Chapter 1377

Very quickly.

Three days later.

A bright, sunny morning.

Inside the Jin Luandian.

Gao Yang stood at the very front of the officials, eyes slightly narrowed, taking a short nap.

The civil and military officials all stood behind him, lined up on both sides.

Wu Zhao sat upright on the dragon throne, dressed in a black dragon robe, her expression noble and indifferent.

Shangguan Wan'er stood beside Wu Zhao, her beautiful eyes fixed on Gao Yang's position, filled with ill intent.

The officials submitted their reports one after another, beginning to handle the state affairs of Da Qian; everything appeared very calm.

Suddenly.

Rip.

A crisp sound was heard; Wu Zhao's robe emitted the sound of tearing, splitting open a large gap.

This scene happened extremely suddenly, and not even a few officials noticed it.

But Wu Zhao stood up abruptly, holding open the large tear, and said with a face full of fury.

"The quality of this Shu silk is actually so unbearable; compared to the Zhao Gao of the Zhao Kingdom, the difference is just too great."

"Where is Chen Qiong, the Minister of the Court of Diplomatic Reception?"

This voice attracted the attention of the officials.

Upon hearing this, Chen Qiong stood out immediately.

"Your subject is here!"

Internally, he had been struggling with himself, thinking about when to step forward and submit the proposal for the tribute silk system.

As it turned out, Wu Zhao suddenly pulled this stunt.

In the eyes of others, this action was still fine, but in his heart, it was highly unusual.

This made him associate it with Gao Yang's words.

Wu Zhao said with a majestic phoenix gaze, "I like clothes made of Zhao Gao; you are to send people to the Zhao Kingdom to purchase another hundred bolts and send them into the palace. This portion will be paid from my own private treasury."

Once these words were spoken, a stormy sea surged in Chen Qiong's heart.

He couldn't help but look straight ahead at Gao Yang, who was taking a nap as if everything had nothing to do with him.

A shocking guess rose in his heart.

Afterwards, he said respectfully, "Yes!"

"After the morning court, I will immediately send people to handle it."

Although the officials frowned, they didn't say anything.

After all, although the price of Zhao Gao had been climbing, to Wu Zhao, it didn't amount to much.

Moreover, this money was coming from Wu Zhao's own private treasury, so it was even less their place to point fingers.

Chen Qiong sensed something unusual.

Because all of this was just too coincidental.

Three days ago, Gao Yang had informed him in advance about the tribute silk system, ordering him to submit the proposal today to promote it.

Afterwards, a strange event occurred in Changancheng: someone claiming to be from the Court of Diplomatic Reception suggested that everyone participating in such sacred matters as sacrifices must wear Zhao Gao.

This person was directly taken away by the Embroidered Uniform Guard; he wanted to go and inquire, but was directly blocked.

Because of this news, the price of Zhao Gao began to rise, and merchants began to hoard goods.

Then came today's morning court, where Wu Zhao's robe suddenly tore, disparaging the Shu silk and ordering him to go and purchase a hundred bolts of Zhao Gao.

Combining all of this, Chen Qiong only felt that before his eyes, a fog that he couldn't see through and couldn't disperse was spreading.

It seemed... Zhao Gao was not as simple as he had imagined!

"Your Majesty, this old subject has a matter to report."

Suddenly, Chen Qiong's voice attracted the attention of the officials.

Wu Zhao spoke, "Minister Chen, what matter do you have to report?"

Chen Qiong said with a serious face, "Ever since Your Majesty encouraged the people of our Da Qian to wear Zhao Gao, the common folk have responded one after another; for a time, Zhao Gao has been in short supply."

"But following this, some problems have also been exposed: the quality of Zhao Gao is uneven."

"Therefore, this subject dares to submit a proposal: to assess the workmanship and fabric of Zhao Gao by batch, dividing them into four grades—A, B, C, and D—and stamping them with a cloud-patterned bronze seal!"

"This is the tribute silk system!"

As these words rang out, they instantly sparked heated discussion among the officials.

Lu Wen was the first to stand out and say, "Your Majesty, this move is inappropriate!"

"Now that the price of Zhao Gao is already climbing, if we push the tribute silk system further, it will surely trigger a new round of price increases for Zhao Gao."

"Using the wealth of our Da Qian to be generous with another country—this move is truly unwise!"

Song Li also stood out and said to Wu Zhao, "Your Majesty, what Minister Lu says is not without reason; the price of this Zhao Gao is already high enough."

Following that, Cui Xinghe, Yan Zheng, and others also stepped forward to speak.

For a time, the officials echoed the sentiment in unison.

Wu Zhao listened to these words without changing her expression, but in reality, she was waiting for one voice.

Yet after a long while, she still hadn't heard Gao Yang's voice.