After being expelled from the mansion, I changed the dynasty by writing novels.

Chapter 107 Anxious

But she quickly calmed herself down and turned to ask Ye Yuwu again.

"What is this coal made of? It's so practical." The princess was clearly impressed by what she had just said about its low cost and simple materials.

Ye Yuwu didn't hide anything from this, so she said frankly, "These honeycomb briquettes can be made from just coal dust, sawdust, and loess."

"So simple?" the princess asked in surprise. She suddenly fell into thought and muttered to herself, "If such an idea were truly practical, wouldn't it be a blessing for the people!"

After all, countless people freeze to death in winter.

Ye Yuwu didn't hear the princess's subsequent self-talk. She nodded in agreement, "This price is also lower than buying coal directly."

"Oh? As far as I know, coal in Bianjing costs 200 wen per pound. How much are these honeycomb briquettes?"

Ye Yuwu looked at the princess with some surprise, not expecting that the princess, who seemed detached from worldly affairs and of noble birth, could be so concerned about people's livelihood.

"If you calculate carefully, each pound of these honeycomb briquettes costs between 40 and 50 coins."

"What?!" The princess could no longer sit still, and the composure she had been maintaining on her face vanished.

In Bianjing, a family with a little money would use up 10 jin (a unit of weight) of fuel in a single winter, while people in the south, who relied on coal for cooking, would use four or five jin.

In the colder north, 15-20 tons of coal are used in winter, especially in the northern border areas where even more coal is used.

If prices could really be that low, wouldn't the whole country be able to get through this winter comfortably?

The eldest princess quickly calculated the pros and cons in her mind. The more she thought about it, the more excited she became. At that moment, her hands trembled with excitement.

However, Ye Yuwu had not yet noticed the princess's loss of composure. It should be said that Ye Yuwu had not yet realized how important coal was to the people in winter, after all, she had only been in ancient times for less than a year.

"Manager Ye, how did you know that coal could be combined with yellow mud to make these honeycomb briquettes?"

Ye Yuwu's heart skipped a beat, and she almost stammered, "This is something my daughter saw by chance in a book."

"Oh? Which book is it? I'd like to take a look too." The princess calmed down and, seeing her nervous expression, decided to tease her, which was a rare occurrence for her.

"Haha, Your Highness, it's been so long that I can't remember which book I saw it in." If it weren't for the cold weather, Ye Yuwu would have been sweating already.

However, the princess misinterpreted Ye Yuwu's guilty smile, thinking that Ye Yuwu had discovered the method herself but was just too embarrassed to admit it.

"How many honeycomb briquettes are left?" The princess picked up another black, lumpy honeycomb briquette.

"The kitchen has prepared much more; would the princess like some?"

"Pick some nice bags for me! Make sure they don't get bumped or scratched." These are precious treasures! The princess's glassy eyes shone with incredible light at that moment.

Ah! Now it was Ye Yuwu's turn to be surprised. Why did she suddenly want coal with such a high aesthetic appeal? No wonder she took a liking to this honeycomb briquette shape and planned to take it back as a collectible.

Unfortunately, Ye Yuwu dared not ask and had no choice but to comply.

"Also, make a few of these pots for me and send them to my residence. Money doesn't matter, they must be delivered to my residence by tomorrow at the latest! As for these chili peppers..." She suddenly paused, glanced at Ye Yuwu with a slight smile, "Prepare some for me as well."

"How many peppers does the princess want?"

"I'll take as much as you can!"

The princess left Chayunhe with a full stomach, carrying large bags and small packages with her.

Before leaving, the eldest princess told her that there would be a banquet in the palace the next day, and she would use these things to show them to the civil and military officials and the emperor.

Of course, the eldest princess couldn't tell her directly; Ye Yuwu figured it out herself from her words.

Ye Yuwu secretly prayed that the banquet would go smoothly, as she hoped to be able to eat chili peppers more often in the future!

In addition to having merchants bring back pepper plants from their voyages, she also had them bring back other plants.

However, following all the portraits drawn by Ye Yuwu, they only found chili peppers, sesame seeds, and corn plants in front of them. Ye Yuwu had planted them all in her own small courtyard.

We haven't found any easy-to-grow, high-yield plants like potatoes and sweet potatoes yet, and we don't know when we'll find them.

Potatoes can be used to make so many dishes, and just thinking about it makes her mouth water. She wasn't usually such a big eater, but since she couldn't get these things in ancient times, she couldn't help but crave them.

The princess on the other side had no idea that all she could think about was food.

She was overjoyed to receive honeycomb briquettes, a product that would benefit the people, and couldn't wait to go to the palace to show them to the Emperor.

But she knew she couldn't be so reckless; she needed to plan carefully. After all, such a wonderful thing shouldn't just be known to the Emperor, but also to all the civil and military officials! This would better promote the honeycomb briquettes!

So as soon as she returned to her residence, she immediately wrote a note and instructed the servant to deliver it before the palace gates were locked. She also specifically instructed that the task must be carried out quickly!

After tidying herself up, she boarded a carriage and headed towards the palace. Fortunately, before the palace gates were locked, a maid from Kunning Palace rushed over and led the princess into the palace.

"Your Highness arrived in too much of a hurry. If you had come any later, Her Majesty the Empress would have gone to bed."

"I was being presumptuous, but the matter was urgent." Then, as if remembering something, she asked, "Is Your Majesty staying at Kunning Palace tonight?"

"No, His Majesty was reviewing memorials too late today and was afraid of disturbing the Empress, so he stayed overnight in a side hall of the Imperial Study."

Hearing this, the princess felt a little embarrassed and sighed, "It's my fault."

As they spoke, the two had already entered the Kunning Palace, and the eldest princess pushed open the main hall door of the Kunning Palace.

Unexpectedly, upon opening the door, besides the Empress sitting at the mahogany table, there was another familiar figure, while the palace maids had already been dismissed.

"Your Highness, what brings you here?"

"The Empress Dowager said you had something important to discuss with her, so she sent someone to the East Palace to fetch me."

The door to the main hall of the eldest princess closed, and she showed them what she was holding.

But Qi Jingyue showed no surprise.

The eldest princess raised an eyebrow. "It seems the Crown Prince already knew."

How could Qi Jingyue not know? Apart from having to handle government affairs at night, he spent his days at the Zhiyu Bookstore. When Ye Yuwu instructed someone to make the honeycomb briquettes, he was there and participated in some of the work.

“Now is a good opportunity.” Qi Jingyue knew that every winter solstice, the emperor and his ministers held a banquet together, which was an opportunity for honeycomb briquettes to shine in the world.

As the head of the harem, the Empress was fully in charge of the banquet, and Qi Jingyue and the Eldest Princess shared the same idea.

"Rest assured, the Empress Dowager and I have arranged everything."