Chapter 102: Borrowing a Knife to Kill

Fu Tao's face was anxious, and he lowered his voice: "Your Highness, you absolutely must not touch this. I heard from my father that the court has been arguing fiercely over the position of Governor-General of Grain Transport for months without reaching a decision. If you get involved in this, you'll become a target for everyone!"

Zhu Xu nodded with an "mm-hmm," looking as if he understood, and said: "The ministers are all devoted to the country. I won't cause any trouble."

Fu Tao didn't bother with whether Zhu Xu's words were sincere or not; he frowned, his heart burning with anxiety. He knew he couldn't persuade His Highness Prince Hui, and he pondered that he needed to hurry back to inform his father. Otherwise, if His Highness Prince Hui recklessly charged into this quagmire of grain transport, something major was bound to happen.

Before Fu Tao could go back to find Fu Changzong, the carriage stopped in front of a small teahouse.

The moment it stopped, Luo Yangxing, dressed in plain clothes, came out from inside and stood before the window, bowing: "Your subordinate Luo Yangxing pays respects to Your Highness."

Zhu Xu smiled at Fu Tao and said: "Let me show you a good show." Then he spoke toward the window: "Come up."

Luo Yangxing acknowledged with a sound, boarded the carriage, and seeing that Fu Tao was also there, quickly said: "Paying respects to Your Highness, paying respects to Young Master Fu."

Zhu Xu waved his hand and said: "So, how did the investigation go?"

Luo Yangxing bowed slightly: "Reporting to Your Highness, everything has been looked into. Li Jinyan, Qian Qianyi, and others have come to the capital precisely for the grain transport matter. They don't want a new Governor-General appointed, and in recent days they've been running around the capital, persuading quite a few people."

Zhu Xu nodded, but a hint of mockery curled at the corner of his mouth.

In the court, every single minister claims to be honest and devoted to duty, every one of them loyal and faithful—yet each and every one comes from a wealthy family. Whenever state affairs arise, especially major ones, they all fight desperately to show their ability or status, as if not doing so would fail to demonstrate how wholeheartedly they serve the court and the Emperor.

Luo Yangxing watched Zhu Xu's expression and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, shall we act today? Your subordinate can send men right now to arrest them and throw them in prison!"

Zhu Xu snapped his fan shut, looked at him with a smile, and said: "I hear you don't get along with Yang Zhe?"

Luo Yangxing's gaze shifted slightly as he guessed at the meaning behind Zhu Xu's words, then suddenly his expression turned solemn: "Rest assured, Your Highness, your subordinate has the Embroidered Uniform Guard under control and will not delay Your Highness's affairs!"

Zhu Xu looked at him with a beaming smile, saying nothing.

Luo Yangxing's face froze for a moment, and only after a long while did he venture cautiously: "Your Highness, could it be that Yang Zhe is also one of our own?"

Zhu Xu shook his head.

Luo Yangxing's brow furrowed in confusion, and after another pause he steeled himself to say: "Your subordinate does not understand. I beg Your Highness to enlighten me."

Zhu Xu looked at him, sighing inwardly—this Luo Yangxing, whether in insight or ability, was over a dozen streets behind his old fox of a father. If not for Luo Sigong propping him up from behind, Luo Yangxing might never have gained power in the Embroidered Uniform Guard; being kicked out was only a matter of time.

But this kind of Luo Yangxing was precisely the most useful to him.

Zhu Xu leaned forward, drawing close and speaking in a low voice: "This grain transport is no less troublesome than Liaodong. Whoever touches it is in for bad luck."

Luo Yangxing's expression stirred, and he said with slight excitement: "Your Highness means for me to order Yang Zhe to investigate?"

Zhu Xu sighed inwardly again and explained further: "Yang Zhe is greedy for money, isn't he? After you go back, have your men 'accidentally' leak to Yang Zhe's subordinates the amount of silver these people brought, and exaggerate it a bit. Then Yang Zhe will go investigate. Once he makes his move, you arrange for your people to go in—whether he's scared and wants to back out, or he takes the silver, you must push him openly and covertly to keep investigating. In the end, the blame will fall on him to bear. Understand?"

