“You shrew, stop it!”
“How can you be so rude in front of so many people!”
“I only went there for amusement.”
“If you keep nagging, I’ll… I’ll… divorce you!”
Lin Jiang covered his bruised face.
As soon as the words left his mouth, he regretted them.
He really couldn't be blamed for this!
More and more people were gathering to watch.
Didn’t he care about his reputation?
“You… what did you say?”
“You want to divorce me?”
“You ungrateful scoundrel!”
Lin Mother had originally gained her position as the main wife from being a concubine.
She was famously shrewish!
She didn't understand the ways of a clan matriarch managing the household.
As for etiquette, don't even think about it.
The more she thought about it, the more wronged she felt.
Finally, she simply sat on the ground.
She threw a tantrum, rolling around and wailing loudly.
Everyone watching this scene secretly snickered.
They were all enjoying the spectacle and wanted more drama.
They wished for the Lin Family to cause a bigger commotion.
“Father, Mother…”
Lin Xianhong didn't know how to intervene at this point.
In the end, she could only vent her anger on Butler Fu.
“Is this what Ning Que wants to see?”
“What exactly does he want to do?”
“Does he think that by doing this, I will think highly of him?”
“No!!!”
“The more he acts like this, the more I detest him!”
Butler Fu calmly straightened his collar.
“Miss Lin misunderstands; my Prince only wants to make things clear. The account book has been delivered, and I ask the Lin Family to settle the balance as soon as possible. If this matter escalates, it will be the Lin Family that loses face.”
“You…”
Lin Xianhong tightly clutched the account book.
In this matter, Lin Jiang was indeed in the wrong.
The account book was written very clearly.
Every transaction had Lin Jiang’s signature and fingerprint.
But this was a full fifty thousand taels of silver!
Lin Jiang was merely a sixth-rank minor official.
His annual salary was a hundred taels of silver.
He relied entirely on side businesses to maintain his respectable appearance.
If it were before, fifty thousand taels of silver wouldn't have mattered.
But the Lin Family had suffered a huge loss from hoarding grain!
So, it’s no wonder Lin Mother broke down.
Butler Fu raised a playful smile.
“Miss Lin, don’t be so quick to anger.”
“Every day from now on, a grand gift will be delivered.”
“You…”
Lin Xianhong clutched her chest.
Despicable!
Shameless!
And this was Ning Que’s objective.
When dealing with enemies, one must torture them slowly.
Not only must one kill them, but one must also destroy their spirit!
Butler Fu gracefully raised his hand, “The account book has been delivered, this old man shall take his leave.”
With that, he flicked his sleeves and departed.
Over the years, he had witnessed how despicable the Lin Family was.
The Lin Family was merely a small household.
Ning Que was actually willing to take care of them a bit.
But they were just a bunch of unpresentable people!
They simply didn't know how to be grateful!
They only knew how to take and felt entitled to it.
Since they didn't appreciate the consideration, they couldn't blame others!
…
…
In the Imperial Study.
Emperor Feng listened to Chief Steward Hu’s report.
“Hahaha!”
“Interesting, interesting!”
“I knew this boy had many tricks up his sleeve.”
“In just one day, he made the grain prices fall back.”
“The Prince is indeed formidable.”
Chief Steward Hu echoed from the side.
Ning Que had made a military pledge.
Within seven days, he would quell the locust plague in Jingyang County!
He first asked Emperor Feng to issue an imperial decree to provide disaster relief at all costs. Emperor Feng naturally did not agree, after all, the Chang'an granary had other important uses and was considered strategic reserves. It could not be touched unless absolutely necessary!
Unexpectedly, this was Ning Que's true intention.
The so-called opening of granaries for relief was merely a show.
It was meant for the grain merchants to see!
Those sacks were not entirely grain.
Ninety-nine percent of them were sand!
Watching the grain carts continuously being transported out.
They believed it to be true.
These grain merchants naturally acted quickly.
For the sake of profit, they all lowered their grain prices.
In just half a day, grain prices had already plummeted.
And not just in Jingyang County.
Even in places like Chang'an, prices had dropped.
Within three days, they would stabilize.
The key was that the imperial court hadn't even released any grain.
