The Emperor gave him a cold laugh and asked, "Does the Marquis of Dingbei think my reward is too generous? Very well, Marquis of Dingbei can set off for Quanzhou immediately. When you can bring back two kinds of high-yield grains comparable to corn and potatoes, I will bestow upon you the title of Duke. What do you say?!"

Marquis Dingbei immediately became dejected.

Putting aside whether high-yield grains can be found again, just the fact that if they can't be found, he can't return to Xindu. Does he have to stay in Quanzhou for the rest of his life?

He quickly kowtowed and begged for forgiveness, "Your Majesty, I know I was wrong!"

"Hmph, go back and reflect on your mistakes in a month, and have your salary reduced by half a year. If you still don't know how to be careful with your words and actions, you can forget about being a marquis!" The emperor flicked his sleeve, and the Marquis of Dingbei wiped away his cold sweat and left.

Li Zhensheng quickly stepped forward, knelt down, and kowtowed to express his gratitude.

He was genuinely excited and thrilled; he would never have to worry about his family being bullied again!

Whether their intentions were genuine or not, everyone stepped forward to offer their congratulations.

Wang Bowei, the old patriarch of the Wang family, stood at the back of the crowd with his head down. His face was unreadable, but his heart was filled with mixed feelings.

Had he known that Li Zhensheng would have such an extraordinary encounter, and that the Li family would be so fortunate, he would have done everything in his power to mediate and bring the Wang and Li families together...

As long as Li Zhensheng's illness is cured and he is supported to return to the Li family, with the two children, one surnamed Wang and the other surnamed Li, the Li family will definitely not delve into the past.

Then everything will be covered up, and the two families will visit each other more often. Everything the Li family has now will be an asset to the Wang family.

What a pity! It's a pity that he was so arrogant and didn't take the Li family seriously.

The Li family actually rose from being ordinary refugees to becoming the new elite of Tianwu!

Or perhaps a newly rich family with a grudge against the Wang family...

If anyone had X-ray vision, they would surely see that Old Master Wang's intestines had turned bluish-purple.

Unfortunately, some courtiers who were at odds with him seized the opportunity to mock him, stepping forward with a smile and saying, "Congratulations, Lord Wang! The Li family, after all, was once related to the Wang family by marriage. Now the Li family has a hereditary earl and a first-rank imperial consort..."

"Oh, and there's also Princess Kangle. She's risen to the top in one step, achieving great success. She'll definitely take good care of the Wang family in the future. The old master must be happier than anyone else, right?"

Old Master Wang gritted his teeth in anger, secretly regretting that he had gone to court today. If he had claimed to be sick and stayed at home, would he have avoided such humiliation?

What embarrassed him the most was that this fertile field in front of him clearly belonged to the Wang family, but now it was planted with high-yield grains, yet it had nothing to do with his family!

The more Old Master Wang thought about it, the angrier he became. His vision blurred, and he almost collapsed to the ground.

Unfortunately, no one cared about taking care of him.

At this moment, the emperor had already rolled up his sleeves and personally went down to the fields to harvest corn.

No civil or military official dared to slack off, and they all followed suit, joining the harvesting army!

Leaving aside how bustling Yunhe Town is, the sunset at Suijin Beach is a rare moment of peace and joy.

The villagers had spent the whole day picking apples, and the hillside on the west side of the hot spring valley was now bare.

Baskets of fruit were loaded onto the carriage, and the Liu family's steward and servants bid farewell to everyone with smiles, then returned home laden with their spoils.

The villagers were exhausted. Each of them grabbed a piece of fruit and sat under a big tree at the village entrance, chatting and quenching their thirst.

The village chief waved his pipe and encouraged everyone, "Let's work harder tomorrow and pick fruit from the other hill too, but remember, pick the best fruit trees and leave six or seven behind."

"We'll pick them before they freeze, and then each family will share them. The children will enjoy them, and we can store them for the New Year to put on two plates as an offering, so that our ancestors can also taste the freshness!"

"Okay, I'll listen to the village chief."

"We don't even know how much our fruit will cost yet. Let's eat it quickly, or we won't be able to bear to eat it later!"

