Dad, don't be greedy! My brother climbed into the emperor's bed, and I became famous overn

Gu Mingli steadied himself and forced a smile.

"Your Majesty, confiscating their property... isn't out of the question."

Xiao Ye looked up at him.

Gu Mingli continued speaking, enduring the scrutinizing gaze.

"But think about it, arresting one or two corrupt officials is just treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Even if you fill the gap this year, the problem will still be there next year."

"Besides, by confiscating their homes like this, won't you scare the corrupt officials into banding together?"

He raised his hand and scratched the tip of his nose, mimicking his sister's tone.

"To solve the problem of an empty national treasury, you need to address the root cause."

"The money has all flowed into the hands of powerful clans and aristocratic families. Even if you confiscate the property of a few corrupt officials, you won't be able to shake their power."

That's a very straightforward statement.

It means that even an emperor like you can't defeat powerful clans, so what's the point of bullying petty corrupt officials?

Eunuch Liu listened from the side, his forehead beaded with sweat.

He couldn't help but gasp and glance up slightly to observe His Majesty's expression.

Xiao Ye squinted slightly, his fingers still resting on the table, tapping them one by one.

There was no rebuttal to this statement.

He asked, "Emperors throughout history have been unable to resolve the issue of powerful clans monopolizing salt, iron, and the Grand Canal. If commercial tax revenue cannot be generated, how will I increase revenue?"

Gu Mingli: "..."

No, who are you asking?

I'm not the emperor, why should I worry about the emperor's affairs?

The two stared at each other for a few seconds.

Forced by the power and influence of the authorities, Gu Mingli finally spoke up.

"Your Majesty, I will go back and discuss this matter with my sister to see if she has any good ideas."

Let me think of a way to help you make money!

Xiao Ye stared at him for a while.

The frost on her face melted a little, and the lines at the corners of her mouth loosened slightly.

It seems Gu Qing is about to start planning how to help me establish a powerful clan!

He curled his lips into a smile, feeling satisfied.

"Um."

Xiao Ye responded and continued flipping through the folded pages.

Gu Mingli quickly bent down to tidy up the drawings on the table, preparing to finish his shift and return home.

As he rolled up the blueprints, he suddenly remembered something and looked up to add a sentence.

"Oh, by the way, Your Majesty, about that building block thing."

Xiao Ye's gaze had just shifted back to the folding book when he heard this, so he looked up again.

Gu Mingli said, "It's too late today. I'll play with you another day."

Xiao Ye's jaw tightened again, and his lips were pursed into a thin line.

Fortunately, it didn't flare up this time.

He simply turned his gaze back to the memorial, speaking in a detached tone as if he were talking about someone else's affairs.

"what ever."

Gu Mingli felt as if he had been granted a pardon and quickly bowed.

"Your Majesty, I take my leave!"

After saying that, he turned and left.

Xiao Ye didn't even look up; his gaze was fixed on the folding book in his hand.

That was the Ministry of Revenue's memorial that had just been read to Gu Mingli.

However, the treasury balance reported by the Ministry of Revenue is different from the 200 million taels that Xiao Ye just read out.

The folding slip shows the national treasury balance as 600 million taels of silver.

Xiao Ye smiled knowingly.

Some people won't take the initiative to contribute unless they're given a scare.

……

Gu Mingli exited through the main gate of the Imperial Study.

The setting sun had already dipped below the palace walls.

Dusk tinged the narrow palace alleyways with a dark red hue.

The palace lanterns had not yet been lit, and the light under the eaves was dim.

He opened the system and glanced at the tasks.

[Hold the dragon for 30 seconds to obtain the Shipbuilding Blueprint]

Gu Mingli looked up and sighed deeply.

He turned and entered a secluded palace alley, heading towards the Four Treasurys.

He now has a pass given to him by Xiao Ye, allowing him to move freely within the palace.

Right now, we must take advantage of Xiao Ye's presence in the Imperial Study and quickly complete that perverted "Embracing the Dragon Blanket" mission.

The Four Treasurys are located in the western part of the inner court.

