Consort Li and Zhan Shide trembled. The emperor before them had been on the battlefield, seized the throne, and killed his brothers. When the emperor was angry, millions of corpses would float in the water.
Bai Qing remained silent. Consort Li's legs went weak, and she knelt down, her voice trembling as she said, "Your Majesty, she's still just a child..."
Bai Yan looked at her mother with a puzzled expression: "Father, did I say something wrong?"
She was absolutely right.
Bai Qing chuckled. Yes, they were family. It was precisely because he was her god-like father that she dared to speak the truth: "Tianfu, you're right. I cannot entrust this matter to outsiders. My border troops need silver and clothing. The first sum of money brought by the spinning wheel must not be touched by anyone else."
He didn't want to waste any more time, and he didn't want the spinning wheel to get caught up in factional strife again.
He took out a token from his person: "This decree is as if I were here in person. Tianfu, are you willing to promote this new spinning wheel for your father?"
"Me!" Bai Yan exclaimed in surprise.
Bai Qing chuckled: "Didn't you just say that I am the greatest emperor of all time? Aren't you going to act like a delicate young lady? Aren't you one of my own? Why don't you dare to do that now?"
The young man was too excited to resist. Bai Yan stepped forward, knelt down, and accepted the token: "Your subject accepts the decree!"
Bai Qing appointed Zhan Shide as his deputy to assist the Sixteenth Princess in promoting the new spinning wheel. This matter was kept secret until the success was achieved.
...
After the scene, Consort Li was covered in a cold sweat. When she turned around, she saw that her daughter had already picked up a teacup and skillfully poured a cup of hot tea for the two of them.
She clicked her tongue: "How dare you?" How dare you say such things in front of His Majesty?
"If I don't speak up, how could Father Emperor entrust this task to me?" Favor is not a long-term solution; money and power are.
She brought out the textile machine not to benefit others.
To get an emperor like Bai Qing to use her, she had to be smart, but not too smart. Her straightforward personality and her admiration for her father were the personas she created for herself.
Moreover, she has advantages that others do not have: first, she and Consort Li have no maternal family; second, she is a woman, so Bai Qing does not need to worry about her seizing power. The only person she can trust and rely on is her father.
She turned back to look at Consort Li, smiling as she took her hand: "Mother, would you like to be promoted?"
Consort Li had no time to think about this: "Ayan, I'm a little panicked. Is this something really serious? Are you sure you can handle it?"
Bai Yan held the token symbolizing imperial power in her hand: "It will succeed."
...
Meanwhile, Madam Jin had already entered the palace to pay her respects to the Empress.
Empress Jin has been ill since this autumn, and it has been three months now. When she saw her sister-in-law coming to pay her respects, she asked someone to hold up the curtain and waited for her to come in, despite her illness.
Madam Jin paid her respects to the Empress, but noticed the paleness on her face that even her makeup couldn't conceal: "Has Your Majesty's health not improved yet? Is it because the imperial physicians haven't been taking good care of you?"
Madam Jin waved her hand: "The imperial physician can cure the illness, but he can't cure the heart."
Madam Jin then realized it was still about the Crown Prince. The floods in Jiangnan had caused the Crown Prince to fail in his duties, and His Majesty had publicly criticized him in court, calling him stupid. This was more than just a reprimand of the Crown Prince.
"Your Majesty need not worry too much. After all, His Majesty only has the Crown Prince as his heir." Madam Jin's words hit the nail on the head.
Bai Qing has many children, or more accurately, many princesses, but he only has one son, the Crown Prince.
Jin's complexion improved slightly, and she asked again, "What brings you to the palace, sister-in-law?"
"Isn't it all because of my good-for-nothing son?" Madam Jin only mentioned that Bai Yan threw her drunk son out of the bedroom in the middle of the night, without mentioning his crazy talk.
Jin Chang'an is the Empress's nephew. How could she not feel sorry for him when she learned that he was freezing in the middle of the night?
“This girl used to be so well-behaved when she paid her respects to Consort Li in front of me…” Madam Jin’s face was grim: “Seeing how well-behaved she was, and wanting the Jin family to avoid trouble, I agreed to this marriage. I never expected her to be such a mischievous person.”
"Did your sister-in-law come today hoping I would discipline her for you?" Jin asked.
"She may be shameless, but I am not," Madam Jin said coldly. "Your Majesty, she is right about one thing: she has nothing to lose but she is not afraid of those who have shoes to wear. The Jin family and the Crown Prince are not like that. At this critical juncture, we must not let her ruin our reputation any further."
"Please grant me a nanny to discipline me. I didn't learn the rules in the palace, so I'll have her learn them outside the palace."
"Only after she has lost her temper can she become a daughter-in-law of the Jin family."
Madam Jin nodded: "Very well." She was currently preoccupied with the Crown Prince's affairs and was truly too preoccupied to attend to everything.
...
After Madam Jin entered the palace, the Empress quickly bestowed upon her a nanny and several maids under the pretext of discipline. Coupled with the rumors that circulated, it soon became known that the Sixteenth Princess was arrogant and disrespectful to her mother-in-law.
Because of her status as a princess, Madam Jin was unable to discipline her and had no choice but to go to the palace to plead with the Empress.
The entire palace belongs to the emperor, including the harem. No sooner had Madam Jin left than Bai Qing learned of this news.
"The Empress has become increasingly confused during her illness."
He was naturally displeased. Regardless of whether Tianfu was working for him, the emperor, she was his own princess, and the Jin family had to respect her no matter how unfavored she was!
But the spinning wheel matter is the priority right now, and Bai Qing doesn't want any complications... Besides, it might not be a bad thing for Tianfu to keep some distance from the Jin family.
The sixteenth princess, Bai Qing thought of those bright eyes. She was intelligent, upright, and remarkably understood his political beliefs... What a pity, what a pity, that she was a girl.
"Go and find someone to take care of the princess. Make sure she doesn't suffer any great loss," Bai Qing instructed.
Grand Eunuch: "Yes, Your Majesty."
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