Consort Zhao handed the responsibility of managing lanterns and candles to Jiang Ling.
The lanterns and candles were managed by the Lamp Department under the Shangqin Bureau, which sounded quite simple. The candles and lamp oil required daily by the inner palace were purchased by the inner treasury and stored in the warehouse, then distributed by the Shangqin Bureau according to established quotas.
Zhong Shanggong of the Shangqin Bureau and the female official Fang Sideng would now report to Jiang Ling for instructions.
After sitting briefly, Consort Zhao returned to Fu Ning Palace. Jiang Ling lay on the couch, staring hopelessly at the caisson with auspicious cloud patterns on the ceiling.
Those intricate circular patterns seemed like a massive black hole, sucking her in and shattering her to pieces.
Qingwen Wenjuan entered to tidy the teacups, while Arou Fanghe eagerly offered to help. Noticing their excited expressions, Jiang Ling rolled her eyes in exasperation. After a moment’s thought, she straightened up and said, “Please, all of you, sit down.”
They complied and sat down. Jiang Ling asked, “You all know that Consort De has put me in charge of the lanterns and candles?”
“Yes,” Qingwen Wenjuan replied respectfully, while Arou and Fanghe said cheerfully, “Congratulations, Mei Ren!”
Jiang Ling ignored Arou and Fanghe, not even feeling the usual smug satisfaction of outsmarting them.
Being smarter than them wasn’t something to be proud of.
In their eyes, Jiang Ling had gained control over palace affairs and real authority.
Confidence and arrogance differ by just one character, and many people can’t tell them apart—at least Arou and Fanghe were completely clueless.
They were so intoxicated by this small taste of power that they failed to consider: if this was real authority, why would Consort Zhao share it with her?
If Jiang Ling had remained secluded in Fanying Pavilion, even if someone wanted to scheme against her, it wouldn’t have been easy.
By doing nothing, one makes no mistakes; the more one does, the more mistakes one makes. Now that she was managing affairs, it would be much easier to find faults with her.
Currently, Consort Zhao had disregarded her objections, first obtaining Emperor Yuan Ming’s permission, then forcing the responsibility into her hands. This was equivalent to dragging her out from Fanying Pavilion and placing her before everyone as a target.
“What are your thoughts?” Jiang Ling asked, looking at Qingwen Wenjuan.
Qingwen paused briefly, then offered congratulations with impeccable diplomacy: “Since His Majesty has already spoken, and Consort De personally came to inform Mei Ren, refusing would appear arrogant, as if disregarding both His Majesty and Consort De’s words. The daily allocation of lanterns and candles follows established quotas—we simply need to follow previous regulations.”
Wenjuan frowned slightly, seemingly disagreeing with Qingwen’s assessment. However, she didn’t contradict her directly, only saying: “In such a large inner palace, with hundreds of candles and dozens of pounds of lamp oil distributed daily, the duties are quite trivial.” Although the palace maids from the Lamp Department of Shangqin Bureau handle the actual work, Mei Ren still cannot afford to be careless. You must keep a close watch to prevent any mishaps.”
Jiang Ling nodded frequently, having roughly assessed both Qingwen and Wenjuan in her mind.
Both came from serving before the Emperor—Jiang Ling wasn’t naive enough to believe that all palace maids and eunuchs serving the Emperor were completely loyal to Yuan Mingdi.
Qingwen was meticulous and efficient in her work, neither competitive nor aggressive, appearing steady and reliable. Her speech was always comprehensive, leaving no room for criticism.
Jiang Ling had never liked Qingwen’s communication style, mainly because she couldn’t understand all the subtleties. To her, Qingwen’s words amounted to useless nonsense.
Even if Qingwen couldn’t fully discern Consort Zhao’s intentions, she must have some suspicions—yet she hadn’t mentioned any of them.
Wen Juan’s words were far more practical, clearly pointing out the trivial troubles of managing lamps and candles. Jiang Ling understood her underlying meaning—if one were not careful, it could invite trouble.
Upon hearing this, A Ruo secretly scoffed and rolled her eyes, saying, “Just follow the old rules—what’s so difficult about it?”
Fang He chimed in, “Although Consort De used to manage this before, it’s now handed over to Lady Jiang. How dare the servants under the Shangqin Bureau disobey Lady Jiang?”
Jiang Ling ignored their words, feeling so worried her hair was nearly turning white.
She had always been slow-witted and dreaded trouble, especially dealing with people. Among those under her, aside from Wen Juan who was somewhat useful, she couldn’t trust Qing Wen, and as for A Ruo and Fang He, she’d be grateful if they didn’t cause more chaos.
Zhao Defei was efficient in her work. Just as Jiang Ling was about to have lunch, she had already sent Huang Momo carrying the account books, along with Zhong Shanggong and Fang Sideng.
Huang Momo wore a perfectly measured smile, her actions and words extremely polite. She respectfully presented the account books with both hands, saying, “Lady Jiang, these are the account books sent by Her Ladyship. Please take a look.”