How could such a strategy not make people applaud in admiration?
“Having grain alone is not enough.”
“How to resettle the disaster victims is the key.”
“I will grant all his requests.”
“But if he fails, I will not spare him.”
Chief Steward Hu smiled from the side, “Does Your Majesty truly mean that?”
“Hahaha!”
Emperor Feng laughed heartily.
Ning Que had been rebellious since he was a child.
He always had many clever ideas.
In the past two years, he had helped him a lot from behind the scenes.
“The Prince also tricked the Gu Family and the Lin Family.”
“The two families conspired to inflate grain prices.”
“But now that prices have suddenly plummeted, they have suffered huge losses.”
“This is their own doing!”
Emperor Feng spoke coldly.
These court officials were all sanctimonious individuals.
They talked about the people's livelihood and the common folk.
They studied how to govern the country and bring peace.
But how did they act?
They created various pretexts to amass wealth and exploit the common people.
They prided themselves as nobles and upheld the hierarchy of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants.
They believed merchants were lowly people.
Yet, they controlled numerous shops.
Each of them earned a fortune.
Emperor Feng could tolerate all of this.
But they could not cross the line!
During the Jingyang County locust plague, they allowed grain merchants to raise prices, making a fortune from national disaster!
This forced the common people to tighten their belts.
And even led to thousands of disaster victims!
This was happening right under the Emperor's nose!
Emperor Feng's face turned grim, and he raised a hand, saying, “Inform the Shadow Guard to keep a close eye on Prince Qi. His allowing the locust plague to spread must be an attempt to use it as an excuse, unwilling to return Jingyang County, or to make one last profit before leaving. Now that Ning Que is in charge of disaster relief, how could he be content?”
“Understood!”
Chief Steward Hu raised his hand in acknowledgment.
He knew that Emperor Feng had finally made his move!
Ever since Emperor Feng ascended the throne, he had kept a low profile.
He gradually consolidated power.
At the same time, he allowed the Other surname Princes to expand.
Heaven first makes those it wants to destroy go mad!
Now, Ning Que, this sharp sword, had been unsheathed.
It signaled the tolling of the death knell for the Other surname Princes!
…
Jingyang County.
Directly subordinate to the capital.
Located north of the Jing River.
It was the heartland of the eight-hundred-li Qin River plain.
Its strategic position was extremely high!
Jingyang County was a major county of the capital.
Its population exceeded sixty thousand.
That was why it became Ning Royal Mansion’s fiefdom.
It indirectly served as a guardian for the capital.
No matter from which direction an enemy approached.
Ning Royal Mansion could dispatch troops from Jingyang County.
Many of them were household generals of Ning Royal Mansion.
And all of them had military merits to their name.
Ning Que rode his swift horse along the official road.
Behind him followed numerous household generals.
The banner symbolizing Ning Royal Mansion fluttered in the wind.
Butler Fu accompanied him, gazing ahead.
“Your Highness hasn’t been to Jingyang County in a long time.”
“You don’t understand.”
Ning Que shook his head.
Looking at the tombs on both sides, he murmured softly.
“Dew on the scallions, how easily it dries.”
“When the dew dries, it falls again tomorrow; when a person dies, when will they return…”
He was not uncaring about the lives of Jingyang County’s common people.
He had privately provided relief to local impoverished households quite often.
In the battle of Yumen Pass, Great Feng suffered heavy casualties.
Ning Royal Mansion’s personal guards were almost entirely wiped out.
Too many people from Jingyang County lost their lives there.
They were all good sons of Great Feng.
But in the end, they were buried in Longxi.
What was brought back were merely their clothes and hats…
On that day, Jingyang County was entirely draped in white mourning clothes.
The common people mourned deeply, weeping tears of blood.
He then understood why Xiang Yu refused to cross the Jiangdong River.
And why a general with illustrious military achievements was unwilling to return to Sichuan.
From that day on, Ning Que never went to Jingyang County again.
He had no face to confront his grieving elders and fellow villagers.
Now, Jingyang County was suffering from a locust plague.
Ning Que could only choose to let go of the past.
These good sons had already endured too much hardship.
They should be able to live a decent life!
They shouldn't be subjected to such treatment!