Quick Travel: The Long Road to Resurrection

Although the late emperor had worked diligently and conscientiously throughout his life and was very frugal in his daily life, the national treasury was still much better after he succeeded to the throne than when the late emperor had just ascended the throne.

However, the court's military expenses in all aspects are too high, so the current plan should focus on saving. But some money cannot be saved, so the only way is to start from the harem.

Hongli hinted to Langya that she should be frugal and avoid extravagance in her daily life.

After all, as a queen, she is a role model for women all over the world, and her every word and action influences many people. If the queen advocates frugality and sets an example herself, it will surely be convincing and people will rush to imitate her.

Hongli's plan was good, but he was not very happy when it came to himself. He had no money and just wanted to deduct money from his women. He couldn't bear this crime.

"I have looked at the accounts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to the quotas, the concubines of the previous emperor spent a lot of money on clothing and cosmetics every year."

Hongli's brows furrowed slightly, with a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.

"Your Majesty, there are not many people in the harem right now. They have all followed Your Majesty since the Qian Palace. Many concubines are still raising princesses and princes, and there are also servants serving them. How can they work wholeheartedly for their master without rewards? This quota is just enough. If it is reduced further... I'm afraid it won't be appropriate."

Langya looked at Hongli with disapproval and said softly.

Hongli's face turned a little ugly. He thought to himself that the country's finances were tight now and the expenditure of the Ministry of Internal Affairs also needed to be appropriately cut.

The cost of clothing for concubines is really too much, and clothes cannot be eaten, so my concubines do not need so many gorgeous clothes.

Of course, he also knew that what Langya said made a lot of sense. After all, it was vital for the previous dynasty that the concubines in the harem behaved themselves.

Langya's attitude made him very unhappy. He was not only her husband, but also the master of the world. The Queen's rebuttal was like this, without any thought of sharing his worries. She did not act like a virtuous woman at all, which made him feel a little unhappy.

"Empress, I know your concerns, but extravagance is not acceptable. The family business passed down by our ancestors must be managed carefully and steadily." Hongli tried his best to keep his voice calm.

"Your Majesty, what you said makes sense. We can discuss whether to implement it when there are more people in the palace in the future. There is no need to be so strict now."

Langya wanted to say something else but was interrupted by Hongli.

He felt that Langya was just afraid of offending the concubines, and that as a queen she was so timid and petty.

"Okay, Langya, I have been thinking about this matter for a long time. If you don't want to come forward, I will go and talk to the concubines in person tomorrow."

Hongli slowly stood up, turned around and left without looking back, leaving Langya alone there with a helpless look on her face.

next morning

The morning light was dim, the breeze was blowing, and the entire palace was bathed in tranquility and peace.

Changchun Palace

The concubines came to Changchun Palace early to pay their respects to the Queen, but it was too early and Langya was still dressing herself up. She instructed Suxin to serve tea and snacks to the concubines sitting in the hall.

I saw that they were all dressed in luxurious clothes, with exquisite makeup and elegant manners. Each of them had her own charm and appeal, and was very pleasing to the eye.

After washing up, Langya went to the hall. After exchanging greetings with the concubines, she picked up some tea as it was getting late.

The concubines noticed the queen was serving tea to the guests and were about to stand up and take her leave.

Suddenly, I heard the eunuch outside the door making a announcement.

"The Emperor has arrived."

The concubines looked in the direction of the voice and saw the emperor in casual clothes, walking in with big strides and a dignified manner.

When the concubines saw the emperor coming, they couldn't help feeling happy and were no longer in a hurry to leave.

Since the emperor ascended the throne, he has been busy with state affairs and has little time to favor the harem. There is still no sign of this precious son.

Now that the emperor has arrived, the concubines feel particularly happy and expectant, and are secretly thinking about how to seize this good opportunity, display their charm, and win the emperor's favor so that they can conceive a son.

However, no matter how they displayed their charm, like peacocks spreading their tails, the emperor's eyes did not rest on any of the concubines.

The emperor walked straight towards the queen, and Langya quickly stood up and made room for the emperor to sit on the main seat.

Hongli looked at Langya and nodded with satisfaction, then sat in the main seat facing the concubines.

With a smile on his face, he said, "I have been busy with state affairs recently and have not been able to visit you, my beloved concubines. I came here today to see you. I hope you are all well."

A group of concubines responded that they understood the emperor's hard work in the previous dynasty.

They all expressed their concern and worry about the emperor's health. They tried their best to attract the emperor's attention, but the emperor didn't seem to pay much attention to them.

Despite this, the concubines did not feel neglected and still invited the emperor to their palaces.

The concubines were too noisy, and Hongli was annoyed by them, so he raised his hand to signal them to be quiet.

Hongli cleared his throat and said, "As a concubine, it is inappropriate for me to make a fuss here. I have something to say. Please be quiet and listen."

"From today on, the allowances of the concubines in the harem will be reduced by half, and the allowances of the servants serving the princes and princesses will also be reduced by half."

The concubines were greatly shocked when they heard this, and they felt like eggplants hit by frost. How could they survive if their allowance was cut in half? It was already enough, yet it was cut in half again.

"I think the Queen agrees with me, right?"

After saying this, Hongli looked at Langya beside him, signaling her with his eyes to come forward and agree with his decision.

Langya was speechless. Didn't she say yesterday that this method was not applicable at the moment? Why did the emperor want to save money and even reduce the allowance by half? It was a pity he could think of such an idea.

The concubines have a lot of allowances, but they are not for one person alone. There are so many servants in a palace, and if they are asked to work loyally, how could they do their best without being rewarded? It can be said that the allowance of the mistress of a palace has to be paid for by herself, not to mention the noble ladies and maids.

It would be fine if the emperor didn't want to give rewards or subsidies, but he even wanted to halve them.

In short, Langya strongly disagrees.

Therefore, Langya did not do as the emperor wished, and shook her head and said: "The emperor's decision is very good, but it is not applicable at the moment. There are few people in the harem now, only a few concubines, and the cost is not much."

"It would be better to wait until there are more concubines before making a decision. It is really not appropriate now. We cannot save money on everything that needs to be spent."

When the concubines heard that the emperor was going to cut their shares in half, they were very unhappy. Fortunately, the queen disagreed. They hoped that the emperor could give up this decision!

Their share was simply not enough. Over the past few months, I had lost count of how much money I had given to them, and I was almost broke.

This is the case for those without children, let alone those with children, who receive even greater subsidies.

Among them, Su Lujun started to do embroidery work and asked someone to sell it in exchange for silver.