Chapter 87: Can’t Say ‘Are You Good Enough?’

Chapter 87: Don’t You Dare Say ‘Can You Do It?’

Struggling with the abrupt silence during the first two days, Jiang Congyan soon came to enjoy her current state.

Without a man keeping her up at night, she could read, write, and sleep early.

The next morning, she rose at dawn and, while the sun was still mild, set out on horseback to inspect the various workshops. She inquired about their progress, current difficulties, and needs, documenting each point. Issues that could be resolved immediately were addressed, while those requiring further planning were deferred for later.

Her approach now merged management and craftsmanship oversight. She appointed stewards to handle the workers' daily necessities and enforce discipline while assigning tasks. From among the craftsmen, she selected master craftsmen to lead others in executing specific techniques.

Though every workshop was important, she prioritized the blacksmiths'.

Metallurgy, once a field she avoided, was now something she could openly explore.

After touring the other workshops, she arrived at the blacksmiths' and called for the most skilled master craftsmen.

This workshop was currently the largest, with over forty people remaining in the royal compound.

Blacksmith Fu, though old and frail, was exceptionally skilled. His father had been a blacksmith, so he was born into the trade, as was his son.

Having spent his entire life forging, Blacksmith Fu had once specialized in crafting sabers for the Imperial Guards. Not only was he proficient in forging, but he also excelled in smelting. The iron he produced was strong yet flexible, and the weapons he crafted were of the highest quality.

Aside from Blacksmith Fu, there were two other master craftsmen, each with their own specialties.

Though they had met the princess before, they remained nervously deferential in her presence, not daring to approach and keeping their heads bowed. They would have knelt to answer her questions, but the princess forbade it, instructing them to stand instead.

The more lenient she acted, the more they feared overstepping.

Jiang Congyan gathered them together. "Have the smelting furnaces been completed?"

"Your Highness, all three furnaces have been built," Blacksmith Fu replied respectfully.

Jiang Congyan continued, "How is the charcoal production? Is the quality sufficient for smelting?"

The man beside Blacksmith Fu answered, "General Modolou delivered sixty thousand catties [a traditional unit of weight] of timber. We have already produced twenty thousand catties of charcoal, all of good quality and suitable for smelting."

After asking several detailed questions, all of which Blacksmith Fu answered smoothly, she found the progress aligned with her expectations. Then she asked, "When you were in Chang'an, did you ever use stone gold for smelting?"

While most people might not know what stone gold was, Blacksmith Fu—having worked in Chang'an as one of the finest blacksmiths—was familiar with it.

"Your Highness, we have used it before, but the quality of stone gold varies. It isn’t always suitable for smelting."

Jiang Congyan lowered her gaze slightly. ‘Stone gold’—what they called coal—had records of usage dating back to the Han Dynasty, but it was rarely used. Moreover, coal couldn't be directly used for steelmaking—it had to be turned into coke (purified fuel) to ensure quality.

She brought this up for two reasons: first, coal smelting would eventually become the mainstream method, and second, the steppes had fewer trees than the Central Plains. Most crucially, as the weather grew colder, expanding coal mining could play a significant role in winter heating.

The Xianbei territory held many coal mines. Based on the resource distribution maps she had seen in her past life, combined with the Jie territory, the coal reserves in these two regions surpassed those of the entire Liang.

However, she wasn’t sure if current technology could facilitate smooth extraction. Compared to the Xianbei lands, the Jie territory was the heartland of coal deposits—their mines were of higher quality and easier to access. She preferred waiting until Tuo Baxiao conquered the Jie before mining there. Of course, other areas could also be explored, following the principle of mining and using nearby sources.

After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Congyan continued, "For now, we’ll continue using charcoal. But in the future, I intend to use stone gold for smelting."

No one dared oppose her orders, so they agreed, though unsure of the next steps.

Jiang Congyan then discussed ideas and methods for turning coal into coke with them and instructed Gan Luo to record the details for future experiments.

Finally, she added, "You currently use the ‘stir-fry’ steel technique, which is quite complex. I have another idea..."

