Volume 1 Princess Taiping Grows Up Chapter 71 Influence
Li Zhi's deep voice resounded throughout the Qianyuan Hall, and even echoed in this huge palace with high ceilings.
However, the moment the words came out, the ministers on both sides were all stunned.
The scholars who were kneeling in front of the desk and preparing to write all looked up in surprise. Some of them opened their eyes wide, and some opened their mouths slightly.
I don't know whether I was doubting whether I had heard it wrong or the emperor had said it wrong.
One of the elderly scholars could not control himself. His hand shook and a drop of ink fell on the paper in front of him and gradually spread to the surroundings.
Li Yuechen was leaning against the wall behind the screen with a comfortable look on his face, one leg on the ground and the other slightly bent and stepping on the wall.
However, the moment he heard these words, his legs went weak and he almost fell to the ground.
She also opened her eyes wide, took two steps forward, and stuck half of her head out from behind the screen to look at Li Zhi who was sitting on the dragon throne.
Li Zhi did not turn around to look at her, but just looked at the astonished ministers and scholars below with an expressionless face, and the health ball in his hand slowly rotated.
It was impossible for the emperor to repeat his words a second time. No matter what they thought, Li Zhi had no need to explain to them.
Li Yuechen, who was behind the screen, shuddered all over and got goose bumps.
She instinctively felt that Li Zhi's question was directed at her!
Damn, I didn’t seem to have done anything, did I? Didn’t I just invent some games and write a magical version of Journey to the West?
Thinking about it carefully, Li Yuechen has always felt that his actions for so long have basically been based on the theme of "playing".
Although they are studying the problem of food production, it has not been successful yet, right? What if it fails?
Li Yuechen thought carefully. Up to now , it seemed that he had not invented anything earth-shattering.
The health ball doesn't count, and the curved plow is just a minor modification. As for punctuation marks, there are similar things in this era, and I just perfected them at most...
She scratched her head and pondered behind the screen. She couldn't figure out what she had done to make Li Zhi ask such a question to the Jinshi...
The most important question is what to do next? Play dumb? Not likely.
Now that the established impression has been formed, it would seem a bit deliberate to pretend to be stupid at this time.
What if I leave an impression of being cunning and scheming in my parents’ minds? My future days will definitely be very difficult!
So the most important thing to do now is to maintain the status quo. Anyway, the impression of filial piety is here, so it doesn’t matter even if you are a little smarter, right?
What parents are afraid of is not intelligence, but threat!
As long as you are sure that you pose no threat to them, it doesn't matter how smart you are!
Of course, Li Yuechen was not the only one who was thinking about this matter. Not to mention the scholars who were responsible for answering the questions, the ministers in the hall were also communicating with each other through eye contact about this matter.
Instead, only Li Yuechen's master Liu Rengui was standing in the front, looking calm and composed, with his eyes closed, as if he didn't hear anything.
Li Yuechen subconsciously bit her lower lip and tried to think about it, but whether it was because of her young age or her natural beauty, there was no dead skin on her lips to bite, and she felt a little irritated for a moment.
Li Zhi didn't even look at her. Li Yuechen thought about it and decided to go back first. Anyway, no matter how those Jinshi answered, it had nothing to do with her.
In her opinion, since the emperor could ask such a question on the spot, he probably already had an idea in mind.
…
Li Yuechen was still a little distracted after returning to Anfu Hall. He did not enter the hall, but sat in Linbo Pavilion by himself, watching the fish occasionally swimming in the pond below and continued to think.
Li Zhi didn't know what was wrong with him. He actually asked such a question.
In Li Yuechen's opinion, the second half of the question is the key point.
Because women leading troops to fight had already existed during the reign of Emperor Gaozu, but serving as officials in the court... was truly unheard of.
Nowadays, women can only be palace officials, which means officials in the imperial palace, such as the Shangyi Bureau or the Shanggong in the Ye Ting Palace.
The rank of this kind of female official ends at fifth rank and there is no way to go any higher.
But entering the court is different. It means officially entering the political center of the empire, which is completely different.
"Your Highness, Your Highness?" Shangguan Wan'er's voice sounded beside him.
"Um?"
Li Yuechen came back to his senses and turned his head: "What's the matter?"
"I just saw Your Highness sitting here in a daze, so I wanted to remind you that the weather is not yet hot, so be careful not to catch a cold..." Shangguan Wan'er replied in a low voice.
Li Yuechen nodded: "That's true... Let's go back."
