Chapter 110 Donation of money to repair the temple
Xuanye gave Xiu Yu a lot of trouble that night. Liang Jiugong and Xiao Tao had been guarding outside the warm room. Usually the room would have been quiet by the time the water was served, but today it was quite noisy.
Liang Jiugong poured some water into Xiao Tao's cup and said, "Master Yi is really a fool. She had to go through all this trouble and made my sister suffer as well."
Xiao Tao smiled and said, "After all, my master has never suffered any injustice. After going through this, she realized that survival in the palace is not so easy. So, it's actually not bad. It's probably something my master must go through."
"You're quite perceptive." Liang Jiugong handed Xiao Tao another piece of cake. "However, Master Yi is truly capable. With just a change of clothes and a few sweet words, she managed to make our master happy. The masters of other palaces are far less capable."
"Of course." Xiao Tao accepted the compliments his master received. "But, brother, didn't you say the Emperor has favored so many beauties lately that you couldn't even count them all?"
"He's our master, after all!" Liang Jiugong had to speak from his legitimate master's perspective. "When our master has been wronged, he's got to find an outlet, and he can't take it out on Master Yi. So, these days, quite a few ladies who've also been wronged might have been smart enough to think of Master Yi and might even be hating him right now."
"Then my master is really wronged." Xiao Tao began to complain to Xiu Yu: "My master didn't provoke anyone, nor did he want to provoke anyone, so why is he covered in dirty water?"
"Who told Master Yi to be favored?" Liang Jiugong also picked up a piece of cake and ate it. "Master Yi has won the emperor's favor, so naturally she will be looked at differently by other concubines. This is inevitable."
Xiao Tao had to nod: "Brother, you are right."
The warm room finally became quiet. Xiao Tao brought in a copper basin filled with warm water, gave Xiu Yu an ambiguous smile, and then left the warm room.
After Xuanye helped Xiuyu clean up, they both lay back on the bed. Xiuyu sighed, "My bones are almost broken."
"Who told you to do something that makes me sad?" Xuanye rolled his eyes and stroked Xiuyu's still slightly curly hair: "You're not ugly in men's clothes, but when you braid your hair, it becomes curly. You should wear..." He smiled: "Hanfu?"
"Do you still remember about Hanfu?" Xiu Yu was also annoyed: "I thought you had forgotten it."
"You are in my dreams, every day." Xuanye was satisfied and began to say sweet words: "No matter what I dream about, you are there."
"You clearly know how the servants treat me, the Master of Yikun Palace, yet you don't react at all?"
"Of course not." Xuanye hugged Xiu Yu tightly in his arms: "Tomorrow on your way back to the palace, you will probably hear news about those servants. They really gave them face by neglecting my Yu'er."
Xiu Yu Yanran: "Then... Yu'er thanks the emperor very much."
"You're welcome." Xuanye placed a kiss on Xiuyu's forehead, then suddenly remembered something: "Your palace isn't clean, is it? You probably hid that booklet and didn't want me to see it. Now it's openly displayed in the Duobao Pavilion. There must be a traitor. We should find a way to catch him."
"Catch him." Xiu Yu was really tired and said with her eyes closed, "But once I catch him and teach him a lesson, that's it. I can't avoid the things that happen in the harem anyway, so it's pointless to keep harping on him."
"Very generous." Xuanye was also a little tired.
Xiu Yu snorted, "Don't I know you? Even if I find out, I can't hide which palace it is from. Can you move? Are you willing to move?"
Xuanye was outmaneuvered by Xiu Yu.
"Don't think about it." Xiu Yu tucked the quilt in for Xuanye: "You are too soft-hearted."
The harem was a reality. As Xiuyu was being escorted back to Yikun Palace in a warm sedan chair, she heard that the eunuchs delivering gifts to the various palaces had been replaced, and the servants coming and going had become respectful again. Arriving at Yikun Palace, the daily deliveries arrived promptly, naturally the best of the day. The newly appointed eunuch in charge was respectfully awaiting Xiuyu's orders.
Xiu Yu learned her lesson this time and asked Xiao Tao to send the eunuch in charge away properly. After the eunuch repeatedly declined, he accepted the gift. Then she returned to the study and started doing her favorite things again.
Xiao Tao grinded the paper while laughing, "My master used to be against the idea of assigning eunuchs to different positions, but after this incident, he seems to have come to terms with it."
"This is the only solution." Xiu Yu drew a picture, his words full of helplessness: "It's not easy for us to just think about them, and this level is not that difficult."
Xiao Tao agreed: "No matter what you think, the benefits of doing this far outweigh the disadvantages. It's a good thing to give back."
After this ordeal, the people in the harem realized just how powerful the Empress of the Yikun Palace was. She'd fallen out of favor one day, only to be restored to favor the next, even more favored than before. Furthermore, Xiu Yu wasn't a stingy person and was now generous to the servants in other palaces. Naturally, everyone in the palace was raving about Xiu Yu's good deeds. Even the other palace mistresses, no matter how jealous or envious they were, were powerless to stop her.
