Crossing the famine, I am a poor fish, and my descendants have to work hard

It was time to give New Year gifts. Zhao Yuanzhen stood in her ring space and began to ponder what gift to give.

Five gifts are required.

There is one copy at the old house. This one is okay and easier to prepare. It’s better if it’s more practical.

For Butler Xiao’s portion, we need to find something creative.

The one about the old tutor is more difficult to think about. It would be best if it is related to literature, so you have to choose carefully.

As for Zhao Yuanlan's portion, it should be more substantial and a little more sparse, after all, it's his elder brother and sister-in-law, so they're not picky.

The last one is for the Queen.

This gift should be rare, valuable, creative and novel.

These factors combined make it even more brain-intensive.

After picking and choosing in the warehouse for a long time, I finally decided on the gifts for each family.

In addition to rice, flour, grain, oil, beef, mutton, and cloth in the old house, Zhao Yuanzhen also made a set of gold jewelry for Zhang Sandao and Sun Zhang.

On the side of Butler Xiao, he gave Feifei and Cuicui a jade abacus designed by them, with a gold frame and jade beads. The jade was of relatively good quality.

As for the old tutor, Zhao Yuanzhen thought about it for a long time and finally chose a painting.

The painting I chose is A Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains.

I also found a gift box made of precious wood and wrapped it.

As for Zhao Yuanlan, he selected various jewelry and head ornaments for his sister-in-law, a piece of gold-wire soft armor for his eldest brother, which could save his life, and precious four treasures of the study for his nephew.

As for the Queen Mother, Zhao Yuanzhen really thought about it for a long time and finally chose a mechanical watch.

The entire clock is more than half a meter high. The hour hand, minute hand, and second hand are all made of metal. The Queen will probably like it.

Finally, I selected a lot of fruit baskets, including fruits that were not available in this season, and filled two large fruit baskets.

There are cherries, lychees, loquats, blueberries, strawberries, bayberries, watermelons, cantaloupes and so on.

There were two large fruit baskets filled to the brim, two for each family.

These fruits are all produced in the space of Zhao Yuanzhen's ring. If anyone is curious, she will say that they were preserved in an ice cellar using special means.

The fruits in my ring space have been harvested one after another, but many of them have not been eaten and are directly stored in the warehouse. Now the warehouse is almost full, and it is time to clean it out.

Zhao Yuanzhen also took out a lot of it for her family to eat.

He also picked out large quantities of the same and distributed some to people in his own farm, village, workshop, and shops as New Year's rewards.

In addition, this year's Spring Festival, each person was given 5 taels of silver as a New Year's benefit.

These servants and the people hired from the village were so happy that the money they earned during the New Year was almost as much as a year's salary.

I really hope my wife lives a long life. Only when she is at home can we have such rich and generous New Year benefits.

Long live the lady.

Send the gifts one by one.

As for the Queen's portion, Zhao Yuanzhen decided to deliver it personally this time.

I haven't seen the Queen for a long time, and I miss her.

She put on her own Madam Zhen's clothes, washed and dressed herself, took some gifts, and went to the gate of the palace with Lan Ying.

Then he submitted the visiting card.

Not long after, someone replied and said the queen let her in.

She asked the messenger to find someone to bring the gifts down.

I followed her to the Queen's bedroom.

"The Queen is a thousand years old, a thousand years old!"

The Queen Mother was waiting for her in the palace, and she also knelt down to pay her respects.

"Get up! Take a seat!"

"Thank you, empress!"

Zhao Yuanzhen did not hesitate and sat directly on the chair below the Queen.

"My Lady, I haven't seen you for a few years. You still look so good, your face is still beautiful, and you are still so pretty."

She is indeed the most noble woman in the world. Her face is well maintained like a baby's, looking smooth and tender.

Time seemed to have left no trace on her face.

Yes, since the entire Imperial Hospital is run as a beauty salon, there must be some skin care recipes.

When I have time, I will study some anti-aging recipes myself.

"Pfft, you're just a chatterbox. I haven't seen you for several years, and you don't even come to the palace to see me."

Every time she asked about Zhao Yuanzhen's whereabouts, she said she was not in the capital. She didn't know why this woman was running around the world every day.

"Oh, Queen, I'm really busy. I have no choice! I have to do business everywhere to make money!"

"You are obsessed with money. How can you worry about not having enough money to spend all your family property?"

Others may not know how big the Zhang family's fortune is, but she knows.

The Zhang family's annual income is tens of millions of taels of silver. The dividends from the glass with Your Majesty alone are several hundred taels of silver every year.

Her beauty salon pays her about four or five hundred thousand in dividends every year, which means she makes several million a year.

With this year's income, if you just eat and wait for death every day, you can spend it for a lifetime.

I don't know what this woman is busy with. She just can't let go of money. She is either making money or on her way to make money.

Really, are you obsessed with money?

"Your Highness, you don't know that I don't mind having too much money. I get panicky when there's too little."

