She Came to Heal, Stayed to Conquer

”No, haha, I’m just laughing at those guys who chose to kidnap anyone but ended up kidnapping Miss Han. In the end, they kidnapped a feisty lady instead, haha...”

Upon hearing Ping Chuan say this, everyone laughed along.

”Indeed, this incident is absolutely ridiculous and beyond belief.”

”Miss Han looks so delicate, how did she manage it?”

”...”

The atmosphere in the courtyard, which had been tense and brimming with hostility, suddenly lightened up. Even Zhao Zun, who was usually cold and distant, couldn’t help but have a slight smile curve on his lips.

She was indeed the same girl he knew — when she acted, her opponents would easily fall.

The worries of the past days finally dissipated, and Zhao Zun could truly rest easy at last.

After instructing everyone to go back and rest, he turned around and went back inside.

Sitting at the table, he opened the crumpled letter and began reading it carefully by the dim candlelight...

...

The next day, after Zhizhou Sun Wenyuan sobered up and came to the County Magistrate to report on the construction of the Prince Mansion, the King of Cangzhou, Zhao Zun, appeared before him looking refreshed, a stark contrast to his aloof and somber demeanor from the previous day.

”This official greets the Prince.” Sun Wenyuan still wore a fawning and pleasing smile.

He didn’t expect that the previously indifferent Zhao Zun would return his greeting with a smile as gentle and warm as a spring breeze.

”Mr. Sun, please have a seat. I’m troubled you had to oversee the construction of the Prince Mansion.”

”Not at all, it’s all within my duties. The imperial decree states the Prince can recruit five hundred household guards. I wonder, can this official assist the Prince with this matter?”

Zhao Zun’s smile remained unchanged, and his tone was very polite. ”Thank you, Mr. Sun, for your concern. The recruitment of household guards has already been entrusted to my trusted aide. Mr. Sun should just focus on the construction of the Prince Mansion.”

Although the Vassal King is the highest ruler of the fiefdom, before he arrived, all the officials, big or small, were appointed by the court.

Moreover, the Sun family is the maternal family of Emperor Jing.

Zhao Zun understood Sun Wenyuan’s intentions all too well. If he allowed him to help recruit the guards, who knows how many of his men would become Sun Wenyuan’s spies in the future.

The household guards are his security force, and he absolutely would not allow any spies among them.

Through Sun Wenyuan’s words, Zhao Zun instantly understood that even after granting him land, Emperor Jing still did not fully trust him.

Seeing Zhao Zun directly refuse, Sun Wenyuan didn’t dare say more and could only give an awkward laugh.

”Haha, indeed. This official had forgotten. The Prince already has trusted aides to serve him. Then I’ll focus on overseeing the Prince Mansion construction. If the Prince has no other commands, this official will take his leave.”

Upon finishing, Sun Wenyuan rose, bowed, and turned to leave, but Zhao Zun called out to him.

”Mr. Sun, hold on!” Zhao Zun stood up from his seat of honor and walked over to Sun Wenyuan, warmly patting his shoulder. ”The construction of the Prince Mansion is not urgent. Let’s put it aside for now. I have another matter to trouble you with, Mr. Sun.”

”The Prince may command as he wishes.”

A Prince not eager to build his own mansion was surprising to Sun Wenyuan, but Zhao Zun’s cordial demeanor still left him feeling flattered.

Zhao Zun continued patting his shoulder. ”Mr. Sun must know, I am but a mere warrior. With all my martial arts now going to waste, I would like to purchase a large piece of barren land in your county to build a hunting field for archery and hunting. Could this be done?”

Zhao Zun was right; he truly was a warrior!

Sun Zhizhou’s mouth twitched violently, ”Your Highness, you want to build a hunting field before your Prince Mansion? Isn’t this... um, putting the cart before the horse?”

”No, no, no, I just want to stretch my muscles a bit. It’s unbearable for me to remain inactive for several days. As for the Prince Mansion, as long as it’s livable, it doesn’t matter when it gets finished.”

Saying this, Zhao Zun deliberately stretched his body widely as if warming up.

He read Han Lei’s letter yesterday, which stated the need for large barren lands to build workshops.

Qingshui County needed to build the Prince Mansion and had already built pig farms and cleared land for farming.

If more barren land is required for workshops, it would have to be done right under Sun Wenyuan’s nose in a straightforward manner.

Emperor Jing was still unsure about him, wasn’t he? And he had Sun Wenyuan ready to plant spies within his household guards, right?

Then he would let the Emperor know that his first action upon arriving in Cangzhou was to build a hunting ground for archery and hunting for leisure.

Sun Wenyuan was left speechless.

Other Vassal Kings, upon arrival at their fief, busied themselves with forming connections, developing their power, or lavishly spending the court’s silver to build their mansions.

But this Prince Zhao Zun was instead focused on building a hunting ground for archery and hunting for fun in his fief.

In that case, this Prince was an easy one to please.

After all, Cangzhou was remote and desolate, with plenty of barren land. As long as Zhao Zun harbored no rebellious intents that threatened the Emperor’s bottom line, he could build and play as he wished.

Keeping this Consideration in mind, Sun Wenyuan’s face once again broke into a flattering smile.

”Great! Since the Prince enjoys archery and hunting, we will follow your wishes and build the hunting ground first. But where, may I ask, does the Prince wish to build it?”

Seeing Sun Wenyuan agree so easily, Zhao Zun slightly curled his lips, thoughtfully rubbing his chin.

”Hmm... The land in Qingshui County is relatively fertile and good for growing crops. Even as much as I like it, I can’t hunt in farmland. How about... building the hunting ground in your Huachang County, Mr. Sun? What do you think?”

Hearing this, Sun Wenyuan’s head, with his official hat on, shook like a drum.

”Uh, no, no, no, Your Highness might not know. Only Qingshui and Huachang counties in all of Cangzhou are fertile and must be used for farming. Would the Prince choose another place?”

What a joke!

The land in Huachang County was even more fertile than in Qingshui County. Otherwise, why would he have chosen to set up the Zhizhou office in Huachang County?

If not for the ample land he had circled under the Sun family’s name in Huachang County, how could the Sun family have become as large and powerful as it is today, or how could they have entered the ranks of the Four Great Families? If Zhao Zun went to Huachang County, how could he rule the region as Zhizhou and arbitrarily claim land?

Moreover, before Zhao Zun’s arrival, he was the undisputed local emperor in Cangzhou.

Now, with Zhao Zun as the King of Cangzhou, he only needed to show token respect, so why bother dealing with him every day?

What’s more, the fertile lands in Huachang County had already been registered under his family’s name; why should he hand them over to Zhao Zun for building a hunting ground? That would be like cutting flesh from the Sun family!

Unbeknownst to Sun Wenyuan, his refusal played right into Zhao Zun’s hands, for Zhao Zun had been waiting for this response.

Zhao Zun had guarded Beiguan for years. Though a military general, he was well-acquainted with affairs in the whole of Cangzhou. His proposal to build the hunting ground in Huachang County was merely a feint, intended to steer the conversation away from Sun Wenyuan’s scrutiny.

Zhao Zun’s purpose was straightforward: he wanted Sun to know he was building the hunting ground openly, yet do so out of Sun’s line of sight, leaving Sun with no knowledge of how or what it would become.