The moment the Empress stepped into the hall, she sensed something was off. Suppressing her unease and preparing to pay her respects, she was suddenly met with the Emperor snatching up a memorial and hurling it at her. Not daring to dodge, she took the blow to her forehead, leaving a bruise.
"Your Majesty, please quell your anger." The Empress had no idea what was happening—she only knew the Emperor was in a foul mood and regretted arriving at such a time. Secretly blaming the eunuchs for not warning her, she hurriedly grabbed the memorial and dropped to her knees with a thud.
"Quell my anger? My dear Empress, how am I supposed to quell my anger?" The Emperor’s eyes were bloodshot; he was clearly furious and made no attempt to hide it.
"Your Majesty, what mistake have I made to incur such wrath?" The Empress looked aggrieved, inwardly cursing her bad luck for coming precisely when the Emperor was in such a mood.
"What mistake? You dare ask me what mistake? Open the memorial and read it carefully—my good Empress, my good in-laws!" The Emperor’s face flushed red as he spoke, his breath unsteady, gripping the armrest and gasping for air.
The chief eunuch rushed to steady the Emperor’s breath: "Your Majesty, please quell your anger. You must take care of your dragon body."
The ministers also hurriedly knelt, each one earnestly imploring the Emperor to take care of his dragon body.
Utterly confused, the Empress opened the memorial. The moment she saw the contents, her face turned deathly pale, eyes full of despair. Before she could finish reading, she started kowtowing repeatedly: "Your Majesty, please quell your anger. Please investigate thoroughly—my father and brother would never do such things. Someone must be framing them. Your Majesty, please see the truth!"
Prince Nolan was right—the Empress and her faction are barely keeping themselves afloat, let alone worrying about the Menagerie or accusing Prince Nolan of disrespect toward the Emperor and Empress.
"Framed? I almost wish someone had framed you. If General Marcus Meng hadn’t come to the capital to report and stumbled upon this, I’d still be in the dark about how bold my father-in-law and brother-in-law have been. Empress, with both witnesses and evidence, tell me—who could possibly have framed them?" The Emperor was furious and deeply disappointed; after all, the Empress’s father and brother were imperial kin, and their actions were a slap in his face.
"Your Majesty, my father and brother would never traffic grain or raw iron, never do anything to endanger the realm. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly." The Empress ignored the pain and kept kowtowing desperately.
If this charge is confirmed, it will mean utter ruin with no hope of return.
Not long ago, vicious competition among several major merchants sent grain prices soaring. Although Eastlyn hasn’t yet faced the severe shortages seen in Northlyn, Southlyn, or Lyndaria, the Emperor became highly concerned and repeatedly ordered the court ministers to absolutely forbid private grain trading.
Still, private grain trading persists. Selling grain to Southlyn, Northlyn, and Lyndaria yields profits several times—or even dozens of times—higher. With such huge profits, many are tempted to take risks, though the amounts are small and well-hidden, so the Emperor can’t catch them or find evidence, leaving him helpless.
If the grain deals are small, the Emperor can just barely tolerate it. But raw iron trading is something he absolutely forbids—raw iron is the key material for weapons, and if it leaks out, it strengthens other nations and truly shakes the foundations of the state.
The profits in this business have always been dozens of times higher, but anyone caught faces death by extermination of nine generations. Except for those who value money over life, no sane person would dare touch it.
This time, the Empress’s father and brother not only got involved in grain trading—they even ventured into raw iron, and in substantial quantities. According to the ledgers General Marcus Meng presented, in just over two months, over a million silver has flowed in and out. The scale is staggering.
This time, the Empress’s clan likely cannot be saved.
"No way—the Imperial Father-in-law and Imperial Uncle are way too bold. Why would they touch this kind of business? It’s a death sentence! They can’t possibly be that desperate for money." Serena was so shocked by Prince Nolan’s news that her mouth hung open for ages before she could close it.
In modern terms, this is arms dealing. Sure, only top officials can pull off arms deals, but for the Imperial Father-in-law to do something like this—it’s basically undermining his own son-in-law’s throne!
"Why not? With enough profit, they’d dare to trade not just raw iron and grain, but even sell off national territory. Don’t forget—what they lose is the country’s interest, but what they gain is their own.
The country’s interests belong to the Emperor, not the Imperial Father-in-law. Only what’s in your own hands counts as your own. Besides, to support Prince Rowan’s succession bid, the Imperial Father-in-law needs vast amounts of silver to buy people’s loyalty."
Serena’s shocked expression was so adorable that Prince Nolan wanted to reach out and pinch her cheek. But halfway there, he remembered his hand was still bandaged, so he could only withdraw it in frustration, silently blaming himself for being too reckless and injuring his right hand so badly.
There are parasites in every country. Thinking of the corruption she’d seen in the military in her previous life, Serena gave a bitter smile: "I really don’t get it. They already have high status and power—far more than most. Why can’t they be satisfied? Is money really something you can never have enough of?"
Those corrupt officials hoard more money than they could spend in several lifetimes—what’s the point?
"The human heart is never satisfied—like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. No one thinks they have too much silver. With enough silver, you can do more, gain greater power, shelter your descendants, and ensure your family’s wealth for generations.
Accumulating vast wealth guarantees your descendants’ security and lets your family endure through the ages. Serena, human ambition is never satisfied; once you get one thing, you’ll want another.
A prince wants to be Crown Prince; once he’s Crown Prince, he wants to be Emperor; once he’s Emperor, he wants to unify the world; after that, he wants immortality and an unbroken imperial line. The human heart is tiny, but it can hold endless desire." At the end, Prince Nolan let out a long sigh.
His ambition is huge, too!
"Fine, even so—how could it be so coincidental? Shouldn’t this kind of thing be hidden really well? How could a newly arrived reporting general just happen to discover it, even finding the ledgers? The Imperial Father-in-law and Imperial Uncle can’t be that stupid." Serena absolutely refused to believe Prince Nolan had nothing to do with this.
Otherwise, why wasn’t it discovered earlier or later—why exactly today? Judging by the timing, it happened right after the Menagerie incident.
"I knew I couldn’t fool you. Fine, I arranged all of this behind the scenes. In fact, the Empress’s father and brother had no idea about the raw iron trade.
They thought they were trading private salt, tea, and grain. It was me who secretly ordered raw iron to be hidden among the grain and salt shipments. If the Empress’s father and brother had known about the raw iron, they’d never have gotten involved." Prince Nolan squinted, a mischievous smile flickering in his long, narrow eyes.
"I knew it was you! Without you, there’s no way the Empress’s father and brother could’ve pulled off such a massive operation. It’s not easy to source that much grain and raw iron—these days, only Vincent Su could supply that much grain.
As for raw iron, unless someone is desperate or suicidal, no one sane would touch that trade. The Empress’s father and brother don’t have the guts to go after raw iron, and even if they tried, they couldn’t possibly move such a huge batch.
This time, the Empress’s father and brother are truly doomed. Once you target someone, even if they survive, they’ll be skinned alive. No—in this case, they won’t escape at all. They’ve crossed the Emperor’s reverse scale; he’d rather kill by mistake than let them go."
With that confirmation, Serena was finally satisfied; everything that hadn’t made sense now fell into place.
With Prince Nolan involved, anything is possible. This time, the Empress’s father and brother are truly finished—when Prince Nolan strikes, he hits dead center. Even if they jumped into the Yellow River, they couldn’t wash themselves clean...