Chapter 109: A Virtuous Cycle

Fu Lai and the craftsmen who had personally crafted the skates stood frozen in place, their eyes wide as they watched the bright red figure spinning around the courtyard.

Fu Lai’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. Although the Princess was always bouncing about, she seemed even more graceful than usual today.

As she glided, her body showed no signs of exertion. When turning, she simply slid her feet forward and backward, her legs tilted straight outward. Without a single stutter, she navigated the turn with fluid elegance and continued to glide forward.

After testing both forward and backward skating, Li Yuechen suddenly swung her legs to accelerate. She then lifted her left foot behind her, leaned her body forward, and spread her arms wide.

Like a bird spreading its wings to glide low, she flew past Fu Lai and the others. With a light turn, she began to spin rapidly in place. Her body was like a spinning top; as she twirled, her high ponytail whipped outward due to centrifugal force, as if dancing along with her.

She came to a sudden stop, then accelerated forward again. Grabbing the hem of her robes, she leaned sharply to the side, her legs splayed straight at nearly a 180-degree angle, gliding on only the rear wheels of her skates as she swept past them.

Just as her speed began to wane, she accelerated once more, swung one leg, and launched herself into the air. Mid-air, she pulled her legs together like twisted rope and rotated rapidly. After four and a half spins in the sky, she landed steadily on one foot with a soft "thud," gliding backward in a deep crouch on that single skate.

Finally, Li Yuechen lifted her heel, pressed her toe to the ground, and bent her knees. The brake pad rubbed against the floor, bringing her to a smooth stop right in front of them.

Amidst the astonished gazes of Fu Lai and the craftsmen, Li Yuechen nodded slightly. "Not bad! Fu Lai, reward them!"

"Yes!" Fu Lai replied, handing each craftsman a gold coin.

Li Yuechen took off the skates and nodded. "I intend to perform with these at the New Year's banquet. You all should figure out how to maintain or decorate them further; I will come to collect them then."

The craftsmen, clutching their gold coins, nodded repeatedly. "Rest assured, Your Highness!"

In high spirits, Li Yuechen turned and walked back. On the way, Fu Lai asked curiously, "Your Highness, that..."

"Roller skates," Li Yuechen reminded him. "What is it?"

Fu Lai pondered for a moment. "This servant thinks that if one has wheels under their feet, they ought to fall over. How is it that Your Highness handles them so naturally?"

How was she supposed to explain this? She couldn't very well tell him about all the times she had fallen while learning herself.

"Since it is an invention of my own, it comes naturally," Li Yuechen smiled, sidestepping the question. "It's not worth mentioning!"

This gadget wasn't exactly novel. Once there were more craftsmen capable of making bearings, she could consider developing it into a proper sport. Besides, if the palace maids could move around the smooth floors of the imperial palace on skates, wouldn't that improve efficiency quite a bit?

Though that was just a passing thought; unless they entered an industrial age, these roller skates would remain a luxury item.

Wait, a luxury item?

Li Yuechen suddenly stopped in her tracks. She had overlooked something!

What do the rich, idle scions love to do? Play! Especially things that are new, novel, and exciting! Roller skates fit all these criteria perfectly. Surely those young nobles would be eager to try them, wouldn't they?

If they want to play, they can come to her to buy them! Selling a pair for twenty strings of cash—that’s not too expensive, is it? A fine horse nowadays costs nearly ten strings, but then you have to pay for feed and hire someone to groom it—it’s about the same price.

Hmm, another business opportunity in the blink of an eye. Not bad at all! Li Yuechen couldn't help but give herself a mental pat on the back for her own cleverness.

...

In the blink of an eye, the third year of Xianheng arrived, bringing the Winter Solstice and the annual rites.

Li Yuechen was required to attend this year’s Winter Solstice ritual; after all, she was now an official of the Great Tang. Logically, she should have stood behind the Minister of Revenue, but as a Princess and the Emperor's daughter, she stood at the very front of all the officials, with her master, Liu Renigui, behind her.

Fortunately, now that she was an official, she wasn't forced to wear the heavy, cumbersome ceremonial robes for women. For such an important ritual, the Emperor wore the imperial crown and robes, while officials wore bright red court attire. Li Yuechen was wearing one too, which the Bureau of Palace Attire had rushed to finish in five days. It had to be said, it fit quite well.