This problem cannot be thought about too much. The more you think about it, the more headache it will get. Let's just wait and see what happens.
Anyway, for now, Li Zhi should have no other intentions. Maybe he just thinks his daughter is smart and doesn't want to waste her talent.
…
In the blink of an eye, more than twenty days passed, and the land inside Anfu Hall was already planted with seedlings.
At the same time, a new shop opened next to the Nanshi Candy and Fruit Shop, but there was no plaque on the door frame.
There was just a wooden sign at the door with the word "soap" written on it.
Wang Xiang was also in charge of this shop. On the opening day, he placed a wooden basin outside the door for the crowd to wash their hands.
In the next few days, the news that a new soap that leaves the whole body fragrant after washing appeared in Nanshi spread throughout Dongdu.
The price is a little bit expensive, twenty Kaiyuan Tongbao coins for one, but it can be used for a long time, and for the powerful families, it is really not a lot of money.
Soon, bars of soap were bought and found their way into the homes of the rich and powerful.
It is pure white and smells fragrant. There are two bars on both sides with the word "soap" written on them.
Many people can tell that this is the handwriting of the current queen!
That’s right, this is what Li Yuechen asked her mother to write for advertising purposes, and there is no need to pay any additional endorsement fees.
The soap soon became popular throughout the Eastern Capital, and gradually began to flow in small quantities to other cities such as Chang'an and Yangzhou...
In Anfu Palace, Li Yuechen directly captured his sister, Princess Xuancheng, and asked her to settle the score with him.
At present, these accounts are not difficult for her at all, they just take a little time.
However, Princess Xuancheng seemed to be quite interested in this, and she always concentrated on calculating various numbers.
Li Yuechen was very happy about this. Her sister helped wholeheartedly and didn’t care about the salary. It was so cool!
Of course, Li Yuechen couldn't let her work for nothing. After all, she was one of his own and couldn't be treated like an animal.
Just as I was about to go out for a walk, Xiao He suddenly came over and said, "Your Highness, the 'moisturizing cream' I used up last time has run out."
"Oh?" Li Yuechen turned his head and said, "Call those palace maids to Linbo Pavilion."
“Yes!”
Xiao He agreed and turned to leave. About ten minutes later, she came to Linbo Pavilion with ten palace maids.
It was the first time they met the princess, but since everyone knew that the princess was kind and easy to talk to, they were not restrained.
Li Yuechen sat on the railing with her back against the pillar, one foot on the railing, her arms on her knees, and the ponytail behind her head swaying slightly in the breeze.
After the maids unpacked their luggage, they raised their hands and said, "No need to be polite. I called you here today just to let you tell me how it feels "
Although they were somewhat puzzled by the princess's sitting posture, the palace maids naturally did not dare to say much. After turning their heads to look at each other, they started talking about their feelings, starting with the first one.
"Recently, I have been applying makeup on my face before going to bed every night, and I feel refreshed when I wake up in the morning..."
"It seems like her face is glowing, and she looks much better."
"My face doesn't feel as dry as before, it feels a lot smoother."
…
Listening to the palace maids' feedback, Li Yuechen nodded: "For example, if you have some spare money, would you be willing to buy this?"
A maid replied immediately: "If I have ten coins, I am willing to spend five coins to buy it."
Li Yuechen lowered his head and thought for a while, then waved to Xiao He: "I have ten bottles under my table, go get them."
"Yes!" Xiao He agreed, went into the hall and took out ten small porcelain bottles.
"I'm giving these to you. After you use them, come back and let me see the effects." Li Yuechen said.
The ten palace maids were very happy and bowed one after another, saying, "Thank you, Your Highness, for the reward!"
After they left, Li Yuechen waved to Xiao He and said, "When I went to get it just now, I saw there were two bottles under the table, right? You and Zheng Shi should try them recently. After you use them, tell me the effects and feelings."
"Thank you for your reward, Your Highness!" Xiao He also smiled happily.
She had seen the recent changes in the palace maids, but since Li Yuechen didn't say anything, she didn't dare to ask for anything.
Now that she has it too, she naturally feels very happy.
Li Yuechen smiled and said, "Tell me when you're done. There will be plenty more in the future!"
"Yes, I obey your command!" Xiao He crossed her fingers together, her eyes curved, and she lowered her head and chuckled.
…
The next day , Li Yuechen practiced as usual and sent Fulai to the workshop to get some glycerin to continue to improve the moisturizing cream experiment.
As long as this thing is completed, we can make a lot of money every year by selling it.
