Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved
Chapter 294 got me pumped and feeling high-spirited.

Chapter 294: Chapter 294 got me pumped and feeling high-spirited.

Jun Yuyan’s words fell, and immediately a guard took action. Murong Jian’s face turned pale as he finally panicked.

"What are you doing! We’re law-abiding citizens, we haven’t done anything wrong, what do you want to do!"

"First, escort the Old Madam to the Government Office. As for Old Master Murong, it so happens that this Prince has a farm where pigs are raised. Take him there."

Jun Yuyan said coldly.

"No! Let go of me! Murder..."

The old woman hadn’t finished speaking when her mouth was gagged, and the guard, without another word, immediately took her away.

Murong Jian received the same treatment, but he was twisted off to a farm on the outskirts. As for what would happen to him, everyone had heard and certainly assumed he would be fed like a pig.

People didn’t find it cruel; on the contrary, they felt it was immensely satisfying.

A manager said, "It was exactly Murong Jian who encouraged that old hag to scam others. Several times she bumped into officials, and it was always Murong Jian who came out to negotiate. When someone with dignity encounters someone shameless, they can only lose some wealth to avoid disaster. He’s truly rotten to the core!"

"Exactly, if they really needed money, why not do hard labor? Some laborers are in their fifties or sixties and still working, earning over a dozen copper coins a day, which is enough for food and drink!"

"He was once a Marquis; where would he care about those dozen copper coins?"

"They deserved it! Luckily the Prince took them away."

"From now on, our street can be peaceful."

As for so-called filial piety, to speak of it is also laughable. The old woman and Murong Jian were not any kind of relative to Princess Consort Ling, but instead, they made her suffer for sixteen years. They should be called enemies. Yet, they still tried to use filial piety to bind Princess Consort Ling, thinking all the common people were fools?

Once back in the carriage, Murong Jiu wasn’t angry, but rather it was Jun Yuyan who looked solemn.

Murong Jiu smiled and shook his arm, "It’s alright, don’t be angry. Actually, seeing them so miserable makes me quite happy. I don’t feel offended, and you shouldn’t be angry because of those kind of people."

"They tried to use the identity of family members to press you with filial duty, which I find very repulsive. Just now, I was considering whether to let them stay in this world."

"Please don’t, letting them live is the true atonement. Knowing that they are not leading a good life, I could eat two more bowls during tonight’s dinner."

Only then did Jun Yuyan show a hint of a smile, as he caressed her cheek.

When they got to where Manager Chai was, after he escorted Murong Jiu inside, he came back and gave a few instructions to the guard, who then took his leave.

Manager Chai was busy beyond measure, directing various managers and attending to their tasks, while Lou Zixi sat by the side, writing feverishly, not knowing what she was writing.

Murong Jiu glanced over and then had someone lead her to a private room to sit and wait for a while.

This was a newly constructed large commercial building. Nowadays, the scale of the commercial association was ever growing, with many more managers handling affairs and the leaders of the various escort agencies, as well as the heads of the merchant convoys.

Now, just counting the merchant convoys, there were over sixty. The rapid growth of their size even amazed Murong Jiu.

Their merchant convoys spanned the entire Great Yan, with interaction between north and south being the most basic. Even more so, they were heading to the Western Regions and further upstream countries, such as the Great Yuan Nation.

They were even building their own large ships in places like Fujian, and in the future, there would be convoys heading out to multiple maritime nations.

This was indeed a hectic job. Manager Chai was responsible for many decisions, and Lou Zixi would help verify the correctness of those decisions. The two had complementary skills, transforming her once small association, in just a few months’ time, into the largest commercial association in Great Yan.

It grew much faster than she had imagined.

Jun Yuyan followed her in and sat together with her.

"It’s truly surprising that this merchant’s guild has grown to such a large scale."

"Yes, Manager Chai and Lou Zixi have given me such a big surprise."

Jun Yuyan said, "Lou Zixi has already taken part in the Imperial Examination. The Ministry of Rites is still grading the papers. Ah Jiu, what rank do you think he will achieve?"

"His talent is exceptional, and his mind is agile; he is surely destined to be at the very top."

"I didn’t expect Ah Jiu to think so highly of him, but he is indeed very clever. The multicolored auspicious clouds during your labor were his idea. Moreover, I heard that Lord Sikong is interested in taking him as a disciple."

"Which Lord Sikong? The Minister of Dali Temple?"

Jun Yuyan nodded, "Exactly, Sikong Fu himself. He also fancies Lou Zixi’s talents and appearance and wants to make him his son-in-law."

Murong Jiu revealed a surprised smile, "That’s good news. I’ve met Miss Sikong a few times; she’s very gentle and elegant in character, not the scheming type. She won’t disrupt the inner house and drag him down; instead, she’ll be a support to him. The two of them are indeed a match of equal talents and beauty."

Jun Yuyan looked at her expression and smiled, "But Lou Zixi rejected it."

"Why?"

"Who knows? Maybe he’s not in a hurry to marry."

Murong Jiu nodded and didn’t think much more about it.

Lou Zixi didn’t seem like someone who enjoyed the frivolities of love. If he had no love for Miss Sikong, making someone endure the solitude of the inner house would not be good. It would be better for Miss Sikong to find a more considerate husband.

Everyone has their own destiny; Murong Jiu also disliked prying into others’ private affairs.

At this moment, Manager Chai and Lou Zixi entered the room together and paid their respects to the two of them.

Murong Jiu smiled and said, "I’ve said there’s no need for formalities, why don’t you ever listen? Come and take a seat. I only realized how busy you’ve been after coming here on a whim. I seem to have completely forgotten my role as a hands-off manager."

Manager Chai and Lou Zixi both broke into laughter.

Lou Zixi said, "It is our fortune to be able to serve the Princess Consort."

Manager Chai said, "The Princess Consort doesn’t know how thrilling it is to strategize and have everything under control. I feel I was born to be a businessman. This kind of busyness makes my blood boil with excitement, and I am full of spirit."

Business is like a battlefield; nothing ever goes smoothly, but such excitement only makes them stronger when faced with challenges.

"Good, it seems I can continue to be a hands-off manager."

Manager Chai laughed and said, "That won’t do; for important decisions, we still need the Princess Consort’s final approval. Your Highness, you and the Prince must have come personally today for some directive."

"Directive is too formal a word; I just want to acquire more foreign seeds. I want to try growing every kind of crop to give the people of Great Yan more choices."

Suddenly, Lou Zixi said, "I heard that today, Your Highness faced some difficulties in the fields?"

Jun Yuyan looked at Lou Zixi in surprise and said in a calm voice, "I didn’t expect news of what happened there to reach your ears so quickly."

Lou Zixi respectfully said, "I arranged for people to keep an eye on every estate that planted the new crops, fearing trouble. The news from the Liu Family estate reached me just as the Prince and Princess Consort were solving the problem, so I’m already informed of the situation."

Murong Jiu once again marveled at Lou Zixi’s keen and sensitive mind, thinking that if it hadn’t been for her and the Prince’s past, those sweet potato seedlings would not have died.

In her past life, Lou Zixi was already very capable; in this life, he just hadn’t had the chance to demonstrate it yet.

Lou Zixi, looking at Jun Yuyan, asked neither humbly nor arrogantly, "They caused trouble for the Princess Consort; may I know how the Prince plans to deal with the Liu Family?"