Royal Gold Magistrate

After kissing the Princess, Fang Zheng was feeling quite pleased with himself.

He swaggered toward the Eastern Palace, intending to see Li Yuanzhao make a fool of himself.

Young people these days don’t know their limits, daring to dismantle such a precious microscope!

When he arrived at the Eastern Palace, he found Li Yuanzhao bent over, studying something intently.

Fang Zheng peered over and was shocked.

What the hell? He actually fixed it!?

“Your Highness, you repaired it?”

Hearing Fang Zheng’s voice, Li Yuanzhao stood up and gave him a smug look.

“Of course! Such a simple device is no match for me!”

“One thousand taels!”

Fang Zheng silently took out a thousand-tael banknote, clutching it in his hand, and asked, “Getting help from others doesn’t count, you know.”

“Pfft! There were only a few parts in total! The tube even had grooves carved inside. What’s so difficult about it?”

Fang Zheng shook his head in disappointment and handed over the banknote.

He had miscalculated; he didn’t expect the repair to be so simple.

But getting rid of this nuisance and being able to get close to the Princess was worth a thousand taels!

“What were you looking at just now, Your Highness?”

Li Yuanzhao perked up and pulled Fang Zheng over to the microscope. “Old Fang, I’ve made a great discovery!”

“Look, this is a dog’s… you know what! It’s also tadpoles!”

Fang Zheng’s face immediately fell.

Using my microscope, is that all you can think to research?

Damn it, what’s your obsession with tadpoles?

“Yes, yes, so what? What are you trying to prove?”

“Don’t you think it’s amazing?”

“Not at all! Your Highness, you’d be better off researching something meaningful.”

Li Yuanzhao looked puzzled.

“To be frank, I don’t think this device of yours has much use beyond looking at things.”

Hopeless, Fang Zheng sighed.

“Let me give you an example, Your Highness. As they say, ‘disease enters through the mouth.’ People get sick from eating spoiled food.”

“But why does food spoil, and why do we get sick after eating spoiled food? Have you ever thought about that, Your Highness?”

“The answer might be hidden in places we can’t see with the naked eye.”

Li Yuanzhao looked thoughtful.

“Things rot when left out too long. If you don’t eat rotten food, you won’t get sick. Everyone knows eating it makes you ill, so why do we need to know why?”

Fang Zheng smiled outwardly, but inside he was cursing!

The Crown Prince’s thinking is becoming more and more like Zhang Biao’s!

Only what can be seen is real; everything else is nonsense.

“Your Highness, it’s not that simple.”

“Think about it: if you understand why things spoil, you can find ways to extend their freshness and prevent food waste.”

“If you figure this out, it’s like creating countless amounts of food out of thin air!”

“Do you understand, Your Highness?”

Li Yuanzhao once again looked deep in thought.

“Your Highness, take your time to ponder it. This official must be going now!”

Before Li Yuanzhao could react, Fang Zheng said his goodbyes and left.

He headed straight to the newspaper office.

Xie Xian sat in his private office, looking quite impressive.

His desk was piled high with manuscripts.

In just a few days, the reporters at the newspaper had come to admire him greatly.

Xie Xian’s scholarship and eloquence had always been excellent.

It was precisely these qualities that had led Fang Zheng to go to great lengths to bring him to the county in the first place.

Over the years, he hadn’t neglected his studies. In fact, due to his frequent business trips around Taoyuan County,

He had traveled far and wide, met countless people, and combined theory with practice, further enhancing his knowledge.

Every word he spoke was newsworthy, every stroke of his pen steeped in allusions.

The reporters at the newspaper could only marvel at his talents.

Moreover, many of the new benefits had been announced by him personally, further increasing everyone’s fondness for him.

Seeing Fang Zheng arrive, Xie Xian quickly stood up. “Master, you’re here.”

Fang Zheng casually picked up a manuscript from the desk, glanced at it, and asked, “How are you finding life at the newspaper? Are you settling in well?”

Xie Xian smiled slightly. “It’s quite good, much less troublesome than running around outside, and quite straightforward too.”

“Excellent!”

