Seeing Chang Le's bewildered expression, Yong He stood up, leaned forward slightly, reached out and took the book from Chang Le's hand, turning it upside down.
"I won't force you to read if you don't want to, so why make things difficult for yourself?"
Chang Le gave an awkward smile, put down the book in her hand, and decided to stop pretending.
"You understand me best, my elder sister. Right now, all I can think about is my new dress, and I really can't think of doing anything else."
"Alright, alright, go and take a look at the Imperial Wardrobe Bureau yourself."
Yonghe was completely helpless with his sister, even though he knew that the embroiderers in the Imperial Clothing Bureau had complicated procedures for making dresses and that it would take them a day or two to complete them.
I had no choice but to let Chang Le go and see for herself so she could get a good night's sleep.
"Alright, Your Highness, please wait."
Before the words had even finished, the person had already run out of the palace.
The palace maids behind her dared not run away. By the time they chased after her with small, quick steps, Chang Le had already vanished without a trace.
Chang Le ran all the way to the entrance of the Shangyi Bureau, just as Jing'er came out from inside, and they almost bumped into each other.
"Your Highness, are you alright?" Jing'er quickly helped Chang Le up.
Chang Le quickly steadied herself. "It's alright, are the clothes and dress all finished?"
"No, the embroiderers are busy. I've asked around, and it will take another two days."
"Fine, we'll wait. I've been very busy these past few days." Chang Le said, turning and walking back.
Jing'er quickly followed, unable to resist asking, "Your Highness hasn't been to the Imperial Academy for two days. What are you planning to do?"
Jing'er was most afraid of her master doing important things. Every time she saw her master looking serious, she would be so nervous that every nerve in her body would be stretched like a fully drawn bow.
Chang Le slowed down and thought for a moment, "Let's go to the palace in front and see who's attending the banquet."
Inside the Yihe Hall, the melodious sound of a zither filled the air, but there were no singers or dancers in the center of the hall.
Only one musician played his zither in a corner of the palace as a accompaniment.
Xiao Jingzhao, dressed in a bright yellow robe, sat upright above, the jewels embedded in his crown gleaming.
The emperor's aura was so overwhelming that no one dared to look him in the eye.
His phoenix eyes were sharp and deep, as if they could see through everything.
Inside the main hall, foreign envoys sat on one side, while Wanling Ministers sat on the other.
Palace maids moved about the table, serving wine and dishes.
In less than a quarter of an hour, the dishes were served, and the palace maids retreated outside the hall to serve.
At this moment, Fugui led Suisui in through the side door.
He followed the pre-arranged route and went straight to sit behind the gauze curtain in the main hall.
From where he sat, he could see the entire interior of the hall, and his father's broad back was right in front of him. He only needed to reach out his hand to touch his father's back.
Xiao Jingzhao tilted his head slightly, as if to tell him, "Father knows you're here. Now you'd better watch carefully."
Xiao Jingzhao first gave a speech, the gist of which was to welcome the envoys from various countries, and to say that Wanling advocates peace and is willing to make friends with all its neighbors.
Following this, envoys from various states stepped forward to speak, offering their congratulations and blessings to the emperor, and expressing their willingness to maintain friendly relations with Wanling.
After all the envoys had finished speaking, Xiao Jingzhao raised his glass and announced the start of the banquet.
During the banquet, toasts were exchanged and conversations were lively. Ministers and envoys frequently raised their glasses, creating a harmonious and joyful atmosphere.
However, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that they were merely doing their jobs and exchanging perfunctory pleasantries.
Xiao Jingzhao was preoccupied with his son behind him, and he didn't touch a single bite of the food in front of him.
Just when he thought the banquet was over, the envoy from the northern desert stood up, cupped his hands, and asked, "Your Majesty, how does your country grow these vegetables?"
Unable to name some of the vegetables, the envoy could only point to the plate of cold tomato salad.
They were particularly impressed by the vegetables they ate along the way after entering Wanling territory.
In the south, vegetables were plentiful, but the closer they got to the capital, the more monotonous the ingredients provided by the post stations became.
