After hearing this, the Fourth Prince frowned and said, "But I sent people to check, and Yangzhou is adjacent to the Jiangnan region. The fertile fields for thousands of miles are all planted with wheat and rice, and there is no idle land. But the major grain-producing households that should be producing grain are now reporting that they will have a poor harvest."
Aunt Cui looked at Fourth Prince and said, "In my opinion, either they didn't take good care of them, or they lied. It's useless for Fourth Prince to just send people to check without actually seeing how the crops are growing."
The Fourth Prince chimed in, "What the old man says is absolutely right. It's just that I'm troubled by not having anyone I can trust to investigate this matter."
Aunt Cui gave her two sons a knowing look. Both Cui Da and Cui Erben hesitated, but seeing their mother encouraging them, they could no longer cower in fear.
Cui Da was the first to crawl to his feet, then knelt down with a thud. Seeing that Cui Da was serious, Cui Er quickly followed suit and knelt down with a thud as well.
“I am willing to serve Fourth Prince. I am a farmer by trade, and I can tell how big and how much crops will grow just by looking at them,” Cui Da said honestly.
Fourth Master frowned as he looked at Cui Da, then turned to look at Lan Qin. Seeing her smiling at him, he felt as if he had received some kind of hint.
"You may all rise. This matter needs careful planning before it can be carried out. I understand your intentions," said the Fourth Master.
After the barbecue picnic, Cui Da and Cui Er insisted on taking Fourth Master to his farm.
Lanqin led everyone to fly kites and play on the grassy slope. As dusk fell, Lanqin instructed everyone to pack up and go home. However, Fourth Master, Cui Da, and Cui Er still hadn't returned!
The two little ones were tired from playing, so Lanqin instructed the wet nurse to take them away to rest.
“Cui Niang, I’m a little tired and want to rest. Let those five girls learn the rules from you first,” Lan Qin said.
Lanqin slept and didn't get up for dinner. She was still asleep when Fourth Master returned.
“Master, Master!” Nianxue’s voice rang out from outside the tent.
"Hmm? What time is it?" Lanqin stretched lazily inside the tent.
"Master, it's past 5 PM. The master has returned and is currently in the master's study!" Nianxue saw that Lanqin had finally woken up and quickly used the Ruyi hook to pull up the gauze curtains.
"Has Master had dinner yet?" Lanqin jumped up in a flash.
"Not yet, Master said he wants to wait for Master to use it together." Nianxue helped Lanqin up from the bed.
"Let's make something easy to digest for dinner! We ate too much beef and mutton at lunch," Lanqin said with a smile.
After inspecting the fields with Cui Da and Cui Er, Fourth Master gained insights into the sowing, cultivation, and fertilization of crops. He hadn't realized there were so many principles involved in farming. Previously, he hadn't paid enough attention, and the imperial court hadn't given sufficient importance to agricultural matters in various regions. The mentality of relying entirely on the weather was a serious mistake.
Through his interactions with Cui Da, a genuine farmer, Fourth Master suddenly gained many new ideas about farming.
When Lanqin entered the study, Fourth Master was still engrossed in writing something at his desk, looking very focused. Lanqin quietly watched Fourth Master, finding his serious expression increasingly captivating, yet also utterly despicable when he acted like a scoundrel!
"Have you seen enough?" Fourth Master asked as he wrote.
"No, I just enjoy watching you write like this, Master," Lanqin said with a smile.
"Hurry up and come grind the ink for me." Fourth Master said with a smile.
Lan Qin moved gracefully to the Fourth Master's side, picked up the ink stick on the table, and began grinding it in the inkstone.
“Cui Niang’s two brothers are quite interesting,” Fourth Master said.
"If Master needs them, they are people who can be entrusted with important tasks." Lanqin vaguely knew that Fourth Master had recently been raising military provisions for the army fighting abroad.
"We must send Thirteen along, along with those two from the Cui family, to show Master why the grain harvest in Jiangsu and Zhejiang has failed," said Fourth Master.
"My lord, I have another idea that might solve your current problem," Lanqin said.
"Do you know about my predicament?" Fourth Master put down his pen and looked up at Lanqin.
Lanqin smiled and said, "What I'm worried about right now is food! When soldiers are fighting on the front lines, not having enough to eat is the most demoralizing thing. So all my thoughts are on food. It's April now, and the autumn crops in Jiangsu and Zhejiang are almost ripe. What I'm most worried about right now is a good harvest there."
"I never imagined that Qin'er, though living in this villa, would have her heart set on her country and its people," Fourth Master said with approval in his eyes.
“The grain in the north was all sown this spring, and it won’t be ripe until August. Right now, the army is relying on the grain from Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Master, how long can the grain in the granaries last?” Lanqin asked.
"There's only enough for one month, but the report from Jiangsu says there's a poor harvest. I'll have to buy grain from the market then," Fourth Master said, frowning.
"I'm afraid some unscrupulous merchants will hoard grain and drive up prices," Lanqin said.
"That's what I'm worried about. Some merchants will hoard grain to make a fortune. It's despicable! But first, I need to find out why the grain harvest in Jiangsu and Zhejiang is so poor before I can make any further plans," said the Fourth Master.
"Master, let Thirteen take the Cui brothers there. However, Lanqin has another person to recommend to you, my cousin Dachun. I've found he has a good business sense. Why don't we have him go to Guangdong and Guangxi to see if there's any grain there? The imperial court usually can't keep up with the grain collection in Hunan and Guangxi, and much of it is used as rations for the local garrisons. I want Dachun to go there and see if he can find grain at a lower price than here, then have him transport some back for backup," Lanqin said.
Fourth Master looked at Lanqin with bright eyes and said excitedly, "What you said makes sense. We'll do as you say and let Dachun go and take a look."
"Alright then, now is Your Highness in the mood to accompany me to dinner?" Lanqin said.
"Naturally, the meals prepared by the concubine have always been to the liking of this prince," the Fourth Prince said with a smile, taking Lanqin's hand.
Dinner was noodles, and Chef Niu made two bowls of shredded chicken noodles. Miao Tiao chose the very thin cloud-shaped noodles. The chicken used was chicken breast, shredded into thin strips, and the bok choy was made from the tenderest heart of the vegetables. With Chef Niu's skillful hands, it was truly delicious. Fourth Master ate three bowls in one go, and still wanted more, but Lan Qin stopped him in the end.
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