Yun Ye discovered that many inventions were actually just flashes of inspiration in the mind. Take matches, for instance. This was something that required many hands to do well—it didn’t need high-level skills or much cleverness, just hardworking endurance. What Great Tang lacked least was hardworking and enduring people. For commoners who faced the yellow earth with their backs to the sky, whose sweat split into eight pieces yet still couldn’t fill their bellies, making matches might not even count as labor. New industries created new wealth—this was the best way to solve the problem of feeding women and children.
Dan Ying took the match and struck another one himself. The flame still emerged, illuminating his eyes brightly. Then he pulled out an exquisite dagger from his bosom and presented it to Yun Ye with both hands: “This is a relic my mother left me. I’ve never parted with it. Now I’ll use it as collateral for Dan Ying’s debt to the Yun Family. After the debt is repaid, I’ll come back for this blade.” After speaking, he turned his head away, using tremendous willpower to let go of the knife.
“Of course. You’ve borrowed so much money from me—how can there be no collateral?”
Yun Ye took the blade and pressed the spring mechanism. The knife immediately extended an inch. The snow-bright blade was coated with a thin layer of grease. Drawing the knife, Yun Ye casually performed two flourishes, then chopped down a small branch in mid-air. The blade remained undamaged, but Dan Ying watched with his heart bleeding.
After performing some unknown knife technique, Yun Ye inserted the blade into its sheath and casually tossed it back to Dan Ying, saying, “Remember, this blade is now mine. I’m just entrusting it to your safekeeping. Don’t lose it.”
Without looking at Dan Ying’s face filled with surprise and joy, he went to meet Xinyue, who had just finished her meeting. He thought to himself: they’re all country bumpkins, treating that broken blade as more important than life itself, as if everyone wanted to steal their treasure—like a dry biscuit in a beggar’s hand or a bone in a vicious dog’s mouth. However, when Yun Ye saw the gracefully swaying Xinyue emerge from the room, his mood couldn’t help but improve greatly. This was this old man’s bone—whoever tried to snatch it would pay with their life.
They stayed in Luoyang for three days. Madam Hou specially invited Xinyue to visit a wealthy household to see their specially cultivated summer peonies—actually summer tree peonies. In the early years of Great Tang, there weren’t so many distinctions; they were all called peonies.
Other people’s peonies bloomed in April or May, but this family’s peonies bloomed in June. It was said that several plants could bloom twice a year—truly miraculous. As soon as Xinyue returned, she lingered on the topic, pestering Yun Ye for peonies. She said the several deep purple peonies would suit her perfectly and would look beautiful worn in her hair. Xinyue was a very disciplined woman who never pestered Yun Ye for this or that. What was wrong these past few days? Had she become fragile?
But this was indeed the Yun Family temperament—unable to learn elegance, they single-mindedly focused on practicality without looking back. Seeing that in another day or two the flowering period would pass and those beautiful figures would turn to mud, Xinyue felt it was a pity. She thought that rather than letting them naturally fall off, it would be better to wear them as hair ornaments. The Yun Family had a medicinal solution that could keep fresh flowers from wilting for four or five days.
Xiao Qiu, who accompanied Xinyue, had hinted several times to the host family, but the Song family, who grew the flowers, pretended not to understand, leaving the mistress and servant quite embarrassed. Since his wife, who never asked for anything, had spoken up, Yun Ye thought his wife was right—even if he had to rob them, he would get them back.
He called the steward and the manager. After hearing Yun Ye’s account, Qian Tong and Manager Bai became furious. The mistress had said she very much wanted those peonies and planned to take them back, soak them in medicinal solution, and wear them in her hair. That family’s master was ignorant—he didn’t know to quickly cut them and send them to the young mistress to wear. Having his family’s flowers worn by the young mistress gave his family face. This was intolerable! They’d never seen anyone so clueless. How did such a person manage to build such a large estate?
The steward wasn’t yet familiar with Luoyang affairs, but the manager was first to explode. Full of righteous indignation, he cursed the Song family for having no sense, only knowing how to grow peonies. For eight generations, they’d treated a few broken flowers as more important than life. He would personally go to the Song family to pick flowers, picking all the beautiful blooms so the young mistress could change them daily, rather than letting those peonies be buried in obscurity.
Xinyue nodded in agreement there, continuously encouraging the manager to pick more—those yellow ones and pink ones were also beautiful. When the time came, she’d share some with Little Niu’s wife and Cheng Chumo’s concubine.
Watching Manager Bai leave murderously with several guards, Yun Ye said, “We husband and wife are truly a perfect match. Your husband cuts down people’s tea trees, and my wife picks people’s famous flowers. The two complement each other beautifully—ha ha, truly wonderful! By the way, wife, aren’t you afraid people will call us flower-stealing thieves?”
Xinyue covered her mouth and laughed, saying, “Husband is the famous one of the Three Scourges of Chang’an. If this wife’s reputation is too good, that won’t do! This world values wives following their husbands.”
Twisting Xinyue’s nose, Yun Ye turned his back and looked at the pomegranates for a while. Seeing they showed no signs of ripening after two days, he turned back and said slowly, “You—I don’t know why you’re so anxious. Won’t all the family affairs eventually be handed over to you anyway? Grandmother is getting old. Since we got married, she’s stopped managing household matters, hasn’t she? Isn’t she letting you have your way? So why are you forcing Manager Bai in Luoyang to death so early?”
