Chapter 111 Snow

When I came out of the teahouse, it was already evening. Snowflakes were floating in the sky again, and pedestrians on the road were all walking in a hurry with umbrellas.

"It's snowing again." Ji Hean muttered, and just as he stretched out his hand, Ji Zheng pulled it back.

Neither of them brought an umbrella, and Ji Zheng sent the servant away because he had too many things in his hands.

I looked around and didn't see any umbrella stalls around, so I grabbed a passerby and asked, "Excuse me, is there anyone selling umbrellas around here?"

The waiter pointed in a direction and replied, "There's an umbrella stand on the left."

"Thank you." Ji Zheng thanked the employee, then turned to Ji Hean and said, "Baby, I'm going to buy an umbrella. You just stand here and wait for me."

"Okay." Ji Hean nodded.

"Don't play in the snow secretly. If you are caught by me, you will bear the consequences yourself." Ji Zheng turned around and gave another warning.

Having his secret thoughts exposed, Ji Hean curled his lips and said, "I know, I know."

Seeing that the person was unhappy, Ji Zheng laughed angrily and walked up to coax him, "Baby, be good. I'll take you ice skating in two days."

Speaking of playing, Ji Hean was delighted. He looked at Ji Zheng with shining eyes and patted his chest to promise: "I promise not to play in the snow without your back."

Scratching the tip of the man's nose lovingly and helplessly, Ji Zheng went out to buy an umbrella in the snow.

When we got to the place the waiter mentioned, we saw an umbrella stall, but there were a lot of people there, probably because it had suddenly snowed.

Worried that something might happen to Ji and An who were alone there, Ji Zheng squeezed to the front and paid for an umbrella.

After opening the umbrella, Ji Zheng started walking, wanting to go back to find Ji Hean as soon as possible.

On the other side, Ji and An looked around boredly, like a pair of furry and curious rabbits.

Ji Zheng hurried back holding an umbrella. From a distance he saw Ji Hean looking around like a little rabbit, with snowflakes falling on his shoulders.

Ji Zheng quickened his pace, came to Ji Hean's side, and held the umbrella firmly over his head.

"You must be impatient, baby." Ji Zheng said softly, tugging at Ji Hean's clothes, "You didn't play in the snow, did you?"

As he spoke, he reached out to feel the temperature of Ji Hean's hand. Feeling the warmth in his palm, Ji Zheng breathed a sigh of relief. "Baby, you are very obedient. I can reward you by letting you eat half a persimmon the day after tomorrow."

Even though it was only half a persimmon and it couldn't be eaten until the day after tomorrow, Ji Hean was still very happy. He frowned at Ji Zheng, and his little face, which was mostly covered, was flushed.

The two of them leaned against each other under the umbrella and walked back slowly. Snowflakes fluttered on the umbrella. Ji Zheng asked, "I saw you looking around just now. What were you looking at?"

Ji Hean's hand was completely wrapped by Ji Zheng's hand, and he puffed his lips and said, "I didn't see anything, I just took a look."

Ji Zheng nodded.

Ji Hean asked again: "With such heavy snow, is this umbrella very expensive?"

"It's a little more expensive than usual." Ji Zheng replied.

"How much is it?"

"Ten cents."

The two of them walked home chatting idly, snowflakes drifted down the roof and gradually accumulated into a thin layer.

...

As the year draws to a close, all departments begin to become busy. However, Ji Zheng is fine at the Gunpowder Bureau. At most, he just makes some fireworks for the New Year. The busiest department is the Ministry of Revenue.

I would slack off with Mu Ce all day after work, so I had a leisurely life.

"To be honest, you can't go back anyway. Don't you really plan to find someone here to settle down?" Ji Zheng lay on the rocking chair, half-closed his eyes, and asked Mu Ce who was in the same position next to him.

Hearing the seriousness in Ji Zheng's tone, Mu Ce picked up the hot tea beside him and took a sip, then looked up at the ceiling and said, "I don't know. I haven't met someone I like yet, and I don't want to settle for anything less."

After saying that, he turned his head to look at Ji Zheng and said, "That's not right, why are you suddenly concerned about my love life?"

"Because His Majesty seems to be interested in finding you a marriage partner." Ji Zheng looked at Mu Ce with a gloating look and said, "Let me test your opinion."

Mu Ce: “…” This dog emperor is sick, he likes to arrange marriages for others so much, why is he still an emperor? It would be better for him to be a matchmaker directly.

Seeing the silence on Mu Ce's face, Ji Zheng said, "You are the God, you should hurry up and find someone who is compatible with you. Otherwise, if you are really forced to marry, it will be a disaster."

Exhaling, Mu Ce swallowed the curse words that were not uttered in his mouth, and suddenly asked Ji Zheng, "Do you think I should find a man or a woman?"

Ji Zheng was speechless and rolled his eyes at him, "How should I know yours?"

"It seems so." Mu Ce nodded, holding his head with both hands and lying down leisurely. He sighed: "Actually, life nowadays is pretty good except that it's a bit boring."

Ji Zheng didn't answer.

Mu Ce didn't care. His eyes fell on the snowflakes falling outside the window and he said, "It feels like the snow is very heavy this year."

Ji Zheng also looked out the window and nodded, "Bigger than last year."

"Do you think there is a possibility of a snowstorm with such strong winds and snow?" Mu Ce looked at the large flakes of snow falling to the ground outside the window.

Hearing this, Ji Zheng frowned. This year the snow has been falling for a whole month without stopping, so this is not impossible.

Thinking of the snow disasters in history, Ji Zheng's brows furrowed even more tightly, and his tone became more serious, "Don't be so glib."

Mu Ce also reacted immediately and spit several times, "I didn't mean it, I didn't mean it."

At the same time, in the study, several cylinders of charcoal fire were burning. The flames jumped and struggled in the stove, causing the light and shadows in the room to flicker.

Outside the window, a strong wind wrapped in snowflakes whistled past, occasionally hitting the window frame, as if it wanted to break through the barrier of this study.

Emperor Ren looked at the memorials handed in from various places with a worried look on his face, and the Prime Minister sitting below him also had a bad expression on his face.

After a long time, Emperor Ren spoke slowly, his voice revealing a trace of fatigue and worry: "Prime Minister, what do you think of the things mentioned in these memorials? I see that the weather is very cold, the snow is deep, and livestock have been frozen to death in many places. I am very worried that a snowstorm will occur."

Yuan Zhen bowed slightly and replied solemnly: "Your Majesty is wise. From what I have seen, there are indeed signs of the danger of a snowstorm."

He paused and continued, "Since the beginning of winter, there have been continuous heavy snowstorms. In the extreme cold, people are short of things to keep warm. If this bad weather continues, farmland will also be severely damaged. It will be difficult to start spring planting as scheduled, and next year's harvest will be worrying."

Emperor Ren frowned, stood up and paced, his footsteps falling on the thick carpet, but it seemed like he was carrying a heavy burden, "Is there enough food for disaster relief?"

Yuan Zhen pondered for a moment, looked out the window at the vast expanse of white, and said, "Your Majesty, there is still food in the granary, but if the snowstorm continues, we may not be able to sustain it."

After saying this, silence fell in Yu's study again.

After a while, Emperor Ren slowly spoke: "First, let the areas not affected by the disaster prepare food and grass so that they can be rescued at any time. Then organize manpower to break the ice and clear the road to ensure transportation so that supplies can be transported smoothly."

Then Emperor Ren said, "Instruct all local officials to calm the people and not allow panic to grow."

"I obey your order." Yuan Zhen stood up and accepted the order.