Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

The next morning, at a small stall in a town called Xinghua, six men dressed as villagers sat on a street food stall, drinking tofu pudding with crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside fried dough sticks. Each of them had several corn kernels in front of them. These were used by the young couple who fried the dough sticks to keep track; one corn kernel represented one dough stick.

Finally, having eaten and drunk their fill, one of them shouted...

"Boss, check please." The young man selling fried dough sticks and the old man selling tofu pudding happily came over to settle their bill.

"Are you paying together or separately?" the old man asked with a smile to the person calling out the bill.

"Together," the man said, wiping his mouth and letting out a burp.

After a moment, the young man said

"The brothers ate a total of sixty fried dough sticks, each costing two coins, so the total was... um..."

"It's one hundred and twenty coins in total," the young man's wife said quickly when she saw that her husband couldn't calculate it again.

"Haha, brother, you're not as good at business as your sister-in-law!" one of the burly men laughed loudly, teasing the young man.

"Please excuse my foolishness, everyone. My wife has always been smarter than me since she was a child, and she's an expert at accounting. I'll never catch up with her in this lifetime." The young man wasn't angry when others said he was inferior to his wife; instead, he seemed quite proud.

"Haha...haha..." His words elicited another burst of laughter from the crowd. The young wife blushed and playfully scolded her husband.

"That guy was just saying it casually, and you're acting like a peddler praising his own wares. Aren't you ashamed?"

"Hehe," the young man scratched his head and chuckled.

"Don't be shy, I'm just telling the truth. You're definitely smarter than me."

After paying the bill and buying some dry food for the journey, the group left Xinghua Town.

"Second brother, are you really going home? Not going to the Southern Province?" a man asked the person who had just paid the bill.

“Brother, I’ve decided to go home. I’ve been following the prince for years, dreaming of returning home in glory. Now it’s time to wake up from that dream. When I left home, my son was just learning to call me ‘Dad.’ Now he should be old enough to run errands. Although I’ve sent money back home over the years, I don’t know if my family has received it.” As he spoke, the burly man’s eyes reddened, and his voice choked with emotion.

“The third and seventh brothers are both dead. Only a few of us brothers are left alive in our camp. When I saw their bodies, I thought, what would happen to my wife and children if I died on the battlefield like them someday? Would the prince give them any compensation?”

The second brother wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, clasped his hands in a fist salute to the other brothers, and said...

"Brothers, who knows when we'll meet again? I wish you all the best and long lives. Take care!" With that, he mounted his horse, clasped his hands in a fist salute to the men, and rode off towards his beloved hometown.

The remaining five men stared at his retreating figure, motionless for a long time. Weren't the words the second brother had just spoken the very thoughts that had been on their minds? If they died in battle, would the prince provide compensation for their families? They didn't need anyone to answer; they already knew the answer in their hearts.

Just then, Lao Liu suddenly remembered Mr. Hua, and he couldn't help but shiver.

"When we left the mansion, Mr. Hua hadn't been buried yet!"

His words instantly reminded everyone of the gentleman who had previously held a very high position in the Prince's mansion. They had been on high alert for the past few days, so much so that no one had thought of Mr. Hua, who had been murdered in his bed. It seemed even the Prince had forgotten about him.

Thinking of this, the group shuddered involuntarily, as if they could already see their fate if they followed the prince.

"Big brother, I think second brother is right. It's great to have a glorious family and bring honor to our ancestors, but the premise is that we can live to see that day. Even a smart man like Mr. Hua died halfway. I think ordinary people like me shouldn't think too much. It's better to have a wife, children, and a warm bed." After saying that, I clasped my hands in a salute to my brothers and went home.

Having said that, he nimbly mounted his horse and rode away. The remaining four exchanged glances, each seeing a bitter smile in the other's eyes. If others could understand, why should they cling to that illusory wealth? The hundred taels of silver given by the prince, plus their own savings, could allow them to return to their hometowns, start a small business, or acquire a few acres of land; they could still live a happy and fulfilling life.

