The Prodigal Son

The capital of the Yan state was Huyao.

Tiger Hill has an excellent geographical location.

It is surrounded by Qiyun Mountain to the north and east, and the Panjiang River, which originates from Yunpan Mountain, to the west.

To its southwest lies Huguan, a formidable pass of the Yan state second only to Panshan Pass.

To capture Huyao, we either need to seize the Panjiang Bridge connecting Yunzhou and Huyao, or we need to capture Huguan Pass.

Because of the negotiations between Yan Li and Qin Yu, 20,000 troops were transferred from Huguan, which originally had 40,000 troops stationed there, to enter Yunzhou via the Panjiang Bridge, and then enter Jizhou via Yunzhou.

At the same time, Yunzhou also mobilized 20,000 troops.

In addition, Yuanzhou and Muzhou each transferred 10,000 troops to Jizhou.

With 60,000 troops, the commotion was already quite significant, and it was considered a great show of respect to Ningguo.

Yan Li has been back from Changping for three days.

Feng Shu's concerns did not come true.

The Yan emperor did not suspect him because of his "winning people's hearts" in Changping.

In the afternoon, just after Yan Li finished dealing with his official duties, the Yan Emperor sent someone to summon him.

In the imperial study, the Yan Emperor sat there expressionless.

The Emperor of Yan is fifty-three years old this year, and his hair has turned white.

The Yan Emperor was also a martial artist; although not exceptionally skilled, he was still a top-tier master.

However, Emperor Yan has been busy with state affairs in recent years and has rarely practiced martial arts.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty."

Yan Li bowed respectfully.

Emperor Yan nodded slightly, pulled out a memorial from a pile of documents, and handed it to Yan Li. "Take a look!"

Yan Li hurriedly and respectfully accepted the memorial.

Upon seeing the contents of the memorial, Yanli's heart sank.

Some people even accused him of trying to win people's hearts and plotting something sinister!

"Is there anything you'd like to say?"

The Yan Emperor raised his eyes and stared intently at his son.

Yan Li remained unfazed, bowed, and said, "Your subject has absolutely no such intention! Please, Your Majesty, understand!"

"I don't want to hear these words!"

The Emperor of Yan gently shook his head. "What do you think should be done with this person?"

Yan Li was somewhat unsure of Emperor Yan's true thoughts, so he tentatively said, "Your Majesty, I don't know if this person is overreacting or if he is being instructed by someone to harbor malicious intentions. It's not easy to deal with him for the time being."

Upon hearing this, the Yan Emperor was immediately disappointed. "Don't you dare to just say kill him? What, do you yourself think I would suspect you because of something like this?"

"No, no! Your Majesty knows that you have high hopes for me."

Yan Li quickly shook his head in denial, explaining, "If this person was merely overreacting, there's indeed no need to kill him! But if he was acting under orders and harbors malicious intentions, then he should be killed!"

Although Yan Li's explanation was perfectly plausible, Emperor Yan knew the truth in his heart.

He's unsure of his own thoughts and is deliberately testing the waters.

If he could even see this, then all those years as emperor would have been for nothing.

"I am already fifty-three years old."

The Emperor of Yan sighed softly, "Every time the crown prince is changed, it's a calamity for the court! I hope you can be a good crown prince; I really don't want to change the crown prince again!"

"Thank you, Father!"

Yan Li bowed deeply, "Your subject has absolutely no intention of usurping the throne! This journey has left me with many reflections!"

"Compared to Da Ning and Bei Qi, the national strength of my Great Yan is still far inferior!"

"Your Majesty understands that you have devoted yourself to this cause all these years, just to help our dynasty survive between Bei Qi and Da Ning."

"Your subject only hopes to listen to your father's teachings, share your burdens, and relieve your father of such worries."

Yan Li spoke with sincerity, and the Emperor Yan's expression eased slightly upon hearing it.

Yes!

How difficult it must have been to survive between Beiqi and Daning!

