Chapter 512 - 290: A Leaky Little Cotton-Padded Jacket

Chapter 512: Chapter 290: A Leaky Little Cotton-Padded Jacket

Song Yunzhao had been waiting for Feng Yi to say something about the beauties from the Southern Border, but he never did. She was anxious at first, but as Feng Yi continued to visit Wangyou Palace daily to dine with her—and even stay the night when court affairs were light—he treated her just as he always had. There was absolutely no change in his words or behavior.

She felt that something was not quite right, but for the moment, she couldn’t figure out what it was.

However, there was one thing she knew for sure: if someone was determined to have a change of heart, not even ghosts could stop them, let alone another person.

That being the case, she decided to just let it go.

’Whatever happens, happens.’

The moment she relaxed, it was as if the sky was bluer and the water clearer. The storybooks she read seemed more interesting, and she even found the time to write a few stories for Xie Jinshu, earning another tidy sum.

Her life suddenly seemed much brighter.

During this time, the Duke Qin Mansion and the Prince Zhenbei Mansion formally arranged their marriage, with the Three Letters and Six Rites proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Things were also going smoothly for the Ji Family and the Xie family. Her mother sent word that Madam Ji had hired someone to read their birth charts, and it was said that Ji Yunting and Xie Linlang’s eight characters were a perfect match.

Song Yunzhao loved reading her mother’s letters from home. Not only were they lively and interesting, but they were also packed with juicy details that she couldn’t get enough of.

Her mother wrote that Madam Ji was initially skeptical, suspecting the Xie family had bribed the fortune teller. She secretly sought out her own experts—three of them, one after another—and every single one declared it a match made in heaven, a union of great fortune.

Song Yunzhao couldn’t help but laugh out loud. ’This Madam Ji seems a bit endearingly clueless sometimes, which is quite amusing in its own way.’

Her mother went on to say that Madam Ji had worked herself into a state of sickness over the matter, complaining that even the heavens were conspiring against her. It was only after the Left Minister learned of the situation and had a word with her—what he said, no one knows—that Madam Ji recovered and began the process of the Three Letters and Six Rites with the Xie family. The wedding was scheduled for the end of the year.

’Madam Ji is clearly unhappy with Linlang,’ Song Yunzhao thought. ’I’m afraid that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law will have a rocky start. But Linlang is a smart woman, and Madam Ji isn’t a truly malicious person, so there’s likely some room for things to work out.’

He Lan Yun’s wedding was scheduled for more than a month before Xie Linlang’s, at the end of October. That was certainly cutting it close.

By the end of October, Cao Jitong’s arm would have just finished healing. As the saying goes, a hundred days to mend a serious injury.

Tsk.

And He Lan Yun had called the man a block of wood. Who wouldn’t want a block of wood like that?

Song Yunzhao had two wedding gifts to prepare, but she was happy about it. Both Xie Linlang’s and He Lan Yun’s marriages were connected to Ji Yunting. One had climbed out of a fiery pit, while the other had willingly jumped in. The one who climbed out was the lucky one; Cao Jitong, at least for now, seemed like a good partner.

As for the future?

Who could say.

Life was a long journey spanning decades. Song Yunzhao didn’t even know how many years of love she and the Emperor would share, so how could she possibly predict anyone else’s fate?

As for Xie Linlang, the one who willingly jumped in, she was no fool. There are always trade-offs. To get what she wanted, she had to make sacrifices. Song Yunzhao had helped as much as she could; the rest of the path was up to Xie Linlang to walk.

Once she married into the Ji Family, Song Yunzhao couldn’t easily intervene. Unless Linlang was truly suffering a great injustice, there wasn’t much she could do to help.

Even some princesses of old suffered after marriage, let alone common folk like them.

Life is what you make of it; it all depends on how you live it.

Carefully putting the letter away, Yun Zhao was in high spirits.

"Mistress, Manager Meng sent someone with a message," Nanny Yu reported as she entered. "The Emperor is busy and won’t be coming for lunch. He said you should eat early and get some rest."

Yun Zhao nodded. Court affairs had become busy again recently. ’Feng Yi really is a good, hands-on emperor,’ she thought. She cheerfully ate lunch alone, took a short nap, and then called over Feng Yunjin, Wang Zhaorong, and a few others to get a card game going.

