Our family has been rebelling for generations, and you've become the top scholar in the imperia

Night falls.

The largest restaurant in Xifang today is Xingyuelou.

The largest private room on the second floor.

Qin Feng looked at Duke Ma who walked in, and the several nobles following behind him, and stood up with a smile to greet them.

"Lord Qin!"

"Greetings, Duke. Please, sit down. There's no need for such formalities. It's all my fault; I've been far too busy lately. I was truly sorry that I couldn't personally accompany you all when I learned you were visiting the West Ward. Please forgive me!"

Upon hearing this...

The nobles felt immediately relieved.

It's not that people didn't know they were in Xifang, but rather that they were too busy. Now that they're done with their work, they're treating them to a special banquet to apologize.

What else is there to say?

"Lord Qin, you're too kind. I just came over for a casual visit. You're serving the Emperor, so naturally, you should focus on important matters."

"Indeed... It's truly remarkable that the Western Ward has been managed so well. How can we allow our actions to delay His Majesty's important affairs!"

"You're too kind..."

"..."

After exchanging pleasantries...

The banquet officially begins.

To entertain these people, Qin Feng specially ordered the chefs at Xingyuelou to improve some of the dishes.

Moreover, the reason why restaurants in Xifang are doing so well today is largely due to the improved dishes.

After all, the food in the Great Zhou Dynasty is now mainly steamed or boiled, with very few stir-fried dishes, and as for barbecue, it doesn't even exist.

Although beef is not edible, mutton is readily available, and many farmers regularly raise sheep outside the area.

"Gentlemen, please try this roast meat. It's made from lambs less than half a month old, with absolutely no gamey taste..."

One dish after another was served.

Everyone, including Duke Ma, was immediately impressed.

Many of the dishes were ones I had never even seen before.

Moreover, its exquisiteness is no less than that of a royal banquet eaten in the palace.

This shows that Qin Feng really put a lot of thought into hosting them today.

"Come on, everyone, how about a toast?"

Qin Feng took a stance, raised his glass, and clinked it with the other dignitaries.

These people are in a rather awkward position in Da Zhou.

Our ancestors followed the Zhou family in conquering the world.

Back then, their status was indeed high, but now, apart from their noble titles, most people have been indulging in eating, drinking, and having fun since childhood, without even holding an official position. In addition, the civil officials are now very powerful, and the first to look down on are the eunuch faction, followed by these parasites of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Those members of the Nanlin Party have submitted petitions more than once suggesting that these people's titles be stripped.

After several rounds of drinks, the table was a complete mess.

They saw that they had almost finished eating.

Su Mo waved her hand and ordered the waiter who was serving her to brew a pot of tea.

"How is the Duke doing these days?"

Upon hearing this...

Duke Ma immediately moved his stool closer to Qin Feng.

Here comes the key point... He could guess today that Qin Feng wouldn't have approached them for no reason; there must be something he needed their help with. As for any apology, that was pure nonsense. Of all those civil officials, who had ever apologized to them?

"To be honest, Lord Qin, life is getting harder for us nobles in the capital every day!"

"That shouldn't be the case, right?"

Qin Feng feigned shock.

"As for the situation here, well, I'll throw away all shame today and tell Lord Qin what kind of life Xun Gui is living now."

Duke Ma sighed softly and simply began to speak.

"We nobles are different from the imperial relatives. Our achievements are all due to our ancestors. In our generation, apart from a title, we have nothing. The silver the court gives us each month is barely enough to support the servants of the entire household, let alone our own family!"

The other honored guests also joined in.

They all chimed in with their own opinions.

about this point.

Qin Feng had seen it all in detail at the Imperial Guard and could only conclude that there was a reason why wealth rarely lasts beyond three generations.

These noble families did indeed accumulate a considerable fortune in the past. At their peak, they owned a lot of land outside the capital.

But they had so many children that they shared a little with each other, and these kids grew up in luxury, spending money like water and riches.

By this generation, not only the land outside the capital, but even some shops within the city had been squandered by these people.

In addition, he was neither learned nor skilled enough to become an official, nor was he cut out for business.

Naturally, things got worse and worse.

If you want to associate with royalty, take Prince Yun for example; he doesn't care about these people at all.

When you follow a scholar, they don't even give you a second glance.

"No business?"

These words were spoken.

Duke Ma rubbed his cheeks in shame.

"Since Lord Qin is hosting a banquet for us today, we will be friends from now on. Don't laugh at us, but we are really not cut out for business. Besides, there are many businesses in the capital now, and the competition is fierce. It's not like we haven't tried it before, but we had to close down after a few months."

"hiss……"

Qin Feng gasped.

He gritted his teeth.

"I truly didn't expect things to turn out this way today, as I felt an instant connection with the Duke. Speaking of business, I do have some ventures, and the income is quite good... but..."

Speaking of it.

Qin Feng glanced at these people.

"I'm afraid you all won't be interested in my business."

"How could that be!"

Duke Ma was anxious.

The others were also excited; the person had brought it up on their own initiative, without them even having to ask.

This shows they're willing to help them make money.

"Your Excellency, please don't be in such a hurry. Listen to my business proposal first. If you're willing to participate, I'm naturally welcome. If not, we can still be friends in the future, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Qin Feng smiled and said softly:

"As you all know, His Majesty entrusted the management of the Xishan Coal Mine to me. Every year, in addition to taxes, the Xishan Coal Mine has to pay no less than one million taels of silver to the palace. The pressure is considerable."

"But there are so many workers to support in the mine, and we have to pay their pensions. The Ministry of Works also needs to keep a portion of the money for them."

"Profit margins have already been squeezed to the bare minimum!"

Everyone gasped in shock. How could they possibly pay so much silver to the palace every year?

There's no profit left.

Even if they join in, they won't make much more money in a year.

"So, I've come up with another way. People have to eat, right? So many people in the West Ward eat with me, and they have to be paid every month. The silver in the mines belongs to the Emperor, so I naturally can't touch it."

"According to my investigation, transporting coal is very profitable. I wonder if any of you are interested?"

Upon hearing this...

Whether it was Duke Ma or the other nobles, they were all dumbfounded.

Transporting coal?

Isn't this all the work done by those poor, hardworking laborers?

Pulling a cartload only seems to earn a few dozen coins, how can you make any money?

Could it be that Qin Feng is deliberately deceiving them?

"Alright, alright, today is just an apology to you all. As for how this business will operate, I would like to ask the Duke and you all for your help. Once my transportation system is set up, you can all come and see for yourselves. If it really makes money, then you can join in later."

"What kind of help?"

Qin Feng grinned.

"I would like the Duke to take charge of logging the timber in the gardens surrounding the capital, and the Ministry of Works will purchase it at a price 10% higher than the market price."

Duke Ma and the other nobles exchanged glances.

They fell silent at the same time.

Logging is easy. The several gardens around the capital were once the land of nobles, though they are no longer there.

But they still maintain their dignity; they're just chopping some timber.

It's nothing serious.

"Alright, we'll help you with that. As for the business deal you mentioned, Lord Qin, can you really let us see the bills?"

"No need to look at the bills. You will all come and see for yourselves how much silver we earn each day. The Duke and his men will calculate it personally."

Qin Feng replied with great pride.