After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

Minor Snow is an auspicious time for travel, praying for blessings, getting married, and breaking ground.

Bai Li Ce sat in the house drinking hot soup, looking at the cold rain that had been falling all day outside, and tightened his fluffy coat.

"Why aren't you closing the window?" Wang Qingyan brought in the food, put it on the table, and was about to close the window.

"Don't turn it off."

"I'm admiring the scenery."

Wang Qingyan withdrew his foot, sat down, and served her rice. "What's so interesting about this?"

"I think they won't have such a hard winter this year."

Although the pedestrians on the street were all shivering from the cold, they were all wearing thick cotton-padded coats, so they should be able to have a good New Year this year.

"Then they should thank you more."

After Lu Jian made his fortune, he secretly and tearfully gave Baili Ce 100,000 taels of silver as "hush money".

This should have been a cause for celebration.

However, given the emperor's personality, how could he possibly be so generous?

To avoid falling into an unpredictable trap, Baili Ce immediately used the money, along with the "labor income" he had earned in Shucheng during this period, to raise a lot of winter supplies, which he then distributed to the people in need in the name of the imperial court.

Of course, due to reasons such as insufficient manpower, the need to rebuild everything, and snow disasters in many places, Tongniang, several heads of households, Song Zhaohe, He Wenyuan, and many officials from Shucheng and Jicheng were forcibly conscripted.

"In that case, you deserve the most credit."

After all, without Wang Qingyan's overt and covert encouragement, they wouldn't have been able to collectively make a fortune.

Whether I have made a contribution or not is not important to me.

Bai Lize paused for a moment, then continued listening to him.

"Furthermore, being too outspoken is not a good thing."

Although Baili Ce knew that Wang Qingyan was implying something, what he was concerned about was that Wang Qingyan didn't seem to be bragging.

Out of curiosity, I casually asked, "If... I mean, if I had asked for 100,000 taels of silver, or even more, at Sancheng Village, would you have given it to me?"

The word "will" was used decisively and without hesitation.

"......" The answer was as expected, but it didn't move me.

The real rich are not rich because they are generous or carefree with their money.

On the contrary, they are meticulous about every expense and always use a profit-driven perspective to judge whether an investment or an event is worth their time, energy, and money.

They are even so "petty" that they are not as generous as the average person.

Therefore, the frugality of the poor and the frugality of the rich are two completely different concepts.

No matter how rich Wang Qingyan is, it's impossible for him to be completely indifferent to 100,000 taels of silver.

Take Lu Jian, for example. He was an emperor, and he was rich in the world. Why was he so stingy?

Because he wasn't really stingy, but rather believed that every penny should be spent wisely and that no effort should be wasted.

That's how she is.

Her sister was also involved with a prominent family in the capital.

Of course, nouveau riche may be an exception.

Wang Qingyan might have given the money because of his supposed liking for it, but it was definitely not just because he liked it.

Moreover, from the time of Anluo to the present, their "collective wealth" is really too much like pig farming.

"Then..." Suppressing his doubts, Baili Ce offered him a bowl of soup instead of wine, "to thank you for spending so much money on me."

"I'll let it go this time, but don't you dare thank me again, bang."

As soon as the two bowls clinked, Baili Ce quickly picked up her bowl and took a sip, afraid that he would see the momentary fear in her eyes.

But if what she thinks is true, then all along they must have only seen the tip of the iceberg of Wang Qingyan's strength!

"That's it?" Wang Qingyan put down the bowl, his eyes smiling, his expression relaxed.

He is a person of pure and gentle nature.

Bah! A clear moon and gentle breeze, my foot! I've just been happy these past couple of days.

Bai Lize quickly took a big bite of meat, then a bite of vegetables, his expression puzzled, "..."

"You haven't forgotten, have you?" Wang Qingyan asked, observing her expression as he ate his food.

No, what has she forgotten?

Ding! I remember now.

"That bet?"

"But it seems like I won, right?" This guy is actually trying to cheat!

"You win? Okay~"

Wang Qingyan chuckled, put down his chopsticks, and began to seriously discuss with her, "This time, a total of 746 officials of all ranks are involved in the case in Kyoto."

Bai Lize looked at him with a "you're so weird" expression. "Yeah."

She didn't say no, "There are about two thousand officials who serve in the capital and receive a salary from the imperial court."

"I bet more than a third of the time, I won't win, right?"

You don't even know the basics?

He stared intently at her, trying to see if she would feel guilty. "But when we made the bet, we said how many officials involved would be brought to justice."

Uh, this...

Baili Ce immediately felt as guilty as a quail.

Is this what it feels like to realize you're the one who's wrong halfway through an argument?

He started to act spoiled, saying, "Hey, let's eat, the food's getting cold."

Wang Qingyan pulled the plate away.

"..." Bai Li Ce's chopsticks missed.

“After removing the 30% who were killed, about 500 people remained. After further subtracting the 78 people who were executed for serious crimes, more than 400 people were pardoned.”

"If you calculate it that way, only about three hundred people will be brought to justice."

but?

That word is quite insightful; those are officials in Beijing, not just some common cabbage.

More than 300 people were executed, which is terrifying.

This was still the result of Lu Jian's restraint.

If they were all wiped out, the entire Great Wei would be thrown back by at least twenty years, if not into chaos.

After all, there are always some people who cannot be killed, nor can they be replaced in a short period of time.

"What...?" Seeing that she was speechless, Wang Qingyan leaned closer, his eyes full of laughter, "Even if you win?"

"......" I have a bad feeling.

"Ugh!" Feeling uncomfortable being stared at, Baili Ce put down his chopsticks. "Fine, fine, you win, you win, okay?"

"Tell me, what do you want to ask?"

As if afraid she might change her mind, Wang Qingyan quickly asked, "How did you get the scar behind your ear?"

Bai Li Ce's eyes widened in surprise...

Then she thought about how long they had been together, and it was normal for him to notice the scar.

But whether it's normal or not, she doesn't want to answer this question.

"It involves privacy, I don't want to talk about it, please ask another question."

“You are my betrothed wife, and I have the right to know.”

Here we go again, who the hell is your wife?

"I accidentally fell from the tree and hit my head."

"..."

After a moment of silence, Wang Qingyan explained sincerely and patiently, "Azhu, dependence is not about losing yourself, and independence and self-reliance are not about relying solely on yourself."

"Don't hide it from me, okay?"

Seeing him hold his hand so tenderly, Baili Ce slightly moved the corners of his mouth and smiled, but it looked more like a mockery.

See? She said that once he achieves his goal, he will inevitably want a more intimate relationship.

This is her past; what will it be next time?

If it weren't for the pretext of distributing supplies, Tongniang and the others would probably have suffered after she left.

But she still told Wang Qingyan, "When I was eleven, I got into a fight and knelt in the ancestral hall. My father burned me with a branding iron."

"Are you satisfied now?" With that, she slammed down her chopsticks and stormed out of the room.

Wang Qingyan, nicknamed "A-Zhu," followed instinctively.

She snapped at me with a single sentence, "If you don't want me to hate you, then don't come along!"