Shen Meizhuang was taken aback. She looked back again to make sure she wasn't mistaken, and then said, "There are that many."
"These are only for bonsai and indoor vases in the palace, and do not include the cost of flowers and trees in the Imperial Garden and other places."
"If we add those things, it will cost an additional 20,000 taels. And that's just for routine repairs. If we encounter bad weather or pests, the cost will be even higher for Consort Hua."
Sun Miaoqing stared with her round eyes. She originally thought that the prices of dishes in the imperial kitchen were expensive, but who knew that the inflation in the flower shop was not to be underestimated at all.
Before the chubby orange could speak, Sun Miaoqing exclaimed, "Even if nothing happened that year, we still spent 400,000 taels on flowers and trees!"
Shen Meizhuang smiled gently, "That's not all. In the cold winter, many of the flowers are grown at the hot spring resorts in Xiaotangshan and sent to the palace."
"This costs more than usual. Last winter, not counting the expenses during festivals, we spent at least fifty or sixty thousand taels of silver every month."
It's not surprising that they could spend so much silver. Expensive flowers and trees are valuable in themselves. Some extremely rare orchids and peonies can easily cost thousands of taels of silver per plant.
In addition, not every plant can be successfully cultivated; if it withers due to carelessness, it will result in a significant financial loss.
Big Fat Orange said, "The expenses in just one year amount to hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, and over time it will become an even larger sum."
Consort Hua shook the fan in her hand and said softly, "Who can argue with that? Since taking over palace affairs, I've often had a headache over this too."
"Although we are trying to be frugal, we cannot abandon the grandeur that a royal palace should have. If we only plant some ordinary flowers and trees, it will not look proper."
After pondering for a moment, the chubby orange said, "That's true, but this expense is quite considerable. We should think of a more economical way."
"Do you have any ideas? Speak them out. Since we're all here today, let's discuss it and see if it's feasible."
The four of them looked at each other. Consort Hua had already said there was nothing she could do. It was just unclear whether she was truly helpless or pretending.
Consort Jing was the first to speak, "Perhaps the flowers and plants used for vases in the palaces can be replaced with branches pruned from the garden trees and shrubs."
"There is no shortage of seasonal flowers, which should save a lot of money."
Big Fat Orange gave her an approving look and said with satisfaction, "That's a good idea. Think again, are there any other ways?"
After saying that, the chubby orange turned its gaze to Shen Meizhuang.
After pondering for a moment, Shen Meizhuang suddenly smiled and said, "I have a way."
The chubby orange said, "Tell me about it."
Sun Miaoqing couldn't help but look over.
[Is Sister Mei going to suggest another terrible idea like cutting back on the daily dishes and converting them to cash?]
**Never! Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents; it's the most hated thing you can do!**
Shen Meizhuang smiled even more brightly. When she first learned to handle palace affairs, she had indeed thought about this.
However, after several months of training under Consort Hua and managing the garden for a period of time, she had also interacted with the eunuchs and matrons in charge of the palace.
I knew long ago that these palace maids and eunuchs, though they looked lowly, were not so easy to deal with.
They have plenty of ways to feign compliance while remaining blameless. She certainly won't make that mistake now!
Shen Meizhuang said, "To my shame, this idea actually came from Consort Cheng."
Sun Miaoqing asked, looking confused, "From me? I don't know anything about that."
Shen Meizhuang said, "Isn't your milk candy business doing very well? People in the palace are saying that Consort Cheng is like Tao Zhu Gong reincarnated, which is why she makes a fortune every day."
"I've heard about it in my spare time, especially those 'Emperor's Set Meal' and 'Consort Hua's Set Meal'. They're really ingenious and amazing."
Consort Jing smiled and said, "Yes, I've heard the palace maids and eunuchs mention it too. Xiao Fuzi's family also supplies milk for Sister Cheng's shop, which earns them more money each year, making their lives much easier."
"He told me that during the Spring Festival, Cheng's sister even had someone send brown sugar to their family. Xiao Fuzi's sister-in-law had just given birth, so it came in handy."
Xiao Fuzi was a eunuch in the Imperial Garden's animal quarters. He was usually quite clever, but his family was plagued by old and sick people, and the young children were all on the verge of dying.
He had no choice but to enter the palace as a eunuch, in exchange for the loyalty money. With the salary he received over the years, his family was able to become wealthy farmers.
Things are much better than before; I even bought a cow. It's just that, even with gritted teeth, I can't afford many supplements like brown sugar.
For this reason, he often spoke well of Consort Cheng among the servants in the Imperial Garden, and even secretly went to the Chuxiu Palace to kowtow, which happened to be discovered by her.
Consort Hua said smugly, "I've heard a lot about it. I've heard that there are so many people buying my boxes that they can't keep up with the demand."
"It is because of Consort Cheng's intelligence and wit that she was able to come up with these ideas. If it were anyone else, they would only be guarding a treasure mountain but not being able to enter it."
"Consort Shen, you bring this up because you're thinking of bringing this method to the inner palace?"
Shen Meizhuang said, "That is exactly what Your Majesty said, that is exactly what I intend to do."
Being praised like this by Shen Meizhuang and Huafei in front of everyone, even Sun Miaoqing, who had a thick skin, felt a little shy.
She was used to these things in her past life, so it was no surprise that she could easily use them now.
[I'm getting a little too cocky from all the praise, I had no idea I was this amazing. From now on, Fatty Orange's harem will all be mine, let him go cool off on the sidelines!]
The chubby orange cat squinted at him, thinking disdainfully, "Trying to take over my harem? Dream on!"
Consort Hua was deeply in love with him and couldn't extricate herself. Consort Shen and the others also put him first in everything. Sun Miaoqing was a fellow concubine, but what could she offer them besides competing for their favor?
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