"Miss, aren't you being a bit too confident?"

Qingxing and Naige had no idea why Jiang Shuwan was so confident.

Jiang Shuwan simply smiled.

Eunuchs are not allowed to interfere in politics.

Throughout history, those in power have never disliked interference in politics by any particular individual.

Rather, these people who interfered in politics did not bring any benefits to those in power.

The world is bustling with activity, all for the sake of profit.

The world is in turmoil, all driven by profit.

The old emperor will not be an exception.

The same goes for Eunuch Su. Eunuchs interfering in politics is easily criticized, but he wasn't the only trusted eunuch around the old emperor.

He wanted to climb the ranks, so naturally he needed to find opportunities to share the old emperor's burdens.

The Imperial Study.

As soon as Eunuch Su returned to the palace, he went to see the old emperor.

As soon as I entered, I was hit on the head with a pile of memorials.

"They want money! They're asking me for money again! The famine from the war in the north hasn't been recovered, and now the southern border troops are asking me for money!"

"Where would I get the money!"

"Should I go and steal or rob?"

The old emperor was furious and smashed a bright yellow painted rose vase. After smashing it, he felt extremely distressed.

Even emperors are human.

When people are poor, they become stingy.

Not to mention he was the emperor.

The emperor, a man of great stature, was stumped by such a precious and insignificant thing as silver and coins.

They even felt sorry for a mere vase.

There is probably no emperor in the world more frustrated than him!

Rubbing his forehead, the old emperor slumped on the dragon throne, looking utterly dejected.

The servants in the room moved very quietly, afraid of making a sound and angering the emperor.

Upon seeing this, Eunuch Su immediately stepped forward.

"What are you standing here for? Get down here! Can't you see His Majesty is in a bad mood?"

Looking up, he saw his arch-nemesis and superior, the eunuch in charge of the seal, quietly reprimanding him.

With a fawning smile, Eunuch Su lowered his shrill voice and said ingratiatingly, "Your Excellency, I just returned from Donglai Street with 300,000 taels of silver."

"Three hundred thousand?"

The eunuch in charge of the seal was startled by the huge sum of money, but still reprimanded him with a cold face.

"Three hundred thousand is nothing. It can't fill the famine, and it's not even enough to cover the military expenses of the southern border army. Get down now, and don't upset His Majesty. If His Majesty blames you, be careful with your worthless life!"

Hearing this, Eunuch Su could only retreat in resentment.

For several days in a row, the old emperor did not summon him.

Eunuch Su was immediately anxious. He was ostracized by the head eunuch every day, and his most important job was to collect money on Donglai Street.

If accepting bribes doesn't even allow him to gain favor with His Majesty, his status will continue to decline.

He knew all too well that the palace eunuchs no longer had a dignified life.

Thinking of this, Eunuch Su hurriedly went to see the old emperor again, but he still couldn't get an audience with him.

Not only that, even the silver that had been moved back from Donglai Street was secretly sent to the Emperor by the Grand Eunuch.

The old emperor was overjoyed to see the silver and, with a wave of his hand, first allocated 200,000 to alleviate the famine, and sent 100,000 to the southern border as military pay.

As for the remaining famine and military pay, totaling ten million taels, he had no choice but to raise taxes.

However, the mere mention of raising taxes was met with opposition from the court officials, and the censor even pointed his finger at the old emperor and berated him.

"Has Your Majesty forgotten how the previous dynasty perished?"

"The harvests have been poor in recent years. Last year, the heavy snow was a sign of a good harvest, and the people finally had some surplus grain. But then the war broke out in the north and wiped it all out."

"If taxes are increased now, how are ordinary people supposed to survive?"

"How pathetic! Is our Great Jing Dynasty destined to follow the same path of self-inflicted disaster as the previous dynasty?"

The Imperial Censor burst into tears as he spoke.

"Your Majesty, I have failed you!"

"Your Majesty, please open your eyes!"

The nearly 100-year-old man was so weak that he might die from lack of breath if spoken to more than a few words. At this moment, he was crying and pounding his heart, while shouting the name of the late emperor, causing the old emperor to lose face.

The powerful and influential families in the court were even more vocal in their criticism of the old emperor.

Few officials in the court agreed to the tax increase policy; everyone turned their anger towards the old emperor.

The historian wielded his pen with incredible speed, and needless to say, his name was added to the historical records.

He covered his face and slunk back to the Imperial Study, looking at the famine he had missed in the past and the memorials from the Southern Border requesting military pay.

They gave 100,000 taels of silver, but the southern border came demanding more money for military expenses.

Can't even 100,000 taels of silver keep him quiet for a while?

The old emperor felt utterly disheartened.

He didn't know who he had offended. He was having a run of bad luck; not only was the harvest poor, but there was also a war.

When the cannon fires, gold flows in.

Does he just want to raise taxes?

Doesn't he know how hard it is for ordinary people to live?

I used to be a farmer too!

The old emperor cursed, but he didn't know who he was cursing or who he hated.

As if things weren't going to go wrong, the next day, the only remaining elderly concubine in the palace passed away.

Funeral arrangements cost money.

The old emperor sat motionless on his throne.

It's too difficult...

Being an emperor is fucking hard...

On the other side.

Jiang Shuwan also received news of the Dowager Empress's death. Madam Pei and the Dowager Empress had been friends since childhood, and she fell ill that very night upon learning of the news.

She had no choice but to force herself to attend the funeral of the Dowager Empress. Wen was confined to her quarters, and only Jiang Shuwan in the entire Marquis's mansion had the status to accompany the old lady into the palace.

Dressed in mourning clothes, she helped the old lady into the palace.

This was her second time entering the palace.

It is said that she went to the palace twice with the old lady.

Their mindsets, however, are completely different.

The first time Jiang Yao entered the palace was when she was in trouble. The old Marquis of the Marquis's mansion and Pei Yanzhi were not there. Without the pillars of the family, she was at their mercy, while the Empress and Consort Gao were the butchers. It was only through her cleverness and resourcefulness that she was able to resolve that crisis.

This time, she had already established contact with the old emperor, which gave her some confidence, and she was also in the mood to survey the entire palace.

Everywhere one could see pavilions and towers, carved with dragons and painted with phoenixes, grand and spacious, exuding a royal air, truly extraordinary.

The palace maids and female officials who came and went all had extraordinary temperaments, and a little inquiry revealed that even one of the palace maids had a better background than her.

As she entered, she was guided and served by these palace maids.

The palace maids seemed to have heard of her name as well, some secretly glancing at her, some secretly envious, and some showing disdain—a variety of expressions.

She also encountered several palace maids who secretly talked about her behind her back.

"I heard that the wife of the heir of the Marquis of Wenyuan's household is also going to the palace to mourn the Dowager Consort?"

"I wonder what methods she used to marry such a distinguished and upright prince, given her background?"

"Stop talking! She's already the Crown Prince's wife. If you keep talking and someone hears you, you'll be in big trouble."

"Ha, I'll say it anyway, what's so great about her? Her father is just a minor official in the Ministry of Rites, a fifth-rank official, not even as high-ranking as my father."

“My father was the Vice Minister of Rites, a high-ranking official of the fourth rank. He was his father’s superior.”

The palace maid in the pale yellow palace dress spoke smugly, and before the other palace maids could flatter her, the female official who was leading Jiang Shuwan around waved her hand lightly.

"Take it down!"