Robbing an Entire City Outright
Princess Jianing asked, "Mother, have all your jewelry gone?"
"It's all gone, all of it. A lot of it was originally meant for your dowry, now it's all gone."
Noble Consort Ning was weeping bitterly, while Zhou Wanwan looked at the Manman of gold and silver treasures and said, "Tsk tsk tsk! I didn't expect these soldiers to be so rich! They actually have so much silver!"
The warriors of the Great Qi were much richer than the warriors of the Great Xia Kingdom.
Zhou Wanwan sighed, "Let's collect some interest first, and then continue distributing grain starting today."
Whether they were ordinary citizens in the city or soldiers, everyone needed to eat.
But the reason Yanmen Pass was poor was precisely because there was absolutely no food; all the trees had been pulled down.
When those trees saw Zhou Wanwan, they cried their eyes out.
"We trees are so pitiful! When we're alive, you can eat the bark, the leaves, and even the roots."
Even after I die, I'll be turned into a house! Waaaaah! It hurts so much!
Tens of thousands of trees outside looked as if they were weeping, a truly magnificent sight.
Zhou Wanwan cried until her head ached.
"Stop crying, what's the use of crying?"
These are all minor injuries. As long as you're willing to work with me, they'll recover in a month or two.
The trees perked up. "Really? You're that powerful?"
Zhou Wanwan nodded and said, "Oh dear! Didn't you guys try it? But using spiritual power is also very tiring for me, do you understand? Do you understand?"
Some trees seem dull and clueless. What does that mean? What do they need to understand?
There are still some wise trees, one of which said:
"Ah! I understand what you mean. My previous owner buried a lot of good things."
He was in such a hurry when he ran away that he forgot to take it with him. I'll dig it out for you now.
"Ah! You mean this? My owner's family has some too, I'll go dig it up right now."
"My master is the city lord of Yanmen Pass. He buried all those good things underground. Wait a minute!"
I'll dig these things out right now.
Zhou Wanwan smiled and nodded, saying, "Oh dear! You friends are too kind; it makes me feel embarrassed."
Who would have thought that Zhou Wanwan's first task upon arriving at Yanmen Pass was to defeat the enemy army?
The second thing was to loot the valuables of Yanmen Pass, and they did so by digging deep into the ground.
Zhou Wanwan waited for a short while before she saw a pear tree, and a person carrying a jar and a box walk in.
Zhou Wanwan opened the jar, and it was filled with copper coins.
When the box was opened again, there were more than a dozen silver Yuanbao, as well as a lot of loose silver and gold and silver treasures.
Zhou Wanwan chuckled and said:
"Actually, this habit of the ancients was really good; they liked to hide good things underground."
Why not put it in a money exchange? Does our family own a money exchange here?
The Old Scholar Tree next to it said:
"Of course there are no money shops here. It's too poor. Even if we opened a money shop here, no one would deposit money."
Besides, this place is too chaotic; ordinary people wouldn't dare open a money exchange here.
Zhou Wanwan said:
Just because others don't dare to drive doesn't mean I don't dare to drive! I must drive!
Not only should I open a money exchange, but I should also open a security escort agency; these are all highly profitable industries, and I'm sure I'll make money.
Most people would struggle to make money running a security escort agency, but for her, it's a guaranteed profit!
The Old Scholar Tree nodded and said, "Alright, let's go see if there's anywhere suitable to open a money exchange and a security escort agency near Yanmen Pass."
Zhou Wanwan took the Old Scholar Tree for a walk, and sure enough, they saw a shop at Yanmen Pass, in a very good location.
Zhou Wanwan looked at Qin Shan and said, "Go and ask if these shops are for sale?"
Qin Shan sent someone to inquire, and soon someone returned to report, "The shops in Yanmen Pass are practically worthless now. A shop like this is only worth 10 taels of silver, which is practically a freebie."
Zhou Wanwan looked at the shops and said:
"What? Such a big shop, only 10 taels of silver? That's incredibly cheap!"
"Then could you ask around for me, how much do all the shops on this whole street cost?"
Soon, several soldiers from Yanmen Pass came over and said:
"I heard Miss wants to buy a shop? Nobody wants these shops, so you can take them if you want!"
Besides, Yanmen Pass is now yours; you can take whatever you want.
Zhou Wanwan thought for a moment and said, "Hey! That makes sense! So Yanmen Pass is mine now?"
Qin Shan quickly said:
"Your Majesty, it is naturally yours. You saved the people of Yanmen Pass."
"You fought your way back to Yanmen Pass, so why shouldn't it be yours?"
Zhou Wanwan sighed and said, "I'm timid, I've never thought about it that way!"
Before, when they robbed people, they only stole some valuables, but now they're letting her rob an entire city.
She really didn't dare to think about it.
However, it's not that I can't think about it, but the main thing is that Yanmen Pass is indeed quite dilapidated. If I were to send her to save Yanmen Pass, I'd need to find a reason, right?
She saved the people of Yanmen Pass, repaired the city walls, and got everything done, only to hand it over to someone else. That would be such a loss.
Zhou Wanwan nodded and said, "That makes sense, but Yanmen Pass is really too dilapidated. With the city walls in such a state, what can it possibly defend?"
An Old Scholar Tree muttered, "What do we need city walls for Yanmen Pass? With so many trees, who would dare to cause trouble here?"
That's what they say, but Zhou Wanwan still intends to improve Yanmen Pass.
These shops, in particular, are absolutely awful!
And the places where ordinary people live are so dilapidated.
She circled around Yanmen Pass, shaking her head repeatedly. "What use is this junk to me?"
Qin Shan coughed and said, "Sigh! Let's leave it at that for now! We'll build something better when we have more money."
Zhou Wanwan shook her head and said, "I can't wait. I want to change things up here at Yanmen Pass right now. Let me think of a way."
Actually, this matter is easy to resolve. They are at war with the Great Qi, and since the Great Qi has invaded, the Great Qi Kingdom is their enemy!
When dealing with enemies, one should naturally not be polite.
The Old Scholar Tree led Zhou Wanwan directly to the Great Qi Kingdom. Soon, they found some trees and asked for directions.
The most famous city near the border of the Great Qi Kingdom was called Suiyuan City.
The tall, blue-brick city walls stand majestically, and most of the houses inside are built of solid wood, with pavilions and shops lined up one after another.
Wealthy merchants from all directions flocked here, and goods from both the north and south converged here, making the streets bustling and prosperous.
Zhou Wanwan stood on the tree and looked inside, marveling at the sight:
"Wow! How bustling it is! It reminds me of Chang'an City, tsk tsk tsk..."
If only this were in our Great Xia Kingdom! Wouldn't it be wonderful if our Yanmen Pass were like this?
The Old Scholar Tree looked at the more than 3,000 trees behind it and said:
"We brought over 1,000 trees with us this time, and we also collected this large batch along the way."
Taking this city shouldn't be a problem.