The abandoned concubine who transmigrated woke up shouting "Long live the widow!"

Qin Jing said with a grin, "Sister-in-law, it's almost the end of the year, don't you have any new ideas or anything new to come?"

"Do you take me for a god or a monster? It hasn't been long and you already want something new." Jingxue glared at Qin Jing.

“Sister-in-law, didn’t my brother tell you? The delegation from Cangbei has already set off and should arrive in Shangjing in less than 20 days. Yesterday, my father came back home and said that the Emperor has issued an edict that all the streets and shops in Shangjing should have a new look.”

"Tch! What do you mean by 'new look'? Does the imperial court pay for an extra two floors to be built for my shop?" Jingxue rolled her eyes dismissively. She really didn't know about this. Ever since Ye Muchen hugged her that day, that guy had been obedient and hadn't come to her courtyard.

Qin Jing chuckled. "No, that won't do. First, the shop must be clean and tidy so the Cangbei delegation won't laugh at us. Second, the goods must be diverse. After all, the Cangbei delegation is here to discuss border trade, so we need to offer some attractive products."

"Some of the items my caravan brought back this time have been sent to the Ministry of Revenue as samples for negotiations. There are also some special products from Jiangnan that were presented as tribute. The Ministry of Revenue has begun to organize and register them."

At this moment, Xiaoman brought over tea and snacks, poured tea for the two of them, and then stood aside to serve them.

“The trade between the two countries is not a small amount, and the quality requirements are also very high,” Jingxue said.

Qin Jing nodded, "Besides the salt mines, Bei Ye doesn't have any other products with high yields."

"That's not necessarily true. I don't know much about Cangbei, but I think their handicrafts or ceramic products are probably not as good as Beiye's!"

Upon hearing Jingxue's words, Qin Jing also thought of something: "Yes, there's also silk and tea."

Then he shook his head. "But they all wear leather robes."

“That’s because they don’t produce silk. If they did, they would want to wear it too. Do they still wear leather robes in the summer? In short, we need to prepare for all aspects of life, including clothing, food, housing, and transportation, and exchange what we have!” Jingxue said.

“Sister-in-law, I’m not here today just to talk about the year-end. I was thinking that if we can reach an agreement on the border trade with Cangbei, not only will there be trade between the two countries, but people will also be able to exchange goods. Shouldn’t we participate as well?”

Qin Jing continued, "After the New Year, my cousin's army will be able to transport goods again, which will free up a lot of people in my caravan!"

During this period, Jingxue has been busy attacking Prime Minister Zou. She is thinking of handing over the business to Lixia and a few shopkeepers so that she will have more time.

“That’s something we can consider!” Jingxue nodded and said.

Upon hearing Jingxue's words, Qin Jing said, "Sister-in-law, what do you think about building greenhouses in Jizhou next winter? We can sell our vegetables in Cangbei. If you agree, we should buy the land as soon as possible."

Jingxue breathed a sigh of relief. "No rush. Let's see what happens after the Cangbei delegation arrives before we decide."

“That works! Cousin, it’s almost Chinese New Year, how about we loosen the food rations a bit?” Qin Jing asked tentatively.

"How much should we put in?" Jingxue thought Qin Jing's words made sense.

"Let's put it at 50 jin!"

"Okay, we'll limit it to ten catties now. If it exceeds ten catties, the price will increase by five coins per catty. Each person can only have a maximum of fifty catties per day," Jingxue said.

Qin Jing thought for a moment and nodded, saying, "That's feasible. This way, people from other places can save money on food, drink, and lodging. Local people can buy ten catties and it will last them for a while. It's not cost-effective for people who want to hoard grain. This is a good idea!"

"Then let's do it at several grain shops at the same time!"

"Okay!" Qin Jing nodded in agreement.

Jingxue then said, "Give me two days to think about the New Year's goods."

"Alright, I'll wait for your news! Sister-in-law, then I'll take my leave." Qin Jing stood up and said.

"Okay! Take care." Jingxue also left her seat and watched Qin Jing and his people leave.

During dinner, Ye Muchen brought Gao Chi to Jingning Garden.

Because there are several children around, and besides, several days have passed, there's no need to be sentimental anymore.

At the dinner table, Ye Muchen said, "Xue'er, you may have to go to the palace in a couple of days."

Jingxue frowned. "Go to the palace? You mean visit my parents?"

Ye Muchen shook his head. "No, the Ministry of Rites needs to provide training to the personnel who received the Cangbei delegation."

"Oh, then I won't go to greet them." Jingxue took a bite of the stir-fried chives and tofu, which she had just developed in the last two days.

"The Cangbei delegation is bringing two princes and a princess. As the princess of Beiye, you should be responsible for receiving them. It's not appropriate for the empress's sister-in-law to personally receive them, is it?"

“Isn’t there also your second sister-in-law, Hu Xiaoqian?” Jingxue said.

Ye Muchen said helplessly, "Second Princess has children in her household. Besides, you are also a princess. Not only Second Princess and you, but also Mu Yan, Princess Jingyi, and Princess Kangping will all have to participate in the teaching and learning."

Upon hearing that Princess Jingyi and Princess Kangping were involved, Jingxue became even more displeased. She hesitated to utter the words of refusal, which swirled in her mind several times.

Unexpectedly, Ye Muchen continued, "His Majesty intends for us all to live in the East Palace. After all, the days are short in winter, and the palace is vast. Moving back and forth would waste time. The East Palace..."

"Cough cough..." Before Ye Muchen could finish speaking, Jingxue started coughing.

Ye Muchen tried to reach out and pat Jingxue's back, but Jingxue tilted her head and slapped his hand away.

"Xue'er, are you alright?"

Jingxue patted her chest; her face was slightly flushed, but after a moment, she felt better.

“No, living in the palace is absolutely not an option. I’m absolutely not comfortable leaving Jingze and the others alone in the mansion,” Jingxue said.

Ye Muchen had actually anticipated this, but he couldn't disobey the Emperor's wishes.

"Xue'er, this time the Emperor has allowed imperial relatives to bring their families, mainly because Mu Yan's child is relatively young. Why don't we ask Jingze to stay away from the academy for a while, so he can bring them into the palace?"

Jingxue's lips twitched, and she rolled her eyes in an extremely inelegant manner, saying irritably, "What do you think the palace is?" After saying that, she glanced sideways at Ye Muchen, as if waiting to see how he would respond.

Ye Muchen was speechless, unsure of where to begin.

After all, in the eyes of the world, the palace is a sacred place that countless people dream of and desperately want to enter. It symbolizes power and glory and is an existence that ordinary people cannot reach.

But now, from Jingxue's words, the palace seemed to have become a terrifying den of dragons and tigers.

At this moment, the four children at the dinner table, who had been listening intently to the conversation between the two, suddenly stopped after a few words. They looked at each other, and then obediently and sensibly lowered their heads to continue eating.

Although Jingxue thought this way, she was actually very clear-headed. Since the matter of entering the palace was ordered by the Emperor himself, it was unlikely to be changed easily.

I really wanted to fake being sick or something, but I was afraid the Empress Dowager and the others would take it seriously and come over again. Oh dear! I'd better not!