Chapter 160 Pei Zhi 2

Pei Zhi was dazed and confused as You Fu pressed him down onto a wooden bench.

The moment his bottom touched the table, an older woman next to him deftly handed him a bowl and chopsticks, emphasizing, "Young master, don't worry, we've scalded them with boiling water several times! They're perfectly clean!"

That smile was so pure it was almost blinding.

Pei Zhi was about to express his gratitude, but before he could even open his mouth, the crowd suddenly erupted in deafening cheers!

"Young Miss has arrived!"

"Princess Jianing!"

"I hope you are well, young lady!"

Pei Zhi subconsciously looked up.

The mansion gate was wide open, and Xie Sangning appeared at the entrance.

She wasn't dressed in elaborate clothes, but in a pale white dress, her dark hair simply tied up.

But the moment she stepped out the door, the golden-red afterglow of the setting sun pierced through the clouds, like a holy pillar of light enveloping her, gilding her entire body with a golden edge!

As if drawn by a magnet, the crowd surged forward with cheers, only to spontaneously stop a few steps in front of her, forming a human wall.

Countless hands waved excitedly, and countless weathered faces beamed with pure and radiant smiles, their eyes burning with the fervor of a savior descending upon the world!

Pei Zhi felt as if something had squeezed his heart tightly!

He stared blankly at the woman in the center of the crowd, who was being enthusiastically surrounded by people.

He even had an absurd illusion—this was no ordinary human world; it was clearly a goddess descending to earth, receiving the worship of all people!

Xie Sangning smiled faintly and raised her hand to press down.

Surprisingly, the deafening cheers that had been going on just moments before quickly subsided at her gesture.

"Alright, everyone spread out a bit, don't crowd together. Sang Ning appreciates everyone's kind gestures. Thank you for your hard work and for the expense."

Her gaze swept gently across each face. "Sit back down, the food is getting cold."

These words are so simple and unpretentious, they flow into everyone's heart like a warm current.

"It's not hard work! It's the young lady who's having a hard time!"

"It's no trouble at all to offer you this!"

"Yes, yes, listen to Miss, sit back down, sit back down!"

The people chimed in with their own voices, their faces beaming with smiles. They obediently returned to their places, but their eyes remained fixed on Xie Sangning, unwilling to look away.

Xie Sangning herself casually found an empty seat at the main table closest to the entrance of the mansion and sat down.

"The food's served!" someone shouted, and the atmosphere became lively again.

Pei Zhi's attention was immediately drawn back to the table.

He could only smell the aroma from a distance, but now that the dishes were actually placed in front of him, he was truly amazed!

Good heavens! This banquet is no joke!

Large quantity! Plenty of ingredients! Abundant oil and juiciness!

This feast is so lavish that even in the capital, let alone in the "bitterly cold land" of Xihan, ordinary middle-class families might not be able to prepare such a sumptuous meal for the holidays!

Pei Zhi's mouth watered at the sight. Forgetting all about princely decorum, he picked up his scalded chopsticks and popped a piece of braised pork into his mouth. It melted in his mouth! Rich yet not greasy! The intense aroma of the sauce and meat exploded in his mouth! It was so delicious he almost swallowed his tongue!

"It smells so good! It smells so good!" he couldn't help but exclaim.

A dark-skinned man in a short jacket chuckled beside him, speaking with a heavy Western accent: "That's right! Young master, you're in luck! This feast is no small feat! Look at this pork," he pointed to the pot of braised pork with his chopsticks, "this is a genuine live pig! It came all the way from Beiyuan Prefecture, sixty miles away! Crossing mountains and valleys along the way is nothing, the key is that the road there wasn't safe!"

He lowered his voice, his face showing a mixture of lingering fear and pride: "We encountered several groups of foolish bandits on the road who tried to steal our pigs! Hey! What happened? They were beaten to a pulp by our escorting men! Not a single person was missing! Not a single pig was lost! They were all delivered to our young lady's banquet, perfectly intact!"

