You were asked to impersonate the King of Qin, not to become emperor!

"I already knew about this. Let them do whatever they want; there's no need to pay them any attention."

Chen Xuan disagreed. He was already aware of the Prince of Yan's scheme, which was to make him make a bigger commotion.

Han Duo'er looked solemn. The Prince of Yan had caused such a commotion, yet he remained calm about it?

However, if the salt problem is not resolved, it will undermine his power as regent.

Han Duo'er still felt reassured. She looked at Chen Xuan and said slowly, "Now the civil officials are all supporting the Prince of Yan. The Prince of Yan's power has surpassed that of the Prince of Jin. Your Highness must be wary."

These words undoubtedly struck a chord with Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan nodded slowly. "How could I not know that? But as long as my father is alive, as long as I don't give him any leverage, he can't do anything to me."

At this moment, Huo Yinjuan stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, the best approach right now is to secure your position as Crown Prince. If you can truly become Crown Prince, you will surpass the Prince of Yan!"

"Yinjuan's words are exactly what I was thinking. However, if I solve the salt problem this time, it will depend on whether Father will establish an heir." Chen Xuan said helplessly.

Emperor Jin, that old fox, never established an heir despite his previous struggles with Chen Heng.

This salt issue is a matter of national importance.

Chen Xuan knew that this game was very important. If he won, Emperor Jin would probably choose an heir.

Just as Chen Xuan was pondering, Emperor Jin's personal eunuch suddenly walked over slowly: "His Majesty has decreed that Prince Qin be summoned to the palace immediately to discuss state affairs."

As soon as the words were spoken, both Han Duo'er and Huo Yinjuan were taken aback.

During this period, the people of the Great Jin Dynasty suffered greatly due to the salt shortage.

Even in Sizhou, there have been instances where people are too weak to work in the fields due to a lack of salt.

It seems that Emperor Jin is truly enraged this time.

"Husband..." Wang Qingyi frowned and looked at Chen Xuan.

Chen Xuan gently stroked Wang Qingyi's cheek and said calmly, "It's a small matter, I can handle it."

Having said that, he left the palace and headed straight for the imperial palace.

Inside the Council Hall.

Civil and military officials gathered together.

Chen Yong, Zhang Xianzhao, and various vassal kings, along with a host of civil and military officials from the Great Jin Dynasty, were all waiting for the Prince of Qin to arrive so they could launch an attack against him.

Emperor Jin sat on the dragon throne, his face terribly grim.

Chen Yong secretly observed Emperor Jin's expression, a hint of smugness appearing in his eyes. He thought to himself, "Father has never been this angry. Let's see how you solve the salt problem this time."

They all knew that Chen Xuan was in charge of overseeing the country, and any explanation he gave would be futile if problems arose.

Because the Emperor of Jin wouldn't listen to his explanations, but rather watch how he solved the problem.

Therefore, the situation was very favorable to Chen Yong and Zhang Xianzhao.

Even the conservative Zhang Xianzhao believed that Chen Xuan would inevitably lose his important position as regent this time.

"Your subject pays respects to Your Majesty..."

Chen Xuan strode into the main hall and bowed to Emperor Jin.

The Jin Emperor's face showed displeasure, and he said coldly, "I appointed you as regent, but what kind of regent are you? Even Sili Province is experiencing a salt shortage. Do you know the seriousness of this matter?!"

Before Chen Xuan could speak, Chen Yong stepped forward and said, "Father, the salt shortage is extremely serious and has spread to the army. If this continues, I fear there will be a mutiny within the army!"

These words undoubtedly exacerbated Emperor Jin's anxiety.

The army is the foundation of a nation, and emperors fear military unrest the most.

"Your Majesty, I believe the King of Qin is not capable of overseeing the state. This matter is no child's play; if handled improperly, it could lead to serious consequences!"

Zhang Xianzhao stepped forward, adding fuel to the fire.

Immediately afterwards, various regional princes and military generals impeached Chen Xuan.

As a result, the civil and military officials who supported Chen Xuan dared not utter a single word.

After all, the King of Qin was the regent, and he was responsible for such a big problem.

"Father, I believe this matter is nothing to worry about, because I have already found a solution! As long as you give me your full support, I dare to guarantee that within a year, the price of refined salt in the Great Jin Dynasty will be as cheap as dirt!" Chen Xuan said confidently.

As soon as he finished speaking, the whole room erupted in uproar.

"King Qin, since ancient times, it has been believed that salt is as precious as gold. Even ordinary people and low-ranking officials eat coarse salt, and there is still a shortage. Yet you speak so arrogantly, are you insulting the intelligence of all the civil and military officials and His Majesty?" Chen Yong glanced coldly at Chen Xuan and retorted.

I thought Chen Xuan would shift the blame to the aristocratic families, but he has already taken countermeasures.

Now he has indeed seen Chen Xuan spouting nonsense, to the point that he feels contempt for Chen Xuan.

"Because I have the technology for producing refined salt, as long as this technology is followed, not only can salt production be greatly increased, but it can all be refined salt!"

When Chen Xuan said this, everyone thought he had completely lost his mind.

Chen Yong couldn't help but laugh. "Father, look at the King of Qin spouting nonsense! How can we entrust such a person with the weighty responsibilities of the nation? Isn't this jeopardizing the country?"

Although he had previously served as regent, Emperor Jin held Chen Xuan in high regard.

But at this moment, his words sounded extremely absurd to the Emperor of Jin.

"King of Qin, are you really going to fool me like this?" Emperor Jin said in annoyance.

Chen Xuan quickly replied, "How could such a thing be faked? If Father doesn't believe me, I can make it right here and now."

As soon as he finished speaking, all the officials and civil servants were completely dumbfounded.

However, it soon became clear that the King of Qin was bluffing. He probably had mastered a better salt-making technique than the traditional one, but it was far from what he claimed and could not solve the current problems.

Emperor Jin looked coldly at Chen Xuan: "Don't blame me for not warning you. If you can't do this, you shouldn't be ruling this country!"

"Yes, sir." Chen Xuan cupped his hands in greeting.

Upon hearing this, Chen Yong and Zhang Xianzhao both showed expressions of ecstatic joy!

In their eyes, Chen Xuan is finished this time!

What he just said, they believed, was absolutely impossible to achieve.

"Someone, fetch the materials!" Emperor Jin ordered.

Soon, the materials and tools that Chen Xuan needed were brought to the Hall of State Affairs.

Emperor Jin wanted to verify whether Chen Xuan's words were true in front of all his civil and military officials.

Chen Xuan used modern salt-making methods, and his impressive process left everyone speechless.

"I've never seen this salt-making method before. Can it really produce a large amount of refined salt?" Emperor Jin asked curiously.

If it succeeds, then as long as this salt-making method is promoted in the Great Jin Dynasty, not only will the current problem be solved, but the people of the Great Jin Dynasty will no longer have to worry about not being able to afford salt.

"Father, look..." Chen Xuan took the prepared refined salt up.

Everyone was stunned. If made using the ancient method, these materials would yield at most a tiny bit of coarse salt.

Chen Xuan extracted almost all of it, and what he got was refined salt.

Emperor Jin pinched a bit of refined salt and put it in his mouth. The extremely salty taste immediately made his eyes light up: "It's refined salt! It even tastes purer than the traditional refined salt of the Great Jin Dynasty! My beloved ministers, please try it!"

"Is that possible!" Chen Yong's expression changed drastically.