Qing Wen stepped forward to take the account books and presented them to Jiang Ling. She reached out, took them, flipped through a few pages, and couldn’t help but feel her vision darken.
The account books recorded three months of expenses, detailing the total monthly consumption in the palace and the usage of each residence.
The usage over the three months varied, with some months higher and others lower, and each residence’s consumption differing as well.
The palace emphasized rules, yet it was also the most rule-less place—rules were only used to restrain the less favored palace women.
Among the candles used in the palace, the most expensive were the imperial beeswax candles, which contained precious fragrances. The next grade was white wax made from Chinese wax insects. The lowest quality included pine wax, Chinese tallow wax, and paraffin wax, which produced heavy black smoke and unpleasant odors.
The prices of these candles varied greatly. Fragrant beeswax candles cost as much as a hundred wen each, while white wax candles were around ten wen, and pine wax and others were about five or six wen.
When Jiang Ling was in Xie Fang Pavilion, her monthly allowance included two beeswax candles and two white wax candles. In reality, she received only two white wax candles, while A Ruo and Fang He had only half a pine wax candle per day.
The lanterns hanging under the eaves, at entrances, and in passageways of each residence, which had to remain lit all night, used lamp oil instead.
In places like Chong Hua Palace and Fuqing Palace, candles were not issued according to the fixed monthly allowance but could be drawn arbitrarily each day. Lamp oil was used sparingly, and the quantities of white wax and beeswax candles were roughly the same.
From this, it was clear that the lanterns and the serving grannies and maids in these places used white wax candles.
The account books also recorded sudden spikes in usage—some individuals’ daily consumption even exceeded the monthly quota.
Jiang Ling found it all headache-inducing. She stared at the account books, not turning a page for a long while.
Huang Momo was adept at reading expressions and explained with a smile, “Her Ladyship the Imperial Concubine and Her Ladyship the Virtuous Consort have princes and princesses, and several elderly consorts are advanced in years. Those serving them cannot afford to be careless. His Majesty has decreed that the nights must be well-lit. Sometimes, when His Majesty stays overnight somewhere, candles cannot be lacking.”
Jiang Ling understood then that the distribution of lamps and candles had no fixed quantity and no clear rules to follow.
When moving residences, Jiang Ling had already met Zhong Shanggong. Rising from hundreds of palace maids to a fifth-rank female official, she was undoubtedly the shrewdest of the shrewd.
“Lady Jiang, this servant and Fang Sideng will henceforth follow your orders. The Shangqin Bureau has several other departments. If this servant is temporarily overwhelmed or unavailable, you may instruct Fang Sideng directly.”
Apart from the Lighting Department, the Siqin of Yuan Mingdi’s bedchamber, the gardens and plants of the inner palace, as well as the Luanjia and soft sedan chairs required by the consorts, all fell under the jurisdiction of the Shang Gong Bureau.
Fang Sideng was around thirty years old, slightly plump in stature, with a smiling round face that appeared kind and approachable.
As a sixth-rank Si Deng, she had similarly fought her way up among the palace maids.
“If this humble servant has acted inappropriately in any way, I beg Lady Jiang to provide guidance and instruction.” Fang Sideng stepped forward, performing a deep, respectful curtsy with utmost courtesy.
Both had previously served under Zhao Defei. Jiang Ling forced herself to stay alert and responded as tactfully as possible: “I don’t even know where the storeroom is located yet. After lunch, I’ll trouble you all to accompany me for an inspection.”
Zhao Defei had thrown the account books at her, forcing her to accept them, but she absolutely couldn’t accept them without clear understanding.
A shortage of just ten beeswax candles meant a discrepancy of one tael of silver. If shortages occurred later, she couldn’t afford to compensate, nor could she explain it clearly.
Huang Momo smiled and said: “Her Ladyship instructed this servant to ensure everything is clearly accounted for with Lady Jiang, to avoid any discrepancies in the numbers.”
After lunch, Jiang Ling didn’t even take her afternoon nap, feeling dizzy as she went to the storeroom to check the accounts. Huang Momo, Zhong Shanggong, and Fang Sideng all accompanied her.
Fearing fire hazards from lamps and candles, the storeroom was built in the quietest southern corner of the palace. The stone walls were thick, with large water vats and fine sand placed at the entrance for fire prevention.
The young eunuchs guarding the storeroom belonged to the Inner Treasury of the Palace Domestic Service, not the Shang Gong Bureau.
Though the personnel situation was complex, Jiang Ling felt this was actually better. Mutual restraint was preferable to collusion.
Lamp oil and candles were stored in two separate storerooms. The young eunuch first opened the iron door to the candle storeroom. Jiang Ling nearly fainted at the sight of frame after frame packed full with candles.
The Inner Treasury regularly delivered candles and lamp oil to the storeroom. Distribution of lamps and candles began daily at the middle of the Weishi hour (around 2 PM), when palace maids and eunuchs from various palaces came to collect their allocations.
No wonder Zhao Defei had been so straightforward, arranging for Huang Momo to proactively propose the handover.
What Jiang Ling faced wasn’t simple inventory checking – it was a mathematical problem of inflows and outflows!