Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

The gold-silver ratio in the Taiwu Continent is 1:12, meaning that one thousand taels of gold is equivalent to twelve thousand taels of silver.

Jiang Shangxian made a profit of 11,000 yuan just by mentioning it, he was really ecstatic.

As for making money off one's own family, one can be more flexible about such moral boundaries.

Put yourself in their shoes. After all, you are also serving the Great Chu with all your might. Isn't this what you deserve?

Jiang Mengxuan felt that the planned amount of one thousand taels of gold was acceptable.

After all, the Jingwei Division is facing the Qingyi Tower this time, and there may be casualties during the operation. It wouldn't be unreasonable to treat them as compensation.

So she said to Jiang Shangxian, "Uncle, I will personally hand over this money to you later. If it's not enough, just ask."

"That's enough, that's enough. One thousand taels of gold is more than enough. Thank you, Your Majesty."

Jiang Shangxian had no right to ask for more and refused repeatedly.

Little did he know that he was overjoyed, just waiting for the money to be in his hands so he could enjoy a fine massage at Shuyu Tower.

"Your Majesty, if there is nothing else, I shall take my leave."

"Yes, Uncle, take care."

After seeing Jiang Shangxian off, Jiang Mengxuan continued to review memorials at her desk.

At this moment, Shu Yue returned to the Imperial Study.

"Your Majesty, this servant has informed Liu Qinghuan of the Zixia Sect. She said she will arrive in the capital at noon and meet Your Majesty at the Wenxiang Tower."

"Alright, I understand. You may leave now."

"The slaves retire."

After Shu Yue left, Jiang Mengxuan reviewed the memorials for a while, then looked up at the sky.

"It will be noon in another hour, it's time to set off now."

Putting down her imperial brush, Jiang Mengxuan got up and went to the inner room.

Before long, she changed into a pure white silk dress, shedding her imperial majesty and exuding a pure yet heroic aura.

"It's not too late to set off now. We can also gather evidence of the Prime Minister's Mansion's crimes along the way."

In the instant that thought crossed her mind, Jiang Mengxuan had already disappeared from the spot.

In fact, Jiang Mengxuan was also a master at the peak of the Innate Realm, but she had always hidden her strength since childhood and had never revealed it to anyone except a very few close confidants.

This is her trump card for self-preservation, and she won't use it lightly unless absolutely necessary.

……

At noon, Shen Lang, who had been strolling around in front of Wenxiang Tower under the pretense of maintaining local order, strode into the hall carrying a pipa.

Upon seeing Shen Lang in his official robes, the busy waiter immediately greeted him warmly: "Sir, are you here for a meal or to run an errand?"

"I'll have a meal and take care of some personal business on the way. Please prepare a seat for me on the first floor. I'll be right down."

After saying that, he walked straight upstairs without turning his head.

By this time, the private booths on the second floor, separated by screens, were already packed with people.

While Wenxianglou might not be considered a high-end establishment in Jinling, it was quite remarkable in an area frequented by ordinary people.

In the private booth by the window on the left, Jiang Mengxuan was whispering to a woman who was also dressed in white and whose face was covered by a veil.

Jiang Mengxuan personally poured a cup of tea for the woman in front of her: "Senior Sister, thank you so much for your help this time."

Liu Qinghuan waved his hand: "Junior sister, I understand the matter now. There is also a grudge between Qingyi Tower and my Zixia Sect. This is a good opportunity to dampen their arrogance."

Jiang Mengxuan exhaled a breath of orchid fragrance: "I still miss the days when my fellow disciples and I were together on the mountain. Back then, we didn't have so many troubles."

Liu Qinghuan said, "Junior sister, the past is the past. You are now the ruler of a country."

In all matters, national affairs should take precedence. Master said that wherever Junior Sister needs him,

The Zixia Sect will definitely go all out.

Jiang Mengxuan shook her head: "I really don't feel good about involving you all."

Liu Qinghuan: "Junior sister, don't forget what you promised Master."

Jiang Mengxuan nodded, picked up the teacup with both hands and handed it to Liu Qinghuan: "Overthrow the Ye family, rectify the court, march westward and restore the land of our Great Chu."

