Being an emperor is not something he can do, so he can only rely on his connections.

In the spacious and bright main room of the east courtyard, Zhang Jingwei sat calmly in the upper seat, gently fiddling with an exquisite teacup. Meanwhile, Wang Ergou, standing nearby, had a look of anxiety on his face, beads of sweat even oozing from his forehead.

Zhang Jingwei took a leisurely sip of the fragrant tea, slowly put down the cup, and said to Wang Ergou, "Speak! Don't dilly-dally."

Wang Ergou quickly responded: "Master, there is good news and bad news."

Zhang Jingwei raised his eyebrows and said with a hint of dissatisfaction: "Oh, you are actually keeping me in suspense."

Wang Ergou quickly apologized with a smile, "No, no, it's just that both pieces of news are quite important. Due to the order of priority, I still want to tell you the bad news first."

However, at this moment, Zhang Jingwei suddenly interrupted him: "Wait, in this case, tell me the good news first, so that I can feel a little better."

After receiving the order, Wang Ergou no longer hesitated and immediately said, "Master, we have already found out where Mu Tou spent his money before!"

Hearing this, Zhang Jingwei couldn't help but widen his eyes in surprise and blurted out, "What? You found it so quickly?"

Wang Ergou nodded and continued, "Yes, it turns out that Mu Tou went to a blacksmith shop on the outskirts of the city and forged a giant axe. Because the axe was so big and conspicuous, the owner of the blacksmith shop still remembers it vividly."

Zhang Jingwei nodded thoughtfully, then asked, "What's the bad news?"

Wang Ergou took a deep breath and replied solemnly, "Tian Cao is missing!"

Zhang Jingwei was stunned at first, then he couldn't help smacking his lips and said, "Hmm... this news is really bad."

Wang Ergou sighed helplessly and continued, "We've already sent people to look for him, but curfew is about to begin. A large-scale search might cause unnecessary trouble. So, the brothers can only search secretly."

Zhang Jingwei was silent for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Never mind. In that case, let's go back and rest. After all, my father-in-law had previously ordered me to release Tian Cao. Now that he has escaped on his own, it doesn't count as a violation of my father-in-law's order."

Originally, Zhang Jingwei wanted to teach this domestic violence man a lesson, but since he had been beaten and hungry in the past few days, he didn't want to pursue the matter anymore.

In the evening, Mu Tou made the bed and tidied the room for Zhang Jingwei as usual. Zhang Jingwei just looked at him with a smile without saying a word.

Mu Tou bowed slightly and said softly, "Master, if you have anything to say, please feel free to speak."

Zhang Jingwei waved his hand, a hint of a smile on his face, and said, "It's nothing serious, just focus on your work first."

Mu Tou raised his head, his eyes met Zhang Jingwei's, and he said a little awkwardly: "Master, you keep staring at me like this, I really feel uncomfortable all over..."

Zhang Jingwei raised the corner of his mouth and asked with interest, "Mu Tou, let me ask you, have you already planned to join the army?"

Mu Tou nodded without hesitation and replied, "Master, it is true."

Zhang Jingwei's eyes narrowed as he pressed the issue, "So, ever since you started thinking about Jiu'er and wanting to marry her, you've been planning to join the army?"

Mu Tou blushed slightly, nodded slightly, and replied in a low voice: "That's right, Master."

Zhang Jingwei stroked his chin thoughtfully and said slowly, "Since you're so determined to join the army, it shouldn't be difficult. With your martial arts skills, if I ask my father-in-law for mercy, it would be more than enough for you to be a captain in the army."

A hint of gratitude flashed in Mu Tou's eyes, but he still shook his head firmly and said, "Thank you for your kindness, young master, but I want to go to Wuzhou to join the army."

Zhang Jingwei frowned, puzzled, "Wuzhou is a long way from here. Why do we have to go there? Wouldn't it be better to join the army in Yunzhou?"

Mu Tou took a deep breath and explained, "Young Master, you may not know this, but I heard that Wuzhou is expanding its camp on a large scale this year to recruit new soldiers. I was thinking that going there might give me more opportunities to make a name for myself."

Zhang Jingwei was silent for a moment, then advised, "Even so, staying in Yunzhou will benefit you greatly. After all, I have connections and relationships here, and I can help you out on a daily basis."

However, Mu Tou had made up his mind and repeated, "Master, I really want to go to Wuzhou."

Seeing his firm attitude, Zhang Jingwei sighed helplessly, and finally nodded and agreed: "Forget it, go wherever you want to go."

Mu Tou bowed and said, "Thank you, Master, for your help!"

No matter how reluctant he was, Zhang Jingwei could only nod.

……

The next morning.

Ma Tianmao frowned, carefully looked at the test paper in front of him, and said in confusion: "Brother Jingwei, why... is the debate strategy part missing?" As he spoke, he pointed to the missing part of the test paper with a look of surprise on his face.

Zhang Jingwei smiled slightly and replied slowly: "This is exactly the purpose of my inviting Brother Tian Miao here this time." He crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, and his eyes revealed a hint of deep meaning.

Upon hearing this, Ma Tianmao was completely bewildered and quickly asked, "What exactly does this mean? Brother Jingwei, why don't you just speak frankly?"

Zhang Jingwei slowly sat up straight, leaned forward, and said in a low voice, "The debate strategy is extremely important in the entire exam and can be said to be the key to scoring. The price of 800,000 mentioned earlier now seems far from enough..."

Upon hearing this, Ma Tianmao's face lit up with rage. He slammed the table and stood up, shouting, "Brother Jingwei, how can you do this? This is clearly asking for a higher price! We agreed on a price before, and you're going back on your word like this. Where's the sincerity in that?"

Zhang Jingwei was not moved at all, and responded calmly: "Now that things have come to this, Brother Tianmao, since we have come to this, let's put aside our personal feelings and discuss this matter from a purely business perspective. Now, my asking price is one million! And I hope you can pay off the money immediately." After saying that, he looked directly at Ma Tianmao with a firm gaze, as if there was no room for negotiation.

Ma Tianmao widened his eyes and exclaimed in disbelief, "How is this possible?" He really couldn't believe what was happening before his eyes.

Zhang Jingwei, standing by, smiled slightly and said slowly, "Brother Tian Miao, with your talent and ability, why should you limit yourself to this small Yunzhou?"

Ma Tianmao frowned slightly and asked doubtfully, "What do you mean by this? Brother Jingwei, please explain."