The days that followed were filled with excitement in Canghe Village, and more importantly, it was time for everyone to harvest the wheat.

Although Yan Qingqing's family only had six or seven mu of wheat, because they ran many businesses, Li Xiangping immediately hired several people from other villages to harvest the wheat in order to speed up the harvest.

It only took three days from harvesting to hulling and drying. Even Li Xiangping, who always enjoys farm work, exclaimed that it's really good to be rich.

Meanwhile, in Chengyang County, Magistrate Ling, having just finished his official duties, rubbed his temples and asked Steward Ling, "Still no news?"

Butler Ling paused for a moment, then asked, "Which matter is the master asking about?"

Magistrate Ling glared at him fiercely and said, "What else could it be?"

Butler Ling asked innocently, "Are you referring to the search for Fuxing, or the disappearance of that person in the palace?"

Magistrate Ling replied unhappily, "Is there any news about either of these two matters?"

Butler Ling shook his head and replied, "No, finding Fuxing is like looking for a needle in a haystack. How can we find him if we don't know his name or age?"

Finding that person is even harder; we still don't know if he's alive or dead. However, I heard that his Blood Shadow Guards have also disappeared recently, so maybe they've already been found.

Magistrate Ling sighed and said, "Is it possible that they were never found or that they are already dead?"

Those Blood Shadow Guards all died in the line of duty; after all, even if they returned, they would still be dead.

Butler Ling nodded noncommittally and said, "It's not impossible."

However, our Ling family has never participated in factional struggles, so whether that person lives or dies should have nothing to do with our Ling family.

Magistrate Ling sighed and said, "That's true, but how can the old man in this position stay out of it?"

I heard that the old man received a great favor from that maternal grandfather back then. Deep down, he's definitely biased towards that grandfather, but unfortunately, he has a senile mother. Besides, he's still young and his chances of winning are slim.

Seeing Magistrate Ling sigh, Steward Ling also sighed. Magistrate Ling laughed and scolded, "Alright, stop pretending. We can ignore whether that person lives or dies, but we still have to continue searching for the lucky star that His Majesty asked us to find."

I heard that the eldest prince found someone, but Lord Tang from the Imperial Observatory rejected him on the spot, saying that he had ulterior motives and was trying to seduce and win favor by randomly finding someone to impersonate the lucky star.

I heard the eldest prince was so angry his nose was crooked.

At this point, Magistrate Ling sighed again and said, "The old man has written again, saying that we should hurry up and find Fuxing and build a good relationship with her. This is very important for the Ling family."

Where am I supposed to find it for him?

Butler Ling looked at his master with pity. As the eldest son of the Ling family, one of the four great families in the capital, he had actually humbled himself to become the magistrate of a small county town just to find someone.

Seeing his master's distress, Butler Ling asked, "The Imperial Observatory just told us to find someone, but didn't give us any hints?"

Magistrate Ling sighed and said, "They said this person is a master from another world, whose early life was full of hardships, but whose later life was smooth sailing. He can bless our Great Yan Kingdom so that it may turn misfortune into good fortune."

"What's the difference between saying it and not saying it?"

After hearing Magistrate Ling's words, Steward Ling could only feel deep sympathy for his master, but he couldn't bear to see his master looking so worried.

Then, on a sudden inspiration, he said, "Sir, I heard that the peony garden in Canghe Village has opened. Shall we go and take a look?"

Magistrate Ling asked in confusion, "What peony garden? I've never heard of it before. And is the Canghe Village you mentioned the same Canghe Village where the Yan family lived?"

Steward Ling smiled and said, "Sir is right, it is the village where Yan lives. You have been busy with affairs lately and have not left the county office for more than ten days, so you naturally do not know about this."

So Butler Ling started by recounting the storytelling at the tea house, until recently when the peony garden opened and attracted many tourists.

After listening, Magistrate Ling said, "This seems like a pre-arranged scheme. Moreover, I believe that this matter is inextricably linked to the Yan family."

Magistrate Ling was quite impressed with Yan Qingqing. Not only was she composed and measured in her actions, but she also possessed remarkable insight and remained calm and collected in his presence. She was nothing like an ordinary village woman.

Something flashed through Magistrate Ling's mind, but he couldn't quite grasp it.

Seeing that Magistrate Ling was interested, Steward Ling smiled and said, "Isn't this a pre-arranged scheme? But with the story of Peony being demoted to Canghe, people are more willing to believe it's true."

Besides, that poem is truly excellent; it's not only popular with students, but even you, sir, enjoy it. Everyone's searching for the poet behind it; who cares about the story's veracity?

After listening, Magistrate Ling nodded, then stood up and said, "Let's go, let's go to Canghe Village and visit the Yan family while we're at it."

Magistrate Ling hadn't forgotten that Yan Qingqing still bore a heavy responsibility; those potatoes and sweet potatoes were crucial to people's livelihoods.

Although he had been sending agricultural officials to study and record the process for so long, he still wanted to go in person to put his mind at ease as the harvest season was approaching.

Magistrate Ling went in plain clothes, clearly not wanting to disturb the villagers.

However, as soon as they entered the village, they were stopped by a patrol team led by Wang Wugang, who insisted that they show their household registration and travel permit.

Wang Wugang kindly explained to Magistrate Ling that there had been a lot of outsiders in the village recently, and all outsiders entering the village had to be checked, which was for their personal safety.

Magistrate Ling was somewhat helpless. Just as he was about to take out the household registration book, Li Xiang'an returned from running errands in the county town.

Wang Wugang saw Li Xiang'an and greeted him warmly.

Li Xiang'an recognized the two men from afar, but upon closer inspection, he was startled to find that they were none other than Magistrate Ling.

Just as Li Xiang'an was about to bow, Magistrate Ling stopped him with a look. He probably didn't want anyone to know his whereabouts.

Li Xiang'an gave Magistrate Ling a knowing look, exchanged a few pleasantries with Wang Wugang, and then pretended to bump into Magistrate Ling by chance.

Wang Wugang saw that Li Xiang'an knew them, so he let them into Canghe Village without much inspection.

Li Xiang'an had no choice but to let Ah Er drive the carriage home first, while he accompanied Magistrate Ling to the village. When no one was around, he asked in a low voice, "Sir, what brings you here?"

Magistrate Ling smiled and said, "I heard that there is a peony garden in Canghe Village that has become quite famous recently, so I came here specifically to take a look."

I heard it costs two taels of silver to get in. Do you know whose garden this is?

Seeing the magistrate's expression that two taels of silver was expensive, Li Xiang'an felt a little embarrassed, but still stammered, "Sir, this garden belongs to my family."

Magistrate Ling listened with an expression that said, "I knew it," and then said, "These were all your mother's ideas, weren't they?"

Li Xiang'an was unsure of Magistrate Ling's attitude towards this matter and was wondering how to answer when Magistrate Ling continued, "This is not something an ordinary person can do. Come, take me to see your mother."

After saying that, he walked towards the Li family's house on his own.

Li Xiang'an: ...