Chapter 48
The Ministry of Works sent five foot-operated spinning wheels, one of which was intended for delivery to the Empress Dowager.
However, the Empress Dowager was so eager that upon hearing the Ministry of Works had first delivered to the residence of Concubine Liu, which was closer to the South Gate, she immediately rushed over with her entourage to see.
"Concubine Liu, has the spinning wheel arrived?" The Empress Dowager's steps even quickened.
Behind her were the Empress, Consort Li, and others who had come to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager earlier in the day.
The Empress and Consort Li had heard that Concubine Liu had presented an improved weaving machine and intentionally went to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager today, wanting to take a look.
"Your Majesty, please slow down," Consort Li said with a smile, supporting the Empress Dowager's arm. "In the past century, our silk weaving techniques have hardly changed."
"Can Concubine Liu's method change much, let alone surpass the women who weave at home regularly or the scholars at the Ministry of Works?" Consort Li dismissed Concubine Liu's so-called improved spinning technique with disdain.
If Concubine Liu could come up with something like this, what would she need to be a concubine for?
The Liu family had long been prosperous.
"Even a slight improvement of ten or twenty percent would be good," the Empress, being simple-minded, didn't catch Consort Li's disdain at all. She was eager to see the spinning wheels and eagerly walked inside.
The Empress smiled, "Mother, Consort Li means well. She's afraid that if you have high expectations, you'll be more disappointed."
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager pursed her lips, feeling a bit unhappy.
These days, she had been eagerly awaiting news from the Ministry of Works. If Concubine Liu's new machine didn't work or its effect was poor, disappointment was certain.
The Empress Dowager patted the Empress's hand, "Let's go in and see."
The group entered the Donghua Palace in grand procession.
Concubine Liu and Consort Min, who were busy around the five spinning wheels in the side hall, were startled and quickly came out to greet them.
Before they could pay their respects, Consort Li immediately criticized, "Concubine Liu, the Empress Dowager was so eager to see your improved technique that she even skipped breakfast and came all the way from the Cining Palace to the Donghua Palace."
"If your new machine doesn't work well, it'll be a big trouble!"
Hearing this, the Empress Dowager couldn't help but smile bitterly.
It was her impulsiveness that led her to come in such a hurry.
She brought a group of consorts with her, eager to see.
If the new machine proved to be useless, then this group of consorts would essentially be watching her and Concubine Liu's joke!
With that in mind, the smile on the Empress Dowager's face completely faded.
"I'm just casually strolling around."
"Alright, Concubine Liu, don't mind me, just continue."
Consort Li held the Empress Dowager's hand and watched Concubine Liu as if she were watching a play.
The expectant gaze, hoping to see her make a fool of herself, was clearly observed by Xiao Chuchu, who was held by the nanny.
Xiao Chuchu immediately vented her thoughts, "Consort Li isn't a good person at all. In the palace, she's just a weather vane."
"When Imperial Noble Fu Cha was in power, she followed behind her, causing trouble and bullying other women."
"When Imperial Noble Fu Cha fell out of favor, she followed the Empress, pretending to be powerful!"
Listening to her daughter's inner thoughts, Liu Chaniang secretly became alert.
"Despite Consort Li being my brother's foster mother, my brother was raised by her side and didn't move out until he was five, to Qianxi No.5 Residence where the princes live."
"In these five years, Consort Li hasn't shown any tenderness towards my brother!"
"My mother was slightly favored by the Empress Dowager, so Consort Li couldn't wait to suppress her. But whenever she showed favoritism towards my brother, it never reached the point of wanting to discredit his birth mother," Xiao Chuchu criticized.
Liu Chaniang sighed inwardly. Ever since her daughter mentioned that when the new emperor ascended to the throne, Cheng Qian would not meet a good end, she knew Consort Li was unreliable.
If Consort Li was truly willing to protect Cheng Qian, it wouldn't come to this.
Liu Chaniang no longer relied on Consort Li as her son's foster mother.
"Empress Dowager, please have a seat. Your timing is perfect; I was just about to try out this new spinning machine," Concubine Liu said.
The Empress Dowager raised an eyebrow.
To save face for Concubine Liu, the Empress Dowager dared not to expect too much. She casually nodded and turned her gaze to the five machines in the courtyard.
Several consorts also looked over curiously.
They saw that this wooden spinning machine was not as complicated as they had imagined.
Consort Li chuckled, "It doesn't seem impressive."
But Concubine Liu, wearing flat embroidered shoes and a narrow-sleeved purple linen garment for ease of movement, walked to the side of the new spinning machine.
With dainty features and serene facial features, she appeared like an ordinary peasant woman as she approached the new spinning machine.
First, she lifted the silk strands from the cauldron held by a palace maid, passed them through the bamboo needle eyes on the machine, then wound them around the guiding pulley lock star with practiced and fluid movements.
The silk threads obediently followed her hands and soon wound around the spool.
Concubine Liu's flat embroidered shoes immediately stepped on one of the foot pedals of the spinning machine, moving up and down rhythmically.
The creaking sound echoed, but her hands remained still as the connecting rods on the machine made the spool crankshaft rotate back and forth, merging the silk threads on the spinning machine.
"Snap—"
The Empress Dowager's calm expression turned to astonishment.
