The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 476 The Crown Prince is someone who never forgets anything.

Emperor Qianxi didn't actually have any major objections to the selection of the thirteenth prince.

No matter what, the thirteenth prince is still his own son!

He should at least have some respect for his father, right?

Besides, I had already said before that the Crown Prince would be in charge of the navy. It wouldn't be good to suddenly change my mind now, would it? Wouldn't that be contradicting myself?

So, after hesitating for a few seconds, he said to Shen Ye, "Your Highness, the thirteenth prince is indeed quite good, and it's time to let him get some experience."

"But the people he dealt with were all vicious pirates."

"Besides, he's still young, and he might not be mature and prudent enough in handling matters..."

At this point, Emperor Qianxi's eyes suddenly became serious:

"I think we should do this: First-class guard Zhe Luntai is loyal and has accompanied me on many military campaigns. He is also knowledgeable about military affairs. Let him be the thirteenth prince's deputy."

"how do you feel?"

As soon as Emperor Qianxi said this, Shen Ye knew what he meant.

Isn't this just trying to "mix sand" into their own name?

Shen Ye was not surprised at all by his father's thoughts.

After all, as an emperor, if a powerful military force isn't being watched over by his own people, he'd be worried. How could he sleep soundly?

Shen Ye said with a smile, "Father Emperor cares so much about the Thirteenth Prince, what can I say?"

But in his heart he was thinking about how the Thirteenth Prince was able to control the Xishan Sharp and Strong Camp so tightly back then, despite being a fallen prince.

Now that I'm in charge, if I can't even defeat a mere guard, I'd be incredibly stupid!

Moreover, with plenty of money, there are plenty of ways to turn this Zhe Luntai into one of our own!

The navy is still in its infancy and everything needs to be rebuilt. It is very necessary to use this position to stabilize Emperor Qianxi and put his mind at ease.

Emperor Qianxi was genuinely worried that Shen Ye wouldn't agree, since they had already made an agreement that he, Emperor Qianxi, would absolutely not interfere in matters concerning the navy.

Their sudden intervention is a breach of their promise.

If the crown prince raises an objection, he'll lose all face!
Upon hearing the Crown Prince's quick agreement, his mood immediately improved considerably, and he changed the subject:
"By the way, I heard from the Empress Dowager a few days ago that the Crown Princess will give birth in a few days. This is your legitimate son, so you must take good care of him."

"Are you alright? Spend more time with the Crown Princess."

Shen Ye quickly replied, "Father, don't worry, I've been keeping an eye on the Crown Princess!"

"There's just been so much going on these past few days, the inventory at Yuqing Bank, and the dividends from the fast track. My son has to take a look at many things personally."

"This will prevent some of the more audacious lackeys from stealing our money."

After saying that, he took another step closer and said, "Father, you have a considerable share in the fast track. I estimate that your dividends for the next six months should amount to four or five hundred thousand taels of silver."

"Would you like to deposit it in Yuqing Bank, or have it exchanged for silver dollars and delivered to you?"

When Emperor Qianxi heard that he could receive a dividend of four or five hundred thousand taels of silver, his eyes lit up!
He had suffered enough from being broke, and this time, sending troops to the snowy region had emptied his coffers.

I originally thought I would have to tighten my belt this Chinese New Year, but I never expected that the fast track would start distributing profits.

Deposit it into Yuqing Bank? He hesitated for a moment.

But what's the point of piling up so many silver dollars in the palace?
He then coughed lightly and said in a deep voice, "Just keep it in your Yuqing Bank. When the palace needs it, I will send someone to withdraw it."

Shen Ye laughed even harder: "Alright! But if Father Emperor takes too much, be sure to have someone give a heads-up to Yuqing Bank beforehand."

"To give them time to prepare."

Emperor Qianxi nodded, and just as he was about to say something more, Shen Ye took out a stack of colorful "papers" from his hand.

In the eyes of the Qianxi Emperor, this was just colorful paper.

Shen Ye took out a document and handed it to Emperor Qianxi, saying, "Father, please take a look at this."

When Emperor Qianxi took it and touched it, a strange feeling arose in his heart.

Because ordinary paper is soft and doesn't fold up when you hold it in your hand.

But this paper is not soft at all; in fact, it gives people a feeling of firmness.

He stared intently at the paper and saw a picture of a five-colored Qilin. The enormous Qilin was lifelike on the paper, and even its scales were clearly visible.

Emperor Qianxi felt that the painting of the qilin was incredibly detailed.

Moreover, the words "one hundred taels" were written in various languages ​​on this picture of a qilin.

He turned the paper over and saw a miniature version of Yuqing Palace on the back. The Yuqing Palace was drawn with incredible clarity, and even the characters on the plaque seemed to glow.

"what is this?"

Emperor Qianxi asked, puzzled.

"This is the latest 'Yuqing Peace Gold Note' launched by Yuqing Bank. One note is worth one hundred taels of silver. Father, you can use it to give as a reward, which is quite convenient."

"Whoever has this can exchange it for one hundred taels of silver at Yuqing Bank at any time."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Qianxi was taken aback.

He looked at the Yuqing Chengping gold banknotes for a few moments, hesitated, and said, "Aren't you afraid someone will counterfeit them for you? Your Yuqing Bank can't afford to pay for that!"

Shen Ye chuckled: "Father, we use special paper for the Yuqing Chengping Gold Notes." "Don't underestimate this piece of paper; without our exclusive formula, no one else can produce it."

