King Wu’s Residence.

King Wu sat on his seat, constantly fiddling with a fan in his hand. Luo Ningxin stood beside him.

At this moment, King Wu was completely different from how he appeared to the outside world. Not only did he shed the laziness commonly seen by others, he actually had a 70% resemblance to Emperor Jing.

The same majestic aura, but his eyes revealed a coldness he couldn’t conceal.

A man knelt before him, head lowered. “Reporting to Your Highness, Fang Zheng has indeed already planted sweet potatoes in Taoyuan County, yielding 1,733 catties per mu.”

King Wu paused his hand movements and chuckled lightly. “Hmph, only about 2,000 catties. That’s a bit less than I expected…”

“Get up, Zhang Shi. What was Imperial Brother’s reaction?”

Zhang Shi rose and said respectfully, “His Majesty was greatly pleased. As soon as Fang Zheng returned to the capital, he immediately rewarded him with the title of County Earl, as well as gold, silver, and land. It seems… His Majesty intends to make good use of him in the future.”

“But Your Highness… now that Fang Zheng has successfully planted sweet potatoes, I hear this crop grows extremely fast and can be harvested in one to two months. Then won’t the famine in Jianjiang…”

“What are you panicking for? Fang Zheng is just fooling you all. How could it possibly be that fast? No matter what, the famine won’t be greatly alleviated this year. Immediately arrange for people to go south and notify our men to hold onto the grain they have.”

“Yes! But Your Highness, what about Fang Zheng…”

King Wu’s voice turned stern. “Fang Zheng is someone I value. Regardless of what past grudges you have with him, don’t touch him. Otherwise, don’t blame me for being impolite!”

Hearing this, Zhang Shi instantly broke out in a cold sweat.

“Then… then this subordinate will take his leave first…”

“Mm, go.”

Zhang Shi wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and left in a fluster.

Luo Ningxin spoke up. “Your Highness, how did Fang Zheng get his hands on sweet potatoes?”

King Wu shook his head. “I don’t know… There are no walls in the world that don’t let wind through. Since I was able to obtain this thing, why couldn’t Fang Zheng?”

“Sigh, this is all fate. I was quite fond of him. I didn’t expect him to get dragged into this situation… and become a problem.”

Luo Ningxin hesitated. “Your Highness, from what I’ve seen, besides some poetic talent, there’s nothing particularly special about Fang Zheng. Why do you think so highly of him?”

King Wu took a sip of tea and casually picked up a gold-inlaid, jade-embedded object from the table.

“This thing… is called a Thousand-Mile Mirror. It’s a little gadget I came up with a few years ago. Not long ago, Fang Zheng also presented a similar item to Imperial Brother called the Thousand-Mile Landscape Mirror.”

“I took a look. Fang Zheng’s item is actually even better than mine…”

“The Thousand-Mile Mirror I made was crafted from the highest quality crystal, worth a thousand gold. But Fang Zheng’s looks crude, clearly made from worthless materials, including the lenses inside.”

“I reckon it’s probably the same material as that so-called diamond of yours… What I appreciate about him is this ability to turn something rotten into something magical.”

Luo Ningxin was shocked and covered the diamond necklace on her chest. “But… he said this was the crown prince’s precious treasure. And it looks exceptionally valuable too.”

“Foolish! Recently, these diamond accessories have been all the rage in the market. A two-hundred tael ring is being hyped up to three hundred taels. But news of this item being sold is appearing more and more. There must be some trick of Fang Zheng’s behind it.”

“In the past few years, every time the steward goes to Taoyuan County to purchase goods, he returns with not a single coin left. That Fang Zheng probably tries to extort something even if he meets the ghosts of impermanence after death.”

“How could someone like that present a so-called Thousand-Mile Landscape Mirror worth ten thousand taels to the Emperor?”

“Therefore… I’ve concluded that this thing must be a man-made item, not worth a single coin! Let alone being some precious treasure of the crown prince.”

Upon hearing this, Luo Ningxin sank into immense disappointment.

This diamond necklace and ring were her favorite accessories! Just seeing them sparkle would lift her mood.

She even took them off every day to repeatedly polish and maintain them, afraid of them getting chipped or bumped. To think they were actually worthless… Fang Zheng, curse you!

“Ningxin, Fang Zheng has already returned to the capital. I’ll leave him to you. Be sure to befriend him well. As for the rest… you don’t need to worry about it!”

Luo Ningxin asked in confusion, “But Your Highness… since you think so highly of him, why not have him come meet you directly? If he’s greedy for wealth, couldn’t you just give him money?”

King Wu’s usually cold expression suddenly revealed a hint of helplessness. He sighed. “His greed for money may not be a true love for it… Perhaps it’s just a habit…”

Impressive. He actually managed to make greed sound so fresh and refined!

Luo Ningxin inwardly began her silent retort.

“Back then, when the steward was robbed and taken to Taoyuan County, he unexpectedly met Fang Zheng. But the more I learned about him, the more curious I became. I even… wanted to make him a confidant.”

“The first two years, I wanted to meet him but didn’t have the chance… Later, I gave up on the idea.”

“The way we do things definitely won’t be to his liking. After we accomplish our great undertaking, I’ll recruit Fang Zheng then.”

“Now that he has a significant impact on us, we can no longer ignore him… So it’s still more appropriate for you to go.”

“You may leave now.”

After King Wu finished speaking, Luo Ningxin bowed and turned to leave.

…

Two days later, at the Fang Residence in Banshan District.

Fang Zheng was hunched over his desk writing. Looking at the pile of messages at hand, he couldn’t help but feel a bit of a headache.

The sanitation team’s wages were set too high! Now that word has spread, it’s a bit tricky to dock their pay!

Five taels per person per month. That’s still quite a loss each month.

At this point, Fang Zheng deeply regretted his impulsive decision. He never should have blurted out five taels in the first place—enough for a three-day brothel tour!

If this keeps up, he’ll lose everything down to his underpants. When has Fang Zheng ever done business at a loss? He has to give them more work!

Just as he was scratching his head, Zhang Biao came running in.

“Young Master, there’s a letter for you!”

Fang Zheng took the letter, opened it, and began to read.

After reading, he tossed the letter aside. “Burn it. I thought it was from Taoyuan County.”

Zhang Biao asked curiously, “Young Master, what did it say?”

Fang Zheng started writing and calculating again, working on his grand plan to dock wages and increase workload. He answered, “That top courtesan from Hidden Fragrance Pavilion said she admires my literary talent and invites me to visit.”

“Then Young Master should go. What’s there to be afraid of with women? It’s not like it costs money.”

“That’s right, it doesn’t cost money!” Fang Zheng’s eyes lit up.

“But that broad is King Wu’s woman. I’ve caught King Wu’s attention. There must be some unspeakable secret. Why not just say it directly instead of being all sneaky?”

“Hmph, that big idiot. Riddle people should all die!”

Zhang Biao chuckled. “Young Master, could it be that he’s taken a liking to you… A cunning old man.”

Fang Zheng raised his head and glared. “Fine then! You go in my place! Eating and drinking without spending money. I’ll save the trouble!”

Zhang Biao gave an embarrassed laugh. “Why don’t we just go directly to King Wu’s residence and ask him straight up? Why make things so complicated?”

“Not going! Asking for trouble!”