Inside Taixi Hall, Feng Yi, dressed in his ceremonial dragon robes, had a face as black as the bottom of a wok. His handsome features looked as if they were coated in frost.

The Ministry of Revenue had undergone a major shakeup. With autumn’s arrival, the court had to begin preparations for the annual tax collection. This involved auditing the ledgers sent to the capital from all regions, and it would be the greatest test for the newly appointed Minister of Revenue. Whether he could secure his position as Minister depended on how well he handled the books this year.

Song Nanzhen was a minister without a command. Getting the Ministry of Revenue to function wasn’t difficult, but getting everyone in the ministry, from top to bottom, to work together to properly handle tax collection and reconciliation—that would be a true test of his skill.

The Ministry of Revenue had yet to make a move, and already, an Imperial Censor had filed an impeachment.

Song Nanzhen had been personally appointed by the Emperor, so this was a direct slap in the Emperor’s face. It was no wonder Feng Yi looked furious.

On top of that, there was the matter of the Southern Border Lord sending beauties to the capital. They were due to arrive any day now. Feng Yi read the lord’s memorial without a flicker of emotion and tossed it aside.

’Trying to use a honey trap?’

Heh.

Deep down, Feng Yi possessed the autocratic and domineering nature of an emperor. He summoned Song Nanzhen to the palace to question him about the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue. Standing guard in the hall, Meng Jiuchang’s thoughts were a complicated tangle.

The Emperor doted on Song Zhaoyi, and by extension, showed great favor to her father. Meng Jiuchang had never seen any courtier receive such special treatment from the Emperor—he was even giving the Minister advice on strategy.

Normally, wasn’t it the duty of a subject to advise the Emperor?

Now it was the other way around.

It wasn’t just Meng Jiuchang who was having an existential crisis; Song Nanzhen also wore a grave expression. ’I’m such an unworthy subject,’ he thought, ’to make the Emperor worry so much for my sake. To repay His Majesty’s grace, I must execute this year’s tax collection flawlessly!’

Song Nanzhen rolled up his sleeves and got straight to work. Anyone in the Ministry of Revenue who disobeyed orders or only feigned compliance was dealt with accordingly: those who deserved a beating got one, and those who deserved to be dismissed were fired. The tax collection hadn’t even started, but things inside the ministry were already heating up.

The commotion in the Ministry of Revenue was as festive as the New Year, and the sheer scale of the upheaval stunned the other ministries.

Many people ran to the Left and Right Ministers to lodge complaints. "Your Excellencies, you have to do something! Is this Song Nanzhen planning to ascend to the heavens?"

"If he keeps this up, how are the other ministries supposed to get their year-end work done? Will any of us be able to have a peaceful New Year?"

The Right Minister listened with a solemn expression, acknowledged the issue, and then did absolutely nothing.

’What a joke,’ he thought. Song Yunzhao still had leverage over him. Besides, her father’s actions weren’t illegal. It was better to stay out of it and ensure he had a peaceful New Year.

When the Left Minister heard, he was silent for a long moment. He summoned Song Nanzhen, asked him a few questions, and then sent him away. When more people came to complain, the Left Minister simply said, "Let us wait and see the results from the Ministry of Revenue before we pass judgment."

Wait for the results?

Wouldn’t that mean waiting until the end of the year?

And so, the Ministry of Revenue suddenly became the focus of countless watchful eyes at court. Song Nanzhen felt his job was impossible. The Left Minister was too cunning; with a single sentence, he had put him in the hot seat.

Fortunately, he had a plan of his own and wasn’t afraid.

’Either I don’t do this at all, or I do it right. If I can’t do it well, the worst that can happen is I go home and become a farmer!’

Song Yunzhao naturally heard the news as well. She truly didn’t understand the direction this "plot" was taking. The main battlefield was supposed to be the harem, so why were the affairs of the court always getting dragged into it?

Aside from cheering her father on, there wasn’t much she could do. She wrote him a special letter, filling the entire page with effusive, morale-boosting words of praise.

After reading the letter, Song Nanzhen confirmed one thing: his dear daughter, his "little comfort," was more than a little eccentric.