SFL Chapter 14

After Mu Yunfeng’s transfer to the Ministry of Revenue, he remained quiet, with no major actions comparable to his time in the Ministry of Justice. Over time, some officials began to relax their vigilance towards him.

The Ministry of Revenue was responsible for managing finances, a position that was genuinely lucrative. How many officials in the court were truly incorruptible when faced with such wealth?

The less someone had, the fewer concerns they had, and this applied to the lower-level personnel, such as those who guarded the national treasury and collected taxes. They would secretly siphon off money from the treasury, behaving like rats nibbling away at a colossal entity to enrich themselves.

Before Mu Yunfeng came along, even the officials likely couldn’t fathom the existence of such underground practices. So, when the officials at the Ministry of Revenue finally did the math, they realized that the amount of revenue lost due to these practices was staggering.

The money lost from the Royal treasury could easily flood the streets of the entire city with blood if it were all withdrawn at once.

Now, this loophole has been sealed by Mu Yunfeng. To prevent further losses, the attitude of the Minister of Revenue, who had been lukewarm towards Mu Yunfeng, became much more enthusiastic.

The lower-level officials had limited means but excelled in concealment and persistence. The middle-ranking officials, however, directly tampered with the funds.

Naturally, Mu Yunfeng didn’t want the hard-earned tax revenue he had accumulated to be divided among lower-level officials and never put to proper use. So, when it came time to allocate a sum of military funds, he reported to the Emperor and requested to send a supervisory force to ensure that the money would be used for its intended purpose.

Now, the officials in the court looked even less favourably upon Mu Yunfeng. Previously, his actions had only threatened the personal safety of their friends and relatives, but now he had entirely cut off their shortcut to wealth. This left certain experienced officials in politics feeling like the world had changed overnight.

Unfortunately, the situation wasn’t under their control. Mu Yunfeng’s proposal was in the best interest of the Empire, and there was no reason for the Emperor not to support it. Consequently, two supervisory forces, one overt and one covert, were dispatched to escort this batch of military funds.

The First Prince, who was in the Ministry of War and also responsible for the transportation of these funds, couldn’t help but feel uneasy when he saw Mu Yunfeng’s expression. It seemed that his earlier dark thoughts about how the Third Prince would make things difficult for the Ministry of War were unfounded.

However, the result was that Mu Yunfeng, an “outsider,” put in more dedication and effort than their own people.

The Third Prince’s mind felt like a spilled bottle of mixed flavors, his feelings complex to the extreme.

Mu Yunfeng didn’t have spare time to concern himself with the First Prince. Instead, he focused all his energy on his work.

After plugging all the leaks in the treasury, Mu Yunfeng embarked on a journey of saving money within the Ministry of Revenue.

The first to be impacted were the private high-interest lending organizations or the Loan-sharks Companies. Mu Yunfeng directly changed the official pawnshops into banks, backed by the state. Not only did the loan interest rates become lower, but even if people temporarily couldn’t repay the loans, they no longer had to fear for their lives.

This was no different from taking things away from some people’s mouths. Initially, there was a lot of resistance, but with the backing of the immense government machinery, opposition from the private sector was futile.

Any lending organizations with a hint of compassion couldn’t compete. So, Mu Yunfeng had no qualms about crushing them.

When people died, the blood and sweat money they had squeezed from the common folk would be confiscated, and once their lives were gone, their wealth would be lost too. Seeing the consequences of resisting the Royal court’s major moves, those who had initially fought for their own interests gradually fell silent.

On the contrary, the common people in the private sector increasingly praised the court.

When the Emperor’s spy agent or informer reported that the common people were now singing praises for him all around. Even the Emperor, with his deep political cunning, couldn’t help but show a hint of satisfaction.

The support from the people brought in by the banks was even greater than he had imagined. But what put him more at ease was that Mu Yunfeng had not actively and ostentatiously promoted his own reputation among the people. As a result, the people’s support naturally fell onto the Emperor.

Although the Emperor didn’t lack this level of popular support, Mu Yunfeng’s actions as his son made the Emperor, as a father, feel very comfortable. It was different from his other sons, who each had their own agendas.

Of course, the Emperor was aware that Mu Yunfeng wasn’t without ambitions for his position, but that didn’t bother the Emperor. After all, centuries later, he would have to abdicate whether he wanted to or not, and the matter of succession wasn’t something to consider only on his deathbed.