“I’ve come to see you today because there’s something I need to discuss. I heard that the Northern Rong are sending an envoy to the capital. We need to be the first to report this news.”

“The government has started quite a few newspapers now, and we can’t let them steal our market share.”

“Also, I’m going to establish a textile factory outside the city, using the best looms from our county.”

“We’ll only hire female workers. I’ll have others arrange this, but once it’s set up, have someone notify you so you can run an advertisement for recruitment.”

“In the meantime, run some… women-focused news stories. You know, heroines and the like. Really promote it.”

“The textile factory might face some opposition when it’s first established. Try to use the newspaper to minimize the risks.”

After Fang Zheng finished speaking, Xie Xian asked, “An envoy from the Northern Rong? I remember there have always been some minor conflicts between the Northern Rong and Great Jing, but they’ve had internal strife. Why would they send an envoy now?”

Fang Zheng explained, “I heard that a capable person has emerged in the Northern Rong, unifying all the tribes and resolving their internal conflicts.”

“The envoy… they’re not coming for a political marriage, are they?” Xie Xian pondered, stroking his chin.

“???”

Fang Zheng looked at Xie Xian with a troubled expression. “Why mention a political marriage? Does an envoy always mean a political marriage?”

Xie Xian thought for a moment. “Well, they’ve just unified, so their national power must be unstable.”

“And someone who could unify all the tribes must be a strong, flexible leader.”

“At a time like this, a political marriage would be appropriate, allowing them to recuperate and grow stronger.”

“Master, think about it. Our dynasty has six princesses. The Sixth Princess is too young, not even ten years old, and I’ve heard the Fourth Princess is already in her twenties.”

“So it must be the Fifth Princess! Yes, that’s right.”

“Master, should we write something about this?”

Fang Zheng’s expression froze.

Everyone’s saying this kind of thing to me, completely disregarding my feelings!

Xie Xian was still waiting for Fang Zheng’s instructions when he saw him turn to look at him woodenly.

“What did you just say? Say it again.”

“I said the Fifth Princess might be involved in a political marriage. Should we write something about it?”

As soon as the words left his mouth, a hand landed on Xie Xian’s shoulder.

Fang Zheng’s mouth curved into a smile, but there was no warmth in it.

“If your crow’s mouth prediction comes true, I’ll send you to the Northern Rong for a political marriage with their cattle and horses.”

Xie Xian gulped. “Master, what do you mean…?”

“What do I mean?! I finally have feelings for someone! And you’re telling me the Fifth Princess is going to marry someone else for politics!”

“You bunch of jinxes, are you not satisfied unless you make me miserable?!”

Seeing Fang Zheng’s outburst, Xie Xian panicked.

He quickly said, “Lord Fang! Calm down! Calm down!”

Fang Zheng’s expression softened slightly. “That’s better… What nonsense about the Northern Rong, how could you associate the Princess with them?”

“Change the newspaper! Use half a page to write about the Northern Rong, keep writing until the envoy arrives.”

“Write about how they don’t bathe, don’t wipe after defecating, how they live in dire straits every day. Make it as disgusting as possible.”

“Then write about exchanging peace for political marriages, how the men have no balls, how it leads to national destruction and ethnic extinction. Give me plenty of examples, one article a day.”

“Let’s see who dares to bring this up again!”

Xie Xian laughed awkwardly and cautiously asked, “I understand, Master. But… what’s your relationship with the Fifth Princess…?”

“She’s carrying my child.”

Holy shit!

Xie Xian’s mind went blank. He didn’t expect the master to be so bold.

If the Emperor found out, wouldn’t Taoyuan County be razed to the ground?

Xie Xian couldn’t help but ask in a trembling voice, “Master, you’ve progressed this far already? Does His Majesty know?”

Fang Zheng sighed. “Of course not. We just kissed today. I haven’t figured out how to bring it up with His Majesty yet.”

“Tch! I need to find an opportunity to achieve some great merit, then things will naturally fall into place!”

“K-kissing can lead to pregnancy?”

“You don’t understand. Everyone’s constitution is different!”

“……..”