Commercial empire? No, I'm just a transporter of nature.

Inside Wenhua Hall, the air was warm, but the atmosphere was more solemn than that of the Ministry of War's yamen.

Yang Shiqi, Yang Rong, and Yang Pu, three Grand Secretaries of the Grand Secretariat, gathered around a table, repeatedly examining the military report sent by Yang Hong, the commander of Xuanfu, and the "logistics list" attached to it.

Every face was etched with disbelief.

"Five hundred li in one night, men and horses showing no fatigue... Warhorses drinking strong liquor, soldiers eating beef and mutton..."

Yang Shiqi put down the military report and sighed deeply, saying with a complex tone, "I've studied my whole life and read extensively, but I've never heard of an army like this in the world."

"This is no longer a matter that can be explained by military strategy."

Yang Rong's brow furrowed into a knot. "The items on that list, the black bean concentrate, the strong liquor, are all extremely costly in terms of money and grain."

"Especially those three hundred head of cattle and sheep. Xuanfu is a critical border town, and its supplies are already tight. For him to ask for so much is simply... simply asking for the moon!"

Yang Pu tapped the table, pointing to the core issue. "The key is, why could they travel so fast?"

"It defies common sense."

"Even if the warhorses were divine and the soldiers were elite, such an intense forced march would consume enormous stamina."

"How did they maintain their combat effectiveness?"

The three top strategists of the Great Ming Dynasty were now like three bewildered students, staring at an exam question beyond their scope, utterly perplexed.

Just then, the Crown Prince Zhu Gaochi and the Minister of Revenue Xia Yuanji walked in.

Zhu Gaochi's eyes immediately fell on the military report on the table, and a knowing smile appeared on his face. "Have you gentlemen all seen it?"

"Your Highness!"

Yang Shiqi rose and cupped his hands in a solemn salute. "This matter is of great importance!"

"While the combat power of the Ruin the Barbarians Vanguard Camp is commendable, their bizarre methods and enormous expenses have exceeded the court's control!"

"I believe we must immediately send someone to pursue them and bring them under control!"

"Otherwise, if they grow too powerful, they will surely become a serious threat!"

"Control them? How can we control them?"

Zhu Gaochi retorted, "Who can we send?"

"Who can catch up to them?"

"Who can manage Zhanjun?"

Yang Shiqi was speechless once again.

Indeed, they had reached Xuanfu in one night. They were probably deep in the grasslands by now.

Would sending an imperial envoy on horseback just mean chasing dust?

As for managing Zhu Zhanjun, even he, the Regent Crown Prince, couldn't do it. Who else could?

"Your Highness, that's not what I'm worried about."

Xia Yuanji said with a pained expression, "I'm worried about the money!"

"Although Prince Zheng left three million taels, with the way they're spending, it's a bottomless pit!"

"Just that list from Commander Yang Hong alone, when calculated, costs tens of thousands of taels of silver!"

"And that's just one day's consumption!"

"If they fight for a month, even ten treasuries wouldn't be enough to fill this hole!"

Xia Yuanji was a financier, and his perspective was always on cost.

In his eyes, Zhu Zhanjun's army was a money-shredding machine, a terrifyingly efficient one at that.

A voice came from outside the hall. "You don't need to worry about the money."

Everyone turned to see a young man in the uniform of the Crown Prince's personal guard enter.

His appearance was ordinary, but his eyes were exceptionally bright. He was the liaison left by Zhu Zhanjun before his departure, a captain from the Great Snow Dragon Riders, using the alias Zhu Qi.

"Who are you? How dare you trespass in Wenhua Hall!"

Yang Shiqi shouted sternly.

"By order of my Prince, I have come to enlighten all the esteemed officials."

Zhu Qi bowed respectfully without subservience, then took out an account book from his bosom and handed it to Xia Yuanji.

"Lord Xia, my Prince has instructed me to deliver this to you."

"These are the recent monthly account statements for some of his industries. Please take a look."

Xia Yuanji took the account book with suspicion. He opened only the first page, and his eyes nearly popped out.

"Tian... Tianxiang Pavilion Glass Workshop, monthly income... thirty-seven thousand taels?"

"Xihai Tongda Fleet, East Ocean Route, monthly income... sixty-two thousand taels?"

"Kunshan Fine Iron Mine, monthly output of eighty thousand jin of fine iron, value... immeasurable?"

Xia Yuanji's hands began to tremble. He flipped through the pages, his expression shifting from shock to numbness, and finally to complete stupefaction.

The ledger meticulously recorded the astonishing profits from over a hundred merchant firms, workshops, mines, and fleets.

Glass, soap, white sugar, fine iron, maritime trade...

Each one was a unique business with terrifyingly high profits.

Combined, these industries generated a net profit of over five million taels of silver in a single month.

"This... this is impossible..."

Xia Yuanji muttered to himself, feeling as though his entire life's perception of wealth had been overturned. "When did the Great Ming Dynasty ever have so many profitable businesses?"

"How come I don't know about any of them?"

"Lord Xia, naturally you wouldn't know,"

Zhu Qi smiled faintly and explained, "My master said that most of the technology and channels for these businesses come from overseas."

"For example, the glass uses a new firing method from the Western Regions, making the cost extremely low."

"And the white sugar is refined from sugarcane on a southern island, far more efficient than our maltose."

"As for the fleets and mines, they are the result of my master's efforts over more than a decade of secret planning."