What truly satisfied the Emperor about Mu Yunfeng was that his son planned to follow the path of the Emperor himself to attain that position, rather than, like his brothers, relying on the power of his maternal and marital families, officials, and imperial relatives to completely sideline his own father.

Of course, the Emperor didn’t know that the path Mu Yunfeng was currently taking had been tailored to his personality. This was why his satisfaction with his son continued to grow.

Aside from the banks, Mu Yunfeng had various means of earning money at his disposal. Before long, the treasury’s funds were visibly increasing at a rapid pace. If the treasury used to be solely for collecting taxes and saving money, it was now starting to generate income.

The Minister of Revenue understood this matter the most among the officials. At this point, the gaze directed at Mu Yunfeng resembled the way people looked at a golden child, and he found Mu Yunfeng very amiable.

With the increase in treasury funds, various excuses for spending money started to emerge.

Not only on Mu Yunfeng’s side, but Su Qianluo, who was responsible for the affairs of the rear courtyard, also began to receive the attention of many imperial consorts. After all, hatred was temporary, but interests were eternal.

Not all of those individuals were necessarily parasites of the state; among them were those who wanted to achieve something for the people and turn it into their political achievements. Consequently, they wouldn’t let their consorts neglect the Mistress of the Third Prince’s residence.

As for the consorts who had avoided association with the Third Prince’s residence due to the overall environment, they also started to gather around. Unlike the consorts who had been hostile to the Third Prince’s residence, they had a bit more confidence.

In just a few days, Su Qianluo’s status when attending banquets had undergone a dramatic transformation.

The main wife of the Su family, who had received a letter of advice from the Su family’s Eldest son, only realized when she came to her senses that Su Qianluo was now surrounded by people, leaving no room for her own involvement as the Su family’s representative.

Su Qianhuan watched with red eyes as Su Qianluo was showered with attention by those imperial consorts, completely baffled by the situation.

Just a while ago, this cousin of hers wasn’t well-received by the masses.

However, the main wife of the Su family understood, “Do you see now? Your cousin is rising in status because of the Third Prince, who fell out of favor in the Empire. Those imperial consorts aren’t praising your cousin; they’re praising the Third Prince behind her.”

“Huan’er, go prepare. We’ll bring generous gifts to apologize to the Third Prince’s consort.”

“Why? Mother, weren’t you saying a few days ago that my cousin’s days wouldn’t be good? Why are you suddenly rushing to curry favor with her?” Su Qianhuan felt uncomfortable.

Throughout her life, when had she, as a cousin, ever bowed her head to Su Qianluo?

Bowing to Su Qianluo would be as painful and embarrassing as breaking her own backbone.

“At different times, different approaches are necessary. People can’t cling to stubbornness. Your cousin has gained power now, so we should support her. When she loses power, we can ignore her. Unfortunately, we were cold towards her before, so now we have to make an extra effort to repair our relationship. It’s regrettable that we ignored the Third Prince’s residence earlier.” The main wife of the Su family spoke with regret about their previous disregard for the Third Prince’s residence.

Back then, not many people supported the Third Prince’s residence, even if the Su family and the Third Prince’s consort had a casual relationship. Now, they could start conversations with ease, but there was no remedy for past actions. Who could have foreseen that the Third Prince, who had been resisted and rejected by many officials in the capital, would turn out to be so capable in such a short time, earning the respect of the entire Empire?

If she had known, she would never have been so shortsighted.

Thinking of the letter from the Su family’s Eldest son, Su mother cast a slightly regretful glance at Su Qianhuan, who was still angry. She couldn’t help but waver in her family’s earlier decisions.

“Huan’er, pay close attention to the Third Prince’s consort’s attitude towards you this time. See if she truly regards you with such suspicion. If she’s extremely wary of you, then I’ll arrange for you to get closer to the Third Prince.” Su mother advised Su Qianhuan.

If Su mother didn’t mention it, she might have almost forgotten about Mu Yunfeng. She had a rather unfavorable impression of the Third Prince before her runaway marriage, and when she tried to get closer to him later, she wasn’t very enthusiastic. But she never expected that even after casting aside her maidenly reserve and taking the initiative, she still hadn’t succeeded in meeting the Third Prince.

