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It is an eternal truth that one should be soft-hearted when he eats someone's food and be short-handed when he receives someone's gift.

Jiang Shaohua presented 200,000 dan of military rations to the border troops, and was also responsible for transporting and delivering the rations. With such generosity and loyalty, even the officials who had been dissatisfied with the Nanyang Princess' inspection of the six ministries were silenced. Prime Minister Wang, the head of all officials, bowed to Jiang Shaohua in front of all the officials and said, "On behalf of the 100,000 border troops, I thank the Princess."

During this period of time, the relationship between Jiang Shaohua and Prime Minister Wang has been greatly eased. Upon hearing this, Jiang Shaohua smiled and said, "Prime Minister Wang, please get up quickly. Nanyang County has nothing else but abundant grain. This autumn harvest is very good, and there is some surplus grain. It is only natural to offer it to the court."

Nanyang County was not only rich in food, but also in military strength, iron mines, horse farms, and a steady influx of refugees to enrich the population. The reputation of the Pearl of the North had long been spread throughout Daliang, and all the officials in the court had heard of it.

Of course, the princess was indeed open-minded. If you were in my shoes, even if there was plenty of food, I wouldn't necessarily be willing to donate so much as military rations.

Zhang Shangshu, Dai Shangshu and others speculated in their hearts. No matter what, as far as this matter is concerned, the court must owe the favor of Princess Nanyang.

After the court was dismissed, Emperor Taihe kept Jiang Shaohua to talk: "Cousin Shaohua, you generously donated money to help me out of my urgent need. Thank you very much, cousin."

Jiang Shaohua smiled slightly: "My cousin, you are too polite. My last name is Jiang, and I am the Princess of Jiang. Everything I have comes from the grace and support of my cousin. It doesn't matter if I donate some military rations."

People are all made of flesh, and the young Emperor Taihe is especially soft-hearted. These days, Jiang Shaohua has been trying his best to stabilize the court, inspect the six ministries, and suppress the ministers. He has no selfish motives and is loyal. Emperor Taihe has seen it all, so how could he not be moved?

He stared at Jiang Shaohua deeply: "Between brothers and sisters, some polite words really don't need to be said. Anyway, I know everything you have done. Cousin Shaohua, as long as I am here, no one will dare to touch your Nanyang County. I guarantee that you will be honored and wealthy for the rest of your life."

Jiang Shaohua immediately bowed and thanked the emperor for his grace. His gratitude was beyond words, but his heart was as calm as ice.

Everything she wants must be under her own control and she cannot rely on others.

What others can give you, they can take back. She no longer wants to let anyone manipulate her fate.

Jiang Shaohua still had to continue inspecting the Ministry of Revenue, so he soon took his leave. Emperor Taihe ordered Wang Sheren to see him off. Wang Jin silently escorted Jiang Shaohua out of the palace, stopped at the palace gate, and whispered: "The princess donated so much military rations, Nanyang County will not be short of food because of this!"

The concern in Wang Jin's words was clearly visible.

Jiang Shaohua said calmly, "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Wang. The Earl of Changning has been cultivating and improving grain varieties. In the past two years, many wastelands have been reclaimed in the fourteen counties of Nanyang. The grain is enough for the people to eat for two or three years."

Wang Jin couldn't help but admire: "The princess has the help of the Earl of Changning, which is like a tiger with wings."

Yes! Nanyang County had to support 200,000 people, the Nanyang Army, and expand its power by selling grain. All of these were inseparable from sufficient and high-quality grain. It can be said that half of them were due to Cui Du.

Speaking of Cui Du, Jiang Shaohua's slightly cold face softened a lot, and a smile appeared in his eyes: "Wang Sheren is right, Nanyang County is what it is today, thanks to the Earl of Changning."

"This princess and the Earl of Changning have already been engaged, and are engaged." Wang Jin suppressed the bitterness in his heart and said with a smile: "The affection and loyalty of the Earl of Changning to the princess are obvious to all. I wish the princess and the Earl of Changning to live happily together forever."

Wang Jin was a gentleman, always praising Cui Du in public and behind people's backs, and never belittling his rival. In this respect, he was much better than Zheng Chen.

Jiang Shaohua smiled, said goodbye gently, and turned away.

Wang Jin watched her go away from where he was, and then returned to the Zhaohe Palace. The Emperor Taihe had already taken a nap after drinking some medicine, and several Zhongshu Sheren gathered in the duty room, sorting out documents and chatting casually.

Li Boyuan suddenly sighed, "The princess is really generous." "Isn't it?" Jiang Yi also sighed, "If it were me, I would give 30,000 to 50,000 dan of military rations to win a good reputation. 200,000 dan of grain, that's all I have."

This courage is truly admirable.

Zheng Chen's eyes flashed, and he said calmly: "From this, it can be seen that Nanyang County has a rich family background. Two hundred thousand dan of military rations is indeed a large number, but it did not hurt Nanyang County."

Wang Jin glanced at Zheng Chen who was speaking arrogantly: "Mr. Zheng is so arrogant, why don't you follow the example of the princess and ask the Zheng family to donate some military rations."

Zheng Chen sneered and shot back: "The Wang family is the most prestigious family in Daliang. Their influence covers the entire Jiangnan region. They are wealthy and powerful. Our Zheng family is far inferior to them. Even if we want to donate military rations, we have to come first after the Wang family."

Mentioning Jiangnan at this time is naturally a satire on Wang Yi who made a lot of money in Jiangnan, but was backstabbed by the Jiangnan officials and ruined his official career.

Wang Jin was not someone to be trifled with, and he immediately said, "Minister Zheng has worked hard in the Ministry of War, and I think he has reaped great rewards. He shouldn't be unable to donate even some food."

Zheng Chen frowned, anger burning in his eyes.

Li Boyuan immediately tried to smooth things over: "Today, many memorials were submitted to the court. Let's go through them first, and then pick out the important ones to present to the emperor. Come on, come on, get busy."

Wang Jin and Zheng Chen looked at each other and snorted coldly.

……

After Emperor Taihe woke up from his nap, he read memorials for half an hour, and then Empress Dowager Li came.

Queen Mother Li held her son's hand and asked about his well-being, then whispered, "I heard that the border troops are preparing for war, and Jiang Shaohua donated 200,000 dan of military rations?"

Emperor Taihe hummed, "Cousin Shaohua is concerned about the court and helps me with my worries."

Empress Dowager Li's eyes moved and she lowered her voice and said, "He asked for 200,000 dan of military rations. This shows how wealthy Nanyang County is."

Emperor Taihe frowned when he heard the voice sounded strange.

As expected, Empress Dowager Li continued in a low voice: "I think that if Nanyang County can be taken back by the imperial court, there will be an endless supply of food in the future..."

Emperor Taihe was so angry that he laughed: "Nanyang County was the fiefdom given to the King of Nanyang by my great grandfather. The King of Nanyang managed it for decades and passed it to my cousin. My cousin is better than me. Now Nanyang County is the pearl of the north and is well-known."

"However, no matter how good Nanyang County is, it is still the fiefdom of my cousin Shaohua. What is the purpose of my mother saying these meaningless words?"

"Could it be that someone has made some slanderous remarks in private, causing the Queen Mother to have some improper thoughts?"

Empress Dowager Li was a little embarrassed, and coughed and said, "No, I am just thinking about it privately. The emperor can issue an order to change Jiang Shaohua's fiefdom. He can choose a place in the south of the Yangtze River, or it can be closer to the capital, which can be reached in two or three days. This will also make it convenient for Jiang Shaohua to come to the capital at any time, right?" (End of this chapter)