However, there is a prerequisite for buying the good things with money, that is, money. Relying solely on the monthly "salary", not to mention that it is impossible to buy the good servants in other palaces, it is also difficult to sustain one's own palace.
So, Xiu Yu started to think again. There are thousands of ways to make money, but being locked up in the palace and unable to leave is the first obstacle. Fortunately, for her, occasionally she could be soft-hearted to Xuanye, say a few nice words, and let Xuanye take her out of the palace. Then she could find an excuse to take Xiao Tao for a stroll while Xuanye was busy.
When Xiu Yu opened several more shops in the capital with Xuanye turning a blind eye, and changed the products from "Xuanye's exclusive enjoyment" to "common people's enjoyment" under the banner of "Imperial Concubine's Pastry", Xuanye naturally frowned at Xiu Yu for a long time.
In summer, the chirping of cicadas in the trees makes people feel annoyed. In Changchun Garden, Xuanye tossed and turned and was unable to fall asleep because of the cicadas.
Xiu Yu was wearing a lake green Hanfu and sitting on a low stool beside her, waving a round fan at Xuanye.
"Isn't Your Majesty angry enough? The people are now praising your generosity and love for the people like your own children. That's why you allow the food from the palace to be sold on the streets of the capital."
Xuanye snorted, "Is this news just spreading through the streets and alleys of the capital? I heard you've even sent people to the south to look for shops. The imperial concubine is quite impressive!"
"We've all paid taxes." Xiu Yu felt a little aggrieved. "I haven't owed the court a single cent, yet I still have to depend on your mood every day. It's really unfair."
Xuanye snorted again, "Do you really not know, or are you pretending not to know? You've made such a big fuss about it, but I don't know how many memorials are on my desk complaining about you, Concubine Yi, disregarding the dignity of the royal family! Look at my white hair, it's all from worry!"
Xiu Yu smiled. "Ke Jing and the others are so old now. If you don't have any gray hair, you've truly mastered the art of maintaining your appearance." She glanced at the weather outside, tugged at Xuanye's sleeve, and said, "I can't sleep anyway. How about I take you to a nice place?"
"Where are you going?" Xuanye sat up. "To see the new shop you chose?"
Xiu Yu smiled and said, "Of course not. You'll know when you go there. After you see it, I hope you won't look at Yu'er with such a dark face anymore."
Xuanye hummed and was dragged onto the carriage by Xiu Yu, seemingly reluctantly.
Along the way, Xiu Yu was waving a round fan for Xuanye, which was considered to be a thoughtful service. In fact, Xuanye also had some thoughts, because he found through trial and error that if he occasionally gave Xiu Yu a bad look, he would be treated favorably for a long time, which felt really good.
The carriage slowly stopped, and Xuanye still held Xiu Yu's hand and got off the carriage together.
Looking at the temple in front of him that had a history of over 400 years, Xuanye was a little surprised: "You brought me here to worship the Emperor Dongyue?"
"Yes." Xiu Yu walked beside Xuanye. "Two years ago, when I was in the shop, I heard that a temple here had caught fire. I had just received a loan at the time, so I donated it here. A few days ago, the abbot sent a letter saying that the new temple had been built and asked me to come and take a look."
Xuanye had actually known about the fire at the Dongyue Great Emperor's temple long ago. If he hadn't been busy with the affairs of Junggar, he would have sent someone to send money to rebuild it. But he didn't expect Xiu Yu to do it for him.
The abbot had been waiting at the temple gate for a long time. When he saw Xuanye and Xiuyu, he bowed and said, "I am honored to meet you, distinguished guests."
Xuanye smiled and said, "Master Jiang, this isn't the first time you've met me, and you're still being so polite."
Taoist Priest Jiang led the way and said, "This isn't the first time I've seen His Majesty, but it is the first time I've seen His Majesty. Besides, when a distinguished guest arrives, we should be courteous and considerate."
"People who practice Taoism don't care about worldly affairs, do they?" Xuanye joked.
Taoist Priest Jiang retorted: "After all, people are in the mortal world, the temple is in the mortal world, and it is worshipped by the royal family. Mundane affairs are also important matters."
Xuanye said to Xiuyu, "This is because he has reached a higher state through cultivation. He has left the mortal world and returned to it again, yet he has achieved great enlightenment."
Taoist Priest Jiang brought Xuanye and Xiuyu to the newly built temple, and then he personally lit some incense and handed it to Xiuyu. "Your Highness funded the reconstruction of this hall. Please forgive me for not respecting the etiquette of the first stick of incense. Please put it in this incense burner first."
Xiu Yu took it with a smile, but handed it to Xuanye: "Yu'er's money was ultimately earned by the emperor, and this palace was rebuilt because of the emperor, so please come first."
Xuanye said, "Since Taoist Master Jiang has handed the incense to you, you can do it. It makes no difference whether I come or you come."
Xiu Yu no longer refused: "Then... Yu'er is breaking the rules." She held the incense stick in both hands, closed her eyes and prayed for something, then stepped forward and inserted it into the incense burner.
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