Transmigrated Female Official

Just as Chu Qingluo was fearing she might offend the Empress with a single wrong word, the Empress suddenly spoke up: "No, well said. My dear minister, please continue."

Hearing the Empress's words, Chu Qingluo mustered her courage again and continued, "After the wool is washed and dried, it will be sent to the clothing workshop to be made into bedding. In this way, we can first gradually meet the needs of the palace, and then slowly promote it to the common people..."

"So, you're willing to teach the Clothing Pavilion how to make down comforters?"

"Yes, I am willing."

The Empress raised an eyebrow and said, "You are truly selfless, my dear minister, for this is also a way to make money, and you are willing to give it up."

"Uh..." Chu Qingluo was startled. She didn't think she was that selfless; she just thought the process of collecting down was too troublesome. Feeling guilty, she said, "Your Majesty flatters me."

"Minister Chu, there's no need to be so modest. I'll leave this matter entirely to you. I will order all officials to cooperate with you."

"Your humble servant obeys the decree." She paused, then said, "But this will make the Imperial Kitchen and the Clothing Department even busier."

"I will reward those who have made contributions, so you need not worry."

"Thank you for your great kindness, Your Majesty."

"As for how to reward you, my dear minister... I'm truly at a loss." The Empress glanced at Chu Qingluo with her phoenix eyes and said slowly, "You even declined such an honor bestowed upon a prince, so I suppose you wouldn't be interested in such mundane things as gold and silver." After saying that, the Empress gently rested her chin on her jade fingers, indicating her difficulty.

No way! Whether it's gold, silver, jewelry, jade, or ceramics, just bombard her with it all! Don't hold back! How will you know if she'll accept it if you don't try?! These are priceless antiques, after all; she'll take them all no matter how much you throw at her!

At this moment, Chu Qingluo was already internally injured! She swallowed the words "I think it's good enough" back down her throat and replied with a forced sigh of pain, "...This humble official dares not take credit for it."

The Empress gazed at her thoughtfully for a moment before speaking, "The fruit tea you made last time was quite delicious. In your spare time, I hope you can make some for me and send it to the Phoenix Palace from time to time."

Chu Qingluo was taken aback at first, then quickly replied, "This humble official would be more than happy to oblige."

……

Chu Qingluo wasn't entirely sure if the Empress's request had any deeper meaning. After returning to the clothing store, she specifically discussed it with Gongsun Yu. Gongsun Yu also believed it was mostly a good thing, a sign that the Empress valued her.

This moment left Chu Qingluo with mixed feelings of joy and sorrow. The joy stemmed from the fact that she had gained the Empress's favor, which brought her a sense of relief; the sorrow lay in the fact that she didn't want to be in close contact with the Empress frequently—what if she angered the Empress? That was a very risky matter, so she couldn't be blamed for being cowardly.

Even if she was incredibly cowardly, she had absolutely no choice...

Now that the imperial decree had been issued to put Chu Qingluo in charge of building the breeding farm, she had no time to worry about anything else and quickly went to carry out the decree.

First, she arranged for someone to buy a piece of land with a fishpond, fenced it off, and hired several experienced people to take charge of the aquaculture. As for the rest, she left it to Jiang Hua to worry about, since she herself was a complete novice in the field.

Fortunately, the Empress rewarded Jiang Hua and the Imperial Kitchen with a lot of silver, which made them very motivated, and Chu Qingluo was not worried at all about not being able to get people to work.

As for making bedding, Chu Qingluo specially asked Li Ziyou to send Luo Lifei to the clothing store to learn from Tongmu. This also gave the two of them a chance to further develop their relationship.

After the weather turned cold, the number of people in the clothing store decreased significantly, but this did not affect the cheerful and happy atmosphere inside.

Just then, Peony arrived, accompanied by someone. "Qingluo, I've come to help Mingyi Shop attract customers—"

Chu Qingluo looked up and saw that Shaoyao was with a man wearing a brown robe, the fox fur at the collar indicating that he came from a respectable background. She asked in surprise, "Spoiler Boy?"

The man beside Peony was taken aback, then chuckled and said, "What did you call me, young master?"

"Yan Lü—?" Gongsun Yu also came out from inside, and said in surprise.

When Yan Lu saw Gongsun Yu, his eyes lit up. "Second Brother?!"

This warm greeting made Chu Qingluo and Shaoyao look at Gongsun Yu and then at Yan Lu at the same time, and ask, "Do you know each other?"

"Of course I know him," Gongsun Yu grinned, "He's my third brother."

"Ah—?!" Chu Qingluo and Shaoyao exclaimed at the same time. They never expected Yancheng to be so young! So Yan Lu is also Lord Gongsun's son. No wonder he is dressed so elegantly.

After the two brothers exchanged pleasantries, Yan Lu explained that he had come to Mingyifang at the invitation of Shaoyao.

Gongsun Yu quickly introduced Chu Qingluo and the basic situation of the neighborhood to him.

Peony couldn't hold back any longer and interrupted, asking, "Isn't your surname Yan?"

Yan Lü smiled and said, "It was my fault for not introducing myself clearly last time. My surname is Gongsun and my given name is Yan Lü." After saying that, he bowed to Chu Qingluo and said, "I was unaware that the clothing store is owned by Lord Chu. I am truly ignorant." This was their second meeting, and who would have thought that she was actually his second brother's master.

"Not at all," Chu Qingluo said, glancing at Gongsun Yu as she thought to herself, "Finally, I've found his weakness." Her advertising was terribly inadequate; she had such a wealthy and powerful brother and didn't even bother to bring him along. She's not even as good at attracting business as Shaoyao!

Gongsun Yu received Chu Qingluo's look and immediately understood. With a smile in his eyes, he said, "It's all my fault for not introducing myself properly."

“This can’t be blamed on Second Brother.” Yan Lu stepped forward to help Gongsun Yu out of the predicament. “Originally, men who have entered the family rarely have contact with their families. Yan Lu can understand that.”

Upon hearing Yan Lu's words, Chu Qingluo suddenly remembered that she had an older brother in the Chu family whom she hadn't met since transmigrating. This was probably just local custom; no wonder Gongsun Yu was like this.

She recalled the last time Gongsun Yu had specially invited Lord Gongsun to the clothing store to see Long Xiaohan for her sake... He must have made the decision after much deliberation.

Thinking of this, Chu Qingluo felt even more moved.

"Back then, my second brother mentioned Lord Chu in the manor... His expression at that time is still fresh in Yan Lu's memory!"

"Yan Lü, don't talk nonsense!" Gongsun Yu suddenly stepped forward to stop Yan Lü, not wanting him to continue.

Chu Qingluo rarely saw Gongsun Yu nervous, so she asked curiously, "What did he say?"

“He said… mmm…” Yan Lu’s mouth was now completely covered by Gongsun Yu, preventing him from making clear and complete sounds.