Teasing the First Dragon at the Start

Only by prioritizing agriculture, which serves as the flesh and blood, and supplementing it with commerce, which provides the muscles, skin, and hair, can the giant that is the Central Plains become stronger and more robust.

It seems that certain restrictions need to be placed on commerce.

Hu Yu quietly moved the book that was covering his face and looked at Bai Su's handsome face, who was deep in thought.

Her heterochromatic eyes blinked involuntarily, and she remained lost in thought for a long time.

Bai Su was working so hard to help her beat her sister Fu Su, which made her feel a sweet warmth in her heart.

After an unknown amount of time.

"Master, you've been busy all day. Have some lotus seed soup and take a rest."

At this moment, Xiao Qiao and Da Qiao each carried a bowl of cooked lotus seed soup and walked in from outside the door.

Bai Su looked up at the sky outside the window, where dusk was approaching: "Is it already so late, Your Highness? Come and have a drink..."

He looked down at Hu Yi beside him, intending to offer her some porridge, but saw that her almond-shaped eyes were slightly closed, and she was lying on his lap, asleep at some point. The green snake in his hand had also been tossed aside.

He poked Hu Yi's soft cheek and said with a smile, "And you say you're working with me?"

Da Qiao smiled gently and said, "As the current princess, it is already quite remarkable that Your Highness Hu Yu can stay by the master's side."

Bai Su shook her head helplessly: "Never mind, Da Qiao, go get her a blanket to cover herself with, it's getting a bit chilly."

"Oh."

Da Qiao obediently took a blanket and covered Hu Yi's body with the large blanket.

"Master, master, could you tell me a story? I haven't heard a story from you in so long."

Xiao Qiao sat at the table with her hands supporting her cheeks, looking directly at Bai Su.

The elder sister, Da Qiao, scolded, "Xiao Qiao, you must not be rude to the master."

Bai Su, with the lotus seed soup in her mouth, smiled and said, "It's alright. I've just finished my work and have some free time, so I'll tell you a story of love between a human and a ghost."

"Ghost?"

Upon hearing Bai Su's words, the two maids' faces immediately showed fear. They nervously grabbed each other's small hands, but their eyes were full of expectation, clearly showing that they were both afraid and eager to hear.

Bai Su smiled and said, "Speaking of which, when the world was in chaos, in a place called Guo Bei County, there was a desolate and abandoned ancient temple called Lanruo Temple..."

I don't know how long I talked for a while.

The two maids occasionally let out startled cries.

Hu Yu's long eyelashes trembled slightly as she gently opened her eyes. She first stared blankly at Bai Su's face and saw that Bai Su was telling a story to two maids with a serious expression.

A hint of dissatisfaction flashed across her fair face. She pulled the blanket around her, and smelling the masculine aura emanating from Bai Su, she couldn't help but bite her lip, her expression becoming somewhat strange.

Bai Su focused intently on telling stories to the two maids, and after talking for a long time, she felt her throat was a little dry.

Just as he picked up his wine cup and took a small sip, his body stiffened, and he felt a shiver run down his spine. He discovered that a small hand had suddenly appeared on his stomach—it was Hu Yu's small hand.

These two maids are right in front of her! How dare she be so bold! What will happen if she's discovered?

Bai Su quickly tried to stop her with her eyes, but Hu Yu didn't look at Bai Su at all. She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep, but she seemed to sense Bai Su's embarrassment and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

Her soft, jade-like hand slipped directly under Bai Su's clothes and gently drew circles on his stomach.

When Xiao Qiao saw Bai Su suddenly stop, she was taken aback and asked, "Master, what's wrong?"

"No...it's nothing, it's just that the drinks feel a bit cold."

Bai Su smiled, as if nothing had happened, but reached her right hand into the blanket and grabbed her little hand, telling her not to misbehave.

Seeing Bai Su's nervous expression, Hu Su felt a surge of smugness.

Especially after seeing that Da Qiao and Xiao Qiao, her two maids, had not noticed her actions at all.

Her courage suddenly grew, and she pulled the blanket over her head and Bai Su's legs, then shifted her body slightly.

"hiss……"

Bai Su gasped in shock.

Da Qiao looked at Bai Su, seemingly noticing something was wrong, and asked, "Master, what's wrong? You seem a bit abnormal."

Bai Su's face stiffened, but she pretended to be calm and said, "I might have drunk a bit too much just now, my stomach feels a little... uncomfortable."

Xiao Qiao pushed the lotus seed soup to her side, saying, "Then, sir, please drink this bowl of lotus seed soup. It should make your stomach feel better."

Da Qiao raised her delicate eyebrows: "This is prepared for His Highness Hu Yu. If Master drinks it, what will His Highness drink?"

Xiao Qiao muttered, "Later, I'll cook some more for His Highness Hu Yu. Master, I'd also like to hear you tell me what happened to Nie Xiaoqian in the end?"

"This Nie Xiaoqian was betrothed to the Black Mountain Demon..."

Seeing that the two of them hadn't noticed anything amiss, Bai Su's tense nerves finally relaxed a bit. She calmly continued telling her story, as if nothing had happened.

The two girls also leaned on the table with serious expressions, listening to Bai Su's story.

