Click-clack, click-clack, palace consorts weave at their doors. No shuttle sounds are heard, only women’s sighs.

Why pause the weaving and sigh?

Because after Emperor Hongwu finished reading the “Records of Virtuous Song Dynasty Consorts’ Teachings,” he applauded and generously rewarded Fan Gongzheng who compiled the book. Among the rewards was a jade-green robe woven from bird feathers—light, gorgeous, and waterproof. When water was sprinkled on it and gently shaken, droplets rolled off naturally like on lotus leaves without wetting the jade robe.

Emperor Hongwu also used his red brush to mark key passages, circling admonitory warnings, ordering the Ministry of Works to create red plaques. These words were carved into iron plaques, filled with gold powder, decorated with red tassels at the bottom, and hung in every palace of the Eastern and Western Six Palaces. The consorts could see them whenever they opened their eyes…

Thus, the harem not only gained dozens of click-clacking looms but also hundreds of red plaques, becoming the most distinctive symbol of the Great Ming Hongwu court—this was the palace culture with Hongwu characteristics.

Palace instructor and talented young woman Shen Qionglian wrote a palace poem to commemorate this event:

“Mandarin tiles and ornate boxes fly through one night, iron plaques in deep palace where few sounds leak. At the palace head, imperial attendants at yellow silk tables, bestowed with jade-green robes from the southern lands.”

This poem was later included in “Ming Palace Poems” and has been passed down to this day.

Genius is genius—once Shen Qionglian made her move, others dared not pick up their brushes for fear of humiliating themselves.

With a thunderous crash, August arrived. Heavy rain fell for a day and night, continuing the next day without cease. The weather suddenly turned cool, and even those sensitive to cold put on lined clothing.

Today, Hu Shanwei would carry Empress Ma’s gifted books to meet the supposedly fierce-as-fire Princess Yan at the Prince Yan’s residence.

Before departure, seeing her inner anxiety, Fan Gongzheng draped the jade-green cloak newly bestowed by Emperor Hongwu over Hu Shanwei’s official robes and personally tied the neckband, “Clothes make the person. Dress more grandly, and Princess Yan won’t dare look down on you.”

This jade-green robe was beautiful and rain-resistant—perfect for rainy weather.

“This is an imperial gift,” Hu Shanwei didn’t dare wear it.

Fan Gongzheng pointed to her boots, “Aren’t those shoes bestowed by Empress Ma also imperial gifts?”

Hu Shanwei had done this deliberately, wearing the shoes bestowed by Empress Ma to bolster her courage. She hadn’t expected Fan Gongzheng to see through it.

Indeed, wearing this jade-green robe as light as bird wings, Hu Shanwei felt much more confident, like a general donning armor before battle, feeling protected.

Hu Shanwei said somewhat sheepishly, “Thank you, Fan Gongzheng.”

Fan Gongzheng waved her hand, “Go on.”

Rain was falling outside. A palace maid held an umbrella, escorting Hu Shanwei to a large sedan chair with blue curtains. Four sturdy female bearers wearing bamboo hats and straw rain capes carried the chair.

According to regulations, when female officials left the palace, the formal standard was a large sedan chair wrapped in blue silk curtains, carried by four female bearers. Previously, when Hu Shanwei and Jiang Quan went to buy books, prioritizing speed, a horse cart sufficed. Now she was leaving the palace alone to bestow books, requiring proper ceremony. Even in rain, she must ride in a sedan chair.

With slanting wind and dreary rain, there was a feeling of “winds blow cold over Yi River waters, the brave woman departs never to return.”

Ten pairs of Jinyiwei rode on both sides of the blue-curtained sedan for escort, also wearing various rain gear. Leading them were familiar faces Ji Gang and Mu Chun.

Seeing Mu Chun on horseback, and with everyone watching, he couldn’t speak but nodded respectfully to her.

Hu Shanwei discovered that actually, when Mu Chun didn’t speak, he was quite intimidating and appeared very reliable.

Once he opened his mouth… Hu Shanwei remembered his “Look at this pagoda, it’s both tall and big” from Leifeng Pagoda in Hangzhou and couldn’t help but smile silently.

Sister Shanwei smiled at me! Mu Chun was delighted, feeling even the heavy rain had become lovely.

Hu Shanwei boarded the sedan, and the four female bearers lifted it.

Prince Yan’s Residence had its main gates wide open with red carpets laid out to welcome Empress Ma’s gifted books. They had even temporarily erected a long covered shed to shelter the imperial gifts from rain.

Hu Shanwei alighted from her sedan and walked on the red carpet to the main hall. In the hall, Princess Yan Lady Xu had donned ceremonial robes and set up an incense table to kneel and receive her mother-in-law Empress Ma’s gifted books.

Besides Princess Yan, three of her children were also receiving Empress Ma’s edict in the main hall.

In the ninth year of Hongwu, when Princess Yan was fourteen, she married the sixteen-year-old Prince Yan Zhu Di.

The following year, in Hongwu’s tenth year, Princess Yan became a mother, bearing their eldest daughter Princess Jun’an.

