Love Lock

Chapter 284 No Longer a Princess Who Could Command the Wind and Rain
Zhao Qiao'er covered her mouth and chuckled, a smug glint in her eyes: "That's right, back then in front of Jinxiufang, that fellow didn't even give you, Princess, a second glance."

When the name Jinxiufang was mentioned, Princess Changle's eyes suddenly turned cold.

She remembers that day very clearly.

When the new Emperor Jing ascended the throne, he did not acknowledge her status as a princess. On that day in front of Jinxiufang, the new Emperor Jing did not give her a kind look, and Wei Chengchao, who was right next to her, did not say a good word for her.

She had even helped Wei Chengchao plot to kidnap Han Lei back then, but now it seems that Wei Chengchao is nothing but an ingrate.

Therefore, she now has to watch the entire Wei family, one of the four great families, be wiped out, and watch Wei Chengchao never rise again.

Since the Su family has declined, and the Wei family has also perished, isn't that fair?
With a "crack," the chopsticks in Princess Chang Le's hand broke in two.

“Princess…” Zhao Qiao’er exclaimed.

"Shut up!" Chang Le quickly stopped her, looking around warily. "There's no such thing as a princess anymore."

She chuckled self-deprecatingly, took out a silk handkerchief from her sleeve, and slowly wiped her fingers. "Now I'm nothing more than an idle spectator."

As long as Emperor Jing does not acknowledge her status as a princess, even if outsiders call her Princess Chang Le as usual, she knows that it is just using the title of "princess" to maintain appearances.

In the center of the hall, several young men who looked like scholars were having a lively discussion.

"The Wei family is completely finished this time! It's said that even their ancestral home has been seized."

"It's strange, isn't that person also from the Wei family? Why would he attack the Wei family?"

"Who told them to have ulterior motives? That person only wants loyal and devoted people."

"I've heard that Young Master Wei has colluded with the enemy, which is a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of his family."

“No wonder!”

Princess Chang Le couldn't help but chuckle when she heard this.

She leaned close to Zhao Qiao'er's ear and said, "Tell me, what kind of expression would Wei Chengchao have if he knew that the person who gave him the idea to kidnap Han Lei was now sitting here watching him make a fool of himself?"

A hint of unease flashed in Zhao Qiao'er's eyes: "Princess, you can't say things like that..."

"What's there to be afraid of?" Chang Le curled her lip in disdain. "If the Su family falls, the Wei family will be finished too. Who will care about those old stories?"

She picked up her wine glass and took a small sip. "Oh? By the way, speaking of which, who exactly is that man in red you mentioned last time?"

The topic suddenly changed, and Zhao Qiao'er visibly breathed a sigh of relief, a shy smile appearing on her face.

"I don't know either. I only know that the young master was stunningly beautiful and had an outstanding temperament. Moreover, he decorated his clothes with gold leaves. Judging from his attire, he must be of extraordinary status."

"Oh?" Princess Chang Le became interested when her identity was mentioned. "How does he compare to your elder brother, Zhao Zun?"

Zhao Qiao'er had no idea of ​​Princess Chang Le's obsession with Zhao Zun. She scoffed and said disdainfully, "My brother is nothing but a mere warrior. He's not even worthy of carrying that young master's shoes!"

Princess Chang Le's pupils constricted slightly upon hearing Zhao Qiao'er slander Zhao Zun for the sake of the man she liked.

She calmly put down her wine glass: "Then if you have the chance, introduce me to that young master, so I can...give him a heads-up."

"Okay! Okay! Thank you, Princess." Zhao Qiao'er thanked her repeatedly.

Princess Chang Le rolled her eyes and cursed inwardly, "Idiot!"

Just then, the doors of Tengyun Tower were suddenly pushed open again.

A group of constables from the Dali Temple, dressed in black robes, filed in. The head constable at the head of the group surveyed the hall with eyes that seemed to pierce the lightning.

"The Dali Temple is ordered to investigate the case! Stay where you are and do not move."

The hall fell silent instantly. Chang Le's heart tightened, and she subconsciously gripped the silk handkerchief in her hand.

She watched as the group of constables walked straight toward her, each step feeling like it was treading on her heart.

"Princess Chang Le," the head constable stopped in front of their table, his voice booming, "you are suspected of colluding with the rebel Zhao Zun and plotting treason. By order of the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, you are to be arrested and interrogated immediately!"

Chang Le abruptly stood up, the chair scraping loudly on the floor. "Insolence! I am a princess personally appointed by the late Emperor, how dare you..."

Her words came to an abrupt halt as she saw the cold smile on the constable's face.

The head constable pulled a scroll from his robes: "His Majesty has decreed that Princess Su has been deposed for colluding with rebels, stripped of all her titles, and immediately imprisoned!"

Zhao Qiao'er was terrified, her face drained of color. Trembling, she grabbed Princess Chang Le's sleeve: "Princess...Princess, what should we do..."

Princess Chang Le suddenly realized that she was no longer the princess who could command the wind and rain.

