Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

When Manju came back after sending the emperor away, she saw Concubine Hui still sitting there with the anger on her face still not dissipated.

She stepped forward and carefully persuaded Concubine Hui: "Your Majesty, you just said you wanted to move on, but why are you so unhappy with His Majesty? His Majesty is interested in you now and can tolerate your temper. What if one day..."

Concubine Hui sneered and interrupted Manju: "You are interested in me? You are interested in my Mo family's money!"

Manju was shocked when she heard this, but she quickly said, "How could that be? His Majesty just said that he wanted you to have a child. There haven't been any princes or princesses born in the palace for many years."

Concubine Hui sneered, a trace of disdain and anger flashing in her eyes, "Do you think that asking me to give birth to a child is because he likes me? It's just a way for him to control the Mo family. One child is not enough for me, and he wants to bring in another child."

"But His Majesty has also reserved a salt permit for our Mo Clan. Even a little maid like me knows how rare it is to get one. This is a good thing to send money to the Mo Clan. Your Majesty, you must accept this favor."

Amber came over and tugged at Manju's sleeve, signaling her to stop talking. "When we were at home, I told you to go out more often, but you insisted on staying home to help the Empress look after the yard. Now look what you've done, you've made a fool of yourself."

Agate lowered her head a little aggrievedly, "I just think His Majesty is very good to the Queen."

Amber sighed, "Even if I don't understand anything, after all these years, I should know that if there is really a good thing, it won't happen to the Mo family."

"To build the sea salt field, we first need to dig a canal along the coast to bring in seawater. Then, we need to open up a vast square next to the canal, dividing it into brine ponds."

"The pond bottom must be covered with wood ash to absorb the salt in the seawater, and then the seawater is introduced into the brine pond for sun drying to turn it into brine."

"The final step is to boil the brine in an iron pot using spiky grass as fuel to create fine salt."

"However, this method of drying ash, soaking brine, and accumulating grass to make salt has many problems. Not only is the salt formation rate slow, but it also consumes a lot of grass and has relatively low yields, resulting in high costs."

"As far as I know, the cost of salt production at Tonghai Salt Field is much higher than that of the nearby Beihuai Salt Field, even more than fifteen times higher."

"What's worse is that it seems that the salt permits for the Tonghai Salt Field have not been sold for many years, and this time they are only a mere 500,000 taels cheaper than the salt permits for other salt fields."

"Agate, do you really think this is a good thing?"

After hearing Amber's explanation, Agate's face was filled with resentment: "Your Majesty, you don't want the Mohists to make money, you clearly want to steal money from them!"

Amber also complained, "Yeah, it would be better if they just snatched it away directly. Your Majesty, by doing this, isn't it making us, the queen, bear the title of favorite concubine in vain! In this palace, a favorite concubine is like a living target. She has to be on guard against so many arrows, both open and hidden." As she spoke, she shook her head indignantly.

Concubine Hui frowned, thought for a moment, and then said, "Logically speaking, Minister Shen has just stepped down, so the treasury shouldn't be so short of money all of a sudden. So, it's likely that some unreasonable demands were made, and the new minister used the lack of silver as an excuse to fudge them."

Then, Concubine Hui turned around and asked Amber and Agate: "Is there anything in the palace that requires a large amount of money recently?"

Amber pondered for a moment and replied softly, "The biggest expenses are Princess Jiahe's coming-of-age ceremony at the end of April and the Crown Prince's wedding at the beginning of August. But these are normal expenses. At most, they will be simple. But the Crown Prince and Princess Jiahe are both living with you. Can you really let these two major events be so shabby over the next two years? Your Majesty won't have to ask for extra money."

"I have heard some rumors circulating in the palace, but I don't know whether they are true or not." Agate spoke timidly. She didn't dare to face Concubine Hui's gaze directly, and just spoke hesitantly.

"What's going on? Are you planning to hide it from the Queen?" Amber asked jokingly.

"It's not that I want to hide it from Your Majesty on purpose, it's just that this fact is really hard to believe." Agate said with a sigh.

"A few days ago, His Majesty gifted the noble lady who entered the palace last year with a pair of glass cups."

"That noble lady not only treasured this lamp, but also proposed to build a glazed pagoda in her Baoen Hall."

Manju paused for a moment, then continued, "I heard that there's been a lot of commotion in Bao'en Hall lately, with people calling for water several times every night."

Amber observed Concubine Hui's expression and saw that she didn't look unhappy, so she said, "The one in Bao'en Palace is only in his teens. How can he be so fickle? He likes this today and that tomorrow. Your Majesty may have other uses for the money. I heard that the north has been uneasy lately."

Concubine Hui sighed slightly, a hint of worry in her voice. "Whatever the reason, now that this salt permit has fallen into the hands of the Mohists, we can't give it up. The money to buy the salt permit is just the first step. From now on, the Mohists will bear the loss for every kilogram of salt produced."

"Then why don't we just stop producing salt?" Agate suggested in confusion.

Amber calmly explained, "How can it be that simple? Every salt permit requires the surrender of a certain amount of refined salt by the end of each year. If you fail to pay, not only will you be fined, but the owner will also be held accountable."

Concubine Hui gently patted Amber's shoulder. "Why are you so angry? Haven't there been many such incidents over the years? Problems that can be solved with money are usually not a problem. As long as you are alive, that is more important than anything else."

……

Time passed quietly. This year's winter was longer than in previous years, but summer came unexpectedly early.

Shen Chuning's spring clothes had just been cut and before they could be delivered to the mansion, the embroiderer from Jinxiufang came to visit again, this time to measure the size of her summer clothes.

"Miss, the palace will make six new sets of clothes for you every season. The Second Madam said that you have grown particularly fast this year, and last year's clothes no longer fit you, so she specially asked Jinxiufang to make twelve more new sets of clothes for you. The additional expenses will be charged to the Second House's account." Birui stood by, watching the embroiderer carefully measure Shen Chuning's size and explained to her in detail.

Shen Chuning nodded, then she turned around and asked Birui: "Can the maids make a few new clothes for each of us this summer?"

"Maids usually only have two new sets of clothes every summer," Birui replied.

After Shen Chuning pondered for a moment, thinking about the long summer that was coming, she suggested, "Then make two more sets for each person. This will make it easier for them to change and wash."

Birui was a little hesitant. After all, past experience showed that two sets of clothes were enough for them, and last year's old clothes could still be worn.

"You have moved to a new residence with me, a new atmosphere with new people. I will take out some money from my private fund to make two more summer clothes for each of the maids in the second house." Shen Chuning said gently.

After hearing this, Birui smiled and bowed, "This servant thanks the young lady on behalf of the maids from the second house."

"Do I have enough money? When will the people sent to the north return?"