Meng Qin and his ilk are indeed the kind of small figures who are stifled in ambition. If such people can become censors, does it imply that the Dayuan Dynasty lacks talent?

However, the little Emperor’s face should not be disregarded, so let’s just have Meng Qin serve as a salt inspector.

After all, a salt inspector is still a censor.

Moreover, he can travel to the provinces to conduct inspections, helping the little Emperor delve into the common folk and understand their circumstances—it’s a perfect arrangement, isn’t it?

Emperor Yongcheng: ...Although it sounds awkward, it isn’t without reason.

What Emperor Yongcheng lacks most are ears and eyes in the provinces.

Residing in the Imperial Palace, he doesn’t even dare claim he fully understands the Capital City.

The Dayuan Dynasty spans a vast territory, with more than thirty commanderies nationwide, and each commandery has over twenty counties.

The commanderies and counties are also divided into upper, middle, and lower tiers, with a large population and complex localities. Emperor Yongcheng simply cannot cover all these jurisdictions.

Beyond wanting to understand the implementation of policies and the hardships of the people in the provinces, Emperor Yongcheng also wishes to know the conditions of several vassal kings and border generals.

Yes, the vassal kings!

Emperor Yongcheng only has one brother, Prince Liang, whose fief is in Liang State.

In theory, after being conferred a title, Prince Liang should be stationed in his fief.

However, Empress Dowager He is apprehensive of Prince Liang and his mother and refuses to let him leave for the provinces, intending to confine him within the Capital City.

Though Emperor Yongcheng shares a "deep brotherly affection" with Prince Liang, he is not foolish enough to "release a tiger back into the mountains."

Instead, he had a luxurious Prince Mansion built for him, allowing his family to live as wealthy idlers in the Capital City.

The late Emperor had only two sons. During Emperor Yongcheng’s reign, there is only one vassal king, Prince Liang.

But in the late Emperor’s generation, there were also brothers.

Aside from his own younger brother, Prince Han, Zhao Shuo, there are several cousins.

When the late Emperor raised his troops, the entire clan supported him vigorously.

Of a dozen or so cousins of the same generation, more than half died in battle.

By the time the Dayuan Dynasty was established, only five remained.

Each of these five was a meritorious minister with illustrious military achievements.

Whether for the sake of blood ties or the initial promise of sharing the world!

Even if the late Emperor was reluctant, he generously conferred titles to some brothers as vassal kings.

Of course, being conferred as a king doesn’t mean one can truly share in wealth and prosperity.

In the following decade, some vassal kings rebelled, while others caused disturbances in the provinces, which the late Emperor "reluctantly" quashed.

Spanning to the present, only two of the six vassal kings remain.

One is the late Emperor’s own younger brother, Prince Han, Zhao Shuo, and the other is Prince Nan, Zhao Yan.

Although Zhao Shuo is a vassal king, he has always been kept in the Capital City.

The late Emperor trusted this younger brother somewhat, and before his death, he included him as one of the Three Great Ministers.

The late Emperor wasn’t without fear that his brother might act as a Regent King or even rebel against his nephew.

But the late Emperor feared even more that the Zhao family’s Jiangshan might one day change its surname to "He."

No matter how incapable Zhao Shuo may be, he is still his blood brother, a descendant of the Zhao family.

Even if Zhao Shuo were to commit treason, after ascending, he would still venerate the ancestors of the Zhao family and recognize him as the founder, the grand patriarch.

The late Emperor made Zhao Shuo an assistant minister to restrain Empress Dowager He.

Though Zhao Shuo did not go to his fief, he still wields power and influence in the Capital City, holding 30,000 trusted aides left by the late Emperor.

The other vassal king, Prince Nan, Zhao Yan, is not as fortunate as Zhao Shuo.

His fief is in the desolate Nanzhou, a place teeming with insects, snakes, toxic miasma, and fierce mountain folk.

And even in such a place, the domain doesn’t solely belong to Prince Nan.

Nearby, there is Prince Nanping, a king with a different surname.

Prince Nanping claims to be stationed there to guard the Southern Border, but in truth, he is also there to restrain and monitor Prince Nan.

In the court’s view, Nanzhou is remote and resource-poor, yet it has many salt wells within its territory.

Relying on these salt wells, a small state or commandery is able to support the two large Prince Mansions of Prince Nan and Prince Nanping, along with the 200,000 troops under Prince Nanping’s command.

After Emperor Yongcheng assumed personal rule, although he didn’t consider abolishing the vassals, he couldn’t fully let go of Nanzhou.

After all, there are two significant Prince Mansions there, and several large salt wells.

The produces from these salt wells are enough to supply over a dozen nearby commanderies and counties with salt.

Nowadays, with the "Salt Making New Method" proposed by Empress Dowager He, Emperor Yongcheng finds himself not lacking in salt.

However, since salt is at stake, it’s related to Emperor Yongcheng’s salt affairs reform.

Appointed by the Emperor, Meng Qin’s first stop as a salt inspector is thousands of miles away in Nanzhou.

"Minister Meng, this mission is of utmost importance. Besides investigating the major salt wells in Nanzhou, you also need to ascertain the movements of Prince Nan and Prince Nanping’s Mansion!"

Before departure, Emperor Yongcheng specially summoned Meng Qin to the palace, dismissing the attendants, and held Meng Qin’s hand firmly while giving detailed instructions.

Meng Qin was originally a frustrated scholar who had been toiling in the Capital for many years without earning the recognition of a "Bo Le" (a discerning mentor).

Now, having finally met a "The Wise Emperor," he is full of passion, wishing to sacrifice life and limb to repay the emperor’s favor.

"Your Majesty, rest assured, I will serve with utmost loyalty and dedication..."