Outsiders know very little about many things.
Only those who are immersed in it, or have been involved for many years, can truly understand it.
There is no doubt that Eunuch Wu is this kind of person. He has the foresight to accept the task given by the Crown Prince, and he also won the reward from the Jiang family's daughter. Before leaving, he did not forget to curry favor and prove his ability.
It wasn't until the figure disappeared from sight that Jiang Sheng finally realized what was going on.
But before she could excitedly share it with her brothers, she overheard Changyan talking to Xu Mo.
"This little eunuch is quite clever," Xu Mo said softly. "He not only reacted quickly, but he also knows how to return the favor."
"It is impolite not to reciprocate. He is quite sensible. As long as he is not a pawn planted by Zhu Changyu and the Ju family, he can be of great use." Changyan nodded slowly.
Jiang Sheng was stunned.
While she was still preoccupied with the need to please Eunuch Wu's status and basking in the glory of her cleverness in bestowing the hairpin, her two elder brothers had already taken a different perspective, observing whether Eunuch Wu was truly capable.
Indeed, people of different statuses see and gain completely different things.
"My sister was very clever today too." Xu Mo noticed that she was a little disappointed and immediately praised her, "She even gave away the big gold hairpin."
Jiang Sheng's lips twitched. She wanted to say that it would be better not to praise him, but then she felt that she deserved the praise.
With her arms on her hips, even the most luxurious clothes couldn't stop the teapot spirit from appearing. "You just need to know how powerful your sister is. Don't tell anyone else, or others will try to take her away from you."
Even Chang Yan couldn't help himself; the corners of his mouth curved upwards, revealing a joy completely different from before.
A person is in the main hall, and even the air is cold.
With my older brother and sister around, even my breath felt hot.
"Ahem." Zheng Ruqian, who had been lost in thought, came back to his senses and walked to the banquet hall in a pretentious manner. "Xiao Wu looks really good in this outfit today. It makes him look spirited and sharp. And the crown is really nicely tied. The collar is so neat, and the hem of the dress is so elegant."
"Second Brother, just speak your mind." Changyan couldn't help but chuckle.
Zheng Ruqian coughed twice more and said mysteriously, "Since you want me to speak frankly, then I won't hide anything from you. Are you planning to expand your Eastern Palace?"
The East Palace, the residence of the Crown Prince, was last inhabited fourteen or fifteen years ago, and it is truly unsightly without renovation.
The long banquet is currently still in the palace of the West Third Palace and has not yet moved into the East Palace.
"The Ministry of Works is indeed working on it, but the appointment of the Crown Prince is urgent and has not kept up with the schedule," he answered honestly.
Zheng Ruqian's eyes darted around, and he pointed to the ground, asking, "Does the Eastern Palace also use this kind of brick?"
Changyan had already guessed what his second brother wanted to do, and he nodded while suppressing a smile.
Zheng Ruqian's eyes darted around again, "If I were to bring in top-quality gold bricks, would the Ministry of Works consider buying them?"
The BRICS are complex to manufacture, using clay from the banks of the Yangtze River in southern China. They undergo at least six processes and require specific weather conditions. Their damage rate is also alarming, with three out of five processes resulting in complete failure.
The value of the BRICS itself is made even more precious by this contrast.
Logically, the imperial court should have a Ministry of Works specifically responsible for managing gold bricks, and it would be impossible to buy them from private merchants. However, the probability of gold bricks being scrapped is too high, which leads to a constant shortage of funds in this area, resulting in the frequent waste of thousands of taels of silver.
The imperial family also made some adjustments to reduce the expenditure on gold bricks. Except for a few commonly used halls such as the Hall of Supreme Harmony, which continued to use gold bricks, all other palaces, including the inner palace, were replaced with bluestone bricks.
But gold bricks aren't made of magic; they'll eventually crumble and crack, and they'll always need to be replaced.
The Hall of Supreme Harmony, the place where the final imperial examination was held, should not be seen by scholars and students as being full of potholes.
So the gold bricks continued to be produced, only the number decreased from tens of thousands per year to a few thousand.
However, judging from the financial report provided by the Ministry of Works, at least a thousand taels of gold still need to be consumed, and the probability of scrapping is getting higher and higher, to an absurd degree.
When Zheng Ruqian mentioned it, Chang Yan's eyes flickered slightly, and he promised, "If Second Brother can reduce the chance of scrapping and successfully fire three out of five bricks, I will find a way to get the Ministry of Works to buy your bricks."
One saves money, the other makes money.
They immediately agreed to the terms.
Is this the joy of having connections? Zheng Ruqian grinned broadly.
The long banquet also laughed, laughing that the rotten bugs in the Ministry of Works would soon be eliminated, and laughing that the fiscal expenditure figures would decrease.
The entire hall was filled with harmony until the sun was high in the sky, when a personal guard outside announced, "Your Highness, everyone is present; the investiture ceremony can begin."
The investiture ceremony for the crown prince of the Dayu Dynasty was quite complex.
It requires bowing in many directions, which makes travelers dizzy and disoriented.
Fortunately, they had already gotten acquainted yesterday. Chang Yan put away her smile, regained her composure and sternness, and after nodding to her brother and sister, she took the lead and walked out of the main hall.
He was so young, a frail fourteen-year-old boy, yet he had to shoulder half of the nation's burdens.
Yet he was so tall, his body facing the rising sun, dignified and resolute, carrying unparalleled determination.
Zheng Ruqian stopped grinning, Jiang Sheng put her hands down on her hips, and together with Wen Zhi and Yu Renmo, they gazed at Chang Yan's retreating figure.
"Fifth Brother is so pitiful; he'll have to shoulder the entire Great Yu Dynasty from now on," Jiang Sheng murmured.
“He shouldn’t have been confined to the deep palace.” A look of guilt flashed in Xu Mo’s eyes.
"I was not happy at all in the palace. It was so suffocatingly oppressive." Wen Zhiyun pursed her lips and finally revealed her feelings from the past few days.
As a junior apprentice in the Imperial Medical Academy, you can leave if you're unhappy.
As the crown prince of the Dayu Dynasty, he could no longer leave.
"Try to think positively, at least we're all here." Zheng Ruqian clenched his fist. "Xiao Wu won't be alone."
Yes, everyone is here.
It's unclear who took the first step, but the others straightened their backs and moved forward earnestly and bravely.
Just behind the long banquet, not far away.
The road ahead is wide and undulating, with countless obstacles scattered about. Sharp objects may appear at any time, and filth and dirt may cause you to fall at any moment.
A person may feel lonely, but when he senses a figure looming behind him, even someone as composed as Chang Yan can't help but smile.
He walked forward with dignity and saw the fourth prince, Zhu Changheng, in a blue robe at the next intersection.
"Fifth Prince, congratulations!" The lame boy was initially a little stunned, but quickly put on a smile and cupped his hands. "We'll be at Fengtian Palace soon, and Fourth Prince will accompany you."
Chang Yan was slightly taken aback, but his expression remained unchanged. "Thank you, Fourth Imperial Brother."
The two stepped aside and continued on their way, only to find Jiang Chengfeng waiting again after a few steps.
Next came Qi Huai, An Jun, Zhao Yuan, He Yunyao, Sun Xiaosheng, and most of the advisors in the Crown Prince's residence.
They followed behind him, supporting him as he reached the summit.
"As per protocol, bow, the Crown Prince bows once..."
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