After their minds were read, the entire court trembled with fear.

Chapter 168 A Brilliant Plan to Make Money

Still not satisfied?

Shen Zhiyi's heart jumped, but then she thought that she was just a lowly court attendant, so the old emperor probably didn't have anything important to say to her.

"Shen Zhiyi, I'm short of money lately, do you have any good ideas?"

"what?"

Shen Zhiyi pointed to herself.

what?

I?

[Is this old emperor kidding me? Asking me how to make money?]

"Well, Your Majesty, shouldn't you ask the Minister of Revenue about this kind of question?"

The crown prince reminded him, "My father meant the private treasury, not the national treasury."

Shen Zhiyi suddenly realized.

Although there was the Purple Aura Study, the old emperor's private treasury wasn't much left after the former imperial concubine's extravagant spending. Well, even without the extravagance, it wouldn't have been much to begin with.

The national treasury was already short of funds, let alone the old emperor's private coffers.

[The old emperor should have abolished the agricultural tax exemption long ago. It's been in place for so many years; if it continues, Da Ye will truly starve.]

The old emperor coughed and said, "Cough cough cough, Shen Zhiyi, you usually have a lot of clever ideas, think of something for me."

"Your Majesty, you are too kind to me."

【Ughhhhh, this old emperor is crazy!】

Why are you suddenly asking for money?

The crown prince also looked at his father with curiosity.

"Dad, why are you thinking of spending money?"

"It's not just for you."

"I?"

The money originally intended for the Crown Prince's wedding has been used for war. However, the Crown Prince recently went to the old emperor to complain about this, which explains why the old emperor suddenly wanted to ask how to make money.

The prince rolled up his sleeves.

Well, that unfilial son actually went after his father.

However, this wasn't the old emperor's main reason for wanting money. The real reason was that he wanted to build a palace—a massive project, no less. Was he not comfortable living in the current palace?!

[Moreover, building such a large palace would definitely require funds from the national treasury, and the Minister of Revenue would certainly not approve it.]

The crown prince turned his head to look at his father, then leaned closer.

"Father, you really dare to think of such things."

"Go away, go away! Father did this all for you. If I die, that palace will be yours."

"But the problem is that we can't even afford my son's wedding right now."

The old emperor: This son is no longer a good son; it's too heartbreaking.

In ancient times, when emperors were short of money, they would simply sell official positions, collect all sorts of strange and miscellaneous taxes, demand protection money from criminal officials, or confiscate property—confiscating property was the fastest and most lucrative way to make money.

The old emperor was relieved.

Shen Zhiyi is really quick-witted; she immediately thought of confiscating the property.

Seeing the old emperor's expression, the crown prince knew that the old emperor already had a plan in mind, but just didn't know which one to copy.

We mourn for the unknown official whose home is about to be raided.

However, if I were to say this, the old emperor would surely chop off my head.

Will not!

The old emperor looked at Shen Zhiyi with eager anticipation.

Child, just tell me which official has committed a serious crime, and he'll lead the Dragon Scale Guards to attack in the next second!

"Your Majesty."

"Eh!"

"Your Majesty, I am incompetent and beg your forgiveness!"

As she spoke, Shen Zhiyi shamelessly kowtowed several times.

The system's mechanical voice was screaming in Shen Zhiyi's head.

[Arise! How dare you be a slave! Stand up!]

[Stand up, my foot! Saying anything might get you a beating anyway, so you might as well say nothing and just be prepared to get beaten.]

Everyone: Ha.

[But this old emperor really wants this and that, yet he's indecisive about everything. Who dares to offer him advice? I remember that stingy guy who wanted to vigorously develop commerce, was politely rejected by the old emperor, wasn't he? Well, maybe the old emperor should just stay poor.]

"you!"

"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. Please punish me."

Shen Zhiyi quickly performed a few more moves, leaving everyone present stunned.

[However, it seems the Grand Canal, which the old emperor ordered to be dug, is nearing completion. Once it opens, the influx of people will bring about a boom in shops, restaurants, and other businesses. System, do you think I should open a shop on the Grand Canal now? I want to be the first to try something new!]

—I support you! But do you have any money, host?

Shen Zhiyi fell silent.

The system then shamelessly displayed the words "poor devil" in bold black font above Shen Zhiyi's head.

Shen Zhiyi angrily peeled the words off her head.

I don't know why, but the system suddenly seems a bit more lively.

Although I have no money, the old emperor was only outwardly glamorous; his private treasury was also empty. Hmph, how balanced!

The old emperor never imagined that one day he would use it to find a balance for Shen Zhiyi.

However, speaking of the Grand Canal...

The old emperor beckoned to Chen Decai.

"Where is your godson?"

"Your Majesty, they're in the Ministry of Revenue."

"How is your godson doing at the Ministry of Revenue?"

Chen Decai began to fawn over the emperor, but the old emperor said impatiently, "I want to hear the truth."

[What's so great about it? I come up with a way to make money, and it gets rejected by the higher-ups. They say this won't work, that won't work. It's a waste of my talent to be stuck in the Ministry of Revenue.]

The old emperor clapped his hands with delight.

"Call your godson here, and tell him he can't work in the Ministry of Revenue anymore."

"what?"

Chen Decai quickly knelt down next to Shen Zhiyi.

"Your Majesty, my godson really enjoys being there."

The talented scholar was practically in tears! Of course he was in tears! He'd just recognized a godson, only to find out he was a fake eunuch! What did that mean? It meant he could have offspring!

[Now I'm definitely hoping my godson will be very successful.]

This is nonsense.

Chen Decai looked at the old emperor with a tearful expression, practically begging for his life.

"Alright, alright, what's with all the crying at your age? I have important business to discuss with him."

Chen Decai's godson, A Xiang, arrived quickly.

[So fast! Oh, isn't the Fifteenth Princess going to hide her masterpiece?]

A-Xiang instinctively covered the back of his neck with his hand.

The old emperor couldn't bear to look for a second.

"Your Majesty, what brings you to my court?"

Ah Xiang felt extremely embarrassed.

The old emperor said with his arms crossed, "It's nothing serious. It's just that you took good care of the Ziqi Study business before. I want to open more shops and I need your help."

A light instantly lit up Ah Xiang's eyes.

"Your Majesty, this is easy. Leave it to me."

"The Grand Canal is about to open, so I think it would be a good idea to open some restaurants."

[Waaaaah, I'm not like the old emperor. Look at him, all he can think of is a restaurant, while all I can think of are roadside stalls.]

The word "poor wretch" was once again displayed above her head by the system.

[Damn it, I'm not going to compete with the old emperor for business.]

Everyone looked at Shen Zhiyi with surprise, their eyes conveying a clear meaning.

What business can you steal?

[System, I've come up with a brilliant money-making plan!]