The Witch in the Woods: The Transmigration of Hazel-Anne Davis Chapter 126: A Penny For Your Pride

Two ledgers sat open in front of . One detailed the official stipend granted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to the Crown Prince’s household. The other outlined the real expenses.

They didn’t match.

Not even close.

Too many courtyards. Too many servants. Too many won who thought a dozen pairs of embroidered slippers each season was a human right. The numbers bled like a gut wound.

The Crown Prince wasn’t poor—but he certainly wasn’t as rich as his won pretended.

I dipped the brush into the ink and began to write.

By the next morning, scrolls were hand-delivered to each registered concubine.

Each one contained her new monthly budget.

Each one was stamped with the seal of the Crown Princess.

And each one was, by noble standards, insultingly practical.

Food allowances were slashed. Costic imports curtailed. Servant wages capped. Entertaining guests? Forbidden without written permission.

Predictably, the first knock ca before the tea water had even boiled.

"Lady Qiao wishes to speak with you," the steward said, eyes avoiding mine.

"Let her in."

Lady Qiao entered like she thought the room belonged to her. She was dressed in robin’s-egg blue with silver thread so fine it shimred when she breathed.

"My lady," she said with a curtsy so smooth I almost applauded, "I received the budget scroll this morning. I believe there may have been an error."

"There wasn’t," I said, motioning to the chair opposite .

She sat delicately. "Perhaps a misreading, then. It says here I am to receive eight taels for the month. That must be ant for the maids."

"It’s ant for you."

A beat of silence.

"I spend more than that on makeup in a week," she said, laughing lightly. "And now you expect to pay for my food? My servants? Furnish my own courtyard on just that little bit of scrap you are giving us?"

"Yes."

Her fan clicked open.

"My father would be... quite alard to hear that his daughter is expected to live like a minor concubine from the provinces."

"Then he is welco to recall you to his estate," I said.

She blinked. "I beg your pardon?"

"You are, of course, free to return to your family if life here proves too austere."

Her grip tightened on the fan.

"The Crown Prince is not rich," I added calmly. "Not compared to the Emperor. Not compared to the ministers who take bribes to look the other way. The Crown Prince is doing everything he can with what he is given and still continues to offer charity. This household will reflect his actions and his fortitude."

She tried to recover. "Surely, as the Crown Princess, you understand the importance of presentation. We represent the Crown Prince’s dignity."

I smiled.

"And we will do so... beautifully and frugally."

She stood, curtsied again—more stiffly this ti—and swept out in silence.

She was the first, but she was not the last.

Lady An appeared just after the sun reached the roof tiles.

"So of us ca here with a certain... expectation of dignity," she said, her voice breathy and innocent. "A reduction of costics is one thing, but to limit servant rotations to three per courtyard? So of us have delicate constitutions."

I took her scroll and flipped it open.

"You currently have nine."

"Only five are trained."

"You may keep the best three."

She flushed. "This feels... targeted."

"It is," I replied, sealing the scroll again. "I’m targeting waste."

She didn’t even bow when she left.

-----

By mid-morning, the courtyards were humming with restrained outrage.

I watched from my window as one girl angrily flung her scroll into the koi pond. Another was crying to a steward about a lost shipnt of imported jasmine paste.

Lady Yuan, of course, didn’t co.

She would wait. asure. Enter the stage last.

And when she did, it would be with a silk-gloved dagger and a complint on her tongue.

That was fine.

Let them co.

-----

Concubine Yun returned just after noon. She didn’t knock.

"I’ve had three won threaten to starve themselves," she said, pouring tea without asking. "One said she would rather die than wear linen this winter."

"I suggest she start digging her grave now," I said.

She smiled faintly. "You do realize you’ve just declared war?"

"I declared a budget."

"To them, it’s the sa thing."

I looked up from my ledger. "Let be clear, Yun. I don’t care if they hate . I don’t care if they whisper or wail or break mirrors over their pillows. They’ll live within their ans or they’ll leave."

She raised a brow. "And if they don’t?"

"Then I’ll make them."

Her eyes glittered. "You’re beginning to sound like you belong here."

I didn’t answer.

She already knew I did.

By evening, Lady Yuan finally arrived.

She did not knock. She did not curtsy. She walked into my receiving room like a guest of honor, her fan folded tightly in her hand.

"I see you’ve found your weapon of choice," she said, eyeing the ledgers.

"Numbers don’t lie," I replied.

"No," she said, settling into the chair opposite . "But they can be... sharpened."

She unfolded the scroll with a flick of her wrist.

"Five taels," she said, voice soft. "A girl in the outer districts spends more on wedding clothes."

"You’re not getting married," I said. "You’re living here. And until I see evidence of contribution, not consumption, five taels is generous."

She tilted her head. "Contribution. That’s an interesting word for a wife who holds the household and yet leaves no heir."

It was a low blow, delivered with elegance.

I didn’t blink.

"And yet, I still sit in the First Wife’s seat. Imagine how small you must be if you can’t dislodge even that."

That was the difference between us.

She fought with implication.

I fought with outco.

She exhaled, perfectly composed. "Shall we continue pretending we’re discussing budgets?"

I set my brush down. "No. I believe everything worth saying has been said."

She smiled.

And left.

When the room was empty again, I leaned back slightly and let the silence settle.

Yaozu erged from the shadows near the window.

"You’re bleeding them."

"I’m reminding them."

"Of what?"

"That nothing here is permanent. And everything is earned."

He nodded.

"They’re going to hate you more than they fear you."

"Then I’ll make them fear more than they hate ."

He paused.

"And after that?"

I t his gaze.

"After that, they’ll respect . Whether they want to or not."