Liu Qinghuan took the teacup: "With your words, the entire Zixia Sect will definitely go all out. This time, I will handle the Qingyi Tower incident. Junior Sister, you can rest assured."

Jiang Mengxuan sighed softly: "With Senior Sister personally taking charge, I am naturally completely at ease."

Liu Qinghuan: "What's wrong, junior sister? You seem distracted. Could it be that you don't have confidence in me as your senior sister?"

Jiang Mengxuan: "Senior sister misunderstands. Before I came here, I was reviewing memorials. There have been civil uprisings in Yong and Liang prefectures in the north. I was worried about how to deal with these matters."

"A popular uprising? What happened?"

"Senior sister should know that the old capital of the Great Chu was Chang'an in Yongzhou, which is adjacent to Liangzhou, and Liangzhou is full of Hu tribes."

Because they refused to submit to the teachings of our Great Chu, they repeatedly invaded Chang'an, and even captured the old capital of Chang'an several times, causing widespread suffering among the people of Yong and Liang.

Finally, out of desperation, the capital was moved to Jinling during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong. However, from then on, Li Yuanhao, the leader of the Hu tribe, occupied Chang'an.

They seized the two provinces of Yong and Liang, forcing Emperor Xuan to appoint them as kings, and the state was named Xia, which has lasted for two hundred years.

In response to the outbreak of this civil unrest, Li Tang, the current ruler of Xia, personally wrote a letter stating that it was caused by a drought.

"I hope that our Great Chu can provide 500,000 shi of grain to aid the people."

Liu Qinghuan said, "That scoundrel Li Tang has the nerve to speak? What 'civil unrest'? He's clearly just trying to extort my junior sister."

Jiang Mengxuan gave a bitter smile: "How could I not know Li Tang's tricks? However, Prime Minister Ye said that our Great Chu is the suzerain state."

The two northwestern states are also the homeland of my Great Chu. How can we stand idly by when our people are in trouble?

Liu Qinghuan: "The Prime Minister's mansion is truly powerful. Five hundred thousand shi of grain (1 shi is 150 jin), even a low-grade storage ring would require dozens of them, right?"

Jiang Mengxuan said, "The grain is not a problem, but I am afraid that the Prime Minister's residence may also have connections with the Xia Kingdom."

If that's the case, then this is very likely another test, and I haven't figured out how to respond yet.

As she spoke, she looked at the three men and one woman in the private room not far away.

"Senior sister, look, these are all henchmen of the Prime Minister's mansion. They usually rely on the Ye family as their backer to act arrogantly and domineeringly in the capital. No one dares to mess with them."

Even I cannot act too rashly right now, lest I inadvertently provoke a backlash from the Prime Minister's office.

Liu Qinghuan followed Jiang Mengxuan's gaze and glanced at that table.

"Junior sister, I am a person of the martial world and do not understand many of the intricacies of the imperial court. If you don't like them, I will take care of them for you."

"Senior sister, please don't be impulsive. I was just saying it casually. It's a small matter if we harm them, but if it attracts the attention of the Prime Minister's Mansion, it might cause unnecessary trouble."

"Sigh, I thought that as an emperor I should be above all others, but after hearing my junior sister talk about it today, I realized that it's not easy."

"Indeed, ordinary people always think that holding imperial power and wielding the power of life and death is a sign of great elegance and arrogance."

Who could have imagined the perils involved? Every step was like walking on thin ice.

Just as Liu Qinghuan was about to say a few more words of advice to her junior sister, she unexpectedly heard Shen Lang's voice coming from the second floor.

"Is Chen Jiao there? Someone asked me to pass on a message to you. Please show yourself so I can see it."

Liu Qinghuan patted Jiang Mengxuan's hand: "Junior sister, who is this young official?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Mengxuan turned around and looked over.

"People from the Jingwei Division?"

When she saw Shen Lang dressed in a black brocade robe with a cloak, she was slightly taken aback.

"Strange, I remember that the Jingwei Division has not been in charge of the West Market recently. Could there be some case here?"

With a curious gaze, Jiang Mengxuan began to pay attention to Shen Lang's every move.

At this moment, Shen Lang was completely unaware that his CEO was about to witness his private work.