Her body in her fifties couldn't sit still anymore; she abruptly stood up, overturning the grandmaster chair behind her!
She hurried to the spinning machine, watching as Concubine Liu stepped on the pedal a few times, successfully spinning and merging the threads. Her face shone with undeniable brilliance.
"It's so convenient!"
In the past, they had to manually wind the silk strands.
Compared to this automated process where silk could be drawn and spun simply by foot, it was faster and more effortless!
The Empress Dowager couldn't help but reach out, "Concubine Liu, let me try!"
She couldn't wait any longer!
"If this spinning machine can be popularized throughout the country, our productivity could greatly increase!"
This spinning machine freed women's hands; they only needed to use their feet!
She pushed Concubine Liu aside and tried it in public.
The Empress remained unchanged in her expression, but Consort Li, who had just ridiculed Concubine Liu, looked displeased.
The other consorts had mixed expressions.
Did Concubine Liu really accomplish this?
"Empress Dowager, Concubine Liu has been sending eunuchs to the Ministry of Works these days to discuss how to make the spinning machine," Consort Min said with a smile, "After several modifications, it was finally settled."
"The spinning machines made by the Ministry of Works were originally twice the size of what they are now," Consort Min continued.
The Empress Dowager was surprised to hear this, "So big? It's probably hard for commoners to accommodate."
"Exactly, so now Concubine Liu is trying to find a way to make them smaller," Consort Min boasted on behalf of her sister.
She usually portrayed herself as devout and non-competitive.
The Empress Dowager believed it was not a lie.
At this moment, she treaded on the spinning wheel while personally experiencing it, and couldn't help but admire Concubine Liu's simple peasant attire.
"Well done, Concubine Liu, your advancement in silk weaving has truly brought extraordinary reform and convenience to silk-weaving women across the realm," the Empress Dowager praised.
With a smile full of affection, the Empress Dowager rose and took off a pair of jade bracelets from her wrist, placing them onto Concubine Liu's wrist.
The composed expression on the Empress's face just now tightened in an instant!
"Huh? Wasn't this a birthday gift from the late Emperor to the Empress?" Xiao Chuchu, with sharp eyes, noticed and became excited.
"The Empress has been longing for it but never got it. I didn't expect the Empress Dowager to give it to my mother," she exclaimed. "From now on, as long as my mother reveals this bracelet in the palace, no one will dare to mistreat her openly!"
Filial piety comes first.
In the Jing Country, even the Emperor must not show disrespect to the Empress Dowager.
"This was a birthday gift from the late Emperor or the Crown Prince to me. I've worn it for nearly forty years," the Empress Dowager said kindly as she patted Concubine Liu's hand. "Now, I'm giving it to you."
"The late Emperor must be very pleased to have a daughter-in-law like you, who seeks benefits for women across the realm and sets an example for them."
The Empress's face turned black.
Concubine Liu is indeed a role model for women, a good daughter-in-law.
But what about her, the Empress?
Does the Empress Dowager still see her as the Empress?
However, the Empress Dowager was straightforward. After rewarding Concubine Liu, she smiled and looked at the Empress and others.
"The rest of you, if you make contributions like Concubine Liu in the future, working for the benefit of the realm and deserving my praise, I will also reward you."
The Empress, Consort Li, and the other palace consorts all twitched their lips.
What does she mean?
Are they also supposed to engage in creating inventions and innovations, improving spinning wheel technology for no reason?
Are they to act as consorts or as officials!?
If Concubine Liu alone isn't enough, do they also have to follow suit?
"Oh, by the way, I heard that the Emperor granted a courtyard outside the palace to Concubine Liu for making winter clothes?" The Empress Dowager pondered and then waved her hand. "In that case, I don't need this new spinning wheel immediately. Take these five spinning wheels, Concubine Liu, and bring them outside the palace to work."
"Furthermore, let the Ministry of Works produce more of them and promote them among the common people as soon as possible."
Saying so, the Empress Dowager walked out with her entourage. "I have two maidservants in the palace who are also skilled at making clothes. I'll call them for you. Concubine Liu, you take them and do the work together, making more winter clothes before it snows."
"Yes, Your Majesty. This servant obeys," Concubine Liu curtsied.
This time, it was sincere, not just following palace rules.
After breakfast, Concubine Liu took the Empress Dowager's two maidservants, her own palace maidens, and the wet nurse out of the palace.
Consort Min held Xiao Chuchu tightly and refused to let go, and the wet nurse wouldn't yield either.
It wasn't until they left the palace and settled in the granted mansion courtyard that Consort Min lowered her head and kissed Xiao Chuchu's tender cheek.
"Little Chuchu, look, who's here? It's your mother's close friend from her maiden days."
Yawning, Xiao Chuchu followed Consort Min's gaze and was astonished.
She saw a stunning woman, with striking features, but at the moment, her face was gaunt, and her clothes hung loosely on her body.
It was none other than Min Rou, the daughter-in-law whom Zhou WuXin, the former third-ranked official, had once bullied and whom Master Liu had rescued!
Xiao Chuchu was greatly astonished. "Wow, how did you become so thin, beautiful lady?"
Min Rou, who was about to bow, froze for a moment, her eyes trembling slightly.
Who, who was speaking?