Xinyue unnaturally twisted her handkerchief and moved closer to Yun Ye, saying, “Your concubine doesn’t dislike Grandmother managing too many things. She loves me so much. Won’t all the household’s things eventually be handed over to me anyway? Your concubine is just worried about falling behind and no longer pleasing you.”
Yun Ye said in astonishment, “Falling behind whom? Who could get ahead of you?”
“Husband doesn’t know—the grassland income is very large. Five hundred yaks have been transported to the interior. The wool you mentioned, they’ve also started shipping it. This autumn, the first batch of wool will be transported back. Master Gongshu at the Academy is already figuring out how to spin wool into thread and finally weave it into fabric. Before we departed, Master Gongshu sent someone to deliver a small bolt of fabric. It’s still very coarse now, but the old master says that as long as he continues researching, he’ll definitely weave soft and delicate fabric.”
“Your concubine’s natal family does silk business. How could I not know the profit in this? Moreover, besides transportation and processing costs, wool requires no capital investment. Your concubine has calculated it—this is a huge fortune that will eventually be higher than all the household’s income.”
“And that damned Li Anlan—you paved her a golden road to pick up money. All her business requires no capital. Only your concubine is pitiful. The Yun Family estate needs reputation, Chang’an needs reputation. If we’re not a little better to the tenant farmers, you get angry, and Grandmother gets angry too. Think about it—in all of Chang’an, whose hired workers and tenant farmers get such wages? All this must be factored into the capital costs.”
“Those two have it good. One picks up laborers all over the world—giving them a meal counts as great virtue. The other simply leads soldiers to be bandits—business with no capital investment. Your concubine does honest business—how can I compare to them?”
Yun Ye’s face turned as red as Duke Guan’s from Xinyue’s litany of complaints. Every word and sentence said that Yun Ye was a heartless scoundrel who gave all the benefits to dubious women outside while leaving his legitimate wife at home to suffer alone.
“What nonsense! I only married one wife. Don’t talk about things that don’t exist. Those are just two unfortunate women.”
“Unfortunate? You’ve already had a child from your misfortune! Your concubine, the principal wife, has a flat belly instead. The one from the grassland will come to Chang’an this autumn, also to give you a child. Husband, truly great skill!” After speaking, she even pulled out a letter and waved it around.
Yun Ye snatched it away and gave Xinyue’s bottom a slap, glaring and saying, “Look at how spoiled you’ve become—no manners at all! You’ve even started secretly reading my letters!”
If it were other matters, Xinyue would still be somewhat afraid. But when it came to household affairs, she dared to charge single-handedly into the heavenly palace. She had propriety on her side—just saying a few words, who knew she’d get beaten? Originally wanting to cry, she immediately stopped. She raised her neck forty-five degrees, gazing at the sky without speaking.
Ignoring this silly woman—she didn’t know what was wrong these past two days, her temper was just extremely volatile—he quickly pulled out the letter. The grassland sustained Yun Ye’s hopes. Whether the grassland and interior could be tightly linked together to become a common chain of interests depended on whether Na Rimu could supply large quantities of wool each year. Once this matter succeeded, it would be a terrifying nightmare for the grassland peoples.
Since Europe could stage the tragedy of “sheep eating people,” there was no reason that vast expanse of grassland couldn’t experience the same. The Han people didn’t lack the power to invade the grasslands—they lacked sufficient interest. With sufficient interest, even if all the grassland people hid in marmot holes, Great Tang soldiers with red eyes needing people to herd their sheep would dig them out one by one and send them to their pastures.
The wilderness would no longer be wilderness. Barren lands would become gardens flowing with milk and honey. Cowards would become invincible warriors. From the Mongolian grasslands to the Arctic lands, all would be Great Tang’s pastures.
Na Rimu had done excellently. The cattle and sheep had increased greatly, and she was very good at handling affairs. She would send some picked-up cattle and sheep to the military camp from time to time. The things Yun Ye had the caravan send to the grasslands, some were also given to the border troops, so she had excellent relations.
As for the commanders suddenly discovering their families had a small pasture with dozens of sheep wandering around—allegedly their own—Na Rimu was merely herding cattle and sheep belonging to them. As for this pasture, the rough soldiers in the camp traced their thick fingers across the smallest map and discovered that the pasture General Li Jing originally allocated to Na Rimu was exactly that large. No mistake—if you don’t believe it, look at the route traced by my finger. Isn’t it exactly the same as the General’s?
The number of people picking up cattle and sheep suddenly increased, especially the border troops. They also started picking up cattle and sheep on the grasslands. Several times, they picked up several hundred head in Xueyantuo territory.
This must be Huan Niang’s idea. A young girl tempered into an old woman in the scheming circles had unleashed all her wisdom’s brilliance. No wonder she refused to return to the Central Plains—she wanted to test her abilities.
Yun Ye laughed despite himself. They were all people who shone brightly with a little sunshine. There were too many talented people in this world!
“What are you laughing at? Your little mistress’s words are heartwarming?”
Yun Ye turned his head. Xinyue, who had just been gazing at the sky, was now leaning on his shoulder, her bright black and white eyes staring at him.