After practicing, Xiao He had prepared hot water and Li Yuechen went to take a bath.
Soaking in hot water with various medicinal herbs added, Li Yuechen breathed a sigh of relief.
At the same time, I was thinking about how to make a bath towel in this era. When the time comes, I can put some sea salt and goat milk on my body and apply it. That would be so comfortable.
Xiao He was standing by the wooden barrel, using a newly made cotton towel to wash her body, when suddenly, she heard footsteps.
Li Yuechen turned around and saw that it was Shangguan Wan'er who ran in: "Your Highness, Eunuch Fu wants to see you."
"Ask him in!" Li Yuechen waved his hand.
After a while, Fu Lai's voice sounded behind the screen: "Your Highness."
"Is there something?" Li Yuechen changed his position, lying on the edge of the wooden barrel, and let Xiaohe help him wipe his back.
"There have been a lot of new faces in Jixianfang recently, and their behavior is suspicious. They must be coming for the workshop." Fulai replied in a low voice.
"Are there a lot of people?" Li Yuechen asked.
"Not much." Fu Lai replied, "But this should only be responsible for investigation. If..."
Li Yuechen laughed and said, "Don't worry. With the army guarding day and night, I don't think they dare to do anything."
"I am worried that this villain might covet the formula, so why not let me capture him and interrogate him."
Are you crazy? They arrested and tortured people who did nothing and didn't even come close?
Li Yuechen felt that this was a bit too much, and exhaled lightly: "No need, as long as they don't get close and don't take action, you don't have to worry about it. If they really take action, then you can handle it yourself."
“Yes!”
This kind of thing was actually within Li Yuechen's expectations. After all, the huge profits generated by something like soap are imaginable.
It was normal for some people to be jealous. Since she was a princess, they certainly didn't dare to rob her openly, so they could only do some small tricks in secret.
She never thought that because she was a princess, these people would not dare to touch her property. After all, as the saying goes, people die for money!
It’s such a big piece of cake, and you’d really be letting yourself down if you don’t come out and grab a bite.
Not to mention that this is an era of aristocratic politics. The big families have extremely deep foundations and support many loyal warriors, so they don't have to worry about being betrayed.
Therefore, even if they robbed or kidnapped people in the workshop to forcibly obtain the formula, even if the royal family was angry, they would just let it go.
Even if you are an emperor, you cannot chop off someone's head without evidence or reason.
The profit of this thing is much greater than that of canned food, so it is not impossible to do such a thing.
Fortunately, there are troops guarding there, and Li Yuechen believes that they would not dare to confront the army head-on.
So she doesn't need to worry about this issue.
After taking a shower and changing into clean clothes, Li Yuechen wrapped a towel on his head and went to the yard to check on the seedlings.
While I was waiting for my hair to dry, I was wondering if I should put some ducks in there to get rid of the insects or something.
…
On the other side, Li Zhi and Wu Zetian in the Renshou Hall also received the same news.
"Heh..." Li Zhi laughed as he rolled up the health ball. "It seems some people can't resist the temptation."
"If you don't do it directly, you don't have to care about them." Wu Zetian shook her head, her expression helpless but with a hint of smile, "Comparatively, look at these memorials, all of them ridicule Chen'er, short of naming him by name."
"Humph... You mock the princess for competing with the people for profit, but you don't think about yourself." Li Zhi waved his hand fiercely: "Come here!"
Zhang Chengxin, who was at the door, walked in quickly: "What do you want, Saint?"
"Take all these memorials and burn them for me! Don't leave them here to obstruct the eyesore!"
“Yes!”
Wu Zetian smiled and said, "Do it secretly, don't let those people in the Censorate know about it!"
"Don't worry, madam!"
After Zhang Chengxin left, Wu Zetian came to sit next to Li Zhi and said, "I feel that they will not let this matter go so easily. There will be a conflict in the workshop sooner or later."
"No problem." Li Zhi said indifferently, "The troops I put there are not just for show!"
"If you ask me, this matter is also related to Zhinu." Wu Zetian said while pouring tea.
Li Zhi opened his eyes wide, raised his eyebrows, and looked like he had seen a ghost: "What does it have to do with me?"
"That day in the Qianyuan Hall you asked the Jinshi whether women could serve as officials. Didn't you know how much of an impact it would have on the court?" Wu Zetian asked back with a smile, squinting her eyes.
“…”
Li Zhi blinked, turned his head away without answering, rolled up his health ball, lay down in the rocking chair and pretended to be dead.