Jiang Shuyue and Qiu Ju bowed and stepped back.

Xiao Jingzhao quickly called out, "Moon Lady, please wait."

Jiang Shuyue was slightly taken aback. "Does Your Majesty have any further instructions?"

Xiao Jingzhao stood up, and the coldness in his eyes vanished instantly.

"Please come to the Imperial Study, Lady Yue. I have something to ask you."

Jiang Shuyue would naturally not openly defy the emperor's orders in front of the ministers. She turned to Qiuju and asked, "Is everything settled?"

Qiuju nodded. "Cangyun is guarding outside, and Gao Mu has gone to handle the money matters as Miss instructed."

"Okay, you go wait in the side hall, I'll try to come out as soon as possible."

Seeing the Emperor leave, the ministers inside the palace watched as Eunuch Ma respectfully escorted Jiang Shuyue toward the Imperial Study.

The ministers looked at each other, seemingly understanding something yet unable to see through it.

Upon arriving at the Imperial Study, a palace maid who was waiting outside quickly brought tea.

Xiao Jingzhao offered her a seat, and Jiang Shuyue did not stand on ceremony. As soon as she sat down, she asked, "Your Majesty, please speak quickly. Gao Mu has gone to the Ministry of Revenue, and I still have to go to Jishetang to see patients in a little while."

Jiang Shuyue's words were obviously not true.

She estimated that Nangong Zeyue should be back in the next couple of days, and she needed to go back to watch him try on his wedding clothes.

Xiao Jingzhao had already withdrawn his guards from outside the Jiang residence, and he knew nothing about what was happening inside.

Xiao Jingzhao picked up the teapot and personally poured Jiang Shuyue a cup of tea. "You must have been frightened. Don't take it to heart. They're just a bunch of rats. As long as I'm alive, there will never be any marriage alliances in Wanling."

I recalled the pathetic sight of the Sang people being dragged away.

Jiang Shuyue shook her head and lowered her eyelids. "As long as I didn't cause trouble for the Emperor, I'll have Gao Mu send all the jewelry, gold, and silver exchanged today to the Ministry of Revenue to replenish the national treasury."

Xiao Jingzhao then came to his senses. When Jiang Shuyue mentioned that Gao Mu went to the Ministry of Revenue, he thought that Gao Mu went to see Lin Xiangzhi for personal matters.

"Why do you do this, Moon Lady? Things are different now. The national treasury is full. You should at least keep the jewels and make some jewelry that you like."

As Xiao Jingzhao spoke, he looked up and stared at Jiang Shuyue's pair of earrings.

"Look at your earrings, they're so plain. Rubies really suit your skin tone. Tomorrow I'll have the Imperial Household Department make you a few pairs of earrings, one pair of each color of gemstone."

Jiang Shuyue shook her head. "Your Majesty, don't bother with that. Jewels are ultimately inanimate objects. Only when the national treasury is full and the army is strong will foreign countries not dare to covet them. Just like today, Your Majesty can loudly tell the Sang people to get out of my Wanling territory. That's because Your Majesty has the confidence to crush the Sang people."

Jiang Shuyue raised her hand and touched the simply crafted white jade earring.

"Your Majesty may not know this, but a Taoist priest once told me that the pair of earrings my mother left me were my life-saving charm. Since then, Yue Niang has worn them and has never taken them off."

"Is that so?"

Xiao Jingzhao suddenly realized, no wonder he had never seen her wear any other earrings.

Xiao Jingzhao naturally wanted to personally express his gratitude to Jiang Shuyue for her generous donation of jewelry and gold.

Jiang Shuyue smiled faintly, "Money is just an external thing. I don't seek great wealth and status; enough is enough."

Eunuch Ma, who was serving at a distance, overheard the conversation between the two and couldn't help but secretly grumble to himself.

The young lady is already one of the richest people in the capital, yet she is so humble. In fact, she is already incredibly wealthy, but she is unaware of it.

With her wedding approaching, Jiang Shuyue inquired about Sui Sui's lessons.

