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

At Weiyang Palace, Ye Mo had already led all the officials to wait outside the palace gate.

Upon learning of the Empress's triumphant return, officials had been waiting outside the palace gates since 3:45 AM.

It wasn't until noon that the group finally saw the Empress's carriage and the guards slowly enter the Vermilion Bird Gate.

"Welcome back to the capital, Your Majesty!"

Ye Mo took the lead, followed by five other ministers, and quickly went to meet them.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty!"

The other officials also performed the rites of respect between the emperor and his subjects.

The carriage slowly stopped five steps in front of Ye Mo, and Jiang Mengxuan, with Shen Lang's help, stepped down from the carriage in an orderly manner.

Just as Jiang Shangxian got up and got off the train, the carriage, which had been slumping, seemed to be relieved and bounced back.

"Minister Ye, thank you for your hard work."

"This old minister is not distressed. As long as Your Majesty returns to court safely, this old minister will be at peace."

The tension between the emperor and his minister has now subsided compared to when Jiang Mengxuan first ascended the throne.

Looking back on those days now, Jiang Mengxuan feels that she was somewhat naive and ridiculous.

He almost drove this virtuous minister who secretly protected him to the brink of death. If Shen Lang hadn't reminded him in time, it would be questionable whether he would still be sitting on the dragon throne, let alone the prosperous state of Chu today.

After exchanging pleasantries, everyone entered the palace gates together...

An hour later, Jiang Mengxuan, having bathed and changed, reappeared in the Huangji Hall.

"Long live the Emperor! May the Great Chu Dynasty live ten thousand years!"

Sitting back on the long-missed dragon throne, once again feeling the worship of the officials, Jiang Mengxuan felt a unique mix of emotions.

"No gift."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

After all the officials rose and returned to their positions, Jiang Mengxuan's clear and cold voice rang out again in the hall.

"Gentlemen, during my recent inspection tour of the South China Sea, I witnessed the extremely difficult lives of the overseas Chinese of the Great Chu."

"For eight hundred years, the Great Chu has focused its attention on land, and its understanding of the ocean has been superficial."

"Only after I personally went there this time did I realize that the sea is like another lifeline for my Chu Kingdom, no different from the land."

"Overseas is not as desolate and unteachable as you all imagine; it possesses countless riches, which, if used wisely, can..."

This will allow the hundreds of millions of people of my Great Chu to live extremely prosperous lives. Therefore, effective immediately, I hereby promulgate a new law, named the "Great Chu Exclusive Zone Protection Regulations!"

Jiang Mengxuan's words caused quite a stir in the imperial court.

Liu Wu, the Minister of Justice, was the first to step forward and ask, "Your Majesty, what is the specific outline of this law? I will collect it in time to compile the new law."

Jiang Mengxuan looked at Shen Lang: "Let the Duke of Zhenguo give you a general overview."

Shen Lang stepped forward, bowed to the Empress, and then looked at Liu Wu and said, "In short, this regulation is to extract all available resources for our Great Chu in order to achieve the plan of enriching the country and strengthening the army."

Upon hearing this, the officials reacted with varying expressions.

Liu Wu, however, remained unfazed: "Does the Duke of Zhenguo mean that our Great Chu should use its own national strength to force other countries to submit, and then use the laws of our Chu to fight for all the interests of our Great Chu?"

"Everyone says that Minister Liu is impartial and incorruptible and doesn't understand the inside story, but now it seems that the rumors are not true."

"You flatter me, Duke Zhenguo. I am merely a bit old-fashioned, but I am not stupid. I have been serving in the court for the past two years..."

Naturally, I am also aware of the current changes in the court and among the people. After a little thought, I know that His Majesty's inspection tour of the South Seas must be related to the future of the Chu Kingdom.”

Shen Lang nodded and continued, "The regulations for the Great Chu exclusive zone, in short, mean that everything is based on the Great Chu Kingdom."

We will use every means at our disposal, leveraging the manpower of other countries, to maximize the use of resources within our overseas exclusive economic zones for the economic development of the Great Chu.

