Chapter 18 Acacia Tea

Moreover, even if An Lingrong knew about the two of them, she would not have the ability to meet with Longkodo frequently to imitate the scent of the two of them who met when they were young.

That would be too shocking.

After calming down, the Queen Mother looked at the graceful An Lingrong standing there, feeling a little more happy in her heart.

To prevent An Lingrong from being frightened by her, he would never give her sachets again.

After thinking for a moment, the Queen Mother ordered Zhuxi to bring the jade bracelet that the foreigners had given her as tribute.

"come over."

An Lingrong stood over obediently and allowed the Queen Mother to put on a bracelet that barely fit the size of the ring.

"You are still young, so dress up more and don't wear simple clothes all day. Aijia thinks the jade bracelet from Persia is just right for you, so just accept it."

"Thank you, Queen Mother." An Lingrong saluted, stood up, and said bluntly, "I am still young, so I should obey the emperor's words, be more modest, be frugal, and learn from the empress."

"You are serious. The Ai family has forgotten that the emperor is busy with the affairs of the previous dynasty and hopes that the harem will save money."

The Queen Mother seemed to remember what the emperor had said before, and glanced at An Lingrong approvingly, and then said: "Noble Qing, you have entered the palace not long ago. According to Noble Qing, how should the expenses of the harem be frugal?"

An Lingrong paused, but she did not expect that the mission the emperor and empress had given to Shen Meizhuang would be pressed on her head by the empress dowager.

After thinking for a moment, An Lingrong gave the answer.

"The concubine believes that since the concubines in the harem cannot create wealth, they will start to save money themselves, and whatever they save will belong to themselves."

“The method is not to buy things that you won’t use for the time being, not to replace things that are not used, and if you can cook in a small kitchen, don’t spare much for things that you can’t eat. Although the savings are usually small amounts, it can add up to a huge amount. If you accumulate a little, you can save a lot of money over the years.”

"Also, I think the moat can be opened."

"Oh? Tell me, why can the opening of the moat save money?"

"Back to the Queen Mother, I heard that a large amount of lotus roots and water chestnuts were planted in the moat to provide for the needs of the palace. However, the actual consumption in the palace was not much. The remaining surplus was wasted in the moat. The emperor can order people to sell the remaining proceeds. You can earn some silver and raise fish in the moat to increase your income. In addition, you can also rent out the land where you grow lotus roots and create a sign that the concubines in the harem like to eat. In this way, you can still have a rental income every year."

"Xunzi said: "Therefore, the master of the Ming Dynasty must be careful to maintain its harmony, control its flow, open its source, and consider it at the right time. "

The wonderful performance stunned the Queen Mother and Zhu Xi, especially the Queen Mother who was sitting in her seat.

She originally just wanted An Lingrong to be a little involved in the thoughts of the little woman's family, to set an example, and to let the emperor pay more attention to Concubine Hua's expenses.

But I never thought that the content of An Lingrong's answer would be so brilliant and full of business acumen.

While the Queen Mother was happy, she did not forget to hit An Lingrong and said: "What Qinggui said is reasonable, but where did Qinggui get these ideas?"

An Lingrong knew that the Queen Mother did not like women in the harem to be involved in politics and read books that only men could study, so she had already prepared the answer and said calmly: "Back to the Queen Mother, I was born in a small family in the south of the Yangtze River, and I am the eldest daughter in the family. Before my father became an official, E Niang and I took care of everything in the courtyard."

"When it comes to settling accounts, I have a little bit of unique experience, but it's hard to be refined. Please don't punish me for being stupid."

"Look at what the noble noble said. The Ai family will make it clear to the emperor what the noble noble said today. However, you must know that your birth is not enough for your status to rise one after another. You must learn to wait patiently."

The Queen Mother was very happy to see An Lingrong come up with such a clever plan.

But this does not mean that An Lingrong can be promoted again by this method.

Not only were the concubines in the harem dissatisfied, but the people in the previous dynasty took notice and impeached him, and the emperor's face could not be saved.

"Concubine, I understand." An Lingrong nodded, understanding the Queen Mother's intention.

She doesn't care when she becomes a concubine, because she can get these things as long as she wants.

But before Concubine Hua falls, she had better be careful.

After all, no matter how strong your bones are, you can't compare with those eunuchs who do physical work every day.

Seeing the look of sleepiness on the Queen Mother's face, An Lingrong knew that her plan to win favor with the concubines in the harem could only go so far.

After saying some good words, An Lingrong left the Queen Mother's palace and returned to Yongshou Palace where she lived, waiting for the emperor's arrival.

Yes, today happens to be the day when the Emperor pays his respects to the Queen Mother as usual every month.

After An Lingrong learned about this, she took the first step in order for the emperor to learn about it from the Queen Mother and come to his palace for a gathering tonight.

This is a demonstration and a good way to consolidate the emperor's favor.

After all, she didn't have Zhen Huan's appearance, and unlike Queen Chunyuan, she didn't have the means to keep the emperor in the gentle countryside for seven consecutive days.

"Jinxi, is my tea ready?"

From Jin Xi’s mouth, I learned that Queen Chunyuan always liked to drink sweet tea, and even the emperor would also have a drink sometimes.

An Lingrong quickly asked someone to find the best Western black tea, simmered it over low heat for a while, and stirred out the fragrance.

It is then placed in a sealed jar like nuts and smoked to remove the original bitterness and give it a denser, special texture.

"Go back to me, little master, everything is ready."

"After setting up the stove and keeping those side dishes warm, the Emperor will come to see me soon."

"The servant understands."

The tea leaves were simmered over a low fire. After a while, the emperor entered the Yongshou Palace with a smile on his face, just as she had imagined.

An Lingrong pretended to be shocked, stood up and saluted the emperor.

"When the emperor came to my concubine, he didn't let Eunuch Su make an announcement. He was so frightened that the teapot in my hand almost overturned."

"I want to come and see you. I haven't seen you for a few days. You have lost a lot of weight. How come the people from the Ministry of Internal Affairs have treated you badly?"

Seeing that the emperor's eyes were always on the tea, An Lingrong smiled and replied while passing the sweet milk tea to the emperor.

"Back to the emperor, I heard that when Sister Cao was pregnant with Wen Yi, she was greedy and picky about food, which caused Wen Yi to vomit milk a little after she was born."

"I thought to myself, if I eat less and become leaner, my future daughter will grow up healthy and be as gentle and popular as the emperor."

These words were said in a flawless manner, which not only explained the reason for being thin, but also the fact that Wen Yi was currently a little unhealthy, and also added that Wen Yi like this made the emperor like him.

The emperor, who learned from the Queen Mother that An Lingrong was very smart, couldn't help but look at the tea that was handed to him, took a sip, and was stunned.

It seems that Chunyuan wanted to make tea with this kind of taste back then, but unfortunately he never had the chance to drink it in the end...

(End of this chapter)

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