The Prodigal Son

"No!"

Qin Yu's smile vanished instantly. "Your Majesty, even if you appoint me as the acting Minister of War, the court officials will not agree! What merit or ability do I possess to be appointed as the acting Minister of War?"

What are you thinking about?

Minister of War?

How old am I?

With the war against Yan imminent, the Ministry of War must be incredibly busy right now.

He will temporarily serve as Minister of War!

This isn't asking me to become an official; it's asking me to be a beast of burden!

If I take on this job, I'll be so busy that I won't have time to live a decadent life.

Instead of flirting with the Empress he's coveted for so long, why bother becoming the Minister of War?

Is being the Empress's only man any more desirable than being the Minister of War?

"For your merits alone!"

Zhao Luan resumed her imperial demeanor, saying, "If any minister in the court has any objections, as long as he has the merit you have, I will immediately appoint him as the acting Minister of War, and I can even remove the word 'acting'!"

Based on Qin Yu's merits, let alone the position of Minister of War, he should be granted the title of a prince of a different surname!

If anyone has a problem with this, keep it to yourself!

"This matter cannot be determined by merit."

Qin Yu stood up. "I know you want to attack Yan, but I'm really not suitable to temporarily serve as Minister of War! First, I lack the qualifications! Second, my energy shouldn't be wasted on dealing with the minutiae of the Ministry of War!"

Zhao Luan's face fell, and she said irritably, "So you think your energy is only meant to be spent on women?"

That bastard!

Can't you think about anything other than relationships between men and women?

"Your Majesty, this is your narrow-mindedness."

Qin Yu shook his head solemnly, "What I should do, I will certainly do well!"

"His Majesty's decision to temporarily appoint me as Minister of War is solely for the purpose of launching a campaign against Yan!"

"To be honest, Your Majesty, I was thinking about the campaign against Yan all last night in the Imperial Study!"

"I now have a general idea, but it still needs further refinement!"

"I would do the same thing even if I were temporarily replacing the Minister of War, so why should I incur the dissatisfaction of the court officials?"

"Furthermore, if Your Majesty wishes to make me a loyal subject, then you absolutely cannot allow me to go..."

"etc!"

Zhao Luan abruptly stopped Qin Yu: "When did I ever say I wanted you to be a loyal subject?"

Faced with Zhao Luan's question, Qin Yu couldn't help but chuckle: "Your Majesty sent me to reorganize the salt administration, isn't that just to make me a lone minister?"

"I……"

Zhao Luan's pretty face stiffened. She grabbed Qin Yu's ear and angrily scolded, "Are you an idiot? Given our situation, do you think I'm afraid of you rebelling? Do I need to make you a loyal subject?"

"what?"

Qin Yu was stunned.

That's right!

He thought that way before because he was unaware of the bond between himself and Zhao Luan.

Since they have this bond, it seems there's really no need for me to be a lone minister.

Qin Yu pondered silently for a moment, then asked with a puzzled look, "Then why does Your Majesty insist that I be in charge of reorganizing the salt administration?"

"He's not smart when he should be, and he's not stupid when he should be!"

Zhao Luan tugged hard at Qin Yu's ear before letting go. "Besides the fact that I'm a loyal subject, haven't you considered any other reasons?"

"I've thought about it, but not comprehensively!"

As Qin Yu spoke, he told Zhao Luan everything he had discussed with Song Zhuo.

However, he didn't betray Song Zhuo; he only said that those were his own ideas and that he asked Song Zhuo to help him analyze them.

"Later, Chancellor Song encouraged me to think about it more deeply, saying that once I understood it, I would understand what politics truly meant..."

Qin Yu smiled sheepishly, "So, I believe the deeper meaning is that I should be a solitary subject..."

After understanding the cause and effect, Zhao Luan couldn't help but shake her head and smile.

He's definitely not cut out for politics!

That's all he could think of, things like a loyal minister!

"I trusted you so much, and all you ever think about is this kind of nonsense!"

Zhao Luan glared at Qin Yu with displeasure, "The deeper issues are nothing more than four points..."

First, she wanted to use Qin Yu's reform of the salt administration to put pressure on Yu Jing, forcing him to spend money and resources to further exploit the people of Min in order to complete the task as soon as possible, thereby making the people of Min resent Yu Jing, the crown prince.

