【The Great Yong Dynasty, with a legacy spanning thousands of years and six diligent emperors.】

【The national treasury was abundant, and the country’s strength was formidable, truly a scene of a prosperous era.】

【Millions of taels of silver were nothing to the Great Yong Dynasty’s treasury.】

【But all the ministers present knew.】

【This precedent of distributing money couldn’t be set!】

【The court had always been the one collecting money for thousands of years, and now, suddenly, they were supposed to give it away?】

【How was that possible?】

【Moreover, tax exemption itself was not appropriate.】

【Exempting for a year was already considerable, but you, going for three years right off the bat.】

【What would the court eat during those three years?】

【How would the entire dynasty operate without money?】

【These were all issues that needed consideration!】

【Amidst the ministers’ heated discussions, Ye Yu remained unfazed.】

【Instead, he looked delightedly at the Finance Minister.】

【Only half a year’s taxes, you say?】

【Then change it, give each person three taels of silver.】

【If we’re going to distribute, we should do it joyfully!】

【Upon hearing this, the Finance Minister instantly lost his breath.】

【He collapsed in the grand hall.】

【The surrounding ministers immediately began to revive him.】

【More ministers, however, knelt on the ground.】

【They started pleading with Ye Yu to retract the decree. Even some of those who had already submitted to him did the same.】

【The reason was simple.】

【Exempting taxes for three years, plus giving each person three taels of silver, this would undoubtedly cause a huge impact on the dynasty’s treasury.】

【This couldn’t be done!】

【Ye Yu’s loyal follower, Sun Longhai, also looked distressed.】

【He stood there, unsure of what to do.】

【From any angle, this decree was absolutely unreasonable.】

【But Ye Yu had just ascended the throne and needed support.】

【So, choosing between frank advice and unwavering loyalty was a dilemma.】

【Just as Sun Longhai was feeling conflicted, he suddenly received Ye Yu’s transmitted thought.】

【Begin the battle, Prime Minister Sun!】

【Hearing this, Sun Longhai’s face immediately turned red. He was indeed of first rank, but not the prime minister.】

【The position of prime minister was the highest a civil servant could attain!】

【It was every civil official’s dream.】

【Being addressed as Prime Minister Sun was more than a title; it was a promise.】

【In that case, what else was there to say?】

【The emperor’s words were always right, even if they weren’t!】

【Let’s fight!】

【Sun Longhai stepped forward and abruptly turned, facing the ministers!】

【He began his fervent defense.】

【In his excitement, he even started throwing punches.】

【The court was in chaos, a scene of utter bedlam.】

【Ye Yu didn’t intervene at all.】

【He only cared about the outcome.】

【The process didn’t matter!】

【The next day, Ye Yu’s decree was announced throughout the entire dynasty.】

【Three years of tax exemption, and three taels of silver per person, to be delivered to everyone.】

【Any region where the people did not receive their silver and tax exemption notice, the local officials would be executed without question.】

【After this decree was implemented, the entire nation rejoiced.】

【All the common people couldn’t help but praise, believing they had welcomed a benevolent ruler.】

【But the ministers sighed one after another.】

【They thought the Great Yong Dynasty might decline because of this.】

【There was only one exception.】

【The newly appointed prime minister, Sun Longhai.】

【He still had several unhealed scratches on his face. These were the scars from the scuffle in court.】

【At first, Sun Longhai was very distressed, fearing he would be disfigured.】

【But when he saw the prime minister’s black robe placed before him, all his worries and grievances vanished instantly.】

【Sun Longhai’s eyes turned red as he made a silent vow.】

【From now on, he would be Ye Yu’s loyal dog. Honor and dignity meant nothing.】

【Sun Longhai would steadfastly support any of Ye Yu’s decisions and fight for them.】

【If he couldn’t win with words, he would resort to cursing, and if cursing didn’t work, he would fight!】

【Meanwhile, in the palace.】

【Ye Yu was very happy.】

【This money distribution had nearly emptied the treasury of almost two years’ worth of taxes.】

【But the rewards were equally enormous.】

【Ye Yu directly stepped into the early stage of the Integration realm, with faint signs of breaking through the mid-stage of Integration realm.】

【Indeed, the larger the amount of money squandered, the faster his cultivation improved.】

【Ye Yu had come to love being the emperor.】

【However, the treasury funds were not enough for him to squander his way to ascension.】

【He needed to find a way to get more money!】

【After much contemplation, he summoned Sun Longhai to the palace overnight.】

【There was a night-long discussion between the ruler and his minister.】

【On his third court session.】

【Ye Yu began a new plan.】

【Preparing for war, and two months later, they would invade the Great Xia Dynasty.】

【As soon as this was announced, the ministers immediately objected.】

【The Great Yong Dynasty and the Great Xia Dynasty were neighboring countries. They had been at war repeatedly before.】

【Both countries’ national strengths had suffered significant losses.】

【Ever since the ceasefire treaty was signed a thousand years ago, the two countries had coexisted peacefully for a millennium.】

【Starting a war now, without any reason, would be unjustifiable!】

【Ye Yu gestured slightly.】

【Sun Longhai immediately pulled out the map of the Northern Desolate Continent.】

【Ye Yu pointed to the human empires on the map.】

【He said: I don’t just want to attack the Great Xia, I also want to attack the Great Liao and Shanghuai!】

【Until we achieve unification and incorporate all these nations into the Great Yong Dynasty’s territory. They must either submit or be destroyed.】

【As for the reason, I will give you one right now!】

【How can I allow others to snore and sleep on the other side of my couch?】

【In an instant, everyone present was stunned.】

【They knew Ye Yu’s actions were often crazy, but they didn’t expect him to be this insane.】

【To swallow the entire Northern Desolate Continent?】

【The Finance Minister stepped forward, trembling.】

【Mustering all his strength, he said, Your Majesty, the treasury is empty, we have no money for war!】

【Ye Yu sneered: It’s precisely because we have no money that we need to fight! If we had money, I wouldn’t bother with this effort.】

【If we win against the Great Xia Dynasty, their silver, spirit stones, mines, and resources will all be ours.】

【By then, I’ll have you counting money until your hands cramp!】

【The ministers listened, and hissed; what His Majesty said, seemed quite reasonable.】

【As long as they won, the men would become slaves, the women would work, and they would seize all resources, naturally, they would have money.】

【But something still felt off!】

【The Finance Minister pointed out the key issue, Your Majesty, what if we don’t win?】

【”If we don’t win, I’ll confiscate all your family properties and use that money for compensation!”】

【The Finance Minister spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted again.】