Traveling through the emperor, overthrowing the empress dowager at the beginning

I saw Ye Chen touching Yu Niang’s hand before.

Shen Qiu and Qin Man both thought Ye Chen was frivolous and lascivious.

But I didn't expect that Ye Chen had different intentions.

This really made the two women look at him with a new respect.

Shen Qiu then looked at Qin Man in confusion.

"Miss Qin, did Yu Niang really learn martial arts?"

Hearing this, Qin Man shook her head, looking a little confused.

"I do not know."

When Qin Man met Yu Niang before, she only admired her business acumen. After all, to gain a foothold in a place like the capital, one must have some means. But she had never seen her fight with anyone.

Seeing this, Shen Qiu's face became a little solemn and he became more alert to everything around him.

After arriving on the third floor and walking to Room No. 3, Ye Chen found that the door was ajar.

Qin Man stretched out her jade hand and knocked gently on the door.

"Uncle Zhou."

Qin Man shouted twice, but when she heard no response, she pushed the door open with force.

Immediately, a smell of alcohol hit me in the face.

Ye Chen frowned slightly and saw a middle-aged man lying on a low couch in the private room with several wine jars beside him.

The middle-aged man had disheveled hair and on the table stood a bowl bigger than his face, filled with tea foam.

Bursts of snoring came from the middle-aged man's mouth.

"Uncle Zhou."

Qin Man was about to step forward, but Ye Chen waved his hand to stop her.

"Let him get some sleep. He's been drinking too much and is feeling really bad."

Ye Chen had experienced the feeling of a hangover before and knew how unpleasant it felt.

And taking a nap after being drunk is the body's way of recovering.

It would be very uncomfortable if I disturbed them.

"I'll just wait here for a while."

Ye Chen waved his hand and sat down at the table.

Seeing this, Qin Man also sat aside.

Shen Qiu stood behind Ye Chen, his eyes always looking left and right, his hands always in his sleeves.

Ye Chen waited quietly for a while, feeling somewhat bored. He then discovered that there were a few bamboo slips beside Zhou Nanyi, so he curiously picked up one and began to read it.

Then I discovered that the bamboo slips were filled with numbers, which were obviously used for accounting.

"Huh? Who touched my things?"

Zhou Nanyi suddenly trembled all over, and he actually heard the sound of Ye Chen moving the bamboo slips. He turned his head suddenly, his pair of bloodshot eyes widened.

"Mr. Zhou, do you want to sleep a little longer?"

When Ye Chen saw Zhou Nanyi's eyes, he knew that this guy had not slept enough.

"No, I'm not going to sleep anymore. Why did you touch my things? Huh? Miss Qin? This is your friend?"

Zhou Nanyi was slightly stunned when he saw Ye Chen, and then his attention was attracted by Qin Man.

"Mr. Zhou."

Qin Man spoke in a gentle tone, then pointed at Ye Chen and said, "This Mr. Ye is my friend. He came to see you specially to ask you some questions."

"Alas, Miss Qin, you should have told me earlier that you were coming."

A smile appeared on Zhou Nanyi's face. He stood up hurriedly, straightened his clothes, and bowed respectfully to Qin Man.

"My humble name is Zhou Nanyi, and I'm honored to meet the young lady from the Marquis' Mansion."

Zhou Nanyi bowed to Ye Chen again and said, "Greetings, Master Ye."

"No need to be so polite, Mr. Zhou. Since you are not sleeping, I have a few questions and I hope you can answer them for me."

Ye Chen behaved very friendly.

"Master, please speak."

Zhou Nanyi glanced at Qin Man beside him, then spoke to Ye Chen with a serious face.

"Sir, why don't you first ask me what kind of question I want to ask?"

Ye Chen was a little surprised to see Zhou Nanyi being so frank, and asked.

"Haha, sir, you are a friend of the Marquis of Jing'an Mansion, which means you are also my friend. I am always honest with my friends."

Zhou Nanyi had a smile on his face, but a gleam in his eyes. There was one thing he didn't say, which was Ye Chen's attitude towards him. Merchants were originally of low status, and Ye Chen must have a high status to know the young lady of the Marquis's Mansion. However, he did not wake him up on purpose, and there was no sign of looking down on him in his words.

This undoubtedly increased his liking for Ye Chen.

"Mr. Zhou, do you know much about the Qiang people?"

"Oh, Master Ye, are you planning to do business with the Qiang people?"

Zhou Nanyi's eyes lit up, and he instantly thought it was a business trip.

"There is indeed a big deal."

Ye Chen smiled and said.

"Sir, you've found the right person. I've been dealing with the Qiang people for years, and I know them all too well!"

"I just don't know what kind of business Mr. Ye is planning to do?"

Zhou Nanyi had already taken out a pile of abacus chips from his sleeve.

When it comes to business, Zhou Nanyi instinctively began to calculate the gains and losses.

Seeing this, Ye Chen put away his smile and looked serious.

"The deal I'm going to do is huge and will affect the world!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Nanyi's hand holding the counting sticks trembled, and a look of shock immediately appeared on his face.

Qin Man, who was standing beside her, also opened her eyes wide and looked at Ye Chen in surprise.

"Ye, Master Ye, what do you mean?"

Zhou Nanyi frowned slightly, very suspicious.

"Mr. Zhou, you are a businessman, and a horse trader at that. You should be very clear about the current situation on Dayu's northern border."

"The Tatars have over 400,000 soldiers. I want them to retreat, so I'm relying on the Qiang people!"

Ye Chen didn't beat around the bush.

"Ye, Master Ye, you are kidding me, the Qiang Chanyu and the Tatar Chanyu are relatives by marriage!"

Zhou Nanyi looked at Qin Man quickly.

"Miss Qin, is your friend from the imperial court?"

Hearing this, Qin Man looked confused.

"Miss Qin doesn't know why I'm looking for you, sir."

Ye Chen smiled gently and continued to say to Zhou Nanyi: "Mr. Zhou, although the Qiang Chanyu and the Tatar Chanyu are related by marriage, it is impossible for everyone in the Qiang tribe to support the Qiang Chanyu."

"With the powerful Tatars as their backing, the Qiang Chanyu's position is unbreakable. Isn't this what all Qiang people want to see?"

"Mr. Zhou, do you understand what I mean?"

Hearing this, Zhou Nanyi frowned, a strange look flashed in his eyes, and then he suddenly smiled and said, "Master Ye, I am just a businessman. Businessmen only care about profits. I am really not interested in family and national affairs. I hope you can forgive me."

Zhou Nanyi's intention to reject Ye Chen was obvious, but the smile on his face and the gentle tone made people feel calm. He acted quite tactfully.

"Mr. Zhou, I heard that you once provided horses to Marquis Jing'an and helped to raise cavalry for Dayu's borders. Even though you're a merchant, you're also a man devoted to your country. Could you bear to see the Han people of the north fall under the hooves of the Tatar army? Could you bear to see Dayu's kingdom fall into the hands of the Tatars?"

Ye Chen was not surprised to see Zhou Nanyi refuse.

But he had heard Qin Man introduce Zhou Nanyi's life before, and buying horses from the Qiang people to supply Dayu's border army would be a huge risk.

He believed that Zhou Nanyi still had the passion of the Han people in his heart.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Nanyi's face showed a hint of hesitation.

But soon, he shook his head and said, "Master Ye, if you just want to understand the Qiang people, then I will tell you everything I know."

"But if you want to do such a big deal with Zhou, I'll be frank with you, but there's absolutely no chance of success!"