The Princess of Northern Land
Chapter 522: A Golden Phoenix Flies Out of the Grassy Nest (1)_1

Chapter 522: Chapter 522: A Golden Phoenix Flies Out of the Grassy Nest (1)_1

"Indeed, Prime Minister is right." Another official stepped forward, "As long as we control Daqin’s grain supply to the Northern Land, Prince Ling will inevitably continue to seek help from the Emperor. In this way, the situation in the Northern Land remains in the Emperor’s control."

"I agree with the Prime Minister and Minister’s suggestion. Even if the Northern Land is capable of growing rice, it cannot be largely cultivated due to the climate, and the yield will definitely not be higher than that of Jiangnan. Despite the vastness of the Northern Land, its population remains sparse. Even if Prince Ling had supernatural powers, he would not be able to solve the problems of population and climate. As long as the Emperor takes appropriate precautions, Prince Ling will naturally not dare to harbor evil intentions when seeking the Emperor’s help." Officials stepped forward one by one, all echoing the words of the Prime Minister and Minister of Rites.

Both of these individuals belong to the Crown Prince faction.

As the future Crown Prince, he of course needs to be appeased.

"In my humble opinion, we should not alienate the Northern Land entirely." There were those who disagreed, for every person in favor.

The Crown Prince, with a gloomy face looked at those in opposition, who were supporters of the third prince, and felt especially displeased, "According to Minister Yin’s opinion, should we support Prince Ling’s grain supply?"

The reigning Emperor heard this and his face darkened.

Supporting Prince Ling is tantamount to harboring ill intentions towards the Emperor, isn’t it? No Emperor would ever tolerate an official with such treasonous intentions.

Minister Yin, terrified, immediately fell to his knees in explanation, "I would willingly sacrifice my life for the Emperor and would never dare to harbor any personal interests. Nowadays in Daqin, the shops everywhere are selling biscuits, cakes, white jade cakes and other pastries from the Northern Land, in addition to milk buns and soy milk powder, and various nuts, which have already been sold in every street and alley. Especially the soy milk and cow milk, many of the young masters and misses from large residences prefer to drink. If the grain supply is completely cut off, Prince Ling has already announced that he will not allow any more goods to be transported out."

At these words, the officials below began to discuss again.

Minister Yin’s words made a lot of sense - the bean products and vegetable oil from the Northern Land had already deeply permeated every household. If they were suddenly cut off, it would certainly cause trouble.

"In my opinion, we must absolutely not permit the transportation of grain to the Northern Land." The Crown Prince stood up in firm opposition, "Even when Daqin originally did not have vegetable oil, we were still very capable. As for pastries, without those from the Northern Land, the varieties of pastries in Daqin are even more numerous. As for soy milk and cow milk powder, large families have their own wet nurses, so what is there to fear."

"What the Crown Prince said makes sense. Emperor, if Prince Ling has a sufficient supply of grain, then he would be completely independent of the Imperial Court’s control." The Prime Minister is a firm supporter of the Crown Prince.

"Emperor, in my humble opinion, an equivalent exchange may not be a bad option. Anything edible can replace grain. If our Daqin merchants carry grain to the Northern Land but bring back pastries, going back and forth would not fundamentally affect the grain supply in the Northern Land." Those against were persistent as well.

The Emperor, somewhat irritated, looked at the quarrelsome court officials below. Noting how the officials of the court were basically divided into two factions, half in favor of the third prince and half supporting the Crown Prince. As for Prince Ling? Heh, since childhood he had been sent to the Northern Land; none of the senior officials in the court had any connections with him.

"Grain is the lifeblood of a nation, how can we allow large quantities of grain to flood into the Northern Land over trivial treats?" The Emperor, who had been silent all this while, finally spoke up in the midst of the heated debate between the two factions.

" Your humble servant is terrified." Those officials supporting the third prince were petrified; it was clear that the Emperor was favoring the Crown Prince’s side this time.

The word of the supreme authority is decisive. However heated the debate among the officials, the final decision has to abide by the Emperor’s words. The officials on the third prince’s side, afraid of being accused of plotting treacherously by the Emperor, held their tongues once the Emperor spoke. Thereafter, no one came forth with further objections.