Our Master Really Has No Great Ambition

Xie Cheng'en burst into tears. "Grandpa, are you crazy? Why are you abandoning the whole family?"

Old Master Xie said:

"Shut up, Xie Cheng'en! You better remember this: from now on, the Xie Family will respect Zhou Wanwan."

She will be your master from now on. If you dare to disrespect her again, I will break your legs.

Xie Cheng'en said with a bitter face, "She'll be my master in the future? Waaah... My life is so miserable!"

He knelt down with a thud. "Greetings, Master."

Zhou Wanwan said:

"Rise! I have a few things I'd like to discuss with you."

Our border region still has a bright future; the capital will be here in the future.

Now that you've seen what's going on here, you should know what I want to do.

I just want to ask, are any of you willing to develop your careers in the border region?

And you'd better not leak what happened here today. If you can't keep your mouths shut, you'll have to bear the consequences.

Zhou Wanwan didn't want to say much to them; those wealthy businessmen were all smart people.

They all knelt down in the tunnel. "We're willing. We're willing to settle down here as long as you need us."

Now that they're already here, they probably wouldn't survive if they weren't Zhou Wanwan's trusted confidants.

Zhou Wanwan said calmly:

"We are surrounded by several countries, and the population here is very dense."

The land is indeed infertile now, but I have found ways to improve it.

The future value of this land is immeasurable, so think about it carefully when you get back.

After saying that, Zhou Wanwan said, "Alright, go down now!"

Eunuch Hai led them outside, and Xie Cheng'en wiped the sweat from his brow and said:

"I was so scared! I never thought of her as a child before."

I only realized how powerful her aura was today. Could it be because she was wearing a dragon robe?

And her dragon robe was actually black, she...

Eunuch Hai coughed and said, "This black dragon robe was calculated by the Imperial Astronomical Bureau. Do you have any objections?"

Xie Cheng'en quickly shook his head and said:

"No, no, Eunuch Hai, you change masters quite quickly, huh!"

I didn't notice when we were in the palace! Weren't you one of my aunt's people? How come you were replaced so easily?

Eunuch Hai sneered:

"Because you're stupid. What kind of good person is your aunt anyway?"

Do you really think she's marrying her daughter to you for your own good?

They had it all planned out long ago; your Xie Family is there specifically to serve her.

Think about how much effort your Xie Family has put into her over the years?

Once your Xie Family is no longer useful, she'll kick you all to the curb, while you're still gloating."

Xie Cheng'en frowned and said, "Stop talking nonsense. My aunt isn't that kind of person. She's actually quite good to me."

Eunuch Hai rolled his eyes and said:

"Fool, don't you realize how many powerful figures your Xie Family has?"

"How come in the end you're the only spoiled brat left?"

After Eunuch Hai left, Xie Cheng'en fell into deep thought.

Old General Xie had five sons and six daughters, but only two sons survived.

Of those six daughters, apart from Noble Consort Ning, the other five did not fare well.

Xie Cheng'en felt a chill run down his spine. He went straight to Old Master Xie and said, "Grandpa, Noble Consort Ning..."

Old Master Xie looked at him and said, "What are you trying to say? You're stammering."

Xie Cheng'en said, "I just want to ask, were all those people in the family killed by Noble Consort Ning?"

Old Master Xie was silent for a moment before saying:

"Actually, I never really understood it before, your eldest uncle, third uncle, and fifth uncle."

How could such an outstanding child suddenly die on the battlefield?

Later I learned that they were all killed by Noble Consort Ning.

"Impossible, how could she have killed them?"

Old Master Xie's eyes reddened. "They are too outstanding, and they are loyal to the royal family, not to Noble Consort Ning. Noble Consort Ning cannot tolerate them."

Xie Cheng'en simply didn't believe it:

"Impossible, absolutely impossible! Noble Consort Ning would never do such a thing. Those are all her brothers!"

"It was her closest relative, how could she do this?"

Old Master Xie took out several letters:

"Look at these letters! These are all letters written by Noble Consort Ning to the General of Great Qi. They contain our intelligence."

"The battles of those years were not due to our Xie Family underestimating the enemy, nor were they due to miscommand by our Xie Family; they were all orchestrated by Noble Consort Ning."

Old Master Xie was overcome with tears.

Xie Cheng'en stared blankly at Old Master Xie, utterly disbelieving the fact. "Is she crazy? The Xie Family is her maternal family. Isn't she just shooting herself in the foot by doing this?"

Old Master Xie said, "Because your eldest uncle, third uncle, and fifth uncle didn't approve of the current crown prince; they wanted to support the eldest prince."

Xie Cheng'en never expected things to turn out this way.

After a long pause, Xie Cheng'en finally spoke, "What about Zhou Wanwan? How could Zhou Wanwan become the emperor? No one could be the emperor, right?"

Old Master Xie said:

Did you see those courtiers this morning?

They were all former officials of the previous dynasties, not only from Great Xia, but also from Great Qi and other countries.

Who can do that? And have you seen any fighting at the border recently? Do you know why there hasn't been any fighting at the border?

Xie Cheng'en shook his head.

Old Master Xie said calmly, "Because all the generals at the border are now Zhou Wanwan's men, do you think a war can still break out?"

Xie Cheng'en was almost scared to death. He knew Zhou Wanwan was capable, but he never expected Zhou Wanwan to be this capable!

He slumped onto the stool and said, "It's over, it's over, I'm completely finished. I've offended her terribly, she'll hate me to death!"

Old Master Xie looked at him and said, "Serves you right. Who told you to provoke her? From now on, she's your master. You have to do whatever she tells you to do."

Xie Cheng'en wiped the sweat from his brow and said, "Cheng Chao's mouth is really tight. Who would have thought that a six-year-old child would have such great ambitions!"

Old Master Xie coughed lightly and said:

Our master really doesn't have any big ambitions.

All she thinks about is eating, drinking, and having fun every day. It's really us old ministers who are so admirable!

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"Don't worry about any of that. Just remember this: from now on, she will be your master."

As for Princess Jianing, she is not a kind person, and our family will never marry her.

"Do you understand?" Old Master Xie instructed.

Xie Cheng'en nodded and said, "I understand. I'd never marry her. She's my enemy now. I never liked her to begin with, and now I loathe her even more."

Old Master Xie frowned and said:

"Don't put everything on the surface; the more she acts this way, the more you need to coax her."

There's no need for us to break ties with them right now; I need to scam as many supplies as possible.

If it weren't for our master, I wouldn't know any of this.

There are many things I haven't mentioned. All of your aunts' marriages were orchestrated by Noble Consort Ning."