An overthinker hands over a fortune; two noble daughters forge an alliance in the outer courtyard

"The prince is in poor health, the manor is short of money, the ladies are all capable, the relationships within the household are complicated, and the manor has also taken in many people of dubious origin."

As Chen Qing spoke, his voice lowered, "Later I discovered that it was true that the Prince built the irrigation canals, opened the granaries, treated the people's illnesses, and even the public toilets were genuinely effective."

So you've abandoned darkness and embraced the light?

"I'm actually still observing."

Gu Moran looked at him.

Chen Qing coughed and immediately changed his tune. "I've observed the situation and understand that Prince An may not succeed. However, as Prince An's confidant, I cannot turn back rashly."

His throat was parched, yet his eyes gleamed with an almost manic excitement.

He leaned forward, which pulled at the scabbed cracks on his back, causing his mouth to twitch in pain, but his speech became faster and faster.

"I've thought about it again, and the truth about Yang Tie's matter should be like this."

He fled west with the prescription, and Your Highness, the crossbowmen you deployed in the West Mountain didn't come out early or late, but waited until the Tubo spies showed themselves before firing their arrows.

It was clearly a tacit agreement between you and Prince An that you used the Tubo to send that deadly poison pill to the snow mountain, causing the barbarian soldiers under Chisang's command to spontaneously combust and collapse. This was a series of ruthless schemes to wipe out your entire army.

Standing beside Gu Moran, Batuer rubbed the bridge of his nose, his large, round eyes filled with a strange expression.

She turned to look at her lord, then down at Chen Qing, her lips moved twice, but she swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

How Chen Qing the story has changed again in less than a quarter of an hour?

Gu Moran lowered his head and took a sip of warm tea, the slightly sweet aroma lingering on his lips and teeth.

When the teacup was set down, the porcelain base made a very slight, crisp sound against the wooden table.

Then, he raised his eyes, his tone calm but with a hint of approval.

" Strategist Chen is meticulous and insightful. He was able to discern the deeper meaning between myself and my second brother from these myriad threads of thought. He is truly a peerless talent. An ordinary strategist would probably not even be able to grasp the first layer of the meaning."

Upon hearing this, Chen Qing felt as if his bones had lightened considerably, and the burning pain in his back seemed to have been largely alleviated by the praise.

With trembling hands, he pulled out a thick stack of oiled paper, peeled it back layer by layer to reveal five thousand-tael official notes stamped with the vermilion seal of Tongbao Bank, and carefully pushed them to the center of the coffee table.

"This is five thousand taels of silver from Prince An's private treasury, which I have entrusted to my subordinate. I am currently serving Cao Cao but my heart is with Han, and I wish to offer this entirely to Your Highness as military funds."

"I only ask that Your Highness grant me a task, allowing me to go to the Tubo border to negotiate. I am confident that with my silver tongue, I can incite internal strife between Yang Tie and Chisang, causing those Snow Mountain barbarians to collapse without a fight."

Gu Moran glanced down at the stack of warm silver notes on the table, gently pressed his hand on the edge of the notes, and rubbed his fingertips on the vermilion ink.

He then raised his head and looked at Chen Qing with utmost seriousness.

"With such a broad mind and ambition, it's truly a waste for Mr. Chen to remain behind the scenes."

In my opinion, when the four directions are pacified and the court is thoroughly cleansed, there will surely be a scholar in the Wenyuan Pavilion of the Grand Secretariat.

"I have witnessed firsthand the potential of this Prime Minister today."

Chen Qing's chest heaved violently at the phrase "qualities befitting a prime minister," and her eyes welled up with tears. She struggled to slide off the chair, supporting herself on her knees, to give Gu Moran a deep bow.

Gu Moran quickly stopped him.

"Sir, you are injured. There is no need for formalities. Tubo a harsh and dangerous place. I will instruct the accountant to prepare enough medicine and dry food for you, and send two capable bodyguards to secretly escort you out of the pass."

"This journey is long and arduous; the safety of Yi Prefecture and my own wishes rest entirely on your shoulders, sir."

Chen Qing's blood boiled, he patted his chest hard, gritted his teeth to suppress the pain, and with Batuer's help, limped out of the side hall, muttering that he would not let the prince down.

