Chapter 1 A New Capital

Compared to Iron City, Su Feng City, Thunderclap Cliff, and Gondor—all works of plagiarism—the design of the new capital city was a true test for Ye Tao. It was the first time he had designed an entire city so originally. Speaking of which, Gondor, which plagiarized Lord of the Rings, only copied the mountain fortress section after all. Large areas of the ground were still redesigned. But in terms of style, Gondor was too Westernized. That was a style Ye Tao liked, and the people of Yun Province would also like, but it wasn't a style that could be used as a template for the future imperial capital. At best, Gondor allowed Ye Tao to try large-scale urban planning and step-by-step city development plans. In the new capital city, Ye Tao decided to maximize the use of Chinese-style architecture, which he wasn't very familiar with. There would inevitably be some innovations, but the style would be able to adapt to most of the future kingdom, and wouldn't make officials from afar feel like they had arrived in another country, with too much of a sense of incompatibility.

Ye Tao thought for a while, then continued with the previous topic, "Speaking of Gondor, Yun Province really isn't short of money. Besides, isn't there also pre-sale auctions? They should be happening soon, one in Danyang, one in Ningyuan. It's hard to say how much money can be raised, but it will definitely be enough for Gondor's construction needs. These days, the Yun Province merchant groups have already brought enough silver to Danyang. They are working hard, not wanting too many foundations to fall into the hands of people outside of Yun Province. I didn't consider this carefully enough. If they spend too much, although I have plenty of money, it will damage the financial resources of the local gentry in Yun Province. But I can't go back on what I agreed to in advance. At most, I'll compensate them in other ways."

Tan Xiaopei disagreed, "I even want to do something like this for the new capital city. I never thought that land could be sold before anything is built on it, and that people would actually buy it. The construction budget for the new capital city is huge. Although Dongping can afford it now, building a new capital city while fighting a war is really not something I'm confident we can pull off. Hehe, Ye Tao, ever since you came to Danyang, it seems like construction has never stopped. People have been constantly submitting memorials, saying that you are bleeding the kingdom dry."

Ye Tao shrugged indifferently and said, "Your Majesty, there's nothing I can do about it. Anyway, I've always done as much as I can with the money I have. From Iron City and Su Feng City until now, in these past few years, the money I've spent on building cities and recruiting and supporting soldiers is more than hundreds of millions. If I'm not criticized, I myself would feel bad about it."

Ye Tao's new capital city plan currently only had basic designs, such as some ancestral temple buildings, city gate towers, and a rough plan of the palace, etc. But when placed on the sand table, it already showed a grand system. In terms of cost, the new capital city might be several times higher than Gondor. But in terms of construction difficulty, it was much simpler than something like Gondor, which had never been built before. The most attractive thing was the cross-star layout of the five districts of the new city. The current Danyang was only the southern district of the entire new city in the future. This layout, which corresponded to celestial phenomena, plus the clear division of functions in different areas, filled people with anticipation.

"Your Majesty, the new capital city is not urgent. Like Gondor, let's start with the basic engineering. Just the water conservancy, sewage, and other projects won't be completed in a year or two. When we really start constructing the main body of the city, the war in Northern Liao should be over. At that time, we can have a period of time to build the city in peace," Ye Tao continued.

Zhuo Mang chuckled, and Huang Xuping also curled his lips. On the other hand, Chi Xianping was still lying on the table, concentrating on fighting with the fine wine and delicacies. Seeing the atmosphere becoming strange, Ye Tao couldn't help but wonder, "Your Majesty, is that not right?"

Tan Xiaopei waved his hand and said, "Let's call it a day. Ye Tao, come back to the palace with me, we'll continue talking."

Everyone else present took their leave one after another. There were too many people at today's gathering, and some of the things Tan Xiaopei wanted to say were not things that people of their status were qualified to know.

After arriving at the imperial study, Tan Xiaopei asked, "There's something I haven't told you all along, because I only just now figured out what was going on. When you went to Chunnan, you captured Feng Jiang, which was a great achievement. But afterwards, you never asked about it. Did you really not want to know, or did you already have it all figured out?"

Ye Tao was stunned, and said with a wry smile, "Feng Jiang was handed over to Your Majesty, so it's Your Majesty's business. As a subject, I don't dare to interject." Actually, he originally wanted to ask, but after returning to Yun Province, there were too many things to do, so he didn't remember it for a while. And if he didn't mention it himself, his subordinates wouldn't remind him. After all, the person was in the Intelligence Bureau, in the hands of the ruler, and was such a difficult person, so everyone was afraid of touching some royal secrets. But now Tan Xiaopei's tone was strange, which startled Ye Tao.

"Haha..." Tan Xiaopei laughed loudly, "It's nothing, just scaring you. The result that Nie Rui found out startled me too. Feng Jiang was indeed bought off by the Chunnan Crown Prince, and the person Feng Jiang was supposed to kill was someone I never expected. Can you guess?"

Ye Tao was stunned, and blurted out, "How could I guess..."