"I have already arranged for several of the plants used here to be planted in designated areas, and I have also ordered that they not be planted in other places."

"Without the combination of these plants, this kind of paper simply cannot be made."

Upon hearing Shen Ye's words, Emperor Qianxi felt the texture of the Yuqing Chengping gold note and nodded slightly.

Shen Ye continued, "We've used quite a few methods to prevent counterfeiting."

"If you touch the neck of this Qilin, can you feel the texture?"

Emperor Qianxi reached out and touched the qilin's neck, and it did indeed give him the feeling of patterns. He couldn't help but ask, "How did you do that?"

"Father, this is also a kind of anti-counterfeiting technology."

"Also, we used a special oil film on the Qilin's eyes that changes color under sunlight..."

In one breath, Shen Ye listed more than a dozen anti-counterfeiting features of the Yuqing Chengping Gold Notes. In Emperor Qianxi's opinion, counterfeiting these items would be harder than climbing to heaven!

Emperor Qianxi listened with amazement and couldn't help but ask, "Crown Prince, will you tell anyone about these anti-counterfeiting marks?"

"If we don't tell you, how can the average person tell the difference between the real and the fake?"

"But if you tell them, aren't you afraid that others will fabricate the story?"

Shen Ye remained calm: "Father, Yuqing Bank will naturally announce these anti-counterfeiting features. Otherwise, how can ordinary people distinguish between genuine and fake products?"

"Of course, we will also leave some markings that only Yuqing Bank insiders know about, so that outsiders will not know."

Upon hearing Shen Ye's words, Emperor Qianxi nodded. The Crown Prince's abilities were truly beyond question!
Just as Emperor Qianxi was sighing, Shen Ye continued, "If someone can really make gold banknotes that are exactly the same as our real banknotes, then we can only accept it."

"I can only blame myself for not being as skilled as others!"

Emperor Qianxi smiled and said, "Your anti-counterfeiting measures are already very good; they should be very difficult to forge."

"However, we must be cautious. I will have the Ministry of Justice issue an order to exterminate the entire family of anyone found counterfeiting gold coins!"

"Those who report through relatives can be exempted from punishment."

Hearing Emperor Qianxi speak so sternly, Shen Ye waved his hand and said, "Father, exterminating nine generations is a bit too much. In fact, exterminating three generations would be enough."

"After all, if that were the case, many people would be killed for no reason, which would be a great injustice."

Emperor Qianxi nodded, touching the Yuqing Chengping gold note in his hand, feeling more and more that this thing would definitely be of great use in the future.

But he couldn't figure out exactly what it was for.

Just as he was pondering this, he heard Shen Ye say, "Father, do you think it's harder to forge these gold notes or my handwriting?"

Emperor Qianxi was speechless for a moment.

He never expected that his eldest son would be waiting for him here!

He said he wanted to make some money for himself to give as a reward, but that was just a pretext to prove that the poem wasn't actually written by him!

The Yuqing Chengping gold note is so difficult to counterfeit that I'm worried it might be copied.

How difficult is it to imitate the prince's handwriting?
He chuckled dryly twice: "Alright, alright, didn't I already say that the matter is over and done with? You don't need to worry about it too much."

As he spoke, he fiddled with the gold coins in his hand, seemingly lost in thought.

Seeing that things were going well, Shen Ye smiled and stood up, saying, "Father, I was just expressing my feelings for a moment."

"If there's nothing else, I'll also send some to the Empress Dowager, so she can easily give them away as gifts."

Watching the departing crown prince, Emperor Qianxi fiddled with the stack of gold notes and suddenly summoned Liang Jiugong.

"Liang Jiugong, you have done a good job these past few days. This is a Yuqing gold note that the Crown Prince gave to me. Here's one for you." As Emperor Qianxi spoke, he took out a gold note and handed it to Liang Jiugong.

When Liang Jiugong took the gold notes, he found them to be very exquisite. He quickly knelt down to thank Emperor Qianxi for his gratitude.

Emperor Qianxi said, "You said this piece of paper is worth one hundred taels of silver. Could someone forge it?"

Liang Jiugong felt his mouth getting dry, but he still honestly said, "Your Majesty, wealth is a powerful motivator... This servant thinks there must be some audacious people who want to counterfeit these gold notes."

"However, in my humble opinion, these gold notes should be difficult to counterfeit."

Emperor Qianxi smiled and said, "Indeed, it is not easy to imitate."

"Touch the neck of this Qilin..."

As the New Year approaches, the festive atmosphere in the capital city grows stronger. Carriages sent by governors and viceroys from all over the country to deliver New Year's gifts arrive in an endless stream, making the vast capital city incredibly lively.

There are three things that people talk about most:
The first thing was the edict of General Fubo. Although this edict had nothing to do with ordinary people, it caused a great deal of discussion.

Because General Fubo's decree was to recruit pirates.

Not only were the conditions excellent, but even after becoming a subordinate of General Fubo, one would receive very high treatment.

These conditions are so good, it's enviable!
As for the second matter, it was still the joint trial of the death of the Duke Yansheng by the three halls. The trial was held once and then left there, with no further developments.

Whispers filled the streets and alleys: "I heard this matter involves the Crown Prince, no wonder there's been no movement..."

As for the third item, that's the one that's been discussed the most...

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(End of this chapter)