Jiang Ke’er’s entire fox form stiffened.
Which of these was not a priceless treasure? These were rare gems she couldn’t afford even if she went bankrupt — treasures that couldn’t be bought even with money!
This profligate Emperor just pulled them out and gave them to her?
Jiang Ke’er stared at the gifts with wide eyes.
“Prince Hao of Qin” seemed pleased with Jiang Ke’er’s reaction. He smiled and said, “I will return tomorrow.”
‘Coming back again? Is this guy that rich? Or does he simply not care about money at all?’
‘Even the National Treasury accumulated by the Kingdom of Dasi over the years couldn’t withstand such squandering, right?’
An alarm bell suddenly rang in Jiang Ke’er’s heart — ‘Showing excessive concern without reason; he’s either a lecher or a thief!’
‘He came with gifts, so he definitely has no good intentions!’
However, “Prince Hao of Qin” did not take the opportunity to make any requests that would put Jiang Ke’er in a difficult position. Instead, he turned around and left quite straightforwardly.
This generous attitude made Jiang Ke’er feel a bit embarrassed.
Ten days later.
“Grand Chancellor, the military expenses are running a bit low.”
Yu Wenhua Ji frowned. “That is indeed a problem… Shenzhou has been plagued by chaos recently. Coupled with the massive construction projects previously commissioned by Emperor Jing, the economic situation of the Great Sima Nation is somewhat tense.”
“I suggest the Grand Chancellor open the treasure treasury in the back mountain, take some rare items for auction, and use them for temporary turnover,” an aide kneeling before Yu Wenhua Ji advised.
“The National Treasury? Hmm… that is indeed a solution.” Yu Wenhua Ji nodded while stroking his chin.
“Then…”
“I shall go take a look right now.”
Yu Wenhua Ji rubbed his palms together and stood up. He walked toward the National Treasury, his heart racing with excitement.
‘This is… the National Treasury of the Kingdom of Dasi!’
‘The first great nation of Shenzhou, a world-renowned treasury accumulated over thousands of years!’
Although Emperor Jing sold many items a while ago to build the Celestial Monitoring Instrument, he only sold low-grade treasures. Emperor Jing would never have been willing to sell the truly rare treasures of the world.
And all those treasures have now fallen into my hands… ‘This is fate!’
At that thought, Yu Wenhua Ji laughed heartily.
The National Treasury was hidden in a basement in the back mountain of the Royal Palace, guarded by heavy troops.
Yu Wenhua Ji walked down the steps toward the basement door. Looking at the magnificent Emerald Jade Gate, he couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement.
“Open the door!” Yu Wenhua Ji shouted.
The guards on both sides didn’t dare to delay. They quickly placed their palms on the restriction in the lower groove of the stone gate.
The glow of runes flashed, and the heavy Emerald Jade Gate rumbled open.
A ray of sunlight passed through the gap of the Emerald Jade Gate and shone into the National Treasury, bringing a hint of light to the gloom and revealing a vast and grand space inside.
The disturbed air kicked up a cloud of dust. Yu Wenhua Ji looked at the empty Great Hall at the entrance with satisfaction and praised, “This design of blending the virtual and the real is not bad. At first glance, it looks empty, as if there is nothing at all, making those thieves think this is a fake treasury… But who would know that this is actually the real treasury, and the treasures are all hidden in the secret room on the next floor?”
The expressions of the two guards on either side became strange.
One of the guards whispered a reminder, “Um… Grand Chancellor… there is no secret room on a lower floor here…”
Yu Wenhua Ji felt as if he might have just suffered a hallucination.
“What did you say?”
The guard swallowed hard. “The… the National Treasury only has this one floor. There is no lower level.”
This time, Yu Wenhua Ji heard him clearly.
However, he gave a bright smile and said, “Alright, stop joking. I know you are dedicated to your duties and will remain vigilant toward anyone other than the Emperor, refusing to tell the truth… However, you likely know my relationship with the current Emperor.”
