This son-in-law is wicked in a good way!

Upon hearing this, Yang Tai and Zhang Xiaoru, who were standing nearby, shook their heads simultaneously.

There is no solution to this situation; otherwise, the Great Wu Dynasty would not have been constantly harassed by the Northern Mang since its founding.

Zhang Ping'an laughed heartily: "What's so difficult about that?"

"What?!"

The four women, including the Empress, stared at him in astonishment.

The Empress exclaimed excitedly, "Young Master Li, if you can truly resolve this matter, it will be a blessing for our Great Wu Dynasty and for all the people under heaven!"

Zhang Ping'an waved his hand: "Brother Chu, you flatter me. The reason why this problem has troubled the Great Wu Dynasty for a hundred years is because the Great Wu Dynasty's strategy against the Northern Mang was wrong from the very beginning."

"Oh? Where did I go wrong?" The Empress asked, her curiosity piqued.

Zhang Ping'an said, "The Northern Barbarians are a nomadic tribe with no fixed abode. With their cattle and horses multiplying and their productivity exceeding their capacity, they need to consume their resources externally."

"And war is the best way to divert internal conflicts."

"If a natural disaster occurs and the number of cattle and horses decreases, the Northern Barbarians will face a food crisis and will have no choice but to plunder my Great Wu."

"This is the fundamental reason why the Northern Barbarians continuously harass the borders of the Great Wu."

The Empress and the two great scholars looked deep in thought.

Although they were hearing some of the novel terms Zhang Ping'an used for the first time, they could all understand their meaning.

"In other words, regardless of whether Northern Mang is rich or poor, it will launch a war against Great Wu."

"Otherwise, the Northern Mang regime will face a crisis."

The Empress stared at Zhang Ping'an with bright, piercing eyes, as if she had discovered some incredible secret.

"That's right." Zhang Ping'an nodded.

"Therefore, the best way to stop the Northern Barbarians from harassing our Great Wu is not war, but trade."

"Designate border outposts, open trade markets, and exchange scarce goods such as grain, salt, tea, and silk from the Northern Barbarians for their cattle, sheep, and horses to resolve their internal conflicts."

"In this way, the Northern Barbarians naturally lost the motivation to wage war."

"And my Great Wu can also acquire scarce warhorse resources through trade."

Mo Yu suddenly snorted coldly: "Nonsense!"

"This isn't a solution; it's clearly aiding the enemy!"

"If what you say is true, opening up trade will help Northern Mang resolve its internal conflicts. At that time, all the tribes in Northern Mang will be more united than ever before and become stronger and stronger."

"At that time, they will surely become a major threat to our Great Wu!"

The Empress and the two great scholars nodded.

"Xiaoyu's concerns are reasonable. Young Master Li, this method is good, but it carries the risk of raising a tiger that will eventually become a threat!" The Empress shook her head, somewhat disappointed in Zhang Ping'an.

Zhang Ping'an suddenly laughed and slapped Mo Yu on the butt.

"You little pageboy, you do have some knowledge."

puff!

Yang Tai and Zhang Xiaoru both spat out another mouthful of wine.

Cough cough... Sorry, I drank too much!

"You...I'll kill you..." Mo Yu was caught off guard by Zhang Ping'an's sudden attack, feeling both ashamed and angry, her face flushed red.

He drew his long sword, wishing he could pierce Zhang Ping'an through with a single blow.

Zhang Ping'an was startled: "We're all men, is it really necessary to get so angry?"

The Empress quickly glared at her, and Mo Yu finally gave up, gritting her teeth as she returned to the Empress's side, trying to stay as far away from Zhang Ping'an as possible.

However, the young lady Mo, who had finally calmed down, almost lost her temper again because of Zhang Ping'an's next words.

"But Brother Chu, your page's buttocks are rather bouncy, you wouldn't happen to be a homosexual, would you?"

After speaking, Zhang Ping'an gave the Empress a strange look.

puff!

Yang Tai and Zhang Xiaoru both sprayed alcohol again.

Cough cough... Sorry, I choked again!