The vegetables at today's banquet were so delicious, especially that plate of red food, which was slightly sweet and refreshing, leaving a lingering aftertaste.
Knowing that vegetables were scarce in northern deserts, he thought that if he could get some seeds from Wanling to benefit the people of northern deserts, the trip would not be in vain. Therefore, he braced himself and got up to ask.
Xiao Jingzhao nodded slightly, his gaze falling on the Right Chancellor below him.
The Right Chancellor rose and bowed, "The dish the envoy asked about is called tomato. The fruit is large and red. As for how it is grown, well... I can't tell you."
"Your Majesty! The Northern Desert is willing to pay a hefty sum to purchase your country's seeds and cultivation methods. We humbly request that Your Majesty refrain from doing so."
The envoy from the northern desert was extremely anxious after being rejected, and turned to Xiao Jingzhao to bow respectfully.
The Right Chancellor, unaware of the Emperor's thoughts, considered that these tomatoes were hard-won and could not be given away so easily.
Upon hearing that the northern desert was willing to spend a large sum of money to buy seeds, the Right Chancellor was somewhat tempted.
Selling some seeds won't delay Wanling's planting; this money is too good to pass up.
Before the Emperor could speak, the Right Chancellor looked troubled and said, “Envoy, please don’t be offended. It’s not that we are unwilling to part with these seeds, but these seeds are hard to come by, and it is even more difficult to grow them again.”
Hearing this from behind the gauze curtain, Sui Sui wished she could rush out and personally negotiate the price.
I read books about the northern deserts while accompanying my father in the imperial study.
The area experiences little rainfall year-round, resulting in a scarcity of vegetables, but it is rich in gemstones.
My mother has a lot of seeds; if we negotiate well, we can exchange them for many sparkling gems.
The envoy from the northern desert exchanged a glance with his colleague and said firmly, "If your country is willing to part with it, my northern desert is willing to exchange it for two chests of jewels."
"this……"
The Right Chancellor looked at the Emperor and saw that the Emperor's expression was normal, as if he regarded money as dirt.
Since the emperor did not speak, the Right Chancellor could not ask in front of the foreigners.
The Prime Minister didn't quite understand where the seeds of that popular Miss Jiang came from, nor did he know how she used greenhouses to cultivate such large tomatoes.
If he were to agree without authorization, and if Miss Jiang did not cooperate by handing over the seeds and planting techniques, the Emperor would be accused of breaking his promise.
This will inevitably affect Wanling's reputation in other countries.
What was originally a matter of good relations with neighboring countries has been ruined by his own actions. It seems he will have to relinquish the position of Right Chancellor to a more capable person.
Thinking of this, the Right Chancellor hesitated.
The ministers whispered among themselves, all agreeing that exchanging two chests of jewels for seeds was the best deal imaginable.
Selling the seeds doesn't mean Wanling will run out of tomatoes.
No one knew that Xiao Jingzhao shared the same concerns as the Right Chancellor.
He didn't know where Yue Niang's seeds came from, how many she had left, how many seeds she had left in the ground, or whether she was willing to part with them.
Meanwhile, envoys from several countries across the border found that even two boxes of jewels couldn't be exchanged for a type of vegetable seed from Wanling.
Each of them was secretly plotting to get their hands on such a valuable item and claim credit for it.
Sangguo is a vast country with abundant resources, so it has no shortage of vegetables, but it doesn't have tomatoes.
The weaving techniques of the Sang Kingdom far surpassed those of the Nanzhao Kingdom. Their visit to Wanling was not only for pilgrimage but also to discuss opening trade routes and promoting commerce between the two countries.
But it's impossible to ask the Sang Kingdom to spend a lot of money to exchange for seeds. If I were to report this back, I'd probably be dragged out and beheaded as a corrupt official.
Thinking of this, the Sang Kingdom envoy glanced at everyone in the hall. Seeing that no one was looking at him, he quietly took out his handkerchief and reached for the tomato with his chopsticks.
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