"Since you know your limits, then handle it yourself."
As long as she didn't bring up the matter of the Eldest Prince of Bei Xiang insulting His Majesty after being poisoned, or the fact that the Empress conspired with the prince to drug Yun Shu—
—Emperor Xuanwu was willing to overlook the rest.
With His blessing secured, Yun Shu offered her thanks, then cheerfully turned and left, eager to return and draft the article she intended to add last-minute to tomorrow's edition of the Capital Weekly.
Emperor Xuanwu had originally planned to mention one more matter to her, but seeing her in such high spirits, He couldn't be bothered anymore.
Only after Yun Shu's figure vanished from sight did He retract His gaze and return to the memorials left unfinished on His desk.
"You. A fine of five hundred. Dismissed."
Yun Chuhuan: "???"
He looked around the room, confirming that no one else was present. The Emperor's words were clearly directed at him.
His expression collapsed.
"What?! But Father Emperor, You used to at least have a reason!
This time, I didn't do anything at all! Why am I being fined again?!"
"You want a reason?"
Emperor Xuanwu didn't even look up as He replied, His voice impassive.
"Which foot did you step in with just now?"
Knew it!
Yun Chuhuan's face fell. He drooped like a wilting flower, mouth downturned in resignation.
"Your son…"
"Improper decorum before the throne," Emperor Xuanwu interrupted flatly.
Yun Chuhuan: "?"
He hadn't even answered yet!
Did Imperial Father just guess?
…
Elsewhere in the palace, Yun Chuhuan, who had failed to extract any gifts from the Bei Xiang delegation and had instead lost five hundred gold, was still questioning the meaning of life—
Meanwhile, Yun Shu had returned to Fengyang Palace. After quickly finishing the article to be added to the next issue of the Capital Weekly, and dispatching it outside the palace, she finally remembered to go check the so-called compensation gifts from the Bei Xiang delegation.
"So many!"
She had already guessed that the tribute wouldn't be small, especially since it had only come after Emperor Xuanwu applied pressure.
Still, this was a lot more than she expected.
Walking up to an elegant and luminous jade ruyi scepter, Yun Shu admired it with a mix of astonishment and confusion.
"Are these really from the Bei Xiang delegation? When they set out on diplomatic missions, do they really bring this many treasures just in case?"
"Princess, those are not the Bei Xiang gifts," Ting Xue explained, pointing toward a pile tucked in the corner.
"That is the reward sent by His Majesty today."
"A reward?"
Yun Shu blinked.
"I just came from the Imperial Study and Father Emperor didn't say anything about that!"
"It is the formal investiture for Your Highness as Princess Sheng An."
Ting Xue carefully presented the imperial edict with both hands.
"At yesterday's banquet, it was only announced verbally. Now that the edict has been delivered, the title is officially bestowed."
"No wonder."
That explained why Bei Xiang was suddenly being so generous.
Yun Shu immediately instructed her attendants to move Emperor Xuanwu's rewards into her personal treasury.
When they were done, only the items from Bei Xiang remained. The contrast was striking—and thoroughly disappointing.
Her face clearly reflected her disdain.
"What is all this? A strand of tiny pearls, a couple of little bells, a morin khuur?
Are they trying to bribe a child?"
She sighed.
"They would've done better to just send me dried beef. At least I could eat that."
She had never seen such stingy compensation gifts.
Admittedly, the Bei Xiang delegation had traveled far. Most of the valuables they brought were either tribute to Tian Sheng or birthday gifts for Emperor Xuanwu. The rest were likely small trinkets meant for casual exchanges.
But still.
They were on a mission to win her forgiveness. Was it really so hard to go out into the city and buy something decent?
It was absurd.
Dispirited, she casually tugged open a small pouch. A handful of black seeds spilled across the floor.
Ting Xue bent down to examine them.
"Princess, these look like seeds of some kind."
"Zhibei?"
Likely assuming that someone as pampered as Yun Shu would have no clue what the little black seeds were, the pouch had also included a note explaining both the name and the plant's traits.
"Zhibei is an exotic flower not found within Tian Sheng's borders. Its blossoms are seven-colored. They bloom white at first, then gradually change—red, purple, pink, yellow. When the flower withers and bears fruit, the result is as soft and white as clouds, gathered into fluffy tufts that can be drawn into fine strands…"
This description sounded… oddly familiar.
A flower that changed color as it grew, with fruit that was white and fluffy and could be spun into thread…
Cotton?
Yun Shu had Ting Xue help her gather up the spilled seeds and tuck them away, then retired to her room. Reclining on her couch with her eyes closed to feign rest, she quickly sank her consciousness into the villa and pulled up her phone.
A quick search for "Zhibei" yielded:
"Zhibei, an ancient name for cotton when it was first introduced to the border regions of China.
Cotton initially arrived during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, but for a long time remained confined to those remote areas.
It wasn't until the late Song and early Yuan that it began to spread inland.
By the early Ming, under the strong promotion of the founding emperor, cotton cultivation became widespread, and the first full cotton textile industry developed during the late Qing."
She also looked up images of cotton seeds to be sure.
The seeds from Bei Xiang were, without question, cotton.
Suddenly, she no longer cared how miserly the gifts seemed.
Cotton was excellent.
Last time General Wei Yuan had come to speak with her, he'd rambled for over half an hour. Though she had wanted to flee, she had still retained much of what he said.
He had explained that winter was always the hardest time for soldiers.
Most of the troops came from poor families and couldn't afford fox or tiger pelts. The average cloth garments they wore were thin and failed to keep out the cold.
They had to layer up just to endure the weather.
But too many layers made it hard to move, let alone train.
So most of them simply wore fewer clothes and kept moving to stay warm.
That only worked when there wasn't a war.
In truth, though Tian Sheng hadn't fought any major wars in recent years, the border regions were constantly plagued by minor skirmishes.
When those flared into combat, the soldiers suffered even more.
Fighting in the snow in flimsy clothing, forced to ambush in the bitter cold—
Half the time, they'd freeze stiff before the enemy even arrived.