Chapter 93: Settlement of Liupin's Profits and Merits

Concubine Liu wrapped up little Chuchu tightly, took the duck eggs and hurried back to the palace.

While her daughter was sleeping, she checked today's accounts with the palace maids and settled the silver earned by the harem.

In the evening of the second day, Concubine Liu rushed to Cining Palace to report.

"Empress Dowager, your broken wolf-hair pen taught the emperor to write when he was a child and taught him to be a wise ruler. It was broken because you beat the emperor for skipping school."

"It was sold for 2,900 taels!"

There were already a bunch of concubines in the Cining Palace waiting for news, even the queen was there.

Upon hearing this, everyone's mouth twitched.

This pen had been used to beat the emperor.

It was a rare high-priced item in the harem this time.

"It was sold for so much money?" The queen dowager was surprised and delighted, "I almost threw this pen away a few years ago."

Concubine Liu smiled, "Yesterday, the people praised the queen dowager for being a strict mother, and that's why she taught the emperor who is willing to raise pigs and ducks for the people today."

The queen dowager couldn't close her mouth.

Money is secondary. The key is her reputation. This charity sale really boosted her reputation.

"I heard that the entire Zhengxuan Building where the auction was held was surrounded by people. There were also wealthy gentry from neighboring towns."

"Yes. We were worried that there were too many people and everyone couldn't hear clearly, so we gave all the buyers present a book introducing the items."

The Queen Mother's eyes lit up. Did she leave a text of her story of teaching her son?

"Good, good! Concubine Liu, you did a good job. You are a good child."

The Queen Mother was very satisfied.

Concubine Liu quickly began to share the money.

"The Queen Mother's tea cup was used to teach the harem."

"The spinning wheel that the Queen Mother personally spun silk."

The more the Queen Mother listened, the more satisfied she was. She taught her son, the emperor, her daughter-in-law, the queen, and her reputation of personally working and praying for the people... all spread out!

In the future, as long as these collections are collected by wealthy gentry, they will treat them as treasures and show them to their descendants and guests who come to the house.

Every time she displayed them, she would tell the stories of these old things and the stories of her reputation as the Queen Mother!

The Queen Mother smiled and was very satisfied with Liupin's charity sale.

She waved her hand and said, "Liupin, I am old and don't need much money now. I can't even afford abalone and sea cucumber. The money from these sales belongs to me. It will just gather dust if I keep it. I will give it to you."

The Queen and Concubines: "......???"

Stunned.

Liupin was about to refuse, but was stopped by the Queen Mother with a stern face, "The Emperor has been talking about the profits of some projects recently. I am old and can't keep up with the Emperor's thinking. Liupin, you take this money and use it. It will definitely be much better than what I use it for."

Liupin could only accept it. She wanted to kneel down to thank him, but was stopped by the Queen Mother.

"It is a blessing for me and the Emperor to have you in the harem."

As the Queen Mother said this, she couldn't help but glance at Concubine Li who was jealous and rolling her eyes.

The Queen Mother frowned and retracted her gaze. She looked at Concubine Liu with heartache, "Hey, you are thinner than Concubine Li."

Concubine Li: "???"

What does it have to do with her? !

"Concubine Li knows how to take tonic food. She should eat blood swallow ginseng. Concubine Liu, I think you need to take tonic food even more."

The Queen Mother patted Concubine Liu's hand, "You are in good health, so you can come up with more good ideas and do more for the people. Hasn't the emperor been eating goat milk and eggs recently? Don't just care about others and ignore yourself."

The Queen Mother lived longer than the late emperor.

She knew best that at critical moments, men were unreliable and women had to rely on themselves.

The Queen Mother immediately looked at her nanny, "Bring me a portion of the Cordyceps sinensis that the late emperor gave me. I think Concubine Liu has made great contributions. I rewarded her and I won't lose."

"Okay, everyone else go and share the money with Concubine Liu."

"The Queen stays."

Queen Tong frowned slightly.

As expected, when everyone left, the queen mother frowned.

"Queen, you just kept silent. Are you dissatisfied with me or jealous of Concubine Liu?"

Queen Tong was shocked. "I dare not... I just..."

The queen mother closed her eyes. "You are the queen. No woman in the harem can surpass you. But you have to keep up with the emperor."

"Now, you should know who has made contributions to the harem. Reward those who deserve rewards. Those who have no contributions will only drag their feet and waste the people's money. Queen, you should discipline them."