The only slight discomfort was the heavy crown, which made her head feel weighed down. It was a good thing she didn't have to wear it every day, or her cervical spine might not hold up.

The morning was spent going through the various procedures of the ritual. It wasn't exactly difficult, but it was incredibly boring. Listening to Li Zhi chant the rhythmic prose, Li Yuechen felt as if she were about to fall asleep. She suspected the Emperor himself hated these events too, but there was no choice—it was ancestral tradition!

Confucian governance relied not on law, but on ritual. Consequently, the various disgusting rules were so complex they made one question the meaning of life.

At the midday banquet, Li Yuechen, sitting below her father and mother, chewed viciously on a piece of mutton, secretly deciding that she must find a way to abolish all those tedious and useless rites in the future!

Sitting at the head of the table, Li Zhi glanced at the gritting-teeth Li Yuechen below. A smile touched his lips as he whispered, "Meiniang, do you know what Chen'er is thinking about?"

"The child has feared trouble since she was young. She’s probably sulking because she had to attend the ritual today," Wu Zetian replied with a smile. "But having said that, this really needs to be tempered. Otherwise, with such a fear of trouble, how will she assist Hong'er in governing the country in the future?"

Li Zhi wasn't too worried. "Do not worry; there will be no issues with Chen'er on that front. She understands what responsibility means, and in matters of great importance, she will restrain herself."

"That is true," Wu Zetian nodded in agreement.

Li Yuechen endured until the banquet ended, then immediately returned to Anfu Palace to strip off her court robes, let down her hair, and collapse into her rocking chair.

Shangguan Wan'er walked over with a look of concern. Seeing Li Yuechen looking as though she were about to fall apart, she asked in a low voice, "Your Highness seems exhausted. What has happened?"

Li Yuechen glanced at her. "Wan'er, tell me... what if I inform Father tomorrow and ask his permission to resign from office and retire to the countryside?"

Princess Yiyang walked over. "Chen'er, don't talk nonsense. You've only just entered the court; how can you retire? Besides, you are only eight years old—what talk is there of retiring due to old age?"

I'm seven, thank you very much...

"Besides, even if you retired, wouldn't you still be living in this palace?" Princess Xuancheng laughed.

Li Yuechen pouted. "Sigh... such is fate!"

As she spoke, she turned her head and patted Shangguan Wan'er’s hand. "Go tell Xiao He to send two people over to massage my legs!"

"Would you like me to..."

"You can't; your strength is too small," Li Yuechen waved her off. "Go on!"

"Yes!" Shangguan Wan'er replied and ran off to find Xiao He.

Princess Xuancheng sat down nearby. "Shall I help you press them, sister?"

Li Yuechen waved her hand. "Forget it. You two sisters have no strength to truss a chicken, and besides, I am the younger one—I cannot have you doing that!"

Princess Yiyang sat down as well and stroked her hair. "Alright, I know you hate trouble. But this is for the loyalty of the Great Tang. Get some rest."

"Mm," Li Yuechen nodded. "You two sisters just stay and talk to me; it will cheer me up."

"Very well, we shall stay and talk with Yuechen," Princess Yiyang agreed with a smile.

"Yes, I will too!" Princess Xuancheng smiled.

Li Yuechen opened her arms. "You two are the best, come here for a hug!"

The two gave her a strong hug, and soon Xiao He sent two palace maids to massage her legs. The three sisters, along with Shangguan Wan'er, gathered to chat, but as they talked, it shifted back to Li Yuechen telling them stories.

"I saw that Lu Xiaofeng raise one hand and clamp the incoming sword between two fingers. With a flick of his wrist, that steel sword snapped in two with a 'crack'..."

At this point, Li Yuechen smacked her lips, feeling a bit thirsty. Before she could say anything, Zheng Shi had already handed her a cup of yogurt.

Li Yuechen took a sip and looked up. "Hmm? When did you get here?"

Zheng Shi lowered her head, blushing with embarrassment. "Please forgive me, Your Highness. I heard the story unintentionally and couldn't help but..."

"Oh, no matter. Since you're here, just listen. Might as well while you're idle," Li Yuechen said, not minding at all.

She continued the story. Before long, Fu Lai and Xiao He were also sitting nearby, listening quietly.

After about half an hour, a palace maid came in and whispered something to Fu Lai.

