Chapter 77
So embarrassing.
Liu Ju awkwardly dug his toes into the ground, then climbed up using his hands and feet, smiling awkwardly: "Um...uncle, aunt, I...I and my cousin..."
I was about to mention my cousin, but when I turned around, I saw, "Where's my cousin? Where's my cousin who's that old?"
Guessing that the other party had already taken the opportunity to escape, Liu Ju's expression froze, his mouth twitching as he gritted his teeth and said, "I... I just happened to be passing by. I'll leave now, right away. You guys continue... continue!"
After saying that, Liu Ju made a "please" gesture, turned around, quickly backed out, and ran out.
Wei Qing & Pingyang: ...How can we continue like this!
The two looked at each other, then turned away, their expressions changing several times, their moods extremely complicated and difficult to describe.
Outside the palace.
Liu Ju grabbed Huo Qubing and said, "What's wrong with you? Why didn't you help me? Instead, you just watched me fall in. You did it on purpose!"
"God knows what's going on," Huo Qubing cried out in indignation. "I was listening intently, too. Who could have imagined you were so foolish as to lean against the door? By the time I noticed, it was too late."
Liu Ju was speechless: "Too late to pull me, but in time to run?"
Huo Qubing rolled his eyes. "What else can I do? You've already been exposed. You can't let me get away with it for nothing, right?"
Liu Ju couldn't refute it, so he bared his teeth and snorted, "What should we do now?"
Huo Qubing shrugged. "What do you mean by 'what to do'? You were the one who eavesdropped, not me. I didn't hear anything. So it's you who should figure out what to do. It's none of my business."
Liu Ju: ...
You are trying so hard to pass the blame on others. Are you a human being? Are you a human being? Just ask, are you a human being?
Liu Ju sneered coldly and walked away with a flick of his sleeves.
Huo Qubing kindly reminded him, "You've gone the wrong way. This way is the direction back to Weirui Palace."
Liu Ju: "I'm going to Weirui Palace."
Huo Qubing: ???
There's something wrong with you. You've been caught at the scene, and instead of running away and pretending that nothing happened and trying to cover it up, why are you going back?
Not to mention Huo Qubing's incomprehension, Wei Qing and Pingyang also didn't understand. Just as the two were about to leave, they saw Liu Ju coming back.
Liu Ju had a smile on his face at this moment, but it was a very subtle smile, with a hint of cunning, a hint of flattery, and a hint of fawning. "Aunt, uncle, well... let me say a few words. Of course, mainly to uncle."
"Ahem."
Liu Ju cleared his throat and stepped forward. "Uncle, be simple and follow your heart. Don't overthink it. You only have a few decades to live, and the most important thing is to be happy.
"Life isn't a war. You don't need to strategize everything and worry about winning or losing. Sometimes you can be willful. After all, you and your aunt both have the right to be willful and the capital to make mistakes.
"Just do what you want to do. Whether you'll regret it later or not is something you'll know after you've done it. If you're afraid of regretting it after you do it, then won't you regret it if you don't do it?
"You're not a fool, and I'm not a lovestruck woman. Neither of us is obsessed with love, and we know our limits. No matter how things develop, we won't let the situation become too embarrassing, and we know how to maintain our dignity and respect.
"If that's the case, why bother worrying about it? Just do it. If he really regrets it one day, or finds it's not suitable, he can just divorce. It's not like getting married now means he's bound to be together forever."
"Even if the Emperor grants the marriage, so what? It's just a matter of a word from the Emperor. Just talk to the Emperor. The Emperor won't make things difficult for you. When Madam Yun married Liu Qian, it was also the Emperor's arrangement. But they still divorced.
"Given your status, a divorce won't have any impact on you. At most, outsiders might make a few comments, but they can only discuss it privately and won't dare to bring it up in front of you.
"One of you is still a general, you can have seventeen or eighteen concubines; the other is a princess, you can have seventeen or eighteen male lovers. So, what is there to worry about?"
Wei Qing & Pingyang: ...How can you, a half-grown child, talk about seventeen or eighteen concubines and seventeen or eighteen male lovers so easily without blushing or getting nervous?
The expressions of both of them changed at the same time, and it was hard to describe.
Liu Ju coughed again and said, "Well, I'm still young, how could I have considered all this? So this is all what my cousin Qubing said. I think what he said makes a lot of sense, and I should let you know. Anyway, you should think about it more and consider it carefully."
I don't know what Liu Ju wants to do, but I have an inexplicable feeling of foreboding. Huo Qubing, who has been chasing after him for some unknown reason, said: ...
Liu Ju glanced over with a look of contempt and provocation, with a gleam of pride in his eyes.
He never holds grudges and usually takes revenge on the spot.
Perfect.
Huo Qubing took a deep breath: "Uncle, I..."
"Cousin, do you think that what I said is not good enough and you need to supplement it yourself?"
Huo Qubing: ???
What the hell did he add!
"I think I understood your words quite thoroughly and conveyed them clearly, cousin. Isn't that right?"
