Chapter 1833: Neither Gives in
Manbao glanced at Changyu and said as a matter of course: "Yes, don't you know? Royal relatives can't do business, not even officials can."
Chang Yu was stunned for a moment, it seemed to be true, then she became dissatisfied and pointed at Man Bao and said, "Aren't you just doing business?"
Manbao immediately denied it, "I didn't do that. I just provided a few recipes to my niece and sister-in-law. They did the business, and I didn't get a penny."
Chang Yu was stunned for a moment, realizing that she was cheating, and was furious. "You are lying. You are a family. How can they not give you the money they earn?"
Manbao spread his hands and said, "Yes, but what can we do about it? The court only prohibits officials from doing business, but it does not prohibit the officials' families from doing business."
Changyu was still angry, but Mingda instantly understood Zhou Man's meaning and sighed, "So, sister, you see, the court's laws don't even have much control over a minor official like Manbao, let alone a princess like you."
Chang Yu reacted, "After all this time, you're not just trying to piss me off, or are you trying to persuade me? Does it mean I'll hurt others if I make money?"
Mingda said, "Third sister didn't intend to harm anyone, but didn't she still cause harm? She was impeached by the censor, and who knows how many more people have not been impeached."
She said, "We are human, not gods. Even the emperor has corrupt officials under his command, let alone women like you and me who are bound to the harem. The servants have many ways to deceive us."
Changyu felt that Mingda's thinking was wrong. He took a step back, looked her up and down carefully, and asked, "You are younger than me, why do you sound like an old man?"
Manbao also said to Mingda: "You are wrong to think like that. There are many difficult things in the world. How can you worry so much before you even start?"
Mingda smiled and said, "I have thought it through carefully. Besides, as I said before, I am not short of gold and silver. Why should I bother to do all this?"
Manbao thought it was right, so he turned to look at Changyu.
Chang Yu hesitated and said, "I, I can't. Although the princess has an allowance and a fiefdom, I often hear my third sister and the others talking privately. The yield from the land is not high. When they first got married, they were often short of money."
"Especially the fifth sister. I heard her whisper to the third sister that when she first arrived at the Lu family, although she had her own princess's mansion, the things there were far inferior to what the Lu family had. She had to think about buying things every day, but her sisters-in-law could buy them without blinking an eye."
The fifth princess was a concubine's princess. The emperor had many daughters, and there were always some who could not be taken care of. When she got married, she married according to the regulations. The queen added some extra things from her private treasury, so her dowry was not much.
Although the Ministry of Works built a princess mansion for her, it was only responsible for the construction. The furnishings and furniture inside had to be added or replaced by the princesses themselves.
For an unfavored princess, three or five stones piled together would also be a rockery. If she wanted a good rockery, she would have to spend her own money to buy and replace it, not to mention some ornaments.
It can be said that the palace of the unfavored princess was not even as good as that of some impoverished families.
Chang Yu was still very proud. After a moment of embarrassment, he said frankly, "I don't want to be like my fifth sister and the others. Although books and teachers say that traveling for business is lowly, I see that my third sister and the others often ask their managers to do such things. So, how can it be lowly?"
Mingda sighed, "You guys are too fond of comparing yourself to others. Brocade is clothing, but isn't cotton and silk uncomfortable to wear?"
Mingda was wearing a fine cotton-padded jacket today, probably because she was afraid of the cold and disliked the heat. Compared to Jinling, she also preferred fine cotton-padded jackets.
Chang Yu glanced at her and said, "Everyone has their own temperament, and not everyone is like you. Besides, you don't lack these things."
She said, "Father loves you the most. If you get married, I'm afraid you will not only have a beautiful wedding dress, but also receive a lot of daily rewards. Not to mention that Mother has already told my brother, the Crown Prince, and my third brother that half of her private property will be given to you, and the remaining half will be shared between my brother, the Crown Prince, and my third brother."
Mingda was curious, "How do you know? I've never heard of it."
Chang Yu swung his legs and said, "There's so much you don't know. Do you know why Yun Feng didn't like you when she returned to the palace this time?"
Li Yunfeng used to get along the most with Changyu, but this time, she was even more indifferent to Mingda.
Mingda shook his head in confusion.
Chang Yu said, "Because among the things that were confiscated from the emperor's uncle, there was a batch of dowry that the emperor's uncle had prepared for Li Yunfeng in advance. There were a number of calligraphy and paintings and decorations in it. The emperor father put them all away. I heard that they were all kept for you."
Mingda: ...
Manbao was shocked and whispered, "His Majesty really loves you, just like my father."
Now it was Changyu and Mingda's turn to be speechless.
Seeing them staring at her without saying anything, Manbao coughed lightly and said, "Okay, okay, let's get back to the point. Speaking of the lowly nature of merchants, my fellow apprentices and I have already discussed this, and it would take a while to finish. How about I pick a time for us to sit down together and discuss it?"
Chang Yu looked confused, "What are we discussing?"
"We will discuss the impact of commerce on the country, and the impact of you, the royal family, and us, the court officials, participating in commercial activities on commerce."
Chang Yu was even more confused. "Why discuss this?"
Manbao said, "After we discuss it, we can write a memorial to His Majesty."
She said matter-of-factly, "Since the three of us can't convince each other, and many of our questions remain unanswered, why not ask His Majesty? Your Majesty has a court full of civil and military officials at your disposal. The wisest people in the world are under His Majesty's command. They can certainly come up with answers that we can't, right?"
She said, "Then we'll know whether you should go into business with my niece."
Changyu: ...
If Zhou Man wasn't a familiar friend, she would have thought she was threatening her.
Changyu was so angry that she let out a breath through her nose. She just wanted to secretly get involved in the business and earn some money for rouge and powder, but why was it so difficult?
Mingda held her stomach and laughed so hard that tears were about to flow out. She said to Zhou Man, "That's a good idea. You can be the host and we can discuss it together when the time comes."
Chang Yu said without hesitation, "No, I don't want to be mentioned in a memorial and be talked about."
Man Bao said, "I'll think of a nickname for you when the time comes. I can pick any royal relative who has invested in the business. If you don't tell me and I don't tell you, who would know it's you?"
Changyu was still unhappy. Others didn't know, but she knew it.
Man Bao said, "When the time comes, I will borrow a piece of venison from the Crown Prince and a place from the Crown Princess. We can talk while we roast the venison. By the way, Mingda, the wine you gave me last time was sour and sweet. I think it tastes great. I will try to get a bottle when the time comes, and we can drink and eat meat together."
Chang Yu, who was about to object, immediately fell silent. She swallowed her saliva and made a request to Zhou Man, "I heard that when you were on duty on New Year's Eve, you and Doctor Liu ate the steamed meat you brought from home in the teahouse. It was delicious."
Mingda: ...She suspected that her sister wanted to make money not to earn money for rouge and powder, but to earn money for food.
See you at 9pm
(End of this chapter)
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