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Lin Wanyun dared not to think further.

After all, Lu Chen was the child of Chen Wanrong’s enemy, if Chen Wanrong really fell for Lu Chen, who knows what kind of torment she would suffer in her heart.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, another month had passed.

In the Capital city of Great Sum, at Xuanzheng Hall.

Today’s Great Court Assembly was rather noisy. Recently, a series of incidents had occurred in Great Sum, causing the officials much distress.

At this moment, an official from Prince Lu Yi’s faction stood up and said, “Your Majesty, I accuse the Crown Prince of neglecting his duties, idling away his days. The affairs entrusted to the Crown Prince by Your Majesty have not been completed on time. The Crown Prince does not deserve his position and should be dismissed.”

The official’s attack was very aggressive; he was short of pointing at Lu Shuyun’s nose and calling him useless.

No sooner had he finished speaking than another official stood up and said, “Your Majesty, I too accuse the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince has allowed refugees to wander aimlessly, leading to frequent murders in Great Sum recently.”

After the two officials finished speaking, other officials stood up, all voicing accusations against Lu Shuyun.

At this time, Lu Shuyun’s brows were tightly furrowed, and his face looked very grim.

The Sum Emperor sat on the Dragon Throne, watching indifferently the events unfolding below. After a long while, he finally opened his mouth and said, “Crown Prince, the first task I assigned you, you have handled so poorly, how can I trust you with the whole of Great Sum in the future.”

Hearing this, Lu Shuyun quickly knelt down and said, “Father Emperor, your son admits his mistake, please grant your son more time.”

At that moment, Right Minister Zhao Wenhan stood up and said, “Your Majesty, the fact that the Crown Prince has been slow to deal with the refugee issue doesn’t have much to do with him.”

“Recently, among the refugees, there have been frequent rumors saying that the court does not provide North Country with food, and that sending the refugees to North Country is to let them die there. This has made the refugees uncooperative with the government’s work; they are unwilling to go to North Country.”

“I believe that these rumor mongers have ulterior motives and sinister intentions, they are the real culprits behind the Crown Prince’s inability to address the refugee problem, and it has nothing to do with the Crown Prince’s personal ability.”

Just as Zhao Wenhan finished speaking, the Sum Emperor was about to speak when Lin Gaoyuan stood up and said, “Rumors? It’s probably no rumor that the court doesn’t provide North Country with food. Your Majesty has long said that he would no longer aid North Country with any supplies, how can Prime Minister Zhao claim they are rumors.”

“North Country has no food, to push such a large number of refugees there is just to let them fend for themselves; the common people are not fools.”

Having said this, Lin Gaoyuan looked at the Sum Emperor and continued, “I believe that sending all the refugees to North Country is a mistake to begin with; failing to provide North Country with aid in food is an even greater error. The decision of His Highness the Crown Prince has been wrong from the very start.”

“If these refugees arrive in North Country and find no food, once they gather, unrest will inevitably arise. What’s happening in Great Wu might very well unfold in our Great Sum too.”

“His Highness the Crown Prince did not even consider this before hastily deciding to send all the refugees to North Country, and this is neglecting the welfare of the nation, seeking only convenience.”

Seeing Lin Gaoyuan standing up to criticize him, Lu Shuyun’s complexion instantly darkened.

Lin Gaoyuan, this Left Minister, had always been neutral, never siding with any Prince. How come now that he himself had become the Crown Prince, Lin Gaoyuan actually came out to speak against him?

Could it be that this old fox Lin Gaoyuan had been won over by Prince Lu Yi?

At this time, Zhao Wenhan said, “Prime Minister Lin’s words are somewhat alarmist. They’re just some unarmed refugees; what kind of insurrection can they stir up?”

“Moreover, now only North Country has a vast amount of land. If not for North Country, where else can these refugees go? Does Prime Minister Lin intend to offer his own lands to these refugees?”

Seeing the two Prime Ministers arguing, the other officials in the hall suddenly fell silent, now just watching the two of them debate.

After the two had argued for a while, the Sum Emperor finally spoke, “North Country has many wastelands, indeed a suitable place for these refugees. However, I have already stated that I will no longer provide North Country with any aid.”

“Since it’s a word that I, myself, have already spoken, I won’t take it back.”