It's her fault that she has a system that devours money. She wants a lot of things, there's nothing she can do!

The only thing I can do is to make more money!

"Oh, you! But during the disaster relief work for the last storm in Yangzhou Prefecture, I heard from His Majesty that, thanks to your selfless dedication, many casualties were reduced, and post-disaster reconstruction was completed faster."

At that time, His Majesty said that Zhao Yuanzhen not only donated millions of kilograms of grain, but also provided a lot of oxen, grain seeds, dedicated jobs, etc.

It really solved the urgent problem for the court!

"That's what I should do. I am loyal to my emperor and I am honored to be able to help His Majesty and His Majesty solve their problems."

Zhao Yuanzhen had horses at her fingertips.

The Queen Mother was so delighted by her coaxing.

"How come you have time to submit your letter to the palace today?"

This woman never does anything without profit. She always asks Zhao Yuanlan to bring it over, and never comes on her own if there is nothing else to do.

The Queen Mother reasonably guessed that she disliked the trouble of etiquette.

"I miss you, Your Majesty. I haven't seen your beautiful face in years. I really miss you!"

"Poor again, to be honest."

The Queen didn't believe her at all.

Zhao Yuanzhen touched his nose and said, "Uh, okay!"

"I just got a very magical gift, and I want to give it to the Queen personally."

"what gift?"

The Queen suddenly became a little curious. What kind of gift could it be that made Zhao Yuanzhen feel so magical?

You know, Zhao Yuanzhen has a lot of magical gadgets.

"I have brought it. Please ask someone to bring it up so I can introduce it to you."

The gifts were carried in by palace servants and are now outside.

The Queen Mother glanced at the head maid.

The maid immediately understood and asked someone to bring all the things Zhao Yuanzhen brought into the hall.

"My lady, these two baskets of fruit are for you to try. I found a way to preserve them in the ice cellar in the summer. I'm sending some to you to try."

The Queen looked at the fruit basket.

Good guy!

They are really all summer fruits.

This woman really has her own way!

"Today's gift is this. This is a timepiece that corresponds to our time and can accurately display the time."

Zhao Yuanzhen opened the clock in the box, took it out, and then carefully placed it on the table beside her.

When the Queen heard that it was a clock, she came over curiously, but after looking at it for a while, she didn't quite understand it.

"I don't understand the magic of this time table!"

"Madam, this is how you read the time. I'll teach you. Look at the standard numbers on the dial, from one to twelve, and each number corresponds to half an hour. The three hands on the dial represent the hour hand, minute hand, and second hand.

Zhao Yuanzhen first explained the structure of the clock.

"Look, it's a little after 9:48 pm now, which makes it :."

Zhao Yuanzhen pointed to the hour hand, minute hand and second hand and spoke.

"Compared to the gnomon we usually use, this can tell time more accurately, and it can be accurate to one second. You can take a look."

The Queen Mother listened to what Zhao Yuanzhen said and realized that it was indeed the past three quarters of an hour as shown on the sundial outside.

This is really convenient!

"So now that we have reached the eleventh hour, isn't it the fourth quarter of the fourth hour?"

The Queen is indeed smart, as she has been educated by a great family.

I quickly understood what the numbers on the clock meant and could read them myself.

"Yes, Queen, you are absolutely right. You are really smart. I had to learn from others for a long time before I could understand this time table. Your Majesty is really great. Your intelligence is beyond the reach of others like me."

You have to keep up the flattery too.

"Alright, alright, put away your tricks! I don't even know you."

Zhao Yuanzhen appears to be respectful and well-mannered on the surface, but inwardly she is an extremely free and unrestrained person. This is a kind of freedom that comes from the bottom of her heart, and it is what she has always longed for.

"Hey, I'm telling the truth."

The Queen Mother studied the clock again, and Zhao Yuanzhen told her to wind it up regularly.

Probably once every two weeks.

The Queen Mother asked her personal maid to write it down carefully.

Don't forget to power it.

Zhao Yuanzhen then chatted with the Queen Mother for a while about all sorts of things.

It mainly talks about what she saw and heard in the past few years outside.

Thinking of the Travel Notes of Xiao Zhang written by Zhang Zijin, I might as well give a copy to the Empress later.

"Empress, I have an older grandson who has been traveling with me for the past few years. He has recorded in detail the customs and practices of most of the Liang Dynasty he has visited, including the food.

It contains beautiful scenery and pictures. I will ask someone to send you a copy when I get back. You can read it when you are free."

It was already prepared, but I forgot to send one copy to the Queen Mother and His Majesty.

When I go there later, please send two copies over. This is a good opportunity to show your face, and you can’t miss it.

"Okay, now that you mention it, I really want to take a look. Remember to send it to me as soon as possible!"

Your Majesty, ever since you became the Queen, you have no control over your own affairs and are not as free as before.

You can no longer go wherever you want.

Although the entire Daliang Dynasty belongs to her and His Majesty, she and His Majesty have no chance to travel around the country!