He raised his voice a few decibels, filled with gratitude: "It's all thanks to Miss! If it weren't for her making us strengthen our bodies and organizing the guard team to train, how could we be so tough? Before, let alone herding pigs, we had to be on tenterhooks even when we went out!"

The others at the table chimed in:

"Exactly! Only when the young lady arrives do we feel more confident!"

"Practice! We must practice! How can we protect our good life in Xihan if we don't practice!"

"Follow the young lady, and you'll have meat to eat! And peaceful days to live!"

Pei Zhi nodded repeatedly, his mouth full of fragrant meat, and his heart felt warm.

As he swallowed, he looked at the tempting braised pork and, on a whim, blurted out, "This pork is so good, why don't we raise our own in Xihan? It saves us the trouble of transporting it all the way from here and worrying about it."

He asked this question sincerely, genuinely finding it strange.

In a place as big as Xihan, raising a few pigs is not a difficult task.

Upon hearing this, the lively dinner table fell silent for a moment.

The seven or eight people at the table, including the dark-faced man from before, all turned to look at him.

That look in his eyes…

How to put it? There was no malice, but it was full of astonishment as if looking at a fool and a little pity.

"Pfft..." Someone couldn't help but laugh out loud, then quickly covered their mouth.

The dark-faced man grinned, revealing a set of white teeth: "Young master, you...you look like a young master from a wealthy family, don't you? You pampered child, you've never experienced the hardship of our sandy land!"

An elderly farmer with gray hair put down his chopsticks, shook his head, and said helplessly, "Young master, it's not that we don't want to raise them! It's just that God... He won't allow it!"

"Pigs can't be raised in the desert. The temperature is too low, and if there's an epidemic, they'll all die! The losses would be huge! We lack water and food, how can we raise pigs here?"

“Cattle, sheep, and horses are different. They are drought-resistant and can survive on grass. Our vast sandy land has some drought-resistant grass. Although their meat is not as tender as pork, they can survive! Those that can survive are the good stuff!”

"Exactly!" The others at the table nodded in agreement.

"Young master, it's obvious that you've never gone hungry or farmed before."

Another woman chuckled and joked, her tone quite friendly, "Life isn't as simple as it's written in books!"

Pei Zhi's face instantly turned red all the way to the roots of his ears!

He opened his mouth, wanting to say something in his defense, but found that he couldn't utter a single word.

He thought himself clever and knowledgeable, but he didn't even understand the most basic principles concerning the survival of a local area!

In the capital, he only saw the exquisite dishes on the table and enjoyed the comfort of silk and satin. He never thought about where the food came from.

Have you ever thought about what water, land, and climate mean for people's survival?

A wave of shame and self-doubt washed over him. He felt like a clown dressed in fine clothes, standing in the middle of a bustling city, thinking himself noble when in reality he was just a fool.

He realized that he, a prince who had lived a life of luxury, was so shallow and ignorant when it came to real survival. For the first time, he clearly understood the profound chasm between himself and this land, and between himself and these simple people.

And finally realized how admirable it was that Xie Sangning was able to revitalize such a Xihan.

While Pei Zhi was enjoying his journey, his father, Emperor Pei Yan, was in a state of great anxiety. The once-every-five-years military review was approaching, during which the Tiger Tally had to be displayed. Last time, he had managed to fool the emperor, but this time the person in charge of the review was Jiang Xuewu, a retired general from the previous dynasty. Jiang Xuewu not only knew what the Tiger Tally looked like, but he had also never approved of him. When he first became emperor, Jiang Xuewu, like that old scoundrel Lin Zhu, immediately requested permission to retire and return to his hometown.

There's no way you can get him to cooperate; he'll definitely spill the beans immediately!

Pei Yan was worried about losing his hair.

"Desheng, tell Consort Ru that I will still go over tonight."

Desheng responded and then backed out.

Now that Consort Ru is increasingly favored, Pei Yan finds relief and forgets his troubles only in her presence when he is anxious.

He had suspected that Consort Ru might have drugged him, but after having the imperial physician investigate him openly and secretly many times, nothing was found. Pei Yan simply considered Consort Ru, Xie Nu'er, to be a gift from heaven and doted on her even more.