Rebirth as Princess Jin again

Su Ying searched for information about Zhou Wei in her mind, and suddenly an idea flashed in her mind: "Is Zhou Wei's wife the eldest princess Situ Xue?"

Situ Jin nodded: "When my father just ascended the throne, Prince Su was in charge of the border town. The border town was far away from the capital. Before my father's power was stable, he married the emperor's sister to Zhou Wei, hoping to check Prince Su. Over the years Come down, there are no major changes in the border town. But now that Prince Su is dead, and the officials sent by the imperial court have had troubles one after another, I am afraid that the forces in the border town have already been under Zhou Wei's control."

Su Ying was shocked. Did nothing happen for so many years? Or were they already colluding and not sending all the news about the border town back to the capital? Or maybe the border town had already become a separate sphere of influence under their rule, and they started here. The earth emperor.

"Husband, maybe no one has really understood the true situation of the border town for so many years. Maybe this is no longer the original border town?"

Situ Jin looked at Su Ying's eyes and carefully went through the messages he had received these days in his mind.

"My lady means that the border town hides ulterior secrets, and for so many years, people from the imperial court have not been able to go to the border town, so these secrets have only stayed in the border town."

Su Ying stood up and looked at the moonlight outside the window, her eyes cold: "Perhaps things are more complicated than we thought. The sixth prince of the Western Region suddenly appeared in Wushan and was hunted down. Coupled with the disappearance of King Jing, I always feel that There must be a huge mystery here."

Situ Jin's eyes were dark. He didn't know whether it was luck or misfortune that he saved the Sixth Prince of the Western Region that day, but luckily their identities were not exposed.

He stepped forward and put his arms around Su Ying's shoulders: "Since we have questions in our hearts, we might as well go out and take a good look around this side city tonight, and also take a good look at how well Zhou Wei and Sister Huang manage this side city?"

Su Ying put down her worries, and she was right. Since she was confused, it was better to go out. The market is the best test of a local official's performance.

Situ Jin took Su Ying to the main street of the border city. Wherever he looked, the border city was no less prosperous than the capital city. People were coming and going, and there were many shops on both sides of the street. But there were very few people on the street. Patrolling Guards: Although there were guards patrolling both sides of the city gate, those guards were extremely polite and courteous to the people entering and leaving the city.

The people on the street were all well-dressed. Along the way, I never saw a ragged person, not even a beggar. Although it was already night, the streets were brightly lit and crowded with people. The teahouses and restaurants on both sides, Or maybe the small restaurants on the street are bustling with people, and people talking loudly can be seen everywhere, gathering in twos and threes to drink tea and chat.

Situ Jin and Su Ying came to a restaurant and found a seat by the window to sit down. There was a storyteller downstairs who was talking about something wonderful. The eyes of the entire restaurant were focused on the storyteller, and they applauded like thunder.

Su Ying and the others' seats could just see the storyteller's position, and she listened to the storyteller's narration with great interest.

"Old Li Tou, why don't you tell us the story of the city lord and his wife?"

Someone started to boo downstairs: "That's right."

Old Li Tou looked at everyone with a smile, and raised his hand to signal everyone to quiet down: "The lord of our border town is really a very good person. Since everyone is willing to listen, I will give you a good lecture today."

"Speaking of which, our city lord's wife has quite a lot of background. She is the eldest princess of the current emperor and the emperor's first daughter. I remember when the emperor just ascended the throne, in order to stabilize the border, he married his beloved daughter to the city lord Lord Zhou. , since the two got married, they have treated each other with respect and love."

"Since Mr. Zhou took over as the city lord, our border town has changed from the previous depression and become more and more prosperous. Everyone knows that our border town is on the border and has always been difficult and poor. However, since Mr. Zhou took office, there has not been a tax collection. Not only that, the city lord also spends huge sums of money to repair houses for the poor people in the city every year. Even the elderly and widowed people are sent to take care of them for free. Orphans whose parents died young can also be properly resettled. Everyone said, how can such a good official not be loved by the people!"

"Yes, yes, a good official..."

When Situ Jin heard this, his expression immediately changed: "The tax money in the border town is paid in full every year, and it has never been less than a penny. If Zhou Wei had not collected taxes from the people, then the tax money paid by Zhou Wei would never be paid. Where did it come from?”

Su Ying was silent for a moment and waved to the waiter who was busy outside. The waiter came over with a smile on his face and said, "Sir, what are your orders?"

Su Ying took out a piece of silver and put it on the table. The waiter's eyes lit up when he saw the silver: "Please tell me if you have any orders, sir?"

Su Ying smiled lightly and said: "My husband and I came to the border town for the first time. We heard that the officials here were responsible for the Qingming Festival. We have a little money and want to open a shop in the city to make a living, but we don't know what to pay attention to when opening a shop here. , I am very knowledgeable, can you give me some advice?"

The waiter glanced at the two of them. When they entered the store, he could see that they were both talented and handsome. They were dressed in extremely rich and luxurious clothes. They were definitely not ordinary people. He glanced at the ingot of silver, gritted his teeth and said:

"Your Majesty, I don't know. If you are a local, there are no restrictions on opening a shop here. You only need to bring your home deed to the city lord's mansion to register. But if you are a foreigner, you should look elsewhere. It is not allowed in border towns. Stores opened by outsiders.”

Situ Jin was stunned. This was strange. This was the first time he heard of such a rule.

"Why is this? Our husband and wife also have businesses in other places, but no place has ever had such restrictions."

The waiter glanced around and whispered: "Although this sounds outrageous, it is true. If you come to the border town for fun, you can rest assured, but if you are doing business, I advise you not to leave here. Go to other places to inquire about this matter, otherwise, you may be kicked out of the border town."

As he spoke, the waiter's eyes shrewdly looked at the silver on the table. Situ Jin threw the silver to the waiter. The waiter smiled happily after receiving the money: "Do you have any other instructions, sir?"

Su Ying smiled and waved her hand. After the waiter left, the two of them looked at each other and Su Ying said: "Without collecting tax money, outsiders are not allowed to open a shop here. Zhou Wei is a strange person this time, but I am more What I’m curious about is where does the tax money he pays to the court every year come from?”

Situ Jin narrowed his eyes slightly: "No wonder those officials sent to the border town all had accidents. There are indeed ulterior secrets hidden here."

Su Ying reached out and pulled the corner of his clothes, and then she realized that there were several people outside looking towards them.

Situ Jin immediately put a silver coin on the table and led Su Ying out of the restaurant.