With such plain words, Luo Yangxing naturally understood. He immediately made to stand up, saying excitedly: "Rest assured, Your Highness, I'll go arrange it right away. Guaranteed there will be news by tonight."

After Zhu Xu nodded with a smile, Luo Yangxing left in high spirits.

It wasn't because he was doing things for Zhu Xu, but because he wanted to topple Yang Zhe and completely control the Embroidered Uniform Guard!

While Luo Yangxing was present, Fu Tao had remained silent. Now, having heard Zhu Xu's plan, he still frowned and said: "Your Highness, you just appeared before Li Jinyan, and the very next step he gets investigated—I'm afraid those with sharp eyes will grow suspicious."

The Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot are institutions directly under the Emperor. If anyone outside gets involved with them, it's regarded as high treason—let alone someone with as sensitive an identity as Zhu Xu.

Zhu Xu fanned himself vigorously and said: "Relax, relax. Those people will know that I merely learned of the news ahead of time and wanted a piece of the pie."

Fu Tao also knew that Zhu Xu always acted with thoroughness and wouldn't hand people such an obvious handle. He pondered and said: "Your Highness, are you worried that shipping gunpowder, coal, and pig iron through grain transport might run into trouble, and you want to use your own people?"

Zhu Xu nodded without saying more, his gaze narrowing slightly as he looked ahead.

Logically speaking, amid the expansion of the bureaucratic class, the Great Ming had begun to show a slight sprout of capitalism, and the prospects should have been decent. Yet right now the Great Ming was in a state of extreme polarization—the bureaucratic class and landlords great and small all paid no taxes, the rich growing richer, while poor peasants bore ever more taxes, the poor growing poorer!

Now that the six routes were impassable, grain transport was a great artery connecting north and south—an important blood vessel for the rich to amass wealth!

What Zhu Xu intended to do was to tighten a rope around this great artery, and then slowly bleed it dry!

In truth, Zhu Xu hated that his reach wasn't long enough. If he could extend it to the south, whether it was these people's maritime trade or smuggling, he wanted to get a hand in, draw out the blood, and save this nation!

With the scorching heat plus Empress Zhang's prohibition, Zhu Xu returned to the palace early, enjoying rare coolness in his study laid with ice blocks.

Zhu Xu sat in his chair, reading while inwardly feeling fortunate. Luckily the Ming emperors had no habit of leaving the capital to escape the summer heat—otherwise, if he had to leave the capital with them, this whole enterprise of his would surely fall apart.

"It seems I need to give them greater authority."

Zhu Xu pondered to himself. His business was currently divided into four major branches.

What he valued most was the Huitong Trading Company, currently managed by Wei Liangqing. The second was the Huimin Merchant Association and its workshops, managed by Li Deyong. The third was the land he had purchased, which was Fu Changzong's affair. The fourth was the salt fields the Ministry of Revenue had allocated to Fu Changzong—that one had been given to Wei Zhongxian.

Soon, grain transport would be added.

This one he planned in his heart to entrust to Zhou Jianyu. This man had deep connections and considerable influence in the south—using him to develop grain transport would be most fitting.

Counting it all up carefully, past next year, with the Huitong Trading Company's branches spread out, the Huimin Merchant Association's channels opened, the salt fields selling private salt, plus grain transport—monthly profits, by conservative estimate, would exceed a million taels!

Zhu Xu wrote the three large characters "one million taels" on white paper, studied them, and felt an inexplicable relief in his heart.

With an inexhaustible stream of silver, whether for drought relief or suppressing rebellion, there would be a shred of confidence.

"Your Highness."

Suddenly, Yao Qingqing's voice came from outside the door.

Zhu Xu changed to a fresh sheet of paper and said: "Come in."

Yao Qingqing carried in a bowl of tea, walking in with a soft laugh: "Your Highness, the iced sour plum drink you asked for."

Though ice blocks around the room radiated cool air, it was still unbearably hot and stuffy. Hearing this, he brightened and said: "Ah, many thanks, Sister Qingqing."

Yao Qingqing smiled with her lips pressed together and said: "Your Highness, Eunuch Cao is outside requesting an audience."

Zhu Xu took a sip, feeling the coolness reach straight to his heart and lungs, and said with satisfaction: "Good, let him in. Oh, and bring him a bowl as well."