I Was Supposed to Be the Villainous Consort

When Great Chu dispatched its troops, Ji Yunting, as expected, once again accompanied the army to supervise the grain supplies. He was also tasked with the heavy responsibility of being a military inspector.

Qin Shu’an and Zhao Ruwen also went on the campaign with the army this time. Just as Yun Zhao had predicted, Helan Yue was also given an opportunity. Prince Zhenbei had called in sick, so the commander-in-chief of the three armies was an old general Yun Zhao had never heard of.

An old general was leading the expedition, but the commanders under him were all from the younger generation. Song Yunzhao could see the Emperor’s intention: he wanted to cultivate his own military power.

People like Helan Yue came from a prominent Military General Family, and Qin Shu’an and Zhao Ruwen had always served as officers in the army. Only Ji Yunting was a pure civil servant, yet he was dragged along every time there was a military expedition.

Now, the way people at court looked at the Left Minister was growing stranger by the day.

The Left Minister: ...

Chu Donghui missed this opportunity. He had suffered a minor injury earlier and couldn’t join this expedition.

The army won its first battle after setting out, and the atmosphere throughout the court relaxed considerably.

In the harem, Song Yunzhao spent her leisure time writing storybooks. When she was busy, she managed the affairs of Baozhuang Building. Most of her time, however, was spent with her son. Throughout the winter, the mother-son duo would head to the Imperial Garden whenever the weather was good. Feng Ze had a restless spirit, and Yaohua Palace couldn’t hold him.

In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year. The army was still fighting on the front lines. They had wins and losses against Beiming, but overall, Great Chu had a higher win rate.

As the war dragged on, the pressure on Song Nanzhen mounted daily. The grain and fodder collected by the major grain merchants were running dangerously low, and he had to find new ways to procure more.

Ling Yunhe and Xie Jinshu both helped by introducing several merchants, alleviating the imminent crisis.

At the end of the year, the Ministry of Revenue tallied its accounts. The tax silver submitted by Baozhuang Building certainly attracted a lot of attention, and Song Yunzhao could finally hold her head high.

When the Emperor first supported her in opening the shop, countless people had cursed her behind her back, calling her an Evil Concubine who had bewitched her lord. She was also fortunate that the army was dispatched this year, causing the National Treasury’s expenses to far exceed its income. Of course, the tax silver she submitted couldn’t solve the Ministry of Revenue’s predicament, but it did help clear Feng Yi’s name of being a fatuous ruler. Furthermore, Song Yunzhao earned a fine reputation for herself.

The new year was a rather peaceful one. Because the Empress Dowager was ill, she did not attend the New Year’s banquet. With no one looking for trouble, Song Yunzhao’s days couldn’t have been more comfortable.

At this year’s New Year’s banquet, the spotlight once again fell on Song Yunzhao. Baozhuang Building had truly stolen the show. Although it had only paid a little over two hundred thousand in tax silver, the shop had only been open for a short time. What’s more, to support the soldiers fighting abroad, Song Yunzhao, after discussing it with Consort Shu and Princess Consort Wan, donated all the shop’s profits. This amount was considerably more than the tax silver.

Furthermore, when news spread that the three concubines in the palace had donated silver for the country, many merchants in the Capital City were inspired to voluntarily donate silver to the court. All in all, the Ministry of Revenue received over one million taels of silver.

This was truly an unexpected outcome. Now, no one at court mentioned the Emperor’s supposedly fatuous act. Instead, everyone was praising the three concubines’ righteous deed.

For the Lantern Festival, Feng Yi had originally planned to sneak Yun Zhao and their son out of the palace to admire the lanterns, but an urgent report from the border prevented them from going.

After the Lantern Festival, Song Yunzhao’s days became even busier. Feng Ze was now a cunning little imp, and Anshun didn’t dare to even blink, fearing the young master would vanish in an instant.

「After spring began and the weather grew warmer, the army returned in triumph, and a celebratory mood filled the air both inside and outside the palace.」

Song Yunzhao and Feng Yi were having tea in the hall. Feng Ze had long since vanished. Seeing Feng Yi’s brow tightly furrowed despite the news of the army’s triumphant return, she couldn’t help but ask a question.