The co-fusion steelmaking method—utilizing the high carbon content of pig iron and the low carbon content of wrought iron—involves pouring molten pig iron onto wrought iron to adjust the carbon content, producing steel with high hardness and superior performance. This method not only improved steel quality but also edged nearer to modern methods. A similar technique, the Su steel method, brought the process even closer to contemporary metallurgy.

Jiang Congyan had previously run a silver shop and dabbled in small experiments, picking up some know-how along the way. When discussing metallurgy, she wasn’t a total novice. She ran it by the master craftsmen about feasibility, asking them to first consider how to design the furnaces if this new steelmaking process were to be adopted.

They talked for close to an hour. Finally, she suddenly asked, "Any of you know how to read—or wanna learn?"

The men froze in confusion.

Reading? That was something only the aristocratic clans and nobles could do. What shot did lowly craftsmen like them have at learning?

They were about to say, "Ain’t none of us can read," when a young man stepped forward.

"Princess, I wanna learn."

Everyone turned to look—it was Fu Blacksmith’s son, Fu Tiesheng.

Seeing it was his own son, Fu Blacksmith panicked, figuring it wasn’t their place, and quickly tried to pull him back. How could people like them be worthy of learning to read?

But before he could say anything, a crisp voice cut in—

"Alright."

Jiang Congyan gave Fu Tiesheng an approving glance and put him in charge of asking around among the craftsmen if there were others who also wished to learn to read, and to report their names to her.

Fu Tiesheng vowed to get it done, bowing deeply in gratitude to the princess.

He kinda figured the princess was planning something grand. Given how deeply she cared about iron smelting and her relentless efforts to improve techniques, this workshop was just the start.

Skill alone wouldn’t get you further than being a craftsman. Only by learning to read could one advance further and do more for the princess.

——

Things moved along smoothly. Tuoba Baxiao and Tuoba Wuxi had both left the royal court, and Lan Zhu started dropping by Jiang Congyan’s place more often now.

After seeing the "big things" Si Zi and the others were doing, she wanted to join in too. But she didn’t even speak Chinese and had no clue where to start.

Jiang Congyan noticed the girl’s distress and asked her about it. Only then did Lan Zhu finally pipe up, hesitant.

"Then, do you want to learn Chinese? Both Si Zi and I can teach you."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Is it very hard to learn?"

"...Not really. Just keep listening, and it’ll click."

"Alright, I want to learn Chinese."

Ah Yan had said it wasn’t difficult, so Lan Zhu took her at her word and started off all confident—until she learned a few words and became totally lost. "Ke," "hao," and "xing" sometimes meant the same thing, but in other contexts, they didn’t.

Lan Zhu almost cried in frustration. Not wanting to bug Ah Yan too much, she seized every opportunity to ask Si Zi when they went out together.

"Si Zi, explain it to me again. Why do we say 'ni hao ma' when greeting someone, but not 'ni xing ma'? Don’t they mean the same thing?"

Si Zi just stared.

"...If you greet men by asking 'ni xing ma,' they won’t be happy."

"Ah, why?" Si Zi: "...Just trust me."

Si Zi couldn't explain it clearly to her, so she directly took her to the Liangzhou Imperial Guard and had her greet them with that phrase.

The Imperial Guards looked horrified.

They shot Si Zi a reproachful glare—was she just messing with them?

Lan Zhu: "Uh… what…?"

...

Within days, news of Tuo Baxiao's army mobilization spread like wildfire—the Jie, Xiongnu, Qiang... all heard the news.

The deployment of 40,000 elite cavalry was clearly no minor clash; he was intent on wiping out the Jie.

The Jie tribe was in turmoil, and they had been cursing Prince Huo Bineng nonstop. Those who had supported ambushing Tuo Baxiao earlier were also blamed. If not for knowing Tuo Baxiao would never accept their surrender, the Jie King would’ve happily chopped off their heads and sent them to him.

"What do we do now? Tuo Baxiao is coming at us full force—how can we possibly withstand his cavalry?"

The Jie King, Wudushi, lay awake night after night, feeling like his throne was about to slip away.