In this way, when she takes action to eliminate Yu Jing in the future, the people of Min will only applaud and cheer!

Secondly, Qin Yu's crackdown on the salt administration will inevitably lead to the downfall of a large number of officials; some will be executed, and others will be spared!

The remaining officials were transferred to Min, and officials from Min were then transferred to the Liangjiang region and the Hai and Yuan prefectures, breaking the local unity and also preparing in advance for the future execution of a group of corrupt officials to win over the hearts of the people in Min.

Third, turn Min into a major salt-producing area of ​​Daning, so that the people of Min can rely on the salt industry for their livelihood. The more dependent they are on the salt industry, the more stable Min will be, and the easier it will be for Daning to govern Min!

Of course, this is all predicated on the salt routes being controlled by salt merchants in Daning!

Thus, Daning could stop introducing Min salt at any time, cutting off the livelihoods of many people.

Before the imperial court could even speak, those who depended on the salt industry for their livelihood were already objecting!

Fourth, she wanted to give Qin Yu the opportunity to grow bigger!

"Let me...become the most powerful?"

Qin Yu was taken aback. "What were you thinking?"

"Haven't you figured out yet, you pig-brain?"

Zhao Luan glared at him angrily, "You have a grudge against the Shi family, and your reform of the salt administration will inevitably infringe upon the Shi family's interests!"

"If someone has to step down, someone else has to step up! Wouldn't it be a good way to limit the historians by assigning some of your own people to this position?"

"In this way, your people, the historians' people, and the officials transferred from Min can both check and balance each other locally, and supervise each other!"

"And as long as I control you, I can control the people under your command!"

"When necessary, you and your men will be the sharpest blade in my hand!"

However, now that the historians have been completely eradicated by Qin Yu, this is meaningless.

After hearing Zhao Luan's words, Qin Yu was somewhat lost in thought.

This is what Song Zhuo meant by something even darker!

Indeed, if you think about these things, you can understand what politics is.

People who play politics have truly dirty hearts!

Seeing Qin Yu lost in thought, Zhao Luan couldn't help but glance at him sideways. "What's wrong? Are you scared? Do you think I'm too cruel?"

Qin Yu gently shook his head and slowly asked, "So, Your Majesty has actually long harbored the idea of ​​eliminating the Shi family? And when necessary, I will take action to eliminate the Shi family?"

"More or less!"

Zhao Luan nodded slightly. "The Shi family is protected by Emperor Gao's dying instructions, so as long as they don't go too far, I can't touch them! But you can touch them!"

Qin Yu curled his lip, "So, I'm just acting as His Majesty's henchman!"

Not entirely.

Zhao Luan did not deny it, "You and your people are just there to cover for us! It would be even better if we could use the officials of Min to get rid of the Shi family!"

Qin Yu chuckled and shook his head, sighing, "When it comes to playing these political games, I'm no match for you people."

Are you angry?

Zhao Luan brought her cheek slightly closer, staring at him with a playful expression.

"right!"

Qin Yu nodded slightly, "Your Majesty, I am very unhappy right now and desperately need to appease you!"

Hum?

What about a three-year-old child?

Which official in the imperial court isn't a knife in the emperor's hand?

Do I have to coax you?

I'm already being lenient by not making you coax me!

Zhao Luan scoffed inwardly, then raised her hand to lift Qin Yu's chin, raising an eyebrow and smiling, "My little male consort, how do you want me to coax you? Like this?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Zhao Luan kissed Qin Yu's lips again.

After a passionate kiss, Zhao Luan pushed Qin Yu away, glaring at him coldly. "You better behave yourself. If you're in a good mood in private, I might let you off the hook! But if you dare to be disrespectful to me in public, I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

Qin Yu's face darkened. "Your Majesty, this is practically taking advantage of me and then denying it!"

Zhao Luan raised an eyebrow. "So what if I take advantage of you and then deny it? A male concubine dares to be dissatisfied with me?"

What's wrong?

Qin Yu pulled Zhao Luan into his arms, responding to her with his actions.

Snapped!

Qin Yu's slap landed on Zhao Luan's buttocks...