East Palace.
The prince looked at the news presented by Qingliu and his face was as dark as water.
The Northern Expedition was the top priority of the Qian Dynasty, and the preparation of grain, grass and iron tools was the top priority of the Northern Expedition.
He dares to make a fuss about such a thing. His second brother is really... so courageous!
Xiang Baichuan could even foresee the consequences of this incident.
It was nothing more than that the prince failed to raise food and grass and was punished by the Holy One.
At the critical moment, His Royal Highness King Yuan stood up and interceded for His Highness the Crown Prince.
In order to save His Royal Highness from the fire and water, he issued a military order in front of the civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty, vowing to retrieve the lost grain, grass and ironware within three days.
If things really develop like this, I'm afraid... Xiang Longyuan will become famous, but as for him, his reputation will be completely ruined.
Xiang Baichuan stood up, suppressed the anger in his heart, and said: "Urgent order to Prime Minister Wei, the Imperial Academy will offer wine to Hu Yan and enter the East Palace to discuss matters."
He paused and then added: "Gu Beichuan, the general master craftsman, is also here."
Not long after waiting, three sedans entered the East Palace one after another.
His Royal Highness has already prepared a banquet and is only waiting for the three of them to take their seats.
"Everyone is clear about the matter. What should we do now?"
"How much, we should draw up a charter." Xiang Baichuan was obviously a little worried.
"Has it been confirmed?" Wei Xiang asked carefully.
"Hmph, besides him, who else in this huge Qiandu would dare to rob the food for the Northern Expedition!" The prince was obviously furious and unbearable.
"If it is really what King Yuan said, I'm afraid it will be a bit difficult to handle." Hu Yan also sighed: "Firstly, we have no evidence, and secondly, he is the prince after all. Even if we have evidence, it is not enough for us. Only His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Prime Minister Wei can propose impeachment in front of the Holy Emperor."
"If the evidence is conclusive, I will definitely not show mercy. There is no need to worry about this matter."
"The top priority is to find evidence!"
"Difficult! Since His Highness Prince Yuan dares to take action, it means that he is fully confident. How can he leave evidence for us to investigate?" Wei Qing pondered for a while and then exhaled a breath.
"In my opinion, it is better to find the food first so that I can deliver it to His Majesty."
"As for other things, we can still take it one step at a time."
Xiang Baichuan frowned when he heard this.
To be honest, since King Yuan has started an internal fight, he naturally doesn't want to let it go.
But... now that things have happened, Wei Qing is right, food is the top priority. If he cannot find food, he will not have the slightest confidence to speak in front of the emperor!
"How to get the food back?"
After saying this, he fell into silence again.
In desperation, Xiang Baichuan turned his attention to Gu Beichuan, who had never spoken, and said, "Gu Qing, do you have any suggestions?"
Such behavior instantly pushed Gu Beichuan to the forefront. For a moment, the eyes of Wei Qing and Hu Yan were focused on him.
Seeing that Gu Beichuan did not speak out immediately, but hesitated.
Xiang Baichuan's eyes suddenly brightened, and he said: "If Gu Qing really has a way, he can speak freely, and there should be no scruples between you and me, the monarch and his ministers."
When Gu Beichuan heard this, he couldn't help but reveal a wry smile.
He didn't refuse, but nodded and said, "To be honest, I'm not very sure about my method."
"I just hope I can provide you with some ideas."
These polite words were automatically ignored by everyone, because what came next was the real deal.
As expected, Gu Beichuan continued: "I was thinking that after robbing so much grain, grass and iron ore, he could disappear in an instant without leaving any trace. His Highness Prince Yuan really has great hands and eyes. "
When everyone heard this, their eyes lit up.
Xiang Baichuan even asked directly: "What do you mean?"
"Food! So much food! Even if the perpetrators of the robbery can be evacuated in a short time, such a large amount of food probably cannot be taken away at once. It will need to be transported by a convoy!" Gu Beichuan no longer concealed it and spoke directly from his heart.
"These days we have set up many passes in Jiuyuan, and there are no carriages coming and going."
"That means... the grain, grass and iron ore are still in Jiuyuan!" Hu Yan's eyes lit up and he added.
"In that case, where can he store so much food and grass?" Gu Beichuan continued to be persuasive.
"Jiuyuan Granary!" Wei Qing's cloudy eyes flashed with light, and he said it clearly!
"Jiuyuan is made up of nine large and small plains. It has always been a holy land for grain production, so the granaries are very large and evenly distributed. There are as many as nine in total!"
"With such a large number of granaries, even if we temporarily store the grain and iron ore we transport, there will be no problem at all!"
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince stood tall, his eyes sparkling with light.
"What a brave Xiang Longyuan, he actually hid food and grass right under our noses."
"It's just that he never expected that the Gu Qing family could have such extraordinary wisdom."
"Your Highness is ridiculous. These are the ideas that His Highness and the princes themselves came up with. The minister just provided some ideas."
Hearing this, Xiang Baichuan couldn't help but nodded secretly.
What king wouldn't like such a capable and humble minister?
"First send someone to the Jiuyuan Granary to check. If the matter is true, I will not treat the Qing family badly!"
"Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness."
"In the Nine-Character Camp of Qiandu, I control the three camps of 'Qian', 'Kun' and 'Feng', with a total of more than 30,000 people."
"Fengziying is famous for its speed. Let's let them go this time. I hope you will be more careful during this time."
"Don't move around too much, lest the news comes to Prince Yuan."
"Of course that's the case. I'll take my leave."
By the time the three of them walked out of the East Palace, it was already noon.
After talking all morning, the three of them were inevitably thirsty and even a little hungry.
So, Gu Beichuan suggested: "There is a restaurant I open not far away. The food is pretty good. How about you two... give it a try?"
Logically speaking, Wei Qing and Hu Yan would never agree to such an invitation.
After all, the current officialdom of Daqian is full of undercurrents and intrigues are reaching the extreme.
If you make friends with people casually, you may be offended and cause unnecessary misunderstandings.
It's just...this time is different from the past.
The person who invited them today was Gu Beichuan!
Gu Beichuan, who just gave His Highness the Crown Prince an idea!
Anyone could be a member of King Yuan's party, but Gu Beichuan... the possibility was extremely slim.
Therefore, the two of them looked at each other and smiled, and both agreed.
Inside Feihong Restaurant.
After three drinks and five dishes, Gu Beichuan rubbed his belly and looked downstairs lazily, where there was a lot of traffic and a lot of people.
Working for His Highness the Crown Prince is really a hard job.
It was almost noon, and we were not left to have a light meal.
"Is this wine made by talented people from Huainan? It is said that Brother Beichuan brewed it himself!" Hu Yan laughed heartily after taking a sip.
He was on duty at the Imperial College, and his salary was not low, but certainly not much higher.
Such a good wine is something I don’t drink very often on weekdays.
"Beichuan has spent money." Even Wei Qing joked.
Gu Beichuan was helpless, smiled and shook his head: "You two are here to give me face, there is no reason to spend money."
boom!
At this moment, a crisp sound sounded not far away from the three of them.
He was a waiter in a restaurant. When serving food, he accidentally broke the dish in his hand into several pieces.
And it's so good that this dish belongs to Gu Beichuan and the others.
For a moment, the air seemed to be stagnant.