Once the heavy cotton curtains of the side hall were lowered again, shutting out the biting wind outside, Gu Moran finally couldn't help but shake his head, reached out and stuffed the five thousand taels of silver into his sleeve, and turned to look at Uncle Fu came out from behind the screen.

"Go and inform Xue Huan to send two men to follow him at a distance. As long as he doesn't head towards our armory or the back mountain, let him wander westward. Also, have the kitchen prepare two jin of braised beef for Batuer; she was holding back for so long earlier."

Uncle Fu smiled, bowed, and readily accepted. He quickly gathered the empty teacups on the table, then left and closed the door behind him.

At the cold, drafty entrance in the outer courtyard, a draft swept straight in from the covered walkway.

Two heavy willow baskets were placed on either side of the stone table, filled with raw chestnuts that had just been brought back from the back mountain.

The chestnut shell is covered with hard, prickly bristles. Even after the outer shell is removed, the skin is still smooth and tough, and feels cold and raw like mountain mud to the touch.

Meng Jiuning tightened her Shu brocade cloak with its dark patterns, her right fingertips holding a delicate silver shell-opening awl, the tip pressed against the navel of a chestnut.

She pushed forward with all her might, but the chestnut shell was too slippery, and the tip of the awl slid to the edge of the stone table with a screeching sound, while her fingernail slammed hard into the hard stone corner of the table.

With a soft "snap," Meng Jiuning's neatly trimmed crescent-shaped nail on her left index finger split open, causing her eyelids to twitch violently in pain.

She turned the chestnut over and looked at it.

The outer skin wasn't broken, but the tender meat inside was crushed into a pulp, turning into a sticky, yellowish mess that got all over my fingertips.

"How exactly do you peel this?" Meng Jiuning muttered softly, her nose slightly reddened by the cold wind.

In the Dali royal palace, how could a master personally touch such raw, shelled food?

Before entering the Prince's mansion, she was prepared to be interrogated, imprisoned, or even placed under house arrest. However, she never expected that Su Yao would lead her to the outer courtyard, throw down the words, "If you want to eat for free in the Prince's mansion, you'd better produce some food first," and casually throw two large baskets of raw chestnuts in front of her.

Sitting across the stone table, Yun Shuyue was in an even more disheveled state than she was.

Yun Shuyue had been huddled in the shade of the corridor, her snowman hat perched askew on her head, her sleeves rolled up high, revealing a section of her wrist covered in dried syrup.

She had sneaked into the main kitchen to try and dip a bamboo skewer into the half-pot of snow crystal syrup that Shen Ling'er had just made, but she was caught red-handed by Su Yao, who was leading the account books around the kitchen.

"Steal a bite, peel a whole basketful." Su Yao's words still echoed in my ears.

Yun Shuyue wasn't holding an awl; instead, she was gripping a small iron knife and gritting her teeth as she struggled against a chestnut the size of a fist.

She had a strong grip and pried hard along the gap. With a "crack," the chestnut shell didn't break, but the blade bounced back and cut the web of her left hand.

"Hiss--" Yun Shuyue gasped, threw the iron knife on the table, and shook her wrist while breathing out cold air.

The stone table was a mess.

In front of Meng Jiuning were seven or eight pieces of fruit pulp that had been stabbed to pieces, with the outer skin still attached to the fibers;

In front of Yun Shuyue was a small pile of broken shells and meat that had been violently smashed; the whole thing had been peeled off, and there weren't even three left.

The two looked up, their eyes meeting in mid-air.

Meng Jiuning looked at Yun Shuyue's face covered in sugar stains, coal dust, and a crooked fur hat, and her lips moved slightly.

Yun Shuyue also glanced at Meng Jiuning's broken fingernails and mud-stained coat, and blinked.

There was silence for four or five breaths.

Clang.

Meng Jiuning tossed the silver awl in her hand into the bamboo basket without hesitation, slumped back against the stone bench, and rested her hands on her knees. "I'm not peeling anymore. Whoever wants to peel can peel."

When Yun Shuyue saw that she was giving up, she slumped down as well, stretched her legs under the stone table, and sighed, "I'm not peeling anymore either. That accountant Su's abacus beads are moving faster than popping beans every day, it hurts my ears to listen to it."

"With just a glance from her eyes, she could tell you even if you had two pieces of silver hidden in your sleeve."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jiuning raised an eyebrow. "You're afraid of her too?"