Disguised as a man, she became the biggest villain in the book.

At this moment, in a field somewhere on the outskirts of town...

"Damn it, damn Zheng Luoqi! She actually sent us to farm! This is outrageous!" Wen Yixuan said angrily while plowing the land.

"Stop cursing! He can't hear you cursing him here. You should curse him to his face!" Pei Wenyu chimed in, stirring things up.

"If he dared to curse me to my face, he wouldn't curse me behind my back, Brother Pei!" Lin Zifeng teased with a smile.

"This is outrageous! He sent us here to farm, and you don't have a single complaint?" Wen Yixuan retorted.

“You’ve been cursing him since day one, have you ever seen Zheng Luoqi be reasonable with you? What can you do if you’re not convinced? Who told us to be lower in rank than him! In the end, we’re just his subordinates. If he tells you to go east, would you dare to go west?” Pei Wenyu said from the side.

“I am, after all, the nephew of the Grand Commandant. How dare he treat me like this?” Wen Yixuan retorted.

"Alright, stop talking. How many of those who come here don't have a good family background?" Lin Zifeng added from the side.

“Jingyu!” Wen Yixuan immediately added.

At this moment, He Jinyu, who had been silent all along, suddenly looked up at them and said, "You guys are still chatting and slacking off. Be careful that Zheng Luoqi doesn't find out, or you won't even get a steamed bun!"

"Steamed corn bread, steamed corn bread, this stuff is so awful, I don't know how he got it, it's disgusting!" Wen Yixuan complained.

"Is it really that bad? Then don't eat it tonight!" Zheng Luoqi's sudden appearance startled them. The atmosphere that was just complaining immediately turned into one of obediently getting to work.

"Why aren't you saying anything?" Zheng Luoqi looked at Wen Yixuan and said, "Weren't you just complaining that the food was bad? If it's bad, then don't eat it!"

Seeing that Wen Yixuan remained silent, Zheng Luoqi continued sarcastically, "You've been tilling the land here for so many days, and you still don't know how precious food is! You should be grateful to have anything to eat, yet you're still being picky. You didn't come here to enjoy life. If you're unhappy, go back to your Grand Commandant's mansion. I won't stop you!"

Of course, Wen Yixuan couldn't really go back to the Grand Commandant's mansion; he had something to do here.

Of course, he didn't dare to say a word when Zheng Luoqi scolded him.

The others didn't dare look over either, and obediently continued working, afraid that they would be next and wouldn't want to be suddenly "invited for tea".

After venting her anger, Zheng Luoqi felt refreshed and decided to 'reward' Wen Yixuan by making him go hungry for two days.

Zheng Luoqi didn't want to waste too much time talking to them. He had important business to discuss with these people. The autumn harvest was over, and it was already late autumn. Winter was just around the corner, and there was so much to do before winter arrived.

People are now preparing for winter by repairing houses, stockpiling food and charcoal, and adding clothes to keep warm.

The government also has many things to prepare. First, it must ensure that grain reserves are sufficient and properly stored in the government granaries. In this way, even if this winter is long, famine caused by food shortages can be avoided.

Medicinal herbs are also essential and should be prepared in sufficient quantities, as winter is a high-incidence period for plagues and various diseases.

In winter, the government also had to send people to help people repair their houses to ensure that these houses could withstand the cold and wind and rain.

Moreover, winter is a high-incidence period for crimes such as theft and robbery, so the government has to strengthen security patrols.

The government office is really short-handed right now, so Zheng Luoqi brought Pei Wenyu and the others in to do things. These few people are not likely to cause any big trouble when it comes to matters concerning the people.

Pei Wenyu was in charge of purchasing medicinal herbs, Wen Yixuan was in charge of checking the granary and replenishing the grain as needed, Lin Zifeng was in charge of repairing the houses, and He Jinyu was in charge of increasing patrols.

Zheng Luoqi was extremely busy during this period and originally had no time to deal with Prince Gong's affairs. Unexpectedly, after a period of silence, Prince Gong suddenly jumped out.

That night, when Zheng Luoqi was sleeping, he suddenly felt someone approaching. He immediately opened his eyes and saw an assassin approaching his bed with a sword in hand.

Zheng Luoqi drew the sword from beside her pillow and slit the assassin's throat. Just when Zheng Luoqi thought she had it all done, a bunch of assassins suddenly appeared.

"Ah! This feeling is so familiar, just like being in the capital," Zheng Luoqi couldn't help but sigh. He had been in Xuzhou for so long and no one had tried to assassinate him. At first, he felt a little out of place, but now that familiar feeling had returned.

Judging from the assassin's skills, he was most likely one of the group that Prince Gong was training. Zheng Luoqi couldn't help but sigh, "Prince Gong is really rich. He's been training batch after batch of assassins."

Zheng Luoqi immediately engaged in combat with the assassin, and the guards from the government office, hearing the commotion, rushed over to help.

When Boyu arrived, he saw Zheng Luoqi fighting with the assassin.

When the assassins tried to leave upon seeing the rescue, Zheng Luoqi stopped them, saying, "Trying to leave? Do you think you can just come and go as you please in my government office?"

"Since you're already here, then leave your lives behind!" Zheng Luoqi said coldly.

The guards accompanying Zheng Luoqi in the government office were all brought by Zheng Luoqi from the capital. They were very familiar with catching assassins.

These assassins were harder to catch than before, showing that Prince Gong had gone to great lengths. However, Zheng Luoqi's side had a numerical advantage, and no matter how skilled the assassins were, they were still captured. Almost all of them committed suicide by poison the moment they were captured.

"Heh!" Zheng Luoqi's lips curled into a cold smile as she coldly ordered, "Throw these assassins' corpses onto Prince Gong's bedside, and remember to cut off their heads!"

Boyu replied respectfully, "Yes, sir, I will immediately instruct someone to do so."

That evening, Zheng Luoqi sat at her desk, pondered for a moment, and then picked up a pen and paper to start writing a letter.

“Prince Gong, at this time, you insist on jumping out to seek attention. Winter is approaching, and Prince Gong should go and accompany the late Emperor!” Zheng Luoqi muttered to himself as he wrote the letter.

After writing the letter, Zheng Luoqi had it sent to the Prime Minister's residence by fast horse.

A few days later, the prime minister received the letter and immediately took action.

Soon rumors began to circulate in the capital that a large number of iron farm tools had appeared on Prince Gong's fiefdom, and that they were cheap.

Ironware is not something that ordinary people can easily possess.

This matter soon reached Xue Huaiyu's ears.

When Xue Huaiyu heard this rumor, he was suspicious beforehand, wondering if someone was deliberately framing him. However, if a large number of iron artifacts were indeed found, it would be a serious matter.

The presence of a large quantity of ironware of unknown origin implies the possibility of iron ore deposits. The fact that they haven't reported this to the imperial court raises questions. Xue Huaiyu certainly knows the answer.

Xue Huaiyu dared not think any further and immediately sent people to investigate the situation of Prince Gong in his fiefdom over the years.

You wouldn't believe it until you investigate. What you find is shocking: Prince Gong not only embezzled iron mines, but also secretly recruited soldiers and amassed a private army. It's as if Prince Gong had the word "rebellion" written all over his face.