Your Majesty said that my life is worthless, so why are you crying when I increase my troops?

"Who asked you to persuade me about this matter?"

Xia Mingyuan stood up with an ugly look on his face.

Xia Xue's expression froze. "Mingyuan, I know these hundreds of thousands of taels of silver are not a small amount. Maintaining your army is also a huge expense, but the people of Hanyang are really having a hard time."

"I'm asking for this money on their behalf..."

"Aunt, do you know our current situation?" Xia Mingyuan asked with a serious expression without waiting for Xia Xue to finish her words.

"This……"

Xia Xue's expression changed slightly, she sighed softly, and said nothing.

Xia Mingyuan sneered and said calmly, "The Huaiqing Prefecture's army is strong, with a total of 20,000 men. If they send troops here without military protection, you and I will immediately become Xia Tianxiong's prisoners."

"Now, we can sit here and drink tea calmly, all thanks to my nephew and the general's ten thousand elite soldiers."

"Auntie, do you know how much the daily food and drink expenses are for an army of more than 10,000 people?"

"One hundred thousand taels of silver, not even enough to last a month, and now you want to return it, don't you think this is ridiculous, aunt?"

Xia Xue shuddered when she heard that. Before she could speak, Xia Mingyuan said calmly, "You don't know how expensive firewood, rice, oil, and salt are until you manage a household. Your so-called kindness means you've never considered my life or the lives of those soldiers."

"I will find the person who bewitched my aunt and see who he is to dare to deceive my aunt."

After saying this, Xia Mingyuan stood up and said, "I won the silver from Sun Yaozu. As for where it came from, it has nothing to do with me."

"Since someone wants the silver, send him to confront Sun Yaozu."

After saying this, Xia Mingyuan turned around and left the princess's mansion without looking back, leaving Xia Xue standing there in a daze, at a loss for a moment.

When I left the room, Lu Xiucai was already waiting in the yard.

Seeing Xia Mingyuan walking towards him with a gloomy face, Lu Xiucai quickly stood up.

"Son..."

Xia Mingyuan nodded slightly and waved his hand for Lu Xiucai to sit down.

"Old Lu, how much grain and silver do we have in our account now?"

Lu Xiucai quickly said, "A total of 290,000 taels of silver, plus 2.7 million catties of grain."

"There's still too little food." Xia Mingyuan gently stroked his chin. After a long silence, he slowly spoke, "Kunlun Security has recently suspended all temporary operations except for scheduled ones."

"As soon as possible, form a team and head south to buy more food with the silver."

"Remember, don't reveal your true identity. It's best not to let anyone know that this batch of grain has arrived in Hanyang."

Lu Xiucai's expression changed and he nodded quickly.

"Also, you are to draw 30,000 taels of silver from the accounts and recruit the unemployed people in the city. Provide them with daily meals and wages based on the number of people working, and have them reinforce and raise the city walls."

"Before the army attacks, we must first transform Hanyang into an impregnable fortress."

"Sir, isn't thirty thousand taels of silver a bit too much?"

"The government usually recruits people for labor. As long as they provide food, a large number of people will rush to work. If we also pay them, I'm afraid it will increase costs a lot."

Upon hearing this, Xia Mingyuan shook his head slightly, looked Lu Xiucai up and down, and said lightly: "Old Lu, you come from a poor background, why are you speaking in my favor now?"

"Isn't it good to give the people more benefits?"

"If this matter gets out, aren't you afraid that the people of Hanyang will point fingers at you and scold you?"

Upon hearing this, Lü Xiucai couldn't help but chuckle. "Since I'm eating your salary, I naturally have to share your worries. Young Master is someone who wants to do great things. I'm managing your money, so I have to make sure every penny is used where it's needed."

"The people are having a hard time. We could make the porridge thicker, but you've spent too much money. If I don't remind you, I'd be putting the cart before the horse."

"As for scolding me? I, Lu Xiucai, can still tell who feeds me."

Xia Mingyuan stood up and patted Lu Xiucai on the shoulder. "Just do as I say. Only when these working people have money in their hands can other small vendors in Hanyang City make money."

"If everyone can make money, they can live a stable life."

Xia Mingyuan's words made Lu Xiucai's eyes light up. "Sir, what you said makes sense. I will go post the notice right away."

After Lu Xiucai left, Xia Mingyuan took the teacup handed to him by Wei Saner, took a sip, and looked at Zhao Hongying who came out of the house.

"Wife, who's been closest to Auntie lately?"

Zhao Hongying frowned slightly, "Aunt rarely goes out. Two days ago, the young mistress of the Zhou family seemed to have invited Your Highness to go for an outing in the suburbs."

"After my aunt came back, she kept sighing and had a sad face."

"The Zhou family?" Xia Mingyuan grinned, his eyes flashing with coldness. "I didn't expect that they would dare to come out and make a scene at this time."

"Since they are so kind, I will grant their wish."

Xia Mingyuan stood up and instructed Wei Saner, "Go inform Wang Gangyi and ask him to bring some people and come with me to do some work."

The group of people came in a mighty procession and soon arrived at the gate of Zhou's house.

The people along the road all gave way, and Zhou Dexing, the old man of the Zhou family, was terrified and hurried out to greet them.

"Commander Xia, you have come here. I apologize for not welcoming you. I hope Commander Xia will not blame me."

"Come on, serve some good tea."

As Zhou Dexing spoke, he invited Xia Mingyuan into the gate.

Everyone in the Zhou family followed behind him, all confused, not knowing why Xia Mingyuan suddenly visited.

"It's okay," Xia Mingyuan waved his hand, "I won't bother with a dying man."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the Zhou family froze in expression. Zhou Dexing coughed violently, raised his head, and looked at Xia Mingyuan with eyes full of surprise.

The younger generations of the Zhou family showed hatred on their faces, but dared not speak out.

"Why, does Old Master Zhou think that what I said is wrong?"

Xia Mingyuan refused to give in. He raised his head and glanced coldly at Zhou Dexing.

Zhou Dexing's scalp tingled at Xia Mingyuan's glare, and he quickly gave an awkward smile. "Commander Xia is absolutely right. I'm already half buried in the ground, so naturally I won't be able to live for many days. As a human being, there's no reason for immortality."

Xia Mingyuan had a blank expression and a cold tone.

"If Old Master Zhou had done less immoral things, he might have lived a few more years."

"If you do too many bad things, you might get into trouble soon, don't you think?"

Zhou Dexing staggered, his face turned pale, and a thin layer of cold sweat oozed out of his forehead.

"Commander Xia is such a joke. Although I wouldn't call myself a good person, I believe in the gods above us and would never do anything immoral."

"As for how long you can live, that depends on God's will."

After he finished speaking, Zhou Dexing raised his head and looked at Xia Mingyuan, still smiling.