Listening to Zhe Yourong's hysterical voice, Han Mo's head ached.
In desperation, he could only turn his head and get into the carriage.
"Didn't you say whoever gets in is a grandson?"
Zhe Yourong said through gritted teeth.
"What is your command, my dear?"
Han Mo stuck out his tongue and made a funny face.
"You are shameless!"
Zhe Yourong was truly helpless against this thick-skinned fellow. This brat was like a mischievous monkey.
He was slippery all over, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't get a handle on Han Mo.
"Can't you say something else? If I guessed correctly, your next sentence would be 'lecher'!"
Han Mo rolled his eyes and moved closer to Zhe Yourong.
Then, he casually picked up a piece of pastry from the small table beside the carriage and popped it into his mouth.
"Aren't you afraid I'll poison you?"
Seeing his lazy demeanor, Zhe Yourong's teeth itched with hatred.
"Alright, I just spoke to a few courtesans. Besides, I didn't do anything, did I? Do you have to curse me like this? Do you know that murdering your husband is punishable by being drowned in a pigsty!"
This almond crisp tasted quite good. Han Mo spoke as he brought over all the plates from the table.
"You!"
Zhe Yourong was completely out of patience with Han Mo. Her upbringing dictated that marriage was a matter of parental arrangement and matchmaker's decree.
Since they were already betrothed, and although she initially looked down on Han Mo, she couldn't quite explain what was happening now.
Although Han Mo was indeed annoying at times, Zhe Yourong had to admit that he was one of the smartest people she had ever met.
In fact, strictly speaking, the so-called young talents she had met before couldn't even compare to Han Mo.
Perhaps some were more handsome than him, but in terms of literary talent and strategy, there was truly no one of his generation who could match him.
Yet, such an ideal husband always made her teeth ache with frustration.
"What else do you want? Do you know who that last vixen was?"
Zhe Yourong said through gritted teeth.
"I don't know..."
Han Mo replied truthfully.
"She is Wu Lian'er from Peach Blossom Cave! I don't care if you exchange poems and songs with those courtesans, but if you dare to provoke this Wu Lian'er, believe it or not, I'll castrate you!"
"I..."
Han Mo's mouth twitched, but he soon understood what was going on.
After all this talk, it turned out to be about this.
Among the top ten courtesans, only Wu Lian'er of Peach Blossom Cave would personally attend to guests.
As long as you were presentable and could afford the price, you could book her for three to five months and then have a romantic night with the courtesan.
The rest were artists who did not sell their bodies, although Li Shishi was an exception.
After all, which woman in the world dared to refuse an emperor?
"Cough, cough, cough!"
Just as Han Mo was about to say something, he was choked by the pastry before he could even open his mouth.
He didn't care about anything else and quickly grabbed a teacup from the small table, poured himself some tea, and managed to recover.
"I can't even name them, so it's meaningless for you to be jealous, isn't it?"
"You! You're not allowed to use this cup."
To Han Mo's surprise, Zhe Yourong didn't answer his question but snatched the teacup from his hand.
"It's just a cup, is it that big of a deal? I said, you came all this way today, surely not just for such a small matter?"
Han Mo gave her a side-eye, then took another teacup and poured himself some tea before speaking.
"You said last time you had a way to make money. Is that true?"
"Of course, it's true. It's just that I'm busy with the imperial examinations right now and don't have time to arrange it. What, are you interested?"
Han Mo asked with a smile.
"Even though we have military pay, you know the court's attitude towards the Zhe family. Once a war breaks out, the casualties and pensions of the soldiers all cost money!"
Zhe Yourong sighed as she said this.
It was a tearful matter, to be honest!
"This is not a solution for you! If it goes on like this, it's a bottomless pit!"
Han Mo had intended to joke with her, but with her words, the topic suddenly became serious.
"What can we do about a bottomless pit? The current situation is like this. In the Battle of Shuofang, Liu Fa died due to Tong Guan's reckless orders, and tens of thousands of soldiers had no place to be buried, but what happened in the end?"
Zhe Yourong's face was filled with a bitter smile as she said this.
It was clearly a defeat, but in the end, Tong Guan spun it into a great victory. Ultimately, Liu Fa, who sacrificed himself for the country, became a traitor who lost the country.
And Tong Guan, the culprit, rose steadily, eventually becoming the Deputy Privy Councilor of the Song Dynasty in just a few years, despite being an eunuch.
Such a thing would have been shocking in other dynasties, but in the Song Dynasty, everyone knew what was happening, yet no one dared to mention it.
Given the state of affairs, what else could be done?
"Alright, let's not talk about these things anymore. How about this, if you call me good brother, I'll teach you a method to turn waste into treasure?"
Seeing Zhe Yourong's red eyes, Han Mo quickly changed the subject.
"You!"
Zhe Yourong, who had just felt a touch of sadness, had her emotions completely thrown to the wind by his words.
"What 'you'? Call me or not, and I'll leave!"
"You can leave!"
Zhe Yourong's face instantly turned red. Even though she was from a military family, she couldn't stand such rogue tactics.
"This is a truly good method. Useless waste that no one uses becomes a coveted item within a few days. As soon as this item appears, I guarantee that all women in the world will vie for it!"
Since their wedding date was already set, and he was destined to focus on his official career, the business matters were naturally to be handed over to Zhe Yourong.
Therefore, Han Mo was not worried about the method being leaked.
"Everyone will fight for it?"
Zhe Yourong was a little tempted.
"That's right, everyone will fight for it, and it will be absolutely valuable. No matter how much you sell it for, someone will want it."
Han Mo said, winking at her.
"I don't have much capital on hand. All the money you acquire will have to be taken as military pay!"
Zhe Yourong said, pinching Han Mo's thigh.
"Ouch, ouch, ouch, what are you doing? Are you trying to murder your husband?"
Han Mo immediately let out a pig-like scream.