Without hesitation, Su Qingran immediately agreed.
“Deal. I’ll buy it!”
With this batch of premium rice, she could lie low for quite a while without having to continue frantically stockpiling grain.
“Miss, you’re refreshingly straightforward.”
Zhao Ziyi smiled.
“Though I do have one question—how will you be paying?”
His expression became somewhat awkward.
“Half in silver, half in banknotes. How about that?”
Su Qingran blinked innocently.
“I didn’t bring that much silver with me.”
“That works.”
Zhao Ziyi readily agreed.
Coincidentally, he was planning to purchase another shipment of goods in the capital and transport them south for resale.
He wasn’t worried about being unable to spend the banknotes.
In truth, most people preferred silver over paper notes.
Many places accepted silver but refused to recognize banknotes altogether.
Having completed another profitable transaction, Su Qingran was in an even better mood.
She instructed the workers to load everything onto her carriage.
The problem was that Zhao Ziyi’s shipment filled five entire wagons.
There was no way it should all fit into hers.
Yet Su Qingran simply told them to keep loading.
Somehow, everything disappeared into the carriage.
Naturally, she was secretly storing the goods inside her space while standing outside to direct the process.
She never allowed anyone to see the carriage’s interior.
Watching the scene, another merchant standing nearby couldn’t help shaking his head.
“How large is that carriage exactly?”
“Five wagonloads of goods all fit inside?”
“Doesn’t she worry about the horse collapsing from exhaustion?”
Zhao Ziyi merely laughed.
“She’s paid for everything.”
“What she does with it is her business.”
Once all the goods had been loaded, Su Qingran walked over to Zhao Ziyi.
“Mr. Zhao.”
She hesitated.
“Since you’re from the south, do you know much about Yuzhou?”
Zhao Ziyi immediately frowned.
“The relatives you’re planning to visit…”
“They aren’t in Yuzhou, are they?”
“That’s right.”
Su Qingran nodded.
For a moment, Zhao Ziyi was speechless.
“Miss…”
He sighed.
“You’d honestly be better off staying in the capital.”
“Yuzhou is a terrible place.”
“Because of its geography and increasingly extreme climate, harvests worsen every year.”
“There aren’t many wealthy families there.”
He shook his head.
“I don’t even dare transport goods into Yuzhou.”
“I’ve heard bandits practically control the region.”
“The court has no real authority there anymore.”
Su Qingran fell silent.
So much for her dream of peacefully retiring and waiting for death.
Now she’d have to deal with bandits too?
“Thank you for the warning, Mr. Zhao.”
She sighed.
“But my clansmen live there.”
“My household registration has already been transferred there.”
“I don’t really have a choice.”
Hearing that, Zhao Ziyi didn’t argue further.
These days, every region was extremely hostile toward outsiders.
Having a registered household and ancestral roots somewhere was incredibly important.
Without proper registration papers, a woman traveling alone wouldn’t even be able to buy a house.
Most regions were tightly united against outsiders.
And nearly all of them looked down on the current imperial court.
“If you can hire guards to escort you to Yuzhou, that would be much safer.”
Zhao Ziyi offered kindly.
“Just be careful along the way.”
He still remembered her mentioning that her people were supposedly on their way to meet her.
Su Qingran felt a little embarrassed.
“Yes.”
“They should arrive soon.”
Then she quickly added:
“But I’m not very good at waiting for people.”
“So I’ll head out first.”
She smiled.
“Mr. Zhao, if fate allows, perhaps we’ll do business again someday.”
“Until we meet again—or perhaps never.”
Zhao Ziyi clasped his hands.
“Miss Su, safe travels.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Su Qingran climbed into the driver’s seat and urged the horse forward.
Watching the road stretch ahead, she felt increasingly optimistic about the future.
The supplies inside her space were growing by the day.
Life was looking better and better.
At that same moment, an imperial court session was underway.
The Ming Emperor sat upon the dragon throne, listening to ministers present their reports.
