The cabin door knocked three times. At this hour, there was no need to ask who it was—it had to be Little Six. Hua Zhi withdrew her hand and signaled Nian Qiu to open the door.
Though she knew in her heart that Little Six’s status was far from ordinary, his age was similar to Berlin’s, and he had appeared before her in such a pitiable state. In their daily interactions, she often forgot his identity as a prince, treating him no differently than she did Berlin. To maintain her authority as an elder sister, she made sure not to act too intimately with Yan Xi in front of Little Six.
Little Six entered, bringing a gust of cold wind with him. Hua Zhi frowned. "Why didn’t you wear more? The wind on the boat is strong."
"I thought it was just a quick trip in and out, so I forgot."
Nian Qiu swiftly brewed a cup of hot tea and handed it to him. Little Six held it in his hands to warm himself.
"Xiao Shuang should have reminded you."
Little Six chuckled but didn’t mention that Xiao Shuang had indeed reminded him and was waiting outside with a cloak. If he had come bundled up, how would he have gotten to hear Sister Hua’s words of concern?
Gu Yanxi glanced at him but didn’t expose the lie, instead redirecting A Zhi’s attention to business matters. "If we want to accomplish anything in Jin Yang, we’ll need to find local partners. From what I’ve observed these past few days, the people of Jin Yang are very wary and distrustful of outsiders. They won’t easily accept external influence."
"That’s true," Hua Zhi agreed, taking the hand warmer Nian Qiu handed her and holding it in her hands. "But the Zeng family won’t do."
"I thought you had a favorable impression of the Zeng family."
"My opinion of Zeng Xiangyan isn’t bad, but that’s limited to him personally. As for the Zeng family... I heard Yu Weiwei mention unintentionally that although the Zeng family has been rooted in Jin Yang for many years, when she was young, they didn’t have such influence. It was her eldest cousin who had the ability to elevate the family to its current top-tier status."
"Are you suggesting... the Zeng family is connected to the Chao Li Tribe?"
Hua Zhi shook her head. "It’s too far-fetched to conclude that based on this alone. I just feel that the eldest son of the Zeng family is no simple figure. Not many families would fully hand over power to a son while the father is still alive. Think about it—over ten years ago, he would have been only around thirty. I had Yu Mu investigate, and Old Master Zeng doesn’t seem like the type to entrust such a large family to a son in his thirties. There must be some reliance behind it. How can we cooperate with someone whose background is unclear?"
Gu Yanxi nodded, then heard A Zhi continue, "Whether it’s the gambling house, the horse racing track, or other ventures, the Zeng family clearly contributed the most effort. Logically, they should have reaped the greatest benefits from these endeavors. But from what Yu Mu found out and what I gathered from Yu Weiwei, that’s not the case. I don’t believe there are people in this world who willingly make wedding gowns for others."
Gu Yanxi had also considered this point. "Do you have anyone else in mind?"
"I dare not easily trust anyone in Jin Yang. The place is like a field buried with black powder—you never know where you might step and be blown to pieces. Aside from suggesting a few novel ideas for entertainment, I won’t involve myself in any other matters here."
Gu Yanxi chuckled in agreement. When it came to self-awareness, probably no one in the world did it better than A Zhi.
Mentioning black powder reminded Hua Zhi of something. "How far has the research on black powder progressed? Has it stabilized?""It's still not stable enough, but its power is already evident. I had Wu Xing demonstrate its effects for me at Yinshan Pass - it blasted open a massive mountain face. If used on people, I doubt there would be whole corpses left." Gu Yanxi's eyes sparkled. "I've instructed Wu Xing to keep it under wraps and continue research, saving it as our final trump card at Yinshan Pass. Who knows how many demons and monsters are hiding in Daqing now - the fewer people know about this, the better."
Hua Zhi couldn't agree more. Such a powerful weapon deserved to make a grand entrance when revealed, otherwise it would be unworthy of its potential.
"Black powder... what is that?"
Hua Zhi paused. Right, Little Six didn't know about this. Considering his status, she quickly weighed the situation in her mind before explaining the origin and function of black powder, aiming to prevent any future misunderstandings that could be easily stirred up.
"Is it really that powerful?" Little Six didn't overthink it, his expression growing excited. "Does that mean we needn't fear even if the Chao Li Tribe returns?"
Hua Zhi quickly exchanged glances with Yanxi. Gu Yanxi took over the conversation: "If we give Wu Xing eight to ten years for research, Daqing could confidently say that. For now, we can only achieve results through surprise attacks. Keeping it as a hidden card while no one knows about it is fine, and it can intimidate our enemies before they obtain the method. But relying on its current power to defeat the Chao Li Tribe would be difficult."
"But it's still a great weapon!" Little Six was too excited to sit still, pacing back and forth. As a prince, and a rather intelligent one at that, he naturally understood this thing's importance to Daqing. What's eight to ten years? Surely Daqing could hold on for that long!
"Is the Seven Constellation Bureau researching this now? Should we transfer some craftsmen from the Ministry of Works? It wouldn't be hard to keep it secret - just find a legitimate reason to confine them somewhere. No one would dare question what the Seven Constellation Bureau is doing anyway."
Hua Zhi didn't want to dampen his enthusiasm, but... "That's too naive. Confining craftsmen for a day or month might be acceptable, but you want to lock them up for three to eight years? Would the Ministry of Works not inquire? Even if they dare not provoke the Seven Constellation Bureau, there's still one person who would dare. With such major movements, how would you explain it to the Emperor? If His Majesty learns of black powder's existence, have you considered the consequences?"
Little Six's smile froze on his face. "We can't let Father know?"
"If he learns about black powder's capabilities, his first thought wouldn't be using it against the Chao Li Tribe, but rather blasting open that canal he's been obsessing over. Believe me?"
"..."
"He might develop other ideas too." Hua Zhi had already figured out the Emperor's tendencies, knowing exactly what must be kept from him. "Little Six, building this canal would indeed be a great achievement for the nation and people - the south would never suffer from floods again. Using black powder for excavation might complete it in three years. But not now, when internal troubles and external threats converge. I'm not just delaying to reserve this legacy-making achievement for you - the current conditions aren't ripe. You've seen Jin Yang's situation. If the Chao Li Tribe has already acquired Jin Yang's wealth over several years, their accumulated silver must be considerable. After laying plans for so many years and having so many spies eliminated by Yanxi, who knows how much longer they'll remain patient?"Little Six's excitement completely cooled, replaced by a hint of dejection. "I hadn't considered these things, but I know Sister Hua always has my best interests at heart."
"...That's quite a convincing show of obedience." Hua Zhi looked at the embarrassed child with a faint, ambiguous smile, thinking she had finally managed to clarify these matters in this manner. She didn't want to play mind games with Little Six, and precisely because she didn't, she needed to block all potential loopholes from the very beginning.
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