"The problems have been found, and what remains is to solve them. Let's send someone to Ning County to negotiate for fodder and see how much we can buy and the price. I will also write a letter to Kyoto to see if fodder can be transferred from other places. Now let's find a doctor to see the sick cattle and sheep to see if they can be cured." Ye Chen paused and continued.
"When I was collecting grain, I collected it based on the population of the three northwestern counties. Now that Ning County doesn't need it, there's a lot of extra grain. Once the grain from the Ministry of Revenue arrives, we'll start distributing it. Also, the weather is still hot. Are there any vegetables in the northwest that can be replanted? Eating grain alone won't do. Meat in the northwest is easy to come by, but vegetables are a problem."
The magistrate of Qi County was named Tan. He had been sitting there listening to Ye Chen's words. When he heard Ye Chen's question, he looked up and replied, "The only things we can replant in the northwest right now are cabbages and radishes, but there are locusts everywhere. Planting them is useless. These insects only eat what people eat."
"Each family can grow their own crops and take care of them by themselves. Raising chickens in the vegetable garden may help a lot. Plant as much as you can. This place is too far away. Even if there are places with vegetables, they will go bad when they are transported here. It is best to grow them by yourself." Ye Chen offered his suggestion.
"But there are only a few people who can afford to raise chickens. Besides, it's hard to find that many chickens for them to raise."
"If the chickens are not working, just watch them yourself. The people at home can take turns watching them. It concerns their livelihood, so they will listen. This year, taxes in Qi County and Lan County are exempted, and they don't have to pay them." Ye Chen hoped that he could solve all the problems here. In his previous life, many people died here, countless of them starved to death or died of disease. When he rushed here, it was already too late to save the situation, which led to him killing many people when he traced the source. This started the lifelong curse of his previous life. If he wanted to change, he had to start by saving the people in the northwest. The tragedy of his previous life must not happen again in this life.
When everyone was talking about dinner, they thought about each problem and solution again and again, and finally came up with some rules.
"What time is it now?" Ye Chen asked, rubbing his eyebrows.
"Oh, it's already the beginning of the Xu hour." County Magistrate Tan glanced at the clepsydra. Today he had a way to deal with this disaster, and his mind became much more open-minded.
"Oh? It's the hour of Xu? The weather in the northwest is really different from that in Kyoto. In Kyoto, it's already dark at this time, but here the sun is just about to set." Ye Chen looked at the clepsydra and then at the sky outside. He had never seen the sun at this time in his life.
"Haha, yes, the sun moves from east to west, so there are always places where it sets early. I also found it strange when I first came here."
"Sir, let's go to Qi County Restaurant for dinner today. General Shen and Shen Qianfeng will go with us." County Magistrate Tan was afraid that Ye Chen would not go, so he asked Shen Bolin and Shen Yue to accompany him.
"No, I'm used to having dinner with my wife. We've been talking very late today, so I should go back." Ye Chen stood up and took off his official hat and tucked it into his arms. When Shen Yue saw this, she took it and held it for him.
"Thank you, brother. Father-in-law, let's go back." Ye Chen changed his tone to the Shen father and son as soon as he took off his official hat.
The three of them went out together. Xiao Hang, who had been invisible all this time, was left behind. The county magistrate looked at the three people going away and praised them, "Look at his son-in-law. He has a high status but is not arrogant. Old Shen is lucky."
The lawyer on the side whispered in the county magistrate's ear: "In front of the father-in-law and uncle, can't you talk about the importance of your wife at home? All men are the same. A wife is not as good as a concubine, and a concubine is not as good as a secret lover. All men understand this!" The two people were whispering here, and they didn't notice Xiao Hang sitting in the corner at all. Xiao Hang was still wondering when Ye Chen would realize that he had lost himself. He didn't expect to hear others talking about Ye Chen. It was also an unexpected gain.
Xiao Hang coughed lightly, stood up from the chair, looked at the two people who were open-mouthed in shock, smiled faintly, raised his hand to his ear and waved, "This Ye Chen is a wife slave, he listens to his wife in everything, if he hears you talking about him like this, he will probably... hey, hey, hey, what are you doing?" Before Xiao Hang could finish his words, the two men carried Xiao Hang to sit on the chair.
"Hehe, I remember you. You are the doctor who came with the grain delivery team, right? Please don't tell the governor what we said today, okay? We two are innocent because we are ignorant. The governor is not only in a high position, but also has a sense of loyalty, right?" The legal advisor Xiao Hang patted his shoulder. County Magistrate Tan brought tea to Xiao Hang. Xiao Hang looked like a smug villain.
"Hey, Xiaochenzi, I can also feel how it feels like for you to be in a high position!" Xiao Hang took the tea and drank it all, but he knew when to stop. "Okay, I know you have no bad intentions. If you want to leave a good impression on Ye Chen, there is no other way except to work hard and do your job conscientiously. He is not greedy or greedy, and he is not short of money. He bought the food with his own money, so there is no shortcut for you."
The two of them watched Xiao Hang leave, looking at each other for a long time. They really couldn't talk about people behind their backs, because who knew who might hear them?
Ye Chen and the other two returned to the general's mansion. Shen Qiu was chatting with his mother, grandparents, and Ye Chen came in and greeted the elders first, then sat down in the seat next to Shen Qiu. Shen Bolin frowned. This was not a big deal in his own home in the northwest, but judging from the two of them, it seemed very natural. If this happened in a place like Kyoto, it would be hard to guarantee that people would not criticize it.
Except for Shen Bolin, everyone else here was used to what happened between Ye Chen and Shen Qiu. Ye Chen didn't care about his father-in-law's expression. He picked up Shen Qiu's right hand and stroked the calluses on Shen Qiu's hand. Shen Qiu turned around and smiled at Ye Chen. Shen Bolin clenched his left fist and covered his mouth with it and coughed lightly, but he didn't interrupt Ye Chen and Shen Qiu. The subtle but obvious disgust in his eyes was evident.
Seeing Shen Bolin's expression, Wang Shi recalled the first time she met Ye Chen, and hurriedly said, "The food is ready, let's eat. It won't taste good if it gets cold."
Shen Bolin seemed to have found a savior, and quickly agreed, "Yes, yes, let's go and eat. My uncle didn't even have lunch."
"Really? Then let's eat."
"Didn't you eat something at the county government office?" Chen Qiu and Ye Chen fell behind, and Chen Qiu asked Ye Chen quietly.
"No, I forgot because there were so many things going on. Qiu'er, did you miss me?" Ye Chen asked quietly in Shen Qiu's ear. Shen Qiu instinctively looked towards his parents who were walking in front of him. Seeing that no one turned back, although his ears were red, he nodded.
"Xiao Chenzi, have you forgotten something?" Suddenly Xiao Hang's voice sounded from behind. Only then did Ye Chen remember that he did not bring Xiao Hang with him when he left.
"Xiao Hang, greetings to Grandma Shen, Grandfather Shen, General Shen, and Brother Shen." Xiao Hang performed the junior's etiquette to the elders of the Shen family, and the peer's etiquette to Shen Yue.
"Hahaha, I forgot about you too. Luckily you came here by yourself, otherwise you would have to keep company with the locusts outside." Shen Yue patted Xiao Hang's shoulder. Well, he was really unwelcome. No one remembered that he existed.
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