The emperor was only in his teens.
Unfortunately, he had already been completely ruined.
Every day was spent indulging in luxury, pleasure, and beautiful women.
Court sessions themselves were rare events.
Sometimes an entire month passed with only a handful of meetings.
Standing below the throne was Prince Jing—Xuanyuan Ling—the Regent Prince who truly controlled the empire.
Looking at the drowsy young emperor, a faint smile appeared on his lips.
“Your Majesty.”
He spoke gently.
“Have you forgotten something?”
The emperor immediately jolted awake.
“Oh, right.”
He quickly sat up straighter.
“Continue searching for Xie Yun.”
“Capture him.”
“Recover the military tally.”
After speaking, he cautiously glanced toward Prince Jing.
“Imperial Uncle, was that correct?”
Prince Jing smiled approvingly.
“Very correct.”
“Xie Yun is seriously injured.”
“He cannot escape forever.”
“As long as we recover the military tally, half the work of unifying the realm will already be accomplished.”
His gaze swept over the court.
“Xie Yun has betrayed the court.”
“He refuses to return the military tally.”
“Without it, local regions remain beyond imperial control.”
“Only by recovering the tally can the court reclaim authority.”
He smiled.
“Am I right, Your Majesty?”
“Yes, yes!”
The emperor immediately nodded.
“Imperial Uncle is absolutely right.”
The officials below exchanged uneasy glances.
Finally, one elderly minister stepped forward.
“Your Majesty.”
His voice trembled.
“General Xie’s reputation is unmatched.”
“As long as he guards the frontier, the Xiongnu and the barbarian tribes dare not cross our borders.”
Tears filled his eyes.
“But if word spreads that General Xie has broken with the court…”
“Neighboring nations will surely begin making moves.”
Before he could finish, Prince Jing slammed his hand onto the armrest.
Bang!
“Utter nonsense!”
He stood abruptly.
“Guards!”
“Drag this old fool outside and execute him!”
The entire court erupted.
Officials immediately fell to their knees.
“Your Majesty, please reconsider!”
“Spare him!”
“Please think carefully!”
Everyone knew the truth.
The emperor had long since become a puppet.
Prince Jing ruled the government.
Looking down at the kneeling officials, Prince Jing smiled coldly.
“Anyone who pleads for Xie Yun…”
His voice echoed throughout the hall.
“…is no different from Xie Yun himself.”
Silence followed.
Nobody dared speak again.
Many officials felt only despair.
The Great Ming Dynasty…
was finished.
After court adjourned, the Duke Protector returned home and immediately summoned his son.
“Father.”
Gu Qingyan entered the room.
As always, he appeared cold, noble, and untouchable.
His calm eyes rested upon the Duke.
The Duke sighed heavily.
“Yan’er.”
His expression was grave.
“I want you to leave the capital.”
Gu Qingyan froze.
Immediately, he sensed the seriousness behind those words.
“What happened at court today?”
The Duke sighed again.
“The Regent Prince has completely made up his mind.”
“He intends to kill Xie Yun.”
“He fears Xie Yun threatens his control over the empire.”
Gu Qingyan’s brows knit together.
“If something happens to Xie Yun…”
“The frontier won’t hold.”
The Duke nodded.
“Everyone understands that.”
“But the Regent doesn’t care.”
“He’s determined to eliminate him.”
Then he lowered his voice.
“I heard that when Xie Yun returned to the capital, he urged the emperor to reclaim his authority.”
“He even promised to help him do it.”
A faint smile appeared on Gu Qingyan’s lips.
“I assume…”
“The emperor immediately reported those words to the Regent?”
The Duke let out a weary sigh.
The emperor was simply too foolish.
He no longer knew how to evaluate him.
Looking at his son, he spoke solemnly.
“I have a feeling.”
“The capital is about to descend into chaos.”
“While there’s still time, spend the next few days preparing.”
Then his voice grew firm.
“Leave the capital.”