Traitor Fang Zheng

Inside the Diplomatic Guesthouse.

As the Northern Rong delegation departed, the crowd gradually dispersed.

Fang Zheng didn't chat with others either.

No need to mention Zhang Shi, the two had never gotten along.

Minister of the Court Chen Hong also had nothing in common with him.

So he simply took the Crown Prince and the reporters back to organize the manuscript.

Today he had created some wealth-generating content! Tomorrow's newspaper was sure to be a bestseller!

Our Great Jing people loved seeing this!

Watching foreigners worship the Great Jing Dynasty made everyone feel more confident!

Wouldn't the Banshan Daily's popularity and advertising revenue skyrocket?

At this time, several minor officials were still coming and going in the courtyard.

Chen Hong and Zhang Shi stood in the courtyard. Chen Hong looked toward the Moon Gate direction and sighed, "This really was a major undertaking. Who would have thought the Northern Rong delegation could stay so long, and that trade between our two countries would actually be negotiated!"

Zhang Shi smiled faintly. "His Majesty was also determined to make it happen. The national treasury is empty. If we kept fighting, I, as Minister of Revenue, wouldn't need to continue. Even if I squeezed this old bag of bones dry, I couldn't produce any money."

Chen Hong laughed heartily. "That makes sense. But this Master Fang is really wealthy, to have obtained so much Celestial Immortal Tea and diamonds."

"Several cartloads... Sigh, to be able to get such sought-after goods shows real capability."

Hearing Fang Zheng's name, Zhang Shi's face immediately showed displeasure, though he quickly returned to normal.

He said coldly, "Taoyuan County's wealth is now known to everyone. Fang Zheng having money is only natural."

"To be able to give gifts on His Majesty's behalf... naturally shows some capability."

Chen Hong frowned.

Giving gifts on His Majesty's behalf - those words couldn't be said casually!

That was overstepping bounds.

Although everyone knew you two didn't get along, your son passed the exam, didn't he? Even if you wanted to say something, you didn't need to say it to me!

Chen Hong was about to speak to end this topic when a minor official hurried up to the two men.

Sweating profusely, he said, "Both gentlemen! The Northern Rong delegation left some goods behind!"

"They missed an entire room when counting their belongings!"

Chen Hong was shocked. "What! They missed an entire room of goods? Quick, lead us to see!"

The minor official nodded immediately and turned to lead the way.

Chen Hong and Zhang Shi followed closely.

Arriving at the guest quarters' storage room, Chen Hong looked at the six large boxes before him and frowned again.

This was the back room, in a dark corner, so it was quite possible to overlook it.

It was just that the Northern Rong delegation was too careless! They missed an entire room of goods.

He immediately called to a nearby minor official, "These are indeed the delegation's belongings. They probably haven't gone far yet! Quickly send a fast horse to notify the delegation to come retrieve them!"

The minor official was about to leave when Zhang Shi raised his hand to stop him.

"Wait, don't rush."

"Master Zhang, what do you mean...?" Chen Hong looked somewhat puzzled.

Zhang Shi's expression was ambiguous as he said quietly, "Don't you... want to see what's inside? What if there's something useful?"

"This... wouldn't be appropriate, would it?" Upon his prompting, Chen Hong suddenly understood and couldn't help feeling tempted.

"Northern Rong is our border enemy!" Zhang Shi said indifferently.

"Then let's look!" Chen Hong agreed without hesitation.

Enemy country belongings - what morals were there to consider? Just look!

"You go out and station a few more people outside the guesthouse. If any Northern Rong people come looking, don't let them in. Come report here first!"

"Yes!" The minor official responded and left.

The room had poor lighting and was quite dark.

The two began slowly selecting a box to open, leaning their heads in to examine it carefully.

The box contained a full collection of books... almost all the books available in Great Jing markets were in this large box.

Chen Hong sighed, "This National Preceptor Paba is quite studious. Who would have thought he'd bought so many books."

"No wonder he's so familiar with our country. When conversing, he's practically no different from us."

Zhang Shi nodded without speaking.

This had been discovered during trade negotiations. This person had excellent eloquence and spoke and acted with perfect propriety.

He had clearly put in considerable effort.

They then opened the second box, which contained various Great Jing specialties, but nothing particularly valuable.

It wasn't until they reached the deepest box that it seemed to contain clothing and personal items.

Chen Hong looked carefully. "These are Paba's clothes. I've seen him wear this top one. Let's be careful not to mess things up when we look at what's underneath."

The two carefully searched through it. Chen Hong suddenly looked pleased and picked up a booklet from the bottom. "This is actually the Northern Rong delegation's account book!"

Zhang Shi also looked delighted. "Quick, translate it. Let's see what's recorded!"

Chen Hong moved closer to the window and looked down while speaking. "This is... it records expenditures for purchasing items in the capital, and prices throughout the capital."

"Hehe... This National Preceptor Paba is truly meticulous. He even recorded the price of needles."

Zhang Shi felt somewhat excited. It looked like their luck was good - there really were valuable items inside!

Chen Hong whispered in his ear while he continued searching through the box. Soon he found several more booklets and some pieces of silk with writing.

Zhang Shi quickly handed them over. "Look at these too. What do they say?"

Chen Hong first picked up the silk, glanced at it, and said trembling with excitement, "This should be an edict from Khan Wutu... it even has his seal!"

"It really is private belongings! How could he leave such things behind!"

"What does it say! Translate it!" Zhang Shi craned his neck anxiously.

Chen Hong quickly shook his head. "Nothing important, mostly just appointments and instructions."

After finishing the Khan Wutu edict, he picked up the other booklets and began reading rapidly. "These are also ordinary things."

"They're all account books recording prices, customs, and a list of officials from our Great Jing court."

"Good heavens! This Paba actually recorded everything I said to him!"

"Who would have thought Northern Rong, this barbaric land, could produce such a capable person."

Chen Hong chattered on, constantly praising Paba. Suddenly his gaze froze and his breath caught in his throat.

Looking at the booklet's contents, his eyes bulged wide!

Seeing his expression, Zhang Shi immediately frowned and pointed at the content, urging, "What's written here?! Is there important information? Don't just stand there, translate it!"

Chen Hong stared at the booklet, his gaze flickering uncertainly.

Then he stiffly raised his head to look at Zhang Shi, swallowed, and said, "This says..."

"Fang Zheng promised Paba... if our two countries trade, Taoyuan County will provide large quantities of iron tools for exchange. For this, Paba even gave him sixty thousand taels of silver as a favor fee."

"This uses five full pages to record the details of their private conversation!"