Chen Jie had just finished speaking when Zhao Ya, slightly frowning, said, "The way to govern a country must first make its people rich."
Chen Jie looked at Zhao Ya in surprise, and Zhao Ya said, "It’s from ’Guanzi: The Art of Governance.’ The way to govern a country must first make its people rich. What you just said coincides with it exactly."
Chen Jie felt somewhat embarrassed; his level of education seemed not as high as Zhao Ya’s.
With a slightly awkward smile, Chen Jie tried to brush it off, while Zhao Ya seemed to want to ask something more. Just then, a series of footsteps sounded from downstairs.
Immediately after, Chen Gou ran up.
Seeing that Chen Jie was talking to a wealthy young master, he swallowed his words.
Noticing Chen Gou, Si Xi also looked over and asked, "What’s the matter?"
Chen Gou whispered something, Si Xi’s eyes widened in surprise, yet he nodded and approached Chen Jie, saying, "Lord, something has happened at home."
Upon hearing this, Chen Jie looked up and exchanged a glance with Si Xi.
Si Xi nodded slightly.
Chen Jie immediately stood up and saluted Zhao Ya, saying, "Young Master Zhao, I’m afraid I must leave, as there’s an emergency at home. I bid you farewell."
Zhao Ya seemed reluctant to end the conversation, but since Chen Jie had mentioned a family emergency, he couldn’t very well insist and said, "Oh, then until we meet again by fate, Brother Chen."
Chen Jie nodded and then hurried downstairs with Xiao Hu, Si Xi, and Chen Gou.
Once downstairs, Chen Jie asked, "What’s going on?"
Si Xi said, "People from Yelu Mansion have come; they say that at midnight tonight, they’re going to capture Nan Batian!"
Chen Jie’s gaze sharpened, "So soon."
Si Xi said, "It looks like Lord Yelu is in a hurry too. The evidence is irrefutable now, and he wants to get rid of the trouble as soon as possible."
Chen Jie instructed, "Alright, send someone to reply to Lord Yelu, I’ve been informed."
Chen Jie’s eyes hardened slightly, and then he hastily made his way toward White Tiger Hall.
Meanwhile, on the second floor, Zhao Ya leaned against the window watching Chen Jie’s retreating figure, feeling that he looked somewhat familiar.
Who is this man? He doesn’t seem like just an ordinary merchant!
Thinking this, Zhao Ya said to Ah Da, "You follow him, see where he goes."
Ah Da replied, "Yes."
Zhao Ya instructed, "Do not alarm him."
Ah Da responded, "Understood."
Upon hearing this, Ah San said, "Why such trouble? Commandery Princess, if you want to ask him something, I could just capture him and ask directly."
Zhao Ya glared at Ah San and admonished, "We must show respect to those with talent."
Ah San looked confused, and Zhao Ya clarified, "Be polite to capable people."
Ah San finally understood.
Ah Da then leaped out through the window and started tailing Chen Jie.
As Chen Jie and his party were heading to White Tiger Hall, Xiao Hu said, "Jiu Si, someone’s following us."
Si Xi was also taken aback, and then suggested, "Hall Master, should we change to a civilian residence?"
Chen Jie replied, "No need, the Inspection Envoy could easily look into my background if he wished; there’s no reason to deliberately conceal it and risk appearing unseemly or overly cautious."
Hearing this, Si Xi said, "Right, then we’ll return to the residence."
Thus, Chen Jie directly returned to White Tiger Hall. When Ah Da, who had followed behind, saw the guards at the gate referring to Chen Jie as the Hall Master, his brows furrowed deeply: "The White Tiger Hall Master? To think he dared deceive the Commandery Princess!"
Considering the correct course of action, Ah Da remembered the Commandery Princess’s earlier words and refrained from intervening.
This was to show respect to those with talent.
Being the eldest, he felt he ought to conduct himself better than Ah Er and Ah San.
With this in mind, Ah Da returned directly to the tea house to report the situation.
"Chen Jie, Chen Jiusi!"
After hearing Ah Da’s report, Zhao Ya didn’t appear to be angry. After all, she hadn’t been completely honest herself, merely saying that she was a businesswoman. If her counterpart also wasn’t completely honest, it was understandable.
However, Zhao Ya was now thinking again about Chen Jie’s earlier words and felt that he truly was talented.
She became even more interested in him.
Zhao Ya called, and Ah Da immediately saluted. Zhao Ya said, "Keep an eye on him, and come back to report immediately if anything happens."
Responding promptly, Ah Da left to carry out the order. Zhao Ya took a sip of tea, pondering, "Chen Jiusi..."
Upon hearing the message from Yelu Mansion, Qin Ying felt his heart race and pondered for a moment before saying, "Understood. I will execute Lord Yelu’s orders faithfully."
After making sure that Qin Ying had understood, the envoy from Yelu Mansion left.
Once the envoy from Yelu Mansion had departed, Qin Hu and Qin Bao gathered around and asked Qin Ying, "Big brother!"
With furrowed brows, Qin Ying murmured, "Yes, tonight we act against Nan Batian."
Both Qin Hu and Qin Bao were surprised, and Qin Ying added, "Who could have guessed that Nan Batian would dare to secretly manufacture military weapons? Now Lord Yelu has caught him red-handed. Not even a god can save him now."
After hearing this, Qin Hu frowned and said, "He deserves it, but why do you look so dispirited, big brother?"
Hearing this, Qin Ying said, "Lord Yelu instructed me to attack Nan Batian from behind during tonight’s capture."
Startled by this, Qin Hu and Qin Bao were both stunned – were they really supposed to ambush Nan Batian?
Qin Ying also frowned, "Nan Batian is very wary; ambushing him will be quite difficult."
Hearing this, Qin Hu asked, "Big brother, what will you do?"
Qin Ying’s brows knit slightly as he replied, "What else can I do? I cannot disregard Lord Yelu’s command. I must consider this carefully."
Qin Ying continued, "Tonight, I will go to Nan Batian’s residence. Whether I succeed or not isn’t important. What is important is that you must call together all our brothers from Eagle Hall, regardless of their fighting ability. Gather them all, as we must appear to have the largest numbers."
"Big brother, what are you planning?"
Qin Hu asked, puzzled.