Chapter 26 Life must go on.

Shangguan Jin composed herself and mentally rehearsed her words.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress, I originally did not want to say these things, nor could I say them."

What I said was a disgrace to the Duke's mansion.

"But since His Majesty asked today, I dare not deceive you, and I have no choice but to tell the truth." Shangguan Jin continued, her voice choked with emotion.

"Speak, no matter what grievances you have, the Empress and I will stand up for you." Emperor Xiao Jing sat up straight.

He wanted to see how such a large duke's mansion could be so poor that it couldn't even afford to eat.

"Your Majesty, three years ago, the Duke suddenly disappeared while he was leading men to scout enemy positions in the north."

The Duke's mansion was in chaos for a few days, but my wife and family knew that the Duke would definitely return.

And so, I invited many people to go to the north to find the Duke.

Every time we hire someone to search, doesn't it cost money? If we don't pay them, who would be willing to help us find someone?

This one expense alone costs five thousand taels of silver every year.

The search for the man lasted for three years, and money was spent in vain, but the Duke was still nowhere to be found.

Furthermore, the Duke of Dingguo's mansion has nearly a hundred people, old and young, and everyone needs to eat.

You can't just sew your mouth shut and starve!

The people in the manor are all old folks who have served the old lady and the Duke. You can't just sell them off because the Duke hasn't returned!

The daily food expenses for hundreds of people.

If anyone in the household suffers from a headache or fever, we need to call a doctor to prescribe medicine, and all of this costs money.

And the children in the manor, the concubines…”

Before Shangguan Jin could finish speaking, Emperor Xiao Jing was already having a headache.

Which noble family doesn't have such expenses? How come they can't make ends meet at the Duke of Dingguo's mansion?

"The expenses of families like the Duke of Anguo and the Duke of Qi are also this much, so how come they can..." Emperor Xiao Jing did not finish his sentence.

Shangguan Jin was overjoyed when this was mentioned.

Look, Dongmai said, "Let's ask the emperor to get back the money we owe. Isn't that a good opportunity?"

"Your Majesty, the former Duke of Dingguo never had to worry about these things!"

But the other dukes' mansions have had one more source of income than the Duke of Dingguo's mansion in these three years!

"An extra source of income? What kind of income?" Emperor Xiao Jing asked instinctively.

"Salary! The Duke's salary is 950 shi, which is equivalent to 1,500 taels of silver."

"Other ducal mansions have at least one more source of income than us!" Shangguan Jin explained.

Emperor Xiao Jing, Empress Xu...

"Sister Jin, do you mean that the Duke of Dingguo's mansion has not received any salary for the past three years?" Empress Xu asked in surprise.

"Yes, it's been three years, and we haven't seen this money in our household since."

Actually, I should have asked that.

But apart from the Duke of Dingguo, everyone in the mansion was either too old or too young, so they didn't know who to ask if they wanted to.

I would like to enter the palace, but I am worried that I might break some taboo.

"If His Majesty and the Empress hadn't pressed me for an answer today, I wouldn't have had a chance to speak!" Shangguan Jin said, sounding increasingly aggrieved.

Tears were streaming down my face even without me wiping them with a handkerchief.

Emperor Xiao Jing was also shocked.

What did he hear?

His salary as Duke of Dingguo has been suspended?

Those people in the Ministry of Revenue have some nerve...

Upon thinking of the Minister of Revenue and the Vice Minister of Revenue, Emperor Xiao Jing suddenly understood.

People from the Empress Dowager's and Duke Anguo's sides!

No wonder!

"I really didn't know about this matter," Emperor Xiao Jing sighed.

Shangguan Jin wiped away her tears.

Okay, I didn't know before, but I know now. Just remember to pay me back when I leave.

"Your Majesty, it's not your fault, these officials below..."

Sigh, they hold positions without doing their jobs, and they've done quite a few things to deceive their superiors and subordinates.

"You have so many official duties to handle every day, it's inevitable that you'll be blinded at times." Empress Xu comforted Emperor Xiao Jing from the side.

Emperor Xiao Jing did not speak, but his face remained stern.

Shangguan Jin sneered inwardly, but her face still showed gratitude.

"Your Majesty is right. It must be that the people below have misled His Majesty."

Empress Xu was very satisfied with Shangguan Jin's explanation.

The Ministry of Revenue is the Empress Dowager's man, the money bag for the Consort and the Prince of Qin, and has caused her and the Crown Prince a lot of trouble over the years.

It seems that summoning the Duchess of Dingguo to the palace today was the right decision.

"It would be quite difficult for a duke's family to make a living solely on their salary."

"But every noble family has its own estates and shops, right? Does that mean they don't have any income from these?" Empress Xu continued to ask.

When this comes up, Shangguan Jin has even more to say.

"Your Majesty, it is normal that you are unaware of what is happening outside the palace, as you have lived in the inner palace for so long."

It seems that the Duke of Dingguo's mansion has only lost 1,500 taels of salary.

But what this implies is much more significant.

The salary was paid by the imperial court to the Duke of Dingguo's mansion.

Now that the imperial court has suddenly stopped issuing these stipends, what does this mean in other people's eyes? Does it mean that the imperial court no longer recognizes the title of Duke of Dingguo?

Others thought that since the imperial court no longer recognized the title of Duke, why should they?

It's perfectly normal for this kind of thing to happen—praising the powerful and belittling the weak.

The shops on the same street, none of which are in as good a location as ours, can rent for eight hundred taels of silver a year.

Our Duke Dingguo's mansion can't even rent for four hundred.

Last year, someone even offered five hundred taels of silver to buy our shop!

The grain from the estate, when sold to grain shops, is always priced at least 30% lower than other shops, as long as it's from our government.

Your Majesty, tell me, to whom can I say these things?

Your Majesty knows that these are certainly not His Majesty's intentions.

If Your Majesty truly does not wish to acknowledge the Duke's Mansion, you can simply issue an imperial edict stating this clearly.

But those people outside know that His Majesty won't pay attention to such trivial matters, so they keep humiliating our Duke Dingguo's mansion.

They were determined that the Duke of Dingguo's mansion valued its reputation and wouldn't make a scene over something like this.

To be honest, Your Majesty, this has happened more than once. When I'm alone in my room, I've thought about hanging a white silk ribbon from the rafters and ending it all.

But then I thought of the old lady in the mansion who treated me like her own daughter.

And then there are the Duke's children; I just can't bear to see them suffer.

No matter how tough life gets, we have to keep going!

I thought to myself, what's the big deal about saving face? I'll just forget about it.

"Sacrificing my own pride to make my family's life a little better isn't something I can't do." Shangguan Jin's voice grew softer and softer as she spoke.

Empress Xu sighed upon hearing this.

Emperor Xiao Jing was also angry when he heard this.

These are the things his own ministers have done!

"Is this why the Duke of Dingguo's mansion is holding an early birthday banquet for the old lady? I heard that it even caused a conflict with the Marquis of Wuding's family?" Empress Xu quickly changed the subject.

Speaking of this, Shangguan Jin had even more to say.

"Your Majesty, I am at fault, but this method of accepting gifts at the birthday banquet was learned from the Marquis of Wuding's residence."

"You learned it from the Marquis of Wuding's residence?"

"Yes, I learned it from the Marquis of Wuding's residence."

This is a long story.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, may I have a cup of tea? I've talked too much and am a little thirsty."

"Look at me, I was so busy talking to you that I forgot to serve tea."

"Someone, serve tea to the Duchess of Dingguo." Empress Xu hurriedly gave the order.

After drinking a cup of tea and replenishing her fluids, Shangguan Jin began a new round of complaints.