Smooth Sailing
Zhang Xuezhou had no formal training in fashion design, but he had some basic knowledge of it.
Some of the connection stems from his exposure to various modern clothing in the real world, as well as the many traditional costumes of the Louvre Dynasty, and also from the fact that he needs to frequently change the style of his celestial Heavenly Robe.
As the Grand Master of the Palace who suggested changing the court attire, Zhang Xuezhou actually needed to design the relevant clothing after he made the suggestion and the emperor agreed to implement it.
"Wait until tomorrow. Wait until tomorrow when you wear the wrong clothes and get punished, then you'll hate me, and you'll find fault with me, even impeach me. When His Majesty hears the report, he'll severely punish me, strip me of my official position, and then I won't have to do this job anymore!"
Zhang Xuezhou rarely had time to do anything productive, which made him, who was used to being idle, feel somewhat uncomfortable, as if he had become a hardworking ox or horse.
But Zhang Xuezhou didn't do this job for long. After all, he just wanted to incite resentment and get impeached, so the costumes didn't need to be elaborate or gorgeous.
He made only slight adjustments to the existing court attire and also established distinctions in the clothing for officials of different ranks.
Nobody likes being constrained; you never know when a clever person might get punished.
"I wonder if I'll be impeached for dressing out of line. Oh well, I'll just follow the rules and let others make mistakes!"
Zhang Xuezhou pondered for a while.
Zhang Xuezhou's position as Grand Master of the Palace was under the jurisdiction of the Chancellor, but just as the court allowed Prefect Wen Weng to govern Shu Commandery, the Chancellor rarely supervised how they performed their duties.
Zhang Xuezhou worked for quite a while with several senior embroiderers at the Imperial Household Department, only to find that he had finished his work.
"Wearing a crimson robe on the outside, a black-edged collared undergarment underneath, and a purple sash, both tucked into a tiger-head pouch, this is the court dress for military officials. Wearing a black robe on the outside, a black-edged collared undergarment underneath, and a blue sash, both tucked into a tiger-head pouch, this is the court dress for civil officials. Is this how Lord Dongfang reformed things?"
Just as Zhang Xuezhou was about to leave, he saw that his superior, Prime Minister Xu Chang, had also arrived at the Imperial Household Department.
Xu Chang was already seventy-five years old and looked extremely old. His ability to serve as prime minister was not due to any special ability; Xu Chang had been in office for several years and had accomplished nothing.
However, Xu Chang had one great advantage: everything was done according to the orders of Anle Palace, making it no different from the Empress Dowager managing the court.
The Empress Dowager's approach to managing the court was to prioritize stability and dislike any unexpected changes.
Xu Chang entered the embroidery room of the Imperial Household Department and, after seeing the clothing sketches drawn by Zhang Xuezhou on silk, felt that Zhang Xuezhou was quite skilled in clothing and had clearly come prepared to alter the court attire. However, Xu Chang also felt that Zhang Xuezhou had not "prepared" much, as the court attire had not undergone significant modifications.
This is the situation Xu Chang likes best; he really doesn't like 'change'.
He could allow Zhang Xuezhou to alter his court attire, but he did not want it to be altered into a mess.
It's excellent that Zhang Xuezhou is able to follow the ancient system and preserve the traditional clothing. Xu Chang feels that he can accept this change in the style of court dress.
"Prime Minister, our original court attire was quite fine," Zhang Xuezhou said, bowing respectfully. "It's just that some people come from wealthy families. Today they can wear the same clothes as you, but if one day they were to wear the same clothes as His Majesty, or even more luxuriously, that wouldn't be a good thing!"
"The Grand Physician's words are reasonable!"
Xu Chang nodded.
As a chancellor, Xu Chang, while perhaps not magnanimous, certainly wouldn't care if other officials dressed like him.
But Zhang Xuezhou's point about officials possibly dressing more luxuriously than emperors is another matter entirely.
A luxurious outfit isn't exactly cheap, but it's expensive enough for many people to afford. It's not impossible for someone to outshine an emperor in terms of extravagance.
Xu Chang originally intended to come to the Imperial Household Department to remind Zhang Xuezhou to prevent Zhang Xuezhou from causing turmoil in the court, but he ultimately felt that what Zhang Xuezhou said made sense.
"Things can be spontaneous, but they shouldn't be taken too far!"
The current Huang-Lao Daoist philosophy, which is prevalent in the royal court, originated from the Zhou Dynasty, not the Qin Dynasty.