"Let people cry to the ministers. This is not a loss of face for me, but the face of the entire harem, and the face of you, the queen who governs the six palaces!"

The queen's face froze. "It's my fault."

The queen mother picked up the Buddhist beads. "If you can't control it, I will let someone who can."

Queen Tong's dignified expression was broken in an instant, and she looked up in disbelief.

"I think Concubine Liu has made great contributions recently. Queen, what do you think?"

Queen Tong gritted her teeth and knelt down, "I think so too."

"I will go back to the emperor later. I think Concubine Liu should be promoted to Concubine Liu."

The Queen Mother opened her eyes with satisfaction and nodded at her with a smile.

The Queen's hands behind her back were clenched tightly, and her ten fingers were about to dig into the flesh.

*

In the Imperial Study, Xiao Yunzhou was also listening to Jiang Zheng from the Ministry of Revenue report yesterday's daily income statistics.

Everyone was in high spirits, including Xiao Yunzhou.

A pile of old things, sold for a million taels of profit!

"Your Majesty, this year's military pay gap can be made up for most of it!" Jiang Li was happy.

Who would have thought that the women in the harem were so powerful.

If there was a charity sale every year, it would be incredible.

Xiao Yunzhou raised his handsome face with pride and hummed, "I didn't expect that I just said a few days ago that any minister who came up with a project that could earn me a million taels of profit would be promoted."

"As a result, none of the ministers took action, but my concubines in the harem did it first."

The faces of the ministers in the Imperial Study were embarrassed for a moment.

No comparison, no harm.

Once compared, their faces are now painful!

Who said that women are inferior to men!

The key is that Concubine Liu has never passed the imperial examination and is not even a student.

Their faces hurt so much!

"I am ashamed, how about you?" Xiao Yunzhou put down the teacup in his hand with a bang.

All the ministers lowered their heads in silence and looked at their shoes.

"I think that...Liupin's position should be promoted as a reward, and it is not considered that the emperor has broken his promise." Jiang Li from the Ministry of Revenue was the first to speak.

He really admired Liupin.

Not to mention that she had ideas, her ability to organize the charity sale in an orderly manner yesterday was not inferior to some small officials in the Ministry of Revenue.

But Liupin was a woman in the harem, and she could not be promoted, so she was promoted!

Jiang Li had a good impression of Liupin and was happy to make profits for her. He was grateful that she solved the urgent need of the Ministry of Revenue.

But after a while, Wei Zheng's report came from outside.

After a while, he came in and whispered in Xiao Yunzhou's ear.

After hearing this, Xiao Yunzhou spread his hands to Jiang Li, "You are too late to say that. As for the promotion, the Queen has just proposed to the Queen Mother to promote Concubine Liu to Concubine Liu. My lords, how can I fulfill my promise now?"

"You are putting me on the fire!"

"..."

The emperor is bound by his words, and he never jokes.

If he said he would promote her, then he would.

But the problem is... Concubine Liu is not an official, and her position in the harem cannot be promoted any higher.

It is not necessarily that she will be promoted to Concubine now.

"Uh, Your Majesty, there is no precedent for women to serve as officials in our dynasty. In my opinion, how about you give her a certificate of immunity from death?"

The second assistant Shen Mian spoke.

The whole imperial study was stunned.

A certificate of immunity from death?

After Xiao Yunzhou ascended the throne, the first certificate of immunity from death was not given to an important official, but to a woman in the harem! ?

The chief minister, Fu Cha, twitched his beard, "Shen Mian, be careful with your words!"

Those who receive the iron certificate of immunity from death will surely be recorded in history books.

Do the officials of this dynasty still want to be human beings! ?

Women get it, but men don't.

Those who sew clothes get it, but those who serve as officials don't.

How will the scholars of later generations view these officials of this dynasty?

This will bring shame to generations to come!

"This old minister thinks that the proceeds from the charity sale are not as good as those from the money bank, and it is not worth rewarding the iron certificate of immunity from death."

Fu Cha firmly opposed giving this thing to Concubine Liu, "Since the emperor promised to promote her, why not let Concubine Liu be promoted two levels and be named a noble concubine."

Xiao Yunzhou paced and pondered, and just as he was about to speak, he heard Wei Zheng come in again to pass on the message.

"Your Majesty, the Ministry of Works has submitted a memorial."

"Concubine Liu and Concubine Min seem to have jointly developed a new winter coat, a down jacket."

Xiao Yunzhou was stunned.