“The matter of the refugees was the first state affair Prince Lu Shuyun dealt with after becoming the Crown Prince. It’s a trivial issue, so I will not provide any assistance. If even this matter can’t be settled properly, he won’t be qualified to inherit my position in the future.”

“Shuyun, I’ll only give you two more months. You must quell this refugee unrest within this time.”

Lu Shuyun immediately knelt and said, “Thank you, Father Emperor!”

The Sum Emperor continued, “Moreover, recently quite a few officials have petitioned, saying that many people in remote areas of Great Sum can’t afford salt. The government offices don’t care, and the court doesn’t inquire. They hope that I will decentralize the salt monopoly to let trading caravans…”

Before the Sum Emperor could finish, Lin Gaoyuan hastily said, “Your Majesty, that must not be done. Salt is essential to the nation’s economy and the people’s livelihood and has always been run by the court. How can we decentralize its management rights?”

“Once the management rights are released, there will inevitably be merchants who will drive up the price of salt. Then, it won’t be just the people in remote mountainous areas who can’t afford it; even the common people in more prosperous areas won’t be able to.”

Once the monopoly on salt is released, it could very well shake the foundations of the state, not to mention it would greatly reduce the revenue of the national treasury.

Lin Gaoyuan simply couldn’t understand why the Sum Emperor would bring up such a matter in court.

As soon as Lin Gaoyuan finished speaking, an official from an aristocratic family stood and said, “I agree with decentralizing the management rights of the salt industry. Currently, the price of salt is generally high as it’s monopolized by the court; therefore, salt production has always been low.”

“I believe that if the salt industry’s management rights are decentralized, more merchants will produce salt, which could actually help decrease the price of salt and allow the common people to access cheaper salt.”

No sooner had this official from the aristocratic family finished speaking than another from the same class also stood up, “I also agree with decentralizing the management rights of the salt industry…”

Afterwards, even more officials expressed their stance, all in favor of decentralizing the salt industry’s management rights.

Seeing this unfold, Lin Gaoyuan frowned. The aristocratic families would be the first to benefit from opening up the salt industry. Of course, they couldn’t wait to decentralize the management rights of the salt industry.

What mattered next was what the Sum Emperor thought. He has always been uncomfortable with the aristocratic families, finding them an eyesore. Surely he wouldn’t really open up the salt industry now by heeding the words of these officials?

However, just when Lin Gaoyuan thought the Sum Emperor would never agree to open up the salt industry, the Emperor addressed the court, “The advice of my loving subjects is beneficial. Merchants pursue profit. Once the salt industry is opened up, surely more merchants will join the salt-making industry, and the price of salt will fall, allowing more of Great Sum’s common people to afford salt.”

“I have decided that from today on, the management rights of the salt industry will be decentralized.”

Upon hearing these words, Lin Gaoyuan was entirely dumbfounded.

When had the Sum Emperor become so foolish?

He was actually decentralizing the management rights of the salt industry?

Wasn’t he the one who hated the aristocratic families most? And the Sum Emperor had already been preparing to make a move against the aristocratic families in secret. Why would he make such a concession to them at this time?

Appointing Prince Lu Shuyun as the Crown Prince could still be explained as an attempt to stabilize the aristocratic families, to prevent them from sensing what the Sum Emperor planned to do next.

The policy of decentralizing the management rights of the salt industry couldn’t possibly bring any advantage to the Sum Emperor.

Although baffled, Lin Gaoyuan said no more.

Internal strife was impending. The aristocratic families wouldn’t be able to make trouble much longer. Let the Sum Emperor do as he pleased.

After the Great Court Assembly had adjourned, Lu Shuyun, accompanied by a group of low-ranking officials of his own faction, arrived at the East Palace.

His Father Emperor had only given him two months. He had to act quickly to deal with those refugees; otherwise, his reputation would suffer enormously.

Within the grand hall of the East Palace, the atmosphere seemed oppressive. Lu Shuyun had faced a barrage of impeachment attempts by ministers at the court assembly, leaving him in a very foul mood.

After a long silence, Lu Shuyun said, “Let’s discuss it. How should we resolve this matter with the refugees? They have come to know that the court won’t provide grain to the North Country, and since all the land there is owned by the North Prince Mansion, they wouldn’t have land even if they went to the North Country. It’s even less likely they would go there voluntarily.”