The Empress's lips twitched violently, trying her best to appear calm.

"Young Master Li is too kind. I have no such inclination."

"Let's continue with our previous topic!"

Zhang Ping'an nodded, glanced at Mo Yu, and felt that this pageboy was a bit effeminate.

Mo Yu's gaze seemed to want to tear a piece of flesh from Zhang Ping'an.

"Brother Chu, the question your page asked earlier is actually the second step I wanted to discuss."

"Trade is only the first step, but also the most crucial one, as it directly affects whether the second step can be implemented."

The Empress's curiosity was piqued again, and even Mo Yu temporarily forgot her earlier unpleasantness and listened intently.

Needless to say, the two great scholars were also eager to know how Zhang Ping'an would solve the problem of raising a tiger that would become a threat.

Zhang Ping'an continued, "I call this second step economic warfare."

"What is economic warfare?" The Empress was completely confused. She recognized the three individual words, but she didn't understand them when they were put together.

Zhang Ping'an thought for a moment: "It can be understood as a contest of national strength between two countries."

"Oh, so this is what economic warfare is." The group realized.

"Once we establish trade relations with Northern Mang, the Great Wu Dynasty, with its national strength, will inevitably become the dominant party in the market."

"At that time, we can buy sheep at a high price. When the Northern Barbarians see that the price of sheep is comparable to that of cattle and horses, they will naturally start raising sheep on a large scale."

"If there are too many sheep, there will naturally be fewer cattle and horses. Moreover, without war, the Northern Barbarians' most powerful cavalry will become useless."

"What will happen at this time?"

The Empress's eyes lit up, and she was the first to answer: "The entire population of Northern Mang will abandon cattle and horses and raise sheep instead."

"Even the orders of the Northern Mang royal court could not stop this situation. Over time, only one in ten Northern Mang cavalry remained."

Zhang Ping'an nodded: "Brother Chu is very talented, he understands things very quickly."

clap clap clap!

Yang Tai suddenly started clapping.

"What a brilliant economic warfare tactic!"

"Without shedding blood, they've resolved the most pressing problem for our Great Wu Dynasty. Brilliant, truly brilliant!"

"This one strategy is worth ten thousand soldiers!"

Having studied military strategy his entire life, Yang Tai was surprised to learn for the first time that military strategy could be used in this way.

Zhang Xiaoru also praised him highly: "Young Master Li is truly talented; I admire him greatly!"

Zhang Ping'an pressed his hands down lightly and said with a modest smile, "Actually, there is a third step in this plan."

"What?!"

"This ingenious plan even has a third step!"

They were all taken aback, their eyes fixed intently on Zhang Ping'an.

Zhang Ping'an said, "Once the Northern Mang cavalry no longer exist, the entire Northern Mang will be nothing but sheep. What would happen if our Great Wu suddenly stopped collecting sheep at that time?"

hiss!

No one present was a fool.

They could already foresee that terrifying scene.

The Empress murmured to herself, "At that time, the entire Northern Mang will be plunged into disaster, and the people will live in constant fear."

"Even if we wanted to start another war, it would be too late."

"The lifeline of Northern Mang is entirely in the hands of my Great Wu. If my Great Wu wants him to die, he must die; if I want him to live, he can live."

Zhang Ping'an laughed and said, "Actually, there's an even more ruthless step hidden in this plan."

"This is the real plan to wipe out the Northern Barbarians."

The Empress was shocked: "Which step?"

Zhang Ping'an suddenly asked with a smile, "Brother Chu, have you ever raised sheep?"

The empress was taken aback by the question and shook her head: "I have never raised one."

Zhang Ping'an then looked at the two great scholars, who also shook their heads repeatedly.

At this moment, Mo Yu suddenly thought of something, her face turned pale, and her whole body trembled.

"Sheep are different from cattle and horses. When sheep eat grass, they pull it up by the roots, while cattle and horses mostly only eat the top half."

"If the number of sheep becomes too large, they will inevitably destroy the fertile grasslands of the Northern Wilderness."

"At that time, there will be no green land left in the entire Northern Wilderness."