Yinzhen didn’t sleep well after all.
He woke before dawn the next day, dark circles under his eyes, his cheeks slightly sunken. Sitting on the edge of the couch, he stared blankly for a long while. He had spent the entire night thinking about his Eighth Brother, going back and forth in his mind, and finally reached a conclusion—the money still had to be given.
It wasn’t that he didn’t understand Ning Nuannuan’s reasoning; it was that he didn’t dare not give it.
His Eighth Brother had treated him well for twenty years. Back when they were young in the study hall and he was bullied, it was his Eighth Brother who stood up for him. Later, when he established his own residence, his Eighth Brother helped him maneuver within the Imperial Household Department. Then came their business dealings and connections—they had long been tied together, inseparable.
This kind of relationship couldn’t be measured by fifty thousand taels of silver.
At least, that was how he saw it.
At breakfast, he sat at the table, stirring the porridge in his bowl without eating much. Ning Nuannuan sat across from him, quietly drinking millet porridge with a couple of pieces of pickled radish.
“Have you decided?” Ning Nuannuan didn’t look up.
“Mm.”
“You’ll give it?”
Yinzhen swallowed a mouthful of porridge. “Fifty thousand is too much. I’ll gather thirty thousand.”
Ning Nuannuan put down her spoon.
“Thirty thousand is still money.”
“I know. But since Eighth Brother asked, I can’t give nothing. I understand what you said, but some things can’t be explained by reason alone.”
It was one of the rare times he spoke honestly.
Ning Nuannuan didn’t argue further. She finished the last of her porridge and set the bowl down.
“Then how will you explain it to him? You’re giving thirty instead of fifty—can he account for the missing twenty thousand?”
“I’ll tell him I’m short on funds. He’ll understand.”
Ning Nuannuan gave a quiet “mm,” offering no judgment.
After breakfast, Yinzhen returned to the study to write his reply. He carefully considered his wording and composed a sincere, somewhat pitiful letter—essentially saying that as a newly married man, his household expenses were high, his primary wife had uncovered financial gaps in the accounts, and he could only gather thirty thousand taels for now, asking for his brother’s understanding.
Once the letter was finished, he sent He Yuzhu to deliver it.
No sooner had He Yuzhu left than Zhao Quanyi was dismissed.
But less than two hours after Zhao Quanyi left, someone from the Eighth Prince’s residence arrived again.
This time it wasn’t Zhao Quanyi, but a strategist and advisor close to the Eighth Prince—a man surnamed Shen. In his forties, with a goatee, dressed in a worn blue robe, holding a folding fan, he entered with a smiling expression.
Advisor Shen managed the finances of the Eighth Prince’s household and had dealt with Yinzhen many times before. In the past, his visits were always about delivering gifts or fostering goodwill. But today, he got straight to the point.
“Ninth Master, after reading your letter, Eighth Master says thirty thousand will do for now to address the urgent need. However, his intention is that this sum be handled off the books, without any written record. What do you think?”
“No written record?” Yinzhen froze.
Advisor Shen took out a document from his sleeve and placed it on the table. It listed several matters the Eighth Prince needed handled—connections within the Imperial Household Department, arrangements for the family of a certain official, and two vaguely described “donations.”
“These matters are not convenient to leave a trace. Eighth Master said that since Ninth Master is one of our own, there’s no need for formalities.”
Yinzhen stared at the list, his back slowly stiffening.
No written record. Thirty thousand taels of silver, leaving his hands with no proof. Whether his Eighth Brother would acknowledge it in the future would depend entirely on his word.
He hadn’t cared about such things before. But now, after Ning Nuannuan had gone through his accounts, the phrase “no written record” triggered an instinctive sense of alarm.
“Advisor Shen, thirty thousand taels is no small amount—”
“Rest assured, Ninth Master.” Shen’s smile remained unchanged. “You know Eighth Master’s character. Once things succeed, your benefits will be plentiful. At that time, not just thirty thousand—even three hundred thousand—”
“When will ‘that time’ be?”
The voice came from the doorway.
Both Yinzhen and Advisor Shen turned their heads.
Ning Nuannuan leaned against the doorframe, holding an apple. No one knew when she had arrived or how long she had been standing there, but she had clearly heard everything that needed to be heard.
Advisor Shen had never met the Ninth Prince’s primary wife. He sized her up—wearing a casual qipao, hair loosely tied, a bite taken out of the apple she was still chewing. She didn’t look like a prince’s wife, more like a carefree maid from some household.
“And this is—?”
“My wife,” Yinzhen quickly answered, shooting Ning Nuannuan a look. The meaning was obvious: don’t interfere.
Ning Nuannuan ignored him. She switched the apple to her left hand, walked into the study, and sat down beside Yinzhen.
“Advisor Shen, is it?”
The smile on Shen’s face faded slightly as he cupped his hands. “Greetings, Madam.”
“No need for formalities. I heard a bit from outside.” Ning Nuannuan set the apple on the table and tapped the document. “Thirty thousand taels, no written record, to be used for connections and donations. Correct?”
