If you traveled back to ancient times, while others ate Guanyin clay, you would actually have giant

"I don't know either. My father said that Lord Zhou sent some new goods, and these things will be sold in the family's general store."

Lu Jian'an doesn't concern himself with the family business. He's currently focusing his attention on his official career, since he's engaged to the princess. However, he's well aware that his family's living conditions have been improving ever since they started associating with Zhou Wu.

Previously, his father would give him one string of cash a month for pocket money, but now it has increased to five strings a month. What's worse, his mother also secretly slips him another five strings every month. In total, he has ten strings of cash every month. Lu Jian'an, who is used to being poor, doesn't know how to spend it.

"Lord Zhou? Lord Zhou of the Qingyang Army?"

Upon hearing the name Lord Zhou, everyone felt a sense of respect.

The only Lord Zhou who knew my maternal grandfather was Lord Zhou, the commander of the Qingyang Army.

If Zhou Wu knew how famous he was, he would probably be laughing in his sleep, but his fame was limited to a portion of the military.

Although the story of Zhou Wu leading 300 Qingyang soldiers to rescue the crown prince from 20,000 enemy troops was kept secret and suppressed by the higher authorities, it did not prevent it from spreading in a small circle. It was at that time that some soldiers remembered Zhou Wu's name and regarded him as an idol.

"Stop anyone who comes."

"stop."

As they were talking, Lu Jian'an arrived at the palace gate. Although the imperial guards at the palace gate recognized Lu Jian'an, their duty required them to conduct a routine inquiry and inspection.

"May I ask, Lord Lu, what brings you to the palace?"

“In the name of my father, I presented tribute to Zhou Wu, the Grand Commander of the South China Sea.”

"Tribute? Young Master, I'm sorry, you know the rules."

The guard said somewhat awkwardly.

"please."

Lu Jian'an did not make things difficult for the guards; he simply waved his hand, signaling his men to make way.

The imperial guards secretly breathed a sigh of relief. These young masters were the most difficult to deal with. Their fathers knew the rules and generally wouldn't make things difficult for small fry like them, but these second-generation rich kids were a different story. They didn't know how to hold back when they attacked. Fortunately, Lord Lu in front of them was a kind person.

"Boss, why don't you come and take a look?"

Everyone thought it was just a routine inspection and there wouldn't be any problems, but the inspection of the guards made both sides nervous.

The other imperial guards quietly gripped their weapons, and Lu Jian'an looked at them with a somewhat innocent expression.

The two men approached the carriage and saw the opened cargo, which contained boxes and boxes of canned fruit. They didn't recognize the fruit, but it was precisely because they didn't recognize it that the guard had asked the leader to take a look.

"Is there anything unusual?"

"Boss, we don't recognize this thing either."

Seeing that the atmosphere between the two sides had become tense, the guard conducting the inspection suddenly said something somewhat innocent.

"Lord Lu, may I ask what this is?"

The leader remained calm and did not make wild guesses, but instead asked Lu Jian'an frankly.

"Um~ this thing is called canned fruit, it must be edible, this is the first time I've ever seen it."

Lu Jian'an didn't know what it was at first. When the guard asked him, he remembered that when he got off the ship, someone on the ship handed him a note, saying it was from Lord Zhou. At the time, he was thinking about getting the job done quickly, so he didn't pay attention to it.

Now that I've opened it, I realize that this note is just an explanation of what this thing is.

"Lord Lu, you know about food..."

"clear."

The tribute items had to be inspected, and food was of paramount importance. It had to be tested for poison by someone. Generally speaking, whoever sent the tribute was responsible for eating it.

Lu Jian'an was certainly aware of this rule. He could have easily given it to any servant or attendant, but he didn't. Instead, he picked up a can of food himself.

However, after examining it for a long time, I still didn't know how to open it. So I picked up the note again, and sure enough, it had instructions on how to open it.

"Support the bottom with one hand and rotate the lid to the left with the other."

"Click~"

The can was indeed opened. Lu Jian'an first leaned closer to smell it, and there was a very sweet fruity aroma.

"The note says that the contents of the bottle and the water are edible, so I'll give it a try."

He tasted the water inside, and the sweet, honey-like taste made him forget the cold he was feeling.

"So sweet."

Seeing Lu Jian'an's expression, the others, for some reason, all wanted to try it for him.

I picked up another piece of fruit and popped it into my mouth. It was a fruit I had never eaten before, and it was sweet and refreshing.

It was only then that I noticed there were words on the bottle.

"Pineapple? Is that the name of this fruit? This fruit is called pineapple? It's so delicious."

The canned fruit seemed a little small in the hands of the burly Lu Jian'an, and he finished it off in a few bites. Still wanting more, Lu Jian'an looked into the box again and found that there were many other different kinds of canned fruit.

"Otherwise? I'll try some more; maybe the others are poisonous?"

As he spoke, he reached out to grab another bottle of other fruit to try.

"Alright, Lord Lu, there's no need to try anymore. This is a tribute."

The last sentence seemed to be a reminder to Lu Jian'an not to go too far, as these were all the Emperor's possessions, and he had become addicted to them.

Lu Jian'an could only reluctantly withdraw his hand, which was halfway outstretched, and then he made a fuss.

"Okay, can we go in now?"

"Let go."

Lu Jian'an entered the palace in his carriage, but the weapons on himself and his entourage were confiscated, as was the rule.

"Lord Lu, the items have already been counted. Please make sure they match up when the time comes."

As if knowing what Lu Jian'an was up to, the guard's voice suddenly rang out from behind him. Lu Jian'an felt as if his thoughts had been read, and he felt a surge of displeasure.

. . . . .

After finishing his morning court session, Li Tiancheng was enjoying a moment of intimacy with the Empress.

"Your Majesty, has your illness recurred this year?"

"Your Majesty, this year the palace has the heated kang invented by Zhou Wu, so there is no need to burn fire pits. Breathing is much easier, and I haven't had a single flare-up."

In previous years, the Queen would feel unwell all winter long, feeling drowsy and unable to breathe when she had an attack. It was a terrible feeling.

Fortunately, Zhou Wu found the cause, and the palace removed the charcoal braziers and used heated brick beds, which proved effective immediately.

"Greetings to the Empress Dowager. Is the Emperor also here?"

Li Xixue often went to the Empress's place when she had nothing to do, but she never expected that her own father, the Emperor, would be there too.

"Xixue, you should spend more time with your mother when you have nothing to do."

"Father, do you even need to tell me? I can come to play with Mother anytime. It's you, Father, who rarely comes."

Only Li Xixue dared to say such a thing. If it were any other prince or princess, they would probably have been punished long ago. This shows how much the emperor and empress doted on Li Xixue.

"Your Majesty, Lord Lu requests an audience."

"The eldest son of the Lu Da family?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"What is he here for?"

"They said it was to send tribute to His Majesty."

"What tribute? Why is he resorting to this now?"