Chapter 86: Yinzhen doesn’t come back after his first period, and Qi Buchen’s life is also...

Even though Yinzhen didn't come back, Qi Buchen's life didn't change much. She still studied English with Feijiade, but by now, Feijiade had nothing to teach her. The only thing left was vocabulary. After all, there was no need to take IELTS or TOEFL here.

During this period of time, Qi Buchen had a good impression of Fei Jiade, so when he had almost learned English, he did not fire him. Instead, he asked him to teach him Western painting and talk about things in Western countries, so that he could understand the development process of the world today.

It was the end of the 17th century. The Age of Discovery and the Great Migration had long passed. The United States was nowhere to be seen, North America still a British colony, and Australia was nothing more than a barren expanse of desert sand, a land the British had no interest in colonizing. On the European continent, wars for the throne raged, capitalism was in its infancy, and the Industrial Revolution hadn't even begun. Mathematics had already developed the concept of differentials, and even mechanical computers capable of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division had been invented. Meanwhile, the priests' witch hunts and trials were intensifying.

This is an era where science and superstition are intertwined, and it is also an era that makes people's hearts surge.

Qi Buchen immersed herself in Yinzhen's study, reading through the foreign-language books one by one. She didn't expect to understand them all, just to get a general understanding of what each book was about and what theoretical knowledge it contained. Unfortunately, Yinzhen's study didn't have many books. After reading them all, Qi Buchen asked Fei Jiade to find new books, regardless of the subject matter. She wanted them all.

Soon, her small study was filled with various foreign books. When Qi Buchen found traces of potatoes and sweet potatoes in a book, she was excited, but when she asked around, she found that she had thought things were too simple.

High-yield crops such as potatoes and sweet potatoes have attracted much attention since their discovery, and were introduced back to the Qing Dynasty by interested people very early on. Today, potatoes have been widely planted in the north and have become the main crop in the Northeast and other places. Sweet potatoes have also long been widely planted in Fujian, Guangdong, Yunnan and other places, and are also found in the Liangjiang area. I heard that they have recently been introduced to places such as the North China Plain.

As for why Qi Buchen had never heard of them, firstly, although the yield of potatoes and sweet potatoes was high at that time, they had not undergone the selective cultivation of later generations, so the yield was limited; secondly, these two things would make the stomach and intestines too active after eating, which was too indecent for people who claimed to be aristocrats. Moreover, rich people could not eat any delicious food, and the taste of potatoes and sweet potatoes was just okay, so these two things were only circulated among the people, and were basically not seen in the wealthy families in the capital.

So, by some strange coincidence, Qi Buchen only just now learned of the existence of the two. It wasn't a big deal, as long as the common people benefited.

However, thinking about the past few years, he often heard Yinzhen talk about disasters, reduced grain production, and disaster victims running around. Qi Buchen knew that the current potato and sweet potato production must be very different from that of later generations, and there is still great potential to be tapped.

When Yinzhen comes back, I have to discuss with him whether we can find a place to conduct experiments and research to increase the yield of these two, as well as the yield of rice. Unfortunately, not everyone can make hybrid rice.

I miss Grandpa Yuan.

With the potatoes and sweet potatoes gone, Qi Buchen remembered another essential item for time travelers: cement. Back when the essential knowledge points for time travelers were trending, she had diligently memorized them. Unfortunately, nothing happened for several years after she memorized them, so she didn't take it seriously. Who knew she would actually travel through time? She had forgotten everything she had memorized!

She only remembered the simplest thing: limestone and clay, in a ratio of three to one, and she couldn't remember a single word of the rest.

More importantly, she had no idea what kind of stone limestone was!

Is the limestone in the Qing Dynasty called limestone?

Qi Buchen was crying tears of regret in her heart and could only ask Feijiad to find some books on Western chemistry and mineralogy for her, hoping to find some clues in them.

When Qi Buchen was buried in the book looking for various familiar things, Yinzhen finally came back.

He looked him up and down and said, "Looks like he's had a good meal. He's grown a bit taller." Then he added disdainfully, "He's even darker."

Yinzhen was originally quite happy, but he became unhappy when he heard her disapproval: "Why would a man be so white?"

Qi Buchen said seriously: "White is beautiful, and it can hide a thousand flaws."

Yinzhen was speechless, but when he saw the familiar hairpin in her hair, he couldn't help but smile: "The hairpin suits you very well, why aren't you wearing a hairpin?"

"Is my head a dressing table? I have to wear so many things for exhibition." Qi Buchen said unhappily, but he felt a little happy in his heart.

Yinzhen laughed and gestured for Su Peisheng to present something: "This is for you."

It is a mirror, and the rare thing is that the mirror surface is made of glass.

Yinzhen said, "I heard that Europe has developed a new firing method that allows it to be made into larger pieces. Unfortunately, this piece is fragile and difficult to transport. This piece was obtained with great difficulty by the person who presented it."

I worked so hard to get it, and now I'm giving it to you? I have an agenda.