The surrounding diners pointed and whispered, some even laughing. She felt a sudden dizziness, as if she had fallen from the clouds into a quagmire.

"Take away everyone who was with Princess Chang Le!" At the head constable's order, the constables pounced on them like wolves.

"Injustice! I'm innocent!" Princess Chang Le struggled, her hair disheveled, her hairpins falling to the ground. "Someone must have framed me...framed me."

No one paid any attention to their shouts.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Princess Chang Le, Zhao Qiao'er, and a group of maids and servants were roughly dragged out of Tengyun Tower by the yamen runners.

After they left, the onlookers in Tengyun Tower started discussing it heatedly again, but this time the subject of their discussion was Princess Chang Le...

...This is a dividing line for asking for a dragon...

Cangzhou, Fufeng County.

In the depths of winter, Fufeng County is covered in a blanket of white snow, and the breath exhaled in the air condenses into frost.

Although located in the northwest border of the Great Jing Dynasty, where the cold wind is biting, it cannot hide the vibrant life force surging upwards from this poor and barren land.

The cement plant is located in Fufeng County, where all the cement roads, large and small, have been completed, making transportation very convenient.

On the streets of the county town, the newly paved cement road surface is smooth and flat, which complements the gray brick and blue tile shops on both sides.

The icicles hanging from the eaves refracted the sunlight into a rainbow of colors, resembling strings of crystal curtains.

"Old Zhang, I never thought we'd be lucky enough to see a cement road after all our lives," a farmer wrapped in a thick cotton-padded coat said with a smile to his companion who was shoveling snow, stepping on the solid road surface. "In previous years, the dirt roads in our county would have been frozen and full of potholes by this time. But now, we're not afraid of even the heaviest snowfall."

"That's right!" Old Zhang straightened up, leaning on his broom, and pointed to the factory buildings belching white smoke in the distance. "It's all thanks to that cement factory built by the Prince. I heard that even the official roads in the capital aren't as smooth as ours!"

As the two chatted and laughed, a caravan of oxcarts laden with goods slowly drove by. On the carts were stacks of glassware carefully wrapped in straw, which shimmered with a crystal-clear luster in the sunlight.

Ganluo County, separated from Fufeng County by a river, is garrisoned by Song Yuanqing. Song Yuanqing is inclined to side with Zhao Zun, so Zhao Zun's five hundred personal guards are much more relaxed, and their general Hua Tianyou is also free.

In the military camp, several young soldiers were warming themselves around a stove.

A round-faced soldier was gossiping mysteriously about Hua Tianyou, "General Hua is spending all his time at the glass factory now, living and eating with the craftsmen! He doesn't care about us anymore." "Living and eating with the craftsmen, really?" The tall soldier next to him widened his eyes, "That's the young master of the Duke of Heng's mansion!"

“How could it be fake?” The round-faced soldier patted his chest. “My cousin works at the glass factory. He said that General Hua is now more like a craftsman than a craftsman himself, with his hands covered in blisters from burns.”

"Hey! You can never guess what these important people are thinking." The tall soldier shook his head with amusement.

At that moment, the kiln in the glass factory was glowing red-hot. Hua Tianyou, sleeves rolled up and beads of sweat on his forehead, was intently blowing a glass vase.

The high temperature gave his cheeks an unnatural flush, but his eyes shone with an astonishing brightness.

"Young Master Hua, please take a break." The elderly craftsman, Master Wang, handed over a bowl of hot tea. "This work can't be rushed."

Hua Tianyou took the teacup and drank it all in one gulp, then wiped his mouth and said, "Master Wang, do you think this curve isn't smooth enough?"

Master Wang leaned closer for a look, stroked his beard, and chuckled, "Young master, you're exceptionally talented. You've only been learning for a little over a month, and your skills are almost on par with veteran craftsmen. However..."

He pointed to the bottom of the vase, "This needs to be more even."

"I'll try again." Hua Tianyou's eyes gleamed with determination as he picked up the blowpipe and walked toward the furnace once more.

Glassblowing is a skilled craft, but also a physically demanding job. The high temperatures alone make it unsuitable for most people, yet Hua Tianyou, the young master of the Hengguo Duke's mansion, fell in love with this work.

He feels an indescribable sense of accomplishment as he watches each piece of glass art emerge from his own hands.

In this era, glass is called "liuli". Glass products are now sold everywhere in Fufeng County, and the local people are used to it. However, the factories are still working around the clock to produce glass products.

First, because there are no crops in the fields during winter, farmers need to have work to do.

Secondly, it's because the nobles in the capital had never seen such beautiful and exquisite glass products before.

Once the cement road is extended further, the three-wheeled transport teams can transport these glass products to the capital or other prefectures and counties to sell them for a good price.

At the other end of the factory area, Zhao Ling'er was inspecting the newly fired glassware.

She picked up an intricately carved wine glass and examined it against the sunlight. Sunlight streamed through the crystal-clear glass, casting dappled patterns of light and shadow on the ground.

"Miss Ling'er, this batch of goods is of excellent quality." Da Shiyi, who was previously in charge of collecting the Jingzhou military dependents, reported with a smile, "Once the roads are clear in the spring, it will surely make those nobles in the capital drool."