The others were too scared to fight. The Third Prince, recalling news he had received days earlier, suddenly proposed, "Father, why don’t we ask Liang State for help?"

Wudushi: "Are you out of your mind?!"

Huo Bineng had been killed by Tuo Baxiao precisely because he had ambushed Liang State’s wedding escort. Liang State hated them—why would they help?

The Third Prince continued, "We’re stuck between the Xianbei and Liang State. If Tuo Baxiao destroys us, Liang State will be next. The Liang Emperor also fears Tuo Baxiao—if we beg for help, he might agree!"

Huh? Now that he put it like that, it kinda made sense.

Whether it would work or not, Wudushi decided it was worth a shot.

Next, they discussed who to send to confront Tuo Baxiao. This time, the Third Prince kept his mouth shut, so Wudushi had no choice but to dispatch his own general, leading 50,000 troops to face the enemy.

...

Meanwhile, a heated argument broke out among the Xiongnu—should they take advantage of Tuo Baxiao’s campaign against the Jie to launch a surprise attack on the Xianbei King’s court?

Some argued that the court’s defenses were weak now, making it the perfect time to strike. Others countered that Tuo Baxiao was unstoppable in battle—even if they succeeded temporarily, once he came back for revenge, they would be crushed.

As they spoke, some glanced at Wudati Hou.

He had led 100,000 troops before, only to be routed by Tuo Baxiao’s 30,000.

The one who said this happened to be the Fifth Prince. Wudati Hou was furious, his golden-green eyes bulging in fury, but he clenched his fists and held back.

Two consecutive defeats had ruined his reputation in the Xiongnu court. No matter how enraged he was, he had to endure.

Things couldn’t be worse than four years ago, could they? If he could endure back then, what was this now?

He refused to believe Tuo Baxiao was invincible forever—sooner or later, he would slip up.

Wudati Hou watched the others argue coldly, as if it had nothing to do with him.

In the end, the Xiongnu decided to wait and see, opting not to send troops. If Tuo Baxiao suffered setbacks against the Jie, they could always act then.

—

Chang’an.

In late May, Huan Yu sought the Emperor of Liang's favor to arrange a marriage between his seventh son, Huan Qilang, and the Sixth Princess.

The Emperor had heard rumors about Huan Qilang's difficulties in finding a match. Considering how diligently the Huan family had served him over the years in managing the imperial treasury, he didn’t hesitate long before agreeing.

Once the decree was announced, the Huan family immediately began preparations.

The engagement was finalized in June, and the wedding took place in July.

The Huan family had long planned for Huan Jun to marry, so many of the preparations went smoothly.

After the betrothal, the Sixth Princess’s life didn’t change much from before—she was still not particularly valued, but there were some differences.

The palace maids would look at her with envy, as if puzzled how such an unremarkable princess could have caught Huan Qilang’s eye.

Huan Jun came from a good family, was intelligent, had entered court service at a young age, and was handsome. He was disciplined and proper, never indulging in brothels or keeping concubines—unlike the spoiled noble brats of Chang’an. He was considered an ideal match by many noble ladies, and even the palace had heard of Huan Qilang’s fine reputation.

The Sixth Princess knew she wasn’t worthy. This was the stable life her elder sister had secured for her. Without her sister, she would still be a nobody.

She thought to herself that she couldn’t betray her sister’s kindness. She had to be strong, live well, and live happily, just as her sister had told her.

One evening, as the lingering heat of the afternoon faded, the Sixth Princess stepped out into the garden for a rare stroll—only to encounter the Fifth Princess.

She was still a little afraid of her but didn’t dare turn and leave. Instead, she timidly greeted her, "Fifth Sister."

Seeing her still looking like a pathetic mess, Jiang Yinzhu suddenly felt angry. She had only once, in a fit of embarrassment, drenched her clothes—she hadn’t even hit her! Yet every time after that, Jiang Yuer acted like a mouse seeing a cat, like she’d done something awful.

The more she behaved this way, the angrier Jiang Yinzhu became, and each time they met, she gave her the cold shoulder.

"Think you’re better than me now?"

