Chapter 914: Chapter 912: Raking in Silver
Jinrong looked at Ye Xinyan’s displeased expression, feeling uncertain, pondering how to answer her question.
This year marks the third year since the court began constructing the railway. Even after switching to wooden tracks, the construction process has been greatly simplified with the help of Guangsha Construction and new machinery. However, it has indeed cost the State Treasury a lot of silver, coinciding with a severe drought.
At such a time, proposing extravagance is out of the question. Yet, she even inquired about everyone’s birthdays in the Mansion. Could it be that the Prince Yu’s Mansion is to celebrate such things lavishly?
The topic seemed more vivid as it went on, but why did he feel it was very dangerous?
Jinrong decisively shook his head and said, "No, all the birthdays in my mansion that needed celebrating have been celebrated, and those that haven’t are a long way off. There’s no joyous event in the mansion."
Ye Xinyan asked, unwilling to give up, "What about the children? Aren’t your two Concubines... when are they due to give birth?"
Jinrong turned his face, directly ignoring Ye Xinyan’s question.
Ye Xinyan, somewhat disappointed, murmured to herself, "Such a good opportunity to gather wealth, without a lead, it’s really hard to carry out."
Gathering wealth? Everyone wore different expressions, as this topic was quite engaging at this moment.
Ye Xinyan contemplated for a long time, her eyes turning before she spoke again, "How about this..."
Jinrong felt a quiver in his heart and liver. This was typical of her, when one scheme fails, she devises another. What astonishing idea has she come up with after failing to plot against his unborn offspring?
Usually, when Ye Xinyan starts with such words, it means even she is quite unsure about this proposal, which is tempting yet uncertain, hence her hesitant tone.
Even Ye Xinyan is unsure about it, meaning it could very well be a huge pitfall.
Yet, he was curious about what Ye Xinyan had in mind.
"Go on," Jinrong said, "but I warn you first, don’t think about plotting against my mansion’s people again."
"I won’t!" Ye Xinyan replied promptly, continuing, "It’s like this, why don’t you suggest to His Majesty to pick a Royal Relative or someone with some standing, of course, the higher the better. This way, the scope of wealth gathering can be large enough, and the participants’ status high enough, naturally leading to considerable income."
Jinrong nodded, signaling her to continue, yet felt nervous inside. Ye Xinyan’s setup felt like it aimed to capture everything in one sweep?
"Let your Imperial Father offer some benefits to him, then let him take the lead in organizing a grandson’s first birthday banquet, or parents’ birthdays, sending out invites and holding feasts. With many attendees of high status, the gifts will naturally be numerous and weighty, a substantial income indeed."
Now Jinrong could only nod, "Go on." Holding grand feasts in the residences of the Imperial Family and Royal Relatives, and having the emperor offer him benefits, this scheme was pretty obvious.
Thinking of receiving gifts and many of them, even though these gifts had nothing to do with Ye Xinyan, she was full of imagination and anticipation.
"As for the reason for the banquet, the more far-fetched the better. Find the flimsiest excuse to be more effective, showing this person is concerned with the court’s concerns. Make a detailed and tidy list of the gifts, and after the banquet, donate the received gifts to the court for disaster relief."
Jinrong looked at Ye Xinyan for a while. She’s usually smart; did she have a momentary lapse, or what?
What benefits from the emperor could match the gifts received by a high-status Royal Relative? Moreover, regardless of whose household, receiving gifts today means you must reciprocate in equal measure tomorrow when the other household hosts a red or white event.
Donating the gifts, how is this different from digging into one’s own pocket?
"Don’t worry, there’s more," Ye Xinyan quickly explained, "Your Imperial Father’s status is supreme. In a formal setting, let him highly commend the person hosting the banquet and then publicize the gift list. Following this, suggest to each household that such banquets can be hosted by all. The quality of the banquet isn’t required to be luxurious; simpler is better. But the gifts given cannot be of lower quality than the usual ones asked for among families."
Ye Xinyan caught her breath, continuing, "Isn’t Commander Lih all-knowing? When His Majesty hints, he could sternly point out that Commander Lih knows what kind of banquets each household should hold at this time. Should any family dare not to host one, find an excuse to demote or relocate them..." The losses would be significant.
Ye Xinyan gave Jinrong a look of "you know what I mean." She merely proposed the idea; those who navigate power and intrigues daily would certainly be more adept than her at executing it.
Hu Jing was holding his teacup, wanting to laugh out loud. Indeed, Ye Xinyan was quirky and clever, thinking of such a method.
Jinrong hesitated, saying, "Isn’t this inappropriate?" Giving his Imperial Father such a troublesome idea. Not to mention whether his emperor father would adopt it, even if he did, he might not look upon Jinrong favorably.
Jiang Yifan also said, "His Majesty has an upright character; resorting to such a means of gathering funds like robbery... His Majesty couldn’t do it, could he?"
Ye Xinyan pouted. As the saying goes, after three years in office, an official pockets a hundred thousand taels of silver. These officials, benefitting from the conveniences provided by the court, have bulging pockets. Yet they are unwilling to contribute some to help the court out of the plight that bestowed these conveniences upon them.
If they don’t take the initiative, then it’s imperative to act decisively. If others can be so shameless, why should the emperor uphold their false front?
Moreover, as someone born into the royal family and capable of ascending to the throne, doing shameless things in abundance wasn’t uncommon. Why must maintaining face be prioritized only in matters advocating for the people and benefiting the populace?
Hu Jing lifted his head from the teacup, smiling as he said, "No matter what, it’s still an idea, isn’t it? Your Highness might as well try presenting it to His Majesty. As for how His Majesty decides, we can just wait and see."
He didn’t think the emperor would choose this moment to maintain that ridiculous facade. Being able to conduct such business with vigor is also a reflection of the emperor’s unyielding will, not about losing face.
This is gaining face; it’s a message to the court officials that when the Son of Heaven’s realm faces distress, those officials drawing an Official Salary should unhesitatingly contribute money and effort.
With the emperor’s propensity to impose fines, why wouldn’t he agree to such a method of obtaining Disaster Relief Funds through the guise of a noble cause?
Jinrong contemplated for quite a while, wondering why he was so unfortunate to be persuaded into such a matter?
Once this is mentioned to Imperial Father, he would certainly think Jinrong wasn’t of upright character. If the ministers and officials learn that this idea originated from him, would he be criticized harshly by a large group of court officials?
Sigh... Jinrong reluctantly agreed, "Then let’s give it a try. I’m prepared to let Imperial Father look down on me. There’s also a downside to this plan; those seasoned officials in the bureaucracy are all old foxes. If they’re excessively stripped this time, and afterward, every household holds grand banquets for any trivial matter to gather wealth, how should that be managed?"