On the wedding day, my wife was abnormal

Chapter 1115 Give me all the money in the national treasury!

"Immediately open all government granaries and treasuries! All officials, go out into the streets and appease the people! Tell them that the court has enough grain and money and will not let them go hungry! If any official dares to embezzle grain or neglect his duties during this period, he will be executed without prior notification!"

"Immediately conscript all laborers and organize all manpower to dig deep wells in the city and countryside at all costs! We must solve the drinking water problem for the people in the shortest possible time! All necessary funds, grain, and supplies will be allocated by the Ministry of Revenue! If any local powerful families dare to obstruct us, or take the opportunity to hoard goods and drive up prices, then, as I said before, we will act first and report later!"

She used the phrase "act first, report later" three times in a row, each word carrying a thunderous determination and a ruthless spirit!

Du Ruhui and the officials behind him listened with trepidation, their hearts pounding and cold sweat pouring down their backs.

They knew that this young empress was truly enraged! She was going to use the most ruthless methods to deal with this unprecedented crisis!

"This old minister... obeys the decree!" Du Ruhui dared not be negligent in the slightest and immediately bowed to accept the order.

“Your Majesty,” an official from the Ministry of Revenue hesitated for a moment before mustering his courage to speak, “there are dozens of prefectures along the coast, with tens of millions of people. If we were to open all the granaries and distribute grain, reduce or exempt taxes, and then bear the enormous expenses of digging wells and subsequent disaster relief… the national treasury… I’m afraid the national treasury will be unable to support it…”

"Even if we can't hold on, we must hold on!" Murong Yan's gaze, like two cold, sharp blades, instantly shot towards the official. "Money can be earned back! Grain can be planted again! But if people are gone, and the people's hearts are broken, then the Great Qian Dynasty will truly be finished!"

She stood up and walked step by step to the official, her voice low but carrying an overwhelming aura:

"You must immediately ride back to the capital and tell Minister Zhou! Give me all the money in the national treasury! Give me all the profits from the imperial estates and the private treasury! I'm telling you, and everyone else! As long as the people of my Great Qian can be saved, I will do anything, even sell everything I own!"

"I can even tell you, if you don't have enough money, sell everything in this Qifeng Pavilion! I will never allow any citizen of the Great Qian to die because of this disaster!"

The official was completely stunned by Murong Yan's imposing manner and the resolute determination in her words.

He knelt down with a thud, trembling all over, his voice choked with sobs: "Your Majesty... Your Majesty is wise! I... I deserve to die! I will return to the capital immediately! Even if it costs me my old life, I will deliver the money and grain in full!"

"Go ahead." Murong Yan waved her hand.

After seeing off all the officials, she was left alone in the room once again.

She walked to the table, looked at the huge map of Jiangnan, and at the Grand Canal that meandered like a giant dragon on the map, and felt utterly exhausted.

She knew that what followed was an incredibly tough battle.

She not only has to race against the invisible poison, but also battle against the equally invisible, yet even more dangerous, human nature.

Blocking the canal and cutting off the water supply would inevitably cause panic.

Opening granaries to distribute grain and digging deep wells required astronomical amounts of money, grain, and manpower.

If any link in this chain goes wrong, it could trigger a massive civil unrest.

And she, at the center of this storm, must bear it all alone.

She subconsciously reached out and touched her chest.

It was empty there.

The man who brought her warmth and peace of mind is no longer by her side.

An unprecedented sense of loneliness and vulnerability instantly welled up in my heart.

How she wished he were by her side right now. She could be like always, without having to think about anything or care about anything, just leaning against him, listening to him tell her in his steady and powerful voice: "Yan'er, don't be afraid, I'm here."

But, she can't.

She was the emperor.

She slowly closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, all the weakness in them had disappeared.

She picked up her pen and began to draft one imperial edict after another.

Deploying troops, procuring provisions, pacifying the people, and suppressing bandits...

Clear and decisive orders flowed from her pen, and were swiftly sent to every corner of Jiangnan through the urgent channels of "Night Owl" and the post stations.

From that moment on, the entire war machine of the Great Qian Dynasty revolved around her, operating at high speed.

What she didn't know was that while she was working tirelessly for the people of Jiangnan, far to the north, in the depths of the snowy plains of the northern desert that she thought had been completely pacified.

An enemy she thought was dead was slowly opening his eyes.

Lin Zhen carelessly tossed Kong Zhiqian's body into a corner of the secret room. But what Lin Zhen didn't notice was that, the moment he snapped Kong Zhiqian's neck, he instinctively bit down on a tiny wax pellet hidden between Kong Zhiqian's teeth.

It was a rare poison from the Western Regions called "Turtle Breath Powder." After ingestion, it could induce a state of suspended animation, where the heartbeat, breathing, and pulse would drop to a minimum, making the person virtually dead.

Kong Zhiqian was betting that Lin Zhen, in his rage, wouldn't carefully examine his body.

He made the right bet.

In the dead of night, one of the "Night Owl" agents responsible for cleaning up the bodies sneaked into the secret room. He put Kong Zhiqian's "body" into a sack, transported it out of the city, and threw it into an unknown river.

This outsider was Kong Zhiqian's deepest pawn planted within "Night Owl."

The icy river water stimulated Kong Zhiqian's nerves.

He slowly opened his eyes, looked at the cold moon in the sky, and a ghostly, extremely venomous smile appeared on his face.

"Lin Zhen... Murong Yan... do you think this is the end of it?"

"The game has only just begun..."

......

The Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Yangzhou section.

This is the most prosperous and central section of the canal, with shops lining both banks and pleasure boats shuttling back and forth. Every day, boats from the south and north come and go in an endless stream, making it a veritable "golden waterway".

However, Yangzhou today is shrouded in silence.

Not a single boat could be seen on the wide river. The docks on both banks were deserted.

Squads of soldiers in armor, carrying spears, patrolled back and forth along the riverbank, their expressions solemn, the atmosphere extremely tense.

"Sir, what... what's going on? Why is the canal blocked off for no reason?" A merchant who looked like he was from out of town mustered his courage and asked a patrol officer.

"Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask!" The captain glared at him and snapped, "Just carry out the imperial orders! If you dare say another word, you'll lose your head!"

The merchant shrank back in fear and dared not utter another word.

Similar scenes were playing out simultaneously in every city along the canal.