"If cousin has nothing to add, let's go and don't disturb my uncle and aunt from discussing it."
"We younger generations shouldn't meddle in our elders' affairs. My cousin's behavior today, where he took me to eavesdrop, was disrespectful and impolite. We should stop doing that in the future. Let's go."
He pushed and pulled, opened and closed his mouth, and kept blabbering, not giving Huo Qubing any chance to explain. The last sentence made it impossible for Huo Qubing to explain himself, and he was forced to leave.
Huo Qubing: gnashing teethjpg.
After the two brothers left, Wei Qing and Pingyang breathed a sigh of relief, but the conversation was interrupted again and again, and the atmosphere gradually became weird. The two men were silent and didn't know how to start again.
After a long pause, Pingyang finally said, "Although the Crown Prince's words were a bit blunt, they were true. We, two people in our forties, are not as insightful as a child like him."
She looked over, her smile firm. "Wei Qing, I've confirmed that you're not indifferent to me, nor do you object to this marriage. That's enough. The Crown Prince is right. Sometimes, in life, we can be willful. So I don't need to insist on you taking the initiative. What's wrong with me coming?"
After saying that, he turned and left.
Wei Qing was startled and stepped forward immediately: "Princess!"
Pingyang stopped and asked, "Why, do you want to stop me?"
Wei Qing opened his mouth and took a deep breath: "No. It's just that Qing feels that some things really need Qing to do. It can't be considered as obsession."
Pingyang paused for a moment, then smiled.
A few days later, Liu Ju heard the news that Xiahou Po committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Two days later, news came that Wei Qing and Pingyang were getting married.
Liu Ju said happily, "As expected, those involved are often confused. Some things require outsiders to enlighten us. My words are still effective."
Huo Qubing chuckled: "Now that my uncle and the princess have succeeded, it all comes down to your words. When you tricked me that day, you said it was my words."
"What do you mean by 'trick you'? It was you who tricked me first." Liu Ju's eyes rolled. "I still have things to do. I won't argue with you. Humph."
Pat your butt and leave the palace immediately.
That day, while traveling incognito with Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Ju told a farmer that his father had given him a piece of farmland for him to tend in his spare time. This was true. Emperor Wu of Han had indeed allocated some of the land to him. For the past two years, Zhao Guo had been managing the land, and he had been diligently studying it.
It is now the time when winter wheat is ripe, so Liu Ju naturally wants to come and take a look.
More than twenty days have passed since I went incognito. The wheat in the field has turned from green to golden yellow, and the tall stalks have gradually lowered their heads.
Liu Ju walked through the fields, looking around and saying, "Looking at this, it looks like we'll be able to harvest in a few days, right?"
"Yes. About ten days from now."
Liu Ju looked at the farmland on his left, then looked at the right. He suddenly stopped and took a wheat ear in his hand to examine it carefully. "The wheat ear on the left obviously has more grains and is fuller."
The difference is not just a little bit, it is visibly better and stronger.
Zhao Guo, accustomed to farm work, was more precise than Liu Ju: "Based on my subordinates' experience, when the wheat is harvested and weighed, the amount on the left side should be about a quarter more than on the right."
One quarter...
What is the concept?
This means that if one hundred catties of grain were produced, the yield would increase by 25 catties. If one thousand catties were produced, the yield would increase by 250 catties. What about ten thousand catties, or even a hundred thousand catties? If this were applied to the entire country, how much more grain would be produced?
Liu Ju took a deep breath and said, "You didn't change the farm tools, you just changed the farming method?"
"good."
Liu Ju was surprised: "How did you do that?"
"Thanks to Your Highness. Your Highness has ordered the collection of farming methods from across our country, both north and south. I have compiled them, drawing some insights from the drought relief efforts of the northwest, and combining them with previous experience to develop this method. Please come this way, Your Highness."
Zhao Guo led Liu Ju aside, dug out a piece of land as big as a table, and slowly demonstrated: "First, dig ditches and ridges in the field, divide the fields into plots with alternating ditches and ridges, and plant the crops in the ditches.
"After that, when the seedlings emerge and weeding is done during inter-row cultivation, the ridges are leveled, meaning the soil and weeds on the ridges are gradually pushed down into the furrows.
"The soil can bury the roots, allowing the seedlings to develop better. The weeds removed are buried in the soil, where they decompose and can be used as fertilizer. It also helps prevent wind and lodging."
"This extra step will yield a better crop. Of course, there's another point. The next year, the furrows and ridges need to be swapped. The previous year's ridges become furrows, and the furrows become ridges. This way, the land is rotated, and the furrows and ridges have time to rest, thus maintaining soil fertility.
"The soil fertility has been effectively restored, so the harvest is naturally better than before."
Liu Ju bent down and squatted, looking at the small piece of land that Zhao Guo was demonstrating and thinking deeply.
Zhao Guo continued: "I remember the day when I first met Your Highness, Your Highness asked me if I knew what the Daitian method was.
