Chapter 28: A Quiet Court

Gu Tingshu propped up his chin and said, “That’s good. I miss them so much, especially the days when my sister and I used to go up the mountain to find bird nests.” Since marrying into the Prime Minister’s mansion, he hadn’t seen them at all, more than a month had passed without seeing them.

Hearing what he said, Gu Lan, who was standing beside him, laughed and cried, “Shh… Master, you’re married now, you can’t be like before.” Gu Lan covered his master’s mouth directly, feeling embarrassed.

As the person closest to the young master, he naturally knew that although the master appeared gentle and refined, he was actually mischievous. Going up the mountain to find bird nests and catching fish in the river were common activities for him. But things are different now! The master couldn’t do those things anymore, or he might displease the Prime Minister.

Gu Tingshu smiled and said, “Xiao Lan, it seems like you want to get married more than I do, and you know more about it than I do.”

Gu Lan shook his head immediately, “Master, no way! They say there’s not a single good thing about women, except for our lady and the Prime Minister. The rest of them are all the same, only caring about their own interests. I don’t want to get married. I want to stay with the master forever.”

Gu Tingshu replied, “Don’t be like that. You want to stay with me forever, but you can’t afford it. Boys have to get married. Boys eventually have to get married. When I find a suitable person, I’ll help you…”

“Master…” Gu Lan blushed.

While the master and servant were chatting affectionately…

…

At this time, on the other side…

Zhao Xian stood confidently in the hall in a blue official robe, neither humble nor overbearing. She was not a shy person to begin with.

In the modern world, she could rise to the position of CEO; she is certainly capable.

At this time, She had been standing silently for quite some time now, feeling bored listening to the various discussions around her.

One by one, the civil and military officials began to report their work, while Zhao Xian remained silent…

The Empress was just a fifteen- or sixteen-year-old girl, but even so, she exuded a natural air of dignity.

“Yesterday, I received reports that there has been a major flood in the south, countless people have lost their homes, and tens of thousands are now homeless. Many have also lost their lives… What strategies do my esteemed ministers have?”

As soon as the young Empress spoke, there were immediate responses from the officials.

“Your Majesty, this flooding in the south has occurred not once or twice before. It happens every one or two years. At this point, the best course of action is to distribute silver to aid the victims and then focus on rebuilding their homes. I humbly request Your Majesty to allocate one hundred thousand taels of silver for relief efforts.”

“Madam Wang, that’s easier said than done. The treasury is already depleted. Where would we find so much silver? Last year, we spent one hundred thousand taels on drought relief in Nanhe County alone, not to mention other areas. If you don’t handle finances, you wouldn’t understand the severity of the shortage.”

“How dare you say that? You know best how many taels actually reached Nanhe County last year…”

Zhao Xian stretched out her hand to rub her temples, feeling like she was watching a scene from television. The court was indeed full of intrigue and power struggles.

They were always trying to get money into their own pockets.

From this perspective, she admired the previous Zhao Xian more. Her money was entirely self-earned, though certainly not without a heap of people trying to curry favor with her and shower her with gifts.

“…” The young Empress couldn’t help but twitch at the corner of her mouth. They were all useless. She knew she had to provide relief funds, but she was poor!

The reserves accumulated over the past few years have been depleted by several disasters.

Zhao Xian couldn’t stand it any longer. She felt like she was about to fall asleep and couldn’t help but cough.

Ahem…

As soon as she coughed, the entire hall fell silent.

The young Empress couldn’t help but look at her nervously.

“Prime Minister Zhao has been silent. Do you have something to say?”