In Hongwu’s eleventh year, Princess Yan bore their eldest son Zhu Gaochi.

In Hongwu’s twelfth year, she bore Princess Yongping.

Having a child each year, Princess Yan was only eighteen this year yet already mother to three children. The youngest daughter could only crawl and was held by her wet nurse during the ceremony.

After receiving the books, Princess Yan had the wet nurse take the children away and invited Hu Shanwei to take the seat of honor to begin the lecture.

Prince Yan’s residence had no concubines, only Princess Yan, so she alone attended the lecture.

This was Hu Shanwei’s first time meeting Princess Yan. Unexpectedly, she was completely different from the fierce military family tigress Hu Shanwei had imagined.

Princess Yan had thick eyebrows and large eyes, with a tall, healthy build. Her facial features faintly resembled her father, Duke Weiguo Xu Da. She listened to Hu Shanwei’s lecture quietly and gently, with a respectful expression and no trace of impatience.

Hu Shanwei even wondered: Could this be a fake Princess Yan?

Nervous and suspicious, Hu Shanwei spoke rapidly, finishing hastily in less than an hour.

Princess Yan said, “Thank you, Dianzheng Hu. I married into the imperial family at fourteen, becoming Princess Yan. My natal family has two younger sisters who will also marry into the imperial family. My father was enfeoffed as Duke Weiguo with hereditary nobility. The Xu family having three princesses brings endless wealth and glory—all imperial grace.”

“Imperial grace is boundless. Unfortunately, as a woman confined to inner quarters, I cannot fight on battlefields like my father and brothers to serve the country and repay imperial kindness. However, as Dianzheng Hu just explained, women’s duties of self-cultivation, family management, establishing proper family customs and laws, and advising family members toward virtue—remaining neither arrogant nor impetuous—are also my responsibilities. Properly constraining external relatives so Prince Yan and Their Majesties have no worries is what I should do.”

“My mother died early, and father didn’t remarry. My elder brother constantly guards borders, and my sisters are all obedient. Only one person—my younger brother Xu Zengshou—lacking a legitimate mother’s discipline from childhood, became somewhat spoiled. When I was still unwed, I could still manage him, but since marrying into Prince Yan’s residence, he’s grown increasingly outrageous, even developing gambling addiction. He’s nearly lost everything but his pants and often borrows money from Prince Yan and even two young princes. If this vice isn’t eliminated, it will certainly cause great disaster.”

Hu Shanwei deeply empathized with this. This summer while organizing books in the Category C warehouse, Xu Zengshou had actually driven three princes to hide in the storehouse to avoid his borrowing requests.

Princess Yan stood up and said, “Therefore, I’ve decided to lead by example. Today I’ll bring Lady Hu to discipline my good-for-nothing brother. Please wait while I change clothes.”

Soon, a rather handsome young gentleman approached, wearing a black hairnet and blue curved-hem robe—a round-collared gown left by Mongols from the Yuan Dynasty, with narrow sleeves and wide hem, cinched at the waist, clean and efficient, suitable for mounted archery.

Hu Shanwei startled, thinking a strange man had intruded, and grabbed her teacup.

“The rain has stopped outside. Can Dianzheng Hu ride horses?” It was Princess Yan in men’s clothing. Having removed her heavy nine-phoenix crown and robes, she seemed like a different person—heroically spirited, not at all like a woman who’d borne three children.

Was this Princess Yan’s true face?

Hu Shanwei said, “A little.” Her former fiancé had taught her.

Princess Yan said, “Then we’ll ride horses—it’s faster and prevents my brother from escaping when he hears news.”

Princess Yan had already investigated Xu Zengshou’s whereabouts and led Hu Shanwei to catch him gambling, with Prince Yan’s residence guards and Jinyiwei providing protection.

Arriving at an illegal gambling den in a manor outside the city, Princess Yan ordered the building surrounded, “Flatten this filthy place and arrest everyone.”

Prince Yan’s guards kicked down doors. The gamblers scattered like disturbed wasps, fleeing for their lives.

Xu Zengshou, as a big-spending regular customer, had been personally led to a secret room by the proprietor and escaped through a tunnel.

Emerging from the tunnel thinking himself safe, Xu Zengshou heard someone behind him say, “A crafty rabbit has three burrows—where are you planning to escape to?”

Hearing this familiar voice, Xu Zengshou knew he hadn’t escaped but had instead fallen into the “tiger’s mouth.”

Not daring to look back, Xu Zengshou ran.

Princess Yan deliberately let him run without immediately pursuing. After Xu Zengshou had run some distance, she spurred her horse forward. She knotted a rope, then raised and whirled it like lassoing a horse, accurately and firmly roping her brother.

Watching Hu Shanwei thought this was the end.

But Princess Yan showed no intention of stopping. She galloped forward while Xu Zengshou was dragged through the fields. Initially he could run a few steps to keep up, but eventually unable to match pace, he was dragged like a torn cloth.

Ah!