"When the people at the Gewusi (Investigation of Things) saw that I had made the plow and the curved plow, they looked up to me a bit. But I understand that Gongshu Ye looked down on me for a reason. I truly don't understand the art of craftsmanship.
"I was able to make the plow and the curved plow because I am familiar with farming and have studied it for many years at home, which gives me this advantage. If Your Highness had changed the exam questions, I'm afraid I wouldn't have been able to do it.
"I know my own limitations and am afraid that I will not be able to make any progress in the Gewu Division. If I want to serve Your Highness and repay His Highness for his kindness, I will have no choice but to return to farming.
"I am fortunate to have your Highness's trust in me, allowing me to manage this land and dispose of it at will. How dare I fail to live up to your high expectations? Dai Tian, Dai Tian..."
Zhao Guo was so excited that he knelt down and bowed: "Your Highness, after three years, I have finally accomplished the method you mentioned."
Shiroda's method...Shiroda's method?
Liu Juteng stood up and stared at the farmland in front of him and the small plot of land at his feet, stunned. He whispered softly, "Is this the Daitian method? Is it that simple?"
——Hahaha, does this guy look like he can’t believe it?
I originally thought the Daita Method was about building a skyscraper from scratch, but it turns out it only requires a few pillars. Who understands this gap? It's understandable, considering how significant and effective the Daita Method was when it was studied in history. It feels incredibly impressive. It's incredibly difficult to compare, no problem.
Sometimes the inventing of something doesn't depend on how difficult it is, but on whether you want it or not. If you think of it, you will find that the solution to the problem is actually very simple. If you don't think of it, you will only be going around in circles in a dead end.
That's right. Don't blame Juzi. Honestly, I'm a lazy farmer, I don't know the difference between crops, and I've never worked in the fields. I only know the name of the Daitian method, but I have no idea how it works. Juzi was surprised, and I was also surprised by Zhao Guo's demonstration.
—I am also a lazy person, I don't know how to distinguish between the five kinds of crops, and I have never worked in the fields. I really don't know anything about farming.
——Add me in.
——And me.
Liu Ju frowned. What a bunch of people who don't know anything about farming. No wonder he saw a group of people shouting about Daitianfa, but no one could tell him what Daitianfa was.
Damn!
He took a deep breath and said, "Zhao Guo, follow me into the palace."
He stood up and was about to leave, but then stopped and told Yan Sui, "Go find a larger wooden plate. If you don't have one, make one first. It doesn't matter what, just make it square. Fill it with soil and use it for the demonstration in front of Zhao Guo's hall."
Zhao Guo: ...Demonstrating with a wooden tray filled with soil? There's no suitable land in the palace. This method, while crude, is only for demonstration and to let Your Majesty understand how it's done. It's a workable idea.
Taking Zhao Guo into the carriage, Liu Ju ordered his men to rush into the palace and head straight for the Xuanshi Hall.
This hasty move attracted countless people's attention. Given Liu Ju's past numerous "big moves", everyone's attention was even greater.
Therefore, before the next day, Zhao Guo had just left the palace and Liu Che's decree had just been passed to the Minister of Agriculture, the matter of Dai Tian spread throughout the harem and the court.
Lanlin Hall.
Since being given to Lady Jade, oh no, now she should be called Lady Jade. Ever since being given to Lady Jade by Emperor Liu Che to raise, Liu Hong has lived with her in Lanlin Palace.
At this moment, he sat at his desk, muttering softly: "The method of alternating fields, alternating furrows and ridges, planting in furrows and leveling ridges, rotating furrows and ridges... How simple. But..."
But he just couldn't think of it, and he just remembered the two words "Daitian".
Liu Hong took a deep breath and opened the book on the desk. The book was densely filled with many things written on it, such as soap, papermaking, etc., but most of them had already appeared in the world and were crossed out with a red pen.
There are very few others.
And almost all of them are impossible to achieve and cannot be achieved by him at his age.
Ordinary excellence is called intelligence, while excessive excellence becomes evil. Liu Ju was an exception. He was blessed with the support of Emperor Wu of Han. Just because Emperor Wu of Han would make amends and cover up for Liu Ju, that didn't mean he would do the same for him.
Especially now, with the enemy in the open and us in the dark, his secret remains unknown, so he can still plan, still has hope. If he were to follow Liu Ju's path of invention, he would be exposing himself. His biggest trump card would be gone. What would Liu Ju do?
Liu Ju might be able to tolerate a smart younger brother, but could he tolerate a threat with the same unique advantages as himself?
Now, the gap between him and Liu Ju was too big. If Liu Ju wanted to kill him, it would be easy. He couldn't let himself be put in danger.
so……
Liu Hong struggled, closed the booklet, lit a candle and burned it.
He silently warned himself: Don't rush, absolutely not. He needed to calm down and take his time. These were secondary. The most important thing was what belonged to him, and he had to get it back.
That is the fundamental and the most important thing!
That's his, it's his! How can I let someone else take advantage of it?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