Without saying a word, the men clasped their hands in farewell, then mounted their horses and headed towards their hometowns.

Such incidents were occurring in many places; their six-person team wasn't the only one that hadn't returned to Nan Province. Prince Ding'an wasn't particularly concerned about their return, because a very important matter awaited him upon his return to Nan Province, and he had no time to worry about who had returned and who hadn't. Of course, that's a story for later.

Xia Yu is very busy these days. She spends her days either in her room growing crops or cultivating medicinal herbs. Doctor Sanqi has no time to ponder how so many fresh herbs have appeared. After all, it's almost October, and the mountains are turning yellow; how can such tender herbs be continuously transported from the city? He spends all his energy processing and preparing these herbs with dozens of apprentices every day; he has no energy left to think about anything else.

After waiting for several days, an imperial edict finally arrived from the capital. New garrison commanders and generals were appointed to guard Mingyao City, Dingcheng City, and Yishui City. Zhao Bei was ordered to escort those involved in the affair with the Prince of Ding'an back to the capital.

Upon receiving the imperial decree, Zhao Bei led a troop back to Dingcheng at full speed, explaining the situation in Mingyao and Yishui to Xia Yu in detail. Firstly, he felt it would be a great pity not to attack the Southern Province of the Prince of Ding'an at this time; secondly, he needed to determine which people he should escort back to the capital.

Xia Yu didn't answer why they weren't attacking Nan Province. She didn't know either, but she understood how many people's approvals were required for such an edict to be issued. Since those old foxes felt this wasn't a good time to attack Nan Province, she had nothing more to say.

Her answer to the second question was even simpler and easier.

"Arrest everyone connected to Prince Ding'an."

Upon hearing Xia Yu's words, Zhao Bei was completely stunned. If he knew who was related to the Prince of Ding'an, would he have made a special trip back to ask her?

Seeing Zhao Bei's dumbfounded expression, the girl standing next to Xia Yu couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Zhao Bei looked up and glared at Da Niu, only to realize that it was the girl who had won the arm wrestling match against him.

He touched his nose somewhat embarrassedly, lowered his head, and muttered softly.

“Princess, if I knew who was connected to him, I wouldn’t have bothered running back to ask you, would I? Besides, the court has given me very little time. Once the new garrison commander and the chief officer arrive, we’ll have to hand over the duties and immediately return to the capital. If I calculate the time, they’ll arrive in at most four days. Even if I wanted to interrogate them properly, there wouldn’t be enough time!” Zhao Bei said, clapping his hands helplessly.

Seeing his anxious expression, Xia Yu decided not to tease him any further. She glanced at Nineteen, who then pulled a booklet from his pocket and handed it to Zhao Bei with both hands.

"Princess, what is this? Is it a list?" Zhao Bei asked, somewhat puzzled. Could it be that the princess had already compiled a list of people connected to the rebel king?

"It's not a list, it's more accurate to call it an account book," Xia Yu said, glancing at the book.

"This is an account book we found in the study of the Prince of Ding'an. It records his interactions with court officials and local officials over the years. Many of the entries detail who sent him tributes after the conquest of these three cities." He then waved his hand at Da Niu.

"These are his letters exchanged with officials in the court. You can find some relevant clues here. There's also an account book kept by Mr. Hua, recording his financial dealings with various people over the years, and the amounts involved." He finished speaking, looking at Zhao Bei's gleaming eyes, and smiled.

"General Zhao, now you know what to do, right?"

"I know, I know. If I didn't know, I'd be a complete fool. Princess, I'll go and take care of this matter first. Once we've caught everyone, I'll return these things to you!"

Xia Yu waved her hand when she heard his words.

"No need to send them back. I have no use for them. You can take them to the capital with the prisoners and hand them over to the Emperor. General and your deputies have worked very hard these past few months. Consider these a token of my gratitude to you all."

"Your Highness's kindness in recognizing and supporting me is something I will never forget!" Upon hearing that Xia Yu was going to entrust these things to him, Zhao Bei was so moved and excited that he knelt down and bowed to Xia Yu to express his loyalty.