EMHTC -Chapter 48 These Chickens Are Mine! They’re All Mine!

The Minister of the Ministry of Revenue took a strong stance—no money, but one life.

Princess Wanshou, who was standing nearby, gradually began to understand something, but the old emperor didn’t notice.

The old emperor tried to negotiate with the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, saying, “You can withhold the Ministry’s money, but as for the stolen goods in the rebel hideout…”

The Minister of Revenue wanted to directly reply, “I won’t give them to you either,” but he touched his neck, then thought about his nine generations, and decided to be more tactful: “Your Majesty, according to custom, these…”

The old emperor’s eyes widened, “The items seized should naturally go into the national treasury, but this isn’t about a house being seized, it’s about eliminating bandits! Whoever eliminates them gets the rewards!”

Seeing the old emperor’s attitude, the Minister of Revenue hesitated and started to back down.

Well, maybe…

【This White Sun Cult leader seems pretty rich. No wonder he can afford to hand out money and eggs! His family runs… one, two, three, four, five chicken farms, with thousands of chickens per farm. There are red roosters, white roosters, black roosters, hens… Altogether, it must be worth 200,000 teals.】

The Minister of Revenue’s ears twitched.

【He also runs a cockfighting business! Wow! A good fighting rooster is worth 1,000 each! That’s good money! With 200 fighting roosters, they must make at least 200,000 a year?!】

【No wonder he had the guts to start a rebellion…】

The Minister of Revenue also gained some courage.

His expression became unusually serious. “Your Majesty! There are five chicken farms, at least give me two!”

Xu Yanmao was completely stunned—

You really have no fear of death, huh?!

Other officials gasped in shock, admiring the Minister of Revenue.

This man dared to demand money from the emperor!

But thinking about their monthly salaries, which come from the national treasury, and recalling how the previous dynasty once had insufficient funds and delayed paying officials’ wages…

Suddenly…

One by one, the officials’ eyes lit up.

The Minister of Revenue is formidable!!!

The old emperor was equally shocked: “You want 80,000 teals?!”

The Minister of Revenue replied calmly: “Your Majesty, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step; a river is formed from small streams. Money is earned bit by bit.”

Translation: I want it!

The old emperor: “Impossible, I can only give you one chicken farm.”

The Minister of Revenue: “Three!”

“You—” The old emperor nearly jumped up. How come this person keeps asking for more?!

The Minister of Revenue quickly explained, “Your Majesty, I have people who know how to raise chickens. You see, just having chicken farms isn’t enough. If they aren’t raised well, all the chickens will die.”

The old emperor fell into deep thought.

Seeing an opportunity, the Minister of Revenue immediately upped his offer: “I don’t need the fighting roosters, just lend me one rooster and five hens every year to breed.”

The old emperor thought for a moment, then nodded. “Alright.”

After all, it wouldn’t look good not giving anything to the Ministry of Revenue. If the national treasury runs out of money later, won’t the emperor be the one with a headache?

White Sun Cult’s leader listened from the side, his eyes filled with tears.

These chickens are his! They are all his! And they’re splitting up his chickens in front of him! Is there no justice, no law?!

The old emperor and the Minister of Revenue happily reached an agreement. As for the rebels, White Sun Cult’s leader was beheaded, and the other civilians were sent back home to farm. Even the chickens found new owners.

Everyone was happy!

The procession continued without any more strange incidents. They simply carried on with their inspections, and when they reached the Bohai Sea, they let Xie Luoshui off.

The emperor and his officials paid great attention to Xie Luoshui’s voyage. The people rely on food, and if Xie Luoshui could bring back these goods, not only would she be awarded a title, but she could also be enshrined in the temple of ancestors!

The Minister of Revenue: “I’ll check the tung oil.”

—Tung oil was an essential waterproof coating for ships. Besides checking the quantity and quality of the oil, the Minister also had to ensure no ginger was mixed in.

Adding crushed ginger prevents the tung oil from thickening and forming “oil skins,” keeping it in its original liquid state.

The Minister of Personnel: “I’ll check the southern compass.”

—The southern compass helps determine direction.

The Minister of War: “I’ll check the star-sighting board.”

—The star-sighting board helps pinpoint the north-south geographical position.

“And I…” The old emperor was in charge of giving Xie Luoshui additional knowledge. During their travels, he had been frequently pulling Xu Yanmao to chat with him, subtly guiding her understanding, so he had now gathered a general idea.

