Four hundred and seventieth chapters make winter clothes
Behind her stood the most powerful man in the Yan Dynasty, so Jiang Miao would not let him go.
Besides, she did this for the sake of the court, so Zhao Jing naturally had no reason to refuse.
Jiang Miao had an idea in mind, so she handed over the sign and entered the palace with Shen Yanqing the next day.
Zhao Jing was thinking about the talent show recently. There were many noble ladies waiting to be married in the capital. He had met them at several palace banquets, but he couldn't remember any of them.
In the past, Zhao Jing didn't pay much attention to this. He only thought the ladies were troublesome. Now it's hard for him to choose the one he likes.
He half-closed his eyes, and a beautiful face appeared in his mind. When he went to catch it, Father Jixiang's voice came in.
"Master, the princess and Minister Shen are here."
"Ahem! Let them in."
The figure in his mind quickly disappeared, and Zhao Jing was a little anxious, why did he think of her.
He calmed down his thoughts, then sat up straight and let Jiang Miao and the others come in.
"Rong Ning has met the emperor's cousin."
"I am here to see you, Your Majesty."
Zhao Jing waved her hand for the two of them to stand up. Eunuch Jixiang showed them where they were seated and gave them a pot of tea.
"It's so cold, why do you want to come to the palace?"
Jiang Miao rarely entered the palace, and the only two times she came were with Shen Yanqing. Normally, Zhao Jing would go to the eldest princess's mansion if she wanted to see them.
When she enters the palace now, there must be something important.
Zhao Jing thought to herself, and her face became a little more serious.
"I wonder if the emperor's cousin has paid attention to the weather at the border. This year is colder than in previous years. If the soldiers at the border don't have thick clothes, can they survive the winter?"
"This... Miaoya, tell me what you have to say, but what did you hear?"
Zhao Jing thought it was Jiang Zhe who had delivered the letter to her, asking the court for winter clothes through her.
Jiang Miao knew that he had misunderstood, so she presented Guo Zhao's letter, which she had specifically asked Shen Yingxue to borrow. She did not take it because the two had intimate words, but it was mainly about the weather at the border.
Since winter this year, two villages have been looted by the enemy. The weather in Western Summer is even colder, and they have no reserves for the winter. They have to resort to looting when they are hungry and desperate.
Moreover, the weather has been getting colder and colder recently, and even the soldiers at the border can hardly stand it anymore. She can't say anything about the coming snowstorm. She can only persuade Zhao Jing to agree to make clothes for the soldiers based on what happened.
After reading the letter in his hand, Zhao Jing's face became a little solemn.
"Do you think there will be a snowstorm this year?"
In the seven years since he took the throne, he has experienced droughts, floods, plagues, and wars. Now that there is another snow disaster, Zhao Jing is so broken that he can accept it calmly.
His superior title is not justified, and his ancestors have objections to him.
"Rong Ning is just guessing, but the soldiers at the border are related to the safety of the Yan Dynasty. It is better to trust them than trust them. It is always better to be prepared in advance."
"Um."
Zhao Jing nodded, "What are your thoughts?"
Jiang Miaoneng came to the palace to find him, so naturally it would not be an easy matter.
"I want to cooperate with my cousin and unite all the embroiderers in the capital to make winter clothes for the soldiers at the border."
What she can do on her own is limited, but there is great power in numbers. There are thousands of embroiderers in the capital. If they can all be gathered together, not to mention hundreds of thousands or even millions of clothes can be finished quickly.
"good!"
Jiang Miao's idea was approved by Zhao Jing, and he was responsible for gathering the embroiderers.
"However, the manpower and material costs required for so many clothes are not low. Where will the money come from?"
Nowadays, the national treasury is still not full, and food streets have been built in various places, but they have not yet begun to make profits. Even if Zhao Jing wants to spend money, she is unable to do so, but leaving Jiang Miao fully responsible is not enough. It is enough for her to have this intention, and the soldiers at the border will return to the imperial court. No matter, Zhao Jing is not that thick-skinned yet.
Shen Yanqing, who had been watching, stood up. His voice was cold, but what he said made Zhao Jinglongyan happy.
"Your Majesty, the border officers and soldiers serve the country and protect the common people. The gentry and officials are all protected by them. Now that the soldiers have needs, it is natural for these gentry and officials to contribute."
"Yes, cousin, the Shen family is willing to donate a thousand taels of silver and make winter clothes. Yuhualou's down jackets are warm and light, and are most suitable for making winter clothes for the soldiers."
Jiang Miao thought about asking the embroiderers in Beijing to make the outer covering of the clothes. Yuhualou only processed the down, and when the time came, the clothes would be filled in.
Zhao Jing nodded repeatedly when she heard the couple's idea, "Then I will pay ten thousand taels. With me and Rong Ning as examples, others dare not not follow. I will leave this matter to Ziyan. I will ask someone to leave." After sending the documents, the embroiderers in the capital will temporarily stop their work and help you make winter clothes."
They discussed the details again. These embroiderers did not work in vain. A piece of clothing cost fifty cents, and Jiang Miao would prepare the same pattern of fabrics. Even if hundreds of thousands of clothes were distributed to each individual, it would be a large amount of money. Even if they You can still make a lot of money by making crusts even if you stop doing what you are doing.
When Jiang Miao went back, she asked shopkeeper Wu to quickly buy duck down. She would not use a lot of materials to make winter clothes this time, so she could make them into thin jackets and wear them under the armor, which would keep them warm without affecting the activities of the soldiers.
After the emperor's document came down, all the major families and embroidery houses in the capital became agitated. The former was for donating money. They all felt that Jiang Miao was deliberately pretending to be a good person, so she kidnapped the officials and gentry in the capital to donate money to the border officers.
"Princess Rongning said it was because the border was too cold and she was afraid that the soldiers would get frostbite, so she had to make winter clothes for them. Isn't that funny? The soldiers have been stationed at the border for so many years. When have they ever gotten sick because of the freezing weather, let alone delayed the war? This seems like an excuse.”
"Who says it's not the case? The emperor asked all the embroiderers in the capital to help her make winter clothes. I'm afraid all the money we donated will go to her. The Shen family is so short of money that the princess came up with this bad idea?"
When it comes to their own interests, the aristocratic family resents Jiang Miao, and the good reputation she has accumulated in the past has a tendency to collapse.
While everyone was still hesitating, the Xu family and Prince Rui's Mansion were the first to stand up, each donating five thousand taels. The emperor's court specifically praised Xu Ziwen and Prince Rui, and those who had not wanted to donate money at first had expressions on their faces. Can't hang on anymore.
Each family donated hundreds or thousands of dollars, and at last count, there were nearly two hundred thousand taels of silver.
Zhao Jing looked at the account book and sneered, "These aristocratic families have donated a lot of money. It seems that the people of the Yan Dynasty are living a hard life, and these ministers are living a very comfortable life..."
During the natural disaster before, these people all complained to him about poverty, but now that they had so much money, Zhao Jing's eyes turned cold.
The hardship of the people of the Yan Dynasty was inseparable from these corrupt officials.
However, now is not the time to settle accounts with them, and with the bumper harvest of corn and sweet potatoes planted this year, the people's lives are slowly getting better.
Once Prime Minister Liu's faction is suppressed, he will have more energy to select honest and capable ministers.
