Chapter 879 Peace Under Heaven

Song Chunxue took off her apron and stepped into the room. She immediately recognized the person sitting in the main seat.

She tried to recall where she had seen this before, and suddenly realized that everyone was being a little too quiet.

Then, she suddenly realized that the person in the main seat was more distinguished than the others present.

“Your Majesty…” Song Chunxue stammered, “Your Majesty?”

Belatedly realizing what was happening, she bowed to the emperor.

The moment she looked up, she suddenly remembered that the person in front of her was the one who least approved of her being with Xie Zheng.

"No need to be so formal, please take a seat." The Emperor raised his hand slightly. "I left the palace quietly today, so please consider me Xie Zheng's colleague. My dear ministers... there's no need to be so polite."

Lord Zhao cupped his hands in greeting, "Today's meal was prepared by my junior brother; please do not find it offensive, Your Majesty."

Song Chunxue noticed a strange man sitting next to her senior brother. After sitting down, she realized that it was Master Han who had changed his appearance.

Before long, the food was served, and its aroma was unique.

The eldest brother was also a member of the imperial family, so he was naturally obliged to entertain the emperor.

Song Chunxue and Master Han didn't stand on ceremony and immediately picked up their bowls and chopsticks to start eating.

The emperor acted like a country bumpkin who had just arrived in the city, asking, "What is this?" after tasting each dish.

If he knew the answer, Lord Zhao would explain it himself; if he didn't know, he would look at Song Chunxue and let her explain it herself.

Xie Zheng sat next to Song Chunxue, completely ignoring the Emperor, and would occasionally serve food to Song Chunxue.

Song Chunxue would put down her chopsticks and reply with neither servility nor arrogance.

"This is a cold dish made with sesame oil from our hometown. The vegetable is yellow mustard greens, which can only be found on a few dry riverbeds with alkalinity."

"These are potatoes from our hometown. They are smaller and more mealy than those from other places. To avoid wasting the chicken broth, we stewed them with chicken, and the taste was surprisingly good."

"This is made from buckwheat noodles, cut into pieces and stir-fried with shallots, lard, and sesame oil. It tastes very good."

Song Chunxue explained in great detail, thinking that it would be good if the current emperor could know what the people on their estate ate.

The people of the village will be thrilled when they find out.

But then he thought, their arid and barren land could grow such delicious things, and he, the emperor, who was thousands of miles away, was able to eat them all because of her. The emperor was the lucky one.

Otherwise, he would never have known that even in remote and impoverished areas, there were things that even an emperor like himself could not obtain.

"What is 'savory scallion'?" The Emperor frowned slightly, putting the strongly flavored scallion he had just picked up back into the bowl.

"It's a type of red shallot that's even stronger than white shallots. It seems to only grow in the Northwest. It's not suitable for growing in fertile soil. It's fragrant no matter what you stir-fry it with." Song Chunxue smiled. "If Your Majesty likes it, I can send you some to try."

The Emperor nodded, "It does indeed taste better."

"This oil also smells wonderful, it's very pleasant," the Emperor added solemnly.

"..." Song Chunxue sensed something else; he still wanted the oil.

He was really impolite.

"I also have a small flask, which I'll send to His Majesty to try. But this oil isn't suitable for high heat, otherwise it will taste bitter."

The emperor nodded, his chopsticks barely stopping as he ate with great relish.

After that, everyone ate quietly without saying much.

The dishes that Song Chunxue prepared were almost all eaten.

Only then did she realize what it meant for something to be valued because it was rare.

Although, in the eyes of these farmers, these things are the best things.

But for Beijingers who are used to eating delicacies from land and sea, these things are considered wild game.

Master Han seemed unwilling to pay attention to the Emperor, and simply ate his meal in silence.

After finishing his meal, he drank a couple of sips of tea and then quietly left when no one was looking.

What was unusual was that the Emperor asked Song Chunxue about the grain again.

"Why don't you eat rice? You eat mostly noodles."

Song Chunxue laughed, “Because rice is still called paddy rice, and paddy rice naturally needs to be grown in paddy fields. In our area, we even have to store drinking water in water cellars, so we can’t grow paddy rice.”

"Besides, rice should prefer warmer places. We have four distinct seasons, so the rice probably won't ripen there. Our wheat ripens later than in other places, and we only have one crop a year."

"The local environment shapes the people, and we think noodles are good. We eat whatever God gives us and dare not be picky. After all, when there is a drought or bandits stealing our food, we will even fight to eat tree bark."

This is indeed a question only an emperor could ask; a well-fed person doesn't know the hunger of a starving person.

As farmers, what are we being picky about? When there's no food to eat, we'd even dare to fight with the dogs of rich people for food.

The Emperor nodded frequently, and his gaze toward Song Chunxue held more appreciation.

"No wonder Xie Zheng is so fond of you. You must have very different views on grain and the court. I wonder what your views are on the current situation. You may speak up and I will forgive you."

Looking at the Emperor's smiling expression, Song Chunxue did not feel flattered or grateful, thinking that she had met a wise ruler who cared for the poor.

He may not be considered a foolish ruler, but in terms of his officials and the people, he was far from being a wise ruler.

Otherwise, this great empire wouldn't have crumbled so easily in his hands.

Song Chunxue noticed that Lord Zhao was shaking his head slightly. She stood up and cupped her hands in greeting. “Your Majesty, I have not farmed for a long time, nor have I spent time with my former neighbors and fellow villagers. I am also unfamiliar with the political situation. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me.”

The Emperor wore an enigmatic smile, his gaze shifting back and forth between Xie Zheng and her.

"Since you are unwilling to talk about it, then let me talk about you and Xie Zheng." The Emperor held a string of red jade in his hand. "He is one of the few trusted ministers I have now, yet you want to lead him to become a Taoist and stay away from the world."

Xie Zheng stood up. "Your Majesty, this humble subject..."

The Emperor raised his hand to stop him, then turned his gaze to Song Chunxue, saying, "Let her speak for herself."

Song Chunxue smiled, "But Lord Xie cares about the court and the people, and wants to contribute his meager strength to the country. How can I let him give up his wish?"

The Emperor nodded.

"I heard that someone forged an imperial edict and almost broke you two up. I will deal with this matter personally." The Emperor's tone was unhurried, and he gently turned the string of beads in his hand. "If you get married one day, I will send someone to deliver generous gifts."

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Xie Zheng replied promptly.

Song Chunxue thought to herself, "This emperor really has a lot of free time."

It's likely that they ran out of people to use, which is why they openly warned her not to incite Xie Zheng to leave the court.

The Emperor rose and said, “It’s a rare opportunity to leave the palace. Zhao Jin, Xie Zheng, accompany me for a walk around.”

Watching the Emperor lead them slowly out of the courtyard, Song Chunxue stood still, her face calm.

Lord Han appeared beside Song Chunxue, his expression inscrutable.

"I didn't realize you were so poised and confident in front of the Emperor, without any sycophancy or flattery. That's good; you didn't embarrass us."

Song Chunxue took a deep breath, her voice filled with sorrow.

"Perhaps it's because, as a farmer, although I respect the emperor, I ultimately rely on God for my livelihood, so there's no need to be overly reverent towards him."

"But we also hope that this country will remain stable forever and that the world will be at peace."