Holding a thick letter, Wang Defa respectfully entered the room, bowed, and said, "Miss, this is from the eldest young master. Along with the letter is a box of silver notes." He presented the letter and the silver notes with both hands.

Lin Yun took the letter, her fingertips touching the thickness of the envelope, and felt a slight warmth in her heart.

In the letter, the elder brother described in detail the recent situation at home, and then mentioned that his younger brother had passed the county examination.

He said that once he passed the prefectural examination, he would become a student of the lowest level of the imperial examinations. His words were filled with pride and satisfaction. He also told Lin Yun to take good care of herself in the capital and not to worry about home.

Her lips unconsciously turned up, and her eyes welled up with moisture.

She was truly happy for her younger brother, who was intelligent and diligent. If he passed the preliminary examination, he would be a very accomplished 14-year-old.

Then, his gaze fell on the silver notes that were attached to the letter.

The dividends from Linglong Pavilion, the profits from the rouge shop, and the income from the clothing shop added up to nearly 60,000 taels.

Before she left, she filled all the water in the rockery in the backyard with spiritual spring water, so that her elder brother could only use the water from the rockery to make rouge.

Now that she's in the capital, business has declined a bit, but it's still pretty good.

I can join the Spirit Spring after I go back in a while.

Holding this huge sum of money in her hand, she was momentarily stunned.

Seeing that she was lost in thought, Xiao Tao asked softly, "Miss, is something wrong at home?"

Lin Yun snapped out of her reverie and nodded with a smile: "My younger brother passed the county examination, and everything is fine at home."

Upon seeing this, Wang Defa cupped his hands and said, "Congratulations, Miss. If you have no further instructions, I will take my leave now."

"Wait a minute," Lin Yun said, taking out 30,000 taels of silver notes, putting them in a box, "This is for the Emperor."

"Yes." Wang Defa's eyes widened as he saw so many silver notes being given away for the first time.

Goodness, Miss is really generous.

After Wang Defa left, Lin Yun went to her desk, picked up her brush, dipped it in ink, and wrote a reply home.

After lunch, Lin Yun went to the hydroponic room alone.

Sunlight streamed through the glazed tiles onto the porcelain plate, and the water shimmered with light.

The clear water and the spiritual spring blend together, creating a subtle, lustrous sheen.

"Miss, the seeds have arrived!" Xiao Tao's voice came from outside the door.

She slowly walked in carrying a large bag of seeds.

Lin Yun quickly stepped forward and took the seeds, examining them carefully: leafy green vegetables, peppers, tomatoes, and watermelons.

They were all categorized and wrapped in small cloths.

She nodded in satisfaction: "Very good, let's start the trial planting now."

The two got busy, soaking the seeds in a porcelain dish and a water tank respectively.

By evening, the hydroponic room was neatly filled with various crops.

She plans to transplant the seeds into the soil after they sprout, hoping to try this cultivation method. If it works, she can sell the seeds later.

Lin Yun returned to her study and took out the stack of silver notes again.

After deducting employee benefits, the remaining money, plus what he brought from his hometown, totaled over 60,000 taels of silver.

Flowers can never be used up; we can only save them and see if they have any other uses in the future.

Qianqing Palace

As Yongzheng unfolded the silver notes, his fingertips trembled slightly. Another thirty thousand taels—this girl had given him all her dividends again!

He stared at the vermilion seal on the banknote, and Lin Yun's smiling eyes appeared before his eyes. The surge of heat in his chest almost burned his throat.

The newly manufactured looms at the textile factory and the scarce refined iron in the firearms battalion were all secured.

The national treasury is so empty it could run rats; thankfully, Yun'er provides subsidies.

Otherwise, I would have to argue with those stubborn old men, and I don't know when my ambitions will be realized.

"This silly girl..." He chuckled softly. Now he felt like a man living off a woman, relying on his wife's charity to make ends meet every month.

Thinking of this, Yongzheng couldn't help but laugh out loud, which gradually turned into a hearty laugh.

The laughter traveled through the walls and reached the ears of the eunuchs and guards on duty.

Everyone was surprised. The Emperor was always cold and aloof. Who could make the Emperor so happy?

Yongzheng laughed for a while before stopping, his thumb rubbing the edge of the silver note.

Thinking back to that day in the hydroponic room, the tingling sensation of her black hair falling into his palm, and the trembling breaths when their lips touched, all of it now turned into a raging fire, burning his fingertips.

"Su Peisheng." He suddenly threw down his vermilion pen. The memorials on his desk were piled up like a mountain, but he couldn't read a single word.

"Go to my private treasury and retrieve that set of jadeite jewelry presented as tribute from Southeast Asia."

Seeing Su Peisheng's stunned expression, he added, "Add two more bolts of cloud brocade, embroidered with twin lotus blossoms."

Before he could finish speaking, he chuckled to himself.

A dignified emperor, acting like a young boy, was scheming to win a girl's heart.

"Send it to the other residence at night, don't make a big fuss about it."

"Yes, Your Majesty, Your Majesty."

The August weather was already unbearably hot, and now I felt even more restless and hot, so I got up and pushed open the carved window.

The night breeze, carrying the fragrance of osmanthus, brushed against my cheek, as if it were the breath she used to wrap around his neck that day.

Enough, enough, let's go on strike today!

Su Peisheng was now completely in awe of Miss Lin.

Since he began serving his master, he had never seen his master so distracted by a woman.

He feared hurting her if he got too close, yet he would suffer if he stayed too far away. He was truly a devoted man tormented by unrequited love.

He even stopped touching the women in his harem!

Oh my God!

You are the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, what kind of woman can't you have...

However, we can't think of it that way. Miss Lin is indeed very capable, and she is a remarkable woman whom he has never seen before in all these years.

Su Peisheng muttered to himself as he walked, almost taking the wrong turn.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!