Chapter 159: Gradual Progress

more prosperous.When the Zhang family reached the middle section of northern Liangzhou, they were stopped at the gates of Haoyuan County. A large number of refugees had gathered there, a vast sea of p...After a series of discussions, the Panlong Kingdom finally set its sights on the second princess as the breakthrough point. After all, unlike the eldest princess, she had not betrayed them by handing over their people, proving there was an opportunity for cooperation.

The second princess didn't want to see these people at first, but after thinking about it, they had promised to help her ascend the throne as empress before, but they hadn't taken any concrete actions. In the end, they ended up benefiting the new emperor.

The current emperor, the Sixth Prince who just ascended the throne, seems to want to build a good relationship with her. As for his purpose, everyone knows it, but she's not stupid either.

Since she was going to bring down the Grand Princess, there were some things she couldn't do herself. So she secretly sent her confidante to meet the people from the Panlong Nation. To ensure nothing went wrong, she also had one of her guards follow along.

Both spies met for two hours before parting ways. However, what they discussed was reported to Ripples' ears in less than half an hour.

“Your Majesty, the Panlong Nation wants to sell their surplus food to us. They say it's to help the Second Princess so she has enough food and confidence in her work. They also promise to sell it to Phoenix Nest Country at a price three cents lower than the market price per jin.”

"With such good leverage, what conditions would the Dragon Nation offer"

Ripple wouldn't believe that pies would fall from the sky.

Let their supply trains enter the Kingdom of Fengqi and allow them to sell other goods.

“I remember there was a dedicated trading market in Panlong Kingdom, are they looking to open up new markets”

They wanted to go to those five occupied cities, and they gave their reasons. After all, when the cities were taken over, the people from Panlong Kingdom didn't leave. They continued to live in the cities, and they have some relatives and friends there whom they want to take back.

"Humph! It's clear that the real intention is not the wine itself! What do you say, Second Princess"

Her confidante replied, "We can only let them go to one of the cities and make their considerations. Both sides are still arguing."

However, the confidante inadvertently let slip the information, revealing the whereabouts of the Third Princess and the city she was in.

After the Phoenix returned his response, he lowered his gaze and stood silently beside her.

Ripples couldn't help but be amused. She didn't know whether to call the second princess clever or foolish. She knew how to use a knife, using the people of Panlong Nation to eliminate the third princess, and even dragged the eldest princess down with her.

It's foolish to try to scheme against the queen. If this is exposed, she won't just lose her chance at becoming empress, she'll probably even lose her current status as a princess. After all, the current empress is still alive!

If she could buy a large amount of relief supplies at a low price, let her handle it. But be sure to keep a close eye on things and make sure the Draco Nation doesn't cheat by substituting inferior goods for quality ones.

Those people from the Panlong Kingdom have all got their eyes on me. I hope they can follow the clues and root out all of them. Then, I'll arrange for someone to take over their identities and send a generous gift to the Xuanwu Kingdom and the Baihu Kingdom.

Ripples commanded directly.

"Yes, subordinate this will be carried out at once."

Have someone bring Old Third and the Royal Attendant back. Make sure they haven't been infected with the plague.

The ripples added another sentence.

"Yes."

A ripple cut a peony flower and inserted it into a crystal vase, letting Lan Xin give it to Nannan. This child is more sensible, after completing her daily homework, she would come to greet her.

Sometimes, she'll also ask questions she doesn't understand. Ripples has already started instilling the thinking patterns of a superior being in Little Girl, subtly influencing her. In Shishi's words, it means she's starting to practice her "little號" .

Three days later, the Second Princess came to see Lianyi. After all, buying grain from Panlong Country was a big deal; it involved using the national treasury's reserves of silver, so she had to let the Empress know and get her seal of approval, otherwise, she couldn't access the funds.

"Your Majesty, this matter was initiated by the people of Panlong Nation. They privately contacted my people. At first, I thought they were large grain merchants. It's just that I felt their timing was too coincidental. After several investigations, I discovered that they were from Panlong Nation."

Although the price they offered was tempting and could solve our immediate food shortage, I didn't expose them. I haggled with them for a few days and finally agreed on a price before coming to report to Mother Empress. To be honest, I'm not sure about this. I have a feeling that the Panlong Nation wouldn't be so kind.

The second princess's words cleared her of any wrongdoing, and she placed the final decision in Ripple's hands, demonstrating her respect for the Queen. Through her confession, she made it clear that she was not the one who initiated contact with the people from Panlong Nation, but rather they had approached her while concealing their identities.

Ripples smiled, feeling that the second princess had improved her rank and knew how to distance herself and share the risk.

“The devastated cities will rely on relief food until next spring, and even after spring arrives, they will need good seeds for planting. You should have the Ministry of Finance make a detailed calculation to see how much grain is missing from the national granaries. We must buy it if it's available for sale.”

The second princess listened and immediately said:

"My lady, the Minister of Household has tallied the figures. The current shortage is 500,000 bushels of grain."

The second princess clearly came prepared.

"That way, you buy 100,000 jin of grain first. Every bag of grain needs to be inspected. Don't let the people from Panlong Nation take advantage. You already suspect their intentions, so be even more careful."

Ripple proposed a compromise.

"Perhaps the Empress Dowager's thinking is more long-term. Then let's buy one hundred thousand catties first. I will definitely assign someone to keep an eye on it. I will have them transport this grain directly to the affected cities. This can also further probe the other party. What does the Empress Dowager think"

"Alright! I said it before, now you're the regent. If you have anything you can't decide on, feel free to ask me for advice. Once you have an idea and make a decision, just do it! Don't hesitate!"

Yes, Your Majesty, I am honored by your trust!

The Second Princess curtsied and then, with a smile on her face, left Zhuxiu Garden.

The matter was brought up at the morning court the next day, and all the ministers agreed with the second princess's proposal. The Ministry of Revenue could still afford the silver to buy 100,000 jin of grain, so the matter was settled.

Then, we'll just wait for the Panlong Kingdom to bring the food. Everyone can inspect it right here and then pay with silver.

Panguo also received the message they sent back, knowing that Fengqi Nation was willing to buy grain with silver. The problem was that the gap was large, and they couldn't raise so much money at once. They were also worried about being cheated, so they only proposed buying 100,000 jin of grain first as a test.

“Your Majesty, the Empress of Fengchi has always been suspicious. We should agree to their terms. Even if they are testing us, our grain transporters can enter Fengchi. Besides, the Second Princess said that this grain is entirely for disaster relief and will be directly transported to the affected cities. This is our chance.”

Zhang Zhang clearly explained the advantages and disadvantages.

"Alright, we won't tamper with this first batch of food. Let's just send it over. The main purpose is to allow our people to enter those five cities smoothly."ions.It took them ten days of traveling like this before they slowly approached the edge of the inner circle. From here on, the number of various monsters and beasts they encountered would increase, a...