Chapter 551 Send an Iron Mine
Tang Ning also sensed something was wrong, but remained calm: "It's already troublesome for A'ru and I to come to your house, how can I trouble the eldest young lady again?"
The person opposite hurriedly said, "How can you say it's a trouble? Although I've only known the princess for a short time, I've heard of your deeds a long time ago."
"Whether it's using your Rong family's wealth to establish Rongsheng Academy or your heartfelt support for those underprivileged students, each one is truly admirable. I've long wanted to invite you to my house for tea, but I was afraid it would be rude if I approached you rashly. Now that I finally have the opportunity, I wonder if you would honor me?"
The eldest lady of the Cui family was very humble and her words were full of praise for Tang Ning.
Tang Ning became even more confused after hearing this. Cui Lin had just been released from prison and returned home. Logically, the Cui family only had hatred but no friendship with them. What did this young lady Cui want to do by deliberately getting close to her?
She paused, a faint smile on her face: "Since the young lady is so kind, it would be tactless for me to refuse."
Madam Cui quickly put on a smile and said, "Princess, Madam Xue, please come this way."
The Cui family mansion is extremely complex, with magnificent gardens everywhere. Unlike other officials' mansions in the capital, the Cui family mansion covers a very large area, with winding paths inside. The heritage accumulated over the past hundred years makes every pavilion and tower exude an elegance and charm.
Mrs. Cui led Tang Ning and the others through the corridor and into a flower hall. Everywhere they looked, they could see chrysanthemums of various colors in full bloom. The osmanthus trees outside the hall had not yet withered, and the fragrance drifted along the window into the entire flower hall.
After Tang Ning and the other two were seated, servants brought in tea, drinks and snacks one after another.
Madam Cui and Tang Ning sat at the upper seats, while Xue Ru sat at the side.
Madam Cui pointed at the desserts on the table and said with a smile, "These sweet osmanthus cakes and golden chrysanthemum honey cups are made with the best osmanthus and chrysanthemum buds this year. The person who made them is an old man who retired from the imperial kitchen. His craftsmanship is unparalleled. Princess and Miss Xue, would you like to try some?"
Xue Ru didn't respond first, but waited for Tang Ning to reach out and take the snack, and then she took one as well.
Tang Ning took a bite and said, "It tastes good. A'ru, you should try it too."
Xue Ru had a small dimple on her face and ate a little.
"How is it?" Tang Ning asked with a smile.
Xue Ru nodded: "It's delicious."
Madam Cui on the opposite side had been keeping an eye on the two sisters. She saw that Xue Ru was always well-behaved. Although her appearance was not as beautiful as Tang Ning, she was still pretty and elegant. Most importantly, her words and deeds were very polite and courteous. She did not look like the timid concubine who was spoiled by the Song family as rumored earlier.
Madam Cui smiled and said, "The princess and Miss Xue have a good relationship."
Tang Ning replied, "Aru is my sister, so we're naturally close. But the fact that the young lady deliberately kept us here today and sent away the servants in the hall shouldn't be just for us two sisters to taste your snacks, right?"
Madam Cui didn't expect Tang Ning to point it out directly, but she didn't deny it. "I do have two things I want to discuss with the princess."
Tang Ning took the snacks and said nothing, just pretending to listen attentively.
Madam Cui said, "My husband, I, and even the rest of the family were unaware of my father's earlier attempt to frame Governor Xiao. After his time in prison, he's repented. Furthermore, he lost his position as Minister of State after returning home, and is now bedridden."
"My husband and I have discussed this matter and feel that we must apologize to you personally. Even though we were unaware of it, the Cui family is not innocent because of my father's actions. However, Governor Xiao is busy and it is not convenient for him to bother you. So today, Princess Liu wants to use you to express her apology to Governor Xiao."
Tang Ning smiled faintly upon hearing this. "I don't know much about the Cui family's affairs, and my brother rarely talks to me about court affairs. But I think that since Minister Cui has been able to return from prison, the incident that night must have been properly handled. Young Madam, there is no need to worry."
Madam Cui said sternly, "Father was able to return thanks to the generosity of Lord Governor Xiao, but what happened between him and Xuan Qin was truly excessive. The Cui family, along with several other families, compensated Lord Governor Xiao for some expenses, but those were originally owed to the He family and have nothing to do with this apology."
"After discussing with my husband, we feel that this is not enough to express our apology, so we have prepared a gift of apology for you and me. I hope that the princess and Governor Xiao will accept it."
The smile on Tang Ning's face faded a little. She didn't expect that Madam Cui invited her to have tea just to "give a gift". She didn't believe that they didn't know that the Cui family had paid more than 200,000 gold to "redeem" Cui Lin before. The Cui family was the one that suffered the most among the several families.
The other families only had their skin peeled off and their bones broken to collect so much gold.
Now that the Cui family wanted to give another gift, Tang Ning subconsciously felt that this gift could not be accepted.
Seeing Madam Cui leaning over to place the brocade box on the table, Tang Ning was about to refuse when she heard Madam Cui say:
"Almost all the cash in the palace has been exchanged for gold. My father is the head of the household, and my husband and I have no say. However, Yuanzhou, where my mother's family is from, is rich in copper and iron. It is also a rare place that has obtained the imperial court's permission to open a mine, allowing it to trade with the court."
Tang Ning's words were about to come out of his mouth, but he suddenly stopped talking, as if he realized what was in the brocade box.
Madam Cui opened the brocade box and pushed it forward. "Inside this is the transfer document for an iron mine outside Yuanzhou City. My husband and I would like to give this to Governor Xiao."
Tang Ning's breath was caught.
Xue Ru's eyes widened as well.
It's iron ore?!
Not to mention Xue Ru, who only had a vague idea of the situation, was shocked, even Tang Ning almost couldn't sit still.
Copper, iron, gold and silver have always been the exclusive property of the imperial court. Even if they are mined in various places, they are all banned by the court. Except for a very small number of families who can trade with the imperial court, no one else is allowed to touch them, and they are not allowed to circulate in secret. If they are discovered, it will be a serious crime of confiscating property and exterminating the clan.
The reason why the grain tax case became more and more serious and caused great trouble for the Lu family was because Emperor An changed his usual mild attitude and pressed the aristocratic family step by step, giving Xiao Yan the opportunity to alienate them. It was because it involved the smuggling of salt and iron. However, he did not expect that Madam Cui would be so generous and directly give them an iron mine.
Let’s not talk about whether this thing can be given as a gift. Even if it can be given as a gift, it is not comparable to gold or silver.
If it was anything else, Tang Ning would definitely refuse without hesitation, but iron ore...
Tang Ning tightened his fingertips as he clenched the dim sum in his hand. Although his brother now has the tiger talisman in his hand, those are not his confidants after all. Emperor An and the crown prince are still there. Forcibly mobilizing troops is likely to cause backlash. The tiger talisman is mostly used for deterrence and to compete with each other at critical moments.
If brother wants to succeed, he still has to find a way to conquer or train a trustworthy "private army" as soon as possible, but the most important thing is "armament".
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