“The new continent you need to find has native people, the land can be farmed, and the central area is a plain.”

There was no description more vague or despair-inducing than this. But Xie Luoshui listened attentively.

She understood that, given how much the emperor valued this voyage, if he could provide her with a detailed sea map, he wouldn’t hesitate. If he hadn’t given it, it was simply because there was none, and she would have to sail and search on her own.

This process would be long and consume vast amounts of resources, but once successful, she would be enfeoffed as a marquis, her name remembered for generations!

The old emperor hesitated, but still didn’t mention the “decreasing rainfall from the eastern coastal areas to the western inland regions.” He felt that rainfall would be difficult for Xie Luoshui to observe and would only make her voyage harder.

The old emperor seemed to want to say something, but then glanced at Xie Luoshui and asked directly, “Do you have a good idea, Minister?”

Xie Luoshui nodded.

“Your Majesty, I think we could organize another fleet to follow the same direction I’m heading. There’s no rush, just island by island, exploring each one, collecting the supplies on the islands, then marking their locations on the map to send back to the Great Xia.”

“There’s more…” Xie Luoshui took a breath and continued, “By occupying the islands one by one, it would be like establishing a series of beacon towers. We could watch over each other, and by periodically having ships patrol, we can ensure that the islands remain part of Great Xia’s territory. In the future, when our ships travel to the West, they can be assured of resupply at sea.”

The old emperor’s thoughts started to stir. “Isn’t this like building a stronghold and waging a long-term war?”

This method would be the most stable, the least prone to errors, and the most likely to succeed. In land warfare, it would be extremely advantageous, and it would be no different in the sea.

He looked at Xie Luoshui with an appreciative gaze. “You’re quite good.” While this wasn’t the most brilliant or awe-inspiring idea, the fact that someone who hadn’t read much or received formal education came up with it clearly showed that they had put thought into it.

The old emperor made a quick connection and immediately came up with an idea. “Moreover, if these islands are in the hands of Great Xia, other ships trying to land for resupply will have to pay a fee, right?”

Xie Luoshui widened her eyes slightly.

She didn’t quite understand why a monarch would always think of ways to make money—wasn’t the emperor supposed to be decisive in battle, cold-faced every day, manipulating court politics, and having ministers guess his thoughts?

“That seems about right!” The old emperor subconsciously reached out to pat Xie Luoshui on the shoulder but then stopped midway, recalling her gender. He only said verbally, “That’s all I need to instruct you. You may leave now.”

After Xie Luoshui left, the old emperor immediately summoned the Minister of Revenue and repeated what he had just discussed with Xie Luoshui. “What do you think?”

“Excellent! Excellent! Excellent!”

The Minister of Revenue repeated the word “excellent” several times. His eyes gleamed as though they were shining with the light of money. “By occupying the islands, we might not even need to use the navy. We could pull non-death-sentence criminals out of prison and tell them that after exploring each island, they can have their sentence reduced.”

That way, if there are casualties, there would be no need to worry about providing for widows and orphans.

And those prisoners who might rebel would have to consider whether the Great Xia navy would allow it.

The old emperor thought for a moment and added, “Also, for the nearby indigenous people—those who want to join Great Xia, we can set a time limit. As long as they join the fleet and help develop the islands, they can obtain Great Xia citizenship after the deadline. That way, they won’t have to sneak in.”

But of course, if these people die, the state will have to provide for their families.

The Minister of Revenue frowned slightly.

After a few breaths, his expression brightened, and he smiled widely. “Your Majesty is wise! The training costs for the navy are not something these people can compare to. The money spent on caring for widows and orphans is still much less than maintaining the navy. If they voluntarily explore the islands, it would be the perfect solution.”

And, whether they are criminals or barbarians, they would need to undergo strict military training, which is an essential financial expenditure.

The two money-driven officials quickly arranged the details. Another money-driven official, the Minister of Revenue, joined the group and headed toward the Bohai Sea.

The Vice Minister of Rites heard that the emperor had decided to let the general lead a small group of soldiers to go out to sea with Xie Luoshui.

The reason was twofold: to prevent pirate and indigenous attacks, and also to showcase military power in foreign lands, demonstrating the strength of the Chinese empire. Moreover, this would help open up sea routes.

“Because I understand naval warfare,” said the general, just back from outside, still carrying eggs and meat.

