Xu Di was about to harvest the crops, so Zhang Zhaoci arranged for Granny Zhao to stay at home to guard the house, while he brought his family to the village, including Sister He, to help with the cooking.

This was the first time Xu Zhi had witnessed a crop harvest, and it was also the first time she had realized that harvesting crops was such a spectacular event.

Vast fields of wheat stretched out, the heavy, golden ears of wheat bending the stalks. A gentle breeze blew, and the vast expanse of golden wheat rippled in the scorching sun.

A group of strong young men, each holding a sickle, stood in a row at the edge of the field. At Zhao Zhuangtou's command and a loud shout, they all bent down and began to cut wheat.

They were all people who were used to working in the fields, and they harvested wheat very quickly.

With one arm around a bundle of wheat and the other hand wielding a sharp sickle, a field of wheat was felled with a powerful swing. The young figure rose and fell with a captivating charm. Xu Zhi stood in the sun, watching the wheat harvesters in a daze, feeling that under the bright sunlight, it was a mesmerizing scene.

Standing at the edge of the field, Xu Zhi watched as the young man bent over, head down, cutting wheat as he walked forward. Behind him were rows of cut wheat. Everyone cut wheat at a different speed, and over time, the vast wheat field, which resembled a blanket, gained streaks of different colors from the edge, appearing much more vibrant under the sun.

Zhang Zhaoci was helping to deliver the cooked mung bean soup to the field when she saw Xu Zhi standing at the edge of the field. She said, "Xiao Jiu, don't stand in the sun. It's too hot."

When Xu Zhi saw Zhang Zhaoci carrying a ceramic jar tied with a hemp rope in each hand, she went to help her lift it. Zhang Zhaoci quickly lifted it up and said, "Oh dear, my dear girl, this won't do. It's heavy, you can't lift it. I'll take you back later, and we'll drink some cooled mung bean soup."

Zhang Zhaoci was carrying large earthenware jars that could hold more than ten kilograms of mung bean soup. He put the mung bean soup on the edge of the field, called Xu Rao and Xu Di, who were helping to tie wheat cakes in the field, to come and drink with their people, and then took Xu Zhi's hand and walked back.

Along the way, they picked a large handful of ripe wheat ears, held them in their hands, and said, "Xiao Jiu, let's go back and make wheat porridge."

Xu Zhi looked at Zhang Zhaoci, whose face was flushed from the sun, and said, "Mother, how do you know so much?"

Zhang Zhaoci said, "Because I've seen a lot. When I was little, I wasn't like other girls who stayed in that small courtyard all day. I went out to sea with your eldest uncle and others, and I also went to the deep mountains and forests with your great-grandfather to collect herbs. After you've seen the vast ocean and then experienced the simple and joyful life of the farmers, you'll feel as if your heart has been washed with mountain spring water, and everything will be clear and bright."

Xu Zhi listened with longing. She grew up in the small courtyard of the Marquis's mansion when she was a child. After being married in place of another, she went to the small courtyard of the Duke's mansion. The only time she had ever been outside was when she was exiled to Lingnan with a group of people from the Duke's mansion. But at that time, they had to travel fifty miles a day to reach a place a thousand miles away. They had to walk step by step and worry about whether they would have enough to eat or whether they would encounter bad weather on the way. How could they have the mood to look at the different scenery around them?

Seeing that Xu Zhi was staring into the distance, seemingly lost in thought, Zhang Zhaoci smiled and said, "Don't worry, we'll definitely have the chance to visit many places in the future."

The wheat harvest was in full swing on the estate when a constable from the county government rode up on horseback, saying that there was urgent business at the county government and that Lord Xu needed to return immediately. Xu Rao had no choice but to pack his things and hurry back to the county government with the messenger.

Xu Di asked Zhang Zhaoci curiously, "What's the rush? Didn't my father already arrange for people to go down there to help harvest the wheat?"

Zhang Zhaoci said, "Who knows?"

When Xu Rao arrived at the county government office, he discovered that a tribe from the grasslands had come with a large quantity of wool and cashmere to exchange for tea and salt.

The people who came to exchange goods had already arrived below Yanmen Pass. For safety reasons, Wei Lang and Xu Rao had set up the exchange market outside Yanmen Pass, enclosing a fairly large open space with a wooden fence. Xu Rao had also made a display board with wooden boards, on which the exchange value of various items was written.

Wei Lang had already opened the gates of Yanmen Pass and was standing at the gate. Seeing Xu Rao rushing over, he cupped his hands and whispered, "Lord Xu, the scouts have reported that the tribe that came to exchange goods this time is a rather small tribe on the grasslands. However, an important figure from the Northern Di royal court came with them, but we don't know exactly who it is. The trade market was established by the county government, and we, as the garrison, cannot directly interfere. So we must ask Lord Xu to keep an eye on things."

Xu Rao immediately understood that this trip to exchange goods was probably a ruse; the real reason was that the Northern Di had come to gather intelligence.

Xu Rao nodded and said, "I'll take some men with me. You guys keep watch at the gate."

The current trade market isn't a place where you can just exchange things anywhere. Each time, there's a specific time. Xu Rao sends people to collect the goods and bring them to the trade market. The people on the grasslands also know when they can exchange goods. Each tribe saves up their goods, and when they have enough, they come here to exchange them on a day when the trade market is open.

As Xu Rao visited more often, he got to know several tribal leaders from the grasslands.

The leader of a tribe that wasn't very large, but not small either, came this time. The leader was named Jirentai, a tall man in his fifties. Because it wasn't far from Yanmen Pass, he often came here to exchange goods. After exchanging tea and salt, his tribe would also take people to tribes deep in the grasslands to exchange these goods for what they needed.

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