One wrong step could lead to the downfall of a nation.

After a moment of silent reflection, the Yan Emperor asked again, "Do you know why I chose you to be the Crown Prince?"

"Father hopes that I will make the Great Yan truly strong and prosperous in the future!"

Yan Li answered the Emperor Yan's question, which was tantamount to not answering at all.

"To be honest, you're inferior to your older brother in many ways!"

Emperor Yan slightly raised his eyes, "But your elder brother is deeply tainted by political maneuvering and is far too ruthless! If he ascends the throne, the people of Great Yan will likely have no good days! You have more compassion than your elder brother, and are willing to humble yourself and do things for the country and its people..."

Yan Li listened quietly as the Yan Emperor spoke to him from the bottom of his heart.

But he had no way of knowing whether the Emperor of Yan was telling the truth or not.

Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger!

Although he was the crown prince, he was still a subject in front of his father, the emperor.

It's always good to be cautious in everything you do.

The Emperor of Yan spoke at length to Yan Li in the manner of an elderly father, then waved his hand wearily, "Alright, I won't say any more! You handle this person as you see fit!"

"yes!"

Yan Li accepted the order, "Your subject has another matter to ask Your Majesty."

"Speak!"

The Emperor of Yan spoke calmly.

Yan Li said with great concern, "Recently, the price of pepper in our dynasty has skyrocketed. Gentry and common people are all making it their top priority to hoard pepper. I am worried that if this continues, our dynasty's silver will be emptied by Da Ning..."

He sensed that something was very wrong!

Previously, when they were in Shangxing, the price of ordinary pepper was only eight or nine taels of silver per catty.

But when he passed through Huzhou on his way back, the price of ordinary pepper had skyrocketed to 26 taels per catty!

Today, the price has risen to thirty-four taels of silver per catty!

This is absolutely outrageous!

He now wants to drive down the price of pepper and stop the nationwide pepper hoarding frenzy.

But he learned that many of the ministers' relatives, and even themselves, were hoarding pepper!

He feared that if he forced down the price of pepper, unrest would break out.

Therefore, he is currently undecided.

Hearing Yan Li's words, Emperor Yan lowered his head and pondered.

After a moment of silence, the Yan Emperor slowly said, "This price is indeed a bit outrageous, but we certainly can't force it down! Alright, you don't need to worry about this matter; I will handle it myself!"

Yanli was puzzled and tentatively asked, "Father, how do you intend to handle this? Could you please advise me?"

"You think about it yourself first!"

The Emperor of Yan smiled, "You still need to train more! Alright, you may leave!"

"Yes! Your subject takes his leave!"

Filled with doubt, Yan Li bowed and took his leave.

After he left the imperial study, the Yan Emperor immediately summoned his close attendant eunuch, Wei Jin, and asked, "How much has the price of pepper risen?"

Wei Jin bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, the price has risen to thirty-four taels per catty today! The price of top-grade pepper has risen to sixty-two taels per catty!"

Upon hearing Wei Jin's words, the Yan Emperor couldn't help but gasp, silently calculating in his mind.

Ten thousand shi of ordinary pepper, wouldn't that be tens of millions of taels of silver?

Of the two thousand bushels of pepper he hoarded, several hundred bushels were of the highest quality!

If we make a move now, wouldn't we be able to sell it for tens of millions of taels of silver?

Despite being the ruler of a country, he has lived a very frugal life over the years in order to support his hundreds of thousands of troops.

The imperial treasury often couldn't even come up with 100,000 taels of silver, which was incredibly frustrating!

Wei Jin sensed the Emperor's interest and asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, should we sell the pepper in the storeroom?"

The Emperor of Yan was about to agree, but he stopped himself from speaking.

The Yan Emperor suppressed his excitement, "Let's wait and see!"

He was terrified of being poor!

It's a rare opportunity to earn so much money. If we wait a little longer, we can earn even more!

With silver, one can buy warhorses, food, and forge armor...