Qi Buchen frowned slightly and asked tentatively, "You just accepted it?" Thinking that Yinzhen was there to supervise the repair of the river bank, could it be that someone had come to Yinzhen for help? Or was someone trying to bribe Yinzhen by contracting the project and enriching themselves?

Yinzhen looked at her leisurely for a long time before flicking her forehead with a smile: "What are you thinking about?"

"It's just that his family offended someone, and I accidentally helped them out. This is just a thank you gift. Don't worry, take it."

It's fine as long as you don't accept bribes.

Qi Buchen breathed a sigh of relief, then came to his senses and found it a little funny. What was she thinking? Yinzhen was well-known for his hatred of corrupt officials. It was he who came up with the "maintenance silver". How could such a person engage in corruption and bribery?

But this mirror...

"Why don't you send it to my mother?"

Over the past six months, Concubine De still disliked her. Every time she came to the palace to pay her respects, she would criticize her openly or covertly, especially regarding the matter of Fei Jiade. Although Yinzhen had filed a case with Kangxi long ago, Concubine De still gave her a cold look for a long time after she found out.

Although she didn't expect Concubine De to like her, she was willing to do her best to please Qi Buchen in a harmless way, as she would do less trouble.

Yinzhen's face darkened. He always took an evasive attitude towards Concubine De and seldom talked about related topics with Qi Buchen.

"No need. There's only one mirror. If you give it to my mother, you can't give it to the Queen Mother. There's no need to cause trouble."

This reason is quite justified. It is not the lack of wealth that is worrying, but the inequality. The empress dowager is one thing, but there are so many concubines in the palace. Who knows what kind of trouble will arise for a mirror, and then it will be her fault. Qi Buchen felt that he had not thought enough.

"What have you done recently?" Yinzhen skipped this unpleasant topic and asked something else.

Qi Buchen took him into the small study and showed him the results of his work over the past few days.

Yinzhen walked around and said, "The place is still too small. We should clean it up and turn this whole wing into a study so I can use it in the future."

Qi Buchen thought this suggestion was acceptable. She had set up a small study in the past just to make it convenient for her to check accounts and manage the household, so it didn't matter if the place was small. But now she wanted to study seriously, and there would be more and more books in the future, so a larger place was still necessary.

"Replace this door and open another one here." Yinzhen was very proactive. As soon as he finished speaking, he called Su Peisheng over and began to plan and arrange. "Put up bookshelves all over the south side, the same style as the study in the front yard. Put a desk here and here, and a couch over here..."

"Wait, what are the two desks for?" Qi Buchen interrupted.

Yinzhen looked at her doubtfully: "One is yours, and the other is mine."

"Don't you have a study?" The front yard is so big, much bigger than the west wing, why are you still competing with her for space?

Yinzhen said as a matter of course: "I will move back here in the future. It's more convenient here."

Qi Buchen suddenly understood what he meant, his face turned red, and he could no longer express any objection.

When will he move back? Of course, after the two of them move in together.

Yinzhen didn't think what he said was a big deal and continued to give orders to Su Peisheng.

The small study began to be renovated, so Qi Buchen temporarily moved to the study in the front yard to study. When Yinzhen came back, he only rested for one day at home before reporting to the Ministry of Works.

The renovation of the small study was completed in just ten days. It has to be said that the efficiency of the Imperial Household Department is still very high at times.

Qi Buchen was in a very happy mood when he visited the spacious new study, but unfortunately this happiness did not last until the next day.

She was woken by pain in the middle of the night, and by the time she realized she had her period, the bed sheet had already been stained red. Because of this incident, the main courtyard became bustling with activity, and then the kitchen also became busy.

After drinking the freshly brewed brown sugar water and lying on the made-up bed, Qi Buchen was sweating profusely and her mind was fuzzy. Was it this painful the first time she had her period in her previous life? It felt like a knife was stabbing her stomach. Baozhu gave her a hot water bottle to hold against her stomach, but Qi Buchen didn't see any benefit except for making her sweat more.

When Yinzhen got up early to have breakfast, Su Peisheng reported: "The main courtyard has been noisy since the early morning and has not stopped since then. I heard that the concubine is unwell."

Yinzhen stood up unhappily and said, "Why didn't you wake me up earlier to report to me?"

Su Peisheng nodded: "Fujin doesn't want to disturb you."

Yinzhen snorted and didn't pursue the matter any further. This dog slave was becoming more and more obedient to the concubine, but he couldn't punish him for it.

Taking note of Su Peisheng in his heart, Yinzhen hurried to the main courtyard, where Qi Buchen was still groaning on the bed.

Baozhu stopped the man outside and said, "Master, Fu Jin is not available right now."

Yinzhen didn't force his way in, but asked in a deep voice, "What happened to Fu Jin?"

"It's just... something women have every month..." Baozhu said shyly, "Fujin is new here, so her reaction is a bit bigger."

Yinzhen frowned. He could vaguely hear some of Fu Jin's groans, but he couldn't help with this matter. He could only say, "Go to the Imperial Hospital and ask someone to come and check on Fu Jin."

"Yes." Baozhu lowered her head and responded.

Yinzhen glanced at the inner room again with concern, and finally went out after Su Peisheng reminded him.