It's not a very important place.

To put it bluntly, it's just a warehouse.

Inside were piles of brocade quilts, pillowcases, and curtains that had been removed from the dragon bed and were ready to be starched and washed.

Normally, it is guarded by several low-ranking old eunuchs.

Gu Mingli left in about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.

We arrived at the end of the alley and stood before a small courtyard with low gray walls.

An inconspicuous wooden sign hangs on the gate of the courtyard.

The three characters "四执库" are faded and worn, and look like they have nothing of value.

Gu Mingli stood at the gate of the courtyard and straightened his clothes.

Sparse human voices could be heard coming from inside.

Someone was moving things, and the wooden frames made a dull thud as they collided.

He knocked on the door frame.

An old eunuch with gray hair was crouching down, rummaging through the shelves looking for something.

Hearing the noise, he turned around and squinted at Gu Mingli for a long time.

"Oh, who is this gentleman?"

Gu Mingli took out his waist token and flashed it.

The moment the old eunuch saw the character "敕" (imperial edict), he bent down even lower.

He greeted us warmly, placing his hands on his chest.

"So it's Lord Gu, who serves in the Imperial Guard. This old servant's surname is Sun, and I'm in charge of the Four Treasurys."

"Eunuch Sun."

Gu Mingli nodded.

I glanced around awkwardly.

He took two steps closer, as if asking a casual question.

"Eunuch Sun, how often are the bedding on His Majesty's imperial bed changed?"

Grandpa Sun was slightly taken aback.

He had served in this palace for most of his life, and this was the first time he had ever seen someone come all the way here specifically to ask about changing the bedding.

"Reporting to the master, the clothes are changed every three days."

"When will the next change be?"

Grandpa Sun raised his hand and gestured to indicate the sky.

"Right now. This old servant is just about to arrange for someone to go to the bedchamber to change."

"In another half hour, the substituted players will be sent back to the warehouse."

Gu Mingli's eyes lit up instantly.

His tone carried an excitement that was incomprehensible to normal people.

"Um, Eunuch Sun."

He took another half step forward and lowered his voice.

"After the bedding is removed, could I... take a look?"

Grandpa Sun's eye twitched, and he glanced at Gu Mingli with a slight upward tilt of his head.

He had recently heard gossip from other people in the palace.

It is said that this Lord Gu was on duty in front of the emperor and was quite favored by him.

His behavior before the Emperor was so unconventional and disregarded etiquette that it was quite...unique.

In retrospect, their behavior was indeed quite unique.

The old eunuch lowered his eyes and smiled subtly.

"Well... since Lord Gu wants to see it, then of course it's fine. Please wait a moment, this old servant will make the arrangements."

Gu Mingli thanked him.

Grandpa Sun led him to a quiet alley outside the warehouse.

There was a long stone bench in the alley, which was usually where the eunuchs rested.

"Please wait here, sir. Once the items that were removed have been returned, this old servant will bring them to you as soon as possible."

Gu Mingli nodded and sat down.

The stone bench, having been exposed to the sun all day, still retained some warmth.

He stretched out his legs, leaned his back against the wall, and looked up at the deep blue sky above the narrow alley.

A few stars have just appeared.

He just waited there.

As dusk faded and night deepened, the last rays of light began to fall.

After an unknown amount of time, footsteps echoed from the depths of the alley.

Three young eunuchs, each carrying a bundle of brocade fabric, walked quickly toward them with their heads down.

The one at the very front was holding a thick, bright yellow satin quilt, folded neatly into a square.

The two behind them were holding pillowcases and bed curtains, respectively.

Grandpa Sun followed behind, jogging up to Gu Mingli.

"Lord Gu, everything is here."

Gu Mingli's eyes lit up, as if he had seen a treasure he had been longing for.

He grinned and rubbed his hands together.

He stood up abruptly.

He took two steps at a time and walked up to the little eunuch carrying the quilt.

"Come here, let me give you a hug."

Everyone: "..."

Ignoring the stares of others who thought he was a pervert, Gu Mingli reached out and took the bright yellow brocade quilt.