The Sixth Princess froze, unsure what her sister meant, and shook her head. "No."

Hearing this, Jiang Yinzhu grew even angrier, with a bitterness she couldn’t name in her heart. "I’m older than you, yet Huan Qilang chose you over me—it’s only because of the Zhao family’s disgrace that he thinks he’s too good for me."

"Fifth Sister, that’s not true," the Sixth Princess hurriedly explained, but Jiang Yinzhu wouldn’t listen. "That’s exactly the reason. Huan Qilang hardly knows you—how could he possibly like you? He just wanted to marry a princess and picked you."

Both were princesses, but Jiang Yinzhu had always believed herself far superior to Jiang Yuer. Her mother was Noble Consort Zhao, and she herself had been deeply favored by their father. She had always strutted around the palace, while Jiang Yuer’s birth mother had died early, and their father paid her no attention. Her life as a princess had been barely better than a servant’s.

Jiang Yinzhu had always assumed she would forever remain above Jiang Yuer—that she would always be favored, that she would marry the most outstanding young man in all of Chang’an. But reality had dealt her a harsh blow.

Noble Consort Zhao had completely fallen from grace. Those beneath them now trampled on them while currying favor with others, and her life had plummeted. Even more frightening was that when she went to see her father, he no longer doted on her as before. Several times, she hadn’t even been granted an audience.

Once this news spread, the palace servants mocked her in private, saying she had gone from phoenix to chicken, while the once-neglected Sixth Princess had flown up the ranks thanks to an imperial marriage decree.

Jiang Yinzhu felt a bitterness she couldn’t put into words. She didn’t understand—Zhao Zhen was the one who had done wrong, so why were she and her mother the ones suffering?

Bursting with anger but no outlet, she finally lost control upon running into Jiang Yuer today. Perhaps she just wanted an excuse to start something.

The Sixth Princess saw that her sister still seemed as fierce as before, but for some reason, the Fifth Princess wasn’t as scary now.

She couldn’t tell anyone the truth about her and Huan Qilang, so she said, "Fifth Sister, as you said, Huan Qilang doesn’t like me. Even if I marry him, I might be looked enviable from the outside, but in reality, my life might not be much different from now. There’s nothing for me to feel smug about."

She had known this all along and was willing to accept such a life. For her, "stability" was all she needed.

This gave Jiang Yinzhu pause.

Jiang Yuer really didn’t seem the least bit smug? But she still felt miserable. "Now everyone looks down on me."

In just two months, her life had flipped on its head, crashing from the heavens into the dirt. Was she stuck being everyone’s punching bag?

A girl of sixteen or seventeen, young and naive with a simple heart, found it hard to adjust her mindset in such a short time.

Jiang Yinzhu lowered her eyes, her face revealing a downcast look she had never worn before, one that inexplicably evoked pity.

She had bullied her before, so the Sixth Princess should have hated her. Yet, strangely, she couldn’t bring herself to feel that way now. Seeing her fifth sister so sorrowful, she even felt a little urge to comfort her.

The Sixth Princess thought for a moment, recalling what A-jie Congyan had once told her, and cautiously said, "Fifth Sister, A-jie Congyan once told me that in life, we shouldn’t focus on the flattering words of those who gather around us when we're successful, but rather on those who remain sincere with us even after the good times end. Those are the people truly worth our affection."

"So, we shouldn’t trouble ourselves over those who don’t matter."

Many times, it was these words that had helped her endure the loneliness and coldness of the palace. The palace maids were not her friends, and she couldn’t brood over their attitudes. She had to live well, as her A-jie had said, for those who truly cared about her.

Jiang Yinzhu stared at her, lost in thought.

Jiang Congyan—the princess who had been chosen by the Prince of Mobei due to her mother’s schemes.

For some reason, the scene from that day at Heqing Silver Tower suddenly surfaced in her mind.

She had already learned then that she was betrothed to the Prince of Mobei, yet she hadn’t felt the fear or dread she had imagined. Her gaze had been so calm as she uttered those words: "Though trapped in circumstance, the heart moves ever forward."

Though trapped in circumstance, the heart moves ever forward.