Xu Zengshou’s screams echoed continuously. His robes were torn away, even his pants pulled off by the mud, leaving his bare legs drawing two straight parallel lines.

There seemed to be a faint trace in the middle too.

Hu Shanwei worried, “Will something happen to him?”

Mu Chun watched like enjoying a show, fascinated by Princess Yan disciplining her brother against gambling: “He’s fine. After rain, the field soil is soft. He’ll suffer some hardship but won’t die.”

After dragging him about two hundred steps, Xu Zengshou’s clothes were completely gone, leaving only undergarments. “Big sister! Big sister, spare me! I’ll never dare again!”

Princess Yan finally stopped and asked, “Never dare what?”

Xu Zengshou cried, “Never dare gamble again!”

Princess Yan dismounted gracefully and lithely like a swallow. She drew a knife and asked, “Which hand do you usually use to place bets?”

Xu Zengshou cried, “Big sister, what are you doing?”

Princess Yan said, “Cutting it off, naturally. What’s the use of just saying you won’t gamble? Since I married into Prince Yan’s residence, I can’t watch you like before. Better to settle it once and for all—cut it off cleanly.”

Xu Zengshou screamed, “Big sister, no!”

Princess Yan said, “If you won’t say, I’ll cut off both hands! Speak—which hand?”

Xu Zengshou: “Left hand! Please don’t, big sister! I swear, I truly swear I won’t dare again, never gamble again!”

Princess Yan ignored his pleas, pressing Xu Zengshou’s left hand against a large tree. “You’ve sworn before never to gamble again, but what happened? You broke your word and borrowed money from your brother-in-law after losing. Did you think Prince Yan could really hide it from me? Gambling makes one vulnerable to manipulation. If this disaster isn’t eliminated, the Xu family will certainly face annihilation because of you!”

Watching Mu Chun felt his face burn—he had exploited exactly this weakness of Xu Zengshou’s to discover Hu Shanwei’s fiancé’s whereabouts.

Gambling addiction was indeed taboo. This time Princess Yan meant business.

Xu Zengshou cried with snot and tears streaming: “I really won’t gamble anymore. If I break my word again, I’ll chop off my own hand without big sister lifting a finger.”

Princess Yan said, “I no longer believe you.”

Xu Zengshou cried, “Big sister, please believe me one last time. For our blood kinship, believe me one last time!”

Xu Zengshou’s pleas finally had effect. Princess Yan hesitated and didn’t act.

Just when Xu Zengshou thought his sister would spare him, Princess Yan’s gaze suddenly turned stern: “I’ll trust you once more, but if you receive no punishment and easily escape consequences, you won’t learn your lesson and will certainly relapse into gambling addiction. This way—I won’t cut off your hand, just one finger.”

Without waiting for Xu Zengshou’s pleas, Princess Yan raised her knife toward his thumb and chopped down!

In that moment, Hu Shanwei closed her eyes in fright.

When she opened them, she saw Xu Zengshou rolling on the ground in agony, screaming wildly. In the black mud lay a pale finger!

Even Mu Chun was stunned: Thank goodness I don’t have a sister!

Princess Yan asked, “Does it hurt?”

Xu Zengshou nearly cried himself breathless: “It hurts!”

Princess Yan asked, “Is this pain etched in your heart?”

Xu Zengshou: “I remember! I won’t gamble anymore—not in my next life, not even if reincarnated!”

“Very good. Sister believes you one last time.” Princess Yan picked up the finger from the mud, gently broke it in two, then crumbled it to powder in her palm.

Hu Shanwei: “…”

Mu Chun: “…”

Xu Zengshou stopped crying. He spread his mud-covered hands and counted from one to ten—all fingers were still there.

But the pain of having his finger chopped off had felt so real, cutting to the bone.

The thumb wasn’t physically severed, but psychologically, it had been.

From then on, Xu Zengshou quit gambling.

Princess Yan mounted her horse in one fluid motion. Hu Shanwei followed closely, curiously asking, “Princess, that finger…”

Princess Yan smiled, pulling white finger-sized sticks from her pouch. “My youngest daughter is teething. Her gums itch, so she gnaws on everything she grabs. These are hardened little pastries I had the kitchen bake for her to teeth on—her small hands can grasp them easily. I drew some skin texture on them to look like fingers. They’re fragrant, crispy, and sweet. Try one.”

With Princess Yan being so enthusiastic, Hu Shanwei wasn’t polite.

This day was full of twists and turns, thrilling and spectacular. Hu Shanwei was amazed—she had truly learned something. Princess Yan wasn’t just the fierce, rough military family woman of rumors, but clearly a woman who knew advance and retreat, with both courage and strategy.

After returning to the palace, Hu Shanwei shared her experiences with Fan Gongzheng, her face full of admiration: “Princess Yan comes from a military family and is skilled in martial arts. She roped someone on horseback and caught Xu Zengshou in one throw—how impressive! If she were a man, she would certainly be enfeoffed as marquis and general, galloping across battlefields.”

So there were so many outstanding women in this world—she had been too sheltered before.