Feng Yi looked at Yun Zhao and sighed. "You don’t know the cost of firewood and rice until you’re the one managing the household. I used to think that while the National Treasury wasn’t full, it could still manage. But after this war, I finally understand what it means for expenses to outstrip income."

Upon hearing this, Song Yunzhao didn’t have any good solutions either. ’In this era, crop seeds were far from being as high-yield as in later generations. The total population was also much smaller. With limited manpower, it was impossible to cultivate more fertile land. Without high-yield seeds, the crop output per mu couldn’t increase, so the total grain supply naturally couldn’t grow.’

’In her previous life, Song Yunzhao wasn’t a research scientist. She really had no good ideas.’

After thinking seriously, she looked at Feng Yi and said, "I heard you mention before that the commoners and soldiers at the border have been reclaiming barren lands and improving farm tools. Besides wheat and grain, they also plant millet and buckwheat. I was wondering, could this method be promoted throughout the country?"

’Song Yunzhao felt it would be a bit difficult. In ancient times, land was privately owned. For instance, those enfeoffed as Marquises and Princes had their own fiefs. Of course, they couldn’t govern these fiefs, only collect tax grain from them.’

’Take her father, Marquis Wenxin, for example. He also had his own fief, though its size varied depending on the rank of his office and title.’

’As long as the title remained, the fief would be passed down through the generations. The lands of a Marquis were just the tip of the iceberg; the fiefs belonging to the many descendants of the Imperial Family were the real bulk of it. Feng Yi’s branch of the family had suffered heavy casualties in the fight for the throne, leaving only the Emperor. But the Imperial Family wasn’t just the main lineage. There were many imperial clansmen, and thus a great deal of land had been enfeoffed.’

’Most of these fiefs were fertile lands, yet the court couldn’t collect any tax grain from them.’

Feng Yi clearly had the same idea, but it was a situation where a single move could affect everything. The interests of the nobility were at stake, so he couldn’t act rashly.

Seeing Feng Yi’s tightly knitted brow, Song Yunzhao knew this matter wouldn’t be easy. ’That’s right,’ she thought. ’If it were easy, there wouldn’t have been so many conflicts throughout history.’

’Besides, given Feng Yi’s current situation, it wouldn’t be easy to make a move against these people.’

Thinking of this, Song Yunzhao added, "Instead of starting big, why not start small? We could first encourage merchants to raise livestock, gather firewood, fish, and hunt. Better yet, encourage them to cultivate new grain varieties. The court could offer reward policies. Great rewards attract brave men, after all. As long as there’s a profit to be made, the merchants will surely flock to the opportunity."

Hearing Yun Zhao say this, Feng Yi couldn’t help but smile. "Even if merchants are profit-driven, I’m afraid they still wouldn’t be willing to leave their hometowns to take up farming."

"That’s true, they wouldn’t leave their homes. But merchants have money. They can buy the surplus livestock and grain from the commoners on the border. As long as the commoners can earn money, do you think they’d be willing to reclaim more wasteland and raise more livestock? If it were me, if I could earn money to improve my family’s life, fill our bellies, and live more respectably, I would be willing to work a little harder."

Feng Yi fell into thought.

’You want the horse to run, but you don’t want it to eat grass. Where in the world can you find such a good deal?’ Song Yunzhao knew that the mindset of these ancient emperors was different from that of the common people. In their eyes, the land and its people were their private property. How could they possibly think from the people’s perspective?

’Feng Yi was already considered an enlightened ruler, but he had probably never considered the issue from the angle she just presented.’

’It wasn’t like Song Yunzhao had come up with this idea herself. Wasn’t this just the experience passed down by her predecessors?’

’One shouldn’t underestimate the creativity and diligence of the common people. For example, could the yields from a collective farming system ever match those from land that individuals farm for themselves?’

’It’s a completely different concept.’

"You have a point," Feng Yi said, looking pensive. "But I’m afraid this method is a bit slow."

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. As long as we start, it’s never too late." Song Yunzhao understood what Feng Yi meant. The slow part wasn’t the commoners reclaiming land and raising livestock; it was the slow and difficult process of smoothly implementing court decrees across the country.

’She couldn’t help with that. It was a blind spot in her knowledge.’

’But, this should be the Ministry of Revenue’s responsibility, right?’

’Did I just inadvertently screw over my dad again?’