Fortunately, the two of them didn't come over. If they had pulled back the blanket and looked down, his reputation would have been ruined, and he would have been too ashamed to face anyone.

This is truly a double torment for both the body and the mind.

Chapter 105 Sisters' Showdown

About half an hour later.

Xiao Qiao and Da Qiao, the two maids, had already left and obediently gone to prepare dinner.

Hu Su was brushing her teeth with a homemade toothbrush while glaring fiercely at Bai Su with her heterochromatic, amber-like eyes.

Bai Su scratched her hair, completely unfazed by Hu Yi's harmless gaze.

He stroked Hu Yu's jet-black hair and asked, "What's wrong? Are you angry?"

Hu Yu snorted lightly: "Hmph, you're a bad thing."

Bai Su smiled and said, "If you hadn't provoked me so many times, I wouldn't be in this situation."

Upon hearing this, Hu Yi seemed to realize something, and her face immediately flushed red: "You're not allowed to say it! You... you must help me beat Fu Su, or else I'll..."

She glared fiercely at Bai Su, her small tiger teeth making her look both cute and fierce.

A thin layer of cold sweat appeared on Bai Su's forehead: "Okay, don't worry, I will definitely find a way to defeat Fu Su's group of Confucian scholars and help you establish your reputation in the court."

Upon hearing this, Hu Yi nodded in satisfaction: "That's more like it."

........

........

Inside Xianyang Palace.

The civil and military officials stood in neat rows, with Fu Su and Hu Yu also standing at the front of the procession.

At the messenger's signal, Zhengjie slowly walked over.

She wore a black dragon robe with gold patterns, a jade crown on her head, and nine beaded curtains that draped over her face, giving her an air of nobility and inviolability.

Zhengjie spread her arms, her wide sleeves creating a gust of wind, and then sat down on the dragon throne.

Her phoenix eyes swept over everyone in the hall, and she asked in a cool tone, "My esteemed ministers, do you have anything to report today?"

Generally speaking, court assemblies are just a formality.

Ordinary matters can be handled directly by the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, but matters that need to be reported to the court are major issues that require the Empress's personal decision.

After all, an emperor needs to manage the entire country, not just the trivial matters that happen in a village or county.

Since the northern threat of the Xiongnu was quelled, the imperial court has had no major issues to deal with recently.

When Sister Zheng asked the question, the room fell silent for a moment.

Just as she was about to adjourn the meeting, a person walked out from the group, and everyone was stunned when they saw him.

That striking white robe belonged to none other than Bai Su.

Everyone looked surprised, because Bai Su was known for slacking off at work and would usually just clock out. They rarely saw him volunteer.

Even Zheng Jie was clearly taken aback, seemingly not expecting that Bai Su, this lazy bum, would actually take the initiative to come out.

After a moment of hesitation, she asked, "Bai Su, what do you have to report?"

Bai Su cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I propose that trade be made a national policy."

"hiss!"

Everyone gasped in shock, realizing how much they had contributed to global warming.

Although they had a premonition the moment Bai Su came out, they felt that she might be about to say something important.

But they never expected that this scandal would be so big.

This is an attack on the very foundation of the Great Xia state. You must know that since the Shang army established the law of agriculture and war, emphasizing agriculture and suppressing commerce, the Great Xia has been implementing this system for hundreds of years.

No one had ever dared to question it, yet Bai Su wanted to reform the court's national policies.

This...this appetite is simply astonishing.

In an instant, all eyes in the court were on Bai Su. Some praised him, thinking he was courageous enough, while others frowned slightly, thinking he was too arrogant.

Zheng Jie raised her delicate eyebrows, showing neither anger nor surprise.

She simply looked directly at Bai Su with her phoenix eyes and asked, "Why?"

Bai Su cupped his hands and said, "Now the Xiongnu Chanyu Modu has fled to the northern desert, the Beiting Protectorate has been established in the south of the desert and has submitted to the Central Plains, and the Yuezhi Kingdom has also begun to build trade routes to connect with the Central Plains."

"Only by starting full-scale trade can we establish control over the border regions, increase our influence, expand our territory and strengthen our country. At the same time, we can also increase tax revenue for the court and fill the national treasury. This is the way to enrich the country and strengthen the army."

Hu Yi stepped forward and said in agreement, “Mother, the profits from this business are extremely high. The paper from Longmen Publishing House alone earns hundreds of thousands of strings of cash in taxes every month in the Guanzhong area alone.”

"If we were to open up trade and allow private merchants to fully engage in trade with the Yuezhi Kingdom and the southern steppes, the tax revenue from trade in cloth, salt, silk, paper, wine, and so on would be unimaginable..."

Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by a clear, cold voice: "Mother, you must not listen to Hu Yu's superficial opinions."

A young woman dressed in a white ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) walked out from the crowd. Her jet-black hair was tied up in a high bun and adorned with a gold hairpin. Her fair and pretty face was beautiful and intelligent, with bright eyes and white teeth, and she exuded an air of dignity.

It is none other than the current Princess Fusu.

She hurriedly cupped her hands and said, "Merchants cannot produce. If trade is fully opened up, it will only shake the foundation of our Great Xia and bring nothing but harm to the court."

Hu Yi immediately retorted, "Who said that? This trade can generate tax revenue, which is clearly beneficial to the imperial court."