Chapter 549: Exploiting Her Only Remaining

He just asked casually, but saw Nan Yan immediately pursed her lips and put away her smile.

The hand holding the purse also tightened.

Then he came over and asked: "Huh? What are you so happy about?"

“…”

Nan Yan looked eagerly at the purse in her hand, then looked up at him and said, "Your Majesty, I want to tell you something, but you——"

Please don't steal my money again, okay?

She hesitated and didn't say the last sentence.

Zhu Feng, on the other hand, raised his eyebrows slightly, and when he saw two cups of tea on the table, he asked, "Is anyone here?"

Nan Yan said softly, "My uncle."

“…”

Zhu Feng hesitated for a moment before thinking: "The famous scholar in Henan, Gu Tingqiu?"

Nan Yan asked, "Does the Emperor know him too?"

"This person has a very high reputation in Henan Province. I heard that even Duke Chengguo couldn't hire him as his staff member."

"oh……"

"He actually came to see you." Zhu Feng looked at her and said with a half-smile, "Your reputation is even greater than Duke Cheng's."

Nan Yan thought for a moment and said, "Although he came to see me, it's clear that he is not Si Nan Yan."

"Oh? Who did he meet?"

"He was meeting the imperial court lady who served as a concubine to His Majesty the Emperor."

Zhu Feng looked back at her, blinked at himself, and couldn't help pursing his lips.

Then he said, "Then why did he come to see my lady-in-waiting?"

Nan Yan walked up to him and cautiously handed him the item in her hand. “My uncle gave this to me.”

Zhu Feng took a look and immediately raised his eyebrows again.

Five thousand taels.

What a big deal.

It felt like he had "seen the world" after leaving the palace and coming out.

From Jie Shi, who runs a mine, to Gu Tingqiu, a famous scholar in Henan, each one is more wealthy than the other.

He said with a half-smile, "Why, did he ask you to do something for him?"

He had long known about the connection between the harem and the previous dynasty. Once a concubine was favored, she could whisper in the emperor's ear, which would have an impact on the appointment and dismissal of officials from the previous dynasty, and even some more important promotions.

The same thing happened when concubines asked for official positions and rewards for their family members.

This is how the family of relatives by marriage grew stronger.

Although he wanted to promote people from the Si family, it did not mean that he would condone them to develop their power.

Nan Yan said, "He didn't ask me to do anything for him."

“…”

"He said it was the allowance his family gave to the slaves."

"……subsidy?"

"Well, my uncle said that since I work for the Emperor, I sometimes need help and I need to buy some things, so he gave me this."

As she spoke, she said cautiously, "Your Majesty, is this considered a bribe to this servant?"

Zhu Feng glanced at her: "What do you think?"

“…”

Nan Yan thought for a while and said, "I think that this should be considered a bribe to the emperor."

"oh?"

"Because officials at the imperial court have countless relatives, if everyone gives them money as 'subsidies', they're bound to be reluctant to take advantage of others. And when their relatives need help, won't they just obediently comply?"

Zhu Feng nodded.

Then he glared at her and said, "You knew it was a bribe, and you still dared to accept it?"

Nan Yan said seriously, "To the Emperor, it's a bribe, but to me—it's extortion."

"blackmail?"

"Yes," Nan Yan said with a smile, "They treated me badly before, but now that I've become 'rich', they're intimidated by my reputation and fear my revenge, so they're sending me money to curry favor and smooth things over."

Zhu Feng said with amusement: "You? Fame? Where does your fame come from?"

Nan Yan said seriously: "The fox is borrowing the tiger's power. It's borrowed."

“…”

"I am a fox, and the emperor is a tiger."

Zhu Feng was so amused by her that he almost laughed. He reached out and pinched her face: "I've noticed that you have quite a few crooked ideas."

Nan Yan herself also laughed.

Zhu Feng crossed his arms and said, "So what are you going to do with this bribe, which is the money you extorted?"

“…”

Nan Yan thought about it, looked at him again, then held the purse tightly in her hand and handed it to him.

"Your Majesty, do you want to take it?"

“…”

Seeing her reluctant expression, Zhu Feng coughed lightly, reached out and took the purse.

"well--"

Nan Yan was stunned, her hands were empty.

Suddenly, her little face drooped with sadness.

I thought: Did he really accept it?

Didn't I report this to him honestly just because I wanted him to not confiscate the money because of my honesty?

Although I didn't have to spend much when I was a female official in the past, this time I'm returning to Jinling and will be canonized as a concubine. How can I not spend some money to take care of everything inside and outside?

She can't be the most humble concubine, right?

Thinking of this, she looked at the purse in Zhu Feng's hand with a sad face.

When Zhu Feng got the wallet filled with so many banknotes and saw Nan Yan's distressed look, he immediately felt in a good mood.

He smiled and said, "With such a large sum of money, I have to think carefully about what to do with it."

“…”

"How do you say it's best to use it?"

Nan Yan held her lips and said nothing.

Has anyone ever seen someone cutting meat from a pig and asking the pig how to cook it deliciously?

So cruel!

Zhu Feng took another look at her dejected look, then suppressed a smile and said, "Why not give it to the concubine I'm about to confer a title on, and let her go and buy some things."

“…”

Nan Yan was stunned, raised her head, and the purse was placed in front of her again.

Nan Yan's eyes widened in surprise: "Your Majesty, are you really giving it to me?"

“…”

"Really gave it to me?"

“…”

"You won't take it back, will you?"

The most important thing is that you won’t have to pay money just because you made a mistake, right?

Seeing her excited and cautious face, Zhu Feng couldn't help but curl up the corners of his mouth.

But immediately, his face turned stern and he said in a deep voice, "Sir, I never joke. How dare you doubt me?"

"I dare not, I dare not!"

Nan Yan said this as she put her purse in her arms.

Zhu Feng turned his face to the side, and the corners of his mouth finally couldn't help but curl up.

If it were before, he would definitely not return the money to her.

He really hoped that there was nothing in her world, no money, no one to rely on, and no one else. It would be best if her world was so small that it could only accommodate herself.

but……

Of course not.

It was impossible for him to keep her by his side for the rest of her life without anyone else seeing her.

Although, he really hoped that he would be the only one in her world.

However, she was about to become his concubine and would soon belong to him, and he shouldn't be so petty as to exploit the few things left in her little world.