"It's Wei Zai." Tan Xiaopei took a sip of tea and said lightly.

"Little Prince?" Ye Tao was stunned.

Tan Xiaopei nodded and said, "Originally, I didn't know why, but this time when Jiang Yan came, the things he talked to me about made me understand. That old man Chang in Chunnan is really a bit crafty. His health is not good, and he wants to use the last few years to stabilize the situation in Chunnan. The struggle for the throne in Chunnan is intensifying, and old man Chang wants to take Wei Zai over there and love his grandson well."

Ye Tao thought for a while and said, "Is it to deliberately suppress the factions in the court, and pretend that the little prince is one of the candidates for succession?"

Tan Xiaopei nodded, "Jiang Yan is really daring, this is his idea. Although this kind of thing sounds impossible, if I'm willing to help, he can turn decay into something magical. As long as even a small group of people believe this, and think that Wei Zai might ascend the throne of Chunnan, then old man Chang can naturally calmly divide, win over, and kill with Jiang Yan's assistance. And with the remaining power of the great victory over Xiling, Chen Xujing is very loyal and critical to old man Chang, so no one dares to disobey him no matter what he does. But the problem is, I have to help."

Ye Tao's mind was a bit muddled and said, "What can Your Majesty do to help with the affairs of Chunnan? Isn't it just whether or not to allow the little prince to go to Chunnan?"

"It's not just that... I have to express something, for example, that Chunnan and Dongping will forever be brothers." Tan Xiaopei smiled coldly, "In this way, the associations will be rich. Moreover, according to Jiang Yan's meaning, Wei Zai really has the possibility of succeeding to the throne. If those two princes make too much of a fuss, old man Chang can really do this kind of thing. Although the Chunnan royal bloodline is interrupted, the clan has been preserved. And think about Wei Zai and his mother, although it's really a brotherly nation. But Wei Zai may not be very close to Wei Ming. But there's another possibility, if Wei Zai simultaneously succeeds to the throne of Dongping, then the two countries will naturally merge into one. If it can be like this, even I can't help but be tempted."

Ye Tao began to consider the connections back and forth. He always felt that something was not quite right. He cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, then... have you really considered establishing the little prince as the heir?"

"How is that possible? I'm not stupid," Tan Xiaopei said, "It's just that no matter what, this is a very fun thing. I've already agreed to Jiang Yan to let Wei Zai go to Yuhang. Anyway, he's not likely to amount to much by staying with Chang Ling. He's becoming less and less likable. Anyway, he's living with people from Chunnan. Compared to those around Chang Ling, I still feel better about people like Jiang Yan and Yan Gong. I've already told Wei Ming about this, and he also thinks it's quite fun. Zhuo Mang, Huang Xuping, and Chi Xianping all know about this, and then there's you. You have to help me keep an eye on Wei Ran in Yun Province."

Ye Tao nodded and said, "Your Majesty, are you worried that he will be impulsive? Actually, Wei Ran is far more mature than you think. Although he's not always in the kingdom's center, strategizing for you, in Yun Province, he's already the undisputed number two figure in the military."

Tan Xiaopei smiled and said, "I'm not worried that he will be impulsive, just worried that he will be depressed. He takes assisting Wei Ming as his lifelong goal. If I change my tune here, his lifelong ambition will be lost. Although Wei Zai is also a smart child, he's also the most out of place of the current Tan family. Perhaps, from the beginning, I shouldn't have left Wei Zai by Chang Ling's side. But now, it's too late. I know that Wei Ran is a child who cares about the big picture. If I say that there might be a possibility of letting Wei Zai succeed to the throne, so that the two countries of Dongping and Chunnan can naturally merge into one, he will still be a sharp blade of the country, but he will inevitably be depressed for a long time. Until he knows that things are not like that. I would like to explain this to him in advance, but Wei Ran's composure is not as deep as Wei Ming's, and his reaction will not be natural at that time. If he doesn't pretend well, it will inevitably arouse suspicion, which will not be fun. The reason I say this is because I was like this back then. When my brothers died one by one, leaving only me to inherit the throne, others might think that I should be very happy. After all, what I got my hands on was a country that had quelled internal and external troubles through decades of warfare, and was on the rise, a country that had initially revealed its ambition to unify the world. Dongping has a strong military force and a systematic and excellent military equipment manufacturing at all levels of workshops. Foreign trade was also carried out by those great merchants who, through years of hard work, broke through the blockade of Chunnan merchants and gained a place of their own. Years of mutual cooperation with Yun Province, especially the mutual support in times of crisis, has brought considerable benefits to everyone. In particular, Dongping, which was originally only strong in infantry, has its own strong cavalry, although the scale is still very limited, but it is 20,000 elite cavalry that can play a key role in the war... But, it probably took two years before I gradually became like a ruler, like someone who could shoulder the heavy responsibility of my father and brothers. I don't want Wei Ran to suffer as much as I did back then. This kind of suffering is not without its benefits, but it doesn't seem to be so necessary after all."