Inside the palace
The Emperor was eating a self-heating hot pot in the Empress's palace. The two of them were so engrossed in eating that they didn't even have time to talk.
The young eunuch reported to Eunuch De outside the door that the young princess had sent someone into the palace with a token, saying that the tax money was being delivered to the emperor.
Eunuch De waved his hand, telling the others to wait at the door while he went inside to report to the Emperor.
"The Emperor and the Princess have sent someone to deliver today's tax silver."
The Emperor then put down his chopsticks, wiped his mouth, and looked at Eunuch De: "How much can this be in half a day? You really send it every day?"
"No matter how many princesses Your Majesty has, since they have already been sent, let's accept them."
The emperor nodded after hearing what the empress had said: "Xiao Dezi, bring the person in."
The person who came was a shop assistant named Xiaodengzi (Little Stool), a name personally given to him by Su Muyao. In addition to small stools, there were also small tables.
They were originally slaves who were bought and sold at will. They were fortunate to meet the young princess, who not only gave them names but also gave them monthly wages and commissions.
They all take their work very seriously.
Xiao Dengzi came in, a little nervous, not daring to lift his head. "Greetings, Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor!" After performing the grand ceremony, he knelt on the ground.
"Qi, how much tax silver did the young princess send you to deliver?"
"Your Majesty, the total is 100,800 taels of silver."
Everyone present was stunned by these words, and the Emperor rubbed his ears in disbelief.
How many did you say?
The little stool raised its voice slightly and replied, "One hundred and eight thousand taels of silver."
The emperor suddenly stood up. This time he heard clearly. He never expected that in just half a day, the tax revenue alone would exceed 100,000.
Thinking about it this way, how much silver did this little princess collect in just one afternoon?
When Xiaodengzi handed the Emperor the bill and the money for the day, the Emperor discovered that it had all been purchased by one person. Most importantly, the young princess had not brought her share of the tax.
It seems this little fox isn't planning on paying! Oh well, I can make quite a bit from just collecting taxes from the Western Regions. I guess I underestimated this business.
The empress was also very excited. In previous years, they would spend a lot of money to send tributes to the Western Regions.
Now it's their turn to spend money on the great dynasty.
The Emperor then laughed heartily, "As expected of Little Lucky Star, he is indeed capable. Look at how much tax he has collected in just half a day. If he were to collect taxes for several more days..."
This will not only solve the problem of food supplies for the soldiers, but also significantly replenish the national treasury. Those ministers who constantly complain of poverty before me are surprisingly generous when it comes to buying things.
Although the tax revenue came from the people of the Western Regions, he had no idea how much silver these ministers had secretly spent at Su Muyao's shop.
They keep complaining about being poor, but then they turn around and spend huge sums of money.
The Empress chuckled softly, "I heard that Yuan'er has already recaptured two cities, and all the soldiers under the Prince of Xiaoyao have been transferred to Yuan'er's army."
Now that we've recaptured the other three cities that the enemy previously captured, shouldn't we be able to come back?
After all, a prince of a country can't be stationed on the border forever.
The Emperor frowned, realizing that there was truly no better choice than Longyuan.
"Your Majesty, I know you miss Yuan'er, but only he can protect this vast empire."
He is the crown prince, destined to sit on my throne. Without strategic acumen and the approval of the soldiers, his position will be precarious.
The Empress's face immediately fell upon hearing this. She understood perfectly well that he had directly refused to let Yuan'er return.
Isn't it just because they're afraid others won't be able to defend it? They insist on making their own son defend it.
He has no real skills whatsoever. If it weren't for his father, the throne would have been lost long ago. Now that the carefree king has fallen, there is still no one he can rely on.
How dare they say that Longyuan's position is unstable? The current empress wanted to curse them out, but she had to consider the emperor's face because Xiao Dezi was there.
He turned his face away and snorted coldly.
Upon seeing this, the Emperor waved his hand, dismissing Xiao Dezi and the others, while he himself comforted the Empress.
"Alright, don't be angry. Yuan'er is also my son. How could I not love him? It's just that there's no one else available, so I can only make him suffer."
The Empress slapped the Emperor away and held her hand, saying, "You speak so grandly, but you're just incompetent. You're making Longyuan fight on the battlefield when he's only a teenager. You're a really irresponsible father."
The emperor didn't dare to refute and just touched his nose, knowing he was in the wrong.
"Alright, let's leave it at that for now. I'll make it up to Longyuan when he returns to the palace. You should rest well while I get back to work."
After the emperor left, he went straight to the imperial concubine's residence.
As soon as I entered, I saw the Imperial Concubine with disheveled hair, dressed in plain clothes, sitting on a prayer mat reciting scriptures.
Only when the maid beside the Consort Liu stood up and bowed did Consort Liu slowly raise her head.
"Now that you've seen me, you don't even know how to perform the proper etiquette?"
"Greetings, Your Majesty. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."
The Emperor helped Consort Liu up, saying, "You probably don't know that Prince Xiaoyao has already fallen from power."
Before the Emperor could finish speaking, the Imperial Concubine suddenly looked up, staring at him in disbelief.
"How is that possible?"
Consort Liu realized she had said something she shouldn't have after she finished speaking, and added, "This Prince Xiaoyao holds a high position in the court, how could he fall from power so easily? Is Your Majesty joking?"
"Hmph! Do you think I would joke about something like this with you? Do you really think I don't know about your private dealings with the Prince of Xiaoyao? It's just because your mother's family has some influence."
Besides, if you die, and the Prince of Xiaoyao plants other spies around me, I'll have to find them all. So it's better to keep you, you stupid woman, alive.”
Upon hearing this, the Imperial Concubine retreated repeatedly: "Your Majesty, there is nothing between me and Prince Xiaoyao. We only have private contact. However, my maternal family is worried about me in the palace, so they sent me some letters."
"Oh, really? I don't recall that the Consort's family members were not allowed to visit."
Why do you need someone else to deliver messages? Your mother also frequently travels to the palace; do you really need someone else to bring you letters?
"Your Majesty..." Consort Liu really didn't know how to defend herself, and knelt down at the Emperor's feet with a thud.
“Your Majesty, it is indeed Prince Xiaoyao who threatened me with my parents, but Your Majesty, I swear to Heaven that I have not done anything detrimental to Your Majesty.”
As she spoke, she began to sob on the ground, “You should know that I have been extremely indulgent towards you, after all, you and the Empress have been with me all this time.”
Consort Gui thought she had escaped a disaster when she heard this, but then the emperor's face suddenly turned cold: "It is precisely because you have been with me for so long that I trust you so much, yet you have poisoned me."
You were the one who administered those slow-acting poisons, weren't you?
Your status is second only to the Empress, but I treat you and the Empress equally. Your biggest mistake was plotting against me.
As he spoke, he called out "Xiao Dezi," and Xiao Dezi slowly walked in carrying a tray.
The imperial concubine screamed in panic when she saw what was on the tray.
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