As soon as the last sentence came out, the old procuress's heart, which had just calmed down, immediately hung in the air. She kowtowed like crazy, and soon, her forehead was covered with blood and the skin was broken.
"Please have mercy, Princess. Please have mercy."
Nuan Nuan smiled comfortably and raised her hand, "Alright, get up now. After this princess discovered it today, she didn't report it to the emperor because she wanted to give you a chance to live, and also wanted to give Zui Hong Lou a chance to live. Otherwise, the emperor would have ordered you to be executed."
The madam was so frightened that her face turned pale. She had met many court officials, but this was the first time she had seen a royal princess. Not only that, she also lied to her.
Zhou Zhaonuan showed a triumphant smile, and seeing Shen Zishan brought a chair for her, the little girl said very politely.
"Thank you, Grandpa."
Shen Zishan: “…”
Sweat poured down his forehead, and he touched it uncomfortably, "Princess, thank you for your compliment. You're welcome, Princess."
The brighter Nuannuan's smile, the more ashamed Shen Zishan felt. Finally, seeing Zhou Zhaonuan sitting on the chair, Shen Zishan was still awkward, feeling that he had really brought shame upon his granddaughter. It would be fine if his granddaughter was a child from an ordinary family, but his granddaughter happened to be a princess of the royal family, a princess with real power, a princess who could work with him. From now on, how could he hold his head up in front of his granddaughter?
Shen Zishan really felt that he had shot himself in the foot, so he turned his head awkwardly to the side and didn't look at Zhou Zhaonuan who was talking nonstop over there.
"At this point, whether you want this Drunken Red Mansion or not, and whether you want your life or not, it all depends on you."
The madam's face turned pale again, and her body trembled like a sieve. "I want the drunk... Red Mansion, and I want my life... my life too. Please tell me clearly, Princess."
The madam kowtowed. Zhou Zhaonuan lowered his eyebrows and stared at the madam for a long time before he spoke slowly.
"Well, considering you've worked so hard for so many years, I'll stop you from forging an identity for a prostitute with my father. From now on, I'll handle any problems you encounter. Even if you have to report it to my father, I'll do my utmost to protect you. This is my promise."
The madam was stunned for a moment. On the other side, Ye Chouxiu and Shen Zishan looked as if they had heard a big joke. The little princess dared to say such words. She must be too bold.
However, the two of them thought about it again and realized that based on how much the emperor doted on her, this was true. When she wanted to go to court, the emperor doted on her and went to court without saying a word, and he would overcome all difficulties to get her there. So, what could the princess not do?
The old madam thought about it carefully and immediately burst into tears of gratitude.
"Thank you, Princess. Thank you, Princess."
Zhou Zhaonuan stood up from the chair, walked towards the madam, stopped, squatted down, pinched the madam's chin with his fingers, and said with a sincere face,
"Mom, you said I'd shouldered all the responsibility for such a big thing. So, from now on, every month, Zuihonglou will pay a tax of 150,000 taels of silver to the imperial court."
"What???"
The madam's eyes almost popped out of her head in surprise. If Zhou Zhaonuan hadn't had the Imperial Guards following her, she would have probably stood up and argued with her.
Nuannuan smiled confidently and generously, settling accounts with the madam.
"Just now, on the way back to the palace, Liu Qingqing told me everything. You have quite a few prostitutes in your Drunken Red Mansion. Generally, for a prostitute of average appearance, a guest would give at least three hundred taels of silver. If you keep more, you will have to pay at least thirty-six thousand taels of silver for a year. Moreover, your position is in the capital, where there are even more dignitaries. The fifteen thousand taels I asked for is really too little. Since you are so reluctant, then I will make do and increase it to two hundred thousand taels of silver. Otherwise, I will immediately bring troops to seal off your Drunken Red Mansion."
"Go ahead, find all the girls for me and find a place to stay. As for the guests, they will leave on their own. Look, they are all running away little by little. As for the silver, send it all to the Ministry of Revenue, count it one by one, and then put it into the national treasury."
Zhou Zhaonuan stood up straight, shrugged his shoulders, and spoke very casually, as if he was talking about something as common as how to drink water or eat.
Upon hearing the closure, the madam's heart twisted. With a fawning smile on her face, she crawled to Zhou Zhaonuan one step at a time, kowtowed in her heart, "Princess...Princess, please don't, please don't. I will pay, these two hundred thousand taels of silver, I will definitely pay, as long as you don't close down Zuihonglou."
The madam gritted her teeth and said sincerely, "Even if it's three hundred thousand taels of silver, I will pay it."
Zhou Zhaonuan's eyes lit up, and before the madam could react to how she expressed her sincerity, the little girl clapped her hands.
"Okay, since you're willing, then I'll give you 300,000 taels of silver every month. Remember, come see me tomorrow."
After saying that, Zhou Zhaonuan raised his hand and left with a large group of imperial guards.
The old madam was left sitting on the ground, dejected and full of regret. Alas, what sin had she committed today? If she had known this would happen, she would never have let Liu Qingqing serve that fake young master.
Always wanting to recover as little loss as possible, the madam crawled to Chen Zishan and stood in front of Ye Chouxiu, asking with a sad face.
"My Lords, is there any hope for me? Or, could you please ask the princess to let me pay less? Otherwise, you two should look at me, I have a family to support, and I have hundreds of mouths to feed in my Zuihonglou."
Shen Zishan rolled his eyes at her, looked at his lower body, and felt even more regretful.
"You can support me however you want. I'm leaving now. Next time I come here, I'll have to find someone to calculate an auspicious day."
He didn't want to lose his face and then his money.
He really didn't want to go through such an embarrassing thing a second time.
When Nuannuan returned to Yingyue Pavilion, it was already very late at night. After a busy and tiring day, Zhou Zhaonuan had lost all her strength and almost fell asleep immediately. She slept until noon, and Biyu called her several times but she didn't wake up.
"Nuannuan, Nuannuan, get up quickly."
In a daze, Zhou Zhaonuan felt someone pushing him. He pursed his lips reluctantly, turned over, and muttered.
"Who is this? I'm so sleepy. Let me sleep a little longer."
Shen Nian'an knew that her daughter was tired and felt sorry for her, but she had slept for five hours, so she had to get up no matter what.
"Nuannuan, your second brother is in trouble again. He has a high fever and is unconscious."
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