“This is not a matter of the Grand Chancellor’s identity…” The guard’s face was full of conflict. “There really is no lower floor. This is the real treasury, the one and only floor of the National Treasury.”
Yu Wenhua Ji’s expression stiffened.
The situation was completely different from what he had expected. He began to tremble and asked in a cold voice, “Then… where are the things inside?”
“They’ve been gone for a long time!” the guard replied. “Did you not know?”
“When did they disappear?” At this moment, Yu Wenhua Ji only wanted to kill someone. “Who took them? Emperor Jing?”
“No, it was His Majesty,” the guard said as he pulled out a note and handed it to Yu Wenhua Ji. “There is a withdrawal record here. Please take a look, Grand Chancellor.”
Yu Wenhua Ji took the record with trembling hands.
[User: Prince Hao of Qin, Prince Hao of Qin, Prince Hao of Qin…]
A dense row of Prince Hao of Qin’s names followed. Clearly, everything here had been taken by the current Emperor, Prince Hao of Qin.
However, items in the National Treasury could not be taken without a reason.
Thus, behind the withdrawal records, Yu Wenhua Ji saw the reason Prince Hao of Qin had given for taking the items.
[Reason: On a mission to pick up girls!]
Yu Wenhua Ji’s vision went dark, and he nearly fainted on the spot from anger.
He seemed to suddenly understand the cause and effect of everything.
‘So… why on earth did I tell Prince Hao of Qin to go and win that woman’s heart!’
‘For an infatuated fool, a woman’s heart is a bottomless pit!’
He wanted to cry but had no tears.
What irritated him even more was that all of this was done under his own instructions; he was the instigator…
If he hadn’t coveted Nan Xue’s beauty, he wouldn’t have ended up in this situation. He had truly brought this upon himself!
“A calamity!” Yu Wenhua Ji sighed toward the heavens.
“She really is a calamity!”
“Even Daji was nothing more than this!”
“No, I cannot just let her drain the National Treasury like this,” Yu Wenhua Ji said with a distressed expression, clutching his chest in pain.
He returned to his Chancellor’s Mansion and racked his brain for a solution.
Just as Prince Hao of Qin could not turn against him, Yu Wenhua Ji could not turn against Prince Hao of Qin either, as the latter was the nominal Emperor.
An Emperor was, after all, an Emperor. It was not the place of a subject to dictate his actions — at least nominally. He could not openly break ties with Prince Hao of Qin, as that would give other enemies an opportunity to strike.
“I must speed up the progress,” Yu Wenhua Ji muttered to himself in a low voice.
‘If I continue to let Prince Hao of Qin woo that woman, who knows what other ridiculous things he will do — therefore, I must personally take action to light this fire and make the feelings between Prince Hao of Qin and that woman heat up rapidly!’
‘Although this means I might not get the chance to take that woman’s virginity… for the sake of the Great Industrial Era, some small sacrifices are destined to be made.’
‘It is just a thin membrane. Once the Great Industrial Era is successful and I have completely seized control of the court’s power, I will kill Prince Hao of Qin, take possession of that woman’s body, and proclaim myself Emperor. At that time, taking possession of that woman’s body will be no different!’
Thinking of this, Yu Wenhua Ji laughed sinisterly — ‘Yes, the current task is to light this fire and make Nan Xue completely devoted to Prince Hao of Qin, making her fall in love with him.’
‘In that way, in order to protect Prince Hao of Qin and ensure the stability of his reign so he doesn’t bear the reputation of a foolish monarch, she will return the gifts he gave her… At that time, I will strike, kill Prince Hao of Qin, and proclaim myself Emperor!’
With a plan in mind, Yu Wenhua Ji called for his aide and asked, “Is there any medicine that can make a person lose control of themselves?”
The aide was stunned for a moment and asked in a whisper, “Which kind are you referring to, my Lord…?”
“The kind where you will die if you do not have sex.”
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