Chapter 76: Pulling Strings and Falling Apart

Hu Weiyong had come after all.

Although he had come relatively quickly, it was, in the end, still late.

He would take his grandson back, but the grandson he took back would no longer be the same grandson he once was.

Looking at Hu Weiyong standing before him, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't even be bothered to offer a greeting.

"Why, how does a busy man like Prime Minister Hu have the time to come to this small place?"

Hu Weiyong was indeed a wily old fox; faced with Zhu Gaoxu's mockery, he did not retort directly.

"I heard there have been quite a few matters lately, why have you also come to this small place?"

Perhaps because he thought his grandson was in Zhu Gaoxu's hands, Hu Weiyong was much more polite.

But since they were already mortal enemies, Zhu Gaoxu had no intention of softening his heart.

"His Imperial Grandfather arranged some tasks for me here. It's quite a coincidence—when I arrived today, I encountered a little mouse that, ignorant of life and death, actually wanted to fight a cat. Prime Minister, you are well-informed; care to guess what the fate of this little mouse was?"

Hu Weiyong was not stupid; he knew Zhu Gaoxu was using the little mouse to imply his grandson, Hu Wenzheng, in order to make him anxious.

To tell the truth, with Zhu Gaoxu speaking like this, Hu Weiyong was anxious inside.

He knew Zhu Gaoxu was a little hell-raiser; there was nothing he wouldn't dare to do.

To put it bluntly, even if Zhu Gaoxu killed Hu Wenzheng, it would be a death in vain.

First, their statuses were not equal; if Zhu Gaoxu broke the law, he would have to be handed over to the Imperial Clan Court.

Second, and most crucially, he was not in the right.

Although the more he thought about it, the more worried he became for his grandson, Hu Weiyong still held back and did not make it explicit.

"I imagine that little mouse is still alive; after all, the cat's main target is the big mouse, and I suspect the little mouse wouldn't satisfy the cat's appetite."

Hu Weiyong's words were already a disguised concession, even going so far as to compare himself to a mouse.

This also indirectly showed the status Hu Wenzheng held in Hu Weiyong's heart.

It could be seen that both sides were pulling, but Zhu Gaoxu was pulling the strings, while Hu Weiyong was falling apart because of his grandson who was dragging him down.

You and I are both pulling; I am pulling the strings, and you are falling apart.

This point made Zhu Gaoxu feel secretly pleased.

He had gained face; now it was time for the substance.

There were many things he found inconvenient to ask Lao Zhu for, or rather, he was unwilling to ask Lao Zhu for them, so he might as well use this opportunity to extort a sum.

Thinking this, Zhu Gaoxu continued: "Prime Minister Hu is indeed well-informed; your prediction is not off by a single bit."

"It's just that the cat is hungry. If it isn't fed, whether it's a little mouse or a big mouse, it has to fill its stomach first, doesn't it?"

Zhu Gaoxu's words directly indicated that Hu Wenzheng was fine for now, but if he wasn't satisfied with what followed, then he might have problems.

Hu Weiyong naturally understood the meaning in Zhu Gaoxu's words.

Knowing his grandson was safe, Hu Weiyong felt a weight lift from his heart, then steadied his mind, preparing to face the "extortion" that Zhu Gaoxu would follow up with.

When you take a beating, you have to stand straight; Hu Weiyong still had that much awareness.

Knowing he had been bested this time, Hu Weiyong simply said: "I hear there are quite a few cats in this area—over a thousand. I imagine cat food is a problem; after all, they are growing, so they need to eat more meat."

Hu Weiyong was indeed a wily old fox; he knew exactly what Zhu Gaoxu wanted most.

Currently, the soldiers outside the city ate rice and flour with some other grains, which was considered decent.

But with that level of training, they had to eat meat.

Yet, other military camps didn't have enough of that, and no one would give it to you.

Buy it with his own money?

That was impossible to sustain.

Never mind the five thousand men now; even if it were ten thousand tomorrow, or just the one thousand later, eating meat every day—what kind of volume would that be?

And even if he asked his father for it and put it on the Wangfu's account, that wouldn't work either; their entire family's declared income couldn't support these one thousand men.

When the time came, people would say, "Does your Wangfu have some black-market income? How are you so rich?"

This was one of the reasons why Zhu Gaoxu wanted to hurry up and make money.

But since Hu Weiyong had volunteered to solve this problem, Zhu Gaoxu was naturally very happy, but this was not enough!

Thinking this, Zhu Gaoxu spoke directly: "Prime Minister Hu is very thoughtful. It's just a coincidence."

"When I looked at this cat today, I felt a sense of kinship, as if I knew exactly what the cat was thinking."

"At the time, I felt a bit awkward, thinking that such a good cat should go outside the city; once outside, it might become a tiger. Then I had a second thought: what if this tiger caused trouble outside the city?"

"The land outside the city is all fertile fields; what if this tiger hurts people once it's out there?"

Hearing these words from Zhu Gaoxu, the corner of Hu Weiyong's mouth twitched—Zhu Gaoxu was asking for land!

He cursed Zhu Gaoxu's greed in his heart, but on the surface, Hu Weiyong still forced a smile and said: "Your Highness is joking. Since you like it, I am willing to do a good deed. I have a thousand acres of fertile land outside the city; consider it a place for this little tiger to settle down. Once you send men to enclose it, I imagine it won't come out to harm people again."

Hearing Hu Weiyong's words, Zhu Gaoxu finally revealed a satisfied smile.

One had to admit, this old guy was truly sharp; he understood everything with a single hint.

But Zhu Gaoxu did not know that Hu Weiyong's heart was dripping blood.

A thousand acres of fertile land!

Zhu Gaoxu was too ruthless; he opened his mouth and demanded land. Giving a hundred acres wouldn't be enough to show face, but a thousand was too much.

This was purely cutting flesh with a small knife.