The night was as dark as ink.
A sliver of light shone through the window of the old prince's study, illuminating a few fallen leaves on the bluestone slabs in the courtyard.
Two lanterns hung under the eaves, swaying slightly in the night breeze, casting long shadows on the ground.
The Yun Shuyue, resembling a bat, hung upside down under the eaves of the study.
All day long, her sisters wouldn't let her do anything, saying her injury hadn't healed and forbidding her from delivering takeout.
It made her feel like she was a piece of trash.
Since they're too embarrassed to bring it up, I'll take the initiative to investigate!
Yun Shuyue held her breath, pressing her ear against the crack in the window frame, listening to the sounds inside the room.
"Your Highness, this is the accounting record of the ' Land of Abundance Granary ' project compiled by Wanqing."
Xie Wanqing's voice came through, steady and clear.
"The renovation of the terraced fields on the Ten-Li Slope outside the city requires twenty stonemasons, each paid eighty cash per day, for a period of two months."
"The construction of the waterwheel in the valley, including timber, iron parts, axles, and labor costs, is estimated at three thousand taels."
"The lime purchased from the compost pits is calculated at fifty catties per pit, so one hundred pits would yield five thousand catties. The lime costs twelve wen per catty..."
The abacus clattered, the beads clicking rapidly.
"In total."
Su Yao's voice followed, her tone calm, yet every word struck a chord deep within.
"The cost of seeds, wages, lime, ironware, timber, plus the rations and accommodation for hired refugees, is conservatively estimated at 28,000 taels of silver."
The Yun Shuyue, making my heart skip a beat.
Twenty-eight thousand taels.
She had never seen so much silver in her life.
"What does Your Highness mean?"
Su Yao asked again.
Gu Moran's voice came through, his tone relaxed.
"The Prince's residence will cover the costs for now. Once the terraced fields are completed, spring planting begins, and the harvest is in, everything will be fine."
Su Yao paused for a moment.
"I've calculated the Prince's mansion's cash reserves; there's still a shortfall of ten thousand taels."
"If Your Highness is not in a hurry, you can wait for the money from selling the shops in the capital to arrive."
"If it's urgent, we'll have to think of another way."
The room fell silent for a moment.
The Yun Shuyue hung in the clouds above the beam, and my mind raced.
Ten thousand taels.
She remembered that during the day, Shen Ling'er had taken her to see the elderly and weak people of Black Wind Stronghold who had been settled.
Tiedan munched on a meat bun, oil slicked at the corners of his mouth, his eyes unusually bright.
Doubao carefully flipped through a newly bought early childhood education book, afraid of getting it dirty.
Auntie Zhao sat at the kitchen door, sewing a cotton-padded jacket in her hands. The wrinkles at the corners of her eyes smoothed out, and a smile appeared on her face.
After applying the medicine to his leg, Old Master Sun no longer suffers from pain that keeps him awake at night, and he can even walk around the yard a couple of times during the day with his cane.
These were all given to us by the Prince's Mansion.
Yun Shuyue gritted her teeth.
I remembered that "inanimate object" that I had kept hidden for three years.
When she ran away from home that year, she took with her the account book that Yun Zhengze had hidden the deepest.
She didn't quite understand what it was; all she knew was that it was covered with dense writing about salt distribution and silver accounting, along with a bunch of names.
She took the account books only to make Yun Zhengze suffer, and also thought that if she ever had nowhere else to turn, she could exchange them for some money.
But she never touched it.
Firstly, I don't know where to exchange it.
Secondly, I was afraid of causing trouble.
now...
Why not let Gu Moran see if it's worth ten thousand taels?
Yun Shuyue changed into her night clothes and walked very fast.
In the east of the city, there is an abandoned City God.
The moonlight shone on the dilapidated temple gate, the vermilion paint of which had long since peeled off, revealing the grayish wood inside.
The yard was overgrown with waist-high weeds, which rustled softly in the wind.
Yun Shuyue climbed over the courtyard wall and landed on an open space in the backyard.
She squatted down, pulled out a piece of scrap metal from her waist, and began digging at a blue brick on the ground.
