"Replying to Father Emperor, this daughter was making preparations for Your Majesty's upcoming Wanshou Celebration."
It was a perfect excuse to distance herself from the ever-troublesome Hu Yan Mingchuan. When Emperor Xuanwu called her name unexpectedly, Yun Shu did not mind that she had already informed him of this matter earlier. She stood and responded with a respectful bow.
"In truth, this daughter has prepared two gifts for Your Majesty."
"Oh?"
Emperor Xuanwu had only wanted to interrupt the whispering between his little cub and that pale-faced Ninth Prince of Bei Xiang, but now, his interest was genuinely piqued.
"What are these two gifts?"
"The first one is somewhat confidential. For now, only Father Emperor may view it."
Yun Shu pulled a folded piece of silk cloth from her sleeve and passed it to Li Dehai.
The gathered ministers, seeing this exchange, immediately began whispering among themselves.
"I recall that last year, Her Highness the Crown Princess gifted nothing more than a few unremarkable sheets of paper. It turned out to be low-cost paper! Could this be another surprise?"
"This looks like silk… could it be low-cost silk this time?"
"Do you even hear yourself?"
One official rolled his eyes.
"The point of low-cost paper was to make books and paper affordable for students from humble origins. But low-cost silk? Silk is just a more luxurious kind of paper. Lowering its price only benefits the wealthy. Do you truly believe Her Highness would go to such lengths for something so trivial?"
"…That is fair."
It was well known that the Crown Princess, like His Majesty, favored the commoners and struggling scholars.
Within the Lin De Hall, everyone present—including the court officials of Tian Sheng—watched Yun Shu's small square of silk with intense curiosity. They could not fathom what could make such a modest item worthy of being the Emperor's birthday gift.
Even Emperor Xuanwu himself was intrigued.
He took the silk from Li Dehai, suspecting that something must be wrapped within. But upon unfolding it, he discovered that it was just an ordinary piece of silk—save for the dense lines of fine characters written upon it by Yun Shu's hand.
In essence, it was a memorial.
The content detailed the results of her recent agricultural experimentation at the imperial estates, where she had constructed "greenhouses" to cultivate Tudou and other crops.
The Tudou had flourished. From an initial fifty catties, they now yielded over one thousand.
Sweet Tudou had taken root as well, with estimated yields around two thousand catties per mu.
Maize had also succeeded, expected to produce roughly fifteen hundred catties per mu.
Chili peppers, tomatoes—one by one, the report documented a long list of crops introduced from overseas and now thriving in Tian Sheng soil.
Yun Shu had even included an additional hypothesis: in the southern regions, greenhouses might not be needed at all. There, some of these crops could potentially yield two harvests a year.
That single square of silk carried the joyous promise that the people of Tian Sheng would never again go hungry.
After reading through it quickly, Emperor Xuanwu could not suppress his elation. He stood abruptly, raised his wine cup high, and laughed heartily.
"Heaven blesses the Yun clan with such a daughter! A qilin girl who shall safeguard Tian Sheng's future!
Today, We are most pleased. This cup We raise to all present Aiqing. May you stand beside Us and the Crown Princess to build a flourishing Tian Sheng!"
"Your humble servants pledge ourselves to Your Majesty. We shall give our all, unto death!"
Though none of them knew exactly what was written on that piece of silk, they knew how to respond in kind.
With perfectly synchronized decorum, the ministers raised their cups and drank in unison.
Just as the officials of Tian Sheng resumed their seats, Emperor Xuanwu looked upon Yun Shu with a gaze brimming with pride.
"This gift is splendid."
"As long as Father Emperor is pleased."
Feigning ignorance of the sharp, blade-like glare the Eldest Prince was directing at her—so intense it could almost pierce flesh—Yun Shu casually offered Yun Chuhuan a share of the credit.
"In fact, Sixth Brother contributed to this gift as well."
Yun Chuhuan, caught completely off guard: "?"
"Who? Me? What contribution? Since when was I involved?"
He didn't even know what the silk said.
But… if credit was being handed out for free, why not take it?
Yun Chuhuan chuckled sheepishly and stood tall, puffing out his chest with theatrical pride.
"This was no more than what Your Son ought to do!"
Emperor Xuanwu: "…"
True, he had played a significant part.
If Yun Chuhuan had not been so gluttonous, pestering Xiao Wu after hearing rumors of rare delicacies from foreign lands, and insisted that the Liu family's merchant fleet set sail, these crop seeds might never have arrived so early.
That did merit some credit. A verbal acknowledgment would suffice.
Emperor Xuanwu gave him a perfunctory nod.
"Not bad."
Yun Chuhuan: "?"
That's it?
Why?
He wasn't asking to be praised as loudly as Fifth Sister had been earlier—where Imperial Father had practically leapt from his seat and proclaimed her a heaven-sent qilin child—but a small reward, some silver perhaps, would have been nice!
Just one "not bad" and he was dismissed? That was outrageous.
Granted, he still had no idea what exactly he had done to earn it.
But if Fifth Sister said he had helped, then he must have!
Fuming silently, Yun Chuhuan glared at Emperor Xuanwu, puffed up with indignation and ready to protest.
But the Emperor had already moved on, eyes gleaming with interest.
"You mentioned earlier that you prepared two gifts. That was one. What of the other?"
"Replying to Father Emperor, the second gift is also a bit unusual. Everyone present may view it together, but it requires us to step outside the Lin De Hall."
Yun Shu raised her hand with grace.
"Father Emperor, if you would."
"What sort of gift requires such secrecy?"
This time, even Emperor Xuanwu himself, usually slow to rouse curiosity, was visibly intrigued.
Even Hu Yan Mingchuan, who cared little for such matters, found himself drawn in by the mystery. Quietly, he blended into the crowd and followed the others out of the hall.
"There's nothing out here."
Under rows of lanterns lighting the grounds, Yun Chuhuan looked around and tugged Yun Shu's sleeve.
"Fifth Sister… did you really place the birthday gift out here? Could someone have stolen it?"
"Just wait and see."
Yun Shu patted Yun Chuhuan's head. With everyone murmuring in confusion behind her, she stepped forward without hurry and came to a calm halt at the front.
"Father Emperor, the gift Your Daughter has prepared for you… is in the sky."
"In the sky?"
Emperor Xuanwu lifted his gaze toward the cloudy heavens, where not even a single star could be seen.
A flicker of doubt passed through his eyes.