Zhao Ling'er nodded: "Tell the workers that the end of the year is approaching, and each of them will receive an extra two qian of silver."

"Also..." She looked towards the kiln and chuckled, "Prepare more burn ointment for Young Master Hua! Dinner is almost ready, I'll go prepare some food for him."

As they spoke, Zhao Ling'er and Da Shiyi walked towards the kitchen built with corrugated steel sheets in the distance.

Dinner was already being served in the kitchen. Several laborers, holding steaming bowls of soup noodles, looked at the workers in the distance who were still too busy to eat and were filled with emotion.

“Who would have thought,” sighed an old man with a missing front tooth. “At this time last year, we were still worried about food for the winter.”

"Yes!" his companion chimed in, taking a sip of hot meat soup. "These days, every household has work and food to eat. My son works at the glass factory, and he earned a full two and a half taels of silver this month!"

He was wearing an indigo short-sleeved shirt with the cuffs rolled up high, revealing his muscular arms.

When Zhao Ling'er brought the food from the kitchen, Hua Tianyou was intently blowing a glass pumpkin.

He wore an indigo short-sleeved shirt with the cuffs rolled up high, revealing his strong arms. His cheeks were flushed red from the firelight, and large beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, forming a thin stream on his chin.

"Brother Tianyou, it's time to eat."

A crisp sound came from the doorway. Zhao Ling'er walked gracefully in, carrying a three-tiered carved food box, her pink skirt swaying gently with each step.

Seeing that Hua Tianyou showed no sign of stopping, she did not urge him, but simply stood quietly to the side, her gaze gently following his every move.

Only after the final lines of the glass pumpkin were formed did Hua Tianyou breathe a sigh of relief and carefully place the piece into the annealing kiln.

He had just taken off his thick cotton gloves when a plain white handkerchief embroidered with orchids was handed to him.

"You've turned into a clown." Zhao Ling'er tiptoed and gently wiped the sweat and soot from his face.

Hua Tianyou scratched his head sheepishly, but as he looked down, he brushed the dust from his bangs onto her nose, causing them to laugh at each other.

With a "whoosh," Big Fatty burst in, carrying a bundle of PVC water pipes, and placed the pipes at their feet.

Because of the daily work here, his once round face now has some definition, and his sweat-soaked coarse cloth shirt clings to his body, revealing his still barrel-like waist.

"It's finally done!" He wiped his sweat. "These PVC pipes are much more durable than bamboo poles. Han Lei was a huge help. Once the water from the Qulin River is brought here, the laborers won't have to carry water every day anymore!"

The glass factory needs a lot of water for cleaning quartz sand and cooling. The water supply to the factory was originally facing a bottleneck because the bamboo poles had a short lifespan. However, with the PVC pipes and connectors provided by Han Lei, the problem was solved.

So, Big Fatty decided to first install water pipes for the glass factory to solve their problem of manually carrying water. After all, it was very close to the Qulin River, making the operation much more efficient.

His gaze fell on the food box, and the chubby-headed man's eyes lit up: "Oh, Miss Ling'er is bringing food to Tianyou again? Is there any for me?"

He winked mischievously, deliberately glancing back and forth between the two of them.

Zhao Ling'er's ears immediately burned: "Of course, we prepared a share for Fatty..."

She hurriedly opened the food box, revealing three layers of drawers: the top layer contained translucent shrimp dumplings, the middle layer held braised pork knuckles with a rich, savory sauce, and the bottom layer held steaming osmanthus cakes.

Big Fatty wiped his hands casually on his clothes and reached for the pastries, but Hua Tianyou swiftly slapped his hand.

"What's the rush! Ling'er specially made osmanthus cake for me, and I haven't even touched it yet, but you've already snatched it."

"Ouch!" Big Fat Head exaggeratedly waved his hand, "Hua Tianyou, you value women over friends!" As he spoke, he suddenly launched a sneak attack, snatched a piece of pastry, and dodged.

"You ungrateful wretch! Who fixed your waterwheel last time?" Hua Tianyou grabbed a broom and chased after him. The two chased each other around the workshop, raising a cloud of fine glass dust.

Seeing the two of them fighting over food like children, Zhao Ling'er chuckled softly while holding onto the table.

She suddenly remembered something and hurriedly called out, "Slow down! There are still shards of glass on the ground..."

Before she could finish speaking, Big Fatty slipped on a piece of broken material and stumbled, sending half a piece of osmanthus cake flying straight toward Hua Tianyou's face.

Hua Tianyou instinctively opened his mouth to catch it, chewing it triumphantly: "Thanks!"

Big Fatty was furious and grabbed a ladle from the wooden bucket to splash him. Zhao Ling'er quickly stepped in to stop him, but the splashed water still soaked the hem of her skirt.

The three looked at each other, then suddenly burst into laughter, the sound echoing through the factory.

Suddenly, a cry of surprise came from not far away.

"Oh no! This is bad!"

Thank you all so much for your active participation. It's so great to have you all with me!