Crown Prince of the Empire, I quit!

"According to statistics from various prefectures, they've loaned out over five million taels within a few months! Most of it... was the so-called "rich people's loans," ranging from twenty or thirty taels to a little over a hundred. All of it went into the hands of ordinary people, who bought spinning machines, water wheels, looms, mill equipment, new plowshares... some even took out loans to attend literacy classes or vocational training schools!"

This news finally made the laziness in Hua Yunhong's eyes completely disappear, and a sharp light pierced out like a knife.

He stood up suddenly, the hem of his bright yellow nightgown stirring a slight breeze. He walked over to the imperial desk and grabbed the latest copy of the Tongbao Commercial News, which was stamped with the red seal of Tongbao Pavilion.

There were huge words printed on it.

"It's better to teach a man how to fish than to give him a fish! Fumin Loan will help you make a living!"

"Loaning five million taels?!"

Hua Yunhong's voice suddenly rose.

With an incredible rage.

"Buying some scrap metal for the peasants? Qin Ming, what does he want to do?!"

He threw the Tongbao Commercial Newspaper hard onto the shiny imperial desk!

There was a loud bang, causing the candle flame to tremble violently.

Several interior officials were so frightened that they trembled and almost collapsed.

"He wants to use this little bit of silver, these worthless broken iron rods and rotten wood, to incite my people! He wants to shake the foundation of my sacred tree!"

Hua Yunhong's voice was like rolling thunder, echoing in the vast palace, and every word was filled with cold murderous intent.

"Let those untouchables no longer be content to rent the landlords' land, no longer be willing to work in those workshops! Let them think that with a few pieces of wood and iron, they can ride on the shoulders of the aristocratic families?! Let those people who have been dependent on the landlords for generations and have been law-abiding, give rise to ambitions and delusions that they shouldn't have?!"

His chest heaved violently, and his muscles were knotted and tense under his pajamas.

He was obviously extremely angry.

He turned around suddenly, and his sharp eyes cut through the ministers kneeling on the ground like a knife.

"You guys! What are you all doing?! His money! The money he used to acquire the oil mine! The money he used to lend money! Where did it come from?!"

Minister Wang's body was shaking like a sieve.

Cold sweat had already soaked through his official uniform on the back, and he almost squeezed out a sound through his teeth.

"Your Majesty, I've checked the Tongbao Pavilion's account path... Part of the principal did come from the huge trade compensation we paid to Fang Yuanjian years ago..."

His voice became smaller and smaller, until it was almost inaudible.

"Fang Yuanjian!"

Hua Yunhong clenched his fists suddenly, and his joints made a clear crisp sound.

The blood color in his eyes became darker.

"I knew it! That thief Qin Ming's lackey! He used my money to buy my mines! He bribed my people! He's like borrowing chickens to lay eggs! He's like cutting off the source of the fire!"

He panted like a completely enraged lion.

There was deathly silence in the bedroom, with only the candlelight flickering restlessly.

His furious figure was projected onto the map of the Western Regions on the huge wall, looking as ferocious as a demon.

Hua Yunhong slowly walked back to the imperial couch, but did not sit down.

He turned his back to his ministers and stared at the huge map on the wall, which encompassed the Western Regions and even the vast Qin and Ming Empires.

The candlelight flickered on his well-defined profile, shadows and light intertwined, and his expression became cold and sinister.

After a long moment, he finally spoke again, his voice calm.

But it carried a chill that was even more heart-wrenching than the roar just now.

"Qin Ming thought that by inciting ants to shake the tree, he could pry open the foundation of my sacred tree? He thought that by using some tricks and giving some small favors, he could buy people's hearts?"

He turned around slowly, his face expressionless.

Only in his deep eyes flickered an undisguised, bloodthirsty cold light.

"deliver an imperial order."

"Effective immediately, the border is sealed. All non-authorized caravans are prohibited from entering or leaving Tongbao Pavilion. Contraband materials...especially ironware and blueprints, will be destroyed upon seizure!"

"Issue every prefecture, county, and township to conduct a strict household registration check! Anyone who participates in Tongbao Pavilion's "enriching the people" loans, purchases illegal machinery, or opens a small workshop without official permission will be considered a disruptor of public order. They will not be required to repay the money they borrowed from Tongbao Pavilion, and their property will be directly seized and taken over by the government! They will be ordered to return to their original farmland and workshops!"

Hua Yunhong paused, and the corners of his mouth curled up into an extremely cold arc.

"Give Du Zi my secret instructions. Tell him... to have a good chat with those friends whose sources of income have been cut off. For example, tell Mr. Wang, the owner of the weaving workshop, that I understand his difficulties. All the weavers have run away, and the workshop is almost empty, right? I allow him... to persuade them as needed! The method... as long as it doesn't cause too much trouble, just turn a blind eye. If the looms need to be dismantled, dismantle them; if the shops need to be burned down, burn them down completely."

His voice was low, like a venomous snake spitting out its tongue.

"Doesn't he have some casual workers under him? Find some work for them. Take them to places where small workshops have just been opened or new water trucks have been bought."

"Add some fuel to those spinning wheels? Add some fine sand? Or pour some salt water into the bearings of those water wheels at night."

He slowly raised his head, looked at the dark, starless night sky outside the hall, and said in a grim tone:

"Qin Ming, you want to play with fire?"

"Okay, I'll give you some more firewood."

"Let's see whether the sparks from the little money you scattered are stronger, or the firewood under my cauldron... which burns faster!"

The cold imperial edict, carrying a rusty and bloody smell, spread like a plague along the crisscrossing official roads of Shenmu State.

The first to feel the biting chill were the common people whose faint hope had just been ignited by the Enrichment Loans.

Qingzhou Prefecture, suburbs.

Wang Laowu squatted in front of his newly built thatched hut, and his rough fingers stroked the brand new spinning wheel that still exuded the fragrance of tung oil over and over again.

He got this by selling half an acre of his ancestral land and borrowing thirty taels of silver from Tongbao Pavilion.

The woman was spinning on a spinning wheel in the house, and the squeaking sound sounded more beautiful to him than heavenly music.

With this, wives no longer have to stay up late at the weaving workshops of wealthy families in the city.

Your fingers will no longer be cut by low-quality yarn.

I can spin and sell my own cloth, and now I finally have some hope for the future.

"Bang!"

The crude wooden door was roughly kicked open, and several men in black servant uniforms with ruffian looks rushed in.

The leader had a scarred face and was holding a water and fire stick in his hand.

"Wang Laoba?"

Scarface glanced at the spinning wheel with his eyes slanted, and a cruel smile appeared on his lips.

"Hey, new guy? Pretty impressive!"

Wang Laowu was so frightened that he shuddered and quickly stood up, rubbing his hands and trying to be careful.

"Sir, Sir, what are you doing..."

"On an errand by order!"

Scarface slapped a notice with a bright red official seal on Wang Laowu's face.

"Look carefully! The imperial court has banned the Fumin Loan program at Tongbao Pavilion! Your spinning wheel is stolen property! You bought the machinery without permission and it disrupts public order! Do you understand?"

Wang Laowu's head buzzed.