make the situation worse.

If what Cui Zimin said in the memorial is true, and this matter was really planned by the Third Prince behind the scenes, then he is competing with the people for profit, no... he is competing with the people for their lives.

The natural and man-made disaster that killed countless people was actually caused by the prince...

The emperor looked at the third prince who dared not look up at him, and the disappointment in his heart piled up like a huge mountain.

Over the years, no matter whether it was political affairs or public opinion, nothing had ever made him so frustrated.

The third prince is the first one.

The third prince was the one the emperor truly loved. He was born when the emperor and the imperial concubine were most affectionate, and because of the emperor's love for the concubine, he also received more attention and favor than many others.

Years of anticipation and hard work were shattered by a piece of memorial.

Disappointment comes much easier than expectation.

It was easy to overturn the past.

Cui Zimin bluntly stated in his memorial that the disaster was suppressed in the capital at the time because it might have been the work of one of the princes.

He did not tear off the third prince's last fig leaf, leaving this layer of cloth for the emperor to remove personally.

The emperor did as Cui Zimin wished. After reading the news on the memorial, the emperor was silent for a long time.

The rosary beads turned one by one, and even now that they had slowed down, they were still frightening.

There was an undercurrent of trouble in the imperial study, and alarm bells were ringing in the Third Prince's mind. There was no charcoal basin lit in the imperial study, and he was so anxious that he broke out in a sweat.

"After the morning court tomorrow, summon Pei Yan and Mei Zhanhui."

"You'd better take it seriously... and not interfere."

No matter how biased the emperor is, he would never hand over the throne to such a beastly person.

Now he is just a prince, not even a crown prince, yet he dares to be so bold and seek profits for himself...

If there really comes a day when he ascends the throne, how miserable will the people of the world be?

The Third Prince's flesh did not rot suddenly, but had been rotten from the beginning. It was just that he was blinded by the affection they had for each other over the years, so he turned a blind eye to the rotten scars.

Cui Zimin's memorial caused a sensation in the cabinet and also caused an uproar in the court the next morning.

The third prince had been kneeling in the imperial study. The emperor did not ask him to get up. He only asked him to reflect on himself while looking at the four words "The Way to Be a King" hanging in the imperial study.

The morning court was noisy, even louder than the early morning vegetable market.

Zhou Qinghe watched the show quietly, but he didn't expect that someone would point the finger at him.

Someone from the Third Prince came out to muddy the waters:

"Your Majesty has many princes, and there are several who have been appointed to official positions in the court, but the most daring among them is His Royal Highness the Crane King."

As soon as the words were spoken, everything around fell silent.

Zhou Qinghe stood there without even leaving the line. He just snorted and said with disdain, "Who are you looking down on?"

"My wife is a good money-maker and would not let me fall to the point of competing with the people for profits."

Zhou Qinghe's shocking words broke the heavy atmosphere. Everyone looked at Zhou Qinghe with inexplicable subtle eyes.

There is admiration, there is calmness, but more of it is pity.

"Your Highness the Crane King is a prince, but he is supported by his wife's dowry. What is there to publicize? It is simply a disgrace to all men in the world!"

Zhou Qinghe carefully looked at who was talking, and when he saw clearly, he laughed even more disdainfully: "My wife is good at making money, so I don't have to worry about money. Not only me, but also my children don't have to worry about money."

"Unlike this lord, you talk so much, but you are so envious in your heart, right?"

"..."

Zhou Qinghe hummed twice with satisfaction, lowered his head and continued to quietly pretend to be a mushroom.

What a joke, when has his wife ever owed him money?!

He still owes his wife a huge debt!

Zhou Qinghe is supported by Zhao Fangyu and is proud of it. Do these people have the ability to find a wife who is better than Zhao Fangyu, more beautiful than Zhao Fangyu, more considerate, caring about the world and especially rich?

Zhou Qinghe's tail was so high that it almost reached the sky. Even the emperor who had always disliked him was silent.

I have never seen such a self-righteous man who eats gigolos in my life!!!

How dignified!

A court meeting ended inexplicably. The emperor called a bunch of people to the imperial study. This matter had nothing to do with Zhou Qinghe, so Zhou Qinghe walked home leisurely.

The people from the Zongzheng Temple caught up with him and said in a sad tone, "Your Highness! If you are short of money, why don't you come to the Zongzheng Temple!"

As a prince, he bowed to the princess for money, and even had no confidence to quarrel with his wife. He might even be insulted by Princess He, and eat and wear what she wanted...

The official from the Zongzheng Temple who came to pursue Zhou Qinghe, according to the family tree, Zhou Qinghe should call him second grandfather.

At this time, Zhou Qinghe was spoiled by his second grandfather and received a donation of 20,000 taels from the Zongzheng Temple.

Zhou Qinghe went home happily and put the 20,000 taels of silver in front of Zhao Fangyu: "Pay back the debt!"

"Why are you so happy?"

Zhou Qinghe couldn't help but smile: "Now everyone in the government and the country knows that I am now supported by you. Even the people in the Zongzheng Temple can't stand it. They think that I am not living well at home, so they secretly give me money and tell me not to make myself suffer."

Zhao Fangyu: "..."

“Are you suffering?”

Zhao Fangyu took a look at Zhou Qinghe's clothes and thought about his daily meals. He really didn't expect that Zhou Qinghe would suffer any loss.

Zhou Qinghe smiled so hard that his eyes curved. He quickly kissed Zhao Fangyu on the cheek: "It's not bitter, it's very sweet."

Ever since he met Zhao Fangyu, he was no longer miserable.