The life swap begins with Consort Hua becoming Lady Qin.

The first textile bureau established in the name of the Empress was a great success.

At first, no one really took those strange things brought back from the West seriously.

However, it is still a model that has not yet been put into actual use. The parts are rough and it stumbles when it turns.

What the Qing Dynasty had in abundance was craftsmen with superb skills who were willing to put in tremendous effort to hone their craft.

At Yan Zhi's command, the best weavers, carpenters, loom makers, and dye masters in the land gathered together. Nian Xiyao personally oversaw the modifications, and everyone worked tirelessly behind closed doors, disassembling and reassembling, spending almost every day and night in the loom room. In just three years, those few Western-made looms had been completely transformed.

But it also has a more remarkable effect.

Even a skilled woman would need three days to weave a single bolt of cloth.

Using this product, it only takes one day.

Later, when it reached the most skilled female workers, half a day was enough.

This brought the Imperial Textile Bureau to life.

As the business grew larger and larger, it not only supported thousands of women, but also helped the dyeing workshops, embroidery workshops, and tailoring workshops to flourish.

The woven cloths came in a wide variety of patterns, yet were much cheaper than those woven on old looms. Local people rushed to buy them first, and later, when the sea ban was lifted and foreign merchants came to the capital, they were all envious of these affordable and finely woven cloths and placed orders in droves.

The reason the sea ban was lifted, allowing them to land, was precisely for this purpose.

Therefore, the textile bureau never had to worry about sales from beginning to end.

As the first person to try something new, Yanzhi naturally earned the most.

But those who were among the first to invest also made a fortune.

Zhen Huan, the Sixteenth Prince's Consort, was in the second batch.

The Tenth Prince's wife was initially hesitant. She was tempted, but she was also afraid of losing everything. In the end, she simply pulled the Ninth Prince's wife along, thinking that if things went wrong, her Ninth Brother would be there to cover her losses.

As a result, the two sisters-in-law worked together and made a fortune.

Such a commotion naturally couldn't be kept secret from the outside world.

In no time, not only the families of officials in the capital, but also many insightful families of officials in various places followed suit and set up smaller weaving and embroidery workshops.

Although it couldn't compare to the grandeur of the Empress's first textile manufacturing bureau, each one still brought in revenue, allowing many women who previously could only live at the mercy of their husbands' families to finally hold money in their hands for the first time that gave them more confidence.

But good things never have only one side.

After the lifting of the maritime ban, maritime trade routes gradually opened up, and people from foreign countries came to the court to pay tribute. The court also allowed them to purchase goods at coastal ports.

Silk, porcelain, tea, lacquerware, and even inexpensive fabrics from the weaving bureau were in high demand.

Not long after, another headache arose in various places.

More and more people are starting to grow cotton on a large scale.

Cotton was more profitable than grain, and selling it to the textile bureau and maritime merchants brought in more money.

In years of plenty, nothing is noticeable, but in years of famine, when grain production decreases, the problem immediately becomes apparent.

This problem persists despite repeated attempts to stop it.

Both Yanzhi and Yinwu found the reports from various places to be quite troublesome.

At night, the couple sat facing each other under the lamp, flipping through the account books sent by various prefectures, growing more and more silent as they read.

"We should either get grain from foreign merchants," Yinwu said.

Yan Zhi shook his head: "How is that any different from handing over one's lifeline to someone else? Besides, they are not of our kind, so their hearts will surely be different."

When Yinqi returned, he specifically mentioned the situation in the west. There, numerous kingdoms stood side by side, all spouting 'gentlemanly' manners and acting like true gentlemen, but deep down they were all like wolves and tigers.

Such a person is someone you can deal with, someone you can temporarily reconcile for business purposes, but someone you can never entrust your future to.

"Then... should we import cotton from foreign lands?" Yinwu asked again.

Yan Zhi sighed, "This might provide temporary relief, but it won't last. With rising costs, we'll ultimately still be at the mercy of others."

The two exchanged a glance, and the same thought flashed through their minds at the same time.

If we cannot allow our own people to pursue profit at the expense of grain, then someone must grow cotton for the Qing Dynasty.

Ideally, they should be planted outdoors.

Ideally, it should be planted in places where one has no choice but to rely on the Qing Dynasty.

The next day, the Dzungars sent people over.

As early as the third year of Yinwu's reign, the Dzungars had come once. At that time, they shamelessly asked to marry the legitimate princess.

At that time, Ning Shou was only two years old. When Yinwu heard this in the hall, his face immediately darkened. Without thinking, he rejected it without giving Ning Shou any face.

The envoy was also quite arrogant; he immediately puffed out his beard and glared at Yinwu, asking if the Qing Dynasty's lack of courtesy meant they were about to start a war.

The faces of all the civil and military officials changed immediately.

At that time, the Dzungar Khanate was indeed quite powerful.

But just as everyone fell silent, Nian Xiyao, who was usually so low-key and almost indifferent to worldly affairs, suddenly stood up and said on the spot, "Fight then! You think you can be afraid of me!"

As he spoke, he laid bare the internal and external troubles of the Dzungar Khanate at that time, pointing out that the old Khan was getting old and his sons were fighting tooth and nail for the throne. He told them to clean up their own mess before asking for a marriage proposal!

Finally, he didn't forget to say to Yinwu, "Your Majesty, my second brother Nian Gengyao is not very talented, but he is quite capable in warfare. Now that the rebellion in Qinghai has been quelled, if Your Majesty is really worried, you might as well order him to be stationed in Zhenxi Prefecture, so that some people won't always feel that the Qing Dynasty has no one to rely on."

The envoy's expression changed immediately. Seeing that Yinwu was genuinely considering feasible options, and knowing that he knew his own situation, he hurriedly said, "Why go to such lengths? If we can't reach an agreement in one go, we can talk again. Why resort to violence so soon?"

Afterwards, in private, he requested an audience again and, as a second-best suggestion, reminded Yinwu that it didn't have to be a legitimate princess. Appointing a member of the imperial clan as the legitimate princess would save face, and the Khan would gladly agree.

At that moment, Yinwu looked at his younger sister, who was still young and living with the Empress Dowager in Shou Kang Palace, and then thought of the beautiful nieces in his brothers' clan households. He also thought of the old Khan of the Dzungar Khan's advanced age...

I simply pretended not to understand.

The envoy was given a generous gift and treated with great hospitality for a while before being sent away.

They've been at odds for so many years. If it really comes to war, what good is a princess?

There are plenty of ways to give someone a way out; why sacrifice your own girls' lives?

Later, when news of the old Khan's sudden death and the internal strife in the Dzungar Khanate arrived, the imperial concubines and wives of princes in the capital who had daughters of marriageable age secretly breathed a sigh of relief and were even more grateful to Yinwu.

This is also related to the information that Yanzhi deliberately revealed.

She liked that Yinwu was kind-hearted, but she didn't like to hide his kindness.

Good deeds done in secret are less effective.