The soil was turned up, carrying a damp, musty smell.
She moved quickly and had considerable strength in her hands. In less than half an incense stick's time, she had dug a pit about a foot square.
The metal sheet hit a hard object.
He tossed the iron sheet aside, dug through the soil with both hands, and pulled a wooden box wrapped in three layers of oilcloth from the pit.
The wooden box was small, no more than a foot long and half a foot wide, but very heavy.
Yun Shuyue hugged the box to her chest, patted off the dirt, turned and flew out of the temple gate.
In the darkness, her figure was like a night bird, skimming along the eaves and walls, disappearing at the end of the alley after a few leaps.
The old palace, side room.
When Yun Shuyue landed, her clothes got caught on Dingzi on the wall and tore open.
She didn't care about anything else, and carried the wooden box straight to her side room.
He pushed open the door, placed the box on the table, and turned to wash his face.
In the bronze mirror, her face was still covered in mud and ash, and a few strands of her hair were disheveled and stuck to her forehead.
She wiped herself haphazardly with a handkerchief, then looked at her night clothes, and was about to go find Gu Moran.
Shen Ling'er's words suddenly echoed in his mind.
"You can wear men's clothes when you go out, but at home, a girl should still act like a girl."
Yun Shuyue looked at herself in the mirror.
Clothing for night travel is neat and tidy, making it easy to climb walls and trees.
But she's going to see the prince today to present something so important.
You can't be all dirty and look like a peasant.
She gritted her teeth, took off her night clothes, and put the light red dress back on.
She then pulled out a small box of rouge from the box; it was a gift from Shen Ling'er.
She opened the box, dipped her finger in the liquid, and haphazardly smeared it on her lips.
In the bronze mirror, her face was flushed, whether from rouge or something else, it was unclear.
Yun Shuyue took a deep breath, picked up the wooden box on the table, and turned to leave.
She should have used the main entrance.
But when she reached Gu Moran's door, she stopped in her tracks.
Holding the wooden box, my heart pounded.
If the prince asks her where this came from, what should she say?
If the prince asks her why she offered this, how should she answer?
Yun Shuyue stood outside the door, hesitated for a moment, then suddenly turned around and went around to the back of the house.
The back window was half-open, letting in a sliver of candlelight.
Her eyes lit up.
It would be better to quietly put the things on the table through the back window and then run away.
This way, the goods can be delivered without having to say those embarrassing things face-to-face.
That's a good idea.
Holding the wooden box, Yun Shuyue leaped into the air.
Her body lifted into the air, and she floated lightly toward the window.
Her lightness skill was superb; she could cover that distance with her eyes closed.
However, she severely underestimated the intricate and wide hem of the dress.
The skirt spread out in the air, like a blooming flower.
She had just floated to the window when her skirt got stuck in the wooden frame.
hiss--
A tearing sound rang out.
Yun Shuyue's body was pulled by the hem of her skirt, leaving her hanging upside down in mid-air.
He clutched the wooden box tightly to his chest with both hands, while his legs kicked helplessly in the air.
The hem of her skirt covered most of her body, so she couldn't see anything; she could only feel that she was stuck.
She struggled desperately, trying to tear the hem of her skirt off the wooden frame.
The more she struggled, the tighter her skirt became.
Gu Moran was leaning against the couch, flipping through the " Early Rice Domestication Method " on the system screen.
Suddenly, a strange sound came from the window.
He looked up.
A wad of light red fabric was stuck in the wooden window frame, swaying back and forth as it struggled.
His comical appearance was both funny and exasperating.
"What are you doing? You're not allowed to swing on this king's window!"
[Thank you so much to the novelist, Yun Baqi, Jiang Laozu, Chen Qing's Flower, Miss Ning's Love Letter, Qiao Jiangshan's Capsule, and everyone else for their love and support! I'm so grateful!]
[I was planning to take a day off to fix my computer, but it turns out I'm like a wild boar that can't handle fine food. ˃̣̣̥᷄⌓˂̣̣̥᷅.]