"Yay!" Luo Jingyao jumped up excitedly.

Long Yingtong also revealed a joyful smile, her large eyes sparkling with a crystal light, and she even proudly glanced at her third brother, knowing that as long as her sister agreed, her third brother would naturally not oppose.

The Yang brothers and siblings from the Wu, Liu, and Shen families were very happy.

Luo Jingrui was all smiles, as Jiujiu had just said that it includes all her brothers, which of course, included him.

Nangong Lingfei's eyes were full of envy. Why couldn't Ms. Yang be his sister? Or should he, like the Luo family, acknowledge Ms. Yang as his sister?

His eyes slightly squinted, Long Xuanmo's expression was cold, his heart filled with intense jealousy and silent resentment.

"Jiujiu, hurry up and cut the cake!" Facing such a good-looking cake, Weichi Kong's eyes gleamed, clearly salivating.

"Grandpa Kong, don't be impatient," Yang Mengchen smiled, then gestured for Yang Chengning to approach the flatbed cart: "Second brother, do as I do, make three wishes silently in your heart, then blow out the candles in one breath."

After Yang Chengning did as instructed, Yang Mengchen sang the birthday song in a clear voice that was as refreshing and melodious as a jade bell, with lyrics simple yet fresh and unique. The younger generation joined in the singing after hearing it twice, while the elders looked on with smiling faces.

Then, Yang Mengchen handed the specially made knife to Yang Chengning, who, under his sister's guidance, cut the cake into small pieces and placed them on plates held by the servants, who then served them to everyone.

Unable to wait, Weichi Kong took a bite: "This cake is really delicious!" Soft and sweet, combined with various fruits, it was simply a heavenly delicacy!

"I thought these were real flowers at first, but they are actually made of cream. Our Mengmeng is really skillful and ingenious!" Old Lady Luo exclaimed in admiration.

Everyone couldn't stop praising.

With a small piece of cake in hand, the servants were full of joy and gratitude. Whenever their masters had something good, they were never forgotten. To come across such benevolent and kind masters was truly a blessing earned over several lifetimes.

Looking at his sister who was joking with the elders, Yang Chengning's gaze was gentle and determined.

He had just made three wishes: first, that the elders would have good fortune and health, second, that his brothers' careers would soar to great heights, and third, that his sister's every endeavor would go smoothly and that she would always be happy and blessed. And to fulfill the third wish, no matter how many hardships and dangers lie ahead, he would never shrink back.

On the battlefield, he would achieve great success, in the future becoming the most solid and powerful support for his sister, allowing her to do as she pleased with everything she wanted to do.

Soon the tofu factory and the Liu family's new house were completed.

Looking at the bright, clean factory building, the fresh and elegant courtyard, and the ingeniously designed furniture, those who came to congratulate were all envious that the Liu family was so fortunate to have such a smart, capable, and filial granddaughter (niece) (cousin), and the Liu family could not stop beaming with pride.

Since the people of Huangsha Village had learned their lesson, the next day, when Yang Mengchen visited Huangsha Village, everyone treated her with extra respect and enthusiasm.

Even the Clan Leader, Elders, village chief, and Lizheng were very polite and humble towards the Shen family. Not to mention others, the status of the Shen family in the village naturally rose sharply, and from then on, no one dared to provoke the Shen family again.

After explaining the requirements and signing the contract with the people of Huangsha Village, Yang Mengchen guided the villagers to dig ponds and fix the sandy ground, while Mi Mingfu and other craftsmen began building the factory and constructing the new Shen family house.

After settling matters in Huangsha Village, Yang Mengchen began to teach the employees of the tofu factory and the Liu family how to make tofu products.

Watching as a large batch of tofu turned into tofu skins, tofu strips, fermented tofu, and tofu products under Yang Mengchen's clever hands, Long Xuanmo's eyes were deep, filled with both shock and pride.

His Ah Jiu was truly intelligent beyond compare. Anything in Ah Jiu's hands could turn into a vast fortune!

Yang Mengchen was, however, unsatisfied.

In this time, without plastic bags, it was impossible to preserve products for long, and since paper was too expensive, some soy products were not suitable for packaging in ceramic glaze jars. It seemed she would have to reveal the paper-making technique to produce oiled paper.

No sooner said than done, once back home, Yang Mengchen had people find many raw materials such as tree bark, rice straw, bamboo, and sorghum stalks.

The first step was to shred the raw materials and then use soaking or steaming methods to degum the materials in an alkaline solution, followed by filtering the liquid—or pulp—bleaching and washing it clean.

The second step was to further screen the treated pulp to remove impurities, dilute it with water, and then use a special conduit to spray it onto a forming mesh to become wet paper.

The third step involved pressing the wet paper with specialized equipment and then drying it in the sun or air to finally become paper.

During the process, Yang Mengchen also added some auxiliary materials, all the while having Yang Chengning take notes.

Long Xuanmo, who was by her side the whole time, picked up the sheets of snow-white paper, his stern face revealing a hint of surprise.

Ever since the founding Emperor, paper-making had been a major concern for successive emperors, and Dong Chu had been consequently under the control of Nanping Country. Now that Dong Chu had the paper-making technique, it would no longer be controlled by Nanping Country.

Ah Jiu was claiming credit for herself!

As if she had not seen Long Xuanmo's affectionate gaze, Yang Mengchen slightly revised the notes taken by Yang Chengning and then handed them to Long Xuanmo.

Long Xuanmo did not hurry to leave. The Imperial Younger Sister had resolved her troubles and started speaking; he wanted to find out what had truly happened that night. Those people had been at large for too long, and it was time for them to pay the price!

However, Long Xuanmo first sought Yang Mengchen's opinion. He knew very well that if he rashly inquired about the imperial younger sister, Yang Mengchen would not harm him, but she would certainly like him less and even keep her distance from him, which he could not bear.

Yang Mengchen did not wish the culprits who harmed Long Yingtong to go unpunished, but she was somewhat worried. After all, Long Yingtong was not yet seven years old. She was concerned Long Yingtong could not soberly endure it, so she chose to hypnotize Long Yingtong.

That night, Yang Mengchen gently guided Long Yingtong into the state, and then asked, "Yingtong, why did you leave the sleeping chamber alone on that snowy night?"

"I was tired from playing in the snow during the day, and I went to bed early in the evening after washing up. Later, someone kept whispering in my ear 'I want to go to the Imperial Garden, I want to go to the Imperial Garden.' When I came to, I was already in the most secluded corner of the southeast part of the Imperial Garden," Long Yingtong said slowly.

"What did you see?"

"I saw Consort Li and a eunuch..."

As Long Yingtong narrated her story, both Yang Mengchen and Long Xuanmo's expressions grew increasingly dark as frost, and their eyes held a bloodthirsty gleam; their bodies emanated a bone-chilling cold.

After Long Yingtong finished her story, Yang Mengchen first asked Long Xuanmo to leave. She then woke Long Yingtong up, softly coaxed her back to sleep, and then left the room.

"Ah Jiu, I need to return to the capital overnight," Long Xuanmo said, looking intently at Yang Mengchen.

Taking a few porcelain vials out of her bag, Yang Mengchen spoke in a cold tone, "Serve them well!"

Long Xuanmo nodded and, along with Mo Lei and the others, swiftly left.

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