Li Yuechen turned her head. "What is it?"

"Your Highness, the Directorate of Armaments says the experiment was a success," Fu Lai replied.

"Let's go take a look," Li Yuechen stood up. "Alright, that is all for today. We shall continue next time."

As she spoke, she gulped down the rest of the yogurt; after talking for half an hour, her throat felt quite dry.

Shangguan Wan'er looked at her with longing. "Your Highness, could you teach me the 'Lingxi Finger'? And... I would like to learn the light-foot technique of Sikong Zhaixing, too."

Li Yuechen swallowed the yogurt and turned back. "If I knew how to do that, I wouldn't be here telling you stories right now."

Princess Yiyang laughed and patted her head. "Wan'er, a story is just a story. How could anyone in this world snap iron with two fingers?"

Hearing this, Li Yuechen, who was about to walk out, looked down at her own hands. She wondered to herself that when she grew up, her strength would likely far exceed that of an ordinary person—she wondered if she might be able to do it then...

...

Arriving at the Directorate of Armaments, the craftsmen were already waiting. On the table lay several pieces of iron that had been boiled until they were black, gleaming in the sunlight.

After the craftsmen bowed, Li Yuechen waved her hand, walked up to the table, and reached out to grab one.

"Your Highness, be careful!"

A craftsman suddenly warned. Li Yuechen looked at the iron piece already in her hand and asked, "Why?"

The craftsman looked at her effortless expression and felt a flash of embarrassment. "This item might be a bit... heavy?"

Li Yuechen subconsciously hefted the iron piece—it weighed about ten pounds or so. For a child, especially a seven-year-old girl, it was quite heavy.

The other craftsmen exchanged incredulous glances, using their eyes to ask one another what was going on. A seven-year-old girl was holding a ten-pound piece of iron with one hand, looking completely at ease. Or rather, it wasn't even held with her palm; she wasn't using any force there at all—she was holding it with just her five fingers.

Li Yuechen couldn't be bothered with their shock; her parents surely knew about her strength already. Since they hadn't asked, she didn't feel like explaining.

She rotated her wrist and observed carefully. It seemed caustic soda really could turn metal black. But the problem was, she didn't know what function this black coating served. She had wanted the Tang sword to be black simply to make it look cooler; she hadn't considered any practical application.

After thinking for a moment, she beckoned to the craftsmen. "Here is what we shall do: boil both sword blades until they are black. Assemble one, and I will present it to the Emperor during the New Year. Keep the other one for your own research—see if it has any properties, and let me know the results."

"Understood!" the craftsmen replied. Then, one looked up. "However, Your Highness, we are not literate. We fear that having someone else write it down will lead to misunderstandings, so we may have to trouble Your Highness to make another trip."

"A small matter!" Li Yuechen nodded. "Now that the Winter Solstice has passed, you must ensure the other blade is assembled before New Year's Eve!"

"Rest assured, Your Highness, two weeks is plenty!"

"Good, I shall wait for it!" Li Yuechen nodded.

...

Walking out of the Directorate of Armaments, Li Yuechen stretched. "Right, all plans for this year are complete."

She turned to Fu Lai and smiled. "Next year, once the factory is built, we can truly expand and grow."

Fu Lai bowed with a smile. "Your Highness's wisdom is unparalleled; that is only a matter of time."

"Mm, that is true!" Li Yuechen nodded. "Come to think of it, I might truly become the best in the world."

Not to mention anything else, she possessed over a thousand years of future knowledge, plus her bizarrely massive strength. In any aspect, she could probably be called the best in the world.

"Your Highness, mind your words!" Fu Lai warned. He glanced left and right, whispering, "Second! Second! The Emperor is first!"

Li Yuechen waved her hand. "It's fine, we're all family. Father won't hold that against me!"

"Er..." Fu Lai opened his mouth, finding himself unable to refute that.

Next year's focus would certainly be on the soap, and the production of various glassware should be put on the agenda as well. These things could not only be sold within the Great Tang, but if she wished, she could sell them abroad for high prices!

As for the cost... let's just say it was very low. It was a truly high-profit product. The revenue would be high enough to fill the national treasury in a short time, and since she was now an official in the Ministry of Revenue, she didn't have to worry about corruption or the like.

Once the country had money, it would have the confidence to develop, allowing them to research more things to open up markets, forming a virtuous cycle!