Sheng Jinyan faced those sparkling eyes, feeling a rare twinge of guilt.
"Well, the Imperial Observatory said this trip shouldn't be extravagant. As for silver, just enough will do."
Shi Zhenxiang thought, just enough... but there should be a rough estimate, right?
After all, they were a family of seven, plus three nannies, making ten people.
"And won't you bring a capable person by your side?"
What if something happened at the Imperial Court? Not having a trustworthy person around wouldn't be suitable, right?
Sheng Jinyan felt she made a good point and already had someone in mind.
"Old Zhengzi's adopted son is pretty good. He's always been handling matters for me outside the Imperial Palace. I'll have him follow in secret."
He couldn't bring more than that, or the carriage wouldn't have enough room.
Shi Zhenxiang asked, "Then where's our first stop?"
Sheng Jinyan said, "The Imperial Observatory said we'll make a circuit from north to south. When the time is right to return, we'll come back."
Shi Zhenxiang felt embarrassed. What if the time wasn't right? Would they never come back?
Sheng Jinyan shook his head. "We'll decide then."
He wasn't the type to think a hundred steps ahead; he made judgments only when he saw the actual situation.
Seeing that he had already decided, Shi Zhenxiang stopped worrying.
Besides, being able to leave the Imperial Palace and take a breather was actually quite nice.
So she immediately shifted her mindset for the better.
In a good mood, she went to pack. Since they were leaving the palace, she couldn't wear ornate court robes, so she prepared to go shopping on the streets.
The five princesses were going too.
Upon hearing that they would go out of the palace with their Father Emperor and Imperial Consort, the princesses were overjoyed.
Even the usually composed Eldest Princess was very excited.
"Imperial Consort, are we really going out of the palace to play?"
Shi Zhenxiang waved her hand. "It's not really playing. It's more like going out to broaden your horizons."
After all, they were poor travelers; how could that count as a pleasure trip?
Yet the Eldest Princess and the others were still very happy.
The farthest place they had ever been was the Ten Thousand Buddha Temple; they had never gone to any other distant places.
Thinking of the wonderful world recorded in books, both the Eldest Princess and the Second Princess yearned for it.
As for the Third Princess and the Fourth Princess, they were younger and only cared about whether they could eat good food outside.
Shi Zhenxiang thought it was doubtful.
Judging by the Emperor's extremely tight finances, he probably had no money to buy the children any good food.
So she didn't give the children any false hope. "Your Father Emperor is short on funds; I'm afraid he can't afford to buy you anything good to eat."
The Eldest Princess and the Second Princess didn't mind, because by the time their Father Emperor took over the Imperial Palace, the National Treasury was already empty. They couldn't blame him for having no money.
And as long as there was something to eat, they weren't picky.
But the Third Princess and the Fourth Princess were still at an age where they loved to eat. Hearing there would be no good food, they didn't want to go.
They hugged Shi Zhenxiang's legs and acted spoiled. "Imperial Consort, how about we don't go?"
"Let us stay at Uncle's house, okay?"
They thought Uncle's house was the best: there was good food, older siblings to play with, and their aunts were very kind to them. They loved going to the General's Mansion.
Shi Zhenxiang wished she could too.
"But your Father Emperor won't agree. He wants all of you to go."
He said he was afraid that if he only took two, the remaining three would think he, as their father, was biased, so he decided to bring everyone.
Upon hearing that they had to go, the Third Princess and the Fourth Princess pouted for a moment, then quickly got over it.
"Alright then, let's just treat it as going out to play."
The four sisters were all easygoing. By now, they were happily packing their own little luggage.
Shi Zhenxiang bought them clothes like ordinary commoners and also purchased some iron pots, planning to cook for themselves when camping on the road.
She also bought a lot of snacks and secretly put them in her space.
Yes, she, as a time traveler, also had a space.
It wasn't big, but it could hold a roomful of food.
She stored all her gold, silver, jewelry, and the money she earned in the space.
Since she couldn't bring much on this trip, she simply put everything in the space.
She would take them out to eat when Sheng Jinyan wasn't paying attention.
She was out shopping for an entire day before returning. Sheng Jinyan thought she had been out so long that she must have bought a lot.
But all he saw was that she had only bought some cheap cotton clothes for the children.
She barely had anything for herself.
Sheng Jinyan gave this woman another point.
She really knew how to manage a household.
Knowing his travel funds were tight, she started saving him money.
Ultimately, Sheng Jinyan wasn't really stingy. He gave her a stack of silver notes.
"Go buy some thick cotton clothes. It's not like in the Imperial Palace out there."
Although the Harem was frugal, compared to common people, they still had an upper-middle standard of living. With charcoal fires burning continuously in winter, their days were much more comfortable than ordinary folks'.
Shi Zhenxiang had already bought cotton clothes and even quilts, all stored in her space.
But she was still very happy that Sheng Jinyan gave her money.
She immediately took it, felt the thickness, and wow, it was quite a lot.
She found it strange. "Where did you get the money?"
Sheng Jinyan raised his chin proudly. "The Court Officials all chipped in, saying they wanted me to eat well on the road."
Shi Zhenxiang found it unbelievable. "The Court Officials gave it?"
This was the first time she heard of an Emperor having to rely on Court Officials to pool silver for a trip. That was really something.
And the key point was that Sheng Jinyan accepted it without any qualms. Wasn't he embarrassed?
After all, as the supreme ruler, taking money from his officials—how shameful would that be if it got out?
Sheng Jinyan saw through her thoughts and said nonchalantly, "Face can't buy food. We have five children; taking money to buy them food is the most practical thing."
Shi Zhenxiang was surprised again. She didn't expect him to set aside all pride for the sake of his children. That was quite unusual.
After all, some men would rather let their wives and children suffer just to save face.
She didn't expect that he, an Emperor, actually thought the children's meals were the most important.
That pleased her a lot.
It seemed this guy wasn't entirely useless.
Besides his poor skills, he still cared a lot about the children.
Sheng Jinyan, seeing her looking at him with sparkling eyes, knew this woman must be totally in awe of him.
Hmph.
Women.
Falling for me again, right?
He figured that with his damn irresistible charm, Noble Consort Shi couldn't possibly escape.
Sheng Jinyan raised his chin and walked off like a peacock spreading its tail.
The palace attendants were left covering their mouths and snickering.
They thought the Emperor was pretty funny when he acted so smug.
Shi Zhenxiang also laughed.
After putting away the money, she went back to the General's Mansion and told her maternal family about it.
When Eldest Sister-in-law Shi heard she was going out of the palace with the Emperor without any guards, she immediately grew worried.
"The world has only been peaceful for a short time. There are still many dangers on the road. It's not safe for you to go without guards."
Shi Zhenxiang wasn't afraid. "I heard Sheng Jinyan was originally a Military General, so his martial arts must be impressive."
Besides, they were traveling incognito. As long as no enemies came seeking revenge, assassination attempts probably wouldn't happen.
Eldest Sister-in-law Shi still wasn't reassured. "Bandits are rampant these days. If you go through mountain roads, it could be very dangerous."
"How about you don't go with the children?"
Shi Zhenxiang wished she could, but Sheng Jinyan had already decided, and it couldn't be changed.
Eldest Sister-in-law Shi sighed. "Then what if I ask the Shi Family to go along?"
They could follow behind as fellow travelers.
Shi Zhenxiang shook her head. "His Majesty won't agree."
Since he had insisted on blending in with the Common People, naturally, he wouldn't allow escorts.
Eldest Sister-in-law Shi sighed. "I'd better tell Father and Mother about this."
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