Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

As they were talking, footsteps came from outside the courtyard gate.

Gu Mingli walked in, carrying a stack of blueprints, his steps uneven.

His trousers were rolled up to his knees, and both legs were covered in dry yellow mud. His straw sandals were slippery from walking.

"Hey? Mingyue, you just got back too?"

"Perfect timing, could you help me think of the Emperor's birthday...?"

Gu Mingli was speaking when he looked up and saw two men in black with swords standing in the courtyard.

He gasped, and the blueprints tumbled to the floor.

"Holy crap, huh?"

"Mingyue, come quick! Someone wants to kill us!"

Yi Wu and Yi Shi exchanged a professional and alert glance with slightly furrowed brows.

The next moment, the two immediately began searching the entire yard, turning over flower beds, overturning water tanks, and even lying on the ground to peer under the eaves.

Gu Mingyue rolled her eyes speechlessly.

Gu Mingli was a little confused.

He sidled up to his sister along the edge of the yard, tugged at her sleeve, and asked in a low voice:

"What are they... searching for? And why are they lying on the ground?"

Gu Mingyue said expressionlessly, "Search your dog."

Why?

"I'll save your dog's life."

Gu Mingli: "..."

He was silent for a moment, then suddenly nodded as if he had just realized something: "So straightforward?"

"He's even more straightforward than you think," Gu Mingyue sighed. "You'll see in a moment."

Before long, Yi Wu finished searching the entire hospital, stood still, and looked at Gu Mingyue expressionlessly.

"Where's the dog?"

Gu Mingyue coughed lightly, "It's alright, no need to save the dog's life. As long as we can protect ours, that's enough."

Yi Wu and Yi Shi exchanged a glance, and "whoosh," they returned to their standard posture of holding their swords and standing under the pillars.

Gu Mingli: "..."

……

Half an hour later.

The lights were turned on in the main room.

The brother and sister sat down at the octagonal table, preparing to hold a meeting to check the progress of the task.

Gu Mingyue took out an account book and spread it out. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly felt like she was being pricked by needles.

She turned her head.

Yi Wu stood straight like a telephone pole, less than two feet behind her chair.

His eyes were wide open, like copper bells, staring intently at the back of her head.

His eyes remained completely still.

Gu Mingyue put down her pen speechlessly. "Yi Wu, why are you always glaring at me?"

Yi Wu remained expressionless, his voice firm and resolute: "My master's order is for me to keep an eye on you."

Gu Mingyue: "..."

"Pfft, hahahahaha!"

Gu Mingli, sitting opposite him, was so trying not to laugh that he kept pounding the table, laughing until tears streamed down his face.

"Incredible! This is all about immersive mission execution, literally 'watching'! It's practically a human-mounted physical surveillance camera! And it's 4K ultra-high definition, with no blind spots, and automatic tracking!"

Gu Mingyue rubbed her temples.

The King of Qi sent these two people to monitor her, fearing she might not know that the court was keeping an eye on the Gu family.

This is no longer a pretense; it's open surveillance.

Since these two are skilled in martial arts and have straightforward thinking, it's not necessarily a bad thing.

At least you don't have to worry about knives lurking in the shadows.

Having figured this out, Gu Mingyue ignored him and turned to look at Gu Mingli.

"The third meeting of the management team is now beginning. Let's start by reconciling the accounts."

Gu Mingli skillfully took out his notebook and opened it to make a record.

"The first phase of the river channel project has already cost 60,000 taels of silver in labor, materials, and food. However, due to the rapid current upstream of Jiangzhou, ordinary wooden piles cannot be driven in, so I plan to use stone caissons. This budget needs to be increased."

Gu Mingyue took a pen and wrote down the numbers on the paper. "How much more?"

Gu Mingli looked serious as he flipped through the account book.

"At least 20,000 taels. We also need to transport bluestone from other places."

Gu Mingyue quickly fiddled with the abacus a few times, producing a series of crisp, clattering sounds.

"The money I spent on buying the land, the deposit for building the textile factory, the pre-ordered machinery and equipment, the cotton farmer subsidies, plus today's purchase of employee welfare and daily supplies, totaled 37,000 taels."

She glanced at the system panel.

[Remaining mission time: 18 days]

[Task Balance: 83000 taels of silver]

Gu Mingyue tapped the edge of the abacus with her fingers, her brows furrowed slightly.

"Brother, go all out and don't worry about the money."

"The missing money will come from my 20,000 taels."

Gu Mingli's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Really? Isn't that money only supposed to be used for investment?"

Gu Mingyue put down the abacus, tapped her fingers lightly on the table twice, and her eyes revealed shrewdness.

"It's alright, just build a dock in the name of Pujitang. If they ask, just say it's for connecting the canal to the north, to facilitate future cargo transportation."

Gu Mingli put down the account book, somewhat worried.

"Mingyue, building a dock is not as simple as building a house."

"You have to negotiate with the government for the right to use a section of the river, you have to deal with the powerful shipping guilds in the underworld, and you also have to guard against the local merchant groups who are envious. This isn't something you can just buy with money."

Gu Mingyue tapped her fingers lightly twice on the table.

"The government will not make things difficult for a business that can increase local tax revenue."

Gu Mingli frowned, still having concerns.

"But have you looked into the Jiangzhou Canal Gang? Those people have been living on the river for three generations. If outsiders touch their territory, at best they'll block your boats and rafts, at worst they'll dig up your stakes in the middle of the night."

Gu Mingyue nodded in agreement.

"Therefore, the location of the dock is crucial. I need a location that the existing shipping routes of the transport guilds cannot cover. If I don't compete with them for their livelihood, they will have no reason to take action."

Gu Mingli stared at her. "What if they're unreasonable?"

Gu Mingyue's lips curled slightly: "Then let the people from the Prince Qi's mansion go and reason with them."

Her gaze swept subtly over Yi Wu, who was standing behind her.

"The most important point,"

She leaned closer to her brother and lowered her voice.

"Brother, we're here to spend money. By the time the dock is actually up and running, we might already be..."

Gu Mingli understood immediately, gave a thumbs up, and looked at him with admiration.

"You had this planned out long ago."

Gu Mingyue raised an eyebrow confidently.

"Alright, next task. Bro, bring up your map and show me the terrain."

"Looking at a map?" Gu Mingli scratched his head. "What are you planning to do?"

"Buy land."

"Buying land again?" Gu Mingli's eyes widened. "You've gotten into real estate?"

Gu Mingyue didn't answer, but just raised her chin to signal him to hurry up.

Yi Wu and Yi Shi, who were standing at the back, exchanged a glance.

Yi Shi gave Yi Wu a coded hand gesture.

The Gu siblings are very wealthy.

Yi Wu replied with a cold face, using sign language.

[They're probably so poor they only have money left. They're so anxious and frustrated because they can't spend their money, they feel like life has no meaning.]

They even want to provoke the Grand Canal Gang; they're courting death.

No wonder the prince ordered us to keep an eye on them, to prevent them from getting themselves into trouble.

Yi Shi nodded thoughtfully.

They don't understand the world of the rich.

But they had to report the brother and sister's every move to the prince truthfully.

That very night, a carrier pigeon flew into the Qi King's residence.

Xiao Jue opened the letter and glanced at it, and his temples began to throb.

The young lady is preparing to seek help from the authorities, incite the gangs, build a wharf, and spend a fortune to make the Prince's Mansion clean up the mess.