Advisor Shen glanced at Yinzhen.
Yinzhen’s lips moved, but no words came out.
“Ninth Master?” Shen’s tone carried a hint of urging—are you going to manage your wife?
Yinzhen’s lips twitched. Manage her? How? He didn’t even have control over his own bedroom now—the bed he slept on was barely wider than a maid’s.
Ning Nuannuan didn’t give him time to struggle.
“Advisor Shen, let me ask on his behalf—once thirty thousand taels leaves this door, what guarantee does the Eighth Prince provide?”
Shen’s goatee trembled slightly.
“Consort, please understand. This is a matter between the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince. The trust between brothers doesn’t require—”
“How much is that trust worth per jin?”
The smile on Advisor Shen’s face finally faltered.
Ning Nuannuan picked up the document from the table and unfolded it, her gaze sweeping through the listed items line by line at remarkable speed.
“Five thousand taels for greasing the connections of an Imperial Household banner official—did the position get secured? Is there an official appointment document?”
Advisor Shen opened his mouth.
“Eight thousand taels for settling the family members of a certain court official—which official? Settled where? Are there any actual property deeds to match this expense?”
“This—”
“A donation of ten thousand taels—donated to whom? Under what name? Is there a receipt?”
Advisor Shen’s expression changed. In over forty years of life, and more than a decade serving in the Eighth Prince’s residence, this was the first time someone had interrogated him line by line about where the money went.
“Consort, these are confidential matters of the Eighth Prince. It’s not convenient—”
“Exactly because it’s inconvenient,” Ning Nuannuan set the paper down, “the more unclear the money is, the less it should be handed out blindly.”
She turned to look at Yin Jiu.
Yin Jiu kept his head lowered, his hands kneading together on his knees.
“Ninth Prince.”
“…Mm.”
“Look at this list. Thirty thousand taels broken into seven or eight vague entries. The money goes out—but whether anything was accomplished, how far it got, or whether it was skimmed along the way—can you verify any of it?”
Yin Jiu didn’t answer.
He couldn’t. Matters of the Eighth Prince were things he neither checked nor dared to check.
“Advisor Shen,” Ning Nuannuan turned back to the bearded man, “the thirty thousand taels can be given.”
Both Yin Jiu and Advisor Shen looked up at her at the same time.
“But there are three conditions.”
Ning Nuannuan raised three fingers.
“First, an IOU must be written. No matter how close the Eighth and Ninth Princes are, put the amount, date, and repayment deadline clearly on paper. That’s basic business practice—it’s nothing shameful.”
Advisor Shen’s lips trembled.
“Second, no shadow accounts. The destination of the money must have supporting documentation—where it was spent, how much, and who handled it. Compile a list and send it back. The Ninth Prince’s money doesn’t fall from the sky—there must be a record when it’s spent.”
Advisor Shen’s goatee trembled like a sieve.
“Third—”
“Consort!” Advisor Shen finally couldn’t hold back, his voice rising. “The Eighth Prince is engaged in great undertakings! Great matters don’t fuss over details! What kind of relationship do the Eighth and Ninth Princes have? They are brothers who would risk their lives for each other! If you nitpick like this—”
“Nitpick what?” Ning Nuannuan tilted her head.
“You’ll damage the bond between brothers!”
Ning Nuannuan picked up the half-bitten apple from the table and weighed it lightly in her hand.
“Advisor Shen, the bond you speak of—is it the kind where the Eighth Prince borrows money without writing an IOU? Or the kind where he spends the Ninth Prince’s money without providing accounts?”
Advisor Shen was speechless.
Ning Nuannuan set the apple back down.
“These are the three conditions. Go back and discuss them with the Eighth Prince. If he agrees, the silver can be taken anytime. If not—”
She stood and walked to the doorway.
“Then forget it. The Ninth Prince’s residence recently uncovered an eight-thousand-tael deficit and is plugging holes. It’s only reasonable that thirty thousand taels can’t be spared.”
Advisor Shen sat there, his smile completely gone. He tucked the paper back into his sleeve, stood up, and cupped his hands toward Yin Jiu.
“Ninth Prince, this matter… I will report back to the Eighth Prince.”
“…Mm.” Yin Jiu’s voice was low.
Advisor Shen left.
Only two people remained in the study.
Yin Jiu sat in his chair, staring at the table. His expression was complicated—his lips pressed downward, brows tightly furrowed, a vein pulsing at his temple.
“What you did today… Eighth Brother won’t be pleased,” he said without looking up.
“Whether he’s pleased is his business. The money is yours.”
“If what you said just now reaches his ears—”
“Let it.” Ning Nuannuan leaned against the doorframe. “Think about his reaction. Either he agrees to the three conditions and properly writes an IOU and receipts, or he refuses—and you save the money. Which outcome is better for you?”
Yin Jiu looked up.
“You’re not afraid of offending Eighth Brother?”
“I am,” Ning Nuannuan answered with a single word, then added, “but I’m more afraid of you draining yourself dry and ending up with nothing.”