After saying this, even though Big Fat Orange was thick-skinned enough, he couldn't help but subtly tilt his head to the side.
My face felt a little hot; if it were someone with fair skin, you could even see the pink on their cheeks.
Picking up the cup of tea beside him, the chubby orange pretended to take a sip to cover up his embarrassment and wait for the Empress Dowager's reply.
The Empress Dowager was stunned for a long time. She had thought that the Emperor would make all sorts of requests, but she never expected this one.
She knew more or less about the empty treasury since the emperor ascended the throne, but she didn't take it to heart.
Only today did she realize that the situation was perhaps far more difficult than what she had overheard. Otherwise, the emperor wouldn't have set his sights on her.
The Empress Dowager thought about her private savings and the things the late Emperor had given her before he passed away. Apart from what she would take with her, she planned to leave the rest for the Fourteenth Prince.
The eldest son is already the emperor, so he doesn't need these things. The younger son is not well-liked, so leaving him some money will ensure that his descendants can live more comfortably.
But now the emperor is threatening the fourteenth prince. The empress dowager is heartbroken about the millions of taels of silver, but she is even more heartbroken about her son.
Anyway, as long as she's still alive, she'll always find a way to accumulate some wealth for the fourteenth prince.
The Empress Dowager said, “Consort Hua’s filial piety is commendable. I am old and my eyesight is failing. Zhu Xi and the others are also getting old. If the Emperor could arrange someone to share my burdens, I would be happy to enjoy my retirement.”
Seeing that the Empress Dowager agreed, the chubby orange finally smiled and said, "I have been busy with state affairs and have indeed neglected this matter. I hope that Your Majesty will not blame me."
"I have just thought about it. Although the Fourteenth Prince has no shortage of food and clothing in the imperial mausoleum, it is really inconvenient for him to get medicine."
"I will send someone to follow him. If the Fourteenth Prince's condition allows, he will be sent back to the capital immediately. In this way, both the Empress Dowager and I can rest assured."
When the Empress Dowager heard that her beloved youngest son was finally able to return to the capital, her joy was beyond words.
She said impatiently, "In that case, I would like to send Zhuxi along to take a look."
The chubby orange-colored face darkened, and the Empress Dowager immediately became nervous. But she was really worried about not letting Zhu Xi go with her.
Perhaps for the sake of the money, the chubby orange nodded in agreement, "In that case, let Zhuxi go with Xiaoyuanzi."
*
After leaving the Hall of Mental Cultivation, due to the urgency of the matter, the Empress Dowager only gave Zhu Xi a few words of advice, asking her to take good care of the Fourteenth Prince and, if possible, to make sure he returned to the capital.
The emperor has finally managed to get a word in, and if this doesn't work out, who knows when the next opportunity will come?
But Consort Hua...
The Empress Dowager was filled with resentment at the thought that all her hard work had been for nothing.
Only she, Zhu Xi, and Zhu Yun truly knew about those private assets. Logically speaking, even if she hid some of them, the emperor would most likely not have noticed.
But the Empress Dowager dared not do so, fearing that if the eldest son, Fatty Orange, found out, she would vent her anger on her youngest son.
No sooner had she returned to Shou Kang Palace than people from Yang Xin Hall came to her door. They instructed Zhu Yun to hand over all her belongings so that the Emperor could fulfill his filial duty of sharing her burdens.
The Empress Dowager secluded herself in the small Buddhist hall, praying to the Bodhisattva for protection, hoping that her youngest son would turn misfortune into good fortune and overcome adversity.
Liang Chun, accompanied by several eunuchs, found the least crowded and most secluded road and discreetly brought the account books, contracts, and related seals back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
After mentally reviewing the entire plan until he had a clear understanding, Liang Chun went inside with the ledger, waiting for Big Fat Orange to ask him questions.
Big Fatty Orange flipped through the accounts in his hand. He originally thought that the Empress Dowager's private property was at most seven or eight hundred thousand taels of silver.
According to the ledger, the amount was over 1.7 million taels. What he had previously guessed was just a fraction of that.
Although most of the assets were real estates such as farms and shops, the box of silver notes in his hand was worth a staggering 500,000 taels.
Whether it's his mother or his concubines, they are all richer than him.
In fact, after inheriting the throne, the amount of money in his private treasury was no less than that of the Empress Dowager. It's just that the national treasury was empty, so he had to use his private treasury to fill the gap.
His private treasury was empty, so he wanted to borrow some money from the national treasury to renovate the palace. However, he was advised by the officials not to indulge in extravagance and pleasure.
This cycle repeats itself endlessly, and he, an emperor, ends up being the poorest one. What kind of logic is that!
With these things in hand, Big Fat Orange can finally breathe a sigh of relief. As long as there is no major drought or flood this year, things will be better by the second half of the year.
The chubby orange asked, "They're all here. Didn't the people from Shou Kang Palace give them any trouble?"
Liang Chun said, "The Empress Dowager is grateful for the Emperor's filial piety and is overjoyed. How could she possibly make things difficult for him?"
"After I arrived, the Empress Dowager instructed Aunt Zhuyun to hand over the account books and seals to me one by one."
“Even this box of silver notes was given to me by the Empress Dowager. Zhu Yun said that the Empress Dowager knew that the Emperor was troubled by state affairs and that the palace did not need these silver notes, so she asked me to bring them back in the hope that they could help the Emperor.”
Upon hearing the words "share the burden," the chubby orange-haired man looked genuinely uncomfortable. But that didn't matter; being too concerned with saving face wouldn't secure his throne.
The chubby orange tree said, "I entrust this matter to you. Take good care of the things in these ledgers."
"You already manage the imperial estates and many other properties, so you must be quite adept at handling these matters. Just continue to report to me every month as usual."
Liang Chun replied, "Thank you, Your Majesty. This servant dares not fail Your Majesty's trust and will certainly do my utmost to serve Your Majesty."
*
Chuxiu Palace
Hongzhou fell ill because he was too noisy and caught a cold from the wind. His strict mother, Sun Miaoqing, could only devote more attention to him.
Just after feeding Hongzhou his medicine, Liuli rushed in and whispered a few words in Sun Miaoqing's ear.
Sun Miaoqing gave Qiangwei and Granny Li a few instructions, telling them to take good care of her, and then returned to her bedchamber with Liuli and Linglan.
Thinking of the news she had just heard, Sun Miaoqing asked, unwilling to give up, "Are you sure it's true? Did the Emperor really send someone to the Empress Dowager and bring back a lot of account books to the Hall of Mental Cultivation?"
Liuli nodded and said, "It's absolutely true. Liang Chun, who is in charge, is the emperor's trusted servant and has been managing the emperor's private property."
"I just happened to see it when I passed by Yuhua Pavilion."
"They walked from the direction of Shou Kang Palace towards Yang Xin Hall, and even took a side path, obviously not wanting to attract attention."
Sun Miaoqing was shocked. If even her own mother wasn't spared, her money was probably doomed!
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