The Zhou Dynasty lasted for eight hundred years, while the Qin Dynasty only enjoyed a few decades of glory. It was not difficult for the Great Han Dynasty to choose which one to learn from.
The Great Zhou royal family ruled the world with great ease, rarely resorting to forceful control except in matters concerning their own security. The languages, scripts, and clothing of the hundreds of fiefdoms were all different.
Xu Chang felt that there was nothing wrong with wearing looser clothing, but he also felt that there was some truth to what Zhang Xuezhou said.
He agreed to unify dress without drastically altering court attire, in order to avoid the problems Zhang Xuezhou mentioned and to proactively avert potential court turmoil.
Given the premise of 'stability,' Xu Chang felt the situation was acceptable.
"The Empress Dowager is very pleased with your recommendation of Daoist Master Li Shaojun. After you resume your duties, please go to Anle Palace to express your gratitude as soon as possible!"
Putting aside the matter of Zhang Xuezhou changing his court attire, Xu Chang also offered a reminder, indicating that Zhang Xuezhou's position as Grand Master of the Palace was inseparable from the strong support of Anle Palace.
Xu Chang also explained why Zhang Xuezhou was able to easily become a Grand Master of the Palace.
"If anyone makes things difficult for you, you should compile their demands into a book and submit it to Anle Palace," Xu Chang reminded him again.
"Thank you for your guidance, Prime Minister. After my period of unconsciousness ends, I will go to Anle Palace to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager for her kindness!"
Zhang Xuezhou bowed in thanks.
He didn't make many changes to the court attire. About half a month was more than enough time to provide new court attire for many officials. The new emperor would most likely make an example of someone, and the matter would eventually fall to him, allowing him to smoothly complete the issue of promotion.
Now that he's lost his official position, there's no need for him to go to Anle Palace to express his gratitude.
Zhang Xuezhou readily agreed, but inwardly he was secretly pleased with himself for quickly getting rid of all the troubles he had been dealing with.
If possible, he hoped to get everything sorted out within the next two weeks.
Of course, if he didn't handle it properly, he would take Divine Lord Zhenyuan to the Yedie River Holy Land for a round trip. A month would pass between going there, sleeping, and returning. If he took office again and didn't do anything, it would inevitably lead to impeachment. Eventually, the matter should come to an end.
Having lost his official position but still retaining the title of "Governor-General" to enter and leave the palace, Zhang Xuezhou felt that his plan to enter the imperial court had been basically achieved.
"A twenty-one-year-old at the Divine Ability Realm!"
As Zhang Xuezhou bid farewell to Xu Chang, he couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion when he occasionally recalled the new emperor's cultivation level.
The new emperor's cultivation period was not very long. Zhang Xuezhou even knew the time it took for the new emperor to break through a realm, which was almost one major realm per year.
This breakthrough speed was not as rapid as the one Kong Anguo had accumulated over several years, but the new emperor's pace was fast and stable, and he had even broken through to the late stage of cultivation.
The speed above the Divine Ability Realm might be slower, after all, the new emperor needs to accumulate too much experience. Even though Zhang Xuezhou is still practicing various Technique Method to this day, he is not sure whether the new emperor will step into the Sole Self Realm after a few years of slowing down, or reach the True Self Realm in ten years.
"His Majesty said he won the bet when he entered the Divine Ability Realm. He must have relied on the power of luck, and he must have been constantly cultivating his cultivation techniques, perhaps even making significant progress!"
In reality, Zhang Xuezhou could gather fortune through the Eastern Mountain Imperial Mausoleum, and in the Great Han Dynasty, he was close to the emperor and could also benefit from the fortune-telling techniques promoted by the new emperor.
Now, he can finally openly and legitimately enjoy the blessings bestowed upon him by fortune, thereby continuously promoting localized content such as "Zaiyou".
Zhang Xuezhou must say that even if he used the Tongtian Jade Ruler to carve a hole in the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum, the fortune he used in the Dongshan Imperial Mausoleum was not the fortune of the orthodox dynasty, but a method left by Huang Daoxian. Cultivating fortune techniques seemed more like taking a shortcut through Evil Dao.
In the Great Han Dynasty, methods like "Zaiyou" that adapted to the emperor were considered the orthodox methods of cultivation.
Only when he has successfully followed the orthodox path of cultivation can he recognize his own cultivation techniques in reality, and correct any deviations in time.