After multiple failures, Su Qianhuan couldn’t help but feel disheartened. “Mother, the Third Prince is either in his office or staying at the residence all day, never going out. Are you suggesting that I should corner the Third Prince in the palace or at the royal court?”

If it weren’t for Su Qianluo’s message to the Su family, alerting them to her cousin’s wariness, Su Qianhuan might have suspected that her mother and herself had misunderstood the situation. After all, what could make one woman so wary of another? It could only be a man.

The main wife of the Su family or Su mother replied, “You’re overthinking it. Besides, the Third Prince was originally your husband. You gave him to your cousin, and now that Su Qianluo is flourishing, it should rightfully belong to you. Even if this message reaches the Third Prince, you’re still in the right.”

“Of course, I’m not suggesting that you directly seduce the Third Prince. You just need to make sure he saves face for you. This way, no matter who you marry in the future, you’ll have room for maneuver.” Su mother knew better than to have Su Qianhuan propose to be the Third Prince’s lover, as she understood that for men, not getting what they want was often more desirable.

However, this line of thinking was based on the premise that Mu Yunfeng had feelings for Su Qianhuan, and Su Qianluo’s straightforward message had given both the mother and daughter a false impression. Despite Su Qianluo’s blunt words, others might misinterpret the situation.

Compared to the imaginative Su family mother and daughter, Su Qianluo was undoubtedly more practical.

After returning from the banquet, Su Qianluo told Mu Yunfeng about the attention she had received. She knew that the root cause of these imperial consorts’ sudden favor was entirely connected to his husband. Otherwise, why would their attitudes change so quickly when she hadn’t done anything to deserve it?

Mu Yunfeng chuckled lightly after hearing her. “You don’t need to pay attention to them. Just listen to their sweet words and don’t take them seriously. Don’t make any promises to them. Let their husbands come to me.”

“That’s natural. They ignored me before, and now they’re flattering me. Who would believe there’s no hidden agenda behind it? But husband, what exactly did you do to make them change their attitude so quickly?” Su Qianluo couldn’t help but be curious.

“I’m currently in charge of the Royal treasury. I found ways to increase its revenue. When there’s more money in the treasury, naturally, it attracts people’s attention,” Mu Yunfeng replied casually.

While he said it lightly, Su Qianluo knew it wasn’t that simple. Otherwise, after so many years of the existence of the Ministry of Revenue, no female relatives of its officials had ever received such flattery. This indicated that her husband had more skills than those men. This made Su Qianluo feel a sense of pride.

“I can’t participate in this matter. When I go to the palace to meet with Empress mother next time, I’ll be happy together with her,” Su Qianluo said with delight, her attitude toward Mu Yunfeng becoming even gentler.

As the Empress, she was the mother of the Empire, and any coldness Su Qianluo experienced was impossible to occur in her presence. Having been flattered by the people below for many years, the Empress had already cultivated a calm state of mind. But no previous flattery had made her happier than this time because it wasn’t brought by the Emperor, but by her own son, Mu Yunfeng.

This made the Empress feel that Mu Yunfeng, her son, had truly grown up. While she was delighted, there was also a slight sense of melancholy in her heart. However, in the evening, this didn’t prevent the Empress from showing off to the Emperor.

The Emperor chuckled, “Don’t forget, Zitong¹TL: Appellation of the empress by the emperor, your son is also my son.”

But this father wasn’t truly affected by the flattery. After all, as the Emperor, those officials wouldn’t try to deceive him with fancy words when they wanted money. The words spoken were naturally more genuine and less superficial than those from the female relatives of the imperial harem.

Of course, what pleased the Emperor even more was that the Royal treasury was growing richer day by day, making many of the policies he wanted to implement much smoother. If he had known earlier that his son had the ability to accumulate wealth like this, he would have transferred him directly to the Ministry of Revenue to manage the treasury, saving him time spent in the Ministry of Justice.

Although Mu Yunfeng hadn’t spent much time in the Ministry of Justice, the Emperor always felt he had wasted Mu Yunfeng’s talent there. Just the thought of it made him deeply regretful.

With Mu Yunfeng’s influence, a message was relayed through Su Qianluo to the female relatives of the imperial harem and the imperial consorts. Not long after, someone came directly to find Mu Yunfeng.

The first to arrive was someone familiar to Mu Yunfeng, the Minister of Labor and Works who had a good relationship with him.

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  TL: Appellation of the empress by the emperor