Starting with choosing a wife, creating the most powerful Xia

"Of course it's true, otherwise why would I need to tell His Highness about this?"

Chu Xuan smiled and nodded slightly.

An You wasn't stupid after all; after thinking it over, he understood what he meant.

This matter is far too big; even if Chu Xuan is willing to handle it, it is not something he can do alone.

With a large quantity of snow salt being produced, not to mention how those whose interests have been encroached upon will react, if a channel for selling it cannot be found, then this salt will rot in Chu Xuan's hands.

As a member of the royal family, An You was only a prince, but he was like the second-in-command in the region. Even though the salt industry was state-run, he had ways to sell it on the market.

Besides, even if those salt merchants knew that An You was only there to get a share of the profits, what could they possibly do to him? At most, they would just have to swallow their anger and not dare to utter a single word.

"Once this snow salt is produced, I will send someone to deliver it to the Crown Prince. Of course, my people will also cooperate with the Crown Prince in selling it, and the profits will be split 50/50. How about that?"

Chu Xuan said it frankly.

He didn't even shy away from telling An Youzhong about his plan to plant people in the organization.

What's the difference between this and openly telling him, "I don't trust you"?

But An You didn't care at all; instead, he admired Chu Xuan even more.

Even close brothers need to keep clear accounts, let alone him and Chu Xuan, who are not only not blood brothers, but also had a grudge against each other at the beginning.

The reason I'm cooperating with you is because both of us can benefit from it. To put it bluntly, the reason I'm monitoring you is also to ensure that this business can continue.

Chu Xuan's willingness to tell him directly clearly indicates his intention to cooperate in the long term, but this is to avoid future troubles. Naturally, An Youzhong would not be dissatisfied with his behavior because of this.

But An You still frowned slightly and said.

“These conditions are not a problem, but sir, as you just mentioned, the salt fields are located in the nameless mountains. As far as I know, it is a remote and desolate place. You don’t have many capable people at your disposal. If you are accidentally discovered, then… should I send some people over to help you keep an eye on things?”

"Ah……"

Chu Xuan wasn't some greenhorn; he'd worked as a corporate slave for several years before transmigrating, and he immediately saw through An Youzhong's little scheme.

Firstly, he was worried about the salt field's yield, fearing that Chu Xuan wouldn't be able to achieve the level he described, and wanted his trusted confidant to go and see for himself so he could finally relax.

Secondly, if the salt fields and refining methods are truly as miraculous as Chu Xuan described, An Youzhong would naturally have his own ulterior motives.

If he were to actually send someone there, Chu Xuan might find his old base being corrupted from within and stolen away at any time.

So he refused decisively.

"No need. To put it bluntly, the defenses of my nameless mountain are probably better than even those of the Prince's mansion."

Chu Xuan's words were extremely arrogant.

It's just an obscure mountain village that, if it weren't for Chu Xuan's fiefdom, wouldn't even be worthy of being known by An Youzhong, yet it dares to make such arrogant remarks.

But before An You could finally refute, Chu Xuan suddenly stood up.

He reached up and took something from his waist, aiming it at a tree outside the window.

The next second, a thunderclap roared past my ears!

After a loud roar, the black object in Chu Xuan's palm emitted white smoke and flames, and a huge hole appeared in the middle of the tree that had been targeted!

This really terrified An Youzhong.

Not only did her initial desire to bargain with Chu Xuan completely vanish, but her legs began to tremble, her eyes grew increasingly vacant, and she kept muttering to herself.

"Heavenly Fire...?"

An You never knew that gunpowder existed, but he had read some strange and unusual stories.

Legend has it that when Heaven is displeased with human behavior, it will send down calamities, with fireballs falling from the sky with the sound of thunder, scorching the earth, and killing those who are hit.

The scene before him was remarkably similar to the descriptions of heavenly fire he remembered.

Chu Xuan didn't explain. People like An Youzhong still believed in destiny. Anyway, the pistol and gunpowder were his secrets, so he simply let him understand it that way.

So I added a sentence.

"Such methods are still kept in Wuming Village. If needed, even thousands of troops cannot cross Wuming Mountain unless I am willing."

An Youzhong, who was already astonished by Chu Xuan's bizarre methods, felt even more uneasy.

She looked at him in a panic.

He secretly pondered the truth of Chu Xuan's words, but Chu Xuan's expression remained calm and composed, showing no sign of lying, which made him believe him to some extent.

If what Chu Xuan said is true, then a village with at least a hundred people, each with the ability to control the heavenly fire as they did just now, could not possibly be an exaggeration to say that they could stop an army of thousands.

The moment this thought crossed An You's mind, he broke out in a cold sweat. He was secretly glad that he hadn't made a blood feud with Chu Xuan. Otherwise, if that attack had been aimed at him, even if he was wearing golden silk armor, he definitely wouldn't have survived!

Just then, there was a sudden, urgent knocking on the door.

It was the guard who just went out.

Although the lobby below was extremely noisy, the sound of the gunshot was quite loud. Not only did the two of them not go far, but they were also standing not far from the door. Even other guests, the madam, and Xiao Ziqi could hear it.

Fortunately, Xiao Ziqi knew that Chu Xuan wanted to talk to An Youzhong. Although she had some doubts, she still persuaded the madam to calm the guests and the other girls, which prevented any trouble from happening.

But An Youzhong's guards would not do that. They were unwilling to leave in the first place, and now that they felt that their master might be in trouble, if it weren't for An Youzhong's sake, they probably would have kicked the door open long ago.

The violent knocking and shouting finally brought An You back to his senses, leaving him still shaken.

He immediately shouted angrily at the outside, "Stop making noise! ​​I, the young master, am perfectly fine!"

Although the two guards were not completely at ease, they felt a little relieved when they heard An Youzhong's strong voice.

Chu Xuan looked at him and smiled, "Does the young master believe it now?"

"Please forgive my presumption, sir.

An You wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and chuckled awkwardly.

I dare not mention what just happened again.

Seeing that he had achieved his goal of establishing his authority, Chu Xuan knew that with the suppression of the pistol, An Youzhong would not dare to covet Wuming Mountain too much in the short term. Although this could not be expected in the long run, at least there would be no problem for now.

He also understood the principle of giving a stick and then a sweet treat, and laughed.

"Your Highness, there's no need to panic. These things are to protect our business, and from this perspective, they're also protecting you. If anyone tries to harm you, they're harming my business. In that case, these things will have a purpose. Don't you agree, Your Highness?"