Xiao Jingzhao briefly described the situation and then added, "Sui Sui was delayed by other matters the past two days, so today we sent him to the Imperial Academy. Yue Niang rarely comes to the palace, so why not stay and have a meal with Sui Sui after school?"

"With you taking care of Sui Sui, I have nothing to worry about. Just let him go home when the academy is on holiday." Jiang Shuyue took a sip of tea, stood up, and gave a slight curtsy.

"Moon Lady, it's been a while since you've seen Yonghe. Would you like me to accompany you to Yonghe's place for a visit?"

"Please convey my regards to Princess Yonghe for me, Your Majesty. Qiuju is still waiting outside. Spring is a season when people are prone to illness, and there are more people seeking medical treatment at the clinic than in winter. Farewell."

There was no one else in the room. Jiang Shuyue no longer referred to herself as a commoner and continued to address people as "you" and "me" as always.

Seeing that there was no reason for Xiao Jingzhao to keep her, he had no choice but to instruct Eunuch Ma to escort her away.

When Jiang Shuyue came out, she saw Gao Mu, Qiu Ju, and Cang Yun waiting in the side hall.

Upon seeing Jiang Shuyue emerge, Gao Mu reached for the sword at his waist. "Miss, those Sang people are so rude. Should I chase them out of the city and teach them a lesson?"

When Gao Mu heard Qiu Ju talk about the shameless demands made by the Sang people in the main hall, he wished he could draw his sword and kill them.

Jiang Shuyue shook her head. "Forget it. With this commotion today, the Emperor has canceled the plan to open trade with Sang. The envoys who came with us will definitely blame that person when they return. With the two countries at odds, the Emperor of Sang will surely take his anger out on that person. The Emperor of Sang's wrath is enough to make him suffer."

Jiang Shuyue put it aside for the sake of the bigger picture, and Gao Mu couldn't force her to.

After calming down a bit, he thought about it carefully and realized that no matter who he disguised himself as to hunt down the Sang Kingdom envoy, the other party would probably be able to guess who he was working for.

However, the emperor will most likely take the blame for this.

Jiang Shuyue and Qiu Ju boarded a carriage not far from the palace gate and left the palace.

Qiuju said angrily, "Luckily, Miss instructed me beforehand to bring more seeds to the envoys of those small countries. The people of Sang Kingdom didn't get a single seed. They deserve to be so envious. A bunch of idiots."

Jiang Shuyue had looked at the map and knew that those small countries were not far from Sang Kingdom.

The reason why the territory of Sang is larger than that of the surrounding small countries is because the people of Sang have invaded the surrounding countries for hundreds of years.

They seized cities and plundered fields from other countries.

Jiang Shuyue suddenly remembered something, took out the IOUs from her sleeve, and tore them to shreds in a few quick snips.

By the time Qiuju saw what she was tearing, it was too late to stop her.

"Miss, this is a huge sum of money. You're just going to tear it up like that? Don't you want your money back?"

Jiang Shuyue smiled slightly, "What's money? The people of Sang are naturally competitive, combative, and warlike. They'll learn the price they'll pay for their despicable thoughts from today onward."

Qiu Ju was completely confused. "I don't understand what you mean, Miss?"

"It's okay if you don't understand. Some things need time to prove them."

Less than an hour after Jiang Shuyue returned to the Jiang residence, Su Huai-ren and his wife rushed over.

"Moon, did you get frightened in the palace today?" Madam Su asked with a worried expression.

Su Huai Ren gritted his teeth and said, "The Sang people are wolfish and ambitious. They have devoured neighboring countries and dared to set their sights on our Wanling. They even schemed against Yue'er."

"Uncle, Aunt, don't be angry. Yue'er is fine. The Emperor immediately sent people to kick them out of the capital." Jiang Shuyue turned around and comforted her uncle and aunt when she saw their anxious expressions.

Madam Su nodded. "I saw it. When we chased them to the post station, the Imperial Guards were throwing away the silk they had brought. They were in a terrible state. Yue'er, guess what?"