Liu Wu frowned: "So, the essence of the exclusive zone regulations is to seize other countries' wealth without caring about their lives?"

Shen Lang shook his head: "That's too vulgar a way of putting it. Let's put it another way. Let's call it joint development."

Liu Wu was speechless. He had gotten used to Shen Lang's occasional use of new words, such as "development," "industry," and "economy," but what on earth was this "joint development"?

Seeing that Liu Wu didn't quite understand, Shen Lang gave him an example: "To put it simply, for example, if I hire someone to manage the estate, wouldn't I have to pay them?"

Liu Wu: "That's natural, it's a matter of course."

"The same applies to the exclusive regulations. Each locality should pay to hire foreign people in the exclusive zone to work. In this way, Great Chu will obtain resources, and foreign people will also obtain income. Isn't this a win-win situation?"

Liu Wu thought about it for a moment and couldn't find any fault with it: "That's right, that's how it is."

"That's fine."

Shen Lang didn't explain further; the meaning was already quite clear.

But at this moment, Cao Xianzhi suddenly jumped out: "Duke Zhenguo, if I may be so bold as to ask, does the regulation of this exclusive zone really only stipulate a mutual employment relationship?"

"Then may I ask, what is the salary, and how many hours are worked each day?"

Sure enough, those who could stand in the Great Chu court were no pushovers.

Shen Lang had thought he could use that fallacious reasoning to fool people and get the colonial bill passed smoothly.

Unexpectedly, aside from Liu Wu, the Minister of Rites, who was almost invisible, actually asked the key question.

"Naturally, it's just an employment relationship. Our Great Chu is expanding overseas only to make money, not to conquer their lands. They work for us, and we pay them wages. It's a win-win relationship for both of us."

However, Cao Xianzhi was not buying it: "Please answer my question fairly and squarely, and don't beat around the bush."

Shen Lang's face instantly darkened: "What does Minister Cao mean by this?"

Cao Xianzhi: "Since the overseas exclusive zone belongs to the territory of our Great Chu, I, as the Minister of Rites,

As the person in charge of the etiquette and moral education of the realm, he naturally has the right to inquire about the progress of the civilization and etiquette under his jurisdiction.

"I implore the Duke of Zhenguo to tell me the truth, so that I may have a clear understanding."

Shen Lang scanned the entire hall, where hundreds of eyes were fixed on him.

"what."

He couldn't help but chuckle softly, and then stopped hiding it.

"Laborers in the exclusive zone are required to work six hours a day, with one day off per month, three meals a day, and a monthly salary of two to four taels. This is the price offered in the exclusive zone of my Great Chu."

That's true. Although Shen Lang is ruthless to outsiders, he also knows the principle of sustainable development and exploiting resources to the point of exhaustion. If you drive all the laborers to their deaths, who will mine for him?

Better to improve the treatment of those natives and let them die than to let the Chu people die, right?

However, capital is something that cannot be controlled by a single bill or a single meeting.

Since the colonial economy is just beginning and people haven't seen substantial profits yet, those who are the first to try it will naturally abide by the law.

But within two years at most, when the merchants or local authorities of the colony have witnessed the immense wealth, they will surely be overwhelmed by greed and begin to exploit the workers even more.

During the Industrial Revolution in Britain, female workers in spinning mills worked up to 19 hours a day, and in some areas even 21 hours.

While such intense labor led to a booming British economy, it also sacrificed the health of countless citizens.

Therefore, Shen Lang was certain that the twelve-hour system established now would inevitably fall apart within two years.

However, he was too naive and failed to notice that the courtiers' eyes lit up when they heard about the low hiring price.

Shen Lang offered wages of two to four taels of silver per month, but they completely ignored the number four.

As for the two taels, you can use your brain a little. For example, you can squeeze and deduct from the food and clothing, and reduce the salary to one tael. That would make you a philanthropist.

Savvy officials have already set their sights on the South China Sea, trying to catch this train to wealth...