"Haha, Master Liu is a capable man, he'll definitely make a lot of money from this."

"Once I'm done with these busy days, I'll go buy two pounds of meat and make some dumplings. I've been so tired lately, I have to treat myself!"

The villagers chattered and laughed, prompting the village chief to reprimand them, "Back when we were up north, we were in the fields every day, our backs peeling from the sun, and you never complained about being tired. Now you're complaining about being tired just picking some fruit? You've really had too many good days, and they've made you lose your temper!"

The people who were scolded didn't get angry; instead, they all laughed.

Life is like this: young people strut around like crazy every now and then, and old people slap their shoes and say a few scary words—that's what makes it lively.

Smoke was billowing from every chimney as the women busied themselves cooking.

On the stone slabs outside the Li family's courtyard wall, the mischievous boys sat in a row, all munching on fruit.

At this time of year, the daytime is quite pleasant, but it gets a bit chilly after sunset.

Jia'an was worried that the stones would get cold on his little sister's bottom, so he held her in his arms and sat her on his lap.

Jiaxi, with a fruit in her mouth, quickly tore off her outer garment and draped it over her younger sister.

Cat Brother thought for a moment, then took the fruit from his sister's hand. Like a little rabbit, he started moving his mouth frantically, quickly nibbling off the peel. Then he stuffed the fruit back into his sister's hand, grinning with his bright white teeth, "Sister, eat it, there's no peel left."

Jiayin blinked her big eyes twice, feeling both amused and exasperated, and could only lower her head and start eating heartily.

What does drooling have to do with it? It's not important!

This is all my brother's love, love!

Shui Ling stood to the side, unable to resist covering her mouth, giggling until her stomach hurt...

Granny He came out of the courtyard carrying a small cloak. Seeing that the young lady was wrapped up tightly, she did not go forward. Just as she was about to speak with Shui Ling, a group of people came running on the path outside the village.

The villagers were startled and stood up, wondering who would rush over at this time.

The village chief shouted at the children, "Hurry up and go inside the yard! Don't come out unless we call you!"

Jia'an and Jiaxi were very curious, but they still picked up their younger sister, grabbed their younger brother, and led their friends into their own house.

As the group of people drew closer, everyone was even more puzzled to see that the person riding on the horse was actually a eunuch, followed by soldiers with the character "禁" (forbidden) written on their chests.

The village chief, who had been to the palace several times, said to the crowd, "Don't be afraid. These are the Imperial Guards, protecting the Emperor. And there are eunuchs, who also serve the Emperor!"

His voice was quite loud, and the eunuchs and imperial guards on horseback heard it.

The eunuch, however, was not angry. He jumped off his horse, smiled, and cupped his hands, saying, "Old village chief, I recognized you from afar. Back when you went to the palace to present the jade melon, it was I who led the way for you!"

"Oh dear, sir, I'm so sorry. I'm just an ordinary old farmer. I'm so scared that my legs go weak when I go to the palace. It's a miracle I didn't faint. I really can't remember who I've met!" The village chief quickly bowed and apologized.

The eunuch helped the village chief up and said with a smile, "Old village chief, don't be so polite. Your Broken Gold Beach is a blessed land bestowed by the emperor. The emperor always keeps it in mind. There will probably be even more good things in the future. Perhaps our family will have to come to this blessed land often. We will need your help then."

Having said that, he revealed a corner of the bright yellow cloth in his pocket and said, "I would like to trouble the village chief to inform the old lady of the Li family and Li Yusheng, the second son of the Li family, to receive the imperial decree!"

"Oh my, it's an imperial edict!"

Before the village chief could respond, the villagers screamed and ran into the Li family's yard.

Li Lao Er was picking fruit today when he accidentally strained his back. He's lying on the kang (heated brick bed) right now, asking his mother to rub it with medicinal wine.

Therefore, the mother and daughter had no idea what was happening outside the courtyard gate.

Suddenly, she heard villagers shouting in the courtyard, which startled the old woman so much that she dropped the bottle of medicinal wine in her hand.

Li Lao Er scrambled to his feet, tying his belt as he shielded his mother behind him. "Mother, don't worry, I'll go check on her."