The two of them stood in the small kitchen. The Vice Minister of Rites took the eggs and cracked them into a bowl while the general crouched down to tend to the fire. After blowing on it twice, he switched the air and continued talking, “Don’t worry. The ship is equipped with plenty of military supplies. The emperor didn’t send me to my death.”

“What’s in it?”

The Vice Minister of Rites asked while chopping meat on the cutting board, casually handing the bowl to the general. The general sprinkled salt and added oil before starting to mix the contents.

“We’ve prepared over a million arrows, bows, and strings. As for cold weapons…”

“Zrrr—”

The eggs, mixed with oil and salt, sizzled in the pan.

“Each ship in the fleet is equipped with 50 spears, machetes, sickles, ash pots, grappling hooks, pear-headed darts, small darts, helmets, and rattan shields for each person. As for firearms, each ship is equipped with handguns, matchlocks, flintlock rifles, fire arrows, fire forks, fire thorn cannons, fireballs, gunpowder arrows, iron-tipped harpoons, smoke balls, and 100 copper or iron cannons of various sizes…”

“What about medicine?”

“It’s all there! All the common medicines, in full supply.”

“Common medicines, huh… Don’t you dare eat them!” The Vice Minister of Rites slapped the general’s hand with a pair of chopsticks. “Put the meat in too, I’ll go grab my makeup box from the cart.”

“Makeup box? What’s that for?”

It was said that the Vice Minister of Rites had fallen seriously ill.

Suffering from the unfamiliar climate, he began vomiting and experiencing diarrhea as soon as he arrived in the city by the Bohai Sea, feeling extremely weak.

When Xu Yanmiao brought gifts to visit, several high-ranking officials were already in the room.

The Minister of Rites was holding the Vice Minister’s hand with great concern. “How come your face is so pale? Even when you were running around during wartime, you didn’t look like this.”

Xu Yanmiao peered in and saw that not only was the Vice Minister’s face ashen, but his lips were also white, with dark circles under his eyes. It was clear that he was in very poor health.

The Vice Minister had a cloth tied around his head to block the wind and lay weakly in bed, speaking with a hoarse voice, “It’s probably the sea breeze.”

The Minister of Rites patted his hand. “Rest well. I heard the doctor prescribed you the Four Gentlemen Decoction, with ginseng for tonifying energy. I brought some red ginseng with me. You can keep it.”

The Vice Minister’s face was pale, lacking any color, but his long eyelashes fluttered rapidly. “Thank you, Your Excellency.”

The cloth softened the contours of his face, and the quilt covered his throat, hiding the male features. Marquis Yongchang, who had initially come just to make an appearance, was moved to tears upon seeing this scene.

A grown man weeping uncontrollably, the Minister of Revenue glanced at him and felt his scalp go numb. “What are you crying about?”

Marquis Yongchang wiped his eyes. “This is Xiao Chanu! I recognize her! Xiao Chanu must be feeling especially uncomfortable. I have a medicine shop in my house, and I’ll have them prepare the best, most authentic winter worm and summer grass right away.”

He finished speaking and tossed the box out of the window.

—He had only brought the most common, perfunctory herbs due to personal grudges. He was truly a despicable person!

The Minister of Revenue, speechless, could only watch as others also brought various medicinal gifts. One sent Korean ginseng, another sent Dendrobium, while others brought musk, bear bile, cow bezoar, and other expensive medicinal herbs. None of the high-ranking officials would bring a paltry amount, so several large boxes were delivered. The general was deeply moved and repeatedly thanked them.

Xu Yanmiao lowered his head and stared at the silver he had brought with him, feeling somewhat awkward.

【Was I the only one who brought money?】

【Maybe I should wait and give it later?】

He stepped back slowly. After a while, seeing the others leaving, the general personally saw them off with deep gratitude. The door was closed, and Xu Yanmiao paused. “Wait…”

【I haven’t given my gift yet!】

【People might forget who brought gifts, but they will surely remember who didn’t!】

【But if I knock on the door now, what if it’s not the right time?】

Xu Yanmiao thought for a moment, then opened the gossip system to see if there were any issues. If nothing came up, he would go ahead and knock.

The general entered the inner room and closed the door before quickly jumping onto the bed.

The Vice Minister of Rites smoothly lifted the blanket. “Come, let’s see what they’ve sent!”