Chapter 248 Time-Space Portal

"I say, hometown fellow, even if you haven't had meat for a year, you don't have to indulge yourself like this. Aren't you afraid of dying young?"

Yang Xin helped Gao Yuan, whose legs were trembling, sit down on the recliner. As she poured him tea, she scolded him.

Gao Yuan took a sip of tea, picked up a piece of dried fruit, tossed it into his mouth, and let out a long sigh.

"You think I don't know? It's just that I've been away for too long, and the women are all queuing up to 'pay the public grain tax.' Each one is as fierce as a wolf or tiger... Sigh..."

"Pfft! Quack quack quack..."

Yang Xin laughed so hard she sounded like a goose. After a good while, she patted Gao Yuan.

"Serves you right. Who told you to marry so many wives?"

"Sigh, I finally understand why ancient emperors all died young. With this kind of exploitation, it would be a miracle to live long."

The two chatted for a while before finally getting down to business.

"You won a great victory this time. You must have looted quite a bit, right? Shouldn't you consider repaying some of the loan? Let me tell you, your actions have completely hindered my expansion plans."

Gao Yuan waved his hand dismissively, a look of disdain on his face.

"Repay, repay, repay... You, a big bank president, always focusing on those measly bits and pieces. You have no vision at all."

"You call this having no vision? Have you even looked at how much you owe? A full seven hundred and thirty thousand strings of cash, okay?"

"That much? You're not scamming me, are you?"

Hearing this number, Gao Yuan was also startled. He practically jumped up from the recliner, took the ledger, and began flipping through it.

Yang Xin's accounts were very clear. From start to finish, the government treasury had borrowed nearly a million strings for road construction, shipbuilding, and so on. After the autumn taxes came in, some was repaid, but they still owed over seven hundred and thirty-five thousand strings.

After deducting various expenses, the proceeds from selling the gold, silver, and jewels looted from the Toungoo palace only amounted to over two hundred thousand strings for the treasury. Gao Yuan had originally thought his purse was bulging.

He never expected that this 'rich man' was actually the biggest 'debt man.'

Tossing the ledger back to Yang Xin, Gao Yuan lay back down as if resigned to his fate.

"Sigh, they say killing, arson, and wearing a golden belt, or the roar of cannons bringing ten thousand taels of gold. Why am I still so poor?"

"Who told you to spend money so recklessly? Others spend money meticulously. No one is like you."

"This is just the early stage of starting a business. There are many places to spend money, but these are all necessary investments. We'll see the results soon."

This wasn't Gao Yuan boasting. This year, the commercial tax revenue had been increasing every month. Although the growth rate wasn't fast, calculating for the whole year, the year-on-year increase exceeded thirty percent.

Adding the year-end bank dividends and the money looted this time, the amount of bank loans this year could be reduced to below five hundred thousand strings in one go. This would significantly lessen the repayment pressure next year.

His visit to Yang Xin's place counted as a rare moment of leisure. Gao Yuan didn't leisurely head home until before dinner.

Seeing Gao Yuan looking sallow and emaciated from the exploitation, the women finally reached a unanimous decision: they couldn't drain the pond to catch all the fish. They had to let the man rest for a few days.

Hearing this decision, Gao Yuan was so grateful that tears streamed down his face. He put down his bowl and swiftly escaped back to his own courtyard.

Soaking in the bath, Gao Yuan felt so comfortable that every pore in his body seemed to open. He closed his eyes and opened the system panel, looking at the rewards he had just received.

"One s-rank lottery card, one random army card. Sweet."

"System, draw for me. Use the random army card first."

"Host uses a random-grade army summoning card. Randomizing now..."

As countless images flashed by, what finally appeared before Gao Yuan was an all-too-familiar scene.

"Congratulations, Host. Random draw obtained: Baier Soldiers x1000. Corresponding martial souls have been matched."

"This..."

Gao Yuan truly didn't know what to say. He wanted the real Beiwei Army, the Modao Army, the Xuanjia Army. He never expected another batch of Baier Soldiers.

But thinking about it again, he already had one unit of Baier Soldiers and had Chen Dao, the key soul figure. Perhaps drawing Baier Soldiers wasn't so bad after all.

After consoling himself, Gao Yuan opened the lottery interface again.

"Draw, System. Use both lottery cards at once."

Two large arrows appeared on the massive roulette wheel. At Gao Yuan's command, they began spinning rapidly.

As the spinning slowed down, the two arrows actually landed on the same spot. Then, Gao Yuan's eyes widened.

"Congratulations, Host. Draw obtained: Space-Time Portal x2."

"System, what is this? Could it be..."

"That's right, Host. This is a prop that can be used for space-time teleportation, but it's single-use."

"I have two. Doesn't that mean I can make a round trip?"

"You can understand it that way. However, please note, Host, because the Child of Fortune of this timeline has been slain by you, if you are away for too long, this timeline will collapse due to the lack of heavenly mandate."

"Then, can I bring my women to the original timeline?"

"You can, but it is not recommended."

"Because your women also belong to those touched by heavenly mandate. If all of you leave, the collapse of this world will accelerate."

"Understood!"

Gao Yuan nodded thoughtfully, his mind quickly formulating plans. He intended to go to the original timeline for a massive shopping spree, using the system space to bring some supplies back.

To be honest, for a fleeting moment, Gao Yuan had the thought of returning to that world without a care. But the next instant, he dismissed the idea.

In the original timeline, he was alone and had nothing. In this world, he had his own family, companions, career, and responsibilities he needed to shoulder. He couldn't be that selfish.

"Anyway, going back would just mean being a beast of burden. At least in this world, I'm a high-grade beast of burden. Why the hell would I go back?"

But suddenly thinking that Yang Xin would be leaving, he felt somewhat reluctant. Yet, what could he do?

After all, she wasn't like him. She could reunite with her family and live a wealthy, comfortable life upon returning. Why suffer hardship in this era?

Life in this era, even for an emperor, probably wasn't as comfortable as in later times.

Having made his decision, the next day after breakfast, Gao Yuan headed to the bank.

By now, Diannan Bank had been renamed Southern Yue Bank following Zhao Xiyao's elevation in noble rank. Over the years, under Yang Xin's leadership, it had opened branches in over fifty cities.

The bank not only facilitated convenient transactions, providing people with a channel for security and asset appreciation, but also helped settle a large number of discharged soldiers.

Just in the areas of security, escort, and transportation, the bank employed over three thousand discharged soldiers, greatly reducing the burden on the government.

Gao Yuan repaid two hundred and fifty thousand strings of the loan. Combined with smooth operations, the bank's profits this year were very substantial. The smile on Yang Xin's face brightened considerably.

But when she saw Gao Yuan walk in, his face full of preoccupation, her expression immediately fell, and she looked at the man warily.

"You... you're not here to apply for another loan, are you? Let me tell you, don't even think about it. The bank has no money!"

Gao Yuan was taken aback, thinking his image had already deteriorated to this point. A mischievous impulse suddenly arose.

"Oh, President Yang, don't be like that. I am, after all, your major client. Look at the considerable interest I contribute every year."

"You have the nerve to say that! I lend to those factory owners with at least fifteen percent annual interest. Even loans to farmers have a ten percent annual rate. And your loan? Five percent annualized. It's a huge loss, okay?"

"But my total amount is large!"

Yang Xin was speechless and could only sigh helplessly.

"You... sigh... Fine, say it. How much do you want to borrow this time? And for what purpose?"

PS: Time to get back to work